Beautiful Soup

More soup. Parsnip and carrot. Potato and onion. Chicken and mushroom with collards. Some improvised, some not. We've been souping it up all week long. No pictures, because we've eaten them right up. I recommend Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone as a great foundation cookbook for anyone, not just vegetarians. One of my informal resolutions was to lighten up on the meat this year and eat more vegetables, and so far, this book has really been helpful. Andrea Chesman's The Garden Fresh Vegetable Cookbook is another good one, arranged seasonally so that you can just flip to Winter and cook what's in season and well-priced right now.

Parsnip Soup with Ginger and Parsnip "Croutons"
(from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone)

3 large parsnips, about 2 lbs, peeled
6 cups basic vegetable stock or water (below)
1/2 cup chopped cilantro stems, plus sprigs for garnish
4 thin slices ginger
3 tablespoons butter or canola oil
1 large onion, chopped
3/4 lb carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 T white rice
Salt and freshly milled black pepper
1 cup (or more) milk, cream or almond milk to thin the soup, as needed

Cut two of the parsnips crosswise in half, then quarter each half lengthwise. Cut away most of the cores. (Note: this is an important step, especially with larger parsnips, as the core is woody and fibrous.) Reserve the other parsnip (to be diced and sauteed as garnish later.)

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil or butter in a soup pot over medium heat, letting it brown a little. Add the vegetables, remaining ginger and the coriander. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion and carrots have begun to brown here and there. Add the rice and 1 1/2 tsp salt and cook a few minutes more. Add the strained stock and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, until the vegetables are very soft, about 35 minutes. Remove the ginger, then puree the soup, leaving a little texture or not, as you wish. Thin if necessary with the milk. Check for seasoning, add salt if necessary.

Dice the third parsnip into little cubes (remember to remove the cores) and cook in a skillet in the remaining butter, until golden and tender, about 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve the soup with a spoonful of the parsnips and garnish with sprigs of cilantro.

If you've never cooked with parsnips before, give them a try. They make plain soups, like potato, more interesting and tasty. Here's one of my favorite recipes, for a deceptively simple soup that tastes richer than it is. Cauliflower-Parsnip-Leek soup, from chowhound.