by Abylene Chalmers
20th May 2022
Light Meals, Sides & Soups
Roast Carrot Soup with Fennel Brown Butter

My eldest son, who has inherited my palette for rich sumptuous savory foods, absolutely loves carrot soup, and he is also very partial to buttery oily toppings and sauces, so I created this recipe one cold and rainy day with him in mind.Â
​
Even though this soup is wonderfully creamy, it only contains half a cup of coconut cream, so you can afford to be decadent and generously top it with the nutty fennel seed infused brown butter sauce.Â
​
Roasting the carrots for so long helps to create a lovely caramelised flavour, and by slowly adding the extra stock to the soup as you blend it will help to give it a smooth velvety consistency.Â
​
Brown butter sauce is one of those feel things ~ the more you make it the easier it becomes, and it transforms this soup from humble to special. My top tip is to make sure you continue swirling and moving the pan around the whole time the butter is cooking to help control the heat and to prevent it from browning too fast and burning.
Roast Carrot Soup
with Fennel Brown Butter
Serves 4Â Â
Ingredients
For the soupÂ
1 kilogram medium sized carrotsÂ
2 heaped tablespoons coconut oilÂ
½ teaspoon cumin seedsÂ
½ teaspoon fennel seedsÂ
1 tablespoon butter or gheeÂ
1 leek, washed and finely chopped, greens as wellÂ
2 large cloves garlic, crushedÂ
½ cup coconut creamÂ
4 cups vegetable stock (or 5 ½ cups if a thinner soup is preferred)
​For the fennel brown butter
50 grams butterÂ
1/2 teaspoon fennel seedsÂ
MethodÂ
Preheat oven to 200C
Wash the carrots and cut into quarters longways – for very large carrots also cut in half horizontally too.Â
Place coconut oil into a roasting tray and melt in the oven. Spread the carrots and seeds into the roasting dish and season well with salt. Roast for 50 minutes, or until the carrots are nice and caramelised. Turn the carrots a few times so they brown evenly.Â
Heat a cast iron casserole dish or soup pot on medium/low heat and melt the butter or ghee. Add the leek, garlic and a good sprinkle of salt and some freshly cracked pepper. The salt will bring the moisture out of the leek to ensure it doesn’t burn. Gently sauté until the leek is tender. Don’t let the garlic brown, you want to adjust the heat if the pan gets too hot and stir as the vegetables are cooking.Â
Once the carrots are cooked scrape them out of the roasting tray and add to the leeks, along with the seeds and all the juices. Add the coconut cream and 2 cups of the vegetable stock. Bring to the boil then cover with a lid and turn the heat down to a gentle simmer. Cook for 12 – 15 minutes to bring all the flavours together.Â
Remove the soup from the heat. Use a stick blender to carefully puree the soup, pouring the remaining 2 cups of vegetable stock in slowly as you puree. You want to keep blending the soup until it is thick and velvety. We like quite thick soups in our house, but if you prefer a thinner soup, you can add another cup of stock at this stage. Season with salt and pepper to taste.Â
When you are ready to serve, bring the soup back up to a gentle simmer to heat through and make the fennel brown butter sauce.Â
Place the butter and fennel seeds into a small fry pan or pot. Heat on a medium to high heat, swirling the pan continuously as the butter melts. The butter will froth up, just keep swirling the pan making sure the heat isn't too high, but that it is high enough to brown the butter – you want the butter to caramelise and gradually darken to a light brown, but you don’t want to take it too far and burn it. Â
As soon as you notice the frothy bubbles become less frothy and begin to take on a golden-brown hue, remove the pan from the heat. You should see beautiful brown specks in the sauce – this is what gives the lovely rich caramel flavour. This whole process should only take 3 to 4 minutes.Â
Dish the soup up and serve with some lightly toasted bread or scones, a dollop of sour cream or Greek yoghurt, and a generous swirl of the fennel brown butter sauce.

Buy my in-depth
seed sowing guide
Growing From Seed
-
In depth detailing of how to grow your own produce from seed (20pg)
-
Learn the basics of indirect & direct sowing
-
Step-by-step directions
-
Trouble shooting tips
-
Bonus guide of what & when to sow
-
Relevant to multiple climates
-
Photos throughout to inspire and educate
​
NZ $6.99
You can now support my work through
Buy Me A Coffee
Please feel free to leave a comment below
Recipes & Garden Tips
to Your Inbox
Subscribe to my newsletter to receive..
-
wholefood vegetarian recipes, preserving ideas and garden inspiration so you can begin your own "cook's garden"
-
season appropriate deep dives into how to grow specific vegetables or fruit
-
musings on what I have been up to in my garden, and suggestions of some jobs you could do in yours if you are that way inclined
-
a selection of handpicked links and recommendations that aim to be useful and inspiring for a healthy and abundant life
-
be the first to know about any exclusive products and offers
Features & Contributions



