Jana' s World Kitchen

Passport & Plate - Spicy Parsnip Soup

India | Thursday, March 13, 2014 | 4 photos

Ingredients
Preparation:30 min, Cooking: 40 min
1 tsp butter
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, sliced
small piece of fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
7 large parsnips, peeled and chopped into the cubes
1 and half tsp cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cardamon
1 tbsp garam masala
1 and a half litre vegetable stock
150 ml double cream
sea salt

Serving:
4 tsp virgin olive oil
fresh coriander or finely chopped leek
1 fresh chilli pepper, deseeded and cut into slices
1 tsp fried cumin seeds

 

How to prepare this recipe
Heat 1 tsp of butter in a large saucepan, then gently fry 1 finely chopped onion for 5 minutes until soft.
Add sliced garlic, fresh ginger and mix for another 1 minute.
Add peeled and chopped parsnip and spices and fry for another minute until flavours revealed.
Pour vegetable stock into the pan and boil for 30 minutes, until the parsnip is soft.
Add double cream, bring to boil and then purée with a hand blender. Add sea salt to taste.
While the soup is cooking, deseed and slice the chilli pepper, finely chop leek and coriander and fry the cumin seeds.
Serve the soup drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with fried cumin seeds, sliced chilli pepper and fresh coriander or leek.

 

The story behind this recipe
I discovered this recipe when I was working as a nanny for an Indian family in London. I was looking after a 6 year old boy, Tej, and his mum Ananda, who was a very skilled cook. Every day she prepared great Indian meals and I was happy that I could learn all those interesting recipes from her, as well all those special tastes.
She also taught me this easy but very tasty spicy soup recipe, which I usually prepare during the cold winters in Slovakia. She told me that this recipe is from her grand mother, which she used to prepare for all her family during the Sunday's lunches.
Even if I will not win, i'm happy to share this recipe with you and pass it on for more people to enjoy such a beautiful meal. Bon apetit:)