Description

This creamy and comforting Sweet Potato Soup is a delicious blend of sweet potatoes, aromatic leeks, onions, and spices, simmered to perfection and blended into a silky smooth texture. Garnished with a drizzle of cream or olive oil and a crunchy topping like crispy flatbread strips or pistachios, it’s a warming and flavorful meal perfect for chilly days.

Ingredients

Scale

Main Ingredients

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
30g / 2 tbsp unsalted butter (or more oil)
2 onions, diced
2 leeks (white and pale green parts only), quartered and cut into 1cm / 1/2″ slices
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 kg / 2 lb sweet potato, peeled, quartered lengthwise and cut into 2cm / 0.8″ chunks
1 tbsp cumin powder
1.25 litre / 1.25 quarts chicken or vegetable stock, low sodium
1.5 tsp cooking / kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup cream (any type) or an extra knob of butter

Garnishes

Extra virgin olive oil, cream, yogurt, or sour cream for drizzling
Crunchy toppings such as flatbread strips, croutons, pistachios, pepitas, or crispy fried shallots

Crispy Flatbread Strips

Flatbread cut into 1cm / 0.4″ strips
Olive oil (for frying or spraying)
Salt (to sprinkle)

Croutons

Bread (crustless), cut into 0.75 cm / ⅓” cubes
Olive oil (to coat)
Pinch of salt

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Instructions

Sauté Aromatics: Heat the olive oil and melt the butter in a large heavy-based pot over medium heat. Add the diced onions, sliced leeks, and chopped garlic, cooking for about 5 minutes until softened and fragrant.
Add Sweet Potato and Spices: Stir in the sweet potato chunks and cumin powder. Cook for another 3 minutes, stirring regularly to coat the potatoes evenly with the spices.
Simmer with Stock: Pour in the chicken or vegetable stock, add salt and black pepper. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer, and cook uncovered for 20 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are very tender.
Blend the Soup: Remove the pot from heat. Using a hand-held stick blender, blend the soup until smooth. Alternatively, carefully transfer the soup in batches to a high-powered blender and blend until creamy. Stir in the cream or additional butter to enrich the texture.
Prepare Garnishes: While the soup simmers, prepare your garnishes. For crispy flatbread strips, cut flatbread into strips, scrunch to curl, and fry in oil at 180°C / 350°F for 20 seconds until golden, then sprinkle with salt. Or bake them with olive oil spray and salt until crisp. For croutons, toss bread cubes in olive oil and salt, bake at 180°C / 350°F for 10 minutes until crunchy.
Serve and Garnish: Ladle the smooth soup into bowls. Drizzle with your choice of cream, yogurt, or olive oil and sprinkle a crunchy topping such as crispy flatbread strips, pistachios, or croutons. Serve warm for the best comfort experience.

Notes

Leeks should be washed well by cutting only the white and pale green parts, quartering lengthwise but keeping the root intact for easy washing. Rinse under running water to remove grit.
Chicken stock is preferred for a deeper flavor, but vegetable stock works well for a vegetarian version.
Combining a drizzle (like cream or olive oil) with a crunchy topping enhances texture and flavor balance.
If using a blender, allow the soup to cool for 10 minutes and leave the lid’s feeder tube open (covered with a cloth) to prevent pressure buildup.
Leftover soup can be refrigerated for up to 4 days or frozen, making it convenient for meal prep.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 cup (approx. 250ml)
Calories: 180
Sugar: 7g
Sodium: 450mg
Fat: 9g
Saturated Fat: 3.5g
Unsaturated Fat: 5g
Trans Fat: 0g
Carbohydrates: 22g
Fiber: 4g
Protein: 3g
Cholesterol: 15mg