I am a sucker for a delicious, easy soup recipe and although the weather outside is heating up my soup game shows no signs of stopping. Chilled soups are where it is at in the spring and summer – gazpacho, fruit soups, and now this Chilled Carrot and Kaffir Lime Soup – they are palette pleasing, body cooling, little miracle workers!

Cold soups are great starter courses and are perfect with a side salad for hot summer afternoon lunches with the ladies, but they also work wonders for on the go lunches too! Todd never has time to stop in the break room at work and heat soup in the microwave, let alone sit at a desk to eat it. He will however, sip on a cold soup like this straight from the mason jar I send it in rather than skipping lunch all together. It’s a total win for both of us! 

I am so fortunate that my mother in law has a kaffir lime tree growing in her back yard. Every time we visit I pluck a few leaves for making curries and soups. I am hopelessly addicted to the fresh flavor the leaves add to my dishes and have spent quite a bit of time experimenting with them in the kitchen. A few weeks ago she gave me a few of the kaffir limes for the first time and I wasn’t really sure what to do with them, so I took my dilemma to Instagram and you guys came back with some great ideas!

I really loved the idea of using the zest of the limes in a fragrant soup, and since I had an abundance of carrots on hand I decided that they would be the perfect soup companions. In case you haven’t had the pleasure of cooking with kaffir before the limes are even more richly perfumed than the leaves, with an exotic flavor unlike the zest of any other citrus fruit! I wish I could say there was a replacement for you if in fact you don’t have them, but there really isn’t anything that comes close. However, this soup is still delicious with regular lime juice and zest too – it just won’t taste quite as exotic. 

Chilled Carrot and Kaffir Lime Soup

• Author: This Mess Is ours
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 25 mins
• Total Time: 45 mins
• Yield: 6 servings 1x

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Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 Vidalia or other sweet onion, sliced
• 1 tablespoon peeled and coarsely chopped fresh ginger
• 3 cups sliced carrots
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 3 kaffir lime leaves
• 2 tablespoons cilantro stems, minced
• 5 cups gluten free vegetable stock
• Kosher salt
• zest if 1 kaffir lime
• juice of 1 (regular) lime

For the yogurt sauce, optuonal

• 3 tablespoons creamy plain yogurt
• 1/2 jalapeno chile, finely diced
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tablespoon slivered basil (Thai basil if you can find it)

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Instructions

1. In a large soup pot heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, ginger, carrots, dried spices, lime leaves, and cilantro stems. Stir to coat and cook for 5 minutes. Add the stock and 1 1/2 teaspoons of Kosher salt then bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover, and simmer until the vegetables are cooked through and soft, about 20 minutes.
2. Puree with an immersion blender or in a high speed blender in batches until very smooth. Cover and chill completely. The flavors of the soup will dull slightly when it is cold, so season the soup with kaffir lime zest, lime juice, and more salt if needed immediately before serving.

For the optional yogurt sauce:

1. Ina small bowl stir together the yogurt, chile, and herbs. Swirl a spoonful into each serving of soup.

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Notes

adapted from Vegetable Literacy by Deborah Madison