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Home/Soups | Bisques | Chilis/Heirloom Carrot Soup with Lemon Verbena, Spearmint & Garlic Gremolata

Heirloom Carrot Soup with Lemon Verbena, Spearmint & Garlic Gremolata

The homeliest carrots make the best soup. Trust me.

 Heirloom Carrot and Leek Soup with Lemon Verbena, Spearmint & Garlic Gremolata

I don’t know why I passed by The Herbfarm Cookbook on the shelves of Powell’s Books in Portland for so many years, but let me try to make amends now: It was a BIG mistake!

Author, Jerry Traunfeld, formerly of The Herbfarm restaurant fame, is one of America’s most gifted chefs. In fact, he is the 2000 winner of the James Beard Award for Best American Chef: Northwest and Hawaii.

It took an outing to his restaurant on Seattle’s Capitol Hill, Poppy, to push me over the edge, so to speak. After our inspired meal, I purchased the aforementioned cookbook and also his newer cookbook, The Herbal Kitchen: Cooking with Fragrance and Flavor. The chef himself graciously visited out table and signed both books.

That was a few weeks ago, and I can’t put either book down. The dishes strike me as radically innovative and yet subtle and unpretentious at the same time. I want to eat them all. The pages are now adorned with multi-colored flags and Post It notes that capture my thoughts about how to work some of these intriguing herbal concepts into my own culinary explorations.

This soup is a case in point. Jerry features a soup titled, Umami Carrot Soup with Mint, in The Herbfarm Cookbook. I intended to reproduce it per his specifications on the first testing round but ran into an immediate complication. I couldn’t source the specified carrot juice and have no juicer. (I have since then discovered fresh carrot juice at Costco, so will likely test the recipe later.)

Mise-en-Place for Heirloom Carrot and Leek Soup

Coincidentally, at the same time I was diving into Jerry’s cookbooks, I encountered some mighty homely carrots at the Portland Farmers Market. They were large, gnarly, seemingly overgrown, and tough looking. Some were orange and some were, well, beige. I mentioned the homely part, right? They were carrots that only my grandmother might love. As I recall, some of hers had a similar appearance.

I was about to pass them by but intuition nudged, and I instead asked the obvious question: “What are these?” The vendor replied, “Why these are heirloom carrots of course. And you will never taste a carrot with more complex flavor.” Perhaps in response to the skeptical expression on my face, he added, “Don’t worry about how they look.”

So I bought a large bunch. This soup is the result, and throwing all humility to the wind, I must say that it’s FABULOUS.

If you can’t find heirloom carrots, regular whole carrots will work. That said though, heirloom carrots have a dimension of flavor that is unique. Look for them in the coming months in your local farmers market.

And thank you, Chef Jerry Traunfeld, for your wonderful books and the inspiration for this delectable spring soup.

Lemon Verbena, Spearmint & Garlic GremolataHeirloom Carrot Soup with Lemon Verbena, Spearmint & Lemon Gremolata


4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 pound untrimmed leeks (6 ounces trimmed; 2 cups chopped)
¼ cup minced shallots
3 tablespoons minced, peeled fresh ginger
2 large cloves garlic, peeled, and minced or pressed
½ cup dry white wine (I used an Estrancia Chardonnay)
1 pound large, sweet carrots, preferably heirloom carrots, peeled, and chopped
7 cups low-salt chicken or vegetable stock, divided
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
fine sea salt, to taste

Gremolata
small handful fresh spearmint leaves
small handful fresh lemon verbena leaves
small handful fresh parsley leaves
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
1 small clove garlic, peeled, and pressed or minced
very thin slices of lemon

  1. In a large soup pot, melt the butter and slowly cook the leeks, shallots, ginger, and garlic, without browning, until very soft, about 15 minutes
  2. Add the wine and reduce to a tablespoon or so of liquid.
  3. Add the carrots, 6 cups of the stock, and lemon zest.
  4. Bring to a simmer. Partially cover, and simmer slowly until the carrots are very tender, about 15 minutes.
  5. Remove the soup from the heat, let cool somewhat and then carefully ladle, one batch at a time, into a blender. Liquefy each batch, and force through a medium sieve into a clean soup pot.
  6. Reheat the soup and add the remaining 1 cup (or more) of chicken stock to achieve a medium consistency.
  7. Sir in the lemon juice and season with salt.
  8. While the soup is reheating, finely mince together the spearmint, lemon verbena, parsley, lemon zest, and garlic.
  9. Ladle the hot soup into wide-rimmed bowls and garnish each with a slice of lemon and a scattering of the Gremolata. Pass extra Gremolata on the side.

Makes 4-6 servings.

Copyright 2009 Susan S. Bradley. All rights reserved.

Written by:
Susan S. Bradley
Published on:
May 10, 2015

Categories: Soups | Bisques | Chilis, Spring & Summer SoupsTags: carrot soup, gremolata, Jerry Traunfeld, leeks, Poppy restaurnt, Portland, Powell's Books, Seattle, The Herbfarm

About Susan S. Bradley

Intrepid cook, food writer, culinary instructor, creator of the LunaCafe blog, author of Pacific Northwest Palate: Four Seasons of Great Cooking, and former director of the Northwest Culinary Academy.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jennifer Stewart

    May 11, 2015 at 1:05 pm

    I love making soups and, like you, I think the simplest vegetables make the best ones! You can dress them up however you like! I love this soup!!!

  2. Julia

    May 11, 2015 at 12:03 pm

    What a beautiful soup. I love the carrots with the lemon juice and ginger. It sounds like such a light and refreshing spring soup.

  3. Kristen

    May 11, 2015 at 11:20 am

    OMG I am so glad I found this soup! I have made several batches of the Pioneer women’s carrot soup the last few weeks. I am so in love, that i am surprised I have not turned orange! I am gonna add leeeks and wine to the next batch! Thanks for the inspiration!

  4. Laura

    May 11, 2015 at 9:11 am

    What a great looking and tasty sounding soup! I’ve been getting some funky carrots from my CSA and I love mint – this combination really has caught my imaginatio. Pinned!

  5. Erin

    May 10, 2015 at 9:26 pm

    Wow! This looks like something my kids and I would devour. I have had some funky looking carrots but I am not sure if any of them were actually heirloom carrots. I am going to keep my eye out for some at the market! Thanks for sharing this, I can’t wait to make it.

  6. Abigail

    April 29, 2015 at 8:05 am

    I haven’t tried using heirloom carrots in my recipes which is a shame as Filipino cooking often uses carrots. I will make sure to purchase some in the Farmer’s Market. This recipe looks yummy!

  7. Florian

    April 29, 2015 at 1:14 am

    Stunning colour and I love all the ingredients. The use of the different herbs are brilliant to create a unique soup.

  8. Michelle

    April 28, 2015 at 10:56 pm

    This is a gorgeous soup, and the gremolata is fantastic and I am not sure I have ever seen lemon verbena in person.

  9. Sara

    April 28, 2015 at 10:12 pm

    I have actually never had lemon verbena before, can you believe it? I’ve seen it sold at the farmer’s market though, next time I’m going to pick it up and try your recipe

  10. Kristina

    April 28, 2015 at 9:35 pm

    sometimes the simple things are the best! this sounds incredibly flavorful, I have saved it to try soon, thanks!

  11. Florida Herb House

    May 2, 2010 at 12:41 am

    We are huge fans of your informative blog.

  12. DebinHawaii

    May 24, 2009 at 8:37 pm

    I am a huge soup fan and this looks just amazing. I love the Herbfarm and the cookbook too. I haven’t seen the new one yet. Speaking of cookbooks–I have yours too, that I bought when I still lived in Seattle. Was happy to find you had a blog.

    Aloha,

    Deb

    DebinHawaii´s last blog post..Indonesian Corn Chowder for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammie) Sundays

    • sms bradley

      May 25, 2009 at 7:11 pm

      Thanks so much! 🙂

  13. Dragon

    May 23, 2009 at 4:37 pm

    The colour of this soup is stunning! I can’t wait to try this recipe.

    • sms bradley

      May 23, 2009 at 7:42 pm

      Do let me know how you like it. I didn’t actually expect it to be this dynamite. After all, it’s just carrots, right? 🙂

Trackbacks

  1. New Year's Day Black Bean Ancho Chili says:
    January 1, 2015 at 11:25 am

    […] Heirloom Carrot Soup with Lemon Verbena, Spearmint & Garlic Gremolata […]

  2. Warm Spiced Red Kuri Squash & Orange Soup with Cinnamon Harissa says:
    November 16, 2014 at 6:18 pm

    […] Heirloom Carrot Soup with Lemon Verbena, Spearmint & Garlic Gremolata […]

  3. Cannellini Bean Soup with Italian Sausage, Fingerling Potatoes & Broccoli Raab says:
    November 5, 2014 at 6:23 pm

    […] Heirloom Carrot Soup with Lemon Verbena, Spearmint & Garlic Gremolata […]

  4. Sweet Carrot Bisque with Umami Pesto says:
    March 13, 2014 at 7:53 pm

    […] Red wine vinegar brings the various elements into perfect balance and a generous scoop of Umami Pesto takes the entire enterprise to new flavor heights. The only carrot soup I know of that can match the glory of this bisque is Heirloom Carrot Soup with Lemon Verbena, Spearmint & Garlic Gremolata. […]

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Susan S. Bradley

Intrepid cook, food writer, culinary instructor, creator of the LunaCafe blog, author of Pacific Northwest Palate: Four Seasons of Great Cooking, and former director of the Northwest Culinary Academy. Read More…

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