This past Sunday, I had to reorganize the fridge to make room for all the lovely produce that we brought home from the Farmer’s Market. I soon realized that I had way too many carrots – like two huge bags of them. Since I now also had fresh green onions and dill on hand, I decided to make a double-batch of my mom’s vegan carrot soup. Even though it’s summer here in Australia, I still like having soup tucked away in the freezer for busy/lazy/rainy days.
Notes on this vegan carrot soup
- The croutons are optional – they’re something I just added on a whim since I also had some Focaccia bread on hand. If you use gluten-free bread or omit the croutons altogether, then this becomes a gluten-free meal.
- The original recipe calls for rice, but I’ve used a potato in the past and it works just as well, so I’ve included the option below.
- Ideally, you’ll want to garnish with a dollop of vegan sour cream and/or fresh herbs like parsley, dill, cilantro (fresh coriander), green onions, chives or dill. But don’t let it stop you from making this soup if you don’t have those on hand!
Vegan Carrot Soup with Garlic Croutons
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 45 mins
- Yield: 4-6 1x
- Category: Soup
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 5 cups vegetable stock
- 2 1/2 cups of carrots, chopped
- 1/4 cup rice (or 1 potato, peeled and chopped)
- bunch of fresh herbs (parsley, green onions, chives, dill) and vegan sour cream – optional
Garlic Croutons
- 1 French baguette (or other thick bread such as sourdough or Focaccia – use gluten free if that’s an issue for you)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium-high heat and fry the onion, salt, and pepper until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and fry for another minute.
- Add vegetable stock, carrots, rice (or potato) and bring to boil. Cover, reduce the heat and simmer until the carrots are tender, about 20 minutes.
- Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until it is smooth.
- If serving immediately, ladle into bowls and top with herbs and sour cream or garlic croutons.
- Once cooled, the soup will keep in the fridge for a couple days or may be frozen in a freezer-safe container.
To make the croutons:
- Preheat oven to 350F/175C.
- Cut the bread into small cubes, about 3 cm thick.
- Toss bread cubes with the olive oil and garlic, and place on a baking sheet.
- Bake in oven for about 15 minutes, stirring them around about halfway and watching that they don’t burn. Set aside to cool.
