Spiced Carrot Sweet Potato Soup
Me and soup have had an interesting relationship, I have held a grudge against it since this last autumn. I thought that you could not get full off of a liquid meal and that there would only be one flavor (which would be boring and bland) and that my hunger would be better satisfied by a solid meal. The only soup I would eat was tomato soup with grilled cheese because I grew up eating it and knew it was delicious. I got bored one cold night in October and thought well I’ll give soup another try. I found a recipe on Pinterest and my life was forever changed (well maybe that’s a little drastic but needless to say, I now like soup.)
This soup is the opposite of what my prior feelings towards soup were. Its flavors work so well together with the ginger and cumin and the vegetables. After finishing a bowl, maybe with a slice of crusty bread, you will feel satisfied, yet you will want to keep eating more. I now crave this recipe and on a cold night, it is what first comes to my mind.
The nice thing about this recipe is that you don’t have to stay in the kitchen and tend to it. You can put the veggies in the oven and get some work done and then throw it all in a pot until you are ready to eat it. Once you leave it to sit and let all the flavors soak, they become alive and vibrant and they all build off of each other. If you are like me, you like texture in your meals. Some great topping options for this soup are a side of crusty bread, croutons, a handful of mixed seeds including pepitas and flax seeds, or even make some crispy garlic or shallot bits in a frying pan.
Spiced Carrot Sweet Potato Soup
Ingredients
1 large sweet potato (skin on)
2 1/2 cups carrots (about 3 large)
Oil ( avocado or olive are my favorite)
1 onion (sliced)
2-3 cloves of garlic
2 tbsp ginger (fresh)
1 heaping tsp cumin
2 Liters vegetable broth
Salt and pepper
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 F and line a large baking tray. Set aside. Chop sweet potato and carrots into medium chunks. Place on the baking tray and cook for roughly 25 minutes, or until tender.
While vegetables are cooking, put a good glug of oil into a heavy pot on medium-low heat. Slice onion and place in oil, stirring occasionally, until onions become slightly golden and soft. Half garlic cloves. Add to the pot, along with the cumin, until they become fragrant.
Take orange vegetables out of the oven and add to the pot. Combine everything then add in the vegetable broth. Bring to a boil for roughly 3 minutes then lower heat to low, place a lid on the pot, and let simmer for 30 minutes.
With an immersion blender or blender, blend until soup is smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.