Parsnip and pear soup on a cooler spring evening

One thing I love about spring is that you get lovely days that provide hope that summer is on the way - but you also get the cooler weather so that you can occasionally have your favourite winter dish.

Last night was one of the chillier nights and so I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to try out another parsnip soup. (Actually I had a parsnip to use up before going up to see the parents today). Nat and I really enjoyed the parsnip and pumpkin soup - but we didn't have any pumpkin - so I went looking for inspiration and I found this recipe created by Ricki at Diet, Dessert and Dogs.

I didn't have any leeks but I had everything else (really simple easy recipe so there wasn't much else to need which is good because our fridge is pretty empty of vegetables). I altered the recipe a little so, while staying faithful to Ricki's recipe mine is a little different. It was lovely - sweet but with the lovely parsnip flavour (you could taste it but it was not overpowering which was good). It reminded me a bit of applesauce in consistancy (not in a bad way) and I can now understand how parsnips can be used in desserts, like in this recipe at the Vegan Feast Kitchen.

Thanks Ricki for a great recipe.

Pear and Parsnip Soup
1 onion - diced
1 large parsnip - cubed
1 stick celery - chopped
4 small pears - peeled and cubed
1 litre vegetable stock (I cheated and used bullion)
salt and pepper to taste

Saute onion in a little water or broth for about 5 mins. Over medium heat, add celery, parsnip and pear and saute for about 15 mins, stirring constantly. Add vegetable broth and simmer over low heat for a further 15 mins. Turn off the heat and let the soup cool a little before pureeing it using an immersion blender or in batches in a blender.
Serve hot - we served ours with crusty bread.


I am baking some gluten free goodies for our nephew's naming ceremony/birthday celebration. Stay tuned people as I just realised I have no gluten free flour... this could be interesting!!!

Chunky Parsnip and Pumpkin Soup

Don't you hate it when you get home... have a fridge full of wonderful veggies but just feel like getting leftovers out of the freezer. Well, I have a horrible (but yet wonderful) habit of getting a little too excited when I go veggie shopping at our local market and ending up with so many fresh veggies that I really need to do something with. Well... at the moment I have broccoli, zucchini, organic parsnips (lots of parsnips), capsicum, pumpkin, celery, corn, cabbage, carrots and leek (yes I warned you that I got excited). What I was worried about using up most was the parsnips. I have not really used parsnips that much apart from in casseroles, vegetable soups and shepherds pie. But I had about 5 parsnips!!! So I did a little searching on the net and found this yummy looking soup by Mihl at Seitan is my Motor. So I had all the vegetables that were needed... but no panch poran. So I just added the spices that make up panch poran to the soup... then I added some chilli paste and then some red curry paste. It was THICK!!



As dinner was a lot later than it should have been - in my rush to get it ready I didn't blend it quite as well as I should have... so it had chuncky bits of parsnip and pumpkin - which actually was really nice.

So here is my version of the soup.

Roasted Parsnip and Pumpkin Soup

600g pumpkin - cubed
3 large parsnips - cubed
1 red capsicum - halved

1 onion diced
1 Tbsp fresh ginger - minced
1 tsp ground corriander
1 tsp cumin seeds
1/2tsp black mustard seeds
1 tsp chili paste (I use sambel olek)
1 tsp red curry paste
1 1/2 cups red lentils - rinsed
6 cups vegetable stock
salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees celcius.
2. Spray two baking trays with oil and place the vegetables on the trays. Roast in oven for 40mins or until cooked but not mushy.
3. Meanwhile, spray the bottom of a large saucepan with cooking spray, chuck in the spices and stir for a minute. Add onion and ginger and pastes (and a little bit of water) and saute until onion is cooked.
4. Add lentils and stock. Cover and cook for 10-15 mins.
5. Add vegetables and cook a further 10 mins.
6. Blend with an immersion blender or blend in batches in a blender. Add more water if it is too thick - I liked it being thick - I was hungry!
7. Season with salt and pepper.
8. Serve with crusy bread.