As I was making this soup last night, I wondered why I don’t just make soup exclusively. It’s so easy and I can prepare so much all at once. And, of course, it’s delicious. It’s one of my favorite things to eat for dinner. Oh yeah, there are also about a billion different recipes for it. Really, I’d have my hands full for the rest of my life if I went this route.
Maybe soups and salads. I love all the different types of salads I’ve prepared over the years as well. This could be a “soup and salad” blog. Okay, okay, I’ll stick to what I’m doing because I know that so many people have so many different tastes. But mark my words, soup is going to be a huge player on this site in the future. After tasting this one, I don’t think I’ll be able to stay away.
The Recipe
This recipe is so easy to put together and it tastes so good. It uses a combination of Yukon Gold potatoes, sweet potatoes and carrots as the bulk of the dish and it takes advantage of vidalia onion and some spices to round out the flavors. As far as the topping goes, plain yogurt, toasted pecans and parsley are all you need. The entire meal took me about and hour to prep and cook, but most of that was the boiling of the potatoes in the pot. I just set the timer and walked away. A bit of blending and serve. That’s it. It’s so easy and it tastes so good.
I used cinnamon, cumin and ground ginger in this recipe to add some zing to it. The original recipe called for cayenne pepper, but I decided to substitute that for the ginger. I think I made the right choice. Of course, if you would prefer the pepper, go for it. Or add both. I might actually try that next time. The tastes in this soup seem complex for something so simple. I’ll tell you that it’s pretty good for you and it’s filling. All these factors make this dish a true winner.
Ingredients
Serves: 8-10
2 Tablespoons Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
1 Large Vidalia Onion, Chopped
5 Large Carrots, Trimmed, Peeled and Cut into Small Pieces
1 Tablespoon Garlic, Minced
3 Pounds Sweet Potatoes, Peeled and Cut into 1 Inch Pieces
2 Pounds Yukon Gold Potatoes, Peeled and Cut into 1 Inch Pieces
1 1/2 Teaspoons Salt
1 Teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
1 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Ginger
1/4 Teaspoon Ground Cayenne Pepper
7 Cups Vegetable Stock
2 Tablespoons Butter
1 Cup Chopped Pecans
1/2 Cup Plain Yogurt
1/4 Cup Parsley, Chopped
Step-by-Step Instructions
I’d like to thank Southern Living for this recipe. They did a really good job with it and I truly enjoyed it. It’s an honor to pass it on to you, with my own twists added along the way. I’d also like to thank an old and new friend for the initial idea for this recipe.
Prep All the Ingredients
I took a few photos during the prepping of some of the necessary ingredients for this soup. I’ll post them below. We’ve got the sweet potatoes, carrots and onions to start out with.
And then we have the chopped pecans and parsley.
Prep as much as you can. Even though I didn’t take photos of everything, I got as much as I could done before the cooking began.
Soften the Onion & Carrots
Warm a large cast iron Dutch oven (or pot) over medium-high heat. When it’s to temperature, add the olive oil to it. Also add in the onion and the carrots.
Cook these ingredients for five minutes. Stir a few times. When that’s finished, you should have something that looks like what’s in the photo below.
When that’s finished, add the garlic and stir and cook for one more minute.
Add Potatoes & More
Next, add in both the sweet and Yukon Gold potatoes. Also add the cumin, cinnamon, ginger, cayenne pepper, salt and ground black pepper. Stir and cook for another three minutes.
Add Broth & Cook
Add the vegetable stock to the Dutch oven. Then, raise the heat to high and once the liquid comes to a boil, reduce it to medium-low, cover and let everything simmer for 30 minutes. This is what mine looked like after this process was completed.
Toast the Pecans
While the soup is simmering, you can go ahead and toast the pecans. Warm a small skillet over medium heat. When the pan is to temperature, add the butter to it. Also add the pecans. Flip the pecans a few times until you begin to smell them toasting. At this moment, remove the pan from the the heat. They are done.
Blend the Soup
The final step for this recipe is to blend the soup. To do this, you’ll need to set up another large pot near a blender. Work in batches and scoop some of the soup from the Dutch oven into the blender. Blend until it’s smooth and then pour the results into the empty pot. Do this until it’s all processed.
Plate & Serve
Divide the soup among bowls. For each bowl, place a spoonful of yogurt at the center of the soup. Then, sprinkle some pecans on top of that and sprinkle some parsley as well. If you’d like, you can season with some more ground black pepper.
The Final Sweet Potato Soup
This dish was a raving success. I loved it and I want to make many more just like it. If you give this recipe a try, please let me know your thoughts in the comment section down below. Thanks for reading!
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