Carrot Soup with Ginger and Lemon

I love soups. I gravitate to the heavy, one-pot meal soups in the winter and to the fresh, light soups in the summer. This is one of my favourite carrot soups as it simple to make, healthy and has such complex flavours with tomato, lemon and ginger.  This is not your typical carrot soup. It is bright and summery, all in a bowl! Creamy without any cream.. such bliss!

I once forgot to add the lemon juice, and it had much a stronger flavour palate. With the lemon juice, it was more mellow and tame, and equally as good. This soup is best with sweet fresh carrots and tomatoes at their prime. The original recipe at Bon Appétit (June 1997), suggests adding a dollop of sour cream and shaved carrot to the soup, but I think it is great without it.

This is my submission to Ivonne at Cream Puffs in Venice for Magazine Mondays, this month’s Healing Foods featuring carrots, and to Deb for this week’s Souper Sundays.

Carrot Soup with Ginger and Lemon

1/8 cup butter (oil for vegans)
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
2 tablespoon finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
3 teaspoons minced garlic
1 1/4 pounds medium carrots, peeled, chopped (about 3 cups)
2 tomatoes, seeded, chopped (about 1 1/3 cups) (I’ve used both fresh and canned whole tomatoes which are both good)
1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
3 cups (or more) chicken or vegetable stock or canned low-salt broth
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1. Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 4 minutes. Add ginger and garlic; sauté 2 minutes. Add chopped carrots, tomatoes and lemon peel; sauté 1 minute. Add 3 cups stock and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover partially and simmer until carrots are very tender, about 20 minutes. Cool slightly.

2. Puree soup in batches in blender or use an immersion blender. Return soup to pot. Mix in lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made in advance, just cover and chill.)

3. Bring soup to simmer, thinning with more stock, if desired. Ladle into bowls.

Serves 4