Creamy Carrot Soup

 

 The first time we ate carrot soup was at a winery in Okanagan Falls, B.C. called Liquidity.  We would like to thank Adrian for ordering this soup as we would of never known that the humble carrot could make such an amazing soup. We wanted to recreate the soup at home so we contacted the chef  and happily we were given the soup ingredients and after several attempts we have come up with our version.  The soup is luxuriously creamy even though there is only one cup of cream in it. Roasting the carrots is definitely the secret, so do not skip this step. We like to serve this soup with fresh bread and a simple charcuterie board.

Creamy Carrot Soup

Serves 6


Ingredients:

3 pounds or 1.4kg carrots

5 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup onions, diced

½ cup shallots, diced

3-4 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons dried mushrooms, ground

½ teaspoon dried chili flakes

Kosher salt ( approximately 1 teaspoon) and fresh ground pepper to taste

2 900ml containers chicken broth

1 ½ teaspoon coriander

1 cup 33% whipping cream

Pumpkin seeds and garlic pepper crispy onions


Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Line two rimmed baking sheets with aluminum foil. Peel carrots. Slice in half lengthwise.

Divide carrots between both pans. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to each pan. Season carrots with Kosher salt and pepper. With your hands toss the carrots so they are evenly coated with oil and seasonings. Roast carrots for approximately 30 minutes. Turn carrots once during roasting. Carrots are done when fork tender. Remove from the oven.

While carrots are roasting you can prepare the rest of the soup.

In a large pot melt one tablespoon of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of butter. Add onions and shallots. Sweat the onions over medium low heat for about 15-20 minutes. Then add garlic and cook for a couple of minutes. Add dried ground mushrooms, chili flakes, coriander and salt and pepper. Add the roasted carrots to the onion mixture. Add one container (900 ml) to the pot. Cook the carrot mixture on the stove top over medium low heat for approximately 30-40 minutes. If the broth is reducing too much add a little more and continue cooking.

Remove pot from the heat and blend the carrot mixture until smooth. I have a hand held blender that is very handy for blending soups but you can use a regular blender but blend hot soup in small batches or else the lid will blow off and you will have soup everywhere. Add more chicken broth to the soup to thin it out. At first it will look more like baby food then soup. Once soup is smooth and the right consistency, pass the soup through a fine mesh sieve. If the soup is too thick it will be more challenging to pass through the sieve. Place sieve over a large clean bowl. Pour soup into sieve in batches, using a spoon to help pass it through. Clean the soup pot and pour the soup back into the pot. Warm the soup. Taste the soup and add more salt and pepper if needed. Add the cream. Taste the soup again and adjust seasonings. Analyze the consistency of the soup. Add more broth if required. I usually add all but about 1 cup of the broth in total but it depends on how much is evaporated during the cooking process. After the addition of the cream, gently warm the soup, do not boil.

Serve the soup in bowls and garnish with pumpkin seeds and crispy onions.

I serve the soup with fresh baked french bread and simple charcuterie board.

Print Recipe: Creamy Carrot Soup

Roast the carrot in olive oil and salt and pepper for approximately 30 minutes. Turn carrots once during roasting. 

In a large pot melt one tablespoon  and two tablespoons butter.

Sweat the onions and shallot until soft. Add minced garlic. Cook for another minute. 

I used approximately half of a twenty gram package of dried mushrooms, about 2 tablespoons ground. 

Look at those lovely roasted carrots! 

Add roasted carrots to the onion mixture.

Add ground mushrooms, chili flakes, coriander, Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.

Add 900ml chicken broth. Cook on medium low heat for about 30-40 minutes. Add more both if too much evaporates during cooking. 

Remove from heat and blend the carrots until smooth. 

I use a hand blender. Great for blending soups. 

The soup will look like thick baby food. Add more chicken broth while blending to thin out soup.

Pass soup through a fine mesh sieve. Do not omit this step as this is what makes it so smooth and velvety. 

Add more broth to get it to the right consistency. No one wants to eat thick baby food soup. 

Add the cream. Slowly heat up the soup. Taste and add more Kosher salt and pepper if needed. 

Serve in bowls and garnish.