Sarra Ina Garten’s cream of asparagus soup is a silky, puréed soup made with a pound of fresh asparagus, fennel, leeks, onions, and a splash of Pernod, finished with half-and-half and fresh basil. It serves 6 to 8 and simmers in about 50 minutes.
Ina calls it her Asparagus & Fennel Soup in Cooking for Jeffrey and says “most rich soups are thickened with potatoes or heavy cream” but hers “gets its texture from rice, which makes it surprisingly silky smooth.” The rice dissolves completely when you blend the soup, giving it a creamy body without weighing it down. She also says asparagus and fennel “are great together because each one makes the other taste better.”
The asparagus tips get blanched separately and saved for garnish. If you purée them into the soup, you lose the one visual element that tells people what they’re eating. Two minutes in boiling water, then straight into ice water. They stay bright green and snappy on top of each bowl.
Ina Garten’s Cream of Asparagus Soup
Course: SoupsCuisine: American, FrenchDifficulty: Easy8
servings15
minutes50
minutes220
kcalIna’s Asparagus & Fennel Soup from Cooking for Jeffrey, thickened with rice instead of cream for a lighter, silkier texture. Make a big batch when asparagus is in season and freeze it for months.
Ingredients
-
2 1/2 tablespoons good olive oil
-
2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
-
5 cups (650g) 3/4-inch diced fennel, tops and cores removed (2 bulbs)
-
3 cups (400g) chopped leeks, white and light green parts (2 leeks)
-
2 1/2 cups (375g) chopped yellow onions (2 onions)
-
1 lb (450g) medium-thick asparagus
-
1/2 cup (100g) long-grain white rice
-
8 cups (1.9L) good chicken stock, preferably homemade
-
3 large sprigs fresh thyme, tied with kitchen string
-
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
-
1/2 cup julienned fresh basil leaves, plus extra for garnish
-
2 tablespoons Pernod liqueur
-
1/2 cup (120ml) half-and-half
-
Freshly grated Italian Parmesan cheese, for serving
Directions
-
Prep the asparagus: Break off the tough bottoms of the asparagus and discard. Cut 8 tips about 2 inches long and set aside for garnish. Slice the remaining stalks 1/2 inch thick crosswise.
-
Cook the vegetables: Heat the olive oil and butter in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the fennel, leeks, onions, and sliced asparagus stalks. Cook for 20 minutes, stirring now and then, until very tender.
-
Simmer with rice: Add the rice, chicken stock, thyme bundle, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the rice is very tender. Off the heat, stir in the basil and Pernod. Discard the thyme bundle.
-
Blanch the asparagus tips: While the soup simmers, bring a small saucepan of water to a boil. Cook the reserved tips for 2 minutes, drain, and transfer to a bowl of ice water.
-
Blend and finish: Purée the soup with an immersion blender until smooth. Stir in the half-and-half. Taste for seasoning and reheat gently over low heat.
- Serve: Ladle into bowls and garnish with a blanched asparagus tip, julienned basil, and grated Parmesan.
FAQs
Why does Ina use rice instead of cream to thicken this soup?
The rice dissolves completely when you blend the soup, creating a silky body that feels creamy without the heaviness of a full cream base. Ina says this makes the soup “surprisingly silky smooth.”
She adds just half a cup of half-and-half at the end for richness, but the real structure comes from the rice. Potatoes can make soup gluey and heavy cream can dull the fresh asparagus flavor. Rice gives you thickness without either problem.
What does the Pernod do?
Pernod is an anise-flavored liqueur that echoes the natural anise flavor already in the fennel. Two tablespoons deepens that note without making the soup taste like licorice.
Ina stirs it in off the heat so the alcohol doesn’t cook off completely. You keep a little brightness from the liqueur. If you can’t find Pernod, Pastis or a dry anisette works the same way. Skip it entirely and the soup still tastes good, just less complex.
Can you freeze this asparagus soup?
Yes. Ina says you can freeze it for up to 6 months and refrigerate it for up to 5 days.
Make the full recipe, purée it, stir in the half-and-half, then cool completely before freezing in quart containers. Thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat gently. Blanch fresh asparagus tips when you serve it because frozen tips turn mushy.
When is the best time to make this soup?
Ina says to make it “when asparagus is plentiful,” which is spring, roughly April through June. That’s when asparagus is cheapest, sweetest, and most flavorful.
Out-of-season asparagus is woody, bitter, and twice the price. Ina makes big batches in spring and freezes them for quick lunches all year. The fennel is available year-round, so asparagus season is the only timing that matters.
Why do asparagus and fennel work so well together?
Ina says “each one makes the other taste better.” Fennel has a mild anise sweetness that softens the grassy, vegetal edge of asparagus. Asparagus adds a green depth that keeps the fennel from tasting too sweet.
The Pernod and fresh basil reinforce the same flavor direction. Everything in this soup pulls toward the same bright, slightly anise-flavored profile, which is why it tastes so clean and focused instead of muddled.
