Creamy chestnut and roast veg soup
Prep time: 20-25 minsTotal time: 
Creamy chestnut and roast veg soup
Chestnuts add an earthy sweetness to this velvety root veg soup, finished with a crunchy bacon crumb. Use leftover roasted carrots and parsnips from your Christmas dinner or roast the veg from scratch
Prep time: 20-25 minsTotal time: 
Abigail Spooner
Abigail Spooner
Ingredients
- 320g leftover roasted carrots and parsnips (or 800g raw)
- 1-3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 tsp chopped rosemary, thyme or sage leaves
- 1 x 180g pouch Merchant Gourmet Cooked Chestnuts
- 1.2 litres stock (e.g. chicken, turkey or vegetable)
- 80g smoked bacon lardons
- 150ml double cream
- 60g white bread (ideally slightly stale), crusts removed
To serve
- snipped chives
Step by step
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If you have leftover roasted vegetables, skip to step 2. If starting with raw, preheat the oven to 200°C, fan 180°C, gas 6. Peel the carrots and parsnips, then cut into batons and tip into a bowl. Toss with 2 tablespoons of oil and some seasoning, then spread out on a large baking tray. Roast for 40-45 minutes, turning halfway. Once golden and tender, remove from the oven and set aside.
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Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large saucepan, then cook the onion with a pinch of salt over a low heat for 10-12 minutes until softened. Stir in the garlic and herbs, then cook for a further 2 minutes until fragrant. Reserve 60g chestnuts for the topping, then tip the rest into the pan, along with the roasted vegetables. Pour over the stock, season with black pepper and bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
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Meanwhile, put the bacon in a dry frying pan. Set over a medium heat, then cook for 6-8 minutes or until crisp and golden. Use a slotted spoon to remove the bacon to a kitchen-paper-lined plate (leaving the fat in the pan). Set aside to cool.
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Remove the soup from the heat and pour in the cream. Whizz the soup until smooth, using a handheld stick blender or by transferring to an upright blender. Add a splash more stock or water if required. Keep warm.
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Put the cooled bacon lardons into a food processor with the bread and reserved chestnuts. Pulse to a chunky crumb. Bring the pan with the bacon fat to a medium heat, then tip in the crumbs and fry for 8-10 minutes, stirring, until crisp and golden.
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Divide the soup among bowls, then scatter over the bacon crumbs and snipped chives to serve.
