Cold Night Carrot Soup

While trying to chase away the winter blues, I came upon this lovely recipe (dubbed "Cold Night Carrot Soup" by my friend and fellow soup mistress, Cat Boleyn).

It's one of the most fragrant soups I've made in awhile and uses veggies that I don't normally pick up: parsnips and celery root. I've lived with a lot of Brits (who have a special love for parsnips, which to me, have always smelled more like pork than anything else) but I never understood the wonder of parsnips until this soup. Now I'm a full convert.

The celery root can be found in your fancier market and don't worry if you have no idea what I'm talking about. I had to Google Image it so I didn't look like a fool at the grocery store. It's pictured below and for this soup, you only need a veg about the size of your fist.

I found mine at Whole Foods (I tried Stop n' Shop but nary a celery root was to be found).

This was a very fast soup. It took two of us about 40 minutes to make it (and we were drinking wine).

Here's what you need:

12 oz of carrots
8 oz of parsnips
1 lrg yam
1 sm. celery root
1 med. red onion
3 cups vegetable stock (I use Rapunzel, no salt added)
1 orange rind (ie-the rind of a whole orange)

Eyeballing it:
Extra Virgin Olive Oil for the skillet (2 rounds or so)
Sea Salt (for the skillet and the pot, to taste)
1.5 Tbs Honey
Half a cinnamon stick (an inch or so)
Coriander (half cupped palmful)
Nutmeg (1/4 a cupped palmful)
Fresh juice of 3/4 an orange
Lemon Juice (a few tbs)
1.5 pinches of cayenne


1) Preheat oven to 375 and after poking holes in the yam and placing in a oven-safe dish with a bit of water, roast for about an hour (or until soft) and then peel and chop.

2) While the yam is a-roasting, chop the onion and saute with the sea salt and the olive oil on med-low heat for about 20 minutes (you want to caramelize them).

3) Peel and slice the rest of the veggies (carrots, parsnips, celery root) and drop them in the pot with 3.5 cups water, some salt, the honey and the spices. Simmer until the yam in ready to be added and add with the onion, the broth, the rind, and the juices.
.

4) Right about now you will be entirely overwhelmed by the aroma of root veggies, orange, and coriander. Take a minute to bask. You can even stand with your face over the pot and get a little steam bath. I won't tell.


 5) Ok, sauna time is up. Grab your handy-dandy immersion blender and puree this baby.

6) Add more salt/lemon juice to taste and you've got yourself one mighty-brighty, spicy soup that will warm you from tongue to toes!

Be sure you invite others over for the fun, too! Happy souping!

 Recipe adapted from Love Soup by Anna Thomas.