Sweet Potato and Red Pepper Soup

The pinkish colour of the sweet potato and deep red of the pepper give this soup a delightful colour, and the coconut milk adds a tropical flavour.
Serves: 4
Preparation: 35 minutes
Plus: Cooking time: 20 minutes, Freezing: recommended
Ingredients
- 25 g (1 oz) butter
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 450 g (1 lb) sweet potatoes, diced, plus extra to garnish
- 2 red peppers, de-seeded and chopped
- 700 ml (1¼ pints) vegetable stock (see page 8)
- 400 g can coconut milk
- vegetable oil, for frying
Method
- Melt the butter in a large lidded saucepan. Add the onion and garlic and sweat, covered, shaking the pan from time to time, until softened but not browned.
- Stir in the ground coriander and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add the sweet potatoes and red peppers and cook for 5 minutes.
- Pour the vegetable stock over, bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cut the extra sweet potato into thin slices (use a mandolin if you have one).
- Heat about 1 cm (½ inch) of vegetable oil in a frying pan and fry the slices in batches until golden and crisp.
- Remove with a slotted spoon and place on kitchen towel to dry.
- Remove the soup from the heat and leave to cool briefly.
- Blend until smooth. Add the coconut milk and then reheat gently. Serve at once, garnished with the sweet potato crisps.
Tip
If you can't find coconut milk, use 100 g (3½ oz) of creamed coconut, chopped, and increase the amount of stock by about 150 ml (5 fl oz).
This recipe is from Homemade Soups, a book published by Simon & Schuster in 2012; ISBN 978-1-47110-176-2 priced £12.99.
For a complete list of WI Recipe books send a sae to WI Enterprises 104 New Kings Road, London SW6 4LY.