Creamy Roasted Golden Beet And Apple Soup

Soup season calls for lots of experimenting in the kitchen. I have a few coming your way that I love, but first up is this beet soup. I had saved a recipe for golden beet soup long ago and remembered it when I started spotting golden beets at the grocery store. Golden beets are very much the same in taste if you are comparing them to red ones. They do have a more subtle earthiness than the red ones and tend to be a bit sweeter. They are not as vibrant looking but no less pretty. Some varieties are beautifully striated in the same way as some varieties of radishes are. That doesn’t really make a difference in this recipe though as they get blitzed in the blender anyways. We used the beets in the soup and steamed the beet greens and enjoyed them with a lemon/olive oil vinaigrette – nothing gets wasted!

Beets have a very earthy sweet flavour that only intensifies when you roast them. Technically you can make this soup by just boiling everything in a pot but you will definitely miss that extra bit of flavour boost that roasting gives to the beets and the apples. Most veggie soups benefit greatly from roasting the veggies first and so I strongly recommend it. The apples get beautiful caramelized and the beets develop a nuttier sweeter flavour. The two together are so fabulous and the apples balance out that earthiness of the beets that some people find off putting (they reduce the dirt taste as some describe it) as do the rest of the veggies.

Cream soups are some of my favourite things to make because they are usually so simple to make and are deliciously velvety. They are the perfect thing to dip your grilled cheese in or any kind of crusty bread. They are also perfect to top with all sorts of things because they are usually thick enough to hold a cream or chili oil swirl and plenty of garnishes. You have so many delicious options to garnish like crunchy croutons, toasted nuts, fresh herbs, crispy bacon or crispy fried onions.

I have always wanted to do a savoury granola as I have been seeing people topping their savoury oats and also their salads with it on many blogs and on IG and thought this would be a perfect opportunity to try it as it would add a nice crunchy textured topping to this soup. I’m so glad I did. We loved it over the soup and also just straight snacking on it out of the jar, plus it’s perfect over any salad as well. It’s simple to make on the stove top in a skillet and it can easily be adapted to your preference when it comes to herbs, seasonings and choices when it comes to nuts and seeds. I have a feeling you will be as addicted to this savory granola as I am. It’s perfect on and off the soup - hope you try and enjoy both!

Recipe

Ingredients

• 3 medium golden beets, peeled, roots and leaves trimmed, medium dice
• 2 medium gala apple peeled and cored and medium diced
• 2 Tbsp olive oil,
• Salt to taste
• 2 tbsp butter or more olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion or 4 small shallots peeled and diced small
• 3 stalks celery, diced small
• 1 carrot, peeled and diced small
• 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• ½ tsp smoked paprika
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• ½ cup heavy cream or coconut cream plus more to swirl in before serving

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425°F, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Toss beets and apples in 2 tablespoon olive oil and a pinch of salt, and spread evenly onto prepared baking sheet.
3. Roast for 30 to 35 minutes or until soft and tender, flipping halfway.
4. As beets are finishing roasting, heat butter or olive oil in a saucepan over medium/low heat.
5. Add onion and garlic then sauté for a couple of minutes.
6. Add celery, carrot and a pinch of salt; stir, and sauté until tender 7-10 minutes.
7. Once veggies are done remove from oven and carefully add them to the pot.
8. Add the broth and smoked paprika, and allow to simmer for another 7-10 minutes until everything is completely tender.
9. Remove from heat.
10. Using an immersion blender, blend soup. (If using a stationary blender, you might need to do so in small batches.)
11. Return soup to pot if using stationary blender and stir in the cream if using - heat through and remove from heat and serve with a swirl of cream and some savoury granola (recipe below).
    
    

Savoury Hazelnut granola

Ingredients

Wet ingredients

• 4 tbsp olive oil or butter
• ½ tsp of grainy mustard
• ½ tbsp honey (or maple syrup)
• zest from 1 orange 
• 1-2 tbsp finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 1-2 tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
• Salt and pepper to taste

Dry ingredients

• 2 cups / 100 g rolled oats
• ½ cup chopped hazelnuts  
• Pumpkin seeds
• Sesame seeds
• ½ tsp paprika
• ½ tsp chili powder

Directions

1. In a non-stick or cast iron skillet, melt butter into syrup over medium.
2. Add next 3 ingredients and ½ tsp. salt.
3. Cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Add oats and cook, stirring, until golden, 5 minutes.
4. Transfer to baking sheet to cool.
   
   

Recipe Notes

You can definitely add or replace any of the seeds, nuts or flakes with what you have in your pantry. Dry spices could also be added instead of the fresh herbs.

Soup adapted from Feast Magazine and granola adapted from Green Kitchen Stories and Rachael Ray.