The Humble Carrot

Lots of lovely crisp carrots on offer at the local market, irresistible! The humble carrot sits alongside the onion as one of the vegetables I most often use. I love the bright orange colour that they add to any dish but I especially like them in soups.

I've added the contents of this bag to butternut squash soup, a couple of casseroles, basic tomato sauce and as the main part of the recipe below: a variation on carrot and coriander soup.

















Carrot Soup with Coriander
Serves 6
Ingredients
1 large onion, diced
6 large carrots, 4 peeled and diced and 2 peeled and coarsely grated
2 sticks of celery, chopped
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 tbsp dried coriander (the green herb)
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tin chopped tomatoes or 4 large fresh tomatoes, skinned and chopped
3 ozs orange lentils
2 pts vegetable or chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste

Method
Heat the oil in a large soup pot. Add the onion and celery and cook gently for 5-10 mins until the onions are soft but not coloured.

Add the coriander powder and cook for a further 2 mins. Then add all of the carrots, the chopped tomatoes and the dried coriander. Stir well and add the lentils and the stock.

Bring to a gentle boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for 30-40 mins, stirring ocassionally. Serve in bowls with warmed ciabatta.

You can liquidise this soup if you prefer a smooth version. On this ocassion I enjoyed the tender bite of the carrot and celery.