Moroccan Carrot Soup with White Beans

Creamy Moroccan carrot soup with white beans is seasoned with za'atar and topped with cinnamon hazelnuts and a lemon yogurt swirl. This bright comforting soup is filling and flavorful.

Carrots and White Beans are Soup Magic

Rather than the ginger profile typical to carrot soup recipes, I seasoned this Moroccan carrot soup with za'atar and topped it with a swirl of tart lemon yogurt and warm cinnamon toasted hazelnuts.

White beans give the soup its thick creamy texture while also making it hearty and filling enough as a main course. Fresh lemon juice adds acidity and brightness and a spoonful of ghee give it a richness that layers the soup in flavor.

This Moroccan carrot soup is simultaneously warm, comforting, and complex, while also bright and refreshing.It's seasoned with za'atar, which is a blend of sesame seeds, sumac, and dried thyme, which is such a great pairing with roasted carrots, too.

Sumac lends amazing flavor

Sumac is a popular Middle Eastern spice made by grinding the dried fruit berries of the sumac bush. It's a dark red powder that is tart, bright, and citrusy, adding a pop of flavor to your dishes. If you have trouble finding it at your grocery store, you can find it at Whole Foods or other natural or specialty markets or on Amazon.

Sumac is one of the top 5 most used spices in my kitchen for everyday cooking - as a rub for chicken skin, a spice for sautéeing veggies, or a sprinkling for roasted cauliflower. I also love pairing it with smoked paprika for a tart smokiness that's super flavorful.

Recipe

Creamy Moroccan Carrot Soup with White Beans

yields: 4 servings

prep time: 10 minutes mins

cook time: 40 minutes mins

Additional Time: 5 minutes mins

total time: 55 minutes mins

Creamy Moroccan carrot soup seasoned with za'atar and topped with cinnamon hazelnuts and a lemon yogurt swirl. With white beans blended in, this bright comforting soup is filling and flavorful.

4.93 from 13 reviews

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Ingredients

Moroccan Carrot Soup

• ▢ 2½ teaspoons ground sumac
• ▢ 2½ teaspoons sesame seeds
• ▢ 2½ teaspoon dried thyme
• ▢ ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
• ▢ ½ medium yellow onion, chopped
• ▢ 1 large garlic clove, minced
• ▢ 2 lbs carrots, sliced into ¼-inch thick rounds
• ▢ 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
• ▢ 4 cup vegetable broth, I use veggie bouillon
• ▢ 2 cups water
• ▢ 1 15.5- ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• ▢ ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• ▢ 1 tablespoon ghee
• ▢ Fresh thyme, for garnish (optional)

Lemon Yogurt

• ▢ ½ cup Greek or Icelandic yogurt
• ▢ 1½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• ▢ Pinch kosher salt

Cinnamon Toasted Hazelnuts

• ▢ ¼ cup chopped toasted hazelnuts
• ▢ 1 teaspoon melted ghee
• ▢ Pinch ground cinnamon

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INSTRUCTIONS

• In a small bowl, mix together the sumac, sesame seeds, thyme, and salt. You'll use 1½ tablespoons of this za'atar in the soup and reserve the rest for garnish. Set aside.
• In a large sauce pan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat until it begins to shimmer. Add the onion and cook, stirring until it begins to soften, but does not yet brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 more minute.
• Add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, carrots, and 1½ tablespoon of the mixed za'atar seasoning. Cook, stirring, for 6-8 minutes, until the carrots begin to soften, but do not brown. Reduce the heat, if needed.
• Stir in the maple syrup then add the broth, water, cannellini beans, and salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat then reduce heat until the soup simmers. Simmer, uncovered, until the carrots tender when pierced with a fork, 25-30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, prepare the lemon yogurt and toasted hazelnuts. For the lemon yogurt, whisk together the yogurt, lemon juice, and salt. Set aside.
• For the cinnamon-toasted hazelnuts, toss the hazelnuts with cinnamon and ghee. Set aside.
• Remove soup from heat and puree the soup until completely smooth either with an immersion blender or working in batches with a blender or food processor. Return the soup to the pot and stir in the lemon juice and ghee. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking.
• Serve warm topped with a swirl of lemon yogurt, cinnamon-toasted hazelnuts, a sprinkling of the remaining za'atar, and fresh thyme.

One morning before school, I warned Zoella we'd be having carrot soup for dinner. When Zo was first starting to eat as a baby, my friend Emily gave me the suggestion that I prepare her throughout the day for what we'd be eating for dinner. This way she wouldn't be caught by surprise and perhaps she'd be more willing to try new foods. I also always make sure there's at least one thing on the table she recognizes and loves, giving her way into any meal. Then I spend all day preparing her for whatever else we're serving.

Some days my efforts are met with a hangry whiny, "But I don't like XYZ!!" Even if XYZ is her favorite spaghetti. When I told her we were having carrot soup with za'atar and cinnamon hazelnuts for dinner, that's precisely what I expected.

Instead, she got visibly excited, "Yay!! That's my favorite soup in the whole world, Mama!!" I reveled in the compliment even though I knew it was 100% a lie. I knew this because the first time I served it, she only choked down one bite before declaring soup was SOOO GRRR-OSS. To be fair, she hates almost anything puréed and smooth (especially mashed potatoes and fresh ricotta). Also, have you ever seen a toddler eat soup? Their lack of purée-on-spoon dexterity will make you extremely sympathetic to their hatred of soup. Eating soup while nursing a baby is a similar struggle.