Roasted Carrot & Coriander Soup with Chilli Croutons
When my sister comes home, one of the first things she asks for, is this soup. It’s my take on the classic carrot and coriander, with depth of flavour added through roasting the vegetables, making homemade chilli croutons and adding crème fraîche. It’s pretty easy, you just need to chop and roast the vegetables with an hour to spare before you serve. Carrots are obviously an essential ingredient, but I also like to throw tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, onions or shallots into the roasting dish! It’s a great option when all you’ve only got is some forgotten veg, stale bread and a stock cube to hand. You will need some kind of blender to combine the elements at the end (you can do it in batches in a nutribullet - just make sure the ingredients are cool!). I eyeball the measurements dependant on how many I am cooking for, so don’t get too bogged down in specifics, there’s lots of room for adaptation.
Serves x4 comfortably - any leftovers can be left in the fridge for a couple of days or frozen.
Ingredients
800g of carrots (if you have less you can supplement with other veg)
300g of tomatoes
2 yellow peppers
1 large potato
2/3 shallots or 1 large onion
Olive oil
1 tbsp Chilli flakes
1tsp Smoked Paprika
1 tsp Turmeric
Salt & pepper
Half a somewhat stale loaf of sourdough (my preference - other bread works!)
50g Coriander
200ml Crème Fraîche
1 litre of bone broth / home made stock or 2 x good quality chicken stock cubes & 1 litre of water
Set the oven to 200 degrees (180 fan). Chop your carrots into rough batons, peppers into quarters and potato into chunks. Line two large roasting dishes with baking paper and spread out the chopped vegetables evenly, adding the whole tomatoes into the mix. Slather the vegetables in olive oil, salt, pepper and then share the spices (paprika 2tsp, turmeric 1tsp and 1tbsp of chilli flakes) between the trays. Mix with your hands to coat. Pop in the oven and set your timer for 45-50 mins (check mid way through to turn veg).
Chop 30g of coriander finely and then set aside. Chop sourdough into cubes and set aside. In a new baking tray put a generous amount of olive oil (enough to coat the bottom of the tray) and put in the over to heat up for 20 mins.
Carefully take hot oil out of the oven and add your sourdough cubes, watching out for any oil sparks. Coat the croutons in salt, pepper and the rest of the chilli flakes and return to the oven for 15 mins (give them a toss mid way through).
Make your stock and leave it to cool. Remove your roasted vegetables from the oven and give them a quick shifty with your spatula to move any sticky bits whilst warm, before also leaving them to cool. When the timer goes, remove your croutons and do the same.
Combine your vegetables and stock (either in batches in a smaller blender or with a stick blender). Then warm the soup up in a large pot on a medium heat, if the consistency is too thick for your liking, slowly add small amount of liquid (water or any excess stock) until you’re happy. Add the chopped coriander, salt and pepper into the soup to taste, leaving some left over for decoration.
Serve soup with a dollop of crème fraîche, a handful of croutons, a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of coriander and a crackle of black pepper.
Let me know if you try it!
Isabella
