Canlis Parsnip Soup Hazelnut Gremolata
Canlis Parsnip Soup Hazelnut Gremolata features silky white parsnip soup that's an amazing balance of sweet and savory with crunchy hazelnuts and parsley.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ¼ cup shallots sliced
- 2 pounds parsnips
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste or the seeds from ½ a vanilla bean
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ cup white wine
- 6 + cups water
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
- sea salt
gremolata
- ¼ cup toasted sliced hazelnuts
- ¼ cup chopped parsley
- drizzle of finishing oil; almond hazelnut, or walnut is nice, but olive works too
Instructions
- Take a moment to admire your beautiful parsnips.
- Heat olive oil in a large pot and sweat shallots* until translucent.
- Peel and chop the parsnips.
- Add parsnips to shallots and season well. Stir. Add sugar and vanilla and stir well. Cook over medium-high heat until the parsnips begin to soften.
- Add white wine and reduce.
- Heat the water (I use my tea kettle) and add to the parsnips once the wine is reduced (this isn’t essential, but it speeds up the cook time).
- Cook on high until the parsnips are cooked through (30 minutes or so).
- Pour into a blender, food processor, or blend in pot using an immersion blender.
- ***
- Season well with salt.
- Add cream*** and blend well.
- Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and sliced hazelnuts. Drizzle with finishing oil.
Notes
*I substituted sweet onions once and it worked just fine.
** Canlis recommends passing the soup through a chinois to have it maximally smooth, but after the first time I made it, I stopped doing this. If I use the immersion blender, I will admit the soup is a bit more rustic than it was in the restaurant, but I like it very well. If I use my vitamix, I notice no difference at all, it gets very smooth.
***I have made it without the cream, so that it would be a vegan soup. Again, you can tell the difference, and the color isn’t quite as white, but it’s still very good. Adapted from from Canlis Restaurant
** Canlis recommends passing the soup through a chinois to have it maximally smooth, but after the first time I made it, I stopped doing this. If I use the immersion blender, I will admit the soup is a bit more rustic than it was in the restaurant, but I like it very well. If I use my vitamix, I notice no difference at all, it gets very smooth.
***I have made it without the cream, so that it would be a vegan soup. Again, you can tell the difference, and the color isn’t quite as white, but it’s still very good. Adapted from from Canlis Restaurant