This Zanzibar-inspired carrot and coconut soup is delicious, tasty and creamy. My body literally screams for it in autumn when the new crop of carrots appears in supermarkets. The recipe is from a friend's cookbook, Sigrun of CafeSigrun (remember the fun I had when helping her with the manuscript?). Sigrun has travelled frequently to East-Africa and this soup was inspired by days spent on the island of Zanzibar: She was sitting with a bowl of carrot soup admiring the view of the Indian Ocean, the air filled with the aroma from the Forodhani Food Market, in the historical city of Stone Town. The soup is vegan, easy to make (you need a hand-held blender or a food processor), and it will provide you with essential vitamins and dietary fibre.
ZANZIBAR CARROT AND COCONUT SOUP
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 large onion
4 cloves garlic
a small piece fresh ginger
300 g organic carrots (2 cups)
150 g sweet potatoes (¾ cup)
1 teaspoon curry powder
2 organic vegetable stock cubes
750 ml water (3 cups)
150 ml coconut milk (5 oz)
½-1 teaspoon sea/Himalayan salt
optional: pepper to taste
optional: 7-10 saffron strands
Rinse the carrots (brush if needed) and peel the other vegetables. Chop everything coarsely. (Peel or scrape the carrots if they are not organic.)
In a saucepan, heat the coconut oil over medium heat. Add onion and fry until tender. Add the garlic and ginger and fry for a few more minutes before stirring in the curry powder (I prefer hot but mild is fine).
Stir in the carrots and sweet potatoes. Add the water and vegetable stock cubes, increase the heat and stir. Bring to the boil and stir in ½ teaspoon of salt. Reduce the heat, cover and let it simmer on low heat for 25-30 minutes.
Remove the saucepan from the heat. Add the coconut milk and saffron strands. Use a hand-held blender to purée the soup until you have a smooth texture. Be careful, the soup is very hot: Hold the blender straight up and down and press the button when the bottom part of the blender is in the soup (if using a food processor/liquidizer, allow the soup to cool slightly before puréeing it in batches).
Finally, reheat gently to simmering point and season with salt and pepper, if needed. Serve the soup with freshly baked bread or bread buns.
ZANZIBAR CARROT AND COCONUT SOUP
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 large onion
4 cloves garlic
a small piece fresh ginger
300 g organic carrots (2 cups)
150 g sweet potatoes (¾ cup)
1 teaspoon curry powder
2 organic vegetable stock cubes
750 ml water (3 cups)
150 ml coconut milk (5 oz)
½-1 teaspoon sea/Himalayan salt
optional: pepper to taste
optional: 7-10 saffron strands
Rinse the carrots (brush if needed) and peel the other vegetables. Chop everything coarsely. (Peel or scrape the carrots if they are not organic.)
In a saucepan, heat the coconut oil over medium heat. Add onion and fry until tender. Add the garlic and ginger and fry for a few more minutes before stirring in the curry powder (I prefer hot but mild is fine).
Stir in the carrots and sweet potatoes. Add the water and vegetable stock cubes, increase the heat and stir. Bring to the boil and stir in ½ teaspoon of salt. Reduce the heat, cover and let it simmer on low heat for 25-30 minutes.
Remove the saucepan from the heat. Add the coconut milk and saffron strands. Use a hand-held blender to purée the soup until you have a smooth texture. Be careful, the soup is very hot: Hold the blender straight up and down and press the button when the bottom part of the blender is in the soup (if using a food processor/liquidizer, allow the soup to cool slightly before puréeing it in batches).
Finally, reheat gently to simmering point and season with salt and pepper, if needed. Serve the soup with freshly baked bread or bread buns.
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