A Use For Carrots

I've been working on this one for a couple of days. I had a big bag of leftover carrots so I decided to try to make something out of them. Ironically I had to get even more carrots and now I still have leftover carrots.

This is my favorite soup so far this year, even better than the sweet potato one from a few months back. I think this one will be nice for DC Mom's reception. (Suzy, you will have to let me know what you think. )


Carrot-Cumin Soup with Avocado-Lime Cream and Chipotle Oil

Soup

• 1 2-lb bag Carrots, peeled, chopped
  
• 1 Russet Potato, chopped
  
• 1 Yellow Onion, chopped
  
• 32 ounce Vegetable (or Chicken) stock
  
• 3 t Coriander
  
• 2 t Cumin
  
• 1 t Salt
  
• 1 t Black Pepper
  

Avocado-Lime Cream

• 1 large Avocado (or 2 medium)
  
• 2 T Lime juice
  
• 3-4 T Whole Milk
  
• Salt
  
• Black Pepper
  

Chipotle Oil

• 3 T Olive Oil
  
• 1/4 t Chipotle
  

Garnish

• Cilantro, chopped
  

1) For Soup: Put all the soup ingredients in a stockpot and bring to a boil. Reduce to low, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Take a hand liquidiser to the soup or alternatively put the soup through a blender in batches. Return to stockpot and keep hot.

2) For Avocado-Lime Cream: Mash avocado, lime and milk with a fork then wisk until desired consistency. Season with salt/pepper. Keep cool.

3) For Chipotle Oil: Wisk oil and chipotle together and let sit for 30 minutes.

4) Assembly: Ladel soup into bowls. Top with a couple T of avocado-lime cream, drizzle with chipotle oil and sprinkle with chopped cilantro.


Servings: 4

A Use For Sweet Potatoes

Generally I don't like sweet potatoes but this sounded good with the addition of rosemary and pancetta. If you're looking for a good winter soup to wow the guests, this one might work.


Sweet Potato Soup With Fried Pancetta and Rosemary Croutons

• 4 Ounce Pancetta, thinly sliced
  
• 3 Tbls Butter, divided
  
• 1 C Shallots, thinly sliced
  
• 1 1/2 t Rosemary, chopped
  
• 2 C Sweet Potatoes, cooked, skinned and mashed
  
• 3 1/2 C Chicken Stock (or broth)
  
• 1 1/2 C Sourdough bread, cubed
  
• 2 T Whipping cream
  
• 1 t Black pepper
  
• salt
  

1 Chop the pancetta into small bits. Sautee pancetta over high heat until crisp. Drain on paper towels and set aside.

2 Add half the butter to the same pan and sautee shallot over medium heat until soft and golden. Stir in 1 t of the rosemary, then add the sweet potatoes and chicken stock. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer and continue to cook and stir occasionally for 30 minutes.

3 Remove from heat, add 2T of whipping cream and pepper, stir to blend. Taste, adjust, adding salt and pepper if necessary.

4 Add remaining butter to a pan. Over medium high heat melt butter, then add remaining rosemary, stir. Add sourdough bread cubes and pan fry until all sides are golden and crisp.

5 Ladel soup into bowls, top with mound of croutons and a sprinkle of fried pancetta.

As is, this soup will be chunky. I kinda like it like that but you could take a hand liquidiser to it and make it more smooth.

If you are using low-sodium stock, you will probably need to add a bit of salt (I added about 1 t) , otherwise you probably won't. Also, speaking of stock, in this particular soup the stock is a feature flavor, if you are buying stock off the rack rather than making it from scratch, I'd suggest choosing something high-grade.

Pancetta is an Italian bacon with a very distinct flavor. If your taste buds cannot detect the difference, I would use regular bacon, its easier to find and way less expensive.