Parsnips rule. Make this soup. Sunchoke chips rule. Make these little chips. Ricotta rules. Add this to your soup. Maple syrup is insane. Keep a little bottle up your sleeve like Will Ferrell in Elf. This Caramelized Maple Parsnip Soup will help you figure it all out on a cold winter day; it will make you love your life when it’s pitch dark out at 4:30 p.m. and the ol’ seasonal depression kicks in.
Caramelized Maple Parsnip Soup with Sunchoke Chips and Ricotta
SERVES 4
PREP TIME: 1 HOUR
Ingredients:
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 2 pounds parsnips, peeled and chopped 1 onion, chopped
- 1 cup maple syrup, plus more for serving 1 cup brandy
- 6 sunchokes, thinly sliced or shaved 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 6 cups canola oil, for frying
- Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 cup heavy cream 1 cup ricotta
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil Maldon salt
Directions:
- In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, warm the butter. Add the parsnips and onions and cook until they begin to caramelize, about 10 minutes. Stir occasionally. Add the maple syrup. Guess what? Keep giving it a little stir here and there. We’re trying to create a super-sticky, fudgy, super-caramelized mixture here. This should take about 15 minutes. Watch this closely; it will burn if you don’t keep moving it.
- Next, hit it with the brandy. Flambé. It’s a classic. I’m not liable. Let the brandy cook off and then add water to cover, about 6 cups. Simmer for 30 minutes.
- While the soup is simmering, let’s make the sunchoke chips. Completely submerge them in water and add the vinegar. Let them sit for 20 minutes.
- Drain and dry the chips. In a separate large Dutch oven, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat to 360°F. Make sure the chips are very dry. Gently lower them into the oil with a spider. Fry these guys in batches. Never fill the pot up all the way. Gently move them within the fryer. As soon as they get golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes, pull them out and season them with kosher salt.
- When the soup has simmered for 30 minutes, throw in the cream. Cook for another 10 minutes, then blend the entire mixture, preferably with a hand blender but a regular blender works too.
- In a small bowl, combine the ricotta with the lemon zest and olive oil. Add a healthy pinch of Maldon salt and pepper.
- To serve, ladle the soup into four bowls, add a large dollop of the seasoned ricotta, a drizzle with maple syrup, and a few of those delicious sunchoke chips.
Soups, Salads, Sandwiches by Matty Matheson. Matty Matheson, known for his bold, innovative flavors, has created a cookbook that will revolutionize how you think of these kitchen basics. This book is for anyone and everyone, offering up Matty’s signature twists on the classics, delivered with minimal effort for maximum flavor. Packed with character, personal stories, scrumptious recipes, and vivid photographs of a day-in-the-life with Matty and his family, Soups, Salads, Sandwiches will have you fearlessly whipping up your own combinations in the kitchen.
Excerpted from Matty Matheson: Soups, Salads, Sandwiches by Matty Matheson. Copyright © 2024 Matty Matheson. Photographs by Quentin Bacon. Published by Appetite by Random House®, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
