Rose and Radish Soup
Older rose varieties tend to have more fragrance and flavor; be sure to use roses that are organic and have not been sprayed. Don’t be tempted to use dried rose petals here; they can have good flavor but the texture would not work well in this recipe.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter or 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large leek, white and pale green portion cleaned and coarsely chopped
- 1 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
- 2 shallots, coarsely chopped
- 1 pound red radishes, trimmed, rinsed, and quartered
- 1 cup organic (unsprayed) fragrant fresh rose petals, plus more for garnish
- 6 cups homemade chicken stock or vegetable stock
- Sea salt, to taste
- A few drops rose water, if needed
Directions
- In a heavy-bottomed non-aluminum saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the leek, onion, and shallots and cook gently, stirring occasionally, until they are translucent and ‘relaxed’ but not browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the radishes, rose petals, and stock. Increase the heat to medium-high to bring the stock to a boil, then return to medium-low and simmer until the radishes are soft, about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Let cool briefly, then purée the mixture in blender. Return the soup to the pot and season to taste with salt. Add a few drops of rose water if you think that it needs a little boost of rose flavor. Ladle the soup into individual bowls and garnish with a sprinkling of rose petals.
