I'll be the first one to admit, I've yet to get the hang of photographing soup... it's likely the trickiest food to style and photograph well. But, despite photos that leave me less-than excited, I absolutely had to share this recipe with you. It would have been a tragedy to keep it all for myself!
Carrots roasted with curry spices bring out a magical sweet and spicy flavor, which is balanced perfectly with creamy coconut milk. Red lentils and hearty chicken broth are added to make this soup a fully balanced meal in one bowl!
One of my lovely man's absolute favorite things to cook is wonderful wonderful broths. Making fresh, homemade broths from vegetables or bones lends a rich flavor to your foods that can never be re-created with boxed/canned broth or bullion. There is really just nothing that stands up to a fresh, homemade broth. We used a broth made with both chicken and pork bones for this soup, and boy was it the perfect choice!
I'm not the broth-magician of the house, so I won't pretend to be an expert, but making simple broths at home is really easy - it just takes a bit of waiting time while the broth cooks. We love buying whole chickens, because we get plenty of meat to enjoy as well as a carcass for making broth. It's the perfect home-scale whole animal practice!
Of course, you can also use store-bought broth in this recipe. I do it too sometimes... because we don't always have broth on hand, and we often want dinner fast!
Now, go ahead, whip up a batch of this soup before it gets too hot outside! And if you have it, serve with a side of avocado. You won't be sorry!
This recipe makes a big pot of soup, enough for about 10 people. You can halve it if you like for a smaller group, but it freezes really well for a quick weeknight meal!
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup red lentils
2 1/2 pounds carrots, cut into matchsticks
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp curry powder
6 cloves garlic
1/2 cup leek, finely chopped (you could also use onion)
1 Tbsp butter
4 cups chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
salt & pepper to taste
1 - 14oz can coconut milk (I use the full fat variety)
cilantro to garnish
Instructions:
Toss carrots with olive oil, curry powder, salt, and pepper. Spread over two baking sheets and roast at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes, or until soft. Baking time will depend on thickness of your carrots.
While carrots are roasting, cook your lentils. Place them in a pot with 2 1/4 cups of water, bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10-15 minutes. It's alright if they start to turn into mush, we're going to puree them.
While the lentils are cooking, sauté butter with leeks over medium heat. When the leeks start to soften, add garlic and cook for another few minutes. Turn off heat and set aside.
Once your carrots, lentils, and leeks are cooked, place them all in a blender and puree. You'll probably have to do this in two batches unless you have a mega-huge blender. Alternatively, you can also do this in a big pot with an immersion blender. Once pureed, pour into a big pot and thoroughly heat the soup. When it's hot, stir in coconut milk and salt to taste.