Thanksgiving Day Soup Recipes

For many, the turkey is the main attraction on Thanksgiving but being all about soups, I was focused on finding some interesting and delicious soup recipes to start the feast. I'll be making a variation of Daniel Boulud's chestnut, apple and celery soup, but if that isn't what you are looking for hopefully one of these soup recipes will inspire you this Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving Day Soup Recipes

1. Oliver Baussan's Chestnut Soup- Forwarded to me from my friends at Top Ten Dishes, this velvety holiday soup is packed with flavor from the cardamom pods, black truffle oil and chestnuts. I also love the addition of porcini powder, which have I never cooked with but would be excited to try out in this soup.

Celery and Blue Cheese Soup by Deja Vu Cook

2. Celery and Blue Cheese Soup - Kathleen of Deja Vu Cook recently made this delicious celery and blue cheese soup that she describes as having an "unforgettable taste thanks to the blue cheese." Adding, "If you have never tried celery soup this is a must." I certainly agree with that and love the combination of simple flavors in this soup (garlic, onions, butter and stock) that will surely leave your guests with a meal to remember.

Cranberry Bean and Pearl Barley Soup - Photo Credit: Saveur.com

3.  Cranberry Bean and Pearl Barley Soup - Very excited to see a cranberry bean soup and this one from Saveur.com also includes barley, pancetta, and various fresh seasonings (parsley, rosemary, basil, and sage). The directions also noted that farro can be used to replace the barley.

4. Gingered Butternut Squash Soup with Spicy Pecan Cream - I'm a huge fan of butternut squash and having been making my variation - roasted butternut squash with carrot soup - for months. The beauty of soups is that there are so many variations using the many of the same ingredients that can completely change the taste of a soup much like this gingered butternut squash soup. Featured on Food and Wine.com, the recipe by Dean Fearing includes the classic staple - butternut squash - along with pecans, butter, coconut milk, ginger and hazelnut oil - creating a delicious twist to the classic recipe.

Harvest Corn Chowder with Chirzo - Photo Credit: Bon Appetit

5. Harvest Corn Chowder with Chirzo - Described as a "smoky soup," this corn chowder with chirzo includes fresh corn, red potatoes, Spanish chirzo, thyme and cayenne pepper for a kick. A hearty way to start Thanksgiving that can also be varied as a simple corn chowder without the chirzo. 

6. Selection of Soups from the NY Times - As you can see, I love lists and this featured on the NY Times.com is collection of soups from their archives that might be perfect for your Thanksgiving. Featuring a peanut soup, cranberry borscht, and game stock - I'm sure you'll find some soup ideas from this list.

This is just the tip of the soup iceberg for Thanksgiving recipe ideas. Please feel free to leave your soup link or recipe ideas in the comment section.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Seriously Soupy Serena

 

Soup Review—Chilled Edamame Soup with Ginger Creme Fraiche by Nobuo Fukuda

So, it's 20 degrees out and dropping and what do I decide to re-create but a chilled soup!?!? Created by renowned Chef Nobuo Fukuda, maybe it wasn't the best soup to review given the current temps, but one that was intriguing for its simplicity and use of ingredients that I happened to have in the house, except for the crème fraîche (more on that later). 

My version of the soup came out very differently than Fukuda's. First of all, I couldn't find the crème fraîche, but there is a good reason for that. Apparently crème fraîche is widely available in Europe and very rare to find here, expect for specialty stores, which my local grocer is not. Instead, I opted to use a combination of heavy whipping cream and buttermilk (see recipe below) that was supposed to create a thick cream, but instead I ended up with a thin liquid that looked like skim milk? I also noticed that Fukuda's soup came out a light brown and smooth, while mine came out looking green and chunky. I think this is the result of not using as much chicken stock (I had two cups worth and used water for the remaining, or maybe it could have been because I did not let the onions "brown" enough?) Either way I would still recommend trying out this soup for its incredible rich and nutty taste, but perhaps next time I would test it out during a time when you actually need "chilling" out, like in the summer.

                              Chef Nobou Fukuda's Chilled Edamame Soup 

                                          photo by Cedric Angeles  

                                       

Seriously Soupy's Chilled Edamame Soup

Chilled Edamame Soup with Ginger Crème Fraîche

Recipe by Chef Nobuo Fukuda from foodandwine.com

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 4 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth
• 2 cups frozen shelled edamame (10 ounces)
• Salt
• 1/4 cup crème fraîche (See subsituite recipe here, if you are unable to find creme fraiche)
• 2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger

Directions:


1. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter. Add the onion and cook over moderate heat until softened, about 7 minutes. Add 3 cups of the stock and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes. Add the edamame and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Let cool slightly, then puree the soup in a blender until very smooth. Transfer the soup to a bowl and refrigerate until chilled, at least 3 hours.
2. Whisk the remaining 1 cup of chicken stock into the soup and season with salt. In a small bowl, combine the crème fraîche with the grated ginger. Ladle the soup into bowls, drizzle with the ginger crème fraîche and serve.


Seriously Soupy Serena