Autumn in Portland brings cool temperatures, overcast skies, and off-and-on rain showers. In other words it is perfect soup weather. This soup combines a couple of my favorite things. It is creamy and earthy with texture from the hazelnuts. It has a slightly exotic flavor from the lemongrass. A glut of Asian pears from a friend's tree adds a little sweetness and more texture. I used a recipe for chicken with walnut sauce as my jumping off point, so went with chicken stock. If you prefer to make it vegetarian, use a mushroom stock or a non-sweet vegetable stock.

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