This warming soup is perfect on a chilly day or when you are feeling a bit run down. The earthiness of the turmeric combined with flavorful leeks and tart apples, makes for a lovely, nourishing combination. If you don’t have fennel or leeks on hand, this soup can easily be made with carrots, onions, cauliflower — making it very versatile for comforting soup in a pinch.
I prefer to make my own vegetable stock, but feel free to use store bought instead. Making your own stock is simple and one of my favorite things to do during the cooler months. I’ll be sharing my go-to stock recipe soon, stay tuned!
TURMERIC LEEK + APPLE SOUP
serves 4-6
4 cups vegetable stock, homemade or store bought
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for garnish
3 leeks, chopped, discard the tops (and save for vegetable stock)
2 cloves garlic
1 bundle thyme, tied with a string
1 fennel bulb, cored and chopped (reserve a few fronds for garnish)
2-3 medium apples
3 teaspoons turmeric
1-2 teaspoons cumin
2 tablespoons greek yogurt
1 tablespoon cumin seeds, lightly toasted
Sea salt + freshly ground pepper, to taste
In a medium saucepan, bring vegetable stock to a gentle boil. Reduce to a simmer, until ready to use.
Heat olive oil in a soup pot, over medium heat and add in the leeks, garlic and thyme. Cook until the leeks become fragrant and translucent, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently to make sure the garlic doesn’t burn. Stir in the chopped fennel, apple, turmeric and cumin and sauté until the fennel and apple start to soften. Add stock, a pinch of salt and few grinds of freshly ground pepper. Bring soup to a simmer over medium heat. Cover and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat, discard thyme bundle and allow soup to cool slightly.
Working in batches, carefully transfer soup to a blender or food processor (immersion blender works too) and blend until smooth. Transfer pureed soup back to the pot, stir in greek yogurt, season with salt and pepper, and bring to a simmer. If you don't plan to serve right away, cool soup to room temperature, transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
In a cast iron pan over medium heat, lightly toast cumin seeds, until fragrant.
Ladle soup into bowls and top with fennel fronds, toasted cumin seeds, sea salt + freshly ground pepper.
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