What to make on a rainy fall day but Roasted Fennel and Potato Soup, of course. That's what I thought to myself Saturday afternoon after leafing through one of my favourite cookbooks of the moment, Relaxed Cooking with Curtis Stone. Not only do I love the book because the adorable Aussie has made me dinner from it twice (sadly not at my house Take Home Chef style but I’ll take what I can get) but also because all of the recipes are realistic for an everyday “chef” like me.
As with many of the recipes I’ve been trying as of late, the ingredients for this dish were easily found at my nearest grocery store. Something that’s always nice when trying something new. Not that I personally mind the search for unusual ingredients but I know some of you have better things to do with your time.
Once home the making of this soup happened in four stages:
Prep: Pretty easy stuff. I would estimate I spent 15 minutes washing, peeling and chopping. No problem.
Roasting: Also a breeze. I threw my coarsely chopped fennel and onions in the oven for 25 minutes. This allowed me a 15 minute interlude before starting stage three.
Simmering: Nothing to it. In a large soup pot I briefly sautéed of my garlic and leeks, then I added my chicken stock, potato chunks and roasted fennel and onion mixture. I left this to simmer for 18 minutes.
Pureeing: While this can get a little messy, it’s nothing to be intimidated by. I used a ladle to transfer my soup from the pot to the blender and then poured the puree into a big bowl (I skipped straining and nobody was the wiser). Once everything was smooth and creamy looking, I poured everything back into the pot.
I would have added cream at this point if mine hadn’t been sour (so much for the best before date). Luckily, in my opinion, the cream isn’t necessary. The soup was silky and delicious without it, not to mention lower in fat, too. No harm done.
My final tip, don’t skip the chive garnish. I don’t know what it is about those little greens but they really complete the soup which was amazing. And as I suspected, Roasted Fennel and Potato Soup absolutely is the perfect thing to make on a rainy fall day.
Thought that was sweet? You'll enjoy:
