Carrot Soup

After all of the Super Bowl munchies last night, I seriously just wanted something light for dinner.  So we did soup and salad and some leftover dip.

So, carrot soup may not sound like the most appetizing thing, but trust me when I tell you, this soup is DELICIOUS! It is so packed with flavor, you can't go wrong.  Even if you are not a carrot fan, you would probably still like it.  If you want a more substantial meal, I suppose you could throw some rice or tortellini in it or something, but I like it as is and am plenty full from dinner.  It was ready from start to finish in an hour (cooking) wth about 10-15 minutes to throw it together. This recipe came from someone my mom works with I believe.  It has simple fresh ingredients and you probably would have most of it on hand.

My husband suggested I add the caption "winner dinner" for those dinners that we all loved.  So, this gets the stamp, "winner dinner".  Enjoy!


CARROT SOUP


INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 stick butter
• 5-6 carrots, peeled and chopped coarsely
• 2-4 leeks, chopped and triple rinsed (I soak in water 3x)
• 1 large onion, coarsely chopped
• 4-5 cloves garlic, crushed/ minced
• salt and pepper
• 1-2 tsp fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp dry)
• 1/4-1/2 tsp crushed fennel
• 5 cups (box) of chicken broth 

DIRECTIONS:

Put butter in pan over med-high heat and place all chopped veggies in.  Season with salt and pepper.  Stir now and then and cook for about 10 minutes.  Add garlic and cook another 2 minutes, stirring to prevent sticking or burning.  When garlic is fragrant, pour in chicken broth and add spices.  Cover and let simmer 35-45 minutes (I let mine go up to an hour) until veggies are tender.  Puree in 2 batches in blender (Let heat escape when pureeing so not to explode) until all of soup is blended. (alternatively use braun hand mixer which I find easier, but may leave some chunks, which I don't mind)  Return to pot and keep warm until ready to serve.  Garnish with sour cream.