Soup is a staple here at The Vegan Larder, especially when the colder months hit. I am also a big fan of pairing delicious vegetables with contrasting fruit. This Vegan Celeriac, Pear and Butter Bean Soup has a savoury flavour from the celeriac, contrasted with the sweet pear, and given additional body and thickness from the white beans.
Celeriac is quite an odd looking, but very beautiful, vegetable. You can see its squished up and tangled roots at its base. To bring out the most of its savoury and almost nutty flavour, roasting it will make the soup taste delicious; this is what I do for virtually all my recipes which involve root vegetables. Celeriac is very in-season this time of year and will be available at most farmers' markets, in vegetable delivery boxes and supermarkets. They are also fab to make chips out of if you want a change to regular potatoes! Pears are also in-season now, and remind me we are getting near Christmas. Their sweetness is brilliant with the celeriac. The reason I've used a lot less pear than celeriac is so the fruitiness doesn't take over or so the soup doesn't become in anyway like a puree.
I am a big fan of beans in soup; they are full of protein and give an extra thickness to them. Butter beans are a particular favourite of mine, and of course, they are white, so keep the colour of my soup! Garlic and herbs are essential to bring out the flavours of the ingredients. I've used cumin, coriander and nutmeg. Nutmeg is sweet and spicy and gives that little unusual kick to the soup. You only need a very small amount.
Many soups traditionally use cream, and I love using vegan creams in these sorts soups for that lovely smooth creaminess. You can buy vegan single cream in most health food stores and online e.g. Amazon. We love the stock made by Nine Meals from Anarchy who use real vegetables and pure ingredients in their products.
This soup is a great one to make double of and put half in the freezer for later! Enjoy this Vegan Celariac, Pear and Butter Bean Soup with crusty bread or croutons, and use it to keep warm!
TO SERVE: I used crispy fried sage leaves & croutons to make this look extra pretty! The sage leaves add a delicious savoury note that works super well with the wintery and slightly sweet flavours in this soup! If you want to add a different flavour dimension and texture to the soup, these Quinoa Crispies with Truffle Salt would be amazing sprinkled on top.
📖 Recipe
Vegan Celariac, Pear and Butter Bean Soup
Ingredients Note:
For accuracy, I measure all ingredients in metric as standard, then convert and test the recipe for American cup measurements etc.
(Heads up Aussie and UK readers- your measurements in cups are sometimes different, so please use metric or check you have the correct cup and spoon type!!)
Ingredients
- 500 g (2 cups) Celeriac (or 1 large celeriac cut up)
- 2 tablespoon (½ cup) olive oil (divided)
- 1 medium onion (chopped)
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 200g (1¼ cup) of pears, cut up (about 1½ / 2 pears)
- 400 g (1 cup) butter beans, drained (1 drained tin/can equivalent)
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon coriander
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- 650 ml (2¾ cups) veggie stock
- 200 ml (¾ cups) vegan single cream
- Salt and pepper
- Fresh Thyme / rosemary (to top it))
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200°C / 400°F / Gas Mark 6.
- Peel (using a knife) and cut up the celeriac. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Bake for 45 mins to an hour or until soft with some of the edges brown.
- In a large pan on a medium heat, place the other 1 tablespoon olive oil. Cook the onion until translucent, then add the garlic and cook for a further few minutes. Next add the cumin, coriander and nutmeg.
- Add the cooked celeriac, the pear and butter beans and stir for a few minutes. Then add the veggie stock. Add the salt and pepper.
- Bring to the boil. Once boiled, turn down to a simmer, with a lid on the pot.
- Once the celeriac is soft, cool the soup down a little, then blitz in the blender or with a stick blender until the soup is creamy.
- Add the soup back into the pan (or keep it in the pan if blending in the pan) then add the vegan single cream.
- Add more salt and pepper to taste. Add a little extra water if the soup is too thick & reheat.
- Serve hot with crispy fried herbs & croutons.
