Curried Carrot Soup

Yet another non-dessert post. Something's definitely wrong with me.

Maybe it's all this bunny paraphernalia, but carrot's seemed like a good idea. Being alone (and admittedly, pretty bored) this Easter weekend, I figured I should make something new and fun (and carroty). This soup, although the majority being carrots, also has a lot of butternut squash (my fav), ginger, onion and garlic... but not much else. See below.

Ingredients
olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 inch piece of ginger peeled and finely chopped
1/2 an onion, chopped
3 big (massive, in my case) carrots, chopped
1 small butternut squash, chopped
1 tsp curry powder
a few dashes of black pepper
(additionally, a dash of cayenne would work well)
About 5 cups of water or vegetable stock

1. In a large pot, heat olive oil and cook garlic, ginger and onion until fragrant and starting to soften.
2. Add carrots and butternut squash. Add water or stock, add spices.
3. Cover and bring to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to medium and simmer, covered for about 30 minutes, or until the carrots and squash are soft enough to be "smushed" up again the side of the pot with a spoon.
4. Turn off the heat and allow to cool for a bit. Using a blender, puree the mixture and pour into a second pot. Reheat if necessary! EAT.

So easy, so healthy, so good. Also makes for some damn good work lunches. :)

Cream of Broccoli Soup

Good evening...

I thought I'd switch it up for you guys and post an actual meal instead of dessert for once (god knows you can't ALL be dessert lovers). So tonight I decided to make cream of broccoli soup, which is exceptionally easy and takes next to no cooking skill, but in case you're still hesitant, here's whatcha do:

Ingredients
1 large head of broccoli, chopped
3 ribs of celery, chopped
2 peeled potatoes, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1-2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp parsley leaves
2 bay leaves
5 cups of water

Optional: I used the rind of my used-up parmesan and simmered it with the vegetables for some added flavour

Additionally:
1/2 cup cream
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Instructions:
1. Add all vegetables & garlic (& parmesan rind) to a large pot with water. Add the bay leaves & spices. Bring to a boil.
2. Once boiling, turn the heat to low and cover, simmering for about 25-30 minutes.
3. Remove the bay leaves & rind. Turn off the heat and allow to cool down a bit before adding the mixture to a blender (perhaps a bit at a time, according to how big your blender is) and puree the soup. Add the pureed soup to another pot.
4. Mix the puree with the cream & parmesan over low-medium heat for 5-10 minutes, stirring well to ensure it's all incorporated.
5. Serve while hot with bread & butter :)