Cream of Celeriac and Parsnip Soup
I initially bought a celeriac thinking I would make a puree to have with a meat dish, but then got to thinking what else I could do with it. I had a good supply of parsnips in the fridge and this is the end result It is quite a light soup, both in texture and flavour, with the two stars of the show complementing each other, and while I have called it “Cream of”, there is actually no dairy in the recipe – it is not necessary, and I think it would ruin the taste of the soup. It went perfectly with my gluten free goats cheese and rosemary pull-apart.
Ingredients
- 200g parsnip, peeled and diced
- 350g celeriac, peeled and diced
- 50g shallot, finely diced
- 1 ltr chicken stock
- The soft end of a sprig of rosemary (approx 5cm)
- ¼ tsp freshly ground white pepper
- 2 tbs butter
- Sea salt
Directions
- Melt the butter in a largish saucepan, over a gentle heat.
- Add the shallots and sauté until they begin to soften, but not brown.
- Add the parsnip and celeriac, put the lid on and sauté over gentle heat for approx five minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Pour in the stock and add the white pepper and rosemary sprig, bring to the boil and then reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender, approximately 30 minutes.
- Adjust seasoning, and remove from heat.
- Remove the rosemary sprig and then puree the soup in a food processor or using a stick blender.
- Serve hot.
Notes
- Celeriac has a tendency to discolour once peeled, if you are not using it straight away, you can put it into a bowl of water with a squeeze of lemon juice added.
- I have garnished my soup with parsnip chips, made by simply cutting very thin slices of parsnip (you could use a potato peeler or mandolin for this), then frying. I have also added very small dollops of soft goats cheese.
- If pureeing your soup in a food processor or blender, allow it to cool a little before doing so.
