March 8, 2007: Thai Carrot and Ginger Soup

For once Cindy and I failed to arrange a dinner plan before leaving the house, meaning that it was up to the Internet to provide us with a recipe and associated shopping list. Luckily, Cindy's been spending all her spare time trawling through food blogs and keeping track of recipes she's keen on and, after a few email exchanges, we settled on this one. It really is very easy to make - chop a few carrots and an onion up, grate a bit of ginger and crush some garlic and you're basically done. Cindy chipped in with some grilled bread chips as an accompaniment and we had ourselves an enjoyable meal. The coconut milk and ginger give the soup a Thai flavour, while the cumin adds a hint of warmth (only a hint though, despite the fact that I accidentally tipped in about four times the recommended amount). It didn't work quite so well at room temperature for lunch the next day, but that's probably a failing of soups in general.

Thai carrot and ginger soup
(based on a recipe from 28 Cooks)

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, diced
4 cups diced carrot
3 cloves garlic, minced
1L vegetable stock
1 x 400mL can coconut milk
1 teaspoon cumin
4cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated

Heat the oil in a large saucepan; add the onion and cook for a minute. Add the carrots and garlic and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the stock and bring it to the boil, then add the remaining ingredients. Turn the heat down, cover the saucepan, and simmer the soup for 10-15 minutes. Use a hand blender or food processor to puree the soup (you'll need to do it in several small batches if you're using a food processor).