If you follow me on Twitter, you may already be aware of what I now refer to as “the carrot situation” in our household.
It started innocently enough, when my sweet husband Matt said that he would make a shopping run to Costco. We were low on eggs, canned salmon and a few other staples we like to get from the mega-store. As I mentioned in another post, I am sort of lazy about going to the food store. Not lazy, really – I just hate going. Cooking is fun. Food shopping is not. I am always grateful when Matt volunteers to go.
“Anything else I should get?” he asked.
“Oh, get some carrots,” I said. So innocently. I figured, carrots are cheap and keep for a while. I could easily roast up a big batch with coconut oil, salt and pepper to add to lunches for the week. I didn’t foresee any trouble working my way through three or five pounds of the orange root veggies before they started to get that wet, soggy thing that happens when carrots hang out in the fridge too long.
One hour later – enter Matt with boxes of food. I unpacked a bit and then I spotted this.
That’s 10 pounds of carrots
“Wow, that’s a lot of carrots,” I said politely.
“That’s what they had,” he replied.
“Well, thanks for getting them,” I said. I did not want to discourage him from future shopping endeavors by second guessing his Costco judgement. But – dang! – 10 pounds of carrots! For two people. Who also want to occasionally eat vegetables other than carrots.
I finished unloading the boxes and started cooking.
I promise this will not turn into the “all carrot, all the time” blog. But I do want to share this recipe because it turned out quite delicious. Like most soups, I would suggest making this and letting it sit for a few hours or until the next day to let the flavors blend.
In the mean time, if you are craving carrots, come over. I’ve got a few to spare.
Carrot Bacon Soup
Bacon, 3 ounces (about 3 slices of the thick bacon at Whole Foods)
Yellow onions, 1 ½ cups, chopped
Curry powder, 2 tablespoons
Salt, 1 teaspoon
Carrots, 4 cups, chopped
Chicken broth, 2 cups
Water, 2 cups
Coconut milk, 2/3 cup
- Pull out a pot (about 6 quarts or something big enough to hold all the ingredients.)
- Chop bacon into small pieces (about 1 cm wide.) Add to pot and saute over medium heat for 10-12 minutes, until crunchy and browned.
- Add onions, curry powder and salt. Saute for another 5 minutes until onions are softened.
- Add carrots, chicken broth and water. Cover and simmer for about 45-50 minutes, until carrots are soft — meaning you can easily poke a fork into them. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
- Add coconut milk.
- Puree until smooth.