Author Notes
This is one of my husband's favorite soups. He starts requesting this as soon as fall arrives. It also received rave reviews from my trusty taste testers at the hospital where I work. Even the people who don't like spicy food liked it. It's a recipe makeover and slight departure from the more traditional bisque made with heavy cream and butter. It's healthier than traditional bisque but you'd never know it by the taste and texture.
It's a rich and special soup suitable for holiday entertaining. But it's not too heavy because it's made without any butter or cream. Just a half a can of coconut milk is all that's needed to give the soup a luxurious texture. It would be a great choice for a first course at Thanksgiving or on a vegan Thanksgiving menu. You can make it the day before or even the morning of the meal. It reheats well.
Rapunzel No Salt Vegetable Bouillon Cubes are my go-to choice for all my vegetable soups. This bouillon creates a broth that has a pure clean, fresh taste. I buy it by the case from amazon. You can also find it select Whole Foods supermarkets. Visit my blog Jilly Inspired for the original recipe. —Jilly Inspired
Ingredients
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3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped. (They should weigh about one pound each totaling 3-3 1/2 pounds)
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1 red pepper, halved and seeded
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1 large onion, chopped
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1 tiny red or green Thai bird-eye pepper, diced or one jalapeno pepper, diced. Remove the seeds if you want it less spicy.
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2 limes
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1 inch piece of ginger peeled and grated. I used a microplane zester for this.
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6 Rapunzel No Salt Bouillon Cubes
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1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon plus more for sprinkling. I use strong Vietnamese cinnamon from Penzeys Spices.
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6 cups of water
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Neutral oil or coconut oil for cooking
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1/2 of a 13.5 ounce can of coconut milk. I like Thai Kitchen brand.
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Sea salt to taste
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To Serve: Thai basil, cilantro, lime wedges, lime zest, ground cinnamon, flaky sea or my favorite finishing salt, grey celtic sea salt, toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds), crusty bread
Directions
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Place the sliced pepper, cut side down, on an oven safe baking sheet lined with tinfoil and broil on high until the skins are charred and blackened. Remove from the oven, place the pepper in a covered bowl or wrap in tin foil to steam. Once cool enough to handle, peel the skin and discard. Chop and set aside.
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In a large pot saute the onion and chili in some coconut oil or neutral tasting oil with a pinch of salt. Once the onion has softened, add the chopped sweet potatoes, roasted red pepper, grated ginger, 6 cups of water, 6 Rapunzel cubes and the cinnamon. Adjust the salt. Cover, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until the sweet potatoes have softened. Puree with an immersion blender or in a food processor or blender (be careful if using a blender or food processor with hot soup). Stir in the coconut milk. Start with just a half a can and add more to your liking. Finish the soup with a good dash of cinnamon, a little lime zest, lime juice and Thai basil. Toasted pumpkin seeds are also nice sprinkled on top. Enjoy!
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