Asparagus Potato Soup with Chive Cream

Ingredient Breakdown:

If you’re unfamiliar with their products, Imagine® produces a wonderful line of organic broths and soups. Their flavor is excellent and well-rounded, and all of their products are made with certified organic, non-GMO ingredients.

You’d be very surprised how many store-bought broths contain sugar or other unnecessary filler ingredients – even the so-called good ones!

I’ve been a customer of their products for years and I’ve loved working with them to brainstorm new recipes to share with you. Soups have always been one of my favorite types of dishes to develop, so this partnership has been really fun!

We started with this exotic slow cooker curried lentil soup and moved onto this hearty vegetarian chili. We’re ending with a creamy and incredibly smooth pureed asparagus potato soup – inspired by the season – made from sweet leeks, onions, fresh asparagus, and Yukon gold potatoes.

Why You’ll Love This Asparagus Potato Soup:

The asparagus flavor is front and center in this soup, and the leeks and onions balance everything out. The Yukon gold potatoes, which have a signature buttery texture and flavor, add a natural, yet lighter creaminess to this soup.

For this recipe, we’ll be using Imagine® Organic Free Range Chicken Broth. It has a hearty and classic flavor, which I prefer in pureed vegetable soups, such as this one, that have a small ingredient list. The soup comes together quickly – less than 45 minutes total – making it ideal for weeknights too.

It might seem kind of blasphemous to blend up fresh spring asparagus in a soup, but it is one of my favorite ways to use this spring vegetable!

How to Make Chive Cream:

Last, but certainly not least, let’s talk garnishes! We’re going to be topping this asparagus soup with homemade chive cream! If you’re wondering how the heck to make chive cream, let’s discuss in detail.

Chive cream is essentially whipped cream, beaten until stiff, with finely sliced chives folded in it. Yes, it’s really that simple, complements the asparagus soup incredibly well, and gives it that wow factor. Yet, it takes almost no time to prepare.

Since the cream is whipped, the chive cream will float in the soup – I like to shape it into ‘quenelles’ using two spoons – and looks absolutely beautiful (and deceptively fancy, which I absolutely love!).

As you might guess, the cream melts slowly with each spoonful of soup! It adds a decadence without making the soup overly rich or indulgent.

If you’d like to skip the chive cream, I recommend adding a splash of cream into the soup to give it a similar effect! Enjoy!

Asparagus Potato Soup with Chive Cream

4.2 stars (17 ratings)

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Yield: 4 Servings

Prep: 15 minutes minutes

Cook: 25 minutes minutes

Total: 40 minutes minutes

A creamy asparagus potato soup to ring in the spring season! This silky smooth pureed asparagus soup recipe has a base of fresh asparagus, Yukon gold potatoes, sweet leeks and onions, and is topped with an elegant homemade whipped chive cream!

Equipment

• Vitamix 5200 Blender

Ingredients

Asparagus Potato Soup:

• 2 bunches asparagus (roughly 2 lbs)
• 1 tablespoon (15 mL) extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon (15 g) unsalted butter
• 1 small yellow onion diced
• 1 large leek, white and light green parts only thinly sliced
• 2 Yukon gold potatoes (roughly 10 oz) peeled and diced
• 1½ quarts (6 cups) Imagine® Organic Free Range Chicken Broth
• fresh lemon juice to taste
• kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Chive Cream (Optional):

• ¼ cup (60 mL) chilled heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped chives plus more for garnishing
• pinch of kosher salt

Instructions 

• Trim and discard any woody stalks of the asparagus. Cut the asparagus into 1-inch wide pieces and set aside.
• Prepare the Soup: Heat the olive oil and butter in a large soup pot over medium-low heat. Add the leeks and onions, and a large pinch of salt. Sauté over medium heat for about 10 to 12 minutes, or until the leeks and onions are very soft and beginning to become translucent. It is OK if they gain a tiny bit of color.
• Add the asparagus and potato and continue cooking for another 3 to 4 minutes, stirring often. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer and continue cooking, with the pot partially covered, for an additional 15 to 20 minutes, stirring every now and then, or until the asparagus and potato are cooked through and extremely tender.
• Transfer the soup (you’ll most likely need to do this step in batches) to a high-powered blender, such as a Vitamix, and puree until smooth. Transfer the pureed soup back into the soup pot. Season to taste with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, kosher salt, and and freshly ground pepper. Keep over very low heat until ready to serve.
• Prepare the herb cream: Whip the cream until stiff (*I prefer to beat the cream by hand in a small bowl with a whisk. It is a small amount and only takes about 2 to 3 minutes tops). Add the salt and fold in the chopped chives. Serve the soup and add a dollop of chive cream (I use two spoons to shape it into a quenelle) - it will float and slowly start to melt into the soup as you eat it. Garnish with finely sliced chives and serve immediately.

Tips for Success:

• When buying asparagus, you want to look for very firm stalks that have very tightly closed tops and moist ends. The thickness of the stalks is not an indication of when the asparagus was picked, but the age of the asparagus plant. For more asparagus storage tips, read this guide.
• If you’d prefer to skip the chive cream, I recommend adding a splash of cream (2 tablespoons or so) into the soup, just before serving, to give it a touch of creaminess. Garnish with fresh chives and a light drizzle of olive oil.

Serving: 1serving, Calories: 218kcal, Carbohydrates: 25g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 13g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g, Cholesterol: 29mg, Sodium: 1119mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 5g

Author: Laura / A Beautiful Plate

Course: Soups

Cuisine: American