When cookbook author Cal Peternell was the chef at Berkeley’s iconic Chez Panisse — a post he held for 22 years — he made this soup regularly for his son, Liam, to spoon up after school, before starting on his homework in the corner of the dining room.
The secret to its creaminess is toasted and peeled almonds and good quality olive oil, stirred into a bit of ground coriander seeds and sprinkled with red pepper. The recipe is featured in Peternell’s new cookbook, “Almonds, Anchovies and Pancetta: A Vegetarian Cookbook, Kind Of” (William Morrow, 180 pages, $26), one of our favorite new fall cookbooks.
Cal Peternell’s Carrot and Almond Soup with Saffron and Coriander
Makes about 8 servings
Ingredients:
¼ cup olive or vegetable oil
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
Kosher or sea salt
½ teaspoon saffron threads, about 10
1½ pounds carrots, peeled and cut in ½ -inch chunks
½ cup toasted, roughly chopped almonds
1½ teaspoons white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons coriander seeds, toasted
3 tablespoons good olive oil
Marash, Urfa, Aleppo or other dried and crushed red pepper to taste
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Directions:
- Heat a soup pot over high heat. Add the oil and then the onion, ½ teaspoon salt and the saffron. Stir, lower the heat, and cover the pot. Check and stir after a few minutes, letting the water from the lid drop back into the pot to keep things steamy. Lower the heat if there is any browning going on, re-cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until very tender, about 15 minutes.
- Add the carrots, almonds, another ½ teaspoon salt and enough water to cover the carrots by an inch. You can always thin the soup later if it’s too thick, so add just enough water to allow the carrots to bob around a bit. Bring to a boil over high heat, then lower to an easy simmer, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Cook until the carrots are very tender, about 30 minutes. If the carrots are undercooked, the texture of the soup won’t be as nice. You should be able to spoon-crush a carrot chunk against the side of the pot.
- Unless you’re in a hurry, let the soup cool, at least a little, before blending — it’s safer. Stir in the vinegar and puree the soup in batches at the most annoying blender speed until you can’t take it. Pass the soup through a sieve for extra smoothness, re-blending with the next batch what got caught in the sieve from the previous one, if you are economical like me. Taste and adjust the soup for salt and acidity. Adjust the texture with water — it should be pleasantly thick, but with flow. A spoon should leave no enduring sign of its passing. Remember that the soup will thicken further as it cools in the bowl.
- Grind the coriander seeds finely, but not quite to powder, and stir them together with the olive oil and a pinch of salt. Reheat the soup as needed, ladle into warm bowls, and spoon the coriander oil on top. Sprinkle with Marash or other pepper as desired.
— From Cal Peternell’s “Almonds, Anchovies and Pancetta” (William Morrow, 180 pages, $26)
