Carrot and Coriander Soup

Taste in food is a wondrous thing. We all have different tastes. I once met a man who didn’t like Garlic!?! Believe me I started carrying a crucifix and keeping my window shut at night. That’s surely the ONLY explanation for this crazy dislike of such a beautiful creation!

Taste is perception, human taste can change, and anyone can begin to like dung beetles if you eat enough of them. I won’t be in a hurry to though; I have enough to contend with in the Western cuisines!

Take celery for exactly, if you dig deep enough you’ll find the roots of the celery plant go straight to hell. As for they are the Devil’s vegetable, vile stuff! The only way you can remove this sinful demon from such a vegetable is to cook it, then it becomes acceptable. Next time you’re at a buffet and you see someone eating raw celery, throw some holy water them. You’ll see them go up in smoke ala Linda Blair from the Exorcist!

But my food disciples, we did not gather here under the heavenly glow of Nigella to talk of such things. The topic of this discussion centres on CORIANDER! These plant’s roots are too sewn deeply into the depths of hell. Just the mention of the name to the pure will have them running for the hills, ears bleeding.

I get tired of these overly happy TV chefs chopping CORIANDER into their steak sandwiches, salad make from plants that should be left firmly in the garden and their chocolate cakes. Because “everyone loves CORIANDER, it’s so tasty…!” No, it’s not.

But I have to admit to making a soup the other day which was so tasty I might actually to downgrade my hatred of coriander to a hatred of fresh coriander. I will state now that you are free to use fresh coriander, but remember you will have to sell your soul to Satan!

Serves: 2/4

Prep time: 15 mins

Cooking time: 30 mins

You’ll need:

• 4 large carrots
• 4/5 potatoes (slightly more than the carrots)
• 1 pint of chicken stock
• 1 tsp ground coriander powder (use fresh if you are ungodly)
• 1 tsp of cumin
• Salt and pepper to season

To make:

• Peel and chop all the vegetables into small chunks
• Place all the ingredients into a large pan
• Bring to the boil then turn heat down to a simmer
• Cover and cook for about 30 minutes or until everything is nice and soft
• Blend with a hand blender or in a food processor/blender that is suitable for hot liquids
• Taste and adjust seasoning if needed
• Serve with warm crusty bread