Carrot Gingered Soup with Orange

I had a HUGE bag of carrots to contend with. My mom bought a 10 pound bag on sale and she couldn't possibly use them all up so she gave me a LOT of carrots. Plus I already had a bunch in the fridge I had bought! So it is  going to be the Week of the Carrot.

I started the week by making this soup, which we will have at dinner tonight. I hope it is as good as it sounds and looks ( a nice bright orange color, so fallish!)

3 TBSP olive oil
1 small onion diced
knob of fresh ginger diced (about the size of your thumb)
4 cups of chopped carrots

3 cups of vegetable broth

1 1/2 cups orange juice
salt and pepper to taste
dash ground nutmeg

Heat oil in a large pot. Add onion and ginger, saute until soft- about 3-5 minutes-do not burn. Add carrots and broth, simmer on med heat for about 40 minutes until carrots are soft. Add orange juice, still well. Puree soup in small batches in blender or use a hand blender and blend until smooth. Add spices to taste.

** there are several variations on this soup.  You can add potatoes to soften the flavour of the carrots and ginger, or you can add milk/cream (but this then is no longer a vegan soup) you can also add cinnamon Add a dolop of sour cream if you like.