Carrot Soup

There is a nip in the air and the leaves are starting to change color. Fall has arrived and with it comes a plethora of recipes for soups, stews and anything containing pumpkin or cinnamon. Start the season off right with this basic low-calorie carrot soup that can be made with a variety of different spices to make it a totally different soup each time you make it!

The first way this soup can be customized is by adding a variety of different herbs and spices. Coriander and carrot are always a popular combination, or why not try parsley, basil, chives, sage, or thyme. Another great option is to make a curried carrot soup by using a combination of curry spices like those in my Curried Butternut Squash Soup Recipe (1/4 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon ground clove, 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom, 1/8 teaspoon ground tumeric, 1 pinch saffron).

The second way to customize it is by making it a creamy soup. You can do this by adding cream of course, but I recommend adding low-fat Greek yogurt. The yogurt will curdle if the soup is too hot so let it cool for a minute before adding it. I like to serve the soup with a bowl of Greek yogurt on the table and then those who want to add it in can. Don't forget, if you use Greek yogurt the soup is no longer dairy-free, vegan, Engine 2 or Paleo.

The third way it can be customized is by adding chopped veggies during the final heating. This will make a chunky carrot soup. I recommend broccoli, cauliflower and potato but be creative and use the veggies you like best. Chop the veggies into bite sized pieces. Broccoli and cauliflower can be added raw but the potato will need to be chopped and boiled for 20 minutes before being added.

Makes: 5 cups (4 appetizers or 2 main course)

Preparation time: 10m
Cooking time: 10m
Total time: 17m

Ingredients:

  • 4 large carrots (about 8" long)
  • 2 garlic cloves (diced)
  • 1 small shallot (diced)
  • 3 cups low-sodium vegetable stock

Equipment: blender, large sauté pan, saucepan

---

Instructions:

  1. Peel the carrots. Then slice them in half lengthwise, put the flat side down and roughly chop into 1” pieces.
  2. Spray a large sauté pan with non-stick spray or use a non-stick pan and heat over medium high.
  3. Add the diced garlic and shallot to the pre-heated pan and sauté for 1 minute, then add the chopped carrots and sauté them for 6-7 minutes until they start to soften.
  4. Pour the carrot mixture into the blender and add the vegetable stock. If you are using any extra herbs or spices you can add them now.
  5. If using a Vitamix: turn blender on low and increase the speed to high. Blend for about 5 minutes until steaming.
  6. If using a regular blender: blend until smooth then add the contents to a saucepan and heat until steaming.
  7. Serve hot. If using the low-fat Greek yogurt you can either stir in 1 cup after the soup has cooled for a minute so it does not curdle, or serve the yogurt separately and let people add it if they want.