Sunchoke Bisque With Hazelnut Oil

• 1 small onion
• 3 small red potatoes
• 1 pound Jerusalem artichokes, unpeeled
• 1 celery rib
• 2 tablespoons sunflower-seed oil or olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 6 cups vegetable stock
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt, plus more to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 bay leaves
• Milk or cream, for thinning
• 1/2 cup croutons, crisped in the oven
• Roasted hazelnut or pumpkin-seed oil

1. Chop the vegetables into 1/2-inch chunks.
2. Heat the sunflower-seed oil in a soup pot, add the vegetables and saute over high heat, stirring, until lightly browned, about 10 minutes, adding the garlic during the last few minutes.
3. Pour in the stock.
4. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and the bay leaves.
5. Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered, until the potatoes are tender, about 25 minutes.
6. Cool briefly, fish out the bay leaves, then puree the soup until perfectly smooth.
7. Return the soup to the stove and add enough milk or cream to thin it to the desired consistency.
8. Taste for salt and season with pepper.
9. Serve with a few croutons in each bowl and the hazelnut oil drizzled over the top.

onion, red potatoes, artichokes, celery, sunflowerseed oil, garlic, vegetable stock, salt, freshly ground black pepper, bay leaves, milk, croutons, hazelnut

Taken from cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/9794 (may not work)