Sweet Potato-Red Lentil Stew

Maybe it’s just me, but rainy, brown days just don’t really evoke a holiday spirit. But soup does. I love nothing more than a piping hot bowl of soup on a cold winter day. Yesterday, I made not one, but two batches of soup. Hey, if you’re cutting one onion, you might as well cut two! I ade one of our favorite’s–potato broccoli cheddar–and something a bit different. I had a stash of sweet potatoes in the cupboard along with about a cup of red lentils. Combining them with warm spices and creamy whole milk yogurt results in a warm, delicious soup–really a meal in a bowl. Warm home, warm heart, warm stomach. What’s your favorite soup these days?

Sweet Potato-Lentil Soup

Ingredients:

2 tbsp oil

1 large onion

2 tsp each grated ginger, garlic

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp ground clove,

1/4 – 1/2 tsp ground hot pepper

1 tsp honey

6 small sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

1/2  medium carrot, peeled and sliced

1 potato, peeled and sliced

1 cup red lentils, rinsed

1 cup plain whole milk yogurt

parsley (optional)

stock or water

salt and pepper

Method:

Heat oil in soup pot

Saute onion until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes

Add ginger, garlic and dry spices, stirring frequently and for about 1 minute, do not let burn!

Add in a bit of stock to prevent spies from burning

Add vegetables, honey, rinsed lentils and stock to cover vegetables

Simmer, covered for about 30 minutes or until all vegetables are softened

Using immersion blender, puree soup until creamy, adding more water or stock if needed for consistency

Add yogurt and stir

Add salt and pepper to taste

Garnish with parsley, perhaps a squeeze of lemon, and serve!