Mary Berry Parsnip and Apple Soup Recipe

Mary Berry's parsnip and apple soup is a velvety, warming autumn soup with the sweetness of parsnip balanced by a sharp Cox apple.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 35

Total Time 50

Servings: 4 Portions

Course: Soup

Cuisine: British

Calories: 270

Parsnip and Apple Soup:
40 g unsalted butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves crushed
700 g parsnips peeled and roughly chopped
2 Cox or Braeburn apples peeled, cored, and roughly chopped
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp ground turmeric
1 litre vegetable or chicken stock
150 ml double cream
Juice of ½ lemon
Salt and white pepper
To Serve:
Double cream or crème fraîche crispy parsnip chips (optional), fresh thyme leaves, olive oil, crusty bread

Melt butter with oil over medium heat. Cook onion 8–10 minutes until soft and beginning to golden. Add garlic and all ground spices — stir 2 minutes until fragrant.
Add parsnip and apple — stir to coat. Cook 3–4 minutes.
Add stock. Bring to boil — simmer 20–25 minutes until parsnip is completely tender.
Blend completely smooth — 2 full minutes. Pass through a fine sieve for an especially silky finish if desired.
Return to gentle heat. Add cream and lemon juice. Warm through — do not boil. Season carefully with salt and white pepper. Taste and adjust.
Ladle into warm bowls. Swirl cream. Top with crispy parsnip chips if using. Scatter thyme leaves. Drizzle olive oil. Serve with crusty bread.

Cook spices in the butter for 2 minutes before adding liquid — develops the aromatics dramatically.

Use Cox or Braeburn not Bramleys — gives cleaner sharpness without dominance.

Lemon juice at the end is essential — balances the natural sweetness of the parsnip.

Blend for 2 full minutes — parsnip is fibrous and needs proper blending time.

Crispy parsnip chips turn this into an elegant dinner party starter in minutes.

Freeze before adding cream for up to 3 months.