Moroccan Carrot Parsnip Soup with Spiced Yogurt
Ingredients
SOUP
- 7 to 8 cups vegetable stock
- 2 teaspoons whole coriander seeds
- 2 teaspoons whole cumin seeds
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion chopped (about 2 cups)
- Salt to taste
- Ground black pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 ½ tablespoons grated fresh ginger
- ¼ cup dry white wine
- 1 ½ pounds carrots coarsely chopped (about 4 cups)
- 1 medium parsnip coarsely chopped (about 1½ cups)
- 1 medium potato peeled and coarsely chopped (about 1 cup)
SPICED YOGURT
- ½ cup plain wholefat yogurt
- ½ teaspoon toasted ground cumin seeds
- Cayenne to taste
Instructions
SOUP
- Heat vegetable stock over low heat in a large soup pot.
- Heat oven to 400°F. Spread coriander and cumin seeds on an unlined pan, and bake for 1 minute, or until fragrant. Remove immediately, and crush in a mortar and pestle, or on a cutting board with a rolling pin. (You may wish to toast the additional ½ teaspoon cumin seeds required for the spiced yogurt now as well.)
- Heat oil in a large soup pot, and add onions, ¼ teaspoon salt, and a pinch of pepper. Cook over medium heat until onions are soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and ginger, and cook 1 minute more. Add wine and cook until the pan is nearly dry, about 3 minutes. Stir in toasted ground coriander and cumin, followed by carrots, parsnip, potato, ¼ teaspoon salt, and a pinch of pepper.
- Add 5 cups of stock, and simmer uncovered, until vegetables are tender, 35 to 40 minutes.
SPICED YOGURT
- Toast and grind cumin seeds as directed previously. Combine with yogurt and cayenne pepper.
- Puree soup in a blender until smooth, adding a little stock if needed to each batch, and return to the pot over low heat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish each serving with a swirl of spiced yogurt.
Notes
Chef Annie Somerville
Annie Somerville is the executive chef of Greens Restaurant and the author of the award-winning cookbook Fields of Greens and Everyday Greens. She came to Greens in 1981, trained under Deborah Madison, and has been the executive chef since 1985. She works closely with the organic gardeners at Green Gulch Farm, local growers, cheese makers, and other purveyors, as well as with Greens chefs, planning menus and overseeing a talented kitchen staff.
Will Fertman
Will Fertman is a writer and food business entrepreneur living in Berkeley, CA. A former staff writer and web manager for culture, Will wrote the Ruminations column for the magazine and spent lots of time wrangling social media. Today Will is the Director of Content and co-founder at the monger, a data-driven platform for the specialty food industry, supplying accountable information and transactions for producers, distributors, retailers, foodservice and consumers.
