My husband used to work at a restaurant in San Diego. Not gonna lie, this restaurant makes some pretty delicious meals and my man is one of their biggest fans. He loves many a dish on their menu… Beef cheeks, fig meatloaf, ahi tuna chop chop… I could go on forever. Not being one to back down from a challenge, I sometimes try to recreate his favorite meals with a paleo-friendly ingredient list.

Apparently, I succeeded in my quest and now hubby has a new favorite home cooked meal. So much so that he mourned the impending end of this meal while he was halfway through his cup of soup. Just the thought of it being over made him sad. I’m pretty sure he would have hooked up a soup IV if he could.

So with that introduction I give you (Duh Duh DA DA!!!)

Tomato and Roasted Fennel Soup

1 fennel bulb, sliced
1 parsnip, peeled and chopped
3 c. stock
1 sweet onion, diced
1 shallot, diced
1 28 oz. can whole tomatoes
4-5 garlic cloves
2 Tbsp. duck fat, divided
1 Tbsp. dried basil
sea salt
pepper
1/4 c. pine nuts
olive oil to drizzle

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. In a bowl, coat the fennel, garlic, and parsnips with 1 Tbsp. of fat and season with some salt and pepper
3. Spread on a baking sheet and roast for 15-20 mins

   

4. In a soup pot, over medium heat, sauté the shallots and onions until translucent
5. Once the fennel mixture is done roasting, add it to the soup pot, sautéing for another 5 mins

   

6. Add stock and simmer for 10 mins

   

7. Add tomatoes and continue to simmer for 5 mins adding basil
8. With an immersion blender (or regular blender) puree the contents of the soup until all chunks are gone, add salt and pepper to taste

   

9. In a blender or spice grinder, grind pine nuts with sea salt until it becomes a fine dust like grated parmesan
10. Add half the nuts to the soup pot and stir
11. Serve with a garnish of olive oil and a dusting of pine nuts