Denise says:

I love to bring spirituality to the table through symbolic recipes and I this combination ticks all the boxes with my chosen ingredients. Carrots are one of the significant special foods that we are encouraged to eat. In Yiddish the word for carrots is mehren, which means to increase. So for this reason it is a custom in many communities to eat carrots at the start of the New Year in order to wish for a good and prosperous start.
A leek in Hebrew is Karti, which means to cut, and at Rosh Hashanah time we wish to symbolically cut down our enemies.

Soup is one of the easiest starters for family meals. Carrots, sweetened with apples and a teaspoon of honey provide a delicious warming soup.

NB: When soups are pureed, I like to garnish them with the ingredients they are made with.

Preparation Time: 20 minutes Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 8 people

Ingredients:

1 kg carrots – ideally organic – peeled and roughly chopped
1 onion –peeled and roughly chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil – fry frying
2 leeks – peeled and sliced
3 apples – peeled, cored and roughly chopped
2 teaspoons honey
2 litres vegetable stock
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Garnish: 1 Carrot- peeled , 1 red apple – cored and sliced thinly

Method

1) Heat a large deep saucepan with the olive oil.
2) Sauté the onion and leek together until soft but not brown.
3) Add the carrots, honey, apples and stock. Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 25 minutes or until soft.
4) Transfer to a liquidiser and puree to a smooth consistency.
5) Taste and season.
6) For the garnish, using a paring knife make very thin strips of carrots.
Cook in boiling water for 2 minutes, drain and refresh under cold water. Pat dry with absorbent paper.

To serve the stylish way: Sprinkle over some carrot spaghetti and strips of apple.