Autumn Sweet Potato Soup

By Andrew Hunter

Sweet potatoes have gone from obscurity to celebrity in the last few years. They now grace plates in every menu category, especially side dishes, of restaurants from fast food to fine dining. I’m not a nutritionist, but a simple review of their nutritional label shows some real benefits to these orange-fleshed tubers. They weigh in with fewer calories and carbs than russets and they contain more than 700% of your Vitamin A for the day…no kidding.

As a parent, sweet potatoes are the kind of veggie you hope your kids will like. Heck, I’ll even let the boys eat sweet potato fries if it makes them happy. But as summer fades into fall, and I start thinking about the chilly weather, turning leaves and woolen sweaters of my Michigan childhood, I automatically think of soup.

Soup is a fun and easy thing to cook with the boys because they can slice and dice, stir and cream the ingredients without much concern about the consistency of size and shape; after all, everything gets pureed in the end. The only cream is a little sour cream as garnish; the soup is otherwise made with chicken or vegetable broth and a little white wine.

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Autumn Sweet Potato Soup

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups thinly sliced yellow onion
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1-1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
6 cups peeled, thinly sliced sweet potatoes, about 2 pounds
1/2 cup dry white wine
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
Pinch of grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Pinch of black pepper

½ cup crème fraiche or sour cream (garnish)

Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over low heat. Add the onions and garlic, and sauté until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the cumin and sweet potatoes, and sauté for another minute. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook until the sweet potatoes are very tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer the soup, in small batches, to a blender or food processor and purée. Add additional broth as necessary for the consistency you like.

Pour the puréed soup into a large serving bowl and garnish with a dollop of crème fraiche or sour cream and garnish with a sprig of Italian parsley.

Makes 8 servings

Note: Be careful when pureeing hot soup. Make sure the blender cover is secure and do not fill the blender more than two-thirds full. Blend in batches.

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