what you need
3 white root vegetables: parsnips, white potatoes, and/or celeriac
1 garlic bulb (~10 cloves)
2 cups boiling water
2 cups vegetable broth
1 cup of almonds, blanched
1 onion
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 bunch of red seedless grapes, halved
1/4 cup roasted and salted pistachios, chopped
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
olive oil, black pepper, and cayenne for serving
how to make it
Preheat oven to 400. Cut parsnips and onions into roughly same-sized chunks. Peel and halve the garlic cloves. Toss in olive oil and spread into a baking pan lined with tinfoil. Bake on 400 for ~20 minutes until the vegetables become soft.
In the interim, blanch the almonds (60 seconds in boiling water). Remove the skins and place the blanched almonds in the blender with the water and vegetable broth. Pulse and then blend on high until you’ve made a crude almond milk.
Add vegetables, thyme, vinegar, and salt to the blender and blend on high for two rounds of ~3-4 minutes for maximum smoothness. If you really want to smooth it out, you can add a couple glugs of olive oil while blending.
Adjust spices for taste and pour into bowls. Soup should be very warm to hot. Drizzle with olive oil. Top with halved red grapes, toasted pistachios, cracked black pepper, and a few dashes of cayenne for extra spiceness.
