I love the idea of having a soup as a starter for a Thanksgiving meal. It is something that can be made ahead of time and if the rest of the meal ends up taking longer than expected to prepare, it is an easy item to dish out to guests to curb their hunger. And if everything is prepared on time as planned, then it's a great, warming starter that shouldn't be too complicated in flavors, perfectly setting up the meal to come.
I wanted to incorporate sweet potatoes in my meal without having to serve both mashed potatoes and mashed sweet potatoes. At a typical Thanksgiving meal at home, the sweet potatoes are served in the form of Bourbon Sweet Potatoes...something that I loved as a child but have since lost interest in. My parents are not shy with the bourbon and I can't say it's my alcohol of choice. So when I was actually in control this year, sweet potatoes were going to be served in the form of a soup.
Sweet Potato Soup with Cranberry Oil
2 large orange-fleshed sweet potatoes
Salt
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 small yellow onion, peeled and chopped
1 medium leek, white part only, trimmed, cleaned, and chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled, trimmed, and chopped
1 rib celery, trimmed and chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
3.5 cups chicken stock
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 Tbsp. chipotle phuree
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
Freshly ground white pepper
1/4 cup Cranberry Oil, optional
1. Put sweet potatoes into a large pot and cover with cold water. Add 2 large pinches salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until soft when pierced with the tip of a knife, 30–40 minutes. Drain and set aside until cool enough to handle.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add onions, leeks, carrots, celery, and garlic and cook, stirring often with a wooden spoon, until vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add wine, scraping any browned bits stuck to bottom of pot, and cook until alcohol has evaporated, about 2 minutes.
3. Add stock and reserved sweet potatoes to pot, increase heat to high, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until vegetables are very soft, about 30 minutes.
4. Working in batches, put vegetables and stock into a food processor or blender and purée until smooth, then return soup to pot. Stir in cream and chipotle puree, season to taste with cinnamon, salt and pepper, and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Drizzle some of the cranberry oil, if using, over each serving.
Cranberry Oil
1/2 cup fresh cranberries
1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Put cranberries into a mortar and finely crush with pestle. Transfer to a small bowl, add oil, and stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
2. The following day put cranberry mixture into a sieve set over a small bowl and gently press on solids with a rubber spatula to extract the red pulpy cranberry oil. Discard solids. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Whisk mixture before using.
The original recipe did not call for chipotle. However, it was what made the dish. When I tasted it prior to adding the chipotle, the flavor was good - fairly standard - but it needed something to make it great. I didn't want the soup to have an intense heat so I only added enough of the chipotle puree juice (the liquid in the canned chipotle chiles) to add some interest without adding noticeable heat.
For the cranberry oil, I had to puree the mixture in a food processor to extract the cranberry flavor and color. After letting the mashed cranberries soak in the oil for a day, the oil remained separated from the fruit and had not seeped in any flavor. The puree was nice with the soup. It added a little bit of rich tartness to the mellow and slightly sweet soup (sweet from the natural flavor of the sweet potatoes).
With tweaking to taste, this is a simple and comforting recipe, requiring only a few ingredients. The cranberry oil isn't necessary but is a welcome addition if you plan ahead.
I wanted to incorporate sweet potatoes in my meal without having to serve both mashed potatoes and mashed sweet potatoes. At a typical Thanksgiving meal at home, the sweet potatoes are served in the form of Bourbon Sweet Potatoes...something that I loved as a child but have since lost interest in. My parents are not shy with the bourbon and I can't say it's my alcohol of choice. So when I was actually in control this year, sweet potatoes were going to be served in the form of a soup.
Sweet Potato Soup with Cranberry Oil
2 large orange-fleshed sweet potatoes
Salt
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 small yellow onion, peeled and chopped
1 medium leek, white part only, trimmed, cleaned, and chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled, trimmed, and chopped
1 rib celery, trimmed and chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
3.5 cups chicken stock
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 Tbsp. chipotle phuree
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
Freshly ground white pepper
1/4 cup Cranberry Oil, optional
1. Put sweet potatoes into a large pot and cover with cold water. Add 2 large pinches salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until soft when pierced with the tip of a knife, 30–40 minutes. Drain and set aside until cool enough to handle.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add onions, leeks, carrots, celery, and garlic and cook, stirring often with a wooden spoon, until vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add wine, scraping any browned bits stuck to bottom of pot, and cook until alcohol has evaporated, about 2 minutes.
3. Add stock and reserved sweet potatoes to pot, increase heat to high, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until vegetables are very soft, about 30 minutes.
4. Working in batches, put vegetables and stock into a food processor or blender and purée until smooth, then return soup to pot. Stir in cream and chipotle puree, season to taste with cinnamon, salt and pepper, and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Drizzle some of the cranberry oil, if using, over each serving.
Cranberry Oil
1/2 cup fresh cranberries
1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Put cranberries into a mortar and finely crush with pestle. Transfer to a small bowl, add oil, and stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
2. The following day put cranberry mixture into a sieve set over a small bowl and gently press on solids with a rubber spatula to extract the red pulpy cranberry oil. Discard solids. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Whisk mixture before using.
The original recipe did not call for chipotle. However, it was what made the dish. When I tasted it prior to adding the chipotle, the flavor was good - fairly standard - but it needed something to make it great. I didn't want the soup to have an intense heat so I only added enough of the chipotle puree juice (the liquid in the canned chipotle chiles) to add some interest without adding noticeable heat.
For the cranberry oil, I had to puree the mixture in a food processor to extract the cranberry flavor and color. After letting the mashed cranberries soak in the oil for a day, the oil remained separated from the fruit and had not seeped in any flavor. The puree was nice with the soup. It added a little bit of rich tartness to the mellow and slightly sweet soup (sweet from the natural flavor of the sweet potatoes).
With tweaking to taste, this is a simple and comforting recipe, requiring only a few ingredients. The cranberry oil isn't necessary but is a welcome addition if you plan ahead.
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