contributed by shareholder Ruth Vishniavsky,

“I found the recipe on Mariquita Farm website, but I used stock instead of chicken soup. There are lots of variations of this on the Internet. The ginger is a great combination with the parsnips. I think it would be quite fresh tasting without the dairy (I used milk, not half and half anyway)

“The celeriac I just use in place of celery in every recipe that needs it.“

adapted from Bon Appetit 2/2001 Julia’s note, to make this a lighter, weeknight affair I would use olive oil instead of butter and milk instead of half and half….. I’ve done just this and it’s still delicious, if not decadent.

2 Tablespoons butter
2 cups chopped onions
1/2 cup chopped celery
2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 cups chicken broth
3 cups parsnips, peeled and coarsely chopped (about one pound)
1 cup half and half

Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add next 4 ingredients and saute until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in broth and parsnips; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until parsnips are tender, about 20 minutes. Cool slightly. Puree soup (immersible blender or a traditional blender or food processor). Strain into another large pot; discard solids in strainer. (I would skip this step.) Whisk in half and half. Season with salt and pepper.