Foodie Friday! Fennel Soup

This soup was made by Dr. D.'s daughter during our holiday in England.  I had never eaten fennel before and this recipe knocked my socks off!  It has me seriously considering an immersion blender which makes making this soup and other vegan cream soups a breeze.

I often will omit the parsley in recipes as optional but this soup really needs the parsley stalks for flavor.

Fennel Soup

(a variation of a Gordon Ramsay recipe)

Ingredients (for 6 servings)

3 fennel bulbs, trimmed and finely sliced

2 celery stalks, finely sliced

3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced

1 qt. vegetable stock

Handful of Italian (flat-leaf) parsley, stalks and leaves separated

1 teaspoon ground coriander

2 bay leaves

14 oz. cannellini beans, drained

Salt and pepper

3 tablespoons olive oil

Handful of chopped fresh cilantro

1. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pan. Add the fennel, celery and garlic. Sweat for 5 minutes over medium-low heat until softened but not colored.

2. Add the stock, parsley stalks, ground coriander, bay leaves, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and let it simmer on low heat for 40 minutes. Discard the bay leaves and parsley stalks and transfer to a blender. Chop the parsley leaves.

3. Blend the soup until velvety smooth and return to the pan (if you have a hand blender, you can just blend it in the pan). Add the beans and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. 

4. Serve the soup sprinkle with chopped cilantro. Enjoy!