Carrot, ginger and honey soup
My good friend and talented photographer, Dr Jon Rees, made this for me a few years ago and since then it’s become a firm favourite.
The original recipe is from Tessa Bramley's 'The Instinctive Cook'. In this version, I've slightly reduced the amount of ginger, increased the cooking time, omitted the cream and ignored the recommendation to sieve the soup before serving.
The longer cooking time ensures that the carrots are lovely and soft before blending, which ensures a beautiful smooth and creamy texture. Definitely a hug in a bowl!
25g butter or 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil
750g carrots
1 white onion
1 teaspoon of finely grated fresh ginger
3 celery sticks
750ml vegetable stock
1 tablespoon of honey
1 bayleaf
Seasoning
- Roughly chop the onion, carrots and celery.
- Grate the ginger.
- Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed pan, over a medium to low heat.
- Once the butter has melted, add the chopped vegetables and grated ginger and stir well.
- Cover and cook on a low heat for 20 minutes.
- Add the hot stock, honey and bay leaf and seasoning.
- Bring to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 20-25 minutes or until the carrots are soft.
- Remove the bay leaf before blending the soup until is smooth.
- At this stage, you can sieve the soup if you want a really velvety texture.
