Santa Cruz Cream of Carrot Soup

This soup we made while staying in an Airbnb cabin deep in the Santa Cruz redwood rainforest. Being a foggy drippy day it just called for soup. We had it accompanied by a cheese board with salami and gluten-free bread. We had one hard goat cheese and one smoked jack cheese. 

If you are on a strict AIP diet, grain free egg-free muffins can work well, as can sausage patties, cold cuts, or a fresh salad. 

2 lbs carrots scrubbed and topped

1 lb celery stalks washed and deribbed 

1 white or yellow onion 

1 T. coconut oil (or your preferred high heat cooking oil)

1 rounded T. fresh peeled sliced ginger

1 qt. and 1 c. bone broth (or broth of your choice - choose vegan broth to make vegan soup) 

1/2 to 1 t. salt (if broth is not pre-salted, add more, if salted add less)

1/2 t. coarsely ground black pepper

1/2 t. white pepper

1 14-oz. can coconut cream (Trader Joe's carries this) *

Chop onion. Chop carrots into 1 inch chunks. Chop celery into 1/4" slices. Preheat Instant Pot Pressure Cooker on sauté mode. Add 1 T. coconut  oil and onion and sauté about 3 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients, except for coconut cream. Close lid, set vent to seal, and cook in soup mode (30 minutes). Quick-release steam pressure. Using immersion blender, blend soup until smooth. Stir in coconut cream until melted and blended through. Serve. 

Serves 6-10

Makes a batch to freeze.  To freeze, better to wait until thawed and heated to a boil, then remove from heat to add the coconut cream. 

* 2 cans coconut milk can be substituted if cans chilled overnight in fridge, then solid cream on top is spooned out and watery liquid is discarded. 2 cans milk yields about one full can of solid cream.