Easy Carrot and Sweet Potato Soup

Soup is a great comfort food and can be very healthy. I make a lot of soup in the fall and winter, and this is one of my favorites. 

This soup is low-fat but super high in veggies. It's naturally creamy when pureed and a dollop of Greek yogurt adds a touch of richnesss and a bit of cooling if you like it spicy.

Sweet potatoes and carrots are both rich sources of beta-carotene and fiber, and their natural sweetness means even non-veggie lovers usually like them. 

Ingredients:

1 onion, chopped
5 carrots, peeled or scrubbed & cut into chunks
2 sweet potatoes, peeled & cut into chunks
1 quart veggie stock (or chicken, whatever you like) Can also use plain water
2 or 3 cloves of garlic, peeled
Salt & pepper to taste
Dash of cumin, ginger, ground red pepper (again, to taste)
Plain Greek yogurt to garnish (sour cream or regular yogurt would work just as well)

Saute onion in a bit of olive oil for about 5 minutes till translucent. Add carrots & sweet potatoes, garlic and broth or water. You want the liquid to cover the veggies by an inch or so, more or less depending on how thick you want the soup. Boil with a lid on until veggies are tender. If it seems a bit too soupy, boil for a few minutes with the lid off so some of the liquid evaporates.Then, puree the soup, adjust seasonings and enjoy!

This recipe makes about 6 generous servings.

 This soup base is very versatile.  Try these add-ins and options for variety:

For a creamy soup, stir in about half a cup or more of heavy cream after pureeing.  (Or use milk for a similar look with less fat.)

Substitute plain yogurt, sour cream or creme fraiche for the Greek yogurt.

Change the spices:  For a sweeter soup, just use ginger.  For more heat, increase the red pepper or use chilis.  Try cardamom, nutmeg, cinnamon, whatever spices you like.  For a fall-flavored soup, use use pumpkin pie spice. Experiement with tiny amounts until you find the flavors you like best.

Add croutons!  I have never found croutons in the store that I actually like, but I love homemade croutons.  Preheat oven to 300 to 350 degrees.  Cut bread (can use any kind, but I like thick slices of leftover home-baked bread) into aobut 1/2 to 1-inch cubes.  Toss bread with olive oil.  I don't season the bread crumbs when I make them--with good bread, it seems unnecessary.  But, for special dishes or if you like them flavored, add salt, pepper :& herbs & spices of your choice (oregano, garlic, etc.)  Bake until toasted (I turn mine over after about five minutes to get both sides crispy.)  Times will vary, but about 10 minutes should work.   

I use a stick blender (also called a hand blender or immersion blender) to puree my soups.  I tried using a blender to puree and it's a pain.  Ditto for using a food processor.  Too much trouble to both transfer hot liquid into & out of, as well as cleanup.

So my mother gifted me a hand blender a few years ago (yes, my mom rocks!), and it's one of my favorite kitchen tools. 

With a stick blender, you plug it up (uness you have a cordless model), put it in the pot and whiz away.  (Mine does have three attachments and they are removable).  So, clean up is about the equivalent of hand-washing a fork. 

WIth one of these babies, you can make your own babyfood (which my daughter does), make smoothies and hummus and dips and whatever else you need to blend or puree.  Very handy and very useful.