Chilled Carrot Almond Dessert Soup with Almond Raisin Pesto

Directions

1. Soak the almonds in warm water for a couple of hours before starting the soup. Before using, remove the skin.
2. Put diced carrots in a cup of milk and pressure cook it. If you don't have access to a pressure cooker, cook it in milk till the carrots are soft and disintegrate when pressed between two fingers.
3. If your milk has evaporated in the process of cooking, top up the remaining milk to make 1 and 1/2 cups of milk in total. You loose very little liquid if you pressure cook the carrots.
4. Grind 8 almonds in some of the milk in a blender. Then add the steamed carrots, the rest of the milk and puree till almost baby food consistancy.
5. Pour the carrot, almond milk puree in a saucepan. Add the sugar and cardamom powder and let it come to a boil. Then let it simmer for about 10 minutes. You will get a little over two cups of creamy carrot soup.
6. Of couse you can add some more sugar, milk or cardamom depending on your taste.
7. Once the soup cools down, refrigerate. for at least two hours.
8. Meanwhile make the pesto. Brown the butter and turn the stove off. Add the raisins to the butter and stir it for a few till it get rehydrated. Put the brown butter, raisins, the remaining two almonds and the 1/2 and 1/2 or light cream and blend till you get a gritty textured pesto.
9. Serve the chilled soup with a dollop of the pesto and slivered almonds if using.