Carla Hall's African Groundnut Soup

Upon reaching my sixth month of food blogging, a slew of thoughts keep rambling around in my brain...Is it worth the time and effort? What sets my blog apart from the thousands and thousands of other food blogs out there? Is anybody even reading my blog?? I don't even think my parents read my blog. Oh well, it comes down to two things, I love food and I love to cook. I love to seek out and try new dishes, and always have my eyes open for unique ingredients with which to experiment.

On most days, my first thought upon waking in the morning (after boiling water for my French press) is what am I going to prepare for dinner. And on the weekends, my mind runs wild with an endless list of dishes I aspire to prepare, but don't have time to do during the week -- due to that rather annoying obstacle I refer to as "work." What I love about cooking is that it gives me a chance to be creative and use the right side of my brain; conversely, in my day-to-day life, I am stuck (yes, stuck) in a left-brain world. Until I can take the permanent leap to the right side, I plan to enjoy my hobbies to their fullest. My hope is that others will sense my passion for food and be inspired to try a dish or two that they might not otherwise be so inclined to try.

That being said, anyone looking for any extremely flavorful and unique soup, look no further. This soup was inspired after watching Carla Hall prepare the winning dish on Top Chef the other night. I love how a couple of the other contestants didn't think her "vegetable stew" would even contend. All I can say is, Carla Hall you rock!  And this soup rocks too. I hope someday vegetables will be appreciated as much as pork belly [at least in the Midwest].  

This soup has so many layers of flavors -- the nuttiness from the peanuts and peanut butter, the sweetness from the sweet potato and roasted vegetables, hints of coriander and cumin from the chermoula, the acid from a nice squeeze of lime, and a bit of heat due to my addition of a habanero pepper. The heat from the habanero serves as a nice counterpoint to the sweetness of the soup. This is a soup to prepare when you have a few hours to spend in the kitchen and one that you can enjoy for several days thereafter, as the recipe serves six to eight people. It tasted even better the second day, after the flavors married overnight.

Adapted from Carla Hall's winning dish on Top Chef:

African Groundnut Soup

Spice Mixture
3 tablespoons ground cumin
1 1/4 tablespoons ground coriander

2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
5 tablespoons chermoula spice blend

Chermoula (not specified in original recipe, so my take on it):

2 teaspoons ground cumin 

3 teaspoons hot smoked paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander                                                                   
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon salt                                                                   
1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

In a small bowl, combine the cumin, coriander, cayenne, and chermoula. Set
aside.

Broth & Sweet Potatoes
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 large onions, roughly chopped
1 bulb garlic, peeled and smashed
6 inch piece ginger, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 28-ounce can whole tomatoes
4 quarts vegetable stock (see below for recipe)
2 fresh bay leaves

1 habanero pepper

2 pounds sweet potatoes (tossed with olive oil, sea salt, and black pepper)
1 cup peanut butter, fresh and unsalted
1 pound adzuki beans, cooked in water with 2 bay leaves until tender
3 poblano peppers, roasted peeled and diced

2 red peppers, roasted peeled and diced

1 bunch cilantro
1 bunch mint
1 cup peanuts (salted & roasted), roughly chopped
1 lime wedge per serving, juiced per serving
Lime zest, to taste
Sea salt to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Heat large pot on high heat. Pour in olive oil oil, and then add onions. Sauté for 4 to
5 minutes, then add garlic and ginger. Reduce heat to medium and continue to cook
until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes.
3. Sprinkle in half of spice mixture, salt to taste and stir until mixed well. Pour in canned tomatoes, stock, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then simmer for at least 1 hour. Strain broth, then puree solids with 2 to 3 cups of broth until very smooth. 

4. While broth is simmering, dice the sweet potatoes into 1/4 inch cubes. Toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and roast in 425 degree oven until just tender. Set aside to cool.
5. Place peanut butter into medium bowl and slowly whisk in 1 to 2 cups of broth until
mixture is smooth. Pour mixture back into pot with broth.
6. Toss together cooked beans, sweet potatoes, peppers, cilantro, and mint. Season with salt, spice mixture, and lime zest to taste.

Note: Next time, I will keep the roasted sweet potatoes separate, and add them in as I serve the dish so they retain more of their crispy texture.

Assembly:
In shallow bowl, pour broth, then spoon vegetable mixture into the center. Garnish with chopped peanuts, lime juice and zest, and cilantro.

Simple Vegetable Stock
I like to prepare vegetable stock ahead of time and store it in the freezer in individual zip lock bags. 

2 large onion
4 large carrots
4 stalks celery and a few of their leaves

2 large leeks

2 teaspoons olive oil

16 cloves crushed garlic

16 parsley sprigs

12 thyme sprigs

4 bay leaves

4 teaspoons salt

4 quarts water (16 cups)

Roughly chop the onions, carrots, celery, and leeks. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat, add the vegetables, garlic, and herbs and cook for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the salt and water, bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Strain and use.