Roasted Carrot Parsnip Soup for Winter
Roasting the vegetables for soup is an easy way to inject piles of flavour with very little active work. This carrot and parsnip soup is no exception, with almost no hands-on time for a delicious simple soup that’s a good option at any time of year. It’s lightly sweet, both using sweeter vegetables and roasting to draw out those natural sugars. There’s a lot of complexity here, though, thanks to the method used, despite simple ingredients.
Both carrots and parsnips (and onions, and garlic) store very well during the colder months and are locally available just about year-round, so this is almost an any-season soup. Peak season is late summer and early autumn but it’s a good soup to make with stored root vegetables and high in several vitamins and nutrients, especially vitamin A.
After roasting, the vegetables are blended with broth – this is easiest with an immersion blender – and served hot. If you don’t have an immersion blender, don’t worry, alternatives are outlined below. This recipe is adapted from my roasted parsnip soup.
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One reader, Carol Anne, commented: “I am looking forward to this soup all winter long here in Canada! I think this is the perfect fall recipe and how cozy it makes me feel. I have had the great fortune of growing enough parsnip and carrot to last well into winter and I will freeze some soup as well. These are the things that make this time of year so special to me.“
Ingredients You’ll Need and Why
With just six main ingredients, not including the herbs, salt, and pepper, it’s a recipe that really focuses on drawing out the best in winter vegetables. These are my notes from recipe testing and you can find the full recipe card, with complete measurements and instructions, below.
- Carrots: this is May in Sweden, so I’m using cow carrots, or hardy over-wintered carrots. Use any type you like but I don’t recommend purple varieties, which make for an unpleasantly brown-ish soup.
- Parsnips: you can see that the parsnips used here are a bit shrivelled, and that’s fine! They’ve been stored over winter and taste just as good when roasted. No need to peel.
- Garlic: the garlic is roasted with the vegetables so it adds a slight sweetness and mild garlic flavour. Tuck the garlic under the other vegetables just in case, as it can sometimes pop when roasting.
- Herbs: pictured is herbes de Provence but you can use any herb blend you like, especially if it contains thyme, rosemary, and oregano. To use fresh soft herbs, add then after the vegetables have roasted for the residual heat to release the oils rather than roasting them.
- Vegetable broth: use any broth you like, but a decent one will make a difference here. Pictured is homemade vegetable broth but store-bought and powdered are fine.
How to Make Parsnip Carrot Soup
The best thing about roasted vegetable soups is that you don’t need to stand over the stove, you don’t need to add ingredients at certain times – the oven does almost all of the work for you.
Step 1: add the vegetables, oil, herbs, salt, and pepper to a roasting dish and mix to combine. You can use your hands or a wooden spoon for this. The herbs tend to stick to whatever mixing tool you’re using so try to scrape them off and back onto the vegetables.
Step 2: roast for about 40 minutes, until softened and lightly golden. Don’t forget to peel the garlic after roasting! This can be stirred halfway through cooking if you notice that the edges are getting a little too toasted.
Step 3: add to a pot (or heat-safe blender) with the broth and mix. Heat the broth beforehand if you plan on serving immediately, so that it’s ready to go right after blending.
Step 4: blend until smooth, season to taste, and serve hot. This is the time to adjust seasoning because you can’t taste the soup before this point.
Expert Tips for the Best Soup
- Use a standing blender: if you don’t have an immersion blender, simply cool the ingredients before mixing in a standing blender. Some will be marked as heat-safe and then it’s fine to use hot ingredients, but be sure to check, and don’t use a food processor.
- Roast the garlic with everything else: this is an easy way to roast garlic, and a method I use often. Be careful when removing the roasted garlic from its skin as it is hot inside.
- Add some legumes: To increase the protein for this soup and make it into more of a meal, blend in 400 grams (14 oz.) cooked or canned (and rinsed) white beans or chickpeas. Cooked red lentils can be used too.
- Make sure the carrots are cooked: they take a bit longer than parsnips, so if you’re checking to see if they’re soft, check a larger piece of carrot.
- Season to taste: this will depend on how salty the broth is, how much salt is lost in the baking dish when the veg is transferred, and so on – taste the soup and season as needed before serving (it will almost definitely need more salt).
- Reheat if needed: if you use hot broth, the soup can be served immediately after blending. If it’s cold or at room temperature, simply reheat the soup before serving.
More Seasonal Soup Recipes
- Potato Leek Soup – with lemon, this can be partially blended for a hearty soup or fully blended if you prefer a smooth soup
- Apple Parsnip Soup – apples add a fantastic flavour note here, with added white beans
- Lemon White Bean Kale Soup – with seasonal winter ingredients, it’s a meal soup with a lot of brightness from lemon and fresh greens
- Creamy Cauliflower Potato Soup – flavoured with rosemary and garlic, with rye croutons
If you make this Parsnip Carrot Soup or any other vegetarian soup recipes on Occasionally Eggs, please take a moment to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. It’s such a help to others who want to try the recipe. For more OE, follow along on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest, purchase the Occasionally Eggs cookbook, or subscribe for new posts via email.
Carrot and Parsnip Soup
Description
Ingredients
- 300 grams (2 cups) parsnips ~3 medium
- 300 grams (2 cups) carrots ~2 large
- ½ medium onion
- 5 cloves garlic skin on
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoons dried herbs I use herbes de Provence
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1200 ml (5 cups) vegetable broth
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Scrub the parsnips and carrots, then top and tail them. There's no need to peel these vegetables. Cut into rounds about 2 cm (¾ in.) thick and add to a large baking dish.300 grams (2 cups) parsnips, 300 grams (2 cups) carrots
- Peel the onion and cut into thick strips. Add to the baking dish with the garlic (skin on), oil, herbs, salt, and pepper.½ medium onion, 5 cloves garlic, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 2 teaspoons dried herbs, 1 teaspoon sea salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper
- Roast for about 40 minutes, or until lightly golden and softened. Try not to have cut ends of onion sticking up as it might burn at the thinnest parts. Stir if you notice too much browning around the edges of the baking dish.
- Once the vegetables have cooked, cool slightly before removing the garlic cloves from their skin. Transfer everything to a large pot and add the vegetable broth. Mix with an immersion blender until smooth.1200 ml (5 cups) vegetable broth
- Season to taste and reheat if needed. Serve hot.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate. If this information is important to you, please have it verified independently.
I am looking forward to this soup all winter long here in Canada! I think this is the perfect fall recipe and how cozy it makes me feel. I have had the great fortune of growing enough parsnip and carrot to last well into winter and I will freeze some soup as well. These are the things that make this time of year so special to me.
I’m so glad, thank you for your kind words! And excellent work growing so much root veg for the winter.