Asparagus & Celery Root Bisque

I came up with this soup because I wanted to make a nice vegetable based soup, but one I hadn't tried before. With that in mind I decided to make an asparagus soup but I wanted to change up how I have made it in the past. I have two issues with how I've made it in restaurants. First, was the body of the soup. I didn't want to use just potatoes and stems as the base of this, I wanted to give the soup a bit more depth. Secondly, because it's green, the longer it cooks, it looses it's vibrant color.

I addressed the first issue by adding celery root, in addition to the potatoes and asparagus stems to the base. Celeriac, or celery root, is a root vegetable that isn't used nearly as much as it should. It's a great addition to your repertoire as it has a rich flavor, and it can be used in numerous manners. You can make chips, pickles, thicken sauces and soups, use as a root vegetable, make purees. It's extremely versatile and can use it in almost any course of cooking, including a fair amount of cuisines. By adding the celeriac to the base, I rounded out the depth, while not overpowering the asparagus flavor.

The second issue was the visual problem I run into with green soups. When you make a soup based on green vegetables it has a tendency to become less vibrant when you heat it, and loose it's visual appeal over time. I took care of this problem, by pureeing spinach into the soup to finish it, brightening the color of the soup. By doing this, you don't really alter the flavor, but the color of the soup, and the overall visual appeal, improves dramatically.

In addition to the spinach and celery, I also added a couple steps while cooking it. I used grilled asparagus to get an earthy charred flavor, as well as preserved lemon. To garnish this soup, I took the tops of the asparagus and added them to the soup at the end. I had grilled the asparagus separately with lemon and extra virgin olive oil to help give depth to the soup.

Enjoy.

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Ingredients

• asparagus, stems cut and reserved 2 lb

• celery root, peeled and chopped 2 ea

• onion, chopped 2 ea

• chicken stock 2 qts

• water as needed

• CRP (crushed red pepper) 1 tsp

• Avenue Spice 2 T

• mustard powder 2 tsp

• heavy cream 16 oz

• lemon, zested and juiced 2 ea

• dill, fresh* 1 tsp

• thyme, fresh* 1 tsp

• tarragon, fresh* 1 tsp

• mint, fresh* 1 tsp

• golden potatoes, peeled, chopped 2 ea

• preserved lemon, minced 1 T

• frozen spinach, thawed as needed to finish

• salt and pepper to taste

• XVO (extra virgin olive oil) as needed

*one of the benefits of having a garden, or an indoor herb garden, is being able to use fresh herbs in your cooking. If you have fresh, you can use dried, use partial, or omit depending on your palate.

Garnish

grilled asparagus tips, sour cream

Method of Procedure

1. Toss your asparagus in lemon juice, salt, pepper, and XVO and grill (saute, roast, etc) until charred. Cool and cut the stems off, reserving them.

2. Start the soup by heating up your pan, and adding oil. Once hot add your onion, CRP, mustard powder, and Avenue Spice. Cook on medium while stirring until softened.

3. Add your remaining lemon juice and zest and stir.

4. Add your potatoes, reserved asparagus stems, and celery root. Cook while stirring until the spices and the vegetables have mixed completely.

5. Put in your stock and cream and bring to a quick boil.

6. Reduce to a simmer and cook for around 40 minutes until everything is soft.

7. Puree your soup with a stick blender (or run through a blender) and return to heat. Add your fresh herbs and cook for another 10 minutes.

8. Add spinach, season to taste, and puree again.

9. Garnish with asparagus tips and sour cream.