Sweet potato and carrot soup with ginger

Sometimes, only soup will do. Either because the weather turned and the cold makes your body yearn for something to warm it up, or because your soul needs something comforting, something smooth and tasty that feels like a hug.

 

 

Soup can accomplish that. This soup did it for me. For all three of us. Aris loved it (if this is something one can say about a two-year-old) which was a surprise because it was the first soup I actually served to him as, you know, soup, not mixed with other ingredients to bulk it up; just plain old soup, with bread to help him and dunk it into the liquid, and he really liked it. He didn’t eat a lot, granted, but it was a great first step. As for us, we devoured it.

 

It’s sweet and aromatic from the spices and the ginger, which gives it a slight peppery kick that, if you want, you can intensify by adding more ginger. I didn’t, as I knew Aris was going to eat it too, otherwise I would add double the amount. The good squeeze of lemon when serving the soup, gives it a welcomed citrus acidity to offset the sweetness of the root vegetables which really balances all the flavors of the dish. 

 

Sweet potato and carrot soup with ginger

Ingredients

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

2 red onions, chopped

2 garlic cloves, sliced

2 cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and thickly sliced

3 medium-sized orange sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced thickly

3 medium-sized carrots, peeled and sliced

1 tsp vegetable stock powder or 1 vegetable stock cube

1 Tbsp tomato paste

Sea salt

¼ tsp sweet paprika

¼ tsp turmeric powder

¼ tsp ground coriander

1/8 tsp ground cardamom

200 ml coconut milk, full-fat

Freshly ground black pepper or hot chilli flakes & lemon juice, for serving

 

Preparation

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. When it starts to shimmer, add the onion and sauté to soften. Add the garlic and sauté, being careful not to burn it. Then add the sweet potato and carrots, and sauté for a few minutes. Add the ginger, vegetable stock (powder or cube), tomato paste and all the spices plus the salt, and mix well. Add enough hot water to completely cover the contents of the pot and then add 1 cup more water. Mix well, turn heat up to high and when it starts to boil, turn heat down to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Then add the coconut milk and simmer for another 10 minutes or until the vegetables have softened.

Turn the heat off and leave to stand for 5 minutes.

Using an immersion blender, blend the soup until creamy and smooth. Check the seasoning and serve with some black pepper or hot chilli flakes and lots of lemon juice to cut through the sweetness.

Enjoy!