Recipe Difficulty: Easy

Recipe Tags:
Roasted Carrot Soup
Vegan Soup
Healthy Recipes
Easy Recipes
​Whole Foods

Roasted Carrot Soup
Roasting Carrots before using them in a soup is a great way to intensify their flavour and bring out their natural sweetness. This roasted carrot soup is one that I make specifically when I want to feel great. It's incredibly delicious and made from predominately whole foods. This carrot soup is also  perfectly spiced with a bit of cumin & coriander. I often add cashew cream or nut butters to my soups for added richness/creaminess but this one doesn't need it. This soup simply starts with carrots roasted in olive oil, then I also use a generous amount of olive oil for sweating the onions and garlic (a whole head of garlic in fact). The result, dare I say, is a luscious soup that I find to be addictively good.  A touch of maple and a squeeze of lemon adds the right balance of sweet and acidity.

Roasted Carrot Soup Garnish
To garnish my carrot I don't want much. I had it with a bit of chopped parsley and I found it only detracted from the flavours I was loving in my carrot soup. I opened my cupboard and found a bottle of generic lemon oil I had unopened, a drizzle of that and a sprinkle of cracked pepper was the perfect finish. Of course, alongside, I always want a good loaf of multigrain bread. I ripped off rustic chunks, drizzled them with olive oil, and popped them in the oven at 425F. I just make sure each side is toasty and golden. A few minutes per side.

For the Best Roasted Carrot Soup use homemade Veg Stock
If you want your soups to be really good, starting with a homemade vegetable stock is key. I simply save scraps of onion, celery, carrot, garlic, mushroom, tomato, parsley in a 10 lb bag in my freezer. Once it is mostly full, I dump the contents into a large stock pot, top with water, and simmer gently for at least 45 minutes. I often turn it off and go accomplish other tasks or errands, then I'll fire it back on awhile later, strain, discard solids and reserve the liquid for whatever purpose. I like to keep stock in my freezer for soup making. I typically add my veg stock to the pot again after it is strained (cleaning out any veg scraps that have stuck to the sides first), then I put it back on the heat to simmer and reduce. This accomplishes two things. 1. You are left with a smaller amount of liquid which takes up less space in your freezer. 2. It creates a concentrated flavour base that to me is irreplicable. Store bought stock is never as good...and I doubt it is as nutritious either. You have the added benefit of reducing kitchen waste by using scraps, not to mention utilizing all of the nutrients in the veg scraps that would otherwise hit the bin. I don't know about you, but with the cost of groceries these days I am always keen to save wherever I can. 

Final Consistency of Soups
I'm picky about the final texture of pureed soups. Pureed soups in my mind should be thick, creamy, but also fluid. I like it to easily pour from my ladle, not stick to my spoon.  If it is too thick, I feel like I am eating just a bowl of pureed vegetables.

If I were trying to be really precise about the texture, I'd strain the soup through a chinois. (fine mesh strainer) Then, probably put it back on the stove to reduce a bit. You can get really smooth silky texture by straining your soups, but you are losing out on some of the fiber, of course. 

Fajita Bowl Recipe Notes
Hey friends! I'm so excited to share this recipe! I'm obsessed. I love having all of the flavours of fajitas piled into a bowl, with grilled tortilla along side for scooping up all the delicious bites. You of course can wrap up the contents in a tortilla for a traditional hand held fajita, I do that all the time, too. 

The History of Fajitas
Fajitas, a Tex-Mex dish that typically consists of grilled, sliced meat served in a flour or corn tortilla with vegetables and various other condiments, are believed to have originated in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas in the late 1960s or early 1970s. The word "fajita" is derived from the Spanish word "fajita", which means "little belt" or "stripe". It is thought that the term was originally used to describe thin strips of beef that were used to make "tacos al carbon", a traditional Mexican dish.  

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When it comes to building your bowl, you don't have to stick to the ingredients I have used! Do whatever you like. Add cheese, a different taco spiced protein, make it a burrito bowl with rice and beans, you get the idea.....

Here is what is in my bowl, along with a few notes to follow regarding some of the ingredients:
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• Tofu Spiced Tofu 
• Sauteed Bell Peppers and Onions seasoned with my Cajun spice mixture
• Shredded Lettuce
• Chopped Fresh Tomato or Salsa
• Smashed Avocado
• Grilled Tortilla
• Vegan sour cream / vegan cheese
• A drizzle of Mojo Verde (optional)
• Pickled Jalapeno Peppers (I find this to be an important flavour component both in the bowl or wrap version.)
• A sprinkle of Dried Oregano
• Cilantro
• Lime Wedges to Serve

Seasoned Bell Peppers and Onions
I used my Cajun spice mixture to cook the bell peppers and onions because I often have it on hand for making Cajun Tofu, and it works perfectly for seasoning fillings for fajitas or tacos. If I can repurpose things that I already have, it makes mealtime easier. You can absolutely just pick up a package of your favourite seasoning blend and use that. There is a good spice level to these, yet somehow I find it mellows out when I'm digging into the final dish. If you are worried about spice, simply reduce the amount of Cayenne Pepper. ​

Taco Seasoned Tofu "Beef"
For this recipe I crumble 2 blocks of tofu, and then mix with olive oil, soy sauce, nutritional yeast, smoked paprika, garlic & onion powder. It gets bake in the oven for about 40 minutes (tossing as you go) The texture really does mimic ground beef and I love it in this recipe. When crumbling the tofu, I purposely leave some pieces larger and crumble some smaller. That way you get a varied texture. Chewy and crisp. 

Mojo Verde
Mojo Verde is a simple green sauce made from chopped cilantro, olive oil, lime juice, garlic, cumin, salt and chopped jalapeno. I left out the jalapeno this time because I didn't have any, and also because I really like pickled jalapenos with this fajita bowl. I linked the recipe below. I don't think you need to make this to have a delicious fajita bowl. Sour cream & smashed avocado kind of act like the dressing. With that being said, having a batch of Mojo Verde in your fridge is never a bad idea. ​

Smashed Avocado Or Guacamole
To keep things simple, I simply smash some avocados with lime and salt until it tastes good. You could use your favourite guacamole recipe instead if you prefer!

Tortillas
I just picked up a package of organic tortillas to use. I just heated them in a cast iron pan until each side got a bit blistery. Use corn tortillas for a gluten free option. 

If you do eat this meal as a "wrap", I suggest heating up a cast iron pan over medium heat, and grilling each side of the fajita, starting seam side down.

Pickled Jalapenos
I always want pickled Jalapenos when I make this dish, they add heat, but also, I find they add great flavour. You should be able to find jars of them in most grocery stores. If you aren't a fan of heat you could leave them out. I often mince a single pickled jalapeno slice from the jar, and sprinkle it all over my bowl. Like I said they are spicy! But this way it's just a bit with every bite. 
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