Culinary Adventures With Alston

Blog 2: Sweet Potato Soup with Vegetables and Cream

2 Medium Carrots

2 Celery Stalks

2 Small Onions

Salt and Pepper, Thyme, Bay Leaf, Paprika

Cream (Optional)

Vegetable Stock

I have made vegetable soups before but I have never made any soups with sweet potato. Sweet Potato is something that I eat quite regularly – I enjoy the deep earthiness and sweetness of this type of potatoes.

I started by sweating down my essential mix of carrots, onions and celery. I want to sweat these down to enhance flavor before I put anything else in. After sauteing for 5-7 minutes, I put my sweet potatoes in the pot along with my herbs and spices.

I added in a extra thyme whilst I let my potatoes cook. I need all these vegetables soft and cooked through because I will be using a immersion blender to emulsify everything. I chose not to use any thickening agents because I feel using a immersion blender, along with the starchy help from the potatoes, will give me the texture that I want. It is also incredibly hearty and healthy to make soups this method.
I take out my bay leaf and thyme stem and start blending.
To finish it off, I added a little cream to give me a even smoother texture.

I’ve been a cook all my life, but I am still learning to be a good chef. I’m always learning new techniques and improving beyond my own knowledge because there is always something new to learn and new horizons to discover.

(Andres, 2000)

Jose Andrés

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