Blog's Category: Healthy, Soup, Vegetarian
Intro
I start to appreciate simple, quick and healthy recipe more and more. Yes, I like to cook, but there is so much interesting staff in this life and so little time for it! This recipe is all about this - healthy yet taking a minimal efforts. This is a cream-style soup. Which means to me that, when serving, you can embellish it to your liking with whatever you want and as much as you want. Variations of additions are below ...or train your own creativity ;)
What is it?
The idea is: small number of ingredients - onion, garlic, ginger, sweet potatoes and couple spices are cooked in a broth (or water) and then quickly blended right in a pot with an immersion blender. All other goodness is added right into an individual plates. In this case it's fresh arugula, cilantro, chopped tomatoes, sour cream and squeezed lemon.
Almost forgot about one secret ingredient, fans of which will apreciate its flavor very much. It's peanut butter! If you are not big fan of peanut-buttery flavor in your food, you can easily omit it. Not for my family though - we love our peanut butter :))))
I start to appreciate simple, quick and healthy recipe more and more. Yes, I like to cook, but there is so much interesting staff in this life and so little time for it! This recipe is all about this - healthy yet taking a minimal efforts. This is a cream-style soup. Which means to me that, when serving, you can embellish it to your liking with whatever you want and as much as you want. Variations of additions are below ...or train your own creativity ;)
What is it?
The idea is: small number of ingredients - onion, garlic, ginger, sweet potatoes and couple spices are cooked in a broth (or water) and then quickly blended right in a pot with an immersion blender. All other goodness is added right into an individual plates. In this case it's fresh arugula, cilantro, chopped tomatoes, sour cream and squeezed lemon.
Almost forgot about one secret ingredient, fans of which will apreciate its flavor very much. It's peanut butter! If you are not big fan of peanut-buttery flavor in your food, you can easily omit it. Not for my family though - we love our peanut butter :))))
Taste Description
Sweet and spicy, creamy and flavorful, toothsome, chewy or crunchy depending on a topping - it is fun and pleasure to eat. I bet everyone will love it!
Sweet and spicy, creamy and flavorful, toothsome, chewy or crunchy depending on a topping - it is fun and pleasure to eat. I bet everyone will love it!
How to Serve
It's versatile - you can serve it right after taking off stove or you can serve it next day, or two.. or three. Toppings live their separate life and you can change them every day - today it's herb-y goodness of a fresh arugula and cilantro, tomorrow - it's crunchy mix of corn tortilla and pumpkin seeds, day after tomorrow - tender avocado with balsamic vinegar drizzle or fiery chili oil.
Topping Variations
- Spinach, feta, dry oregano, black pepper
- Corn tortilla, pepita (pumpkin seeds), finely chopped fresh chili pepper
- Avocado, balsamic vinegar, green onion
- Chili oil, sesame seeds, chives
- Fresh dill, chopped pickles, sour cream
- Caramelized onion, goat cheese, balsamic vinegar
- Walnuts, red wine or sherry vinegar, Parmesan
- Lime zest, pistachios, lime juice, parsley
- Crazy one: chopped anchovies, grated gouda and pumpernickel croutons
- Whatever you eye catches off your cardboard or fridge ;) anything with a bold taste or texture.
Tips
- To always have fresh ginger on hand, keep fresh ginger in your freezer, in a zipper bag. You will be able to grate it easily, right from a freezer, unpeeled, with a fine grater (microplane) whenever you need. Super-convenient.
- It's much prettier and easier, for topping, to use thinned sour cream. To make sour cream pour-able, add about 1 tsp water per 2 tbs sour cream and mix well.
Sweet Potato Soup
- 1 onion, coarsely diced
- 4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
- 2" from a fresh ginger, finely grated
- 4 tsp olive oil
- 3 vegetable broth cubes (or chicken broth) - optional
- 5-6 medium-size sweet potatoes, peeled and cut
- 1.5 tsp ground cumin
- salt to taste (about 1.5 tsp)
- nice pinch of cayenne pepper (we like it spicier so I'm using about 2/3 tsp)
- 2 tbs creamy peanut butter
- fresh arugula
- fresh cilantro, chopped
- sour cream
- lemon or lime, cut in wedges
- chopped tomato
- In a pot with olive oil, cook onion for 2 minutes just until soft. Add garlic, ginger and cimun and cook for 1 more minute, stirring.
- Add sweet potato, broth (or broth cubes, if using) or water. Potatoes has to be covered completely with a liquid. Add salt. Simmer with a lid ajar until potato is completely cooked. It will take about 30 minutes.
- While it cooks, prepare toppings for serving them in a separate bowls.
- Add peanut butter to a pot and blend soup using immersion blender. Add cayenne pepper and adjust salt if needed.
- Done! Enjoy with various toppings :)
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