Parsnip Celery Soup

Parsnips are a fiberous root vegetable with a carrot flavor. Parsnips have a sort of spicy complexity, as well as a natural sweetness, therefore they are excellent in soup! Here is an easy recipe for Parsnip Celery soup topped with spicy, lemony, Wilted Celery Leaves. It is easily made vegan, and is excellent with crusty bread. To the Kitchen!

Gather:

Three Medium Parsnips (the base of the soup)
One Onion (adds delicious onion flavor)
One Potato (adds texture and body to the soup)
Two Smallish Carrots (compliments the parsnips)
Small Bunch of Celery (save the leaves!)

One Bay Leaf (dried)
Kosher Salt (sea salt would also work)
Black Pepper (freshly ground is best)

Olive Oil (or butter/ butter substitute)

15 fl. oz. Milk (or vegetable broth, nondairy milk, half and half, or water)
15 fl. oz. Water

You will also need:

Vegetable Peeler
Knife
Cutting Board
Large Pan ( a three quart stock pan would work well)
Spoon (for stirring, either wooden or plastic works)
Blender (if you want pureed or partially pureed soup)
Bowl (for soaking the peeled vegetables/ celery)
Bowl (for testing the doneness of the vegetables, you can use the transportation bowl for this)
Bowl (to place chopped vegetables in for easy transportation to the pan)

Peel the Carrots , Parsnips , and Potato .
Place them in a bowl filled with water to rinse off any dirt that may have accumulated during the peeling.

Wash the Celery .

Place two tablespoons of Olive Oil , Butter, or Non-Dairy Butter into the pan .
Put the pan on a moderate setting to preheat the pan for the vegetables .

Slice the very top and bottom off of the peeled parsnips.
Slice the narrow end of the parsnip into thin coins.
When you reach the larger, thicker part of the parsnip, set it on the larger end, and carefully run your knife through it, cutting the vegetable in half.
Lay the halves on the cutting board, and slice them in half again.
Again, slice these parsnips into thin coins.

Slice off the tops and bottoms of the peeled carrots , then thinly slice them into coins .

NOTE: If the carrots will not stay still, and are rolling all over the cutting board, slice them in half.

Slice the peeled potato in half , then lay each half on the cutting board .
Slice the halves into even wedges , then turn the wedges sideways and run your knife through the wedges
to chop them.

Slice the top and bottom off of the onion , standing it on either end .
Cut the onion in half , lay the two halves on the cutting board , then slice the onion halves.
Turn the halves sideways, and run your knife through them again to chop them.

(You do not need to horizontally slice the onion in this recipe.)

Remove the leaves from the celery, saving them for Wilted Celery Leaves.
Slice off the very bottom of the celery, and remove anything that doesn't look right .
Chop the celery.

Dump all of the prepared produce into the pan.

Put the lid on the pan and cook for ten minutes .

NOTE: Check on the soup occasionally, giving it a stir once in a while.

Add the liquids of your choosing. (I used half & half and water.)
Add the bay leaf.
Give the soup a big stir.

Bring the soup to a boil , then reduce the heat and simmer for thirty minutes .

Meanwhile, let us make Wilted Celery Leaves!

I will make a short overview of the recipe.

You will need:

Celery Leaves
Garlic (raw, or roasted)
One Lemon (or other citrus fruit)
Red Pepper Flakes (can be omitted)
Olive Oil (or other favored cooking oil)
Kosher Salt (or sea salt)

Small Pan (A one quart saucepan works well)

 

Pour a bit of the olive oil into the pan , and set on a moderate heat.
Chop raw or roasted garlic , and add it to the oil.
Add in a pinch of red pepper flakes .

The oil should be sizzling around the garlic and pepper flake .
Zest 1/3 - 1/2 of the lemon , avoiding the pith.
When the garlic and red pepper flakes have infused the oil with flavor , add in the chopped celery leaves and lemon zest .

Stir, salt to taste, and turn off the heat when the leaves have reduced in size, but still have crunchy bits from the stems.

Test your vegetables (poke with a fork to see if they are tender/ eat some of them) to see if they are cooked.

Once they are cooked to the desired consistencey, transfer to the blender.

NOTE: You may need to do batches.

NOTE: Some blenders require that food is below a certain temperature, you may want to check the manual.

Process until the soup is velvety and smooth, yet retaining texture from the vegetables.

Pour the soup back into the pan it was cooked in, and reheat it .

Serve topped with Wilted Celery Leaves.

This soup is great with crusty bread, fresh from the oven.

Enjoy!