Carrot, Sweet Potato and Ginger Soup

This recipe is not "very French", but it's turned cold again in the UK...so until we can get out to France and some warm rays of sunshine at Easter, I devised (with a little help from some nice twitter friends) a warming winter soup, around the ingredients I had in the house!

Carrot, Sweet Potato and Ginger Soup

1 large sweet potato (grated in food processor)
4-6 large carrots (grated in food processor)
1 large onion (white or red) chopped finely
2-3 garlic cloves crushed
3cm cube ginger skinned and chopped finely
1tblspn olive oil
2 tsp cumin
1 litre vegetable stock (cheated I made using Marigold Swiss Vegetable Bouillon)
0.25 l orange juice
Grated zest of an orange
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

• Sweat the grated vegetables, garlic and ginger in the olive oil over a low heat with pan lid on, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes.


• Stir in cumin and orange zest and plenty of pepper.


• Make up the stock and add to vegetables with the orange juice


• Simmer gently for 15-20 minutes


• Blend carefully and adjust seasoning to taste (for me I add even more black pepper and little salt as the stock has salt in it)


• Serve with a swirl of low fat yogurt, creme fraiche or cream and sprinkling of paprika.