Comfort from the Shelter Island kitchen: Soup to satisfy and restore

One day we’re eating our way through the holidays on an endless whirl of feasts, in complete disregard of calorie counts and happy abandon — like flakes swirling in a snowglobe.
The next, the celebrations are but sweet memories. We’ve crashed to the bottom of the globe and are surrounded by January’s slushy, gray haze everywhere we look: sea, land and sky.
Time for a comfort food fix. And that means — not cocoa, marshmallows and cookies with a side of pie — but a steamy, golden bowl of soup to stir the senses and snap your body’s immune system back to attention.
Here, I offer my chef friend’s recipe for Carrot and Ginger Soup.
Healthful, to be sure, but with a few surprise ingredients to awaken your taste buds and make the process of cooking almost as enjoyable as the eating.
Carrot and Ginger Soup
4 large carrots, cleaned
1 Tbsp. ginger
1 pt. water
1 Tbsp. maple syrup
2 shallots
1 package cherry tomatoes
1 pinch chili flakes
2 cloves garlic
Salt & pepper to taste
• Combine the first four ingredients in a pot and boil until the carrots are soft.
• Place in a blender and blend until smooth.
• Halve the tomatoes and sweat with the shallots in a low to mid-size pan. Once soft and toothsome, raise the heat and add garlic and chili flakes.
• Saute until aromatic — 30 seconds.
• Pour this mixture into the blender with the other ingredients, then use the combined mixture to de-glaze the pan and scrape up any bits. Return it all to the blender and re-blend.
If you feel it needs more acidity, try a dash of apple cider or champagne vinegar. Or a bit of oil infused with chili, basil or parsley can add an herbal note.
My chef friend says he might cook up a batch of tempura vegetables to chop up and sprinkle on top, but if you’ve got some croutons or corn chips at hand, they can add a bit of crunch too.