Winter is the ideal season to prepare thick, creamy soups out of the root vegetables we have at hand. The soups are excellent vehicles for enjoying fine olive oil. Drizzling oil over the soup will render it more aromatic, more flavorful and, by drawing all kinds of patterns with it -- particularly on creamy soups like the one featured in this post -- more beautiful.

We are happy to share a recipe that we hope will inspire you to go to the farmer’s market close to you and experiment with those veggies we don’t often cook with: turnips, Jerusalem artichokes and parsnips, to name a few.

The recipe works well if you steam or boil the vegetables, though we recommend you try roasting them in the oven, for this option offers deeper, earthier flavors. Of course you can add other vegetables such as potatoes, rutabagas, squash, etc. Get creative!

Aside from being delicious, this soup, made with quality olive oil, is good for you. It makes us think of the great Greek doctor Hippocrates who told us, “Let your medicine be your food.”

Winter Root Vegetable Soup

Olive oil

3 large sweet potatoes (All types are fine, though I found the yellow ones to be the variety that will give the best texture to the soup.)

2 Jerusalem artichokes

2 parsnips

1 large white onion

3 carrots

8 sage leaves

2 bay leaves

2 garlic cloves

For the vegetable broth:

Olive oil

1 onion, peeled and halved

1 bunch of scallions

1 carrot, peeled

1 celery stalk

2 bay leaves

Salt

1 gallon of water

Preheat the oven at 200 degrees F.

Peel the sweet potatoes, Jerusalem artichoke and parsnips and cut them in medium size cubes. Quarter the onion. Peel the carrots and cut them lengthwise.

Brush all the veggies with olive oil and place them on a baking sheet.

Distribute among the vegetables the sage leaves, bay leaves and garlic cloves (whole, with their peel) and roast until well cooked, approximately 60 minutes.

For the vegetable stock:

Cut the onion into wedges, the scallions into small rounds and coat them in olive oil. Place in a stockpot and sauté for 10 minutes over low heat. Cut the carrots in small, thin rounds and cook until soft. Cut the celery into thin wedges and add to the mix. Cook for another 5 minutes, add the water and bay leaves. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for another 20 minutes.

Drain the broth and pour half back into stockpot. Refrigerate other half for future use.

Remove veggies from the oven. After discarding the sage, bay leaves and garlic cloves, place the roasted vegetables in the broth and simmer for 15 minutes.

Working in batches, process the soup in a blender until you have a creamy consistency.

Serve hot and finish with chopped fresh parsley and olive oil. For this recipe, our Tehama Blend, a medium intensity olive oil, is a good choice.

Enjoy!

The Pacific Sun Olive Oil team,

Leslie, Brendon, Pablo