Creamed parsnip soup

Some years back, when I still earned something called an income, I dined at a very smart London restaurant where they served one of the best soups I’ve ever eaten.

At something like £12-15 a bowl, it had to be something special and it was: creamed parsnip soup with crisped bacon and white truffles (that’s not the name it was sold under, but it’s as close as I can recall).

I’ve experimented with my own version—excluding truffles—from time to time since then and came reasonably close tonight.

Ingredients

• Large knob of unsalted butter
• 3 medium onions, peeled and diced
• 2 celery sticks, diced
• 6 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• 2 large potatoes, peeled and grated
• 6 medium to large parsnips, peeled and grated
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 sprigs of marjoram (the restaurant version used tarragon, but we don’t have any)
• 2 litres of hot vegetable stock (chicken stock would also be good)
• 300ml of sour cream
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Two or three rashers of dry cured bacon, diced and fried until just crisp

Method

1. Melt the butter in a pan over a moderate heat, then sweat the onion in the butter until it softens.
2. Stir in the celery and garlic, and cook until the garlic starts to break down.
3. Stir in the grated potato and parsnip, coating well with butter and warming through.
4. Stir in the bay leaves and marjoram (the original definitely tasted of tarragon, so use this if you can).
5. Pour the hot stock over the vegetables, increase the heat and bring the soup to a gentle boil. Back off the heat until the soup is simmering slowly, cover and cook for 25-30 minutes—until the grated vegetables start to fall apart.
6. Remove the bay leaves and sprigs of herbs. Process the soup, either in batches in a food processor or in the pan using a heat-roof stick blender.
7. Stir in the soured cream, then season with salt and pepper to taste. (Ground white pepper preserves the clean, white look of the soup.)
8. Spoon the soup into serving bowls, garnish with pieces of crispy bacon (and grated white truffles if you can), and serve with fresh bread or rolls.
9. My version makes rather a lot as we’ll be eating it over several days. Halve the amounts for four people for a single meal.