It's snowing in Arcata....

That's right... It's been snowing all afternoon!

Thai carrot soup = yum, yum, yummy...

I like to cook with as much locally grown produce as possible. It's gets a little more difficult this time of the year. By now I've tired of winter squash recipes and kale and potatoes just lose their excitement. The other day while in the market I found a 5 pound bag of brilliantly orange carrots and made the purchase with soup in mind. I found the following recipe and whipped it up served with salad and bread. All enjoyed the flavorful soup that warmed us on a cold winters evening.



2 Tb butter
1 onion (i used red)
2-3 cloves of garlic
2 thumbs of ginger (minced)
1/2 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
2 lbs carrots (chopped)
1 jalapeno pepper
4 cups veggie broth
3 heaping Tbsp peanut butter
1 cup coconut milk
cilantro
chopped peanuts

- Melt butter in a soup pan and add onion, garlic and ginger (simmer 3 min.)
- Add coriander and cumin
- Add carrots, jalapeno pepper and broth. Cover and simmer 25 minutes.
- Add peanut butter.
- Process in food processor.
- Return to soup pan and stir in coconut milk.
- Put in serving bowls and garnish with cilantro and peanut bits

Wales...

Want to see more of my trip? Go here. Click on "View as Slideshow" in upper right hand corner for a better look.

Yes, I had a wonderful time and great New Years in Wales! I went on many hikes around the country side and had fun exploring castles with Marmite as my tour guide. I ate Welsh cakes, pasties and plenty of bread, cheese and curry. I drank beer and cider in pubs and even indulged in real fish and chips. I learned how to pronounce "services" and "slow" in Welsh. No, I never had need to use these words but they were the most common on road signs and thus easy to learn. Best of all I survived the crazy roads and crazy drivers. I developed a strong liking for hedge rows but missed the California sun.

Sorry Wizard, I did not find Kathryn Zeta Jone's sister.