Sweet Potato Soup from VEGAN FOR THE HOLIDAYS & Book Review

Fall is here and it is time to get baking!!  I love this time of year and especially getting together with family and friends to enjoy delicious food.  
Vegan for the Holidays covers all the details any holiday cook requires to create the perfect celebration.  From assembling a party menu to planning a multicourse feast, you'll get ideas for establishing modern, more healthful food traditions.  Zel Allen is the author of this beautiful book that celebrates feasts for Thanksgiving through New Year's Day. Some of Zel's recipes include: Cranberry-Pear Compote, Lemony Carrot Soup, Autumn Vegetable Roast, Red Cabbage and Apple Stir-Fry, Baked Maple Sweet Potatoes, Apple'n' Cream Pie, Pumpkin Apple Nog, Winter Almond Chowder, Santa's Swanky Salad, Raisin-Nut Cabbage Rolls with Sweet and Sour Sauce, and many many more delicious recipes!  All the tools you need to create some super comfort foods. Food, after all, is a powerful bonding agent that seals warm memories of cherished occasions. You will love this book and The Nut Gourmet book. You can find Zel in Vegetarians in Paradise or  Zel's Vegan NutGourmet. 

My family absolutely loves soups, so Zel's Sweet Potato Soup on page 121, caught my eye.  Sweet potatoes contain vitamin A, vitamin C, manganese, fiber, B vitamins, potassium and even iron. In fact, Whole Foods considers sweet potatoes one of the healthiest vegetables we eat.  Healthy antioxidents abound in sweet potatoes. This sweet potato soup is delicately sweet, thick and creamy.  This soup will make a roomful of hungry partygoers happy.  Sprinkling pecans and raisins on top really adds the perfect taste to this yummy soup.  I hope you will give it a try.

Also check out Barn-Burner Chili from Zel's book at The Health Seeker's Kitchen.  It looks super Yummy and I will be making it soon.

Sweet Potato Soup
Printable Recipe                                                                                                                      
7 cups water
2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes or yams, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup raisins, for garnish
1/4 cup chopped toasted pecans for garnish

1.  Combine 4 cups of the water, sweet potatoes, and onion in an 8 to 10-quart stockpot.  Cover and bring to a boil over high heat.  Decrease the heat to medium and simmer for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are fork-tender.

2.  Let cook briefly.  Use an immersion blender to process the soup in the stockpot until smooth and creamy.  Alternatively, put the soup in a food processor.  Process in batches until smooth and creamy, stopping occasionally to scrape down the work bowl.
 
3.  Return the soup to the stockpot.  Stir in the salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pepper, and enough of the remaining 3 cups of water to reach desired consistency.  Adjust the seasonings.

4.  Warm the soup over medium-high heat, ladle into bowls and garnish each serving with raisins and pecans if desired.