African Peanut Soup

When I was living at Karinsplass in Minneapolis during college, I used to frequent a nearby grocery store Co-op for bowls of warm soup  and monster cookies. My favorite soup that they served was an African peanut stew; I always felt like it was my lucky day when that we being served up on a cold, blustery, Minnesota afternoon.

Seamus is on a little bit of a soup kick right now, which I have been thoroughly enjoying. I saw this recipe while browsing on the internet, and I showed it to Shea. He seemed intrigued, and decided that he was going to make the soup this week.

The soup turned out fantastic, and even better than I remember the soup that I originally fell in love with in Minneapolis. Seamus substituted one can of coconut milk with chicken broth, which I think lightened the soup up perfectly while still maintaining the richness of the peanut flavor.

African Peanut Soup

Courtesy of Kiersten at Oh My Veggies.com

ingredients

• 3 cups vegetable stock or water
• 2 (15-ounce) cans coconut milk
• 1 cup diced yellow onion
• 1/2 cup diced celery
• 4 large garlic cloves, pressed or minced
• 1 teaspoon seeded and diced hot chile pepper
• 4 cups chopped sweet potato (1/2-inch pieces)
• 1 1/2 cups chopped tomato (1/2-inch pieces) or 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons sea salt, or to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon wheat-free tamari or other soy sauce (optional)
• 1 tablespoon Berbere spice mix (optional)
• 3/4 cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/2 cup roasted unsalted peanuts, for garnish

instructions

1. Place the vegetable stock in a 3-quart pot over medium-high heat. Add all the remaining ingredients, except the peanut butter, cilantro, and peanuts, and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Remove about 1 cup of the liquid and place it into a small bowl. Add the peanut butter and stir until creamy. Return the mixture to the pot, stir well, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add the cilantro, stir well, and garnish with peanuts before serving.

notes

Variations:

You can sauté the onion, celery, and garlic in 1 tablespoon of oil before adding the vegetable stock.

Replace the peanut butter with almond butter or other nut butter.

For a lighter soup, replace one can of coconut milk with an equivalent amount of vegetable stock or water.

Add 2 cups of chopped spinach, chard, or kale once the peanut butter is added.