Pumpkin and Sweet Potato Soup

Name: Pumpkin and Sweet Potato Soup
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 16 ounces (454 g) sweet potato cubes, 1/2 inch (1.3 cm) size (about 3 1/4 cups); 2 cups (242 g) chopped onion (from about 1 large or 2 small onions); 2 ribs celery; 3 cloves garlic; 3 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil; 2 teaspoons kosher salt (Diamond Crystal - use half for table salt, see note 1); 3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper, or to taste; 1 teaspoon smoked paprika; 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger; 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon; pinch cayenne pepper (optional); 6 - 7 cups (1.4 - 1.7 L) broth (for vegetarian soup, use vegetable broth); one 15 ounce (425 g) can pumpkin purée; 1 cup (237 ml) heavy cream; optional garnish: hulled pumpkin seeds

Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe· 5 from 1 review

This creamy pumpkin and sweet potato soup is warm and inviting, with the cozy spices of ground ginger, smoked paprika, and a touch of cinnamon. This easy pumpkin soup with sweet potato can be made ahead of time in only about 40 minutes, making it a great addition to your holiday table!

pumpkin and sweet potato soup in two bowls with hand holding spoon in soup.

Note: this post was originally published in 2021 and updated in 2022 with new photos and improved instructions.

In fall and winter, nothing beats a cozy and piping hot bowl of soup to start a meal off right. Besides my favorite recipes for turkey sweet potato soup and carrot pumpkin apple soup, you need to try this hearty and fortifying pumpkin and sweet potato soup!

This rich and creamy pumpkin soup with sweet potato brings together so much autumn and winter cheer all in one bowl! Along with sweet potato and pumpkin, this soup features cozy and warming spices, including ground ginger, smoked paprika, cayenne (optional if you don't like spice!), and a touch of cinnamon.

This soup uses canned pumpkin purée, making it super easy to make in only about 40 minutes. And, you can easily make this soup a few days ahead of time, saving you precious prep time if you are serving this for the holidays.

Jump to:

Recipe ingredients
Step by step photos
Storage and reheating instructions
Recipe variations and substitutions
Serving suggestions
Slow cooker instructions
Tips and tricks
Recipe FAQs
Related recipes
📖 Recipe

Recipe ingredients

Ingredient notes

Broth: to make your pumpkin and sweet potato soup vegetarian, you can use vegetable broth. Otherwise, any type of homemade or store-bought broth/stock will do, such as chicken or beef.

Heavy cream: I used heavy whipping cream to give this soup its richness, but if you prefer a lighter soup, you can also use light cream.

Oil: I used olive oil to sauté the vegetables, but feel free to use your favorite cooking oil, such as grapeseed oil or canola oil.

Pumpkin purée: Be careful not to use pumpkin pie filling by mistake! If you happen to have homemade pumpkin purée, feel free to use that instead.

Step by step photos

Here is a step by step breakdown on how to make pumpkin and sweet potato soup. For the full instructions, please see the recipe card at the bottom of the post.

1. Step one is to prep the vegetables. Chop the onion and slice the celery. Finely chop the garlic. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into about ½ inch (1.3 cm) cubes.

I like to cut the cubes by first making ½ inch (1.3 cm) slices, stacking a few of the slices, and then cross-cutting them into cubes.

chopped celery garlic and onion on cutting board with hands cutting sweet potato into cubes

2. Next, heat the oil in a large pot. When the oil is hot, sauté the onion and celery until the onion is soft and is just starting to brown around the edges.

onion and celery cooked in pot with wooden spoon

3. Now add in the spices and garlic.

hand pouring small plate with spices into soup pot

4. Continue to cook and stir for another minute or so, until the spices are fragrant.

5. Add in the sweet potato cubes and 6 cups (1.4 L) of the broth. Stir the mixture to combine and bring the soup to a boil. Gently boil the soup for 12 - 14 minutes, or until the sweet potato is tender.

spoon in pot with sweet potato chunks and broth

6. You can check the tenderness of the sweet potato by piercing it with a fork. If the fork can enter the sweet potato without resistance, they are done.

spoon holding piece of sweet potato with fork piercing the piece

7. Turn the heat down to low and stir in the canned pumpkin. Let the soup cook for another minute or two.

hands scooping pumpkin puree from can into soup pot

8. Now turn the heat off the stove and remove the pot from the hot burner. Pour in the heavy cream, and blend the soup with an immersion blender.

9. If you think the soup should be a little thinner, you can stir in some more broth.

carton of broth being poured into pot of finished soup

10. Taste the pumpkin sweet potato soup and add in more salt, black pepper, and/or cayenne if you like!

pepper being ground into pot with finished soup

Storage and reheating instructions

Fridge storage and reheating instructions

You can easily make this pumpkin soup with sweet potato ahead of time! It keeps very well in the fridge for up to 3 days. Just be sure to keep it in an airtight container.

To reheat the soup, warm it gently in a saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently, and avoid boiling the soup.

When reheating, you may also wish to add in a little bit more broth and/or heavy cream if you need to thin it out a bit.

Freezer storage and reheating instructions

Because of the heavy cream, I don't recommend freezing leftovers. However, you could blend the soup without adding in the cream and freeze it that way if you like.

After it's cooled down, place the blended (non creamy!) soup into an airtight food storage container and freeze. Make sure to leave enough headroom for the soup to expand as it freezes.

Then, when you want to serve the soup, thaw it overnight in the fridge and heat it in a saucepan as outlined in the section above. When the soup is warm, now you can mix in the 1 cup (237 ml) of heavy cream, taste for seasoning, and add more salt and/or pepper if needed.

Recipe variations and substitutions

If you want to add a different twist on your pumpkin and sweet potato soup, or, if you don't have one of the recipe ingredients, give one of these substitutions or variations a try:

Instead of sweet potato, substitute chunks of peeled butternut squash or kabocha squash.

If you don't have celery on hand, just add in a little extra onion.

If you are out of (or don't like) one of the spices called for (ground ginger, smoked paprika, and cinnamon), feel free to leave that one out. Instead you could add: ground cumin, ground coriander, regular paprika, or chili powder.

For a hint of sweetness, add in chunks of peeled apple along with the sweet potato.

To give the soup a brighter flavor, replace half of the heavy cream with full fat sour cream or plain Greek yogurt.

If you prefer more texture in your soup, don't blend the soup all the way so it stays a bit chunky!

Serving suggestions

There are so many fun ways to garnish this soup. I like using hulled pumpkin seeds to tie in the pumpkin theme. You can also try: sprigs of fresh parsley, chopped chives, cracked black pepper, red chili flakes, crumbled bacon, caramelized onions, croutons, and/or a swirl of extra heavy cream.

This soup would work great as a starter for a Thanksgiving, Christmas, or other fall/winter holiday dinner, served with one or more of the garnishes listed above!

You could also serve this pumpkin soup as a part of a lunch or dinner main course, alongside a salad and some crusty bread, or paired with a sandwich (try my grilled halloumi sandwich!).

Slow cooker instructions

You can easily convert this pumpkin and sweet potato soup recipe to make in the crock pot! Here's how you do it:

Add all the recipe ingredients, except the heavy cream and broth, to the crock pot (this includes the pumpkin puree, even though it's added later in the original recipe).
Then pour in broth until the ingredients are covered, about 3 - 4 cups. We need less broth for the crock pot version - the crock pot lid will trap all the steam, and the vegetables will also release some liquid.
Stir everything together and place on the lid. Cook on high for 4 hours, or on low for 8 hours, until the vegetables are very soft.
Turn off the crock pot and add the heavy cream. Blend the soup with the immersion blender as written in the original recipe. Taste the soup and add more salt and/or pepper, or extra broth, if needed.

Tips and tricks

I included volume and weight measurements for the onion and sweet potato, but if you don't want to have to precisely measure out each of those, all you need are one large (or two small) onion, and one large sweet potato (weighing about 1 pound).

You can adjust the spices and seasonings in this soup to your liking. If you are really into garlic for example, feel free to add more! I would go easy on the cinnamon, however. The recipe calls for ¼ teaspoon, and this small amount is just right to add a hint of warmth without calling out "there's CINNAMON in here!!"

This recipe was developed using Diamond Crystal kosher salt, which is quite light and flaky. To substitute regular table salt, start with only 1 teaspoon, or for Morton kosher salt, start with 1 ¼ teaspoon. Then add more as needed to taste.

Recipe FAQs

What if I don't have an immersion blender?

If you don't have an immersion (stick) blender, you can use a regular blender instead. A regular blender is also a good option if you want the soup to have a 100% smooth and silky texture. (The immersion blender does a good job, but there will be some slight texture left in the soup.)

But, if you want to use a regular blender to blend the soup, there are some important safety tips to follow so you don't accidently burn yourself on the hot soup. Please follow the steps outlined in this helpful post Blending Hot Foods in a Blender to blend the hot soup safely.

Can I make this soup vegan?

If you use vegetable broth, the only non-vegan ingredient in the soup is the heavy cream. Therefore, an easy way to make a vegan version of this soup would be to swap an equal amount of full-fat canned coconut milk for the heavy cream.

Can I make this soup in the crock pot or slow cooker?

Yes, you definitely can make this pumpkin sweet potato soup in the crock pot! I outline how to easily modify the recipe for the crock pot in the Slow Cooker Instructions section above.

pumpkin and sweet potato soup in two bowls with parsley and pumpkin seeds on the side.

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