Fennel Almond Soup Recipe
The first time I had Ajo Blanco, David and I were in a restaurant in San Francisco. It was simple, garnished with just a little bit of green leek oil and sautéd leeks on top. I loved the creaminess, and flavor of this comforting soup. Traditionally the soup is made with bread and almonds and enjoyed chilled. This is similar to Ajo Blanco with fennel instead of bread.
Ajo Blanco Inspired Soup w/Fennel (Gluten Free)
This is a very easy soup to make and could make you fall in love with fennel. It takes a little patience to skin the almonds, but it's worth it.
Ingredients
- 3 to 3.5 Cups of Vegetable Broth
- 3/4 to 1 Cup of Almonds
- 1 Bunch of Leeks or Spring Onions
- 1 Fennel Bulb
- 1 Tsp. White Wine Vinegar
- Garnishes: Fennel Fronds, Lemon Rind, Olive Oil, Paprika, Chili Flakes, Olive Oil, Pumpkin Seed Oil
Instructions
- Heat up a pot of water to a boil. Turn off the heat and pour the almonds in the pot. I let that soak for a couple of hours while I do other things.
- Drain the water and slip the skin off of each almond. Set aside.
- Sauté chopped leeks or onions and bulb of the fennel in a medium pot with some healthy cooking oil. I use organic avocado oil.
- Pour in the broth starting with 3 cups. Simmer until the fennel is cooked through but not soft.
- In a blender blend the soup with the almonds and add the vinegar. A high speed blender is best for this. Blend it for about 2 minutes, to get it really smooth. I have a stainless steel container for my vitamix that's good for this because it will blend warm. Once it's creamy, taste it to see if you want to add a little more broth and a little more almond.
- Sauté fennel fronds in a small pan with cooking oil, until they're crispy. Adding this element really is very nice, even if you're not so sure about fennel fronds, it's worth giving it a try.
- Pour the soup into bowl, and garnish with crispy fennel fronds, fresh lemon rind, chili flakes, smoked paprika, black pepper, and leeks. Add salt if you like to. Then top it all off with drizzles of olive oil or pumpkin seed oil.
