Carrot and Fennel Soup

As per Courtney's request, another vegetarian soup recipe. This one comes from a book I read a few years ago:

Cooking for Mr Latte: A Food Lover's Courtship, with Recipes
By Amanda Hesser

This is a fun read, and I recommend it to anyone who wants a quick read about New York, food, and love. It is a "culinary novel", which means the chapters are interspersed with recipes. If you end up reading it, I have to praise the smoked paprika potato recipe (my mom made this one, and now it's one of my staples), and the vanilla bean loaves (buttery-vanilla goodness!). But the recipe I make most often from this book is the quick and easy carrot fennel soup. It doesn't matter how messy you chop everything up, as it gets blended at the end. And I have to mention that one of my favorites aromas in the culinary world is present in this recipe: fennel being sauteed in butter (seriously, take a moment at this point in your cooking and relish it).

Carrot Fennel soup in a bread bowl
(good without the bread bowl too, my husband just happened to bring it home from work)

Carrot and Fennel Soup
(courtesy of Cooking for Mr. Latte, adapted from Epicurious.com)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium fennel bulb, stalks trimmed flush with the bulb, and coarsely chopped; fronds reserved
1 1/2 pounds carrots, peeled and thickly sliced (about 4 cups)
1 large garlic clove, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon sea salt, more to taste
1/3 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup sour cream
Freshly ground black pepper

Put the butter in a soup pot and heat until the butter is foamy. Add the chopped fennel and cook over medium heat, stirring, until softened and beginning to turn golden. Add the carrots and garlic and cook for another minute. Pour in enough water to cover the vegetables (about 4 cups), season with salt and simmer, covered, until the carrots are very tender, about 20 min. (add more water if the pot gets dry).
Ladle the soup into a food processor, and puree the mixture with orange juice, sour cream, and salt and pepper to taste. Or puree with your hand blender. You can leave it chunky if you like, but I make mine pretty smooth. Heat the soup, stirring, just until heated through; do not let it boil. Taste it again. Pull the fennel fronds into pieces and drop them into the soup (or just use as a garnish). Give it one last stir. Serves 6. Enjoy!