Carrot Fennel Soup

This soup is light and delicious, perfect for a hot day. Fennel has a anisey, licoricey flavor, but the carrots keep it from overpowering the soup. You will need a blender (stand-alone or immersion) as this is tastiest when pureed until smooth.

Ingredients:

• 1-2 fennel bulbs, thinly sliced (discard the stalks and fronds, or reserve the fronds for a salad or other use)
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 6-8 carrots, chopped
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 4 C. vegetable broth
• 1/2 C. orange juice
• 1/4 C. heavy cream or half-and-half
• salt and pepper to taste
• sliced spring onions, for garnish

Heat the oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the fennel, onion, carrots, and garlic, and saute until browned and softened, about 10 minutes. Add the vegetable broth, cover, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for about 15-20 minutes, until the vegetables are cooked through. Puree in a blender until smooth. Return to the pot and stir in the orange juice and cream. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve garnished with spring onions.

I served the soup with a salad of lettuce, orange sections, radishes, cucumbers, pepitas, and goat cheese. For the dressing, I combined 2 Tbsp. lemon juice, 2 Tbsp. olive oil, 2 tsp. dijon mustard, 2 tsp. maple syrup, and salt and pepper to taste. This is similar to my balsamic dressing, but it is lighter tasting due to the lemon juice, perfect for a salad with fruit in it!