Carrot Soup

This is one of my favorite low calorie soups. I plan to eat this tomorrow with a 5 ounces of chicken as one meal.

I also changed the batteries in my scale and obsessively weighed items I knew the weight of so I knew if the weight was correct. So my scale weight is going to go up about one lb tomorrow. Time to get over it!

Spiced Carrot Soup with Cilantro


Coriander, cumin, and turmeric give this soup Indian flavor. Pungent cilantro balances the spices.


1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups chopped yellow onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons ground coriander seeds
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
6 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 pounds peeled baby carrots
3/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro, divided
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup (1-inch) sliced fresh chives

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Add coriander, paprika, cumin, and turmeric; sauté 2 minutes. Add broth, salt, pepper, and carrots; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes or until carrots are very tender. Let stand 5 minutes.

Place half of carrot mixture in a blender; cover tightly, and process until smooth. Pour pureed carrot mixture into a large bowl. Repeat procedure with remaining carrot mixture. Place pureed carrot mixture in pan; stir in 1/2 cup cilantro, half-and-half, and honey. Cook over low heat 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Combine 1/4 cup cilantro and chives. Sprinkle over soup

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: about 1 cup soup and 1 tablespoon chive mixture)

CALORIES 153 (22% from fat); FAT 3.7g (sat 1.3g,mono 1.8g,poly 0.3g); IRON 1mg; CHOLESTEROL 8mg; CALCIUM 66mg; CARBOHYDRATE 26.1g; SODIUM 461mg; PROTEIN 4.8g; FIBER 4.7g

Cooking Light, JUNE 2002