Over the past year, we’ve started clearing a little piece of land to experiment with our first real garden. He’s become passionate about dry stone wall building, so naturally our first job was clearing rocks from the thick volcanic clay soil. We built mounds and planted rows of okra, heirloom fennel, French breakfast radishes, kale, chard, bok choy, mizuna, ʻuala, beets, carrots, and kabocha squash. I’m a completely novice gardener, so for my master gardeners who might be reading this, bear with me—we’re learning as we go! And this certainly was a season of learning…
Most of the garden did surprisingly well for our first attempt, and in September we harvested our carrots and beets. The carrots were a tangled, knobby mess with some looking like little arms and legs. We even turned one funny carrot into what we affectionately called “Carrot Man,” who lived on the kitchen counter for a few days. After the harvest, it was clear the best thing to make from this tangled mess of roots was a warm, creamy carrot soup.
Living in the tropics, the summer heat can make cooking feel less than enticing, especially in our non-climate-controlled kitchen. Then the trade winds picked up and a week of rain came through, cooling the house and soaking the garden. I looked at the calendar and realized we had arrived at ṛtusandhi, the seasonal juncture when Ayurveda encourages us to gradually transition from one season to the next. As the weather shifted, I found myself naturally craving warmer, more grounding foods and easing away from my lighter summer salads.
This soup became a simple way to celebrate that transition to Fall and use what we had grown. The coriander and turmeric make a fragrant base for the sweet carrots, while the bright carrot top chutney uses the whole plant and adds a fresh, herbaceous contrast. If you’re growing carrots, don’t throw away those beautiful green tops—they make a surprisingly delicious chutney.
PREP: 15 minutes | COOK: 40–45 minutes | YIELD: 4 servings soup + ½ cup carrot top chutney
Ingredients
Carrot Soup:
1 tablespoon ghee or olive oil
1 tablespoon ground coriander
⅔ teaspoon ground turmeric
¼ teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
4 cups chopped carrots
6 cups vegetable stock (or organic chicken stock)
½ teaspoon mineral salt
1-2 teaspoon fresh lemon or lime juice
Carrot Top Chutney:
1 cup roughly chopped carrot tops
½ cup roughly chopped cilantro
2 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon mineral salt
¼ teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
¼-1/3 cup olive oil
Instructions
Make the Carrot Soup: Melt the ghee or olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the coriander, turmeric, and black pepper and cook for 30–60 seconds, stirring constantly, until fragrant.
Add the carrots and 1 cup of the stock. Bring to a simmer and cook uncovered for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 10 minutes to gently steam and soften the carrots.
Add the remaining stock and salt. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for 20–25 minutes, or until the carrots are completely tender. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon or lime juice.
Transfer the soup to a blender and blend until smooth and creamy, working in batches if needed. You can also use an immersion blender directly in the pot. Taste and adjust the salt and acidity.
Ladle into bowls and serve with a spoonful of carrot top chutney. Garnish with toasted pumpkin seeds, a drizzle of olive oil, and a sprinkle of sumac, if desired.
Make the Carrot Top Chutney: Add the carrot tops and cilantro to a food processor and pulse until roughly chopped. Add the lemon juice, zest, coriander, cumin, salt, and black pepper and pulse again until finely chopped.
With the processor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil and blend until you have a coarse, spoonable paste. Transfer to a jar and cover the surface with a thin layer of olive oil. Seal and refrigerate for up to 7 days.
Cooking Notes
Carrot Top Options: If the tops are particularly tough or fibrous, use mostly the tender leafy portions and discard the thicker stems. If you can’t buy carrots with fresh tops
Don’t rush the carrots: Someone said to me once, “Why don’t you just boil it all at once and blend it? This seems unnecessary to sweat the carrots!” Oh how wrong they are. This step, though perhaps it seems extraneous, makes the carrots more flavorful and tender before blending. The final product is richer and creamier. If they still have any firmness after 20–25 minutes, continue simmering for another 5–10 minutes rather than adding extra liquid. Don’t rush it!
Dosha Notes
V: Serve with a scoop of cooked whole grain
P: Reduce black pepper
K: Enjoy as is
Nutrition
(Per serving)
Calories: 145–165 kcal
Protein: 2–3 g
Fat: 10–13 g
Carbs: 14–16 g
Sugar: 6–7 g
Fiber: 4–5 g
Shop Kitchen Essentials
Ghee
Ground Turmeric
Coriander Powder
Ground Cumin
