Underground Soup with Apple and Gruyere

I forgot to take pictures of this one, but my husband loved it so much that I had to put the recipe online. As the weather is getting colder everyday we really feel like having soup, which is great as there is no end to the number of healthy soups you can make with vegetables, especially in the fall with so many squashes around. This time though I was in the mood for some roots, so I went to the supermarket ( yep, the CSA boxes are over unfortunately!) and bought all the roots I could put my hands on and made soup.

INGREDIENTS

Celery root and parsnips

3 parsnips

3 parsley roots

1/2 celery root

3 turnips

3 potatoes

1 sweet potato

Nutmeg

1 apple

a couple of slices of gruyere cheese

RECIPE FOR THE UNDERGROUND SOUP

It is very easy, just peel the potatoes and the celery root then dice all the roots and put in a stock pot covered with water and salt. Cook until all the roots are soft and then use an immersion blender to create a cream.Add nutmeg. Pour the soup into a mug or one of those tiny soup pots they use for french onion soup and add some of the diced apple to it. Top with the slices of gruyere cheese and put in the microwave for one minute or until the cheese is melted and serve.

I served it with pork chops that I had stuffed with apple and gruyere and with a side of pureed parsnips with apple, so that the dinner was all "apple-themed". I bet cider would have been very good to drink with it. My husband loved it and it really felt very homey and heart-warming, but at the same time it was not as starchy as a potato soup or as sweet as a carrot soup. The celery root, the parsley root and the parsnips have a earthy but fresh taste and they really don't need much more spices or herbs added to them to achieve an awesome taste. I think it could be a good thanksgiving soup. The addition of sweet potatoes is important to have a beautiful orange color, otherwise I think the soup would be whitish and less appealing to the eye.