Cream of Parsnip Soup by The Fat Foodie

I love parsnips. I particularly like their inherent sweetness which works so well when they’re roasted. In fact, parsnips are so sweet that they were used to sweeten recipes in Europe long before cane sugar was ever introduced to our shores. However, the sweetness of parsnips also works really well in savoury soup, such as this cream of parsnip soup.

Although parsnips are a staple vegetable in Britain during the winter, thanks to their seasonal availability, not all countries appreciate the humble root vegetable that is the parsnip and, in fact, a number of countries only grow them to be used as a crop to feed their cattle! I find it astonishing that such a wonderfully tasty vegetable can be cast aside in such a way.

Another aspect of the parsnip which makes me so warm towards it is its complete lack of FODMAPs, allowing it to be incorporated into a great many recipes and meals without unnecessarily stacking up their FODMAP content. Parsnips are also excellent sources of nutrition because, aside from providing dietary fibre, they’re full of potassium, antioxidants and Vitamins B and C.

One question I get asked all the time is what low FODMAP stock I use because a lot of the stock cubes which are on the supermarket shelves contain onion and/or garlic. Some people who eat a low FODMAP diet can find that their systems are okay with a small amount of onion and garlic, such as the quantity found in stock cubes. However, others cannot tolerate it in their diets at all. There are a couple of options if you’re very sensitive to onion or garlic though. The first is Massel ‘s Vegetable Stock Cubes which are completely free of onion or garlic. I’ve tried this stock and it’s quite nice and it certainly does the job well. The second option is Casa de Sante’s low FODMAP Vegetable Stock Powder which is my preferred choice because I like the background herbiness it brings to meals. It’s also officially certified by FODMAP Friendly. If you’d like, you can buy either of these options online by clicking on the names of the products.

Just like the plain old parsnip itself, this cream of parsnip soup isn’t fancy, but it’s packed full of flavour and really delivers in the taste department. It’s hot, warming and very, very delicious.

Ingredients:

140g parsnips (peeled and diced)

100g potatoes (peeled and diced)

600ml rice milk (or lactose-free milk)

100ml boiling water

1 low FODMAP vegetable stock cube (or 1-2 tsps of Casa de Sante’s low FODMAP Vegetable Stock Powder)

1/4 tsp ground white pepper (or less, depending on taste)

20g sliced almonds

Method:

Prepare your parsnips and potatoes as directed and put them in a large saucepan.

Dissolve the stock into the boiling water and add it to the pan along with the rice milk.

Bring to the boil and once the vegetables are soft add the white pepper.