Eat Good Food

Recipe: Black Bean and Sweet Potato Soup

This soup has an irresistible, slightly smoky quality; the flavors are deep and earthy with some sweetness from the potatoes.

Black Bean and Sweet Potato Soup
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups peeled and diced sweet potato, 1/4 inch diced
3 cups cooked black beans
3 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 – 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3-4 cups vegetable stock, depending on how thick you want your soup

Heat olive oil in a large clay bean pot (or heavy dutch oven) over medium heat. Add onions, a pinch of salt and stir for 3 minutes. Add garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Add sweet potato, black beans, and all the spices. Stir and cook for 2 minutes.

Add stock, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, or until sweet potatoes are cooked through.

Let soup cool and then blend the remaining soup together using an immersion blender. Heat soup when ready to serve with your favorite garnishes: cilantro, red onion, avocado, tortilla strips, salsa, etc.

Eat Good Food

Recipe: Swedish Rose Hip Soup

Rose hips, also known as rose haws or rose heps, are the fruits of the rose plant, and begin to form after the flowers are pollinated in spring or early summer, ripening in late summer through autumn. Rose hips are packed with the vitamins C, D and E, calcium and are full of antioxidants.

In Sweden this abundant, vitamin-rich food resource is utilized to create one of the country’s most celebrated desserts, Nyponsoppa, rose hip soup.

Rose Hip Soup
2 cups fresh rose hips
4 cups water
1/4 cup of honey, or more to taste
1/4 of a vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
1 tablespoon arrowroot, mixed with 1/4 cup cold water

Cut each rose hip in half then scoop out all of the seeds and hairy bits. Keep the skins and compost the rest.

Combine the skins and water in a medium saucepan, bring to a boil, and simmer for about 30 minutes until rose hips are softened. Increase the heat and gently boil for 15 minutes to reduce the liquid.

Strain the liquid through a sieve, pressing as much pulp through the sieve as possible.

Pour this liquid back into the saucepan, and heat over medium. Add the honey, vanilla, and arrowroot mixture and cook for 5 minutes more.

Pour into bowls, and serve warm or cold, garnished with crème fraiche, yogurt, or whipped cream.

Tips

Small rose hips are tedious to work with so look for the largest rose hips that you can.

Rose hip hairs are itchy, so best to use a small spoon to scoop out the seeds and hairs.

While fresh rose hips are great when available, the dried version is perfectly fine for this soup. If using, soak the dried rose hips in cold water overnight.

Try adding a tablespoon of fresh orange juice and some grated orange zest to each dish of soup.