Ginger Carrot Soup

This recipe is off of foodnetwork.com by Guy Fieri. At first I tried what Guy suggested; and use a hand-held immersion blender. The carrot soup did not turn out as smooth as I would like. After using my food processor, it was better. Next time I will use the food processor from the get-go. The recipe makes quite a bit of soup; and as a result I tried other toppings. Chopped jalapenos was good and also chopped, toasted pecans. So experiment. I did use chicken broth and would add a tad more fresh ginger.

Ingredients: 

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup sweet onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon or more garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon or more fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
• 1 medium russet potato, peeled and chopped
• 2 pounds carrots, peeled and chopped
• 6 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
• 1 1/3 cups plain Greek yogurt
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, minced
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions for Soup:

Combine the olive oil and onion in a Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium-high heat. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring, 10 minutes, until just starting to caramelize.

Add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring, 2 more minutes, being careful not to burn the mixture.

Stir in the carrots, potato and broth of choice. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook until carrots and potato are very tender, 15-18 minutes.

Puree the soup until smooth. Do so, in small batches and be careful not to splatter.

Directions for Yogurt:

I used one carton of yogurt, so amount was not exact to recipe. Place yogurt in a small bowl and add honey and thyme. Combine well.

To serve: garnish with a dollup of yogurt and pine nuts.

Flavor is better after several days.