Sometimes people ask me what it’s like living so far away from the city. I’m not sure quite how to respond really. The first things that generally come to mind are that I can’t walk anywhere. There is nothing within five miles of my house besides the odd smattering of small cul-de-sacs filled with empty summer homes. By Labour Day three-quarters of the inhabitants of the lake we live on are gone, back to their “winter homes”. I do miss the obvious things like gourmet grocery stores, restaurants, access to clothing and shoe retailers at a minutes notice…you know, retail therapy.
Most of my days now are filled with taking care of the kids, walking amongst the semi-abandoned neighbourhoods (see creepy cabin above), epic loads of laundry on which I shamelessly throw myself when it comes hot out of the dryer (TMI?) and this:
The endless lining up of every single toy truck, car, airplane, helicopter, train, dog, younger sister, etc. on which I inevitably trip several times before kicking aside whilst hoisting a face high pile of still warm laundry.
You see, being a stay at home Mom is nothing short of pure joy. Of course there are ups and downs to everything, but I am not going to sugar coat it. Having two small children around all day and not an adult in sight for eight hours or more can get a bit, well, boring. Play dates are few and far between, and when they do occur outside of my own house involve the lugging of three checked baggage sized suitcases, a snugli, my purse, a backpack filled with diapers, a stroller and two car seats which often does not leave room for my sanity.
Needless to say I often retreat to the kitchen when the husband returns home and delve deep into my own form of therapy: cooking. Endless cooking, cooking of things that soothe my soul. I love cooking, which may or may not be an obvious statement.
After a long day of stay at home momdom, I need it.
With fall approaching and the weather turning cool, I’ve also now turned to more comforting food; warm you to the core kind of food. This soup is pleasantly easy to make and is layered in complex flavours. Pair it with a nice crusty bread and you have yourself a fabulous end of summer meal.
Roasted Parsnip and Apple Soup
Yield: 3 litres of soup (about 4-5 large servings)
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: 90 minutes1 1/2 lb. parsnips
4 Tbsp butter
1 1/4 lbs. tart apples (granny smith, pink lady, etc.)
1 small sweet onion
1 lb. waxy potatoes (such as Yukon gold)
1/2 tsp each ground ginger, cumin and nutmeg
1 tsp coriander seeds, pulverized
2 litres vegetable stock (or chicken)
1/2 cup cream
kosher salt to taste
fresh ground pepper to taste
Shaved Parmesan for garnish1. Peel parsnips and roughly chop into 1″ pieces.
2. Place parsnips in roasting dish and dot with 3 tbsp of butter. Bake at 400°F for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 or 15 minutes.
3. In large heavy bottomed pot, heat remaining tbsp of butter over medium. Add onions and cook until translucent.
4. Add in potatoes, apples and spices and sauté for five minutes.
5. Add in roasted parsnips and stock and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer and allow to cook for 20 minutes or until all vegetables and fruit is softened.
6. Using an immersion blender, stand blender or food processor, blend the soup into a smooth purée (in batches if using a blender or food processor).
7. Pour back into pot and reheat, stirring in cream and seasoning to taste.
8. Ladle into bowls and top with a sprinkle of Parmesan for garnish.
Similarly delicious recipes from other blogs:
Spicy Parsnip Soup on Jane Spice
Spiced Parsnip and Tomato Soup on Real Epicurean
Parsnip Soup with Toasted Pecans and Feta on My Cooking Quest
Parsnip Pancakes on Not Eating Out in New York
Parsnip Gnocchi with Pearl Onions, Peas, and Mushrooms on Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska
Fabulous stay at home mom sentiments.
…And I think more of us throw ourselves on warm clean laundry than we realize. 😉
I love cooking and doing laundry. That is it. Living in Manhattan your creepy cottage looks cozy to me. I never had parsnips until my hubby introduced them to me a few years ago and I ended up liking them. Thank you for this delicious recipe which will go into my recipe book.
Thanks for a glimpse of your everyday life, Elizabeth. I remember well those days when my children were babies! You are doing a noble work, being a stay-at-home mom. And I am so grateful that you are sharing your incredible gift of cooking. Great looking soup!
aww, what a cute story. like 😀
those are some gorgeous pictures! this soup recipe sounds so interesting-I love the idea of having the apples in there.
Well your post caught my eye. I am a homeschooling mom of two and I happen to love food and foodgawker. And that’s where after a loooong day I stumbled across your post. I hear you sister! The toys (and wait till they get into legos!) and stuff gets to you after a while. The solution, a scheduled time-out twice a day for you. The first with a cup of tea and the second one with more tea. And then when they are in bed, a glass of wine :)LOL
The soup sounds divine and I’ll try it.
Marlis
PS, ask yourself what you want to be remembered for in 50 years. It’s never failed to bring things into perspective for me.
Thank you so much Marlis. You inspire me already! I think I will replace your tea with coffee and the wine is already happening…:)
I found your site on BlogCatalog and would love to include it on PostZoom.com
Apple Soup sounds really good. I will have to give this recipe a try this fall.
PostZoom is a directory of the best blog posts which helps consumers find great blog posts and blog owners drive more traffic to their blog.
If you are interested in joining, please visit http://postzoom.com/register.aspx (yes, it’s completely free).
Thanks,
Eric Castelli
PostZoom
U know that thing with laundry that you do… I do too.. I love the smell, warmth and feel of fresh laundered clothes.. hehe 😀
P.S: Scary but also cute cabin! up there…
I have never heard of soups with these flavors. It sounds incredible.
Hey Elizabeth. Your post really got me thinking. I’m one of those kids (my brother & I are just 11 months apart) whose Momma decided to not only be a stay at home Mom, but also a homeschooling Momma (she used to own a restaurant, so I guess you could say she had a pretty full on career ‘before us’) – because we used to live way out in the country in outback Oz. Growing up it was just how it was…, but as years went on & we really did grow up into independent people who both became Chefs (go figure) both my Bro & I are so incredibly thankful for those years we had such a massively great start to life, we surely must have sent Momma mad at times & the isolation must have been pretty challenging….. but during those years she managed to somehow pass on all the best things in life, a love of family, of animals, of cooking (& eating) & the knowledge that we got a chance to be normal healthy kids who had a great childhood. So. On behalf of your kids who can’t quite hug you to bits for all your doing, I thought I’d let you know what a great thing your doing on their behalf. Your awesome.
PS: Love the creepy house BTW 🙂
Wow Anna,
That just made me all teary eyed. Thank you so much and I’m so glad that there are great examples like you out there to assure me I’m not crazy thinking this is going to work. I’m really just going to make it work…:)
Liz
Pingback: » Saturday Surfing
I’ve just started getting back into making soup and I can’t think of a better recipe than this! And, of course, your pictures are stunning.
I loved your post. The joys and sometimes loneliness of stay at home moms. Your kidlets are blessed to have you. I always tell myself I’m trying to grow wonderful humans to face the world one day. The soup sounds wonderful. I’m going to make some. I’ve got tons of parsnips waiting in the garden. Thanks!
I love this time of year- it’s the perfect soup weather! I recently made tortellini sausage soup, but your soup looks WAY better!
Just found you through Taste Spotting, your photographs are beautiful. And this soup sounds awesome. Keep up the good work!
Diving on a pile of warm laundry on a cold Autumn evening was one of my favorite pastimes in San Jose. That, and pulling apart the clothes in the dark to see the static sparks.
Here in Kuching, we line-dry our clothes, so there’s no warm pile of laundry to throw myself on.
A delicious looking soup, apple and parsnip work really well together.
Pingback: Fall: Apples
Beautifully photographed soup! I’m having apple parsnip soup right now, but somebody else cooked it for me. Looking forward to trying your recipe.
Pingback: Five Soups for Sickie « Striving Bean – Good Food to Feed your Family
Pingback: Peach Salsa Recipe | Guilty Kitchen
Pingback: Baked Apple Pie Oatmeal Recipe | Guilty Kitchen
Pingback: Corn and Zucchini Tacos Recipe | Guilty Kitchen
Elizabeth, what a great post. Loved the sound of the parsnip soup recipe and plan to make it for lunch tomorrow. I also loved your creepy cottage shot! I was a stay at home mom when my two sons were little and I remember well the ups and downs of it, but mostly the joys of keeping those home fires burning (I mean this literally, as we lived in a little old cottage in Pennsylvania that we heated with wood)…You are giving your family a GREAT GIFT, so keep it up! My boys are grown now with boys of their own and I couldn’t be prouder of them. And don’t be discouraged about your own creative outlets. You seem to have a flair for photography and cooking as well.I eventually began writing children’s books as a career at thirty five years old and I do believe that staying home those early years with my kids in the country was the perfect setting for letting those creative sparks fly…Best of luck, Elvira
Thank you so much for those encouraging words Elvira!