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Sunday 15 May 2011

purple carrot soup with ginger, rosemary and coriander seed

purple carrot soup with ginger, rosemary and coriander seed.

Grocery shopping is often regarded as a chore by many, but I love it. At any given opportunity, I spend a ridiculous amount of time comparing the prices, nutritional values and other perceived qualities of even the most ordinary of food items. When I come across something that gets my mental-recipe-ideas-gear going, though, I am often happy to set aside the obsessive-compulsive part of my personality and just go for it. It's sorta like how you'd throw out silly dating checklists when you feel the right chemistry with someone, you know?

my purple carrot.

And that was how it went when I saw this rather fetching purple carrot a few days ago. I'd seen purple carrots before, but while they inspired a mild curiosity in those previous occasions, I never took things to the next level. That day, something just clicked. So I did it. I picked him up, I brought him home, and I ate him... and yes, we're still talking about the purple carrot. And no, that is NOT an euphemism. Sheesh, get your minds out of the gutter.

chopped up purple carrot. please excuse the bad, garish artificial lighting.

purple carrot soup (makes 2 entree-sized serves)

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 medium French shallots (80g)
1 small clove garlic, finely chopped
1 cm fresh ginger, finely chopped
1/2 tablespoon fresh chopped rosemary leaves
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander seed
1 very large purple carrot (200g)
1 medium potato (150g)
1/2 cup water
2 cups vegetable stock
salt, black pepper, and balsamic vinegar to taste

- Heat up the olive oil in a saucepan and fry the shallots until they brown at the edges. Add in the garlic, ginger, rosemary and and ground coriander seed and fry until fragrant.
- Add carrot and potato pieces. Pour in the water and vegetable stock, bring to boil, then simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes.
- Let it cool for 10 minutes and then puree in a blender in small batches. You may blend all of the mixture for a smooth soup or half of it for a semi-chunky soup.
- Return the soup mixture to the pot and continue to simmer for another 10 minutes.
- Season with salt, black pepper, and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar to taste.

*This makes a light, yet still deliciously comforting soup. For a rich, creamy, non-vegan version, add cream to the soup at the step where the pureed soup is returned to the pot. Or you can still keep it vegan, and use coconut cream instead. Either way, the soup should turn a pretty pastel purple, and taste quite luxurious!

This soup was warm, gentle and sweet - all the qualities you want in a lover. In case you were wondering, though, purple carrots taste much like the regular orange ones, so you don't have to hunt down a purple carrot to enjoy this recipe! The purple is stunning, however, and of course, there's that novelty factor. Sometimes you just want to have a fling with a purple carrot... and there's nothing wrong with giving in to your hungry desires. Nothing at all.

purple carrot soup with rosemary, ginger and coriander seed.

31 comments:

  1. Love grocery shopping and love purple vegetables!!

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  2. Teehee, this looks a bit like the cherry smoothie I just poasted! Very, very different tastes though... I've seen purple carrots at Coles lately, but haven't been convinced that the flavour will be worth the extra price. But seeing how pretty this soup is, I might have to give in :D

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  3. Anh, indeed - the colour was definitely the purple carrot's biggest attraction!

    msihua: Yay for grocery shopping and yay for purple vegetables! :D

    Hannah, I don't discern any difference in the taste of the carrot - but yeah, I just love the pretty purple. :p

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  4. Lovely it looks but sad we don't have purple at where I am, maybe can substitute with beetroot, am not sure if this will give the same taste.

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  5. Well, I will definitely eat this. The colour is so lovely!

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  6. The purple is so intense! Love it.

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  7. gorgeous colour! I have never seen purple carrots here. must look again :)

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  8. Nava.K - it certainly won't taste the same, but it could still turn out pretty and delicious!

    Michelle, Ellie, Zurin - agree on all counts on the purple colour. :D

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  9. My gradma used to make a beverage with purple carrot, soup is new to me..lovely color!

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  10. Tanvi, purple carrot beverage sounds intriguing! Would love to learn more about that. :D

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  11. Purple carrots! Never seen them but the color is amazing. Embarrassingly, I think that is what the veggie chips were that we just purchased. I know, chips... healthy veggie but then fried...

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  12. Sarah, I imagine purple carrot chips would be pretty darn tasty! Go forth and eat. ;)

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  13. Hey there! Thanks for swinging by wandering spice. Funny, maybe we were ay the market at the same time :)

    I'm mesmerized by the bold color of this soup. Newest follower, looking forward to learning more about you and your food.

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  14. It is the first time I see purple carrot soup. I would have thought it was blueberry soup! LOL

    Must be a nutrient powerhouse too!

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  15. Thanks yasmeen! I'm looking forward to reading more about your food adventures too. :D

    Haha tigerfish, blueberry soup would be interesting. Yeah I'd say this carrot soup is a very nutritious one. :D

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  16. Mmmmm, that looks amazing! And the carrots are gorg.

    xo,

    Sarah

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  17. Wow those carrots are so richly colored! How fun.

    Laura

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  18. Wow. How have I only just discovered your blog. How purple and beautiful that soup looks. I'm on the hunt for some carrots like that for myself now...

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  19. Thanks Sarah, Laura and Sprinzette! :D

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  20. Love the purple colour. I have seen some purple carrots at the farmers markets recently. Might have pick myself up some.

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  21. Looks so pretty! And with that ginger and rosemary .. can imagine the flavor it must have :)

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  22. I adore this heirloom variety. Not only they look gorgeous, but taste delicious as well. This soup sounds fabulous!

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  23. Thank you for your lovely comments, Sherilyn, kankana and Maria. :)

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  24. Oooooh pretty! Such a gorgeous colour.

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  25. oh I love the deep color in that!

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  26. Ditto on the shopping for food, especially at farmers markets. I have children and they love to help plant different veggies. We grew purple carrots last year and if I remember correctly, they are called Dragon carrots. They were delicious raw, now I think I need to run to the nursery for some more Dragon carrot seeds to make this soup. Beautiful color! Happy to have come by your blog.

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  27. Nicole, thanks for coming by! Love the name Dragon carrot... though after doing some research I think the one I used might be the Deep Purple variety, as it is purple inside while others seem to still have orange insides.

    Either way, I imagine growing your own vegetables to be such a fulfilling exercise, and hope to one day live in a place where I can do that. Happy planting! :)

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  28. Hi, quick question about the amount of ginger one is supposed to use in this recipe. I'm not familiar with what "1cm" is. Is that a weight measurement? This recipe looks great, but I'm afraid of adding too much ginger.
    Thanks!

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    Replies
    1. Hey there, 1 cm would be about 1/2 inch. Hope that helps. :)

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