About This Recipe
Parsnips are often overlooked but are one of the richest root vegetables for fibre, providing nourishment for the gut microbiome while adding natural sweetness without any added sugar. This is a simple soup that you can have with a slice of toast, pitta bread or on its own. If you have time, why not experiment with making some parsnip crisps while the soup is cooking.
"Roast the parsnip in the oven if you are cooking something already that needs to go in the oven, so that you can split the prep time and save energy too. You can even freeze the roasted parsnips and batch it."
What You'll Need
Step by Step
Get a large saucepan ready.
Chop and peel the parsnips and potatoes to small chunks. If you are using fresh produce, you can skip this step. It will help increase your fiber intake and make this soup even more filling.
Onions and garlic next – finely chop these.
Heat up the saucepan and once fairly hot, add the olive oil, approximately a tbsp worth. Add the onion, fry for 3-4 minutes or until softened. Add the garlic and fry for another minute. (Don’t add the garlic at the same time as the onions as it can burn and ruin the onion giving it a bitter taste.)
Add the chopped parsnip and potatoes and give it all a good stir to coat the vegetables with the olive oil.
Sprinkle with the thyme, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Nutmeg is a bit like Marmite for many, so add as much as you like or none at all. I used around half a teaspoon for this recipe. It can also be added at the end if you prefer.
Pour the boiled water on the vegetables and cover the saucepan with a lid. Turn the heat up and once boiling point is reached, turn it down and let the soup simmer for 15-20 minutes. Check to see if the vegetables are softened.
To make it creamier, add single cream (or crème fraiche/ sour cream if prefer) to finish off. I tend to turn up the heat again to get the cream to the same temperature. This should be done just before serving.
Use a vegetable peeler and peel the whole parsnip (or as much as you are able to).
Heat up 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil – but don’t boil this, just get it to a nice and hot temperature (for my induction hob it is around settings 11 or 12 out of 14 which is the max heat).
Add the parsnip peels and fry for a few minutes. Make sure you are watching the saucepan as the peels will crisp up very quickly.
Place on paper towel and sprinkle with salt.
Crush and sprinkle as a soup topper or pop these in a small bowl and use as a snack for later.
Per Serving
Allergens
From the Kitchen
An unusual combination that will surprise you! The courgettes bring freshness and texture and can be flavoured with spices to make it…
Parsnips are often overlooked but are one of the richest root vegetables for fibre, providing nourishment for the gut microbiome while adding…
A childhood favourite that my mum used to make often when preparing a dish that needed rice. She always made some extra…
