Spicy carrot and lentil soup is a hearty vegetarian soup made with fresh vegetables and warm spices and is quick and easy to make. It is delicious served for lunch with a chunk of fresh crusty bread or focaccia. It is also great topped with homemade croutons.
Thinly slice the leek and peel and finely chop the ginger. Cook gently in a large pan until soft.
Dice the carrots, peel and dice the sweet potato and add to the pan.
Chop the celery and add to the pan and add the lentils.
Add sufficient vegetable stock to cover the soup vegetables and lentils, plus extra to allow for the lentils to expand. Add more stock if needed during the cooking time.
Add the cardamon pods and salt and pepper to taste.
Bring to the boil and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes until the vegetables and lentils are cooked.
Remove from the heat. Blend using a hand blender until the soup if thick and smooth. The cardamon pods can either be removed before blending or can be blended with the rest of the soup depending on how spicy you would like the soup to be. If in doubt you could remove the cardamon pods, blend and check the level of spiciness, if you would like to add more heat then add one or both cardamon pods and blend again.
Notes
How to serve
Add a garnish of freshly chopped herbs, a swirl of cream, paprika or freshly milled black pepper
Top with croutons. Homemade croutons are quick and easy to make and are a great way to use up old or stale bread.
How to store
This carrot soup can be stored in the fridge for up to a week.
It can also be frozen for up to a month. Defrost at room temperature before reheating.
Tips
The quantities can easily be adjusted to prepare a larger quantity of soup. As the prepared soup can be stored in the fridge for up to a week or can be frozen it is worth making extra.
This recipe creates a fairly thick soup. If you prefer a thinner soup simply adjust by adding more vegetable stock or water.
Soups are not just for autumn and winter, they can be enjoyed at any time of the year.