Tis the season for soups and all things savory. Now, I am a fan of the soups that warrant hours to pull out the savory and rich flavors that stick to your bones and protect them from the cold that’s coming down in Michigan. However, we’re all busy, there are times when something under and hour is called for. Don’t worry, the next soup recipe I have is about 30 minutes.

This is a favorite of C’s, my sister and myself. Natural sweetness from the carrots gets enhanced by the natural earthy, woody flavors of cumin and coriander. The dill pesto, done with roasted peanuts instead of pine nuts, give the soup a great bright herbal kick. I often serve this soup with home made sour dough croutons.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

For the soup:

1 16 oz. bag of baby carrots - I use it for the convenience
1 large Spanish onion, chopped
1 1/4 teaspoons coriander seeds
4 cups of chicken stock
1 heaping tablespoon of ground cumin
1 tablespoon of ground coriander

For the dill pesto:
1 cup packed coarsely chopped fresh dill
3 tablespoons roasted peanuts
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves of garlic

Preparation

For the soup:

1. Heat a heavy large saucepan over medium heat.
2. Add carrots, onion and coriander seeds and sauté until onion is translucent and tender, about 10 minutes.
3. Add the chicken stock and bring to boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until carrots are very tender, about 35 minutes. 4. Add the ground cumin and coriander. Use an immersion blender target=”_blank” and puree the soup, until the consistency is smooth. If you have to use a blender, make sure you don’t seal the lid completely. Mixing a hot liquid in a sealed blender is bad news!
5. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

For the pesto:

While the soup is simmering, prepare the pesto.

1. In a small processor, pulse the peanuts until coarsely chopped.
2. Add the dill and garlic cloves. Pulse until ingredients are finely chopped.
3. Stream in the olive oil and pulse until desired consistency.
4. Season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!. Rather get email notification?