H&C News recently wrote about Chocolarder and its products (see link at foot) and, with winter arrived at last, we thought that it would be interesting to see how chocolate could add to seasonal food.
Here Michael Longman introduces his take on Chocolate, chestnut and celeriac soup – with the added dimension of Peruvian Dark chocolate:
“Now that November has brought in the darker skies, it also heralds the chestnuts, celeriac, and hardy plants like sage. This soup is seasonal, warming and adds a hint of festivity to your winter walks or lunches. The sweetness of the chestnuts work really well with the woodiness of the celeriac, and the chocolate adds a deeper and more complex level of sweetness. I prefer the Peruvian to the Dominican for its perfect level of sweetness and the earthiness these beans impart. It ends up a mushroom-y brown, so is best garnished with some of the sage leaves, or even basil, deep fried to add some beautiful colour.”
Ingredients for 4
- 2 celeriac
- 2 large red onions
- 50g butter
- 250g chestnuts
- A handful of sage
- 50g Peruvian Dark chocolate
- 1 pint vegetable stock
- 50ml cream
- Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
- Preheat the oven to 200°C
- Prepare the chestnuts by making a cross on the top with a sharp knife. This not only stops them from exploding, but also makes them a lot easier to peel. Once scored, roast for around half an hour. The shell and the husk should come away easily; releasing the soft ‘meat’ inside.
- Whilst they’re roasting:
- Finely dice the onion and cube the celeriac, sweating them both off in the butter for about 10 minutes. Add the sage and some salt and pepper and take off the heat whilst you:
- Peel the chestnuts. I love this bit, as it feels so festive and warms the hands up, but do watch out not to scorch yourself on them!
- Add the peeled chestnuts to the other soffrito mix in the saucepan and cover with stock. Cook this on a medium flame for about 20 minutes, to soften the chestnuts and allow the flavours to fuse together.
- Whilst this is happening, break up the chocolate into small pieces in a jug and add some boiled water. About half a pint should be plenty. Then, using a stick blender, turn this into a liquid. This method means you’ll avoid getting lumps in the soup and the chocolate is distributed more evenly. Add this to the soup.
- Remove from the heat, add the cream and blend.
- Garnish with deep fried sage leaves and serve with a crusty bread for a truly warming and fulfilling lunch.
For the H&C News article click here
For more information about Chocolarder click here