Celery Root Soup with Pancetta, Brussels Sprouts and Toasted Hazelnuts

Winter is here and even in sunny SoCal it does get cold, and while I know it’s not as cold as elsewhere like up North or the East coast’s current snowtopia blast, it isn’t the normal blue skies and warm weather.

And that means soup time every once in a while and this Celery Root Soup with Pancetta, Brussels Sprouts and Toasted Hazelnuts is a killer. Trust me on this.

All right, after 3 days of my site being down due to high traffic and lack of bandwidth, I am happy to be up again and on a new server. It was a luxury problem, but a problem nonetheless. I was heartbroken not to be up and am so grateful things have been resolved. So, let’s get back to it shall we?

I initially was going to make one of my favorites like Chunky Potato Chicken Soup or my Cream of Broccoli Soup, but I had recently picked up a huge prehistoric looking vegetable that is definitely underused, and I feel has such incredible flavor, which is the celery root. It’s subtle smell and taste is beautiful. All you need do is with a sharp kitchen knife peel the outer skin and chop the flesh into cubes and get to it.

I decided to include an onion and would roast them first to bring out even more flavor. The soup broth would consist of a quick sauté of shallot and garlic, chicken stock and coconut milk. It’s understated flavor would work well with and not combat the celery and would add a richness to the stock.

With a little pan rendered pancetta I picked up from my favorite Italian market, Mona Lisa, it would add the needed protein and salty goodness, but feel free to omit if you like. A few other interesting vegetables and textures were on the plate and we were good to go.

This delivers on flavor, texture and satisfaction. Some fresh toasted sourdough and the meal was complete. Enjoy!

Let’s get that oven ready for roasting and toasting. Preheat oven to 400°F.

Peel and chop the celery root into 2 inch cubes. Cut the onion into 8 pieces. Toss both vegetables in 2 tablespoons of olive oil and place on a lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with kosher salt and set aside. On a separate lined baking sheet, add the hazelnuts and place in the oven along with vegetables for 20 minutes.

Remove vegetables and hazelnuts from oven and set aside.

In a large skillet add 1 tbsp olive oil and chopped pancetta. Brown, drain and reserve rendered oil. Set aside.  Thinly slice the brussels sprouts and set aside.

In a large casserole/soup pot add the rendered pancetta fat and sauté the diced shallot for 2 minutes. Add the minced garlic and red pepper flakes and continue to cook for 2 minutes on medium heat. Add the flour and cook for one minute, stirring. Add the chicken stock and stir to avoid lumps and stock thickens. Add the coconut milk and stir. Bring to a boil and return to low to simmer.

Rub the toasted hazelnuts with a kitchen towel to remove toasted skins, discard. The toasted skins are really bitter and you don’t want them in your soup. It unfortunately makes a mess out of a kitchen towel, but it’s the price you pay. Just shake it out over a trash can, or throw it in the wash.

Rough chop the nuts and set aside.

In a large skillet, add remaining olive oil and sauté thinly sliced brussels sprouts until browned and edges start to caramelize. set aside.

Either use an immersion hand blender to mix the roasted celery root and onion and soup stock mixture, or add to a blender and purée until smooth and return to casserole/soup pot. Taste and season if needed with kosher salt.

To assemble ladle soup into bowl, add handful of caramelized brussels sprouts, top with browned pancetta, toasted hazelnuts and a drizzle of good olive oil.

5.0 from 2 reviews

Celery Root Soup with Pancetta, Brussels Sprouts and Toasted Hazelnuts

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

40 mins

 

Author: Kevin

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 lb celery root
• 1 large onion, diced
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• kosher salt
• ½ lb pancetta
• 1 lb brussels sprouts
• 1 shallot, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• pinch red pepper flakes
• 2 tbsp flour
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 13.5 oz can coconut milk
• ½ cup hazelnuts, chopped

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Peel and chop the celery root into 2 inch cubes. Cut the onion into 8 pieces. Toss both vegetables in 2 tablespoons of olive oil and place on a lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with kosher salt and set aside. On a separate lined baking sheet, add the hazelnuts and place in the oven along with vegetables for 20 minutes.
3. Remove vegetables from oven and set aside. Remove the hazelnuts from oven, rub with a kitchen towel to remove toasted skins, discard. Rough chop the nuts and set aside.
4. In a large skillet add 1 tbsp olive oil and chopped pancetta. Brown, drain and reserve rendered oil. Set aside.
5. In a large casserole/soup pot add the rendered pancetta fat and sauté the diced shallot for 2 minutes. Add the minced garlic and red pepper flakes and continue to cook for 2 minutes on medium heat. Add the flour and cook for one minute, stirring. Add the chicken stock and stir to avoid lumps and stock thickens. Add the coconut milk and stir. Bring to a boil and return to low to simmer.
6. In a large skillet, add remaining olive oil and sauté thinly sliced brussels sprouts until browned and edges start to caramelize. set aside.
7. Either add roasted celery root and onion to soup stock mixture and use an immersion hand blender to mix, or add to a blender and purée until smooth and return to casserole/soup pot. Taste and season if needed with kosher salt.
8. To assemble ladle soup into bowl, add handful of caramelized brussels sprouts, top with browned pancetta, toasted hazelnuts and a drizzle of good olive oil.

3.2.2925