Roasted Carrot Soup with Crispy Chickpeas

This easy, creamy, healthy, and not-too-sweet Roasted Carrot Soup with Crispy Chickpeas is lightly spiced with ginger and turmeric to make the most satisfying bowl of goodness. To brighten it up a touch, add dollops of lemon yogurt sauce just before serving. 

Here is a roasted carrot soup recipe that I know you are going to love. It is a carrot soup that actually tastes like carrots. No cream, no coconut milk, just a jolt of ginger and turmeric for fragrant, warming flavors, and savory onions and garlic to balance the sweetness of the carrots.

Roasting the carrots takes a little time, but this step really intensifies their flavor and sweetness. Just before serving, the soup is topped with spiced crispy chickpeas because all soups are better with a little crunch and texture.

An optional dollop of lemony yogurt sauce to finish makes this perfect cozy bowl a little brighter and even more delicious. Best of all, carrots are available year-round so you can enjoy this soup when it’s chilly, or on warmer evenings when you need something light but filling.

Key Ingredients For The Soup

• Carrots: They are the main ingredient in this easy recipe, along with just a handful of pantry staples simple you likely already have in your kitchen. See section below on how to choose the best carrots.
• Cumin seeds: This is optional but I like to sprinkle the carrots with cumin seeds for more warming flavors.
• Onion and garlic: Essential in most soups to give depth of flavor.
• Ginger: Here I like to use fresh ginger which adds an invigorating aroma to the carrot soup. Try not to omit it or the soup could taste a little flat. In a pinch, you can use ground ginger.
• Broth: If possible, use homemade vegetable broth. I have said this many times before, unlike chicken broth, I have yet to find a good store-bought vegetable broth. They all seem to be too sweet or too strong-flavoured. If you prefer not to make your own, I recommend you use water mixed with low-sodium Better Than Bouillon. Alternatively, a good compromise is to use half water and half store-bought vegetable broth.
• Crispy chickpeas: Completely optional, but they provide a crunchy topping that is fabulous in this carrot soup. Aside from a can of chickpeas, you will need some spices to season the chickpeas. I like to use ground cumin, ground turmeric, ground coriander, paprika, and a dash of cayenne.

Choose The Best Carrots

This soup is delicious with just about any regular carrot. That said, I would pass on the big, tough-skinned, woody ones, or the bagged carrots that are filled with really large ones that have no flavour.

Almost all supermarkets have bagged organic carrots that are not expensive and those seem to always be on the smaller size and quite tasty. For a real treat, seek out the farmers’ market carrots that have just been dug out of the ground and are so sweet you will be gnawing at them like a bunny before you even get home.

Roasting The Carrots For More Flavor

The reason for roasting vegetables is simple: Caramelization makes them taste better. When roasted, carrots will take on a beautifully concentrated sweetness that you will notice when the first spoonful of soup touches your lips.

I like to roast my carrots in a 425° degree hot oven, with a generous amount of olive oil, and a sprinkle of cumin seeds. The carrots become butter-soft on the inside, only slightly browned on the outside, and their sweetness intensified.

You can certainly skip the roasting step and boil the carrots instead. The soup will still be delicious. Just maybe not brag-worthy delicious.

Do You Need To Peel The Carrots?

If I buy organic, or market carrots, I don’t bother peeling carrots anymore. Unless they have particularly thick or rough skin, I just scrub them well with a vegetable brush. Having said that, I like this carrot soup a little rustic, and not as silky smooth as say a butternut squash soup. If you prefer a silkier soup, peeling the skin is key.

How To Make Roasted Carrot Soup

Roasted carrot soup takes a bit of time but the process is mostly hands off. For very little effort you will be rewarded with a deeply satisfying bowl of goodness. Bonus, this is a vegan soup and it is also gluten-free.

Here is the simple how-to:

1. Roast the carrots: I like to rub the carrots with plenty (but not too much) olive oil then sprinkle with some cumin seeds. The cumin seeds are optional but they get really toasty in the oven and add a great earthy flavour to the soup.
2. Roast chickpeas for garnish: The chickpeas will roast along with the carrots, but will come out of the oven a little sooner.
3. Sauté onions, garlic, ginger and turmeric: While the carrots and chickpeas roast, sautée the onions, garlic, fresh ginger and turmeric root (you can use ground turmeric) in a large pot until softened.
4. Add the roasted carrots to vegetables: Once roasted, add the carrots to the vegetables along with the vegetable broth, or water, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Let the flavours meld for a few minutes before blending.
5. Blend: Using an immersion blender or high-powered blender, blend the soup until smooth.
6. Serve: To serve the soup, pour it into individual bowls and top with the crispy chickpeas, fresh herbs, and a few dollops of lemony yogurt, if desired.

Tips To Make Crispy Chickpeas 

The crispy chickpeas are of course optional but they are so easy to make and ridiculously good. They add a little more deliciousness, heft, and satisfying crunch to this roasted carrot soup that you won’t want to miss out on. Chickpeas are also very nutritious – high in fibre and antioxidants and a great source of plant-based protein – so it’s great to include them in your diet whenever possible.

Here are some of my favourite tips for making great roasted chickpeas:

• Dry them well. Once rinsed, chickpeas need to be very well dried before you pop them in the oven. I like to place the chickpeas in a large tea towel and rub them until they are really dry. The less moisture, the crispier the chickpeas will be. If you have time to let them dry out for a bit longer on a baking sheet, do so.
• Add spices after roasting. The chickpeas need to roast for over 30 minutes to really crisp up. This long roasting time can cause the spices to burn so add them as soon as you take the chickpeas out of the oven.
• Eat them hot. The chickpeas will become less crispy as they sit so top the soup as soon as they come out of the oven. Once cooled, the leftovers will still be delicious even if they are a little chewier. Keep them stored at room temperature in a tight lid container

Helpful Soup Tips

• Make Ahead: Carrot soup often tastes even better the next day as the flavors have had time to meld together. Prepare it ahead of time and allow it to cool before storing it in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Reheat gently on the stovetop when ready to serve.
• Don’t rush the carrot roasting step! The carrots will need 45-55 minutes to become sufficiently tender, soft, and caramelized. You can do this step earlier in the day, or even the day prior, then refrigerate the roasted carrots until ready to use.
• Use a blender for silky-smooth soup. This is a matter of preference. I don’t mind the soup a bit rustic so here I used an immersion blender. However, an immersion blender will not make your soup super smooth no matter how long you blend. If you want silky-smooth, carefully add the hot soup to a blender in batches.

What To Serve With Roasted Carrot Soup