Chestnut Cream Soup

Ingredients

• 400 g starchy potatoes
• 400 g chestnuts (pre-cooked; vacuum sealed)
• 2 pears
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp White Wine Vinegar
• 400 ml Vegetable broth
• 40 g hazelnut kernels
• 0.5 bunch thyme (10 g)
• 40 g chunky oatmeal flakes
• 0.5 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp goat fresh cheese (40 g; 40 % fat in the mix)
• Salt
• Pepper
• nutmeg

Instructions

1. 1.

   Peel, wash and cube the potatoes. Roughly chop the chestnuts. Wash the pears, set one aside. Halve the other pear, remove the core and cube the fruit.

2. 2.

   Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a pot. Sauté the potato cubes, chestnuts and pear cubes over medium heat for 3 minutes while stirring. Deglaze with vinegar and add vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, then simmer on low heat covered for 15 minutes.

3. 3.

   Chop hazelnuts. Wash thyme, shake dry and pluck leaves. Quarter the reserved pear lengthwise, remove core and slice into rounds. Heat remaining oil in a pan, add hazelnuts, oatmeal flakes, cinnamon, honey and half the thyme. Toast lightly over low to medium heat for about 5 minutes. Fold in pear slices.

4. 4.

   Whisk goat cheese with 1 tbsp water until smooth, season with salt and pepper. Blend soup with an immersion blender, adding more liquid if needed. Season with salt, pepper and freshly grated nutmeg. Serve soup in bowls, top each with a dollop of goat cheese, pear rounds and crunchy hazelnuts, garnished with the remaining thyme.