Creamy Apple and Celery Root Soup with Grilled Cheddar, Bacon and Apple Honey Mustard Sandwich
Fall vegetables sweetened with apples and Calvados are the base for a rich, creamy soup. Serve with a grilled cheese, apple and bacon sandwich slathered with apple butter and honey.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
- 1 1/4 pounds large celeriac (celery root), peeled and chopped
- 2 parsnips, peeled and chopped
- 1 Idaho potato, peeled and chopped
- 1 onion, chopped
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
- 3 large Gala or other crispy, sweet apples, 2 peeled and chopped, 1 sliced
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1/2 cup Calvados apple liquor or 1/2 cup Sauterne (citrusy) wine
- 4 cups chicken stock, homemade or store-bought (32 ounces)
- 1 cup heavy cream or creme fraiche
- 1 stick butter, softened
- 8 1/2-inch-thick slices good-quality white bread
- 1/2 cup apple butter
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1/4 cup grainy Dijon mustard
- 3/4 pound super sharp white cheddar cheese, sliced
- 12 slices good-quality smoky bacon
Preparation
For the soup, heat the EVOO, three turns of the pan, in a soup pot or large Dutch oven. Add the chopped celeriac, parsnips, potato, onion, bay leaf and thyme. Season with salt and pepper and cook, partially covered, to soften, 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the apples and lemon juice and cook for 5 minutes more. Deglaze the pan with the Calvados or Sauterne and add the chicken stock. Simmer over medium-low heat, 20-25 minutes more. Then remove the bay leaf and puree the soup. If too thick, add 1 cup water to puree. Add the cream or creme fraiche, turn off the heat, cool and store for a make-ahead meal.
Butter one side of each slice of bread. Combine the apple butter, honey and mustard and spread over opposite sides of the bread. With the buttered-side facing out, build the cheese sandwiches and individually wrap for make-ahead.
To serve, pre-heat the oven to 375º F. Heat the soup up over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Arrange the bacon on a slotted pan and bake until crisp, about 15 minutes. Place the bacon and sliced apples in the prepared sandwiches. Heat a griddle pan over medium heat and make the grilled cheeses, cooking until deeply golden and crisp on both sides.
