carrot + ginger

My super-close friend Ryan has auburn hair and freckles.  He would always describe other redheads in terms of being "gingers" and "daywalkers."  I didn't really know this was like "a thing" until I looked it up.  Turns out the difference is mainly related to the individual's predisposition to tanning or burning in sunlight.  Gingers burn while daywalkers can get some sun. 

I have a tendency to burn once, and then tan after that.  But I don't have red hair, anyway, so I'm not sure what that says about me.

I do love ginger, however.  Ginger tea helped me sail through the first months of pregnancy nausea-free.  Gingersnaps are my favorite cookies.  Sometimes I just snack on crystallized ginger.

Like I said before, the CSA has started, and we're getting a boatload of carrots to start.  They're just little tiny cute ones, so it took a LOT to make up the pound for this soup.  Usually, a pound of carrots would be like four or five medium ones - I probably used twelve to make this!  This is modified from one my favorite cookbooks ever, given to me by my brother and sister-in-law several years ago for Christmas. 

Carrot Ginger Soup

1 pound of carrots, peeled and chopped
1 small onion, sliced thin
1 clove garlic, minced
1 t fresh grated ginger
1 t dried ginger
1 T butter
3-4 C chicken stock
salt and pepper
sour cream or yogurt

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Add the dried ginger and stir for a minute or two.  Add onion and garlic and a bit of salt.  Cook and stir for five or ten minutes, until they become soft and translucent.  Add the fresh ginger and carrots and cook for another ten minutes.  Add 3 cups of the chicken stock, bring to a boil, lower the heat, and cover and simmer for thirty minutes or until the carrots are tender.  Taste the soup and season it with salt and pepper.  Let it cool a bit and then run it through the food processor in batches until it's smooth.  If it is too thick, add some of the leftover chicken stock to get the right texture.  Serve with a dollop of sour cream or yogurt in the middle.  Serves 4 as a side, 2 as a main.