Tonight before trick-or-treating we're having Carrot Soup with Autumnal Croutons. I got the recipe out of a Martha Stewart "Good Things for Kids." It's one of those smaller magazines, like an Everyday Food. It shows the soup with animal croutons, but I thought it would be so cute for Halloween with autumn shapes. The funnest part is making the croutons. Brush olive oil over both sides of the bread.
Cut out the shapes with mini cookie cutters and place them on a baking sheet. Here we have acorns, leaves, pumpkins, an apple, and a turkey. Bake at 375 for about 9 minutes, turning halfway through. Mine got a bit overly toasty, so go easy.
Here's the soup with the croutons--so cute, but don't lay them all out over the soup like this. They'll get soggy. I recommend floating them one by one as you eat the soup. The soup itself is super yummy, with leeks and lots of fresh carrots (scroll down for the recipe). I'll be serving it with thinly sliced apples, nice bread, and cheese.
Yesterday we carved pumpkins. Dieter was really into drawing on them with the markers.
Scooping out the seeds (mostly Ken and I did this part).
Ken carved the faces. Such fun and so so classic. I love that. And the boys were so excited seeing them lighted after dark. Happy Halloween everyone! I hope you all have a fun night.
Carrot Soup with Autumnal Croutons
2 T. butter1 medium leek, chopped
12 carrots (2 lbs.) peeled and cut into small pieces
6 c. broth
pinch of ground nutmeg
1/2 loaf rustic bread (I used "white whole wheat" and it crisped up very nicely)
olive oil for brushing the bread
salt and pepper
1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-low. Add leek; cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent about 5 minutes. Add carrots, broth, and a pinch of nutmeg; bring to a boil over medium-high. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer until carrots are tender, about 30 minutes. Let cool slightly.
2. Meanwhile, make croutons (see above).
3. Puree the soup (I just used my stick blender--it's way easier than using the blender, believe me). Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve in shallow bowls with croutons on the side.
4 comments:
Too unorganized to make this tonight, but keeping the recipe for future reference!
Actually (working your posts backwards) - you might like this that I did last weekend...slice a large yam or sweet potato lengthwise several times, brush slices with oil, bake on cookie sheet until soft (about 15 min.) - when they come out, cut out shapes with the cookie cutter for yummy, shaped finger foods!
Those croutons are so cute! I'm printing out that recipe.
Cute "jack-o-weens" you got there!
Thanks for the soup recipe and crouton idea. we will try that one for sure.
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