The Northeast has seen an incredibly hot summer this year. For us, we’ve had ample opportunity to grill out and smoke meats on a trusty new smoker (posts upcoming!). But for all the hot eats we’ve cooked up, cool and refreshing side items are a must. And this chilled carrot soup recipe really fits the bill. While carrot soup doesn’t sound incredible interesting, I decided to put in some unique ingredients to spruce it up. Cardamom, ginger, and cumin really complimented the natural sweetness of the carrots in the soup, and a few additions (tapioca, basil oil, and fresh cream) really dressed this up for a dinner-party opening course. We think it makes for a great start to a nice meal!

Ingredients:

• 6-8 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 2 small shallots, chopped
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 4 cardamom pods, smashed
• 2 tbsp light brown sugar
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• 2 tsp ginger, minced
• Chicken Stock or Water
• Heavy Cream
• 1/4 cup tapioca (small), boiled and drained
• Basil Oil (Handful of basil, process with olive oil to smooth consistency)

Melt the butter in a dutch oven. Cook the shallots in the butter until translucent. Add the carrots, and toss them to coat with the butter. Add the brown sugar, 1 tbsp of honey, ginger, cumin, and cardamom. Cook until the whole pot is fragrant. Cover the carrots with stock or water. Bring to a boil, and then allow to simmer covered for 45 minutes.

Using an immersion blender, puree the carrots to form the soup. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can use a conventional blender, pouring in the carrots in batches. Once the the soup is pureed, it is ready to serve. I wanted the soup cold, so I allowed it to cool to room temp, and then refrigerated it overnight (it really is satisfying in the summer when chilled!). For the wintertime, I think having it hot would be delicious too!

When the soup is ready, cook the tapioca and make the basil oil. This should only take a few minutes. Once the tapioca is boiled, rinse it in cold water to cool it down. Soak the cooked tapioca in the maple syrup and honey for 10 minutes or so prior to serving.

To serve, fill a bowl with the chilled soup. Add a tablespoon or so of the tapioca directly in the middle. Drizzle the basil oil over the top. Finally, add a splash of cream. These final touches add a lot of complexity to the dish, and make it a bit out of the ordinary. Beautiful and delicious! Enjoy!