Cream of Parsnip with New Vithanakande Tea
Serves 4
Dish
- medium
- 20min
- 30min
Ingredients
- 20 g / 0.7 oz , plus 2 Tbsp for texture
- 500 g / 1 lb parsnips
- 1 onion
- 1 potato (approx. 90 g / 3 oz)
- 3 Tbsp liquid crème fraiche
- 1 Tbsp olive oil, plus more for serving
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 40 g roasted Piedmont hazelnuts, crushed
Preparation
- Steep the 20 g of tea in 1 L water at 90°C for 4 minutes. Remove the tea.
- Peel the onion, parsnips, and potato, rinse with cold water, and chop into medium-sized pieces.
- In a small saucepan, heat the tablespoon of olive oil. Add the chopped onion, parsnip and potato.
- Cook over high heat for 5 minutes, stirring constantly, to lightly brown the vegetables.
- Season with salt and pour in the brewed tea. It should cover the vegetables.
- Bring to a boil, then lower the heat.
- Cover the saucepan and cook for 30 minutes until the vegetables are very tender.
- Add the vegetables to a blender along with 2/3 of the cooking liquid and the crème fraiche, then blend for a long time to obtain a velvety texture.
- Gradually add the remaining cooking liquid until you achieve the desired texture.
- Season to taste.
- Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of tea leaves to the blender, cover, and wait 5 minutes for the tea to steep. Pulse quickly 2-3 times to stir the tea into the soup while keeping some leaves visible.
Plating
- Ladle the soup into bowls and add the hazelnuts, a few drops of olive oil, fresh thyme leaves, and freshly ground black pepper.