Roasted Red Pepper and Sweet Potato Soup

When I lived in California I was a vegetarian and did not eat any processed foods. I love roasted peppers and sweet potatoes so I came up with a wonderful combination of the two. I eat this as my main course with some crusty bread, but it is also good as a first course.

Roasted Red Pepper and Sweet Potato Soup

1 T olive oil

1 lg Onion, peeled and chopped (2 cups)

2 Garlic cloves; crushed (Tip: using the side of a chef knife, smash garlic for easy peeling)

1 ½ lb sweet potatoes; (6 cups) peeled and cut into 1/2-inch chunks

6 c vegetable stock or water

2 Sprigs fresh thyme; up to 3

3 lg red bell peppers

2 T fresh lemon juice

1t cayenne pepper; to taste

1t salt and freshly ground

½ t black pepper

2 T Yogurt or Sour Cream for garnish

1 sm spri fresh thyme; for garnish

Preheat broiler.

In large pot, heat oil over medium heat.

Add onion and garlic; cover and cook over medium-low heat, until onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add sweet potatoes, stir well; cover and cook 10 minutes.

Add stock or water and thyme; bring to a boil.

Reduce heat, cover and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, Place peppers (whole, with stem intact on cookie sheet)

Tip: I like to cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil for easy clean-up.

Place pan under broiler, turning with tongs until charred all over, about 10 minutes.

Place peppers in a glass bowl covered with plastic wrap, let sit for approx 20 mins

When peppers are cool enough to handle, remove charred skins, stem, seeds and ribs.

Discard thyme sprigs from soup.

Puree soup and roasted bell peppers until smooth.

Tip: I use a hand held mixture to puree soup. You can also transfer soup to a blender or food processor.

Gently reheat soup

Add lemon juice, cayenne, salt and pepper to taste.

To serve, ladle soup into warmed bowls and garnish each serving with a

swirl of yogurt or sour cream and several small sprigs of thyme.

Tip: This soup also freezes very well, just be careful with the amount of pepper you use, as it tends to become spicier the long the soup has to meld.

Makes 8 servings