Orange-Spiked Carrot Soup with Horseradish Cream
This humble soup delivers on the WOW factor. It packs a lot of flavor and goodness into each bite. But the best part is that it's made with pantry staples such as carrots, red lentils, spices and citrus, making it a fabulous weeknight dinner solution.
The "cream" is yogurt mixed with freshly grated horseradish. Horseradish is the one thing you may not have on hand, but I encourage you to pick some up on your next shopping trip. It goes exceptionally well with creamy/full-fat dairy products or coconut yogurt. And it's a special flavor that really completes this soup. It's usually sold near the fresh ginger and is as simple to use as ginger. Simply peel away the rough skin and grate it on a microplane. If you can't find horseradish, ginger, while different, makes a great substitute and also pairs well with the flavors in the soup.
May this soup serve us well as the seasons shift and we seek simple, nourishing comfort in the kitchen!
Orange-Spiked Carrot Soup with Horseradish Cream
Serves 6
Notes: Horseradish is a special flavor and goes exceptionally well with creamy/full-fat dairy products or coconut yogurt. I encourage you to find some and try it for yourself. If you can't find it, fresh ginger makes a great substitute and also pairs well with the flavors in the soup. I used a combination of orange and purple carrots, hence the darker color. If you use only orange carrots your soup should be a little lighter and brighter!
2 Tbsp olive oil or ghee
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 cup (200 gr.) red lentils, rinsed and drained
8 large carrots, roughly sliced
7 cups (1.7 L) water
1 3/4 tsp. salt
Small bunch cilantro (15 gr), leaves + tender stems roughly chopped
Big squeeze lemon (~1/4 of large lemon)
Zest of 1 large orange (use less if you don't want a pronounced orange flavor)
Place a large soup pot over medium heat. Add oil, onion, garlic, ground coriander, cumin and red pepper flakes. Saute until fragrant and onion begins to soften (~3 minutes).
Stir in lentils and carrots. Add water and salt, raise heat to high, cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook, covered, for 20 minutes. Prepare horseradish cream (recipe below) in the meantime.
After 20 minutes, the carrots should be fork tender. Add cilantro, lemon juice, orange zest. Use a stick/immersion blender to blend until smooth and creamy. (This will take several minutes, be patient!) Instead of moving the blender around the pan, I like to lift up one side of the pan slightly so the blender is deeply submerged at the bottom edge of the pot and the contents of the soup can move through and around it freely.
Once blended, taste and adjust for seasoning. Ladle into bowls and top with horseradish cream.
Horseradish Cream
1/2 cup (120 ml) full-fat yogurt (dairy or coconut)
1-2 Tbsp. fresh horseradish, grated (I used a scant 2 Tbsp)
1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
Heaped 1/4 tsp. salt
Stir all ingredients together in a small bowl. Taste and adjust for seasoning if needed. It should be bright, well-seasoned and slightly spicy/pungent.
*Horseradish provided by Bay Area Herbs and Specialties. All opinions are my own.