Sweet Potato Vichyssoise
How to make a perfect sweet potato Vichyssoise
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 6 cups stock chicken - vegetarian - duck
- 3 good sized sweet potatoes
- 3 leeks they usually come in bunches of three
- Freshly ground pepper if you have it but black pepper will work
- 2 teaspoons fresh ginger - peeled and grated
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper - Warning - read above
- 1 cup heavy cream
- Sea salt to taste
- Chopped basil for garnish the original called for chives but I had fresh basil on hand so I went with it
Instructions
- Have the stock ready to go whether you make it yourself, buy it canned, or reconstitute the stuff I like.
- Peel and quarter the sweet potatoes.
- Leeks - You are only going to use the white and tender green parts of the leeks so cut the hairy tip off the root as well as the dark green leafy top which by the way would be a great ingredient for your own veggie stock. Leeks can be full of sand, so you want to cut them up into ¼ inch slices, separate the rings and wash them well in a colander under cold running water.
- Ginger - Peel and grate the ginger. I use a spoon for peeling and my Microplane grater/zester. Works great for these types of jobs.
- In a pot big enough to hold all these ingredients (I used a 4 ½ quart sauce pot that worked fine), add the stock, sweet potatoes, and leeks and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once at a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer until the potatoes are fork-tender about 20 minutes.
- When done, remove the pot from the heat and let it cool before pureeing.
- 2) Here, you can use a blender or food processor and work in batches to puree the potatoes, stock and leeks. I prefer to use my hand blender to minimize the cleanup and avoid the mess from spilling during transfer. Whatever method you use, you want the ingredients to become a smooth puree.
- 3) Before you finish, add the pepper, cayenne, ginger, and puree. If you used a blender or food processor, pour the soup into a large bowl and let it cool since I used a hand blender and left everything in the pot.
- 4) Add the heavy cream and stir to mix well once the soup becomes lukewarm. Here's a good time to taste and adjust the seasoning with a little salt, and I can almost guarantee it will need salt to boost the flavor.
- 5) Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours until the soup is well chilled.
Notes
This soup will last in the refrigerator for a couple of days and get better each day. When ready to serve, taste again to adjust seasonings and garnish with a little chopped basil on top.