Happy fall, everybody! I always try to fight it, but today I was sitting on the patio at Interurban with a couple of friends and we all agreed that the weather was just about perfect. Slightly cool, a little breezy but great for enjoying a beer outside still. If it would stay this nice forever, I would just love fall. But you know what they say…

Winter is coming. (Boo.)

I can’t hate the food, though. Especially the soup.

I made this sweet potato soup on a whim. Well, honestly, it was a little out of desperation. In my new work-from-home scenario, I try really hard to prep some food ahead of time. I know the stove is right there, but if I say to myself “Sweet potatoes sound good!” at noon, well, then I have to roast them, and that takes time. I love having some prepared healthy stuff (like roasted veggies and hard boiled eggs) that become the base of a great lunch when noon actually rolls around.

But sometimes, my eyes are bigger than my stomach. Like that time I roasted 3 huge sweet potatoes on Monday, and got sick of them on Tuesday because I also made myself sweet potatoes last week.

Well, I put those sweet potatoes to great use after making some homemade harissa for the PDX food swap! I think this soup would work similarly well with many winter squashes, as well, But the most important thing is, if your squash/potato is already prepped, it’s only going to take a few minutes to throw together. And for those of us who can get lost in though and spend 2 hours cooking oneself lunch, that’s a very good thing 🙂

Sweet Potato and Harissa Soup

Ingredients

• 2 sweet potatoes
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 quart chicken stock
• 2 Tablespoons harissa
• chevre (for serving)
• parsley (for serving)

Instructions

1. Cube 2 sweet potatoes (peeled) and bake at 425 for 20 minutes, until the edges are browned and the cubes are falling-apart tender.
2. While that’s going, saute 1 onion on medium heat in a stockpot. Cook for about 7 minutes, until onions start to brown slightly. Add 2 clove crushed garlic.
3. Add 1 quart chicken stock and bring to a simmer.
4. Add the cubes of sweet potato and pulse with a stick blender until the soup is thick and uniform in texture. Stir in 2 Tbsp harissa and season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Serve with chopped parsley onions and a spoonful of chevre (you could also use strained, unsweetened greek yogurt) to garnish and balance out the spiciness of the harissa.