Roasted Pear & Parsnip Soup

I love a smooth, pureed vegetable soup. It’s an easy way to make a vegetarian meal when it’s served alongside some crusty bread or savory muffins.

Parsnips, in particular, are one of my favorite vegetables to add to a pureed soup. They have such a unique, slightly sweet flavor that adds so much. This particular soup pairs parsnips and pears, roasting them beforehand to bring out their flavor and sweetness. Potatoes help give the soup bulk, along with onion and celery for flavor.

You can make the soup vegetarian, if you like, by using vegetable broth instead of chicken. You could also go dairy free here and sub the cream for full-fat canned coconut milk.

This soup is especially delicious topped with some crumbled blue cheese. A few sprigs of fresh thyme wouldn’t hurt either. I served these with a squash muffin and it was just perfect.

Roasted Pear & Parsnip Soup

 

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Serves: Serves 8

Ingredients

• 4 Parsnips, peeled, cut into a large dice
• 3 Pears, peeled, cored, and cubed
• 4 Garlic Cloves
• 3 T. Olive Oil, divided
• 2 t. Coarse Salt
• Coarse ground Pepper
• 1 Onion, diced
• 2 Russet Potatoes, peeled and diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 1 t. Fresh Thyme Leaves
• 8 C. Chicken Broth
• 1 C. Heavy Cream(or canned coconut milk, for dairy free)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
2. Toss the parsnips, pears, and garlic with 1½ T. Olive Oil and the coarse salt. Place on a baking sheet and roast in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, or until lightly caramelized on top.
3. While the parsnips and pears are roasting, add the remaining 1½ T. olive oil to a stock pot and heat to medium/high. Add the onion, potato, and celery to the hot oil and saute for 2-3 minutes, until onions are translucent. Add the thyme and saute for another 30 seconds.
4. Add the chicken broth and roasted parsnips and pears to the stock pot and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and let simmer for about 20 minutes, or until vegetables are very tender. Let cool slightly.
5. Puree the soup(in batches, if needed) in a blender or food processor(carefully! Soup will be hot!) for at least 1 minute per batch, so that the soup is silky smooth.
6. Pour pureed soup back into the pot and stir in the heavy cream. Bring back to a simmer over medium/high heat. Taste soup and adjust seasonings, if desired.
7. Garnish with blue cheese crumbles and thyme sprigs.

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