Sharing nourishing recipes on this platform from BIPOC chefs and cooks in my community (in-person or online), is one way I enjoy uplifting those who are making a difference in how we eat. So, I asked Chef Taffy Elrod if she would share a recipe for the home cooks who visit my website…and she said yes! I especially love her contribution because I love parsnips and ginger. I am looking forward to making this “root” soup along with you.
“I love this soup, I created it on the fly for my students using ingredients we had on hand. Over the years it has become one of my favorite soups to cook, it is warming, nourishing and allows for the kind of intuitive and meditative cooking that brings me joy and satisfaction.
The ginger and warming spices enhance the sweet spiciness of the parsnips. The fresh herbs and crème fraiche balance the warmth with a cool, verdant quality that draws out the almost anise like flavor of the root vegetables. It’s warming and cozy, yet light and refreshing all at once. The crème fraiche is beautiful with this soup, but by all means use a high quality coconut yogurt if you choose to keep it dairy free.” - Taffy Elrod
WARMING WINTER VEGETABLE SOUP
Chef Taffy Elrod
2 SERVINGS
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons ghee or coconut oil
1 large shallot, sliced
1/2 teaspoon of each: ground allspice, ground cinnamon, and ground coriander
1-inch piece fresh ginger root, peeled and minced
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
3 large parsnips, peeled and diced
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
2 cups (approximately) vegetable broth, or water
1 tablespoon of each: minced, fresh dill and minced, fresh parsley
2 teaspoons minced, fresh tarragon
1/4 cup crème fraiche or coconut yogurt - plus extra for garnish
METHOD
Warm a small saucepan over medium-low heat and add the ghee or oil, add the sliced shallot to the pan and sweat it in the ghee until soft and fragrant.
Add the allspice, cinnamon, coriander, and ginger root the pan and warm until fragrant and infused through the ghee.
Add the carrots, parsnips, salt, while pepper and enough broth to just cover the vegetables. Raise the heat to medium. Stir everything together scraping the bottom of the pan to be sure there are no spices or vegetables stuck.
Cover the pan and bring the contents to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally until the carrots and parsnips are very tender. About 15 minutes. Add more broth if needed.
When the vegetables are tender carefully blend the soup with an immersion blender or in batches, in a blender with a clean towel covering the hole in the center of the lid so the hot soup doesn’t burst out of the top. Blend the soup until it is completely pureed, lush and velvety.
Return the soup to the pan, stir in the herbs, taste for salt and pepper. Add broth to bring it to your desired consistency if necessary. I Love this soup so thick it’s almost like a porridge, but you can thin it to whatever consistency makes you happy.
When the soup is heated through and seasoned to your tastes, remove it from the heat and stir in the crème fraiche. Serve piping hot garnished with a spoonful of crème fraiche and a sprig of herbs.
Taffy Elrod is a chef, cooking instructor, and food writer with a passion for making good food accessible to everyone. Born into a family of artists and cooks she learned early on that food is a powerful medium for creation and change.
She has been cooking and teaching professionally in New York for over twenty years. She started cooking in New York City after attending the Natural Gourmet Institute for Food and Health.
She now cooks and develops recipes in New York’s Hudson Valley, where she lives with her husband Pizza Man and their rescue cat Kit-Kat.
You can follow her on Instagram at cheftaffyelrod :)