11 Dec honeyed parsnip soup

We have undeniably moved into soup season, and this week we’ve got a honey sweetened parsnip soup to keep you warm. The parsnips are balanced nicely by the bacon, which you can of course omit if you’re cooking for vegetarians. The finely chopped toasted hazelnuts add a delicious texture to this bowl of warming soup.

Honeyed Parsnip Soup

Serves 4

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

1 tablespoon of olive oil

4 parsnips

2 rashers of bacon

1 onion

2 cloves of garlic

1 tablespoon of honey

750ml of vegetable stock

Salt

Pepper

Handful of hazelnuts

Fresh parsley

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a large heavy-based pot over a medium to high heat. Peel and roughly chop the vegetables. Finely chop the bacon. Gently fry the bacon, parsnips and onion in the hot oil for 10 minutes. Add the peeled cloves of garlic and fry for a further 3 minutes.

2. Add the honey and pour in the vegetable stock into the pot and bring to a gentle simmer. Cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft.

3. Meanwhile, slice the hazelnuts in half. Dry toast them in a small frying pan over a medium heat until browned, but be careful not to burn them.

4. Blitz the soup with a handheld blender. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

5. Finely chop the hazelnuts and add half to soup. Serve soup with the rest of hazelnuts, an extra drizzle of honey and chopped parsley scattered on top.

This recipe first appeared in The Irish Independent on December 10^th