Since joining the Eater's Guild Winter CSA, I have a ton of root vegetables to use up, including potatoes, celeraic, white turmips, beets, onions and garlic. No greens (pout), and that was the part I was really looking forward to. Ah well. So, what to do with several pounds of root vegetables? Make soup of course. Sally Schneider's French Winter Vegetable Soup was the inspiration for this dish.
Winter Root Vegetable Soup
Celeraic 1-2, sliced
Potato 2-3, sliced
1 Onion, sliced (I think leeks would be even better.)
1-2 cups sliced rutabaga, turnips or beetabaga (my husband's joke, seriously though, no beets)
1 parsnip (If you've got it, I substituted a sweet potato but a carrot would be good too.)
Garlic, 4-6 cloves, peeled and sliced
Bacon fat, olive oil or butter
Chicken stock
Salt and pepper, bay leaf, thyme and nutmeg
Cream
Croutons or garlic toast
Enjoy peeling and slicing all of those veggies and throw them into a deep pot with a heavy bottom, coated with a drizzle of bacon fat, butter or olive oil. Salt the veggies lightly as you layer them in the dish. It will help them to soften instead of brown. Stir to coat all of the veggies with a thin veneer of oil. Once everything is heated up and beginning to soften, add just enough water to the pot so that the top layer is still above the water. Toss a healthy grinding of pepper, 1-2 bay leaves, thyme and nutmeg. Cover and simmer until the vegetables can be cut or mashed with a wooden spoon. Puree with a hand blender and add cream. Adjust seasoning. Garnish with croutons, garlic toast, bacon bits, chives and/or cheese (I'm using a stinky fontinella). Bon apetite!
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