North African Inspired Sweet Potato and Lentil Soup
I’m cooking my way trough all the great fresh produce in m December farm share box from Fiddlehead Farm.
Today I’m used some of the their wonderful sweet potatoes to make a North African inspired soup with notes of cinnamon and nutmeg. Not only does it taste good, but my kitchen smells amazing!
The light natural sweetness of the sweet potatoes blends perfectly with the warm, aromatic North African spices.
The spice flavours meld together to create a wonderful, fragrant, and flavourful dish, taking a simple soup, made with everyday ingredients, and turning it into something new and exciting.
Flavourful, Healthy and Vegetarian!
Not only is this soup bursting with flavours, it’s super healthy, and completely vegetarian as well!
Lentils add protein and fiber to the soup, while the sweet potatoes provide loads of vitamin A, vitamin C and manganese, and are a good source of antioxidants!
The Spices
Ras el hanout is a traditional spice blend used throughout North Africa in soups, stews, and tagines.
Arabic for “head of the shop”, ras el hanout refers to the best spices a spice dealer or merchant can offer his customers. The blend can contain upwards of 20-23 different ingredients giving it a rich, complex flavour. Each spice merchant, or family have their own blend, with no two versions being the same.
Use 1-2 tablespoons of a Ras el hanout or make your own blend using ground spices you may already have at home.
I’ve used a combination of cinnamon, ground ginger, saffron, nutmeg, paprika, turmeric, allspice, cumin, ground coriander, and black pepper. You can use ground cinnamon, or a cinnamon stick as I have.
For a little added kick, add some freshly grated ginger to the soup.
Leftovers
This is definitely one of those recipes that tastes even better the next day.
The soup will keep, refrigerated for 6-7 days, or frozen for 3 months.
If you like this soup recipe you may also enjoy Moroccan Spiced Vegetable and Chickpea Soup or Curried Sweet Potato Soup.
Ingredients
Spice Blend
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp paprika (sweet or hot to your preference)
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- ¼ allspice
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp crushed black pepper
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon (omit if using a cinnamon stick)
Soup
- 2 tbsp Ras e hanout (omit if using your own spice blend)
- few saffron threads
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion peeled and diced
- 1-2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 carrot peeled and diced
- 2 celery stalks diced
- 1 cup dried brown lentils rinsed
- 1 x 28 ounce canned diced tomatoes
- 1 cinnamon stick (2-3 inch)
- 4 cups water
- 16 ounces sweet potatoes peeled and diced into 1/2 cubes ( about 3 cups)
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Place a dry frying pan over medium heat and add the spices (or 2 tablespoons of Ras e hanout if using) in an even layer. Allow the spices to toast, gently shaking the pan to ensure they toast evenly and don't burn, about 2-3 minutes. The spices will begin to pop and release their fragrance when they are toasted. Transfer the toasted spices into a bowl and set side
- Place the saffron threads in a ¼ cup warm water to soak and set aside
- Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven or large stock pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery and garlic and cook until the onion is just translucent, about 3-5 minutes.Add the lentils and the toasted spices and stir to allow the lentils to coat in the oil.
- Add the tomatoes, 4 cups of water, the cinnamon stick, and the saffron with its soaking liquid. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, add in the cubed sweet potato and cook for another 10 minutes or until the lentils and sweet potato are soft.
- Taste and adjust seasoning.