Recipe: Carrot soup with Thai flavors (what, again with the carrots?)

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Yes, again with the carrots. Don't you like beta carotene and vitamin A? I do. And, because raw carrots make my mouth itch, I look for ways to use carrots in their fine cooked state.

This soup came out of the need to use up the same Costco maxi-bag of mini-carrots that inspired the carrot cake I wrote about last week. I've often made carrot soup using my basic vegetable soup method, but the last few times it tasted tired, and the kids rejected it, no matter how many croutons I let them pour in. This time I was determined to do something different.

By the way, I love love LOVE the Thai spice pastes available in many Asian grocery stores. They're hot, so you have to use them carefully and sparingly. The one I used looked something like this and tastes very gingery and lemongrassy.

Carrot soup with Thai flavors

• 2 Tbsp butter
  
• 1 medium onion, diced
  
• 1 1/4 lbs carrots, grated
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 2 tsp Thai Tom Kha paste
• 1 can coconut milk
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1 small potato, diced
• Cilantro leaves (for garnish)
  

Melt the butter in a heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions and carrots and saute, stirring often, 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic and Tom Kha paste and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add the coconut milk, chicken stock and potato, and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and simmer, covered, until all the vegetables are soft, about 20 minutes.

Puree the soup in the pot with a hand-held immersion blender. What, you don't own one of these? Run right out and get one. It is an indispensable tool. Borrow one from your neighbor and forget to give it back, if you must.

If you really can't get your hands on one (and trust me, they're not that hard to find, so stop making excuses), ladle the soup into a blender and make a mess - it's up to you.

Serve hot, garnished with cilantro.