Carrot Apple & Ginger Soup

After a weekend of eating out, we were both craving for some simple (and delicious!) home cooking. Since I had not been to the grocery store to load up on greens over the weekend, we had to deal with what we had on hand. Fortunately, roots like carrots and ginger came to the rescue. It also didn't hurt to have apples. I always have a whole drawer full of apples since it makes such a great fulfilling snack (especially when you have a sweet tooth) and also a great addition to many different dishes. I felt extra proud of myself when I remembered that I had containers of chicken broth from my last cooking adventure in the freezer.

BTW, you're going to need a blender.

In a medium pot, pour in 2-3 cups of water (enough to boil all the ingredients), dump in a cup of sliced carrots (skin on), 1 chopped apple (definitely keep the skin on), a sliced knob of ginger (skinned), and a whole peeled shallot.



I also added a 1/4 cup of raw sunflower seeds to help give the soup a creamier texture and taste. However, if you're allergic to nuts and or prefer cream then hold on to the nuts. Sometimes, I don't add the nuts until I'm blending the soup and sometimes, I add them right into the pot just in case I might forget later on...

Cook until the ingredients are soft enough to blend.



Drain and throw all the ingredients into your blender. I added about 1 cup of of the cooking water into the blender. Blend the heck outta' it!




The texture just looks so nice and creamy already.



Now add some chicken broth (1.5 cups) to the pot. You can use whichever kind/brand/type you want - here's my frozen chicken broth defrosting in the pot. Turn to a medium heat (6). Feel free to keep it vegetarian and add a vegetable both instead of chicken broth.



Pour in the blended ingredients and stir.



Here's where all the fun begins since you can add rosemary if you like...



and or add a 1/4 tsp of allspice, cayenne pepper, and Italian seasoning (1/2 tsp). I added a 1/2 T of kosher salt but adjust this to your liking. Combine and cook until the soup comes to a boil.



You can serve it with just some fresh ground pepper or with a dollop of sour cream. Enjoy!