My father loves parsnips, so whenever I see a recipe containing the root I try to pass it on to him. The other day I received a special cookbook from Bon Appetit (free for buying a gift subscription for my parents and my husband’s niece), and the collection included the following parsnip-based dish:

Parsnip & Apple Soup

3 TBS butter

3 large leeks; white and pale green parts finely chopped, dark green parts reserved

5 large parsnips (about 1½ LBS), peeled & cut into ½” pieces

2 medium Gala or Fuji apples (13 oz. total), peeled, cored & cut into ½” pieces

4 C (or more) water

1½ C whole milk

Large pinch of sugar

Salt & pepper to taste

 

Melt the butter in a heavy large pot over medium heat. Add leeks, parsnips and apples. Cover; cook until vegetables begin to soften, stirring often, about 20 minutes. Add 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium. Simmer uncovered until vegetables are very tender, about 20 minutes. Cool slightly.

 

Working in batches, puree vegetable mixture with milk in a blender until smooth, thinning soup with more water if desired. Return soup to pot; season with sugar, salt and pepper. (Can be made one day ahead: Cool slightly; refrigerate uncovered until cold, then cover and keep refrigerated). Cut enough reserved green parts of the leeks into matchstick-size strips to measure one cup. Cook in medium saucepan of boiling water until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain. Bring soup to a simmer. Ladle into bowls. Garnish with leek strips and serve.

Hmmm, the dish actually sounds kind of good…