Red Thai Sweet Potato Soup

I love, love, love coconut based soups. I made up this soup a couple of weeks ago for a group of about 20 and really enjoyed it. It was soooo tasty. And coconutty. And just general goodness all around.  Given that I was making this soup for a large group, I got to use my new turbo-charged  food processor, which - I have to admit - gave me chills. I accidentally over-spiced things a little bit, but I like spicy. Using extra coconut milk, yogurt or sour cream can help alleviate some of the heat.

A couple of tips when making this soup: 

- be very, very careful how much curry paste you add. Different pastes have different heat levels and you can very easily make this soup super spicy. Gradually add your paste and taste along the way

- adding chicken strips would be a tasty addition

- if you have one, use a hand mixer to blend the soup - it's much easier than trying to transfer the whole thing over to a blender

Bon appetit! 

Ingredients:
1 tsp olive or rapeseed oil
2 garlic cloves , chopped
1 red chilli , deseeded and chopped
2cm chunk root ginger , chopped
1 stalk lemongrass , bashed
handful of coriander , leaves and stalks chopped separately
2 tbsp red Thai curry paste
750ml chicken stock (made with 2 stock cubes)
1 small can (160ml) coconut cream
500g sweet potatoes , peeled and roughly chopped
1 lime , juice only
1 tsp sugar
½ tsp fish sauce

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the garlic, chilli, ginger, lemongrass, coriander stalks and curry paste and cook for 2 - 3 minutes until the aromas are released.

2. Add the chicken stock, coconut cream and sweet potatoes and cook for 15 minutes or until the potatoes are soft. Remove the lemongrass and discard. Carefully transfer to a blender and blitz until smooth (I use a hand mixer). If freezing, for best results freeze at this point, otherwise as an easier option freeze complete recipe.

3. Stir through the lime juice, sugar and fish sauce, scatter with the coriander leaves and serve.

Coconut Thai Red Lentil Suop

This is quite possibly one of the tastiest soup recipes I've come across in a long time. Jerms made it up for the House last week and it was a big hit. The soup is  served with fresh slices of lime & cilantro and I mean, really, how can you go wrong with a coconut milk base? Definitely a keeper for those long cold stretches in winter. Bon appetit! 

Ingredients
1 tbs olive oil

1 tbs curry powder (or up to 2tbs if you are a big curry fan)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 tsp fresh ginger, grated
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1/3 cup tomato paste
5-7 cups water (depending on consistency you're looking for)
1 (15oz) can coconut milk
2 cups red lentils
1 (15oz) can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained
1 tbs freshly squeezed lime juice
fresh cilantro and lime wedges for serving


Instructions
1. To a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat, add the oil. Add the curry powder and cinnamon and cook, stirring often, until the spices are fragrant, about 2 minutes.

2. Add the onion and cook 2-3 minutes, followed by the carrots, ginger, and garlic, salt, sugar, and tomato paste. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes more.

3. Pour in the water, coconut milk, lentils, and chickpeas. Stir and bring to a simmer. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 25 minutes or until the lentils are tender and the soup has thickened.

4. At the very end, stir in the lime juice. Taste for seasoning and serve with fresh cilantro and lime wedges.

Potato Chive Soup

It's officially fall when you start making soup on a Saturday afternoon. It`s great to prepare some lunches for the upcoming week and I am trying to use up all of the precious remainders of the onion corner in my garden. The quantities in this recipe are loosely guessed. That`s the great thing about making soup though - every batch will be different. This soup is creamy, comforting, bursting with so much flavour, and very good for you too (minus the sour cream, butter and cream... okay, so it`s not that good for you, but it is flavourful!)! Oh, not to mention inexpensive to make, which is always a bonus. Bon appétit!

Ingredients:
8 medium sized russet potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 sweet potato (if you have one)
4 cups canned chicken broth
1/2 cup (about) cream (I used 1/2 & 1/2)
2 tablespoon butter

1 onion

handful of chopped green onion
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
1/3 cup sour cream
Salt and pepper
Additional sour cream & bacon bit for serving

Directions:
1. Sauté onion and green onions in 1 tbs. of butter until soft in a large soup pot. Pour in broth and chopped potatoes. Cover and simmer until potatoes are very tender, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Let mixture cool slightly.

2. Purée potato mixture in batches in blender or processor - or, if you`re lucky, you own a fantastic hand blender (I`m one of those lucky people!). Return soup to saucepan. Stir in enough cream to thin to desired consistency. Mix in additional butter and chives. Bring to simmer. Remove from heat and mix in 1/3 cup sour cream. Season with salt and pepper. Serve, passing additional sour cream & bacon bits separately.