Spicy Carrot Soup with Freshly Baked Cheesy Bread

Winter is definitely on it's way at the moment. But that doesn't mean I've turned the heating on, oh no I'm holding out until the clocks go back before even considering turning the heating on. So to keep me warm, I wanted something spicy to go with all my carrots which I have been receiving from Riverford for the last three weeks running. I decided on Hot Carrot Soup with Coriander Cream from Levi Roots' Spice it up cookbook. 

This was thick, luscious, flavourful soup with a nice big dollop of coriander cream to give you that hot and cool mouth sensation that Nigel Slater was harping on about in his last episode. I put two red thai chillies in this soup because my boyfriend loves chilli and it really hit the spot and warmed me up. 

It was cold outside so I was far too lazy to go to the shop to get some bread for the soup. For me, regular sliced loaves just don't cut it when it comes to good soup. I want a thick slice of something yeasty that is fully buttered to munch into. I had some time, so I went ahead and made my own cheesy bread to go with the soup. The bread only needs about 40 minutes to rise and then 30 minutes to cook so I started making the dough, then went to chill out for 40 minutes and came back later to cook the soup and the bread at the same time. 

This results in hot soup and bread fresh out of the oven to give you a taste of heaven. This bread was heaven, the cheese gives the bread a crust that is delightful as a texture, and added saltiness. Slather this with butter and dip it into the soup for mouth watering richness and texture. 

This isn't the first time I had made bread, but there was something about this recipe that made the bread even more delicious than normal. I think it had something to do with the air pockets and tender fibres as you pull the bread, I had never gotten that with bread I had made previously so I was well pleased with the results. Not to mention how pleased I was with the leftovers at work the next day. :)

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups of strong white bread Flour
1 1/2 tsp fast action Yeast
1 tsp Salt
2 tbsp olive Oil
1 tbsp clear Honey
1/2 cup grated mature Cheddar
1 tbsp Butter
cooking Oil
1 Onion, finely chopped
1 stick of Celery, finely chopped
2 cloves of Garlic, finely sliced
2 red chillies, chopped
1 inch piece of fresh Ginger, peeled and chopped
6 Carrots, peeled and cut into big chunks
3 cups of vegetable Stock
Salt and Pepper
2 tbsp double Cream
juice of 1/2 Lime
1/2 tbsp chopped Coriander leaves

Recipe
Start by making the dough for the bread in a large bowl. Mix 300ml of hand hot water and stir in the honey. Sieve the flour and yeast together, then add the water, olive oil and salt. Mix together until they form a sticky dough.

Tip your dough onto a floured surface and knead until elastic and stretchy for about 5 minutes. Stretch the dough out to fit a flat tin. Leave in a warm place covered with cling film to rise for 40 minutes.

When you're ready to cook the bread, sprinkle over the grated cheddar and cook for 30 minutes at 200 degrees on a low shelf. Now you can start your soup! Heat butter in a saucepan with a bit of olive oil to stop it from burning. Add the onions and celery and give it a good stir, cook for 8 minutes on a medium heat.

Now add the fragrance, chillies, garlic and ginger and cook for 2 minutes. Add the carrots and the stock and bring to the boil then simmer for 25-30 minutes. Use a stick blender to blend the carrots into a thick soup. Put it back on the heat and taste it, add salt and pepper if necessary.

To make the coriander cream, simply mix the cream, chopped coriander and lime juice together in a bowl. Pour ladles of soup into a bowl, add a dollop of coriander cream and serve with the cheesy bread. Enjoy.