This lovely Canlis Parsnip Soup Hazelnut Gremolata came from, you guessed it, Canlis Restaurant in Seattle. It also came with a lovely story. I was first exposed to Canlis a few years ago now, when my dear friend Andrea was married in Seattle. It was a gorgeous October weekend with fall leaves, sunshine, and lots of amazing food. Since everyone came from out of town, they planned the entire weekend for us and we had a lovely tour of the city on a double decker bus. We had dinner at Matt’s in the Market after the rehearsal and it was excellent. We caught up with friends, enjoyed several cocktail hot spot, and then, after a beautiful ceremony, we were treated to dinner at Canlis for the reception. It was absolutely lovely. We had the entire upstairs to ourselves complete with a gorgeous view of the Sound and of course an amazing meal. The evening started off with pink bubbly, toasts, and a jazz band. A paired wine dinner followed and while each course was absolutely excellent, for me, it was the Canlis Parsnip Soup Hazelnut Gremolata, which was paired with an amazing Sancerre that stole the show. Part of it was the soup itself and part of it was how well-suited the wine was to the soup. I loved every single bite. When I returned home, I knew I had to have the soup again and that I wanted to serve it for Thanksgiving. I was saddened that there were no Seattle trips on my horizon. I wrote to Canlis and begged for the recipe and they shared it so graciously. I have asked many restaurants for recipes over the years with varying levels of success. I was so impressed with their attitude, which overlaps with my personal philosophy on food and sharing as well. The recipe isn’t what made that meal so extremely special, it was the attention to detail, the tone they set, the atmosphere and ambiance, and so while I am absolutely able to recreate the soup, when I do, it doesn’t detract from my desire to return to Canlis, rather it adds to it. I applaud them; I thank them for sharing, and I share my take on Canlis Parsnip Soup Hazelnut Gremolata with you.
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ¼ cup shallots, sliced
- 2 pounds parsnips
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste or the seeds from ½ a vanilla bean
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ cup white wine
- 6+ cups water
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
- sea salt
- ¼ cup toasted, sliced hazelnuts
- ¼ cup chopped parsley
- drizzle of finishing oil; almond, hazelnut, or walnut is nice, but olive works too
- Take a moment to admire your beautiful parsnips.
- Heat olive oil in a large pot and sweat shallots* until translucent.
- Peel and chop the parsnips.
- Add parsnips to shallots and season well. Stir. Add sugar and vanilla and stir well. Cook over medium-high heat until the parsnips begin to soften.
- Add white wine and reduce.
- Heat the water (I use my tea kettle) and add to the parsnips once the wine is reduced (this isn’t essential, but it speeds up the cook time).
- Cook on high until the parsnips are cooked through (30 minutes or so).
- Pour into a blender, food processor, or blend in pot using an immersion blender.
- ***
- Season well with salt.
- Add cream*** and blend well.
- Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and sliced hazelnuts. Drizzle with finishing oil.
- *I substituted sweet onions once and it worked just fine.
- ** Canlis recommends passing the soup through a chinois to have it maximally smooth, but after the first time I made it, I stopped doing this. If I use the immersion blender, I will admit the soup is a bit more rustic than it was in the restaurant, but I like it very well. If I use my vitamix, I notice no difference at all, it gets very smooth.
- ***I have made it without the cream, so that it would be a vegan soup. Again, you can tell the difference, and the color isn’t quite as white, but it’s still very good.
