Roasted Sweet Potato Corn Soup

My friend linked this recipe on her facebook wall and I thought I would try it. I am glad I did because it has become one of our favorite soup recipes ever!!

Roasted Sweet Potato and Corn Soup

• 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• salt and pepper to taste

 

• 1 (12 ounce) package frozen corn kernels, thawed
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 1/2 cups finely diced celery
• 1 cup diced red onion 
• 1/4 cup shallot, minced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 potato, peeled and cubed
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Place the sweet potatoes into a 9x13 inch baking dish, drizzle with 1 tablespoon of coconut oil, and season with salt and pepper. Stir to coat the sweet potatoes in oil.
2. Roast in the preheated oven until the sweet potatoes are golden and tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir occasionally as they cook so the sweet potatoes cook evenly.
3. Meanwhile, measure out 1 cup of corn kernels and set aside. Place the remaining corn into a blender, and puree with the water until smooth; set aside.
4. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of coconut oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the celery, onion, and shallot. Cook and stir until the onion has softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and dried thyme leaves; cook 1 minute more. Pour in the vegetable broth, corn puree, bay leaf, salt, and cubed potato. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the potato is tender, 25 to 35 minutes.
5. Once the potato is tender, remove and discard the bay leaf. Stir in the whole corn kernels, sweet potato, and chopped parsley. Return to a simmer and season to taste with salt and pepper before serving.

* In this pic I served the soup over Quinoa just to fill ourelves up more but the second time I made it we just ate it like a soup with some garlic bread.

** I have made this with the red onion and then another time with yellow onion and I think the red onion tastes better.

*** You will probably want to double this recipe.

*** This was a winner with the entire family, even baby G.

The Blahs and a Yummy Lentil Soup

I kind of have the blahs. Do you ever get like that? I will be going along great, feeling really motivated and positive and then something will happen and I will just feel blah. Right now I don't feel super motivated to eat healthy or exercise. Last week I got sick for a few days and it really threw off my stride. I couldn't cook and we ordered take out (Thai food!)

We went on a mini vacation last weekend and without fail I always eat poorly when we do that. It doesn't help that we vacationed in a very small town with very few healthy eating options. Sometimes when I start to eat poorly I get all discouraged and I think "Well, what is the point in trying now? I should just keep eating crud! That will show them!" ( I am not really sure who "them" is in this scenario - Obviously not the most rational thinking!)

Some scenes from our trip...

The girls in the Nauvoo Visitor's Center

E with the rope she helped make

A waiting for her cookie at the old fashioned bakery

A tired Baby G

Baby G showing off her new trick. "I can stand!!"

 

I didn't even step on a scale last week. I am too afraid to. One of my commenters said that our bodies need to hit plateaus in our weight loss and that it is actually a healthier way of losing weight. I don't know if that is true but it really made me feel better!!

Anyhow, just writing this has made me feel better. Thanks for listening to me ramble. Or maybe you didn't listen. Maybe you were like, "blah, blah, blah! get to the recipe already!" Well, for you impatient ones here you go...


Is it still cold enough for soup? Not here but maybe where you are! Here is one of the staples in our home. I got this recipe from a Palestinian cookbook that we got as a wedding present.

Yummy Lentil Soup

1-2 tbsp coconut oil or butter
1 large onion, chopped
2-4 carrots, chopped
2- 4 stalks celery, chopped
1 1/2 cups lentils
3 cups water
4 cups veggie broth
juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp cumin

Heat oil or butter over medium heat and then add onion, carrots, and celery. Saute for 5 minutes or so. Then add in lentils, water and broth. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low and cook for an hour or until lentils are soft. (Don't add salt until after lentils are cooked or they will take longer to cook.)

Add juice of 1 lemon, cumin, and salt and pepper to taste. Then puree the soup in a blender.

** Okay so this soup is not the loveliest color. But it is very good. My girls love it.

Moroccan Chickpea and Potato Soup

 

 

I got this recipe from Nourishingmeals.com but I like it a little better as a stew, not so much liquid and the we serve it over whole wheat couscous. 

 

Moroccan Chickpea and Potato Soup

 

2 to 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

pinch or two of sea salt

6 cloves garlic, crushed

2 teaspoons curry powder

1 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

4 to 5 large carrots, chopped (3 to4 cups)

4 to 5 yukon gold potatoes, diced large (4 to 5 cups)

8 cups water or bean cooking liquid (reduce this to 4 cups water if you want more of a stew.)

3 to 4 cups cooked chickpeas

1/2 cup tomato paste (one 7-ounce jar)

2 to 3 teaspoons Herbamare or sea salt

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (optional)

1 cup chopped parsley

Heat a 6 to 8-quart pot over medium heat. Add olive oil then onions and a few pinches of salt and saute for 5 to 10 minutes or until very soft. Add garlic, spices, carrots, and potatoes and saute for a few minutes more.

Then add water (or bean cooking liquid or a combo of both), cooked chickpeas, tomato paste, and salt. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, for 45 to 60 minutes.

Once veggies are very tender, remove from heat and add lemon juice and parsley. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed. Serve and enjoy the flavors! Source: http://www.nourishingmeals.com/

 

** The kids don't love this one so much but my husband and I love it. Like I said we serve this over whole wheat cous cous which can be hard to find. My health store doesn't even carry it. Your's might. I get mine at Trader Joe's.

 

** I use red potatoes.

Fast Dinner - Pita Pizzas and Cauliflower soup

Sometimes Dinner just needs to be fast. This soup takes 30 minutes to cook but the prep time is super fast. You can use this same recipe for either a head of cauliflower or a head of broccoli.

Cauliflower Soup

1 head of cauliflower, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves minced garlic
3 cups vegetable broth

1. Put everything thing in a large pot and bring to boil
2. Reduce to low and simmer for about 30min.
3. Puree everything in a blender
4. Season with salt and pepper, if needed

** For the broth I use a powdered broth made by Rapunzel. I add 3 teaspoon to 3 cups of water.

** If you aren't worried about making this vegetarian you can use chicken broth.

** This soup is really tasty and simple. My kids love it, even the baby. But it doesn't keep great as leftovers so eat it right away.




Pita Pizzas are even quicker. We start off with store bought whole wheat pitas. You can find these at most stores. If you are really ambitious (I'm not) you can make your own homemade pitas. My sister has a great recipe for those here. We use store bought spaghetti sauce as well. This Ragu below is great because it has no added sugar. Again if you are ambitious (I'm not). You can make your own sauce).

Pita Pizza Recipe


1. Lay out whole wheat pitas on cookie sheet.
2. Spread sauce on.
3. For dairy eaters sprinkle with shredded cheese of choice. We get a Tilamook Medium Cheddar baby loaf from Costco.
4. For non-dairy eaters pile on the veggies. My favorites are mushrooms, artichokes, red, yellow, or orange peppers, onions, and tomatoes.
5. Brush veggies with extra virgin olive oil
6. Sprinkle veggies with salt, pepper and basil
7. Bake at 375 for 10 minutes
8. Then take out the cheese ones
9. For the veggie pizzas switch the oven to broil and watch them so they don't burn.

** We usually eat these at least once a week. I usually toss up a salad to go with it.