Almond Soup
I have no special story to tell about this soup; yet a cursory research reveals that this is a royal recipe from the Ottoman imperial palace, which may be worth knowing about. This royal aspect may also be just a fictitious story that has been passed down through generations. The factuality of the story hardly matters so long as there is a story in flesh and bone that forms impressions. One such impression which I cannot shake off when tasting food from this world (Istanbul, and its empire in this instance) is that of: Rootedness, cultural syncretism and a bit of eclecticism. Put simply, today we can tell that the food that parents put on their kids’ plates in this part of the world (and many others) and the stories around them have survived catastrophes that mighty civilizations and their indispensable, invincible stories could not. There is always a syncretic and eclectic undercurrent in Istanbul that lives and lets live, and systems survive to the extent that they adopt the same syncretic or eclectic principle. Culinary disciplines have excelled in this survival method, as evidenced perhaps by this almond soup, which, albeit being a relatively less sophisticated recipe, fuses ingredients and techniques from all across the empire; such as nuts cultivated in southern Anatolian, Black Sea or Middle Eastern cuisines, spices from the Mediterranean basin and more European techniques for achieving a creamy texture.
2
servings10
minutes20
minutes30
minutesIngredients
130–150 130–150 g of finely ground almonds (preferably raw)
1–11/2 1–11/2 tbsp of flour (wheat flour is preferred, but other types can be used)
250 ml 250 of bone broth (can also be made with chicken or vegetable broth)
250 ml 250 milk (vegetarian alternatives can be used)
11/2 –2 11/2 –2 tbsp butter
1/2 tsp 1/2 nutmeg or allspice
Pomegranate pieces or dried cherries
Raw almonds (alternatively, hazelnuts, cashews, pistachios or a combination of them can be used)
Salt and black pepper
Olive oil (optional)
Egg yolk (optional)
Directions
- Melt the butter in a standard stock pot. You may add a small amount of olive oil to the pot as the butter melts.
- Add the flour to the pot and cook with the butter over a low heat for 1–2 minutes.
- Add the finely ground almonds to the pot and cook them with the flour/butter mixture for a further 1–2 minutes on a low heat. Make sure nothing burns.
- Slowly and gradually add the milk, whisking the paste continuously to avoid lumps.
- Add the broth of your choice. Bone broth is recommended. If you are preparing your own bone broth, you may consider adding vegetables to it, especially celery stalk, leek and parsley. This, in my purely personal opinion, creates a nice blend. Keep whisking.
- If you prefer a thinner texture, you can add a little hot water, although this is generally not necessary. Add your spices: half a teaspoon each of nutmeg or allspice, black pepper and salt. If your soup is too liquid and you want a creamier texture, you could try adding an egg yolk, although I have not tried this myself.
- Leave the soup to warm up on a low to medium heat for about 10–15 minutes. Stir occasionally to avoid forming lumps.
- Now it is time to prepare the soup’s dressing. Melt the butter in a small pan and add your favourite nuts. In my opinion, any combination of almonds, hazelnuts, pistachios and cashews works well. Roast them in the butter until it turns slightly brown.
- Prepare your soup bowl. Gently pour the nuts and a tiny drizzle of the lightly browned butter onto the soup. Finally, sprinkle a small amount of pomegranate pieces or dried fruit, such as cherries, on top. You could also add cinnamon.
- Your soup is ready! This recipe is my own interpretation and differs slightly from the traditional version in part.
Equipment
- Stock pot
- Small pan
- Whisk
Notes
- If you are preparing your own bone broth, consider adding vegetables to it, especially celery stalk, leek and parsley.
- This recipe is my own interpretation and differs slightly from the traditional version in part.