Wow – asparagus seems to be everywhere right now! And since those beautiful, bright green stalks are apparently irresistible to me at the store (especially when they’re on sale!), we’ve been enjoying lots of asparagus lately in my kitchen. Roasted, blanched, in pesto, in gnocchi, you name it…we’ve enjoyed it!
But this week, I revisited a favorite recipe I remember trying last spring — asparagus soup! And once again – it was wonderful!! As a spin on the original recipe from Gourmet, I decided to try roasting all of the veggies (similar to this simple method for this roasted tomato soup). And sure enough – loved how it kicked the flavor up a notch!
So if you’re looking for a fresh and delicious spring soup, would definitely recommend “going green” and giving this one a try!
Creamy Roasted Asparagus Soup
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Total Time: 70 minutes
- Yield: 4 -6 servings 1x
Description
This Creamy Roasted Asparagus Soup recipe is delicious! Enjoy the health benefits of one of your favorite flavorful green veggies – roasted in a soup!
Ingredients
- 2 lbs asparagus
- 1 large yellow onion, peeled and halved
- 4 cloves garlic, not peeled and left whole
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 5 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
- 1/2 cup half and half (or heavy cream)
- 1 Tbsp. dry vermouth (or dry white wine)
- squeeze of fresh lemon juice
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 F degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil. (Or coat with a good layer of cooking spray.)
- Arrange the asparagus, onion halves and garlic cloves on the baking sheet, and brush with olive oil. Sprinkle with some salt and pepper, and then bake for about 45 minutes. Turn the onions if they start getting overly dark on the bottom. Check on the garlic as well, once the cloves are golden and oozy inside (probably after about 20 minutes), pull them from the oven.
- Peel the garlic, and chop the asparagus into smaller (about 2″) pieces. Reserve some of the asparagus heads for garnish. Then add the asparagus, onions, and garlic into a medium-sized saucepan, and add chicken broth and thyme.
An immersion blender:
- Just place it directly in the pot so that it is completely submerged, and then blend the soup until it is smooth.
A regular blender or food processor:
- You’ll probably need to do this in batches – just take a few cups and blend until smooth. (Also, be careful not to overfill the blender or food processor!)
- Be careful working with warm/hot liquids! Once the soup is pureed, return the saucepan to the stove and bring soup to a boil over medium-high heat. Then lower heat to medium, and stir in half and half (or cream) and vermouth. Season with additional salt and pepper, and a dash of lemon juice if you’d like. Garnish with asparagus heads.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Gourmet
Ali’s Tip:
To make this soup extra hearty, feel free to add in a pound (or half pound) of potatoes to be roasted and then pureed into the soup. You could also add in carrots or celery as well!
Awesome flavor!!
Sounds delicious, but remember that if you get half and half too hot it will break. It will still taste fine, but not look very nice. I recommend just judging the cream.
This soup was very good. I just made it. I’m currently fighting some sort of flu so I decided to forego the cream and just added a little extra chicken stock. I also roasted carrots to add as well and while it tasted excellent, it ended up kind of the colour of split pea soup so not particularly pretty. If you are serving it for guests carrots might not be the best idea. The one suggestion I have is to keep the garlic cloves and asparagus tips separate and just add them for the last 30 minutes or so. I found the tips quite a bit over cooked and they were pretty mushy. The garlic, the recipe says to take it out after 20 (mine took 30 but I used big cloves) but I just think it’s easier to add them at the end rather than pick them out 1/2 way through. Great recipe! Will definitely be making it again
Thanks for sharing Shannon — we’re glad you enjoyed it! We’re sorry you’re dealing with the flu — we hope you get better soon (soups always seem to help, eh)?
I made this soup last night to use up a big pack (2.25 lb) of Costco asparagus…it was fantastic! I only had a small onion, so I added a few leeks from the garden, and subbed canned evaporated milk for the half & half, since that was what I had on had. It was super-fresh tasting and easy to make. I’m glad I tried it!
Thanks for sharing with us Andrea — we’re so glad to hear you enjoyed it (and those leaks sound awesome)! :)
First day of spring and we’re getting snow, so I thought some soup would be nice. Just finished making this and it is beyond fabulous! I actually had a bit of fresh baby spinach that I needed to use up, so I threw it in the blender as well. Amazing. Thank you for this recipe. Easy and delicious.