Carrot soup and whatever jumps off my fingertips.

Happy Holidays Droolers. I didn't post during the Christmas baking season, because I think there are probably enough cookie recipes out there. I made about four cookie platters, but nothing out of the ordinary in my opinion. However I did try my mom's Butterhorn recipe for the first time. The dough is made with a lb.of butter and sour cream! Then cut into triangles, filled with cinnamon, sugar and walnuts, and then rolled up like a crescent roll. They really are pretty fab. If anyone wants that recipe, please request. :)

As for the carrot soup I made today, I decided to wing it because I bought a 2 lb. bag of organic carrots, not realizing I already had another unopened bag in the crisper drawer. For those of you who really need to follow a concrete recipe, this might be a pain in the butt. If you're like me and fly by the seat of your pants, it'll be a piece of cake....or a bowl of soup....It's a little like when your grandma tells you "a fair amount of this, or a smidgen of that". I promise you, it's not hard.

Here's what I did:

I took one big onion and chopped it up, along with

3 garlic cloves, and sauteed them in a little bit of olive oil.

When the onions were softening and turning translucent , I added the 2 lbs of carrots, which I cut up in pieces. Not chopped, not diced.

I also added 3 medium potatoes that were left from last summer's garden, cut them up and threw them in  with about 6 cups of liquid. I used 2 cups of chicken broth and the rest water because that was all I had. Otherwise I would have used more broth. Vegetable broth would be good too if you wanted no animal products.

 I started to think I needed some spices in there, but since I was winging it without a recipe, I had to stop and think. So I added a few shakes of cayenne pepper, a few shakes of cumin, and a couple more of curry powder.

If  I'd  had some fresh ginger, I might have grated a little in with the onions while they were sauteing. If I'd have thought about the seasonings beforehand, I probably would have added them in with the onions for a minute or so before adding the carrots and broth.

I put the lid on, and let it simmer away in my antique cast iron dutch oven. It's been passed down from the grandparents,but by this time I have no idea from which side of the family because they both had a collection of cast iron cookware. It's ok. The feeling is the same no matter who used it.

When the vegetables were fork tender, I put a few cups at a time into the food processor. I didn't really want it smooth, so I pulsed it until it was a combo of chunky and smooth. I stirred in some fresh chopped cilantro, some salt and pepper to taste, and that was the end. I think it needed extra salt to bring out the flavors, because I used more water than broth. I also think it will taste better tomorrow.

 

I think this would be an easy recipe to add things to as well. I could see adding some chopped, sauteed mushrooms, or celery. It's a base you can build on. You just have to look in your fridge or pantry and take a chance. That's what I do. Who knows, this time tomorrow this could be a totally different soup!

Bye for now, and keep on Droolin'.