Creamy Carrot Ginger Soup, Potato & Eggplant Soup Dippers, and Sauteed Radishes

Every Wednesday...
I go to a farmer's market held over on the boundaries of Culver City and Westchester. Here, they have a hippie stand at the corner flashing peace signs to sell patchouli, the plant man down the way sells hardy little plants 6 for $5 and doesn't hesitate to give you gardening advice, the little Asian woman at the smallest stand sells gigantic sweet onions for seventy-five cents a pound, and the California citrus spill over almost every produce stand. I love to support a particular organics stand that has a very nice man that saves "top-off" greens for my bunny. Somehow, he manages to keep a smile on his face every time I see him even though I know that staffing an entire stand by himself must be overwhelming! This is the same stand where I buy my carrots, broccoli, green beans, and especially the little Indian eggplants only they carry on the strip. Radishes have been a a big thing the past few weeks at the market, so I decided to make something that screamed "Farmer's Market Supporter" this evening. I had an abundance of carrots, resulting in the formulation of a new carrot soup. I got the idea of using those cute little eggplants and purple potatoes as soup dippers (kinda like oyster crackers) because I didn't have any bread or crackers lying around and the thought of kneading bread seemed too strenuous. The radishes, well, they're radishes, but they are particularly tasty this evening!

Creamy Carrot Ginger Soup:

3 large carrots, peeled, sliced thin
1/2 c. sweet onion, chopped
1 celery stalk, sliced thin
2 T. Smart Balance Light margarine
1 1/2 c. vegetable broth (low-sodium is a plus)
1/2 t. ginger paste
1/2 c. unsweetened soy milk
1/2 T. arrowroot powder
1/4 t. cumin powder
1/8 t. cayenne
a few dashes of hot sauce (optional)

In a medium pot, melt margarine, add carrots, onion, and celery. Saute until soft. Spoon mixture into a food processor and add about a 1/4 cup of the vegetable broth and blend until you get a nice thick paste. Return mixture to the pot and add in the rest of the vegetable broth. Add ginger paste, stir. In a bowl, mix together the arrowroot and the soy milk. Add to the pot along with the cumin, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Cook for about 15 minutes. Soup will thicken as it sits.

Potato & Eggplant Soup Dippers:

Purple Potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/4" thick
Indian Eggplant, salted, rinsed, and blotted, sliced 1/4" thick
a sprinkling each of:
cumin, cayenne, onion, garlic, black pepper
expeller-pressed cooking oil spray

Preheat oven to 400 F.
Line a cookie sheet with foil and spray with oil. Lightly sprinkle spices on the oil and place potatoes and eggplants in a single layer. Lightly spray the tops with oil. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until desired crispness.

Sauteed Radishes:

1 bunch of radishes, cleaned and halved
1 T. Smart Balance Light margarine

In a little pan, melt margarine and add the radishes. Saute until slightly tender and golden.