I eat real food. I swear. It isn’t all butter and sugar and gluten-free flours over here.
Some times there is soup that will make your heart sing.
In Chicago, Spring is here in a big way. The 80 degrees for a week at a time way. The ha-it-is-going-to-be-30-since-you-dug-out-your-summer-clothes way.
There were a few glorious days over the past few weeks, but mother nature has been certain to remind us that it isn’t summer and this is Chicago. So has the person who left the bathroom window open all weekend at the office. Frozen tush anyone? It took me 2 days to warm up after that one.
Since it isn’t summer yet, let’s make soup.
Really, it is easy, painless to prepare and can handle it if you aren’t the best cook or if you measure something a little wrong. It is gluten-free (as long as you bought gluten-free stock), dairy-free (but I like mine with a dollop of yogurt swirled in), and free of just about everything that might be bad for you. I think it even qualifies as paleo (but I don’t eat that way, so feel free to correct me if I am wrong). It fits in my mom’s anti-inflammatory diet, my dad’s allergy list (if we use chicken chorizo), my sister’s allergy list, and my allergy list (which it is quite a feat since pretty much the only overlap is wheat/gluten).
It is adapted from one of the best cookbooks I own. Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution. Yes, there are recipes in the book that aren’t gluten-free, but most of them are and the ones that aren’t, can for the most part, be made so with simple swaps like gluten-free pasta for regular pasta and cornstarch or arrowroot in a stew in place of flour. This is a cookbook even Blondie can make good food from.
| Stewsday : Chorizo Sweet Potato Soup |
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- 1 ¾ quarts chicken stock, preferably homemade
- olive oil
- 2 large carrots, peeled
- 2 celery stalks, sliced evenly
- 2 medium onions, peeled and roughly chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
- 1 ¾ pounds (2 medium-large) sweet potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
- 7 ounces chorizo sausage, sliced
- small bunch fresh parsley, fine chopped
- 1 heaping teaspoon yellow curry powder
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 fresh red chile, fine diced
- In a medium sauce pan, bring the stock to a boil (you can start it and then chop while you wait for the stock to boil, no need to chop and then wait).
- Chop carrots, celery, onions and sweet potatoes. Peel and slice the garlic and dice/slice the chorizo. Finely chop the parsley leaves and stalks.
- In a large stock pot over medium-high heat, pour in a glug or two of olive oil (this is about 2 tablespoons) and toss in all the chopped ingredients.
- Add the curry powder and stir with a wooden spoon to make sure that the spices are evenly spread out.
- Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occaisionaly or until the carrots have softened but are not falling apart and the onions are translucent.
- Add the stock to the vegetables and chorizo. Stir for a minute or so to make sure nothing is stuck to the bottom of the pot.
- Once the stock has returned to a boil, reduce the heat, cover pot with a lid and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the sweet potato is cooked through.
- Season with salt and pepper, adjusting to your taste.
- Remove the soup from the heat and allow to cool slightly. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup. If you don’t have an immersion blender, add to a food processor in batches. Puree until it is your desired consistency.
- Divide into bowls and top with finely diced chilli, salt and pepper.