This awesome soup comes from The Ultimate Soup Bible: salt cod, spinach, and okra in a tomato-wine broth surround a mountain of mashed yams. Very different, and very delicious!

Lisa says:

This is so good! I like the cod, though it’s not as salty as I’d expected.

Chris says:

Soaking for over a day will do that, I guess.

Lisa says:

Never in a million years would I have thought to put mashed yams in the middle of a soup!

Chris says:

Mashed Yams? More like Mashed YUMS!

Lisa says:

I know! We should make the yams on their own, too — so good.

Abbie says:

I like our mountain of potatoes… I’d live on it if I were this big…

Chris says:

You may not realize that the people out there can’t see you touching your fingers together to indicate that “this big” means “miniscule”.

Abbie says:

Um, it’s kind of implied if I refer to it as a “mountain” of potatoes.

Chris says:

Good point.

Caribbean Salt Cod and Okra Soup
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1/2 lb salt cod, soaked for 24 hours, with several water changes
1 tbsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 jalapeño, seeded and chopped
6 plum tomatoes, peeled and chopped, or 1 32-oz can whole tomatoes, drained and chopped
1 cup white wine
2 bay leaves
3 3/4 cups water
8 oz okra, trimmed and cut into thirds
8 oz spinach
salt and pepper

For the potatoes:
1 1/2 lbs yams
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup butter
2 tbsp heavy cream
1 tbsp chopped chives

Drain and skin the salt cod, then rinse under cold water. Cut into bite-sized pieces and set aside. Heat the oil in a large, heavy pan. Add the garlic, onion, and jalapeño and cook for 4-5 minutes over medium-high heat until softened. Add the salt cod and cook for another 4 minutes until it begins to color. Stir in the tomatoes, wine, and bay leaves and bring to a boil. Add the water, return to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the okra the soup and cook an additional 10 minutes. Stir in the spinach and cook for 5 minutes until the okra is tender. While the soup is cooking, prepare the yams. Peel the yams and cut into large dice, then place in a pan with the lemon juice and add cold water to cover. Bring to a boil and cook for 15-20 minutes, until tender. Drain well, then return to the pan to dry over the heat for a few minutes. Add the butter and cream, and mash the potatoes. Season as desired. Add the chives.
Season the soup with salt and pepper. Spoon portions of the yams into the center of six bowls and ladle the soup around it. Serve and enjoy!

6 Servings

We had our last batch of leftover bean burgers last night (tear) and needed an easy side, so we baked up a batch of thick-cut sweet potato fries! Delicious!

Lisa says:

Yum! What are these tossed in, and, uh… why are we eating them in ice-cream cups?

Chris says:

Um… they’re “sweet” potatoes?

Lisa says:

Wow.

Chris says:

I know, it’s genius. Anyway, I tossed them with coarse-ground salt, some black pepper, red pepper powder, and a little truffle oil.

Lisa says:

Fancy! You can still taste the sweetness of the potato, which is what I like.

Oven-Baked Sweet Potato Fries
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2 long, thin sweet potatoes
1/2 tbsp olive oil
coarse-ground sea-salt
fresh ground pepper
red pepper
truffle oil

Preheat an oven to 400F. Cut the potatoes in wedges; I like leaving the skin on. In a bowl, toss the potatoes with the olive oil, salt, pepper, and red pepper. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet and cook for 20 minutes, then flip the fries and cook until nice and crispy. Remove from oven and add a bit more salt and drizzle with a touch of truffle oil for “fanciness”.

Another catch-up post; Lisa made this as an alternative addition to the usual pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving. This recipe comes from Cooking Light; the crust was somewhat of a disappointment, but we loved, loved, loved the filling.

Lisa says:

What’s this “we”? Not all of us loved the filling.

Chris says:

What? You’re nuts — I was stealing leftovers every time I walked by the fridge. How can you not like it? It has *bourbon* in it!

Lisa says:

I didn’t like the consistency; I think I should have blended it a bit more. I wanted it smoother. And I hated the crust. Stupid Cooking Light.

Chris says:

I think if you made it the exact same way but just used a ready-made pie crust it would be perfect.

Lisa says:

*Maybe*. I just wish we had more of those brussels sprouts.

Chris says:

…or you could make it the same way except leave everything out but the bourbon, and instead of slicing it you could just pour it in a glass.

Sweet Potato-Bourbon Pie
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2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons stick margarine
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 ounce block-style fat-free cream cheese (about 4 teaspoons)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
4 medium sweet potatoes (about 2 1/4 pounds)
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons bourbon or 1/4 teaspoon rum extract and 3 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons stick margarine
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
2 large eggs
Cooking spray
2 teaspoons water
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
1/4 cup chopped pecans
Preparation
Preheat oven to 400°.

Combine first 4 ingredients in a medium bowl; beat at medium speed of a mixer until light and creamy. Add vanilla and 1 egg; beat well. Gradually add flour, beating at low speed until moist. Press mixture gently into a 5-inch circle on heavy-duty plastic wrap; cover with additional plastic wrap. Chill 1 hour.

While dough chills, bake sweet potatoes. Bake at 400° for 55 minutes or until very tender. Cool. Reduce oven temperature to 350°. Peel potatoes; place potato pulp, brown sugar, and next 8 ingredients (brown sugar through eggs) in a large bowl. Beat at medium speed of a mixer until smooth; set aside.

Roll dough, still covered, into an 11-inch circle. Remove 1 sheet of plastic wrap, and fit dough into a 9-inch tart pan coated with cooking spray. Remove top sheet of plastic wrap. Spoon potato mixture into prepared crust. Combine 2 teaspoons water and egg white, and brush edges of dough with egg white mixture. Sprinkle potato mixture with chopped pecans. Bake tart at 350° for 1 hour or until puffy and set. Cool on a wire rack.

10 servings

This soup also comes from the Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites Book. It’s rich and creamy, and the corn and potatoes give it a sweet taste, with just a touch of heat from serrano peppers.

Lisa says:

You know what my favorite part of this soup is? The sweet — it reminds me of one of the Great Bowls of Fire recipes.

Chris says:

My favorite part is that it’s going into my mouth.

Southwestern Corn and Potato Soup
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1 cup finely chopped onions
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 serrano, seeded and minced
1/4 tsp salt
3 cups Vegetable broth
2 tsp ground cumin
1 medium sweet potato, diced (~2 cups)
1/2 red bell pepper, finely chopped
3 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels
salt
lime wedges
cilantro, finely chopped

In a covered soup pot, simmer the onions, garlic, serrano, and salt in 1 cup of the vegetable stock for about 10 minutes or until the onions soften. In a small bowl, make a paste with the cumin and a tbsp of the stock, stir into the pot, and simmer for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the the sweet potatoes and the remaining stock and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the bell pepper and corn and simmer, covered, for another 10 minutes or until all the vegetables are tender.
Puree about 1/2 the soup in a blender and return it to the pot. Add salt to taste and reheat on low heat. Serve with lime wedges and cilantro.

Tonight we returned to the old standby, Great Bowls of Fire. Lisa made this spicy curry that features chicken, sweet potatoes, and various other vegetables and spices. We served it with brown basmati rice.

Chris says:

Yum! The flavors work really well together — I love the sweetness of the sweet potatoes and the spiciness of the … spices.

Lisa says:

Okay, *that’s* going on the blog.

Chris says:

Oy.

Lisa says:

This is why I love Great Bowls of Fire: it has the best volume to calories ratio of any of our cookbooks. The recipes are all delicious and you actually feel full afterwards!

Curried Chicken with Sweet Potatoes
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1 tbsp canola oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 medium tomato, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 fresh cayenne peppers, seeded and minced
1 tbsp minced ginger root
1 tbsp curry powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp salt
1 lb boneless chicken breasts, diced
2 carrots, diced
1 large sweet potato, diced
1 1/2 cups chicken broth

In a medium saucepan, heat the oil. Add the onion, tomato, garlic, chili pepper, and ginger and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes over medium-high heat. Add the curry powder, cumin, turmeric, and salt and cook, stirring, for 1 minute more. Add the chicken and cook, stirring, for 5 or 6 minutes more.
Add the carrots, sweet potato, and broth and bring to a simmer. Cook for 20 to 25 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and the chicken is fully cooked. Remove from the heat and let stand for about 5 minutes before serving.
Ladle the curry into bowls and serve with basmati rice on the side.

3-4 Servings.