Peanut Soup with Honey Sesame Whipped Cream

*Post by Angela.

I couldn't believe my ears when Mark told me he had found a soup recipe in a recent issue of Bon Appetit that he wanted to try. He's typically not the soup freak I am. But it all made sense once I took a look - the foundation of the soup is peanut butter, one of my guy's favorite things in the entire world.

As odd as the idea of putting sweetend whipped cream on a soup sounded to me, I was willing to give it a shot. This is a kind of fussy recipe for such a simple-seeming soup. But each component of the dish adds a subtle layer of flavor, resulting in something really unique and complex.

Ingredients:

• 2 heads of garlic
• 4 tbsp olive oil, divided
• 1 1/2 cups unsalted, dry-roasted peanuts
• 2 onions, chopped
• 3 cups chopped celery stalks (about 1/2 bunch), leaves reserved
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 quarts chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 big Yukon Gold potato (about 8 ounces), peeled and cubed
• 3/4 cup chilled heavy cream, divided
• Kosher salt
• 1 tbsp (or more) honey
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil

Before I could actually start the soup, I had to roast me up some garlic. Immediate point in my book for this recipe, as I love roasted garlic in soup. I preheated oven to 400°, sliced off the top of both heads of garlic, drizzled them each with 1 tbsp of the olive oil, and wrapped them separately with foil. After throwing them in the oven to roast for about 45 minutes, I unwrapped the garlic, let it cool, then popped the softened, roasted cloves out. 

I moved on to the next component of the soup, the homemade peanut butter (Point #2 in the recipe’s favor – I have never used store-bought peanut butter in a recipe successfully). Using my little baby food processor, I pulsed the peanuts until a smooth butter forms, about 2-3 minutes, then set it aside.

Finally, it was time to move on to the more basic soup-making portion of the evening. I heated the remaining 2 tbsp of olive oil in a large pot over medium-low heat, then added the onions and cooked, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. I added the celery, butter, and roasted garlic, and cooked, stirring frequently, until celery was softened, another 10-15 minutes.

I poured the chicken broth into the pot and added the bay leaf; bringing the soup to a boil, I added the potato cubes. I simmered the soup for another 20 minutes, until the potato cubes were nice and tender, then fished out and discarded the bay leaf.

Using my monster blender, I puréed the soup until smooth (if you have a smaller blender, do it in batches), then added the peanut butter and pulsed to blend. I poured the soup back into the pot and whisked in 1/4 cup of the cream, and seasoned with salt.

You thought I was done, didn’t you? NOPE. One more element remains: the oddly tasty toasted sesame whipped cream. Using my KitchenAid mixer, I whisked the remaining 1/2 cup cream and a pinch of salt until soft peaks formed. Then I gradually drizzled in the honey and the sesame oil until just combined. The result is a nutty whipped cream that’s equal parts salty and sweet. I topped each bowl of soup with a dollop of honey whipped cream, and garnished with peanuts and celery leaves.

Mark, not surprisingly, really loved the soup. I also enjoyed it, but we both agreed that it was not an entree soup - the flavors are pretty intense, so it would more appropriately be a first course. Even for the peanut-butter-obsessed. In any event, I'm kind of hoping this experience will be a gateway for Mark to start loving soup as much as I do.