Ever wanted to try Rapunzel’s favourite soup from the beloved Disney film Tangled? Well I’ve concocted a simple recipe that I think she’d love with the only directions being that it includes parsnips and is infused with the flavour of hazelnuts.
You Will Need:
- 2 Tbsp of Butter
- 1 Brown Onion
- 3 Cloves of Garlic
- 2 Leeks
- 3 Parsnips
- 2 Green Apples
- 1 Large Potato
- 120g Roasted Hazelnuts
- 4 Cups of Chicken Stock
- 1/2 Cup of Cream
- Salt and Pepper
- A handful each of Mint, Basil and Thyme
COOK’S NOTES: If you can, buy pre-roasted hazelnuts. Roasting any nut can be a tricky business and burnt nuts are unusable. If you want to roast them yourself then take a frying pan large enough so all the nuts are touching the surface. Place it on a medium heat and stir the nuts every 30 seconds. Roast until they become a deeper brown and aromatic.
This soup will be blended at a later stage so there is no need to cut the ingredients into very small pieces. It can also help retain flavour in the food. Chop the onion in half and remove the skin, remove the skin from the garlic but keep it whole, chop the leeks into manageable chunks.
COOK’S NOTES: As with all long stemmed onions (like leeks and shallots) it’s actually the whiter part at the roots that contains the flavour. The green, leafiest part at the top can be trimmed off as well the roots - keeping as much of the white as possible.
Leek’s notoriously have dirt hidden in the many folds of their leaves too. Slice them down the middle lengthways and run water through the folds while keeping the whole intact.
Heat the butter in a large saucepan (heavy based is best) until melted and bubbly. Add the aromatic vegetables you’ve cut up and allow them to cook off their stringent onion flavour until they become a little translucent.
Peel and chop the parsnips in half, quarter and core the apples, peel and quarter the potato and place into pot. Stir and allow to heat up. Pour in the chicken stock and make sure there is enough to cover all the vegetables.
COOK’S NOTES: Unless a recipe specifically calls for cold stock, it’s a rule of thumb that the stock should always be hot. If you add cold stock to a soup, for instance, you then have brought the cooking temperature right down again and you’ll have to wait for 4 cups of liquid to completely heat up.
Bring the soup to the boil, keep boiling for 5 minutes, then bring it back to a simmer for 1 hour. In this time, place the whole roasted hazelnuts into a food processor or mortar and pestle and crush them into a mealy powder - doesn’t have to be too fine as it will be blended later.
Turn off heat. Add the cream, roughly chopped herbs, salt and pepper (to taste), and hazelnuts. Using a stick blender, purée the soup until smooth. Make sure you have blended ALL the ingredients well. If you do not have a stick blender it is a little trickier. Pour the soup into a separate bowl and wait for it to cool so that it’s not steaming. Ladle some of the broth and vegetables into a blender and blend ‘til smooth. Pour into the pot and repeat in batches with the remaining soup.
Serve the soup hot and garnish with cream, a little of the hazelnut powder, and chives or thyme. Also, some thickly buttered toast or Turkish bread goes beautifully with it (and all soups).
