This is a great soup for using up the abundance of the fall harvest, but it has such a unique flavour that you'll want to sneak it into your menus year round! I discovered it while researching recipes for our Nova Scotia dinner. Note that the original recipe called for light cream, but I substitute it just as successfully with soya milk. Other subsitutes for the cream include almond milk and other milks made from various blends of nuts and seeds. Just make sure they do not include any sugar! The parsnip and apple in this recipe are already sweet enough. For the broth, I always have containers of turkey broth in the freezer. I find turkey to be a healthy and lean source of protein, economical and very versatile. You get a lot of meals and lots of soups from the big bird!

After making this recipe, I realized that I had cooked a non-dessert dish that did not have either garlic or onion! I was flabergasted.

If you are a seasoned gardener, you may have noticed that the branch on the edge of the bowl does not resemble the sage from your garden. That's because I was out of fresh sage when I took my photo and used Greek Mountain tea instead, which is in the family of sages. Sage is very good for the stomach and also for female ailments such as pms and menopause

Peel and chop parsnips and apple. I cut them into large pieces and chop them in the VitaMix, since the blender will be used for pureeing afterwards.

Cook chopped apple, parsnip and butter in covered saucepan 20 to 30 minutes, adding broth if it gets too dry. Add sage and cloves. Puree in blender until smooth. Return to saucepan. Add cream or soya milk. Heat and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve with hot baguette.