Camilla’s (of Culinary Adventures with Camilla) #FreshTastyValentines continues!

I am not showcasing any of our amazing sponsors with today’s post because this soup is what I made last year for Valentine’s Day! (That being said, Gourmet Garden products would work beautifully in this soup.) I’m sharing it during this event because it falls beautifully under the theme of #FreshTastyValentines! It’s a fresh take on potato soup by using purple potatoes, it’s tasty (and spicy!), and it’s quite healthy with only 1 gram of fat, 4 grams of fiber, 5 grams of protein, and 150 Calories per serving.

Because Valentine’s Day fell on a Saturday last year and my MIL was visiting I wanted to pull out all the stops and make a three course meal. Soup, entree, and fondue for dessert.

For the entree my husband and I had picked up some Cornish hens to try out. We bought them too far in advance and hadn’t put them in the freezer. When we cut the packaging open we were bombarded with the smell of “don’t you dare try to eat me.” We were so disappointed! I don’t even remember what our Plan B was, probably pork tenderloin, but I do remember that we didn’t even make Plan B! Our decadent breakfast (which I’ll be sharing next week) kept our tummies happy all day.

But I did still make this soup, which ended up being our main course. I was once again disappointed by my menu, but only by appearance. I was expecting a purple soup, perfect for Valentine’s Day, but instead this soup was the color of chocolate. Which, I suppose, is still appropriate for the holiday. Squeezing lime right over the soup did create a fun purple swirl though! And this soup packs a kick, so that lime was necessary.

This soup makes 6 servings.

Peruvian Purple Potato Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 sweet onion, diced
• 2 jalapenos, deseeded and diced
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 1/2 tsp minced garlic
• 4 C vegetable stock
• 2 lb purple potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1/4 C fresh cilantro
• lime juice

Steps:

1. Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a large pot (I used my Dutch oven). Saute the onion, jalapenos, and bay leaves until onion is tender and translucent. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
2. Add the stock and potatoes. Season with salt. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook 15 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.
3. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup. (If you don’t have an immersion blender very carefully transfer to a traditional blender. Leave a gap in the lid and cover with a towel to prevent burns.)
4. Add the cilantro and lime juice. Adjust salt if needed. Serve with an extra spritz of lime juice.

*This recipe is adapted from Isa at http://foodreference.com/html/purple-potato-soup1008.html*

Don’t forget to enter our giveaway and be sure to check out the other bloggers who posted more Valentine’s recipes today:

 

Thank you to #FreshTastyValentines sponsors for providing bloggers with samples and products to use for #FreshTastyValentines recipe development without additional compensation. All opinions stated are those of the bloggers.