Four of the seven members of my household currently have colds, so the soup series continues. Today, I wanted to make onion soup, but based on the way my sniffling baby has been (not) sleeping, I opted for a blended soup. This orange soup is one of my quickest and easiest to make because the vegetables can be cut into large chunks and tossed in the pot, with minimal chopping time. This recipe is versatile and forgiving. I use whatever orange vegetables I have at home, as long as there’s a mix of at least three. It may never come out exactly the same twice in a row, but it is delicious every time. If you go easy on the spices, it also makes great homemade baby food.

Today’s soup has one medium onion, six cloves of garlic, six carrots, two medium sweet potatoes, two medium potatoes, and one medium butternut squash. If I had fresh pumpkin at home, I would have added that or swapped it with the butternut squash. The squash gives the soup a slightly sweeter flavor than pumpkin. Often, I will have a leftover sweet potato or butternut squash sitting in the fridge that I baked in the oven, planning to serve it on Shabbos or use it in another recipe. Butternut squash is definitely easiest to peel after it’s baked, but  with a strong, sharp knife and a little balance, you can cut off the skin of the raw squash. (See pictures below.)

I slice off the stem, stand it up with the big end down, and slice down the sides with a very sharp knife. The bottom part, with the seeds, I hack away at and manage to get most of the vegetable without seeds or peel. Do you have a different method? Please share!

Curry powder adds a rich, warm flavor to this wintry soup. I left it out in order to increase the chances of my kids eating the soup and just sprinkled a bit onto my own bowl. You can make this soup into a complete meal by serving with couscous (Foolproof Couscous) and plain yogurt or gevinah levanah (soft white cheese).

Here’s to a healthy winter!
If you like this, you may like my Red Lentil Soup.

Creamy, Comforting (Curried) Orange Soup

Yield: about 3 liters/quarts soup
Prep time: 30 minutes, Cook time: 1 hour, Ready in: 90 minutes

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon oil
1 medium onion
4-6 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
2 teaspoons curry powder (optional)
4-6 carrots, peeled
1 large or 2 medium sweet potatoes
2 potatoes
1 medium butternut squash
2 teaspoons salt
2 liters boiling water

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large pot. Add onions and garlic, chopped coarsely. Saute foe 1-2 minutes.
2. Add  dry spices. Their taste will come out the most when added at the beginning of cooking.
3. Cut all of the vegetables into large chunks and add them to the pot, starting with carrots, which need the longest time to soften. Add salt.
4. Add water and simmer for about an hour, until vegetables are soft.
5. Allow to cool slightly before blending with an immersion blender so you don’t get burned from any soup that may splash.
6. Adjust seasonings if necessary and serve hot with bread or couscous and plain yogurt, white cheese, or sour cream.