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Cream of Zucchini Soup

August 1, 2015

Use up all that fresh garden zucchini with this kid friendly, smooth creamy gluten & dairy free Cream of Zucchini Soup!

Cream of Zucchini Soup

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Sweet summer & a recipe update…

I made a decision to use the last part of summer to start updating some older posts on the blog that we use frequently, and this recipe is a very loved and used staple in our house all summer long. You see, we spend all of the warm summer days that we can on Lake Michigan, and I typically take the summer “off” from new recipe development while the girls are the ages that they are. When I originally wrote this recipe, I was knee deep in 3 kids under the age of 6, and photography wasn’t something I had a lot of time for! I love give you guys as much of a step by step as possible, so I’m starting with this beloved soup we use so much. If you are a long time follower and have used this recipe for years, there is literally zero ingredient changes! It is the exact same as all those years ago…If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it – right?!

Cream of Zucchini Soup

From babies to big kids, teens & adults – a family favorite!

I’ve been serving cream of zucchini soup since the girls’ babyhood! As soon as they were able to take little sips from my mug or spoon around 6 months old, serving zucchini in soup form is a great introduction to this power packed vegetable! I still make batches and batches of cream of zucchini soup every summer when zucchini is at in season prices and stash it away in my deep freezer for the fall and winter. If you have kids that love taking a thermos of warm soup to school, this is a super easy one to pack with a little straw to slurp it right up!

Cream of Zucchini Soup

An underrated vegetable…

I remember years ago when a natural health practitioner I was working with told me that me and my exhausted adrenals to get some zucchini into our diet. I remember thinking she was crazy – what could this boring, bland vegetable have that could help my adrenals?! Turns out zucchini is a very good source of vitamin C, potassium, sodium, magnesium, and B vitamins…all absolutely crucial to adrenal health and stress reduction. Zucchini also has a high water content – and when you are in adrenal fatigue, drinking glass after glass of plain water is just diluting vital electrolytes your body needs to function. When we get water from fruits and vegetables, it is packaged up with the electrolytes our body needs to truly hydrate! I’m here to tell you drinking veggie soups like this cream of zucchini soup from a mug every morning was absolutely key in my recovery and digging myself out of adrenal issues.

Cream of Zucchini Soup
Cream of Zucchini Soup

The method :: The veggies

Where does all that amazing flavor come from, you ask? Zucchini is quite the blank canvas when it comes to flavor, so instead of a bland, boring soup, this cream of zucchini soup has the help from the magic that comes from getting some flavorful veggies down into some butter first to develop that amazing rich and savory flavor everyone is going to love. The best part is that this soup ends up getting all blended up in the end anyway, so just a quick, coarse chop is all you need to do – no need for a pretty dice. This is the perfect first time soup cooking recipe, and also why it was my favorite kind of soup recipe as a busy mom with babies at home!

Cream of Zucchini Soup

The method :: Getting the soup started

After you get the veggies chopped, get them down into some butter or other cooking fat of choice to saute. This will help the veggies soften and sweeten.

Cream of Zucchini Soup

The method :: Adding the broth and simmering

Once your veggies are soft, its time to add the broth. Whether you have homemade bone broth on hand or a store bought better ingredient brand broth, either will work just fine for this soup. When you cook your next whole chicken in the slow cooker or the Instant Pot, put a good few cups of water or more into the pot with the chicken so you can strain of the meat stock for soups like this – look at that gel from the collagen on the meat stock I’m pouring into the soup here! Once you add the broth, just simmer for 5 minutes, and you’re ready to blend it up!

Cream of Zucchini Soup
Cream of Zucchini Soup

The method :: Blend it up!

Whether you have an immersion blender, or a regular blender, simply blend the soup up at this point, and you’re done! It is as easy as that! Season it to your taste with salt and pepper, and I also like a swirl of sour cream or yogurt into the bowl, OR you can pour some coconut milk or raw milk or cream into the whole pot to add extra creaminess.

Cream of Zucchini Soup
Cream of Zucchini Soup
Print Recipe
5 from 5 votes

Cream of Zucchini Soup

Perfectly creamy, filled with rich amazing flavor, and loaded with fresh garden zucchini, this cream of zucchini soup will become your favorite use of all that summer zucchini!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Total Time20 minutes
Course: Soup
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cream of zucchini soup, cream of zucchini soup recipe
Servings: 6 servings
Author: Renee – www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup or so of butter to cook in or tallow/lard, coconut oil, avocado oil
  • 2 small/medium onions coarsely chopped
  • 2 medium carrots coarsely chopped
  • 2 celery stalks coarsely chopped
  • 5-6 medium zucchini coarsely chopped
  • 5-6 large cloves of garlic minced
  • 1 1/2 quarts bone broth homemade preferable for more nutrients but use what you have
  • 1/8 – 1/4 tsp cayenne this is optional if you don’t like heat – it is still really good without it
  • Sea salt/pepper to taste If your broth was unseasoned be sure to season liberally
  • Whole sour cream and chives to garnish the top

Instructions

  • Melt your butter in a soup pot and add the onion, carrot, celery, and zucchini along with a big pinch of sea salt to draw out the veggie’s juices to sweeten them. Cook on medium heat for 10-15 minutes stirring occasionally.
  • Add the garlic and cook for a minute.
  • Add the broth and cayenne and bring to a simmer for about 5 minutes.
  • Blend the soup with an immersion blender (or in a regular blender in batches), and season with sea salt and pepper to taste.
  • Garnish with a dollop of whole sour cream and chopped chives if you want!
Cream of Zucchini Soup

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35 Comments

  • Reply Emily @ Recipes to Nourish August 2, 2015 at 2:17 pm

    This sounds delicious! I bet my Tiny Love would love this. I must make some.

  • Reply carol August 3, 2015 at 7:49 pm

    This looks great. It will be a nice change from our broccoli soup! Love recipes that use homemade bone broth.

  • Reply Karissa August 3, 2015 at 9:21 pm

    Oh my gosh – this looks so good! What an awesome way to still eat those summer veggies during the winter by freezing this soup.

  • Reply Marjorie August 4, 2015 at 8:53 am

    I have a bumper crop of zucchini this year and I love this idea! I’m trying this today 🙂

  • Reply Loriel August 4, 2015 at 8:53 am

    This looks SO tasty! I can’t wait to make it.

  • Reply Susie August 4, 2015 at 9:03 am

    We have so much zucchini this year. I’ll be making this today

  • Reply linda spiker August 4, 2015 at 10:06 am

    5 stars
    Gorgeous color and the recipe sounds delicious! Your garden is amazing too. Can’t grow a thing here in California. We are only allowed to water twice a week now 🙁

  • Reply Megan Stevens August 4, 2015 at 10:27 am

    Mmm, this looks so so good! Zucchini is my favorite veggie! Love all your flowers in the garden, too. You really bring summer alive in this post! Viva bone broth soup in summer! 🙂

  • Reply The Provision Room August 4, 2015 at 11:29 am

    It will be on the menu plan this week! All our zucchini is ripening as we speak!!! Exciting and delicious times!!! 🙂

  • Reply Tash August 4, 2015 at 12:06 pm

    5 stars
    I put zucchini in a lot of recipes, but I’ve never had it as a soup! I’ll have to try this 🙂

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  • Reply Wendy August 25, 2015 at 2:34 pm

    5 stars
    This looks amazing! I have been zucchini obsessed lately. For some reason I’ve never tried soup with zucchini in it so I’ll have to give this a try.

  • Reply Chad Kinsinger August 30, 2015 at 10:48 pm

    It’s the perfect soup for combating flu season and cold winter nights, all while being incredibly scrumptious. Good bye evil colds, hello yum in my tum.

  • Reply 5 Ways to Maximize the Home Preserved Pantry October 21, 2015 at 5:41 am

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  • Reply Tangela November 12, 2015 at 8:50 am

    I have a good bit of shredded zucchini that I have frozen and I would love to try this recipe! Can you tell me how many cups 5-6 zucchini makes? I froze my zucchini in 2 cup batches. Thanks in advance!

    • Reply Renee Kohley November 13, 2015 at 1:27 pm

      Oh I would say one of those 2 cup bags is probably 1 zucchini? The recipe is really forgiving – go ahead and try like 5 bags and you can add more broth if it is too thick, or add more zucchini if it is too thin 🙂

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  • Reply Sarah floyd January 10, 2018 at 9:27 pm

    another family favorite! Thank you!

    • Reply Renee Kohley January 18, 2018 at 10:22 am

      You’re welcome Sarah! I’m glad you enjoy it – we love this one too!

  • Reply Jen July 22, 2018 at 2:55 pm

    Hi Renee- which bone broth do you use beef or chicken?

    • Reply Renee Kohley July 26, 2018 at 11:55 am

      Hi Jen! I have used both and both are good! It will feel lighter using chicken broth however.

  • Reply Alisha Moore September 20, 2018 at 3:56 pm

    5 stars
    Hi, RENEE KOHLEY
    Wow! This looks amazing. It will be very nice to change from my carrot soup! Love this recipe. I can’t wait to make it.

  • Reply Echo Roggenkamp August 9, 2019 at 9:42 am

    Have anyone tried to can this soup?

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  • Reply Colleen Warner August 20, 2021 at 10:44 am

    5 stars
    Love this recipe! So tasty! Wonder how long if I made this in the instant pot? 10 minutes on soup setting? Immediate release?

    • Reply Renee Kohley August 21, 2021 at 7:36 am

      Hi Colleen! I’ve done this! Just saute the aromatics first and then add the zucchini and broth in – I am pretty sure I did 10 minutes, yes! I like to let the pressure come down a little bit before releasing!

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