Last year, I did something I never thought I'd do. I requested something for Christmas that was a
kitchen appliance. A particular hand blender to be precise. I made it very clear that this was simply because I was eager to make soups from scratch, and that it didn't mean that any random household item would in future qualify as a Christmas or birthday present.
David's parents got me the hand blender and it instantly became a much-loved part of my kitchen, even before the soups started being made. Knowing it was there meant the soups would come. Because until the hand blender joined my kitchen, I could barely eat soups at all, despite how much I love them. [I challenge you: go forth and find a ready-made soup that does not contain
any onions or garlic.]

Today's soup was
Moroccan Roasted Sweet Potato Soup, and it is so far a prize-winning soup (in my opinion, anyway). And you know me well enough by now... would I be about to post this recipe if it weren't the simplest thing known to mankind? (I wouldn't - because if it were complicated I'd never have gotten round to making it myself in the first place...)
Ingredients (serves 4)
675g sweet potatoes, cut into big chunks
1 carrot, cut into big chunks
olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper
900ml hot vegetable stock
2tsp runny honey
generous squeeze of lemon juice
natural yoghurt, to serve
warm pitta bread, to serve
1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C. Put the sweet potatoes and carrot into a roasting tin. Pour the oil over the vegetables and toss together so they are well coated. Season with freshly ground pepper, then roast, turning occasionally, for 40 minutes or until tender and turning golden. Remove from oven.
2. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the stock and honey. Whizz with blender until smooth. (Once done, you may want to transfer to a saucepan and reheat)
3. Add a good squeeze of lemon juice and season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Pour into bowls and swirl some yoghurt into each. Serve with warm pitta bread.
(Can be frozen up to 3 months, before yoghurt is added)
So I sit here listening to my new
Regina Spektor CD (a little treat to myself),
wondering what lies in store now that we're in for a round of redundancies at work (confirmed today),
but feeling more than a bit pleased that my blog muse seems to have returned,
and I beg you: get hold of some sweet potatoes and
MAKE THIS SOUP!deliciously,