Whilst I’m on a little babymoon maternity leave from the blogosphere, I thought you’d still like a dose of She Sows Seeds goodness! I’ll hopefully be still popping in with baby spam and news of life in our little farmhouse with two littles now to fill my arms and days (you can also catch us over on Instagram). But in the meantime, here’s something I prepared earlier…
No doubt about it: it’s soup season. Cold and blustery South Gippy conditions have us bunkering down inside by the fire, hibernating these dark Winter days away and eating copious amounts of soup. Soup, soup, soup! All kinds of soup. I have my trusty favourites, my tried and tested, mainly my mum’s handed down recipes – traditional pumpkin soup, or my spiced Thai-inspired version, a sweet corn and chicken chowder, split pea and ham using a whole hock to bubble away atop the fire slowly, and of course a hearty minestrone full of every vegetable languishing in the fridge thrown in the pot, with some pasta shells and tummy filling legumes to boot.
Every Winter I seem to trot out the same old-same old soup though. All good, all well received, and most I can make with my eyes closed, but lately thoughts turned to a new soup to add to my repertoire. Matt’s mum makes ‘red soup’, which is sort of like a minestrone but just with red/orange vegetables, chunky in a broth. Sweet potato, capsicum and carrot feature heavily. I wanted to create my own version, but with a roasty-toasty undertone, and a bit of a curry paste kicker.
Roasted Sweet Potato and Capsicum Soup
1kg sweet potato
2 large red capsicums
2 red onions
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons red curry paste
1 litre vegetable stock
400ml can of coconut cream
Coriander to garnish
Roughly chop the sweet potato, red capsicums and red onions. Roast in a 180 degree oven for about 40 minutes until tender.
When the veggies are done, in a pot fry off the red curry paste (I just use store bought, but here is a recipe for some green curry paste to make your own) and the garlic until fragrant and delicious smelling.
Add in your roasted veggies and stir to coat them in the curry paste and garlic. Reduce heat to medium and add in your vegetable stock (you can use chicken or beef if you like, I used vegetable to keep it vegetarian).
Let simmer for 10-15 minutes, then using a stick blender whiz it up to your desired consistency, I like mine still a bit chunky and thick.
Stir in the coconut cream and remove from heat. Serve with coriander.
Our little local bakery I’m sure has been doing a roaring trade from this household alone in the amount of crusty breads I’ve been buying to go alongside our soups. They do a wonderful ciabatta, and sour dough, and spelt… Eleanor has been demolishing all the soups (and all the breads!) with her new ‘dip-dip’ obsession. She usually turns her nose up at various vegetables (lives on potatoes and carrots) but given a hearty minestrone full of all kinds of veggies and a soldier of crusty bread and she’ll hook right in. Fair enough too.
Have you got soups bubbling away in your kitchen this Winter?
Got any favourites that just get trotted out again and again and again?
Gone rogue and tried a new one recently?
