Sweet potato soup

 

 This one's pantry and eater friendly.

Creamy sweet potato soup

Adapted from Cooking Light, November 2013

Ingredients
2 pounds sweet potatoes, halved lengthwise (about 2 large)
¼ cup water
4 slices bacon
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
½ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
4 cups broth
¼ teaspoon salt
Shaved Parmesan and fresh parsley leaves for optional garnish

Method
Place sweet potatoes cut-side down in a microwave safe baking dish large enough to accommodate them in a single layer. Add water and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave on high for 15 minutes or until tender. Cool slightly. Remove and discard skins.

In a large heavy pot, cook bacon until crisp. Remove to paper towels to drain. Chop bacon coarsely and set aside.

Depending on how much fat your bacon yielded, remove some or add olive oil to reach the 2 teaspoon of fat in the pan. Cook onion over medium low heat until softened. Add cumin, crushed red pepper flakes, broth and salt. Working in batches, puree half of cooked sweet potatoes with half of broth mixture and then return to pot to heat through. Serve topped with bacon pieces, shaved Parmesan and parsley. Serves 4 as first-course size servings.

Rating: Really quite tasty. Decent texture with some creaminess without being at all sludge-like. Nicely spiced.Worth repeating.