Creamy Sweet Potato Soup - A Healthy Virtual Supper Club Holiday Meal

This month, we'll all be eating rich foods and sharing a glass or two of bubbly with friends and family. Some of us will be eating more rich food and drinking more bubbly than usual, so in the off times, it's pretty important to knosh on some lower calorie and super healthy dishes. Picking and choosing light and nutritional dishes can offset some of the over indulgence that comes with the holiday party season and family feasts.

Hence, the Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club menu for December reflects several good choices for lighter fare. Take this soup for instance - 244 calories for a 1½ cup serving. Pair it with a salad and you have a nice lunch or light supper. Put it on a holiday dinner menu and it lightens the calorie load quite a bit. Plus, it's healthy and pretty much dairy free ... and phew, the colors!



This is an easy soup to make and could easily be put together the day before a special meal or late in the day after a busy holiday shopping trip. Steaming the potatoes in just a bit of water makes them cook up fast and eases clean up too! The skins slip right off the potatoes easily and prep time is minimal! This is MY kind of soup!

Creamy Sweet Potato Soup

a Cooking Light recipe

Serves 6

Ingredients:

2 lbs. sweet potatoes, sliced lengthwise

¼ c. water

2 tsp. olive oil

1 c. chopped onion

½ tsp. ground cumin

¼ tsp. red pepper flakes

4 c. chicken broth (reduced salt)

6 slices bacon, crisped and crumbled ( I used capicola)

¼ c. shaved Parmesan cheese

2 tbsp. chopped flat leaf parsley

Making the Soup:

1. Place the water in the bottom of an oven-proof glass baking pan. Lay the halved sweet potatoes flat side down in the pan. Cover with foil (snug!) and bake in a 300° F oven for about 30 minutes or until knife tender.
2. Remove from the oven and cool.
3. While the sweet potatoes cool, heat the oil in the bottom of a soup pot. Add the onions and cook over medium heat until slippery and glistening.
4. Add the cumin and red pepper flakes and continue cooking for a minute or so.
5. While the spices cook, slip the skins from the potatoes and add them to the onions.
6. Run a knife through them to break them into small pieces.
7. Add the chicken broth and stir well.
8. Lower the heat and simmer the soup for about 20 minutes to let the flavours mingle.
9. Using a hand blender, whiz the soup to a smooth consistency.
10. Add salt and pepper to taste. Return the cover to the pan, turn off the heat and let the soup sit to mature.
11. Before serving, crisp and crumble the bacon, shave the cheese and chop the parsley.
12. Reheat the soup gently. Spoon into bowls and top with bacon bits, cheese, and parsley sprinkles.

While I wish that I could sit down to the Virtual Supper Club's menu with all my blogging friends, that is not to be. Soooo ... we will be having this soup with a pulled pork sandwich for a special southern style supper. If I were sitting down with the members of the supper club, the meal would be a lot more sumptuous! Sandi chose the challenge theme this month, so she has prepared a main dish. The rest of us have rounded out her cider roasted pork roast with an appetizer, sides, and a dessert. Let's see what every one has prepared!

December's Menu

Appetizer - Val's Baked Burrata

Soup - Susan's Creamy Sweet Potato Soup

Main Dish - Sandi's Apple Cider Glazed Pork Tenderloin

Side Dish - Sarah's Beans and Greens

Dessert - Jerry's Rustic Apple Tart