Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Warm up with this deliciously comforting Carrot Apple 5-Spice Soup, ready in under 30 minutes! I'll show you step-by-step how to make this easy, healthy, gluten-free soup that's ideal for fall and winter (and I'll tell you what subtitutes to make if vegan)! After making and enjoying it just once, you won’t even need the recipe again. The addition of Chinese five-spice, with its combination of star anise, fennel seed, Szechuan pepper, clove and cinnamon, really enhances the humble carrot and apple combination, giving it a well-rounded flavour complexity with minimal effort.
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Makes about 8 cups (2 L), serves 8
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Note: The soup will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
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• Ingredients •
Extra-virgin olive oil, for the pot
6 to 8 large carrots (about 1½ lb/675 g total), diced
1 large onion, diced
2 tart apples, peeled and diced
2 cloves garlic, sliced
2 tsp Chinese five-spice
4 cups (1 L) Grandma-style Chicken Stock or store-bought (vegan alternative: vegetable stock)
1 cup (250 mL) whipping cream (vegan alternate: coconut cream)
Salt and black pepper
Toasted pumpkin seeds or chopped cashews, for garnish
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• Directions •
*0:00 Intro*
*0:12 Sauté the Vegetables*
Drizzle olive oil in the bottom of a soup pot over medium heat. Add the carrots and onions and sauté for about 5 minutes, until the onions begin to look translucent.
*2:05 Add the Apples, Garlic and Five-Spice*
Cook, stirring, for 1 minute more.
*3:56 Add the Stock (Chicken or Vegetable)*
Bring the soup up to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pot and gently simmer until the vegetables are very tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
*4:39 Purée the Soup*
Use an immersion or regular blender (in batches if needed) until smooth.
*6:53 Stir in the Cream*
Return to a gentle simmer.
*7:14 Season to Taste*
Add salt and pepper.
*8:07 Sprinkle with Chopped Cashews (or Pumpkin Seeds)*
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Excerpted from Anna Cooks by Anna Olson. Copyright © 2025 Anna Olson. Photographs by Janis Nicolay. Published by Appetite by Random House®, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
Warm up with this deliciously comforting Carrot Apple 5-Spice Soup, ready in under 30 minutes! I'll show you step-by-step how to make this easy, healthy, gluten-free soup that's ideal for fall and winter (and I'll tell you what subtitutes to make if vegan)! After making and enjoying it just once, you won’t even need the recipe again. The addition of Chinese five-spice, with its combination of star anise, fennel seed, Szechuan pepper, clove and cinnamon, really enhances the humble carrot and apple combination, giving it a well-rounded flavour complexity with minimal effort.
--------
Makes about 8 cups (2 L), serves 8
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Note: The soup will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
--------
• Ingredients •
Extra-virgin olive oil, for the pot
6 to 8 large carrots (about 1½ lb/675 g total), diced
1 large onion, diced
2 tart apples, peeled and diced
2 cloves garlic, sliced
2 tsp Chinese five-spice
4 cups (1 L) Grandma-style Chicken Stock or store-bought (vegan alternative: vegetable stock)
1 cup (250 mL) whipping cream (vegan alternate: coconut cream)
Salt and black pepper
Toasted pumpkin seeds or chopped cashews, for garnish
--------
• Directions •
*0:00 Intro*
*0:12 Sauté the Vegetables*
Drizzle olive oil in the bottom of a soup pot over medium heat. Add the carrots and onions and sauté for about 5 minutes, until the onions begin to look translucent.
*2:05 Add the Apples, Garlic and Five-Spice*
Cook, stirring, for 1 minute more.
*3:56 Add the Stock (Chicken or Vegetable)*
Bring the soup up to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pot and gently simmer until the vegetables are very tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
*4:39 Purée the Soup*
Use an immersion or regular blender (in batches if needed) until smooth.
*6:53 Stir in the Cream*
Return to a gentle simmer.
*7:14 Season to Taste*
Add salt and pepper.
*8:07 Sprinkle with Chopped Cashews (or Pumpkin Seeds)*
--------
Excerpted from Anna Cooks by Anna Olson. Copyright © 2025 Anna Olson. Photographs by Janis Nicolay. Published by Appetite by Random House®, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
