Roasted Tomato, Red Pepper and Sweet Potato Soup

This is a soup packed full of flavour, especially if you are able to source the vegetables from your garden and use fresh herbs.   Also, you get your five-a-day helping of veg with this recipe!

A Guest Recipe from BBC Good Food.   

My secret ingredient which usually lifts soup to another level is to use unsalted butter along with the olive oil

Utensils

• Large soup pan
• Chopping board
• Sharp knife
• Vegetable peeler
• Garlic crush
• Bowl for discarded peelings
• Measuring jug

Ingredients

• 2 tbs olive oil
  
• Generous knob of unsalted butter (optional!)
  
• 2 onions or one large Spanish onion, finely chopped
  
• 2 good sized carrots, thinly sliced
  
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
  
• 2 red peppers, de-seeded and cut into small chunks
  
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into small chunks
  
• 2 x 400g tins of tomatoes, (or at least eight fresh good sized tomatoes, more if they are small)
  
• 1 vegetarian stock cube, crumbled
  
• 1 litre boiling water
  
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano, or several fresh sprigs
  
• 3 fresh sprigs rosemary (1 teaspoon of dried if fresh unavailable)
  
• Fresh sea salt
  
• Freshly ground black pepper

For the Garnish

• Spring onions, finely chopped
• Celery leaves
• Yogurt or Crème Fraîche
• Sprinkling of Sumac and/or
• Sprinkling of Dukkah

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large pan and cook the onion for up to ten minutes until softened with a little colour.
   
   
2. Slice the carrots thinly and put into a colander, chop the garlic and pepper and add to the carrots.
   
   
3. Add the carrots, garlic, peppers and sweet potato to the onion with a large knob of butter and cook for a further ten minutes, stirring frequently.
   
   
4. Add the tomatoes, stock, herbs and one litre of boiling water and bring to gentle simmer.
   
   
5. Cover and cook for another 20 minutes until you can easily pierce the sweet potato and carrots.
   
   
6. The soup is now ready to be liquidised, which will give the best result for a smooth silky texture.  If you don't have a liquidiser, then a hand blender will do.
   
   
7. Adjust with the seasoning.
   
   
8. Garnish with a swirl of yogurt, crème fraîche and some chopped spring onions.