Carrot Ginger Soup With Star Anise Recipe

Carrot Ginger Soup with Star Anise Recipe photo: pykmi on Flickr
Maureen C. Petrosky•

Let's face it: Carrots aren't very exciting. They're bland as a side dish and often relegated to third-tier ingredients in salads or slurped up in juice mixes. And as the key ingredient in carrot cake, they're buried beneath cream cheese icing to the point where their basically unrecognizable. Does carrot cake taste like carrots? Hell no. All that aside, carrots can make a great base for a refreshing soup. Paired here with star anise, carrots almost become transcendent. Call it the comeback of the year.

Carrot Ginger Soup With Star Anise Recipe
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Prep Time
20
minutes
Cook Time
35
minutes
Servings
6
servings
Carrot Ginger Soup with Star Anise Recipe
Total time: 55 minutes
Ingredients
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 pounds carrots
  • 1 medium onion
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 tablespoon ginger
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 4 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth
  • 5 whole star anise
  • 1/4 cup cream
  • coarse salt and cayenne pepper
Directions
  1. In a large pot over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onions and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic, 3 star anise and ginger and cook, stirring constantly for 2 more minutes.
  2. Add the carrots, stock and bay leaf and simmer until the carrots are tender, about 25 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and star anise.  
  3. Using a stick blender or by placing the mixture into a blender in batches, puree until smooth. Return to the pot, add the cream and bring to a low simmer. Season with salt and cayenne.
  4. Top with additional grated star anise if you want a stronger licorice flavor.
 
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