A hearty bowl of Pumpkin Bacon Soup with White Beans and Croutons is a cozy and delicious meal once autumn temperatures start to fall. With a base of onions, garlic, and sage plus smoky bacon, this pumpkin soup has a great depth of flavor. Stir in canned pumpkin puree and white beans and you get a filling meal with easy, pantry friendly ingredients. This smooth pureed soup cries out for a texture contrast, and homemade croutons with sage and bacon do the trick. Pro tip: make extra croutons, they are snack-worthy!
I am so happy when winter squash season comes along, for more than just decoration! WIth their sweet flesh and gorgeous color, acorn squash, butternut squash, pumpkin, and kabocha squash will complete meals all season long. Along with this roasted delicata squash, pumpkin bacon soup will be in the fall meal plan rotation every year.
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Ingredients
I include ingredient notes here when I think they'll be helpful, including ways to source, any preparation tips, or why I've chosen a particular ingredient. Be sure to check out the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and their quantities!
- Bacon - Smoky bacon adds a great flavor to the soup. You can choose a thick-cut bacon like we used in this batch, or a standard bacon.
- Garlic and Onion - Build the base of flavor in the soup with diced yellow or white onion and a couple of smashed garlic cloves.
- Sage - Fresh sage has an earthy and woodsy flavor and pairs with sweet pumpkin and savory bacon very well. Choose leaves that are soft and free of any blemishes.
- Canned Pumpkin - Canned pumpkin is readily available in grocery stores all fall long. Every brand will have a slightly different moisture content, so your soup may end up needing a dash of water or stock at the end for the best texture. Choose 100% pure pumpkin and avoid a canned pumpkin pie mix. The latter will have added spices and sugar.
- Chicken Stock - Use canned or boxed stock or broth, bouillon cubes or granules, or a bouillon paste to make up your chicken stock.
- Half and Half - Half and half is added at the end of cooking to bring a rich creamy flavor to the soup. It also adds a nice garnish along with the croutons when serving.
- White Beans - Choose canned navy beans, great northern beans, or white cannellini beans to add to the soup. Drain and rinse the beans before adding them.
- Bakery Bread - Choose a sturdy, rustic Italian bread or a sourdough for your croutons. You'll be dicing the bread and tossing it around in the pan and you don't want it to crumble.
- Salted Butter - Just a bit of salted butter is mixed with bacon drippings to toss with the bread cubes. This combination gives the homemade croutons a great flavor and extra crispy edges.
Prepare the Pumpkin Bacon Soup
Peel and trim the garlic cloves and then crush them on the broad side of your blade. Dice the onion to yield about ½ cup. Chop the bacon into small pieces.
Cook the bacon over medium heat in a large soup pot or Dutch oven until the pieces are crisp and the fat has rendered. Keep the heat low to avoid burning the bacon.
Strain the bacon, reserving the bacon fat in a small jar or bowl. You can use a slotted spoon or a mesh strainer.
Add the crisp bacon, crushed garlic, diced onions, salt, pepper, and the sage leaves back to the soup pot. Saute for 3-4 minutes over medium heat until the onions start to soften.
Add the chicken stock, canned pumpkin, and drained and rinsed white beans to the soup pot.
Bring the mixture to a boil, scraping down the bottom of the pot to get all of the bacon and onion bits incorporated. Once it comes to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes.
Carefully transfer the soup to a blender. Do this in batches if your blender isn't large enough. Add the half and half to the soup mixture.
Blend the soup until it is completely smooth. Check the consistency of the soup and add additional broth or water if desired to adjust the texture. Also taste for reasoning and adjust if needed.
Prepare the Homemade Croutons
While the soup is simmering you can make the homemade sage and bacon croutons. Once the soup is blended you are ready to garnish it with the croutons and enjoy!
Slice the bread into ½-inch cubes. Stack the sage leaves and slice them into thin ribbons.
Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add one tablespoon of the reserved bacon fat and two tablespoons of salted butter to the skillet and allow them to melt completely.
Add the bread cubes, salt, pepper, and the sage to the melted fats. Toss the bread well to coat it evenly with the seasonings.
Cook, stirring or tossing often, until the bread is toasted and golden on all sides.
Transfer the croutons to a serving bowl and top each bowl with a handful of croutons. Serve extra croutons tableside.
Serving Suggestions
Ladle the pumpkin bacon soup into individual bowls and swirl a couple of tablespoons of half and half over the top of each bowl. Pile on the croutons and the crispy sage pieces and call everyone to the table! Make a batch today for lunches all week or enjoy this as a light dinner meal with a salad.
Equipment
Check out the list below for the basic kitchen tools we use to make this tasty pumpkin bacon soup and the crisp homemade croutons:
- Chef's Knife - An 8- or 10-inch chef's knife is an essential tool in any kitchen. I use it for dicing the onions, slicing the sage, chopping the bacon, and also for crushing garlic cloves on the broad side of the blade.
- Dutch Oven - An enameled cast iron Dutch oven is a great pot to have in your kitchen for all sorts of recipes. They can go from stove top to oven, are good for deep frying, and are perfect for stews, braises, and soups. The surface heats the soup evenly, avoiding any scorching or burning.
- Blender - A standard blender is a great tool in the kitchen or making smooth sauces, soups, smoothies, marinades, and more. A high-powered blender (the one pictured here is a Vitamix brand blender), will make quick work of the ingredients and puree the soup into a silky smooth texture.
Make This Recipe Kid Friendly
A whole bowl of this soup can be overwhelming, but many kids love the crispy croutons. Flip the serving proportions on their head and serve the croutons with a side of pumpkin bacon "dipping sauce". So many kids like to dip and the pumpkin bacon soup is thick enough to work as an alternative. This gets the kids eating the same meal components in a familiar way.
Offering recipe components separately is just one of the tips in this keeping peace at the dinner table post. Check it out for more ways to bring some calm to your meals!
Storage
This soup holds up well in the refrigerator when sealed in an airtight container. Keep the croutons separate in a zip top bag. Reheat the soup in the microwave and either toss the croutons in a skillet or the airfryer to keep them crispy before garnishing the soup.
FAQ
Canned pumpkin is not made up of the type of pumpkins that might come to mind near Halloween when you are carving Jack-o-lanterns. Canned pumpkin is usually made from a special variety called the Dickinson pumpkin, or Dickinson squash. It is a hard-skinned winter squash with a golden orange flesh that is closely related to a butternut squash. The canned pumpkin is better in flavor and texture than what you'd get from a field pumpkin with its watery and stringy flesh.
If you have the patience to make your own squash or pumpkin puree, you can absolutely substitute it for the canned pumpkin in this recipe. Use a butternut, honeynut, or kabocha squash. Slice the peel away and cut the flesh into chunks. Roast these on a parchment-lined pan at 350°F until the flesh is very soft. Puree the roasted squash and use it in the soup. Homemade pumpkin or squash puree often contains more water than canned, so adjust the amount of stock you add to the soup accordingly.
Use fresh thyme, rosemary, or oregano in place of the sage in the soup for a different flavor profile.
More Bean Favorites
Adding a can of drained and rinsed beans to a recipe will add protein, fiber, and texture to all sorts of dishes. Try any of the ideas below:
Pairing Ideas
Entertain a group of friends with this pumpkin bacon soup and two hearty salads. Add a simple cocktail hour snack of buttered pecans and a fragrant coffee cake dessert for a delicious menu!
Try It and Share
I hope you try this Pumpkin Bacon Soup with White Beans and Croutons and enjoy the recipe as much as we do. I want to see your results! Tag your photo with #planeatpostrepeat and mention me @planeatpostrepeat on Instagram or Facebook. I can give you a virtual high five and thank you for cooking one of my recipes! Comment below with any questions and please leave a review so others can find this recipe more easily.
This post was originally titled Pumpkin and Bacon Bisque. The post was updated in October 2026 to change the title, add extensive preparation details and step-by-step photos, and add additional post structure for easy navigation. The recipe was changed from the original October 2021 version to add white beans, use chicken stock instead of vegetable stock, and swap half and half for heavy cream.
Recipe
Pumpkin Bacon Soup with White Beans and Croutons
Ingredients
Pumpkin Bacon Soup
- 6 oz bacon
- 2 cloves garlic
- ½ cup onion (about ½ a medium onion)
- 4 leaves sage
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt (plus more, to taste)
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper (as desired)
- 15 oz pumpkin puree
- 4 cups chicken stock (or broth)
- ½ cup half and half (plus more for serving)
- 15 oz canned white beans (drained and rinsed)
Homemade Croutons
- 6 oz Italian bread (or other rustic bread or sourdough)
- 6 leaves sage
- 2 tablespoon salted butter
- 1 tablespoon bacon fat
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper (ground)
Instructions
Pumpkin Bacon Soup
- Peel and trim the ends of the garlic. Crush the garlic under the blade of your knife. Dice the onion to yield about ½-cup. Chop the bacon into small pieces.
- Cook the bacon over medium heat in a soup pot or Dutch oven until browned and crispy, taking care not to burn any pieces.
- Strain the cooked bacon, saving the bacon fat in a small jar or bowl.
- Add the onion, garlic, 4 leaves of sage, salt, and pepper to the bacon pieces in the bottom of the same pot and sauté on medium heat until the onion starts to soften, about 3 minutes.
- Add the pumpkin puree, drained and rinsed beans, and the stock to the onion and bacon mixture. Bring the soup to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Scrape the bottom of the pot to get all of the bacon and onion bits incorporated. Simmer for 10 minutes.
- Bring the soup off of the heat. Transfer the soup to a blender. Add the half and half and then blend the soup until it is smooth. Check the consistency of the soup and add additional stock if needed to get the desired texture. Check for seasoning and adjust if necessary.
Homemade Croutons
- Cut the bread into -inch cubes. Stack the sage leaves and slice them into thin ribbons.
- Melt one tablespoon of bacon fat and the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the sage, bread, salt, and pepper and coat the bread evenly with the seasonings.
- Cook the croutons, tossing often, until they are toasted and golden. Watch carefully so that they don't burn.
- Serve the soup in bowls with a drizzle of additional half and half and top with the croutons and fried sage.
Nutrition facts are sometimes provided below and are calculated using an online calculator. With specific brands of ingredients and additions, omissions, or substitutions the nutrition facts may change. We encourage you to use your own nutrition facts calculator to obtain the most accurate nutrition facts for your meal.
Cassie Waltman says
Try this cozy soup on that first windy and chilly fall night. It will warm you up!