Serenbe Style and Soul

with Marie Nygren

Thursday

19

November 2015

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COMMENTS

Smooth Talker: New Ideas Take Root at the Atlanta Botanical Garden

Written by , Posted in Miscellaneous

12052466_10153370430948409_213810574262237371_oWhen most chefs do cooking demonstrations, they make dishes they know well to ensure everything goes smoothly. But I love experimenting on people, being in the moment and fixing mistakes on the fly if need be. So when I cooked for a sold-out crowd recently at the Atlanta Botanical Garden, the only thing I cared about being smooth was the turnip and ginger soup.

And was it ever. One of the participants said it was the smoothest soup he’d ever tasted. What makes this soup special is that it sits well, freezes beautifully and tastes better after a few days in the fridge. It’s a serious contender for the Dinner Party Hall of Fame.

It all starts with sautéing scallions in butter.  I am not a green onion snob, separating 10619996_10152593820458409_4694439096343488767_othe green parts from the white—they’re all perfectly good. They cook down until brown and flavor the chopped turnips and fresh ginger root that get added to the pot. Serenbe Farms manager Ashley Rodgers’ ginger has a wonderful pungency and skin so thin you can almost peel it off with your fingernail.

While the green onions, turnips and ginger cook in vegetable stock until tender, I blanched the turnip greens quickly in a cup of stock in a separate bowl, then drained off the stock and chopped them up. The soup got a solid spin in the Vitamix and returned to the pot, where I added the chopped greens for texture and color.

It was perfect, as things that start with 8 tablespoons of butter often are.

Turnip and Ginger Soup

  • 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 bunch green onions, chopped
  • 6 cups turnips, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons fresh ginger, chopped
  • 6 cups vegetable stock
  • 2 cups turnip greens, julienned
  • Hot sauce
  • Kosher salt

Melt the butter and add green onion. Saute over medium heat until wilted. Add turnips, ginger and five cups of stock. Bring to a boil then reduce to a low simmer. Cook turnips and ginger until fork tender. Add the soup to a blender and puree. Return to the pot and add hot sauce. Taste to season with salt.

In a separate pan, bring the remaining cup of stock to a boil, reduce the heat then blanch the greens briefly. Drain off liquid, chop blanched greens, add to the soup and serve.

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