Curried sweet potato soup

I first tried curried sweet potato soup a few months ago when I was on a little overnight stay with a friend. We came across a lovely cafe in a tiny village, pretty much in the middle of nowhere. It was the cutest place, filled with vintage decor, bright colours, and a really homely atmosphere. The soup of the day was curried sweet potato and it was the most delicious soup I'd tasted in a long time. The contrast between the sweetness of the potato and the spicy Indian flavours from the curry was just wonderful and I knew I had to try recreating it at home.

I love this soup and have been making it every few weeks. I sometimes eat it by itself with some bread as a lunch, but more often I eat it as a dinner, adding rice, broccoli, sweetcorn and spinach to it. That maybe sounds a little odd but trust me, it is so good! It also works out to be a really cheap meal as the ingredients are so basic, and you probably have all the spices and herbs in your house already so you just need to pick up the veggies. It makes a huge pot so it will last you for the whole week, or you can freeze it and use it at a later date. 

You will need (serves 6):

2 large sweet potatoes

3 carrots

1 onion

1/2 cup red lentils

7-8 cups vegetable stock made with 1 1/2 stock cubes (add more water if you prefer a thinner consistency of soup)

1 1/2 tablespoons curry powder

1 teaspoon herbs de provence

1 teaspoon coriander

1 teaspoon cumin

ground pepper to taste

Method

- Cut the sweet potatoes and carrots into largish chunks and finely chop the onion.

- In a large pot, fry the onion in a little water for 2-3 minutes to soften it.
- Add the herbs and spices and fry off for 2-3 minutes. 

- Add the stock, sweet potatoes, carrots, and lentils to the pot and bring to the boil.

- Reduce the heat and leave to simmer for 40-45 minutes.

- Using a hand blender, blend until smooth. If you find the soup is too thick for you then add some extra water.

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