Roasted fennel and Somerset cider soup
From: The People's Cookbook
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Roasted fennel and Somerset cider soup
- Prep time:
- Cook time:
- Serves:
Tony Brandon's creamy fennel soup has a fruity cider flavour and makes an ideal choice for taking the chill out of autumnal days
Ingredients
- 2 large bulb Fennel, including the feathery leaves
- 2 large red Onions, peeled
- Olive oil, for drizzling
- 1 bunch sprigs of lemon Thyme
- 1 tbsp Coriander seeds
- 1 tbsp Fennel seeds
- 330ml dry cider
- 1 litre good-quality vegetable stock
- 300ml double Cream
- glug of Somerset apple brandy or Calvados
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200C/gas 6. Trim the feathery leaves off the fennel and reserve a few for the garnish. Trim the fennel bulbs, removing the tough outer layers, and cut each one into 8 wedges. Cut the onions into similar-sized pieces.2. Put the fennel and onion in a roasting tin and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle the lemon thyme, coriander seeds, fennel seeds and freshly ground black pepper over the vegetables. Roast in the oven for 30-45 minutes or until lightly caramelised.
3. Remove the roasting tin from the oven, pour the cider over the vegetables and return to the oven for a further 15 minutes - until the cider has almost been absorbed.
4. Remove from the oven and cool slightly, then spoon the roast vegetables and juices into a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Transfer the vegetable puree to a large saucepan and stir in the stock. Bring the mixture to the boil and simmer over a medium heat until reduced by about a third.
5. Cool slightly before straining the soup through a fine sieve. Return to the rinsed-out pan, stir in the cream, and reheat. Add the apple brandy just before serving. Ladle the soup into warmed bowls and garnish with a sprinkling of chopped fennel leaves.









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