Enjoy this warming soup on a late summer evening with a beautiful colour and gentle flavour, almost no prep!  If you want to cook the carrots try steaming them whole to preserve the most antioxidants and carotenoids.  These carotenoids are said to be better absorbed in cooked foods, including lycopene.  This can be true depending on the type of lycopene present.  Carotenoids are also important to feed our digestive bacteria.  That’s right, we don’t want to absorb all our carotenoids.  Our digestive bacteria need them.  Diets rich in carotenoids foster a healthy balance of gut flora.  See the study at the bottom of the recipe.

Ingredients

• 1 t fresh minced ginger (I use a little more)
• 2 C chopped carrots
• 2 T coconut butter (can substitute almond butter)
• 1 T or less shallots
• 1 t chives, minced for garnish
• Himalayan salt and pepper to taste
• Water if needed for blending

Instructions

Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender until you reach your desired consistency, adding only as much water as you need to achieve your desired consistency (I added a little less than a cup but this will depend on your blender’s superpowers)

Taste for seasonings and adjust

You may choose to add more almond/coconut butter or more Himalayan salt at this time
Allow the soup to be warmed by the blender, over your stove or enjoy this soup chilled from the fridge.
Garnish your soup with chopped chives, fresh black pepper and/or a tablespoon of hemp/flax/chia oil

 

Read more about the carotenoids and their effects on digestive bacteria here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6582396/