Serves 4
This rich, opulent bisque is a wonderful first course for a special autumn or winter meal, especially Thanksgiving or Christmas. Since fresh chestnuts can be difficult to find and time consuming to prepare, I stock up on frozen or jarred chestnuts whenever I find them on sale. The least expensive prepared chestnuts can be found in vacuum-packed bags in Asian markets.
Gluten Free
Soy Free
1 tablespoon olive oil or 1/4 cup water
1 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1 carrot, coarsely chopped
1 celery rib, coarsely chopped
12 ounces cooked and peeled chestnuts
4 cups vegetable broth
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
1 bay leaf
Salt
1/2 cup plain unsweetened almond milk
In a large pot, heat the oil or water over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, and celery. Cover and cook until the vegetables are softened, about 10 minutes.
Thinly slice 3 of the chestnuts and set them aside for garnish. Add the remaining chestnuts to the saucepan, along with the broth, parsley, allspice, ginger, cayenne, bay leaf, and salt, to taste. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.
Remove the bay leaf and discard. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup directly in the pot or transfer to a high-speed blender or food processor and puree it in batches if necessary, then return the soup to the pot.
Stir in the almond milk, and taste and adjust the seasonings, if necessary. Reheat over medium heat until hot. To serve, ladle the soup into 4 bowls, garnish with the sliced chestnuts, and serve hot.