My best friend just made me the most amazing soup I’ve had in a long time. Made of cooked squash, apple, and herbs, it has the perfect amount of tang and spice, coupled with soft that creaminess and warmth that we all crave on a cool fall afternoon. She swears it’s easy to make, so I figured a blogger like me who can’t cook should give it a shot. Of course, she’s a great cook and I can burn rice, so who knows? Here’s how you make it:

Get together the following ingredients:

Half a butternut squash or 2 cups of cooked pumpkin (she used squash)

2 cups of broth (she used vegetable broth)

A quarter each of…

• a small onion
• teaspoon rosemary
• teaspoon sage
• medium apple
• teaspoon nutmeg

A quarter cup of heavy cream

Half a teaspoon of salt

An eighth teaspoon of white pepper

Cook the butternut squash up first if you’re going to use that. You can do this by cutting the squash in half, getting rid of all of the seeds, and flipping both sides upside down on a baking pan and cooking it until it’s tender—for about 30 minutes. Scoop out the inside and it should be nice and soft for further cooking.

Then blend it all together until it’s pureed into a creamy, consistent mixture (the onions should have no remaining texture; however, people who don’t like onions—like me!—may substitute onion powder if they wish). My friend says it looks like liquid gold; I would say it looks more like baby food. Either way, it’s delicious.

This creamy soup is a great variant to the canned tomato soup we make our kids every winter following a day of play outside, or a wonderful soothing meal for people suffering from a cold or flu this fall. Pair it with a grilled cheese for a full meal, or serve it as a first course this Thanksgiving for a delightful appetizer.  Add in some cayenne pepper for an extra kick if you’re really feeling ill and it will clear your sinuses up! Garlic would also be excellent in this soup, but what wouldn’t be better with garlic?

The golden soup freezes well so you can make a huge batch for future meals. Those who prefer chilled soups can also enjoy it cold. You can also garnish the soup with rosemary if desired.