As we are now in British summer time, though it entirely doesn’t feel like summers, its time to get some soups sorted out which are perfect for a midweek lunch or when you need that light supper.
Carrot and Coriander soup is a super easy stunning preparation which never fails to please. I feel in love with this soup on my recent trip to Yorkshire Dales. Our B&B hosts packed a lovely lunch of soup and sandwiches for us when we went for the Three Peaks Challenge. A piping hot carrot and coriander soup when our legs were aching, was such a welcome therapy for our limbs and our soul.
This is my own version of the soup and you can make several variations of it.
Ingredients
- 3 medium Carrots (obviously!!! after all its a carrot soup) Peeled and diced in small cubes, roughly is fine.
- 1 bunch of Coriander, use stalks which has all the flavour packed. Only using leaves will not give it a strong flavour
- 1 medium diced Onion
- 1-2 cloves of garlic
- Chicken or vegetable stock
- Cream (optional)
- Olive oil or Butter
- Salt and Pepper
Method
- Prepare all your vegetables. Put a soup pan or a saucepan on medium heat.
- Add a tbsp of olive oil. You can use butter also if you like. I refrained from using butter as I wanted my soup to be light and healthy.
- Add diced onions and saute for few minutes. Add garlic and saute for few minutes again. Ensure its not turning brown, just pink and translucent.
- Add the carrots and toss them around to coat the oil. Then add the stalks and some leaves of coriander. Add some salt. Remember the stock may have salt too. Mix well and cook for few minutes.
- Add the stock. If you don’t have stock you can use hot water. I would recommend using stock as its packed with flavour and lifts the soup.
- Cover and let it simmer for 15-20 min. Check if the vegetables are soft and just about mushy.
- Remove from heat and blitz it with a hand blender. Blend thin if you prefer your soup like that or just pulse briefly if you like chunky soup.
- Return back to heat and add some cream. Now this is again optional. I had some leftover cream so i used about a tbsp. You can also substitute it for light cream cheese, ensure you have whipped it with some skimmed milk.
- Bring to a quick boil and the soup is ready
- Garnish with some chopped coriander and pepper. You can add a swirl of olive or truffle oil or grate some parmesan. Serve with crusty toasted bread.
Soups are such a hearty meal in itself. And i love experimenting with them. A look in the fridge can give you so many ideas of what all you can play around with. You can add celery, beetroot or even squash to this soup for some variations.
Have you tried my Roasted Butternut Squash soup? It’s a total winner.
I look forward to hear from you some more exciting soup recipes if you try any this summer.
