Apple Parsnip Soup – Fantastic Fruity, Rooty Vegan Fare

I do love a bowl of soup in the winter. It’s the perfect comfort food. Warming, nutritious and delicious, it’s a great big hug in a bowl. This vegan apple parsnip soup is one of my favourites. It’s lightly spiced, but the real flavour comes from the sweet aromatic parsnips offset by the slight tartness of the apple.

Parsnips

Parsnips are a root vegetable related to carrots, parsley and dill and are a good British winter standby. They’re best picked after the first frosts. The starches turn to sugar resulting in a sweet and almost creamy vegetable. They’re a good source of dietary fibre, vitamin C, potassium and folate. I’ve found them tricky to grow, but we’ve produced some splendid specimens from time to time. With nowhere to grow vegetables this last year, I was really pleased when CT bought a freshly harvested bagful home from work the other day. Apple parsnip soup it had to be.

Apple Parsnip Soup

Spices are an absolute must in parsnip soup, I reckon. They act as an excellent foil to the sweetness of the parsnips. However for this apple parsnip soup I went easy on them, adding a lump of ginger, turmeric and just a bit of curry powder. As well as its well documented beneficial effects, turmeric gives a lovely golden hue to the soup, which makes it even more appealing. This spiced parsnip spinach soup is also delicious and a good way to get your greens, but the colour doesn’t seem quite right for parsnip soup, somehow.

This apple parsnip soup is full of goodness and flavour. it’s also particularly thick. Quite frankly, this is just what I want in the middle of winter. It almost stands up as a vegetable puree you could use as a side dish. However, if you prefer your soups a little thinner, just add more water and maybe a little extra tamari or salt. I use organic veg so I can keep the peel on. This means I can give myself a smug pat on the back for getting even more of those essential nutrients into my body AND I don’t have to faff around with a veg peeler. With a good blender, you won’t even notice the peel.

If you’re not vegan or particularly bothered about the soup being dairy-free, you could use butter rather than oil for a slightly richer flavour. A little seaweed scattered over the top adds a bit of colour, texture and extra nutrition. This amount serves eight as a starter or four as a main.

Optimum VAC2 Air Vacuum Blender

As a Froothie ambassador I often get to try out some of their latest equipment. This time it’s the Optimum VAC2 Air Vacuum Blender. I’ve put it through its paces and it’s one very powerful machine. It blends smoothies and fruit and veg in a vacuum, if desired. This method is said to retain more of the nutrients as they are not oxidised in the process of blending. I’ve certainly found the colour of my smoothies stays fresher for longer. More of this in an upcoming review.

The VAC2 can also make soups from scratch using veg that doesn’t require actual cooking. Parsnips are much better cooked than not in my opinion, so I just used the blender to whizz my ready cooked apple parsnip soup into a super smooth consistency.

If you’d like to order an Optimum VAC2 Air Vacuum Blender, it’s currently on offer at £399. Order it or any other Froothie appliance through either of these links and I can offer Tin and Thyme readers free P&P. Just add 2483 free ambassador delivery to the comment box when ordering. If you order by phone, just mention the code. The delivery charge will be credited back onto your card. 

Apple Parsnip Soup – The Recipe

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Apple Parsnip Soup

A nutritious, flavoursome and colourful soup which provides a warming winter hug in a bowl.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Total Time40 mins

Course: Soup

Cuisine: British

Servings: 4 people

Author: Choclette @ Tin and Thyme

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp lightly flavoured oil - I used rice oil but rapeseed or sunflower would be good too.
• 1 large onion - peeled and roughly sliced
• 4 cloves garlic - peeled and roughly sliced
• 4 medium large parsnips - topped tailed & scrubbed
• 2 medium potatoes - scrubbed
• 1 large cooking apple - washed and cored but peel kept on
• a thumb sized piece of root ginger - scrubbed and roughly chopped
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp turmeric
• good grinding of black pepper
• 1 tbsp tamari or your preferred soy sauce
• 1 litre water

Instructions

• In a large pan, fry the onion and garlic in the oil over a low heat for about 10 minutes or until the onion is soft and translucent.
• Roughly chop the parsnips and add to the pan. Stir.
• Roughly chop the potatoes. Add to the pan and stir.
• Cover the pan with the lid and cook for about 5 minutes.
• Add all the remaining ingredients. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 15 minutes.
• Blitz with a stick blender, food processor or jug blender. I used my new Optimum VAC2 Air Vacuum Blender.
• Scatter a little dried seaweed over the top before serving if liked.

Notes

If the soup is too thick, just add additional water. You may need a little extra tamari or salt to compensate.

I’m sharing my apple parsnip soup with Recipes Made Easy for #CookBlogShare.

The recipe, being dairy-free and vegan also goes to Free From Farmhouse for #FreeFromFridays.

Other recipes using parsnips you might like

• Baked parsnips with Lancashire cheese via Kavey Eats
• Caramelised onion and parsnip tart via Thinly Spread
• Carrot jam with parsnip via Fuss Free Flavours
• Cheese & parsnip pasta bake via Family Friends Food
• Leek, parsnip & pear cakes via Sneaky Veg
• Parsnip & walnut chocolate chip cake via Tin and Thyme

Apple Parsnip Soup. PIN IT.

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