Chestnut Apple Soup Food

CHESTNUT-APPLE SOUP WITH CALVADOS CREAM

Steps:

• Place prunes in a small bowl and add boiling water to cover. Let stand 5 minutes; drain. Return prunes to bowl and stir in 2 tablespoons Calvados. Cover with plastic wrap and reserve until ready to use.
• In a large skillet, melt 4 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat. Stir in sugar, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg. Add chestnuts and cook, stirring occasionally to coat chestnuts with butter mixture, until chestnuts are golden and caramelized, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in remaining 2 tablespoons Calvados and cook, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of skillet, until liquid is mostly evaporated. Remove chestnuts from heat.
• In a large pot, melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat. Stir in the celery, carrots, shallots and leek; cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in chestnuts, apples, stock and remaining 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Tie thyme and parsley together with kitchen twine and add to pot. Bring mixture to boil; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until vegetables are very tender, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove herbs and discard.
• Purée soup in batches in a food processor or blender (or use an immersion blender). Return soup to pot. Stir in 1/2 cup heavy cream. Keep soup warm over low heat.
• With an electric mixer, beat remaining 1/2 cup cream with remaining 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg until cream forms soft peaks.
• To serve, place a prune in each bowl. Fill each bowl with a ladleful of soup. Top with a dollop of whipped cream and drizzle with Calvados.

CHESTNUT SOUP

Steps:

• To Cook Chestnuts: With a sharp knife, slice an 'X' across each chestnut. Place chestnuts in a single layer on a jelly roll pan. Pour 1/4 cup water into the pan. Bake in a preheated 450 degrees F (230 degrees C) oven for 10 minutes. When cool enough to handle, shell and peel.
• In a large saucepan combine the chicken stock, shelled chestnuts and chopped onions. Place the parsley sprigs, cloves and bay leaf in a spice bag and add to the chicken stock mixture. Simmer over medium-low heat for 45 minutes.
• Discard the spice bag and puree the chestnut mixture in a food processor or blender. Add the heavy cream, sugar and salt and pepper to taste. Return mixture to saucepan and gently heat through. To serve to with a dollop of unsweetened whipped cream, a bit of chopped parsley and some cooked chopped chestnuts just before serving. High quality vegetable broth can be substituted for the chicken broth.

CHESTNUT SOUP

Steps:

• Trim the top off the leek, slice it lengthwise and chop it roughly. Soak the leek briefly in water to remove sand and grit, then drain. Heat a heavy bottomed skillet over medium heat, and butter and sweat celery and leeks in the butter until very soft DO NOT BROWN. Add the roasted chestnuts and chicken stock and bring to a simmer. If you are using frozen chestnuts, simmer for approximately 20 minutes, or until the starch begins to develop and the soup begins to thicken. If fresh chestnuts are used, simmer for approximately 30 minutes or until the starch begins to develop and you can easily crush the nuts against the side of the pot with a spoon. Turn off heat and allow the soup to cool slightly, otherwise the stream from the hot soup may cause the blender to malfunction. Pour the soup into a blender (or use an immersion blender right in the pot) blend until there are no longer any large pieces of chestnut, celery and leeks and the soup is somewhat smooth. Very small pieces of chestnut should remain. Return soup to pot and bring to a simmer again, add the cream and the port. Reduce until slightly thickened. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If the soup becomes too thick, adjust the consistency by adding a bit of water. The soup should be stirred well before serving, if it is in a thermos, shake it very well before pouring into bowls.

CHESTNUT AND APPLE SOUP

Steps:

• Place the chestnuts, celery and stock in a large saucepan, bring to the boil then cook over a medium heat for 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt the butter in a frying pan, add the apple and cook, stirring, until softened. Season with salt and pepper.
• Remove the chestnuts and celery from the pan with a slotted spoon (reserving the cooking liquor) and transfer to a food processor or blender together with the cooked apple. Process until smooth.
• Return the purée to the reserved stock, mix well and heat through.
• To serve - remove the pan from the heat, add the cream, adjust the seasoning and mix well. Serve immediately.

CREAMY APPLE CHESTNUT SOUP

Steps:

• Base Vegetables -- Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. When it foams, add olive oil, shallots, and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 minutes. Season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Fruit and Seasoning -- Add apples and sage, season with additional salt and pepper, and cook, stirring rarely, until apples are tender, about 10 minutes.
• Chestnuts -- add broth, water, and apple juice and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until apples and celery are tender, about 15 minutes.
• Finishing -- Using a blender, purée soup in batches. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Serve garnished with croutons.
• NOTE -- Now as I mentioned, a great simple salad with walnuts, roasted pears, beets and figs, some onions, bleu cheese vinaigrette is a perfect side. And then some Chardonney turkey sliders make this a perfect fall meal. The soup was made ahead as were the burgers and the roasted veggies and fruit for the salad. It took 20 minutes to grill, make the sides for the burgers and put together the salad. And grill up some drunken olives to get everyone started and you have a great party.