free of gluten and top 9 allergens
There’s nothing like fresh asparagus in the spring. We couldn’t let the season end without a creamy asparagus soup. This classic French soup is simple and made without heavy cream, yet still tastes as comforting and delicious as ever.
Snuggle up with the best asparagus soup. I know it’s hard to label any dish as the best when taste is subjective, but it’s definitely one of our favorites.
Steam or Roast the Asparagus?
We like steaming asparagus versus roasting for soup. However, if you’re having a special dinner and want to take this soup up a notch by adding an additional layer of asparagus, roast some for garnish.
To steam, cut the dry woody ends off of the asparagus, discarding or reserving for making stock. If the spears are thick, peel the bottom halves lightly with a vegetable peeler. Bring a large saucepan with about 2 inches of water to a boil over high heat. Place asparagus in a steamer basket and set in the pot of boiling water. Cover and reduce heat to medium. Steam for 3-5 minutes depending on the thickness of the asparagus, or until asparagus is crisp tender. Transfer the asparagus to an ice bath (bowl with ice and water) to stop the cooking process. When chilled, drain and set asparagus aside.
To roast, preheat oven to 400ºF and place asparagus on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Drizzle with a little olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat and roast for 5-10 minutes until the asparagus is crisp tender. Remove from oven and set aside.
Steps
- Sauté onions in vegan butter and vegetable oil for 8 minutes. Add garlic and cook for another minute.
- Stir in garbanzo bean flour and cook 1 minute. Slowly whisk in rice milk. When thickened, add veggie broth and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add additional veggie broth and steamed asparagus. Simmer for 5 minutes.
- Transfer the soup in batches to a high speed blender. Blend each batch until smooth, about 20 seconds. Return soup to saucepan over medium heat. Add mustard, thyme, salt, pepper, and nutmeg; simmer for 2 minutes.
Serve with alternative sour cream, chives, and/or our bistro croutons.
This is one time we prefer to puree soup in a high speed blender rather than using an immersion blender, as asparagus can be very fibrous. The second batch of soup we made is pictured above with the croutons. We blended this batch for 30 seconds in our Vitamix. The first batch pictured at the beginning of the post was a half batch that was blended for the same time in a Blendtec. You can see the first batch is not as smooth…but that’s okay. It’s equally as good.
Chef Joel’s Tips
- Lemon thyme and common thyme look almost exactly alike. We have lemon thyme growing in the garden. However, it can be a challenge to find in the market. The 2 teaspoons of lemon thyme in this recipe can be replaced with 2 teaspoons of common thyme plus 1/2 teaspoon of lemon zest.
- Skimming off the scum and fat that often accumulates on the surface of soups and stocks is important to create a clean soup or stock. Skim with a mesh sieve or small ladle. If using a ladle, be careful not to remove too much of the liquid.
Creamy Asparagus Soup with Lemon Thyme
Yield 2-1/2 Quarts
Free of: gluten and top 9 allergens.
Comforting and delicious!
Ingredients
2 pounds fresh asparagus spears
4 tbsp vegan butter, such as Earth Balance Soy Free Buttery Sticks
4 tbsp vegetable oil
2 cups diced onions
1/8 tsp plus 1-1/2 tsp salt, divided
2 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp garbanzo bean flour
2 cups rice milk
6 cups vegetable broth, divided (4 cups + 2 cups)
3 tbsp Dijon style mustard
2 tsp chopped lemon thyme (see recipe notes)
1/4 tsp ground white pepper
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
Garnishes, optional
Sour cream, such as Follow Your Heart (contains: coconut)
Chives
Bistro croutons
Instructions
- Rinse and cut the woody ends off of the asparagus, discard or save for making stock. If the spears are thick, peel the bottom halves lightly with a vegetable peeler. Bring a large saucepan with about 2 inches of water to a boil over high heat. Place asparagus in a steamer basket and set in the pot of boiling water. Cover and reduce heat to medium. Steam for 3 to 5 minutes (depending on the thickness of the asparagus), or until crisp tender. Transfer the asparagus to an ice bath (bowl of water and ice) to stop the cooking process. When chilled, drain and set asparagus aside.
- Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Add vegan butter and oil. When heated, add onions and 1/8 tsp salt. Cook for 8 minutes, without browning, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Add flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally.
- Increase heat to medium-high. Slowly whisk in rice milk. When thickened, add 4 cups of broth. When it comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium or medium-low (depending on stove) and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Skim the top of the soup occasionally to remove scum/foam that accumulates. Skimming off the scum and fat that often accumulates on the surface of soups is important to create a clean soup. Skim with a mesh sieve or small ladle. If using a ladle, be careful not to remove too much of the liquid.
- Add remaining 2 cups of broth and reserved asparagus. Increase heat to medium-high. When soup comes to a low boil, reduce heat to medium and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Transfer the soup in batches to a high speed blender, filling the blender only half full. Blend each batch until smooth, about 20-30 seconds, returning pureed soup to a saucepan over medium heat.
- Add mustard, thyme, remaining 1-1/2 teaspoons of salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Simmer for 2 minutes and serve immediately with sour cream, chives, and/or croutons.
Notes
It can be a challenge to find lemon thyme in the market. The 2 teaspoons of lemon thyme in this recipe can be replaced with 2 teaspoons of common thyme plus 1/2 teaspoon of lemon zest.
Courses Soups & Salads