Tomato and Rainbow Carrot Soup

Here's one for people on a New Year's diet.  It's also a vegan main dish, for anyone trying to cut down their meat intake.  A little swirl of cream to finish, and it's still vegetarian.

It's taking me a while to finish the groceries I bought for Christmas.  That's what happens when people don't RSVP before you go grocery shopping, then can't come.  If I'd bought less, everyone would have shown up and brought friends.  That's just how the world works.  Not complaining about five days of prime rib leftovers, but the veggies were going to go bad if I didn't do something.

As long as I was using up stuff from the fridge, I took a look at my pantry staples.  I forgot I had garbanzo bean flour.  Turns out, it's a wonderful thickener for vegan soup and brings protein and iron to the dish.  Just what everyone wants with this week's weather.

I was going to make sticks out of the dark red carrot with a yellow middle to use as garnish, then started taking pictures and forgot until everything was puréed.  Garnish, garnish, garnish, or a bowl of soup looks boring.  I guess I could have thrown a little rosemary on top.

*1/2 C garbanzo bean flour
*1 pint grape tomatoes
*1 lb rainbow carrots
*1/2 C diced red onion
2 Tb olive oil
2+ C water or vegetable stock
*1 tsp dried rosemary
salt and pepper to taste

1.  Combine garbanzo bean flour and 1/2 C water.  Let sit for 2 hours to hydrate.

2.  Split tomatoes.  Peel carrots and cut into chunks.

3.  In a large saucepan or soup pot, heat oil over medium.  Add onion and sauté until tender, stirring occasionally.

4.  Add water, tomatoes, carrots, rosemary, and a bit of salt and pepper.  Bring to a low boil.  Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until carrots are tender and tomatoes have kind of melted, about 30 minutes.

5.  Stir in garbanzo flour slurry.  Either whiz the pot with an immersion blender or purée in batches in a regular blender.  Return to heat and bring back up to a low boil.  Cook for 5 minutes, to allow the flour to thicken the soup, then decide if you need to add more broth to thin it to your liking.  Taste, then add more seasoning as necessary.  Serve hot.

Difficulty rating :)