After all the rich holiday foods, this soup is a welcome healthy soup to reset.  It can be made at any time of year with a variety of vegetables.  I created the soup to use up some of the extra produce I had in the fridge.  I love to roast some of the vegetables as I feel the flavor is a little better as it enables the vegetables to caramelize.  You may have to fiddle with the amount of liquid you add to your soup as the size of the vegetables varies a bit.  This is essentially a vegan soup if you omit the cream as the garnish.  I love to serve with some crispy croutons on top, but that is also an optional addition to the soup.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

  • 4 large tomatoes
  • 12 ounces diced butternut squash
  • 5 cups chopped cauliflower
  • 1 cup chopped celery root
  • 2 medium carrots, rough chop
  • 2 roasted red peppers (skins removed)
  • 1 large sweet onion, roughly chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 4 -5 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 tablespoon chopped thyme
  • 1 tablespoon turmeric
  • 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
  • crushed red pepper to taste
  • chopped cilantro for serving
  • approximately 1/4 -1/2 cup olive oil
  • kosher salt and pepper
  • croutons for serving (optional)
  • splash of cream for garnish (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400.  Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.  Place the tomatoes on one sheet and the cauliflower and butternut squash on the other baking sheet.  Season both with salt and pepper and toss each set of vegetables with a bit of olive oil to coat (be generous).  Roast in the oven for about 20 minutes until tomatoes are bursting and vegetables are caramelizing and tender.  While vegetables are roasting, heat a heavy bottom pot (my le creuset enamel pot is perfect for this), with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil.  Heat to medium heat and add onion, carrot, celery root and garlic.  Season with salt, pepper and chopped thyme stirring frequently until fragrant and tender (5-10 minutes).  Once vegetables are roasted, add them to the onion mixture along with roasted red peppers with any accumulated cooking juices.  Add about 3 or 4 cups of stock so vegetables are nearly covered, turmeric and smoked paprika.  Bring mixture to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover for about 30 minutes until all the vegetables are fork tender, adding more liquid if needed.  Remove soup from heat and transfer to a blender or food processor, and process in batches if necessary or use an emulsion blender to purée soup until smooth.  If soup appears thick, add additional stock, a 1/4 cup at a time to achieve desired thickness.  Adjust seasonings to taste.  To serve, ladle soup in bowls, add a handful of croutons in the center.  Sprinkle with crushed red pepper and a some fresh cilantro.  If you are not vegan, drizzle a tablespoon of cream on top to finish.  Serve immediately and enjoy!