50 Recipes: #7, Indian spiced carrot soup with ginger

[nonelvis]

We had about 1/3 of a loaf of cranberry-walnut bread left, so I decided to make butternut squash soup to dip it in. Except we had no squash in the house, and I was too busy working to get to the store, and eventually I realized I should probably just use some of the many CSA carrots before the next pickup.

I need to remember that no matter how good my carrots are, no matter how much ginger and lime and coriander and other lovely spices go into the soup, carrot soup is just not nearly as interesting to me as squash soup. It was well-seasoned, but carrot soup lacks the body and texture of squash soup. I want to like it, but it's always just kind of there. (I believe the technical term for this is "meh.")

Still, if you like carrot soup more than I do, give this recipe a shot. Many of the commenters suggested doubling the spices, which I did; I think the soup would have been far too mild otherwise.

At least the house smells nicely of curry now. Nothing wrong with that.

Comments

[gritsinmisery.livejournal.com]

Given the caveat that I am no experimental cook...

If it's the texture of carrot soup you find meh, have you considered adding a grain to it, either in flour or whole form?

[nonelvis]

The textural issue is one problem, and I could bring it closer to the texture of squash soup by cooking rice in it and then puréeing, or better yet, just adding cream, fat be damned. But the other part is the taste – it always tastes a little watery to me and lacks the richness and depth of squash soup.

The weird thing is I love carrots, raw and cooked. Somehow, though, when they get turned into soup or a purée, I lose interest.

[gritsinmisery.livejournal.com]

Hmm, I have my SIL's carrot "souffle," lemme see if I can go find it... It's about half fat and sugar (to be expected of a Nth-generation NOLA girl), in no way healthy, but it'll use up carrots.

2 lbs carrots
1 3/4 c. sugar
1 3/4 tsp. baking powder
1 3/4 tsp. vanilla (why yes, this is sweet)
1/2 c. flour
4 eggs (I told ya it was unhealthy)
1 1/4 sticks (10 tbsp.) butter, softened

Cook carrots until soft and smash. Ad baking powder and mix well. Add flour and vanilla, mix well. Add eggs and mix well. Add butter and (guess what) mix well. Pour into a baking dish (no she didn't give the size) and bake at 350 F for 40 - 45 minutes.

[nonelvis]

That sounds really good, and I'll probably be acquiring another four pounds of carrots in the Thursday pickup anyway. Thank you!