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This Parsnip and Potato Soup is creamy, slightly sweet, and everything you want in a homemade soup.
HOMEMADE PARSNIP POTATO SOUP
Hello my lovelies! I hope you are having a beautiful and blessed Sunday. I want to hug you all for always coming by here and reading my words, taking in my silliness, and hopefully laughing with me and not at me. 😛
Pictured above are two bowls filled withParsnip and Potato Soup. A warm, silky, chunky, and VERY good soup. Like, lick your bowl to the last drop good. I wish we had taste-o-vision!
I’m totally trying to sell this soup with potatoes and parsnip, but I shouldn’t try so hard. It speaks for itself. It’s delicious!
On another note, I’m totally on a soup kick and it’s all because of that white stuff on the ground – it won’t go away! Don’t worry, I won’t talk about the weather, but you should know that I really want sun. That’s all.
Just a few short days ago, we enjoyed some French Onion Soup, and two days before that we had this Parsnip and Potato Soup – I had to keep us warm, somehow. The thermostat goes only up to 85. Oops. There I go talking about the weather again. Sorry. So, how are you? How are the kids? How’s the weather by you? Is it warm? That’s nice. We’re freezing.
But, even if it’s warm by you, you still need to taste this soup. I mean, you still need to eat your parsnips, right? How often do you eat parsnips? See! Not very often. I knew it! Now you get to have two parsnips all at once!
This soup is so simple and it comes together in like, I dunno, 47 minutes. You chop up a few root vegetables, chiffonade some fresh basil, (chiffonade? I sound like I know what I’m talkin’ about!) pour in some veggie stock, and let the soup go to town! Don’t forget the seasonings – you know, salt ‘n peppa. They kinda add flavor to like everything.
Once your house is filled with a delicious aroma, the soup is nearly done. Next thing is to just reach for your immersion blender and give this soup a couple of spins here and there. I don’t puree all of it – I leave a few chunks for texture. I am big on texture. You can also use a blender. Or not. You don’t have to use either one. You can have this soup in a chunky form. Noone will judge.
ENJOY!
Parsnip and Potato Soup
Katerina | Diethood
This Parsnip and Potato Soup is creamy, slightly sweet, and everything you want in a homemade soup.
2tablespoonschopped fresh basil, or 1 tablespoon dried basil
salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
1bay leaf
4cupslow sodium vegetable broth, or enough to just cover the vegetables - you can also use 2 cans (14.5-ounces each) of vegetable broth
1/2cup2% milk (you can also use half & half or heavy cream), optional
1/4teaspoonchili powder, optional
Instructions
Melt the butter in a large heavy pot and pour in the olive oil.
Add the chopped parsnips, potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, parsley, basil, salt, pepper, and bay leaf.
Cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the vegetable broth.
Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer over medium-low heat for 20 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.
Discard bay leaf.
Remove from heat and use an immersion blender to blend the soup until creamy. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can use a blender and blend until smooth. This should be done in several batches.
Return soup to pot and, if using, add milk; add in chili powder and stir to combine.
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
One trick to make your potato soup a little less grainy is to add some form of dairy –- cream, milk, or even cheese. Because dairy is generally creamy in texture, that characteristic will carry over into your soup. Crisis averted.
Cornstarch. Cornstarch is a very effective thickener, and a little bit can go a long way. Add cornstarch to a small amount of cold water or other liquid (wine or stock) and whisk into a thick slurry. Then the slurry can be stirred into a simmering soup, a bit at a time to set the final consistency.
Cheese: I recommend a good sharp cheddar cheese here for maximum flavor. Greek yogurt or sour cream: To make the soup extra-creamy. Salt and pepper: Add in as much as you need at the end to season your soup well.
Young, small parsnips don't really need peeling – just scrub clean and serve whole. Older parsnips should be peeled very thinly with a peeler or sharp knife, then chopped into evenly sized chunks. If the central core is very fibrous, this should be cut away.
Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan, then add the carrots and parsnips and toss to coat in the oil. Add the thyme, cinnamon, star anise and some seasoning. Cook over a medium heat for 15-20 minutes, turning the vegetables frequently, until golden brown and almost cooked through.
The best options for thickening soup are cream or half and half. Plain yogurt or even freshly grated cheese works well and adds an extra layer of tangy, salty flavor. Add the dairy at the end and avoid bringing the soup to a boil since this can cause yogurt, cheese, or cream to split.
It might be tempting to add sour cream or softened cream cheese to help thicken the soup, but these dairy products only work in certain circ*mstances. You must blend cream cheese or sour cream, either with an immersion blender or a full-size blender, for it to thicken a soup.
Whether you use a few tablespoons or a few cups, cream gives soup a silky mouthfeel and rich flavor. You can definitely add milk or other dairy as well, though it will taste gradually less creamy as you go down in percent.
This soup-thickening hack couldn't be easier. Unlike using flour, which requires either making a little roux before you start cooking or a beurre manié afterwards, or using a cornstarch slurry that can create a gloppy texture, the instant mashed potato flakes can simply be sprinkled into the finished dish.
Honestly, if you just stir in a little instant mash, like Smash, your soup will thicken up in no time at all. Now, you may end up needing more than a spoonful, but it's best to add a little at a time, because remember, you can always add more of it, but you can't take it away.
Herbs: Fresh chives, thyme, or cilantro stirred in just before serving. Spices: Your soup is probably salty enough, but what about simmering a bay leaf in there for a while (don't forget to remove it before serving)? Depending on the soup's flavor profile, you could shake in some cumin or red pepper flakes.
Your potato soup is bland? Try adding a little more salt. That's usually the answer to any issue of blandness, no matter the recipe in question. A basic Appalachian style potato soup uses only a handful of simple ingredients, leaning on milk and water and often bouillon to create the brothy soup base.
Perhaps the simplest approach is to flavor your soup with salt throughout the cooking process. Instead of waiting until the end of cooking to realize your soup lacks taste, you can add a bit of salt during each phase of cooking. Doing so will help bring out the flavors of each of the ingredients.
To prepare: Very small parsnips don't need peeling, just wash them and top and tail. Medium to large parsnips should be peeled and chopped into even-sized chunks, halves or quarters. To cook: Cook in boiling salted water for 15-20 minutes until tender.
I recommend peeling parsnips before adding them to recipes like this parsnip soup. If you don't peel them, you'll likely be adding a bitter taste to the soup. Why is my parsnip soup bitter? If you leave the peels on the parsnip, it can cause your soup to taste bitter.
Put a tablespoon of either into a small bowl and stir in 2-3 tbsp of the soup until you have a smooth mixture. Stir this back into the soup and bring it to a simmer. Cook for a few minutes to allow the starch granules to burst to thicken, and to cook out any flour flavour.
Cumin, coriander and mustard seeds will help. I've added in all of that. I think I'll freeze it overnight. Parsnip is still sweet but has very bitter aftertaste.
Introduction: My name is Dr. Pierre Goyette, I am a enchanting, powerful, jolly, rich, graceful, colorful, zany person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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