Slow Cooker Pumpkin Soup

A bowl of creamy orange soup topped with golden-brown croutons and a swirl of cream, placed on a wooden board with extra croutons in a nearby bowl.

5 from 2 votes

Slow Cooker Pumpkin Soup

🍁🎃 Made with pumpkin puree, sweet potatoes, carrots, and warming spices for unparalleled coziness! Makes about 4 servings as a starter, or 2 big servings to enjoy as a stand-alone meal. You can easily double the recipe. Cooking time will increase slightly.

Optional homemade seasoned croutons add the perfect contrasting crunch to this EASY soup! Your slow cooker does the heavy lifting in this healthy soup recipe that's full of fiber, accidentally vegan, and easy to keep gluten-free by using GF bread for the croutons.

Prep Time15

Cook Time4

Course: Sides, Slow Cooker, Soup

Cuisine: American, Sides, Soup

Diet: Gluten Free

Keyword: Crockpot pumpkin soup, homemade pumpkin soup, pumpkin soup with croutons, slow cooker pumpkin soup

Servings:

Calories: 407cal

Equipment

Ingredients

Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small yellow onion diced small (white onion may be substituted)
2 to 3 cloves garlic finely minced
15 ounces canned pumpkin purée (unsweetened; NOT pumpkin pie filling which is very sweet)
2 medium carrots peeled, trimmed, and sliced into thin rounds
1 small sweet potato peeled and diced into 1/2-inch cubes
3 cups vegetable broth or more if needed (reduced sodium or regular)
1 teaspoon salt plus more to taste (will for sure need more if using reduced sodium broth)
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper or to taste
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg or to taste
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste (does not make it spicy; rather adds flavor)

Seasoned Croutons, optional

1 cup French baguette cut into 1/4” pieces (day old bread is even better, don't use flimsy sandwich bread, GF French bread may be substituted)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter or vegan buttery spread if keeping vegan
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon salt or to taste
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper or to taste

Garnishing, optional

½ cup canned coconut milk or as desired (lite or full fat, or half-and-half or heavy cream)
Fresh herbs thyme, rosemary, parsley, etc.

Instructions

Saute: To a large skillet, add the olive oil, onion, saute over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, or until the onion is becoming soft and translucent; stir frequently. In the final minute, add the garlic and cook for 1 minute; stir constantly.
Transfer: Spray the ceramic base of your slow cooker with cooking spray if desired. Transfer the onion and garlic mixture to the slow cooker.
Add: Add all remaining soup ingredients, cover, and cook on HIGH about 4 hours or on LOW about 6 hours; stir a couple times during the cooking process. Cooking is done when the vegetables are very soft and easily pierced with a fork.
Slow Cooking Tips - Make sure to keep the sweet potatoes diced small and uniform since it's the firmest item in the recipe and will be the item that you'll end up waiting to fully cook and soften if the pieces are bigger. Be mindful of the carrots too to keep them sliced in thin rounds. At any time during the cooking process if you feel like the liquid volume is a bit too low, you can always add more broth.
Croutons, optional: In the final 20-25 minutes or so that the soup is slow cooking, make the croutons. To a large skillet, add the butter and heat it over high heat to melt. Add the Italian seasoning, salt pepper, stir to combine, and add the diced bread cubes. Toss and flip to coat in the seasoned butter, turn the heat to medium, and cook until the bread is as golden browned and crispy as desired, about 7 to 10 minutes, tossing and flipping frequently. Exact cooking time will depend on the bread used, the size of the pieces, and preference for doneness so allow them to crisp up for as long as necessary.
You can also bake them in a 375F oven for about 15-20 minutes, making sure to flip, toss, and start checking after 12-15 minutes to make sure they don't burn.
You can also use store bought croutons.
Blend: When the vegetables in the slow cooker are soft, blend everything using a handheld immersion blender.
Taste: I cannot stress this enough, but make sure to taste the soup and make any necessary seasoning adjustments. If it tastes at all flat, it likely needs more salt so don't be afraid to add it. Pepper and/or cayenne pepper also add depth of flavor, or more cumin too. Ground ginger is a good alternative to try also.
Garnishing, optional: As desired, add a splash of coconut milk or other dairy, to taste and fresh herbs to taste.

Notes

Nutrition Stats: Include the optional croutons, so if you aren't making them, the overall stats will be lower.

Storage: Leftover soup will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat gently as desired in the microwave or on the stove. Extra croutons will keep airtight in a container or ziplock for up to 5 days, noting they will likely lose some of their crispiness as time passes.

Nutrition