Autumn Carrot and Sweet Potato Soup
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With carrots, sweet potatoes and apples, this savory soup with a hint of sweetness is the essence of fall.
Photo by Alexandra Grablewski (Chronicle Books, 2018)
It seems I’ve always got the components of this soup lingering in my veggie bin (along with other mysterious things, but I’ll spare you those details), so it’s easy to whip up on a cool fall day. The nice thing is that the sweet potatoes add body to the soup, making it luxuriously silky, without even the slightest bit of guilt-inducing heavy cream.
Now, I have to admit that I’m not one of those people who look forward to fall; my pessimistic side knows all too well that winter is looming. But the thought of comfort food and cozy clothes does make it more bearable. So go ahead and think of this dish as that soft knit sweater you can’t wait to put on at the first sign of a chill. Pair the soup with crusty artisan bread, challah, or dinner rolls.
Table of Contents
“Absolutely scrumptious! My husband is still talking about how delicious dinner was last night!”
About Sweet Potatoes
Before we get started, let’s talk about sweet potatoes. It’s common practice in the U.S. to use the words “sweet potato” and “yam” interchangeably. This is confusing since yams aren’t sweet potatoes at all, but rather thick white tubers with dark brown skin. But chances are you won’t find real yams at the supermarket, so if you see “yams,” you’re probably looking at sweet potatoes. As for the different varieties, look for Garnet, Jewel, Beauregard, all of which have orange flesh and reddish-brown skin and are delicious in sweet potato pie, mashed sweet potatoes, and sweet potato casserole.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by cooking the onions in butter until they are soft and translucent. Then, add the curry powder and cook until fragrant.
Add the carrots, sweet potatoes, and chicken broth and bring to a boil.
Cover and simmer over low heat until the vegetables are tender, about 25 minutes, then toss in the chopped apples.
Purée with a stick blender until smooth and creamy.
Enjoy!
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Autumn Carrot and Sweet Potato Soup
With carrots, sweet potatoes and apples, this savory soup with a hint of sweetness is the essence of fall.
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 medium yellow onions, chopped
- 1 tablespoon curry powder, plus a bit more for serving
- 1 pound carrots, peeled and chopped into 1-inch pieces
- 1½ pounds sweet potatoes (about 2 small), peeled and chopped into 1-inch pieces
- 8 cups chicken broth, best quality such as Swanson
- 1¾ teaspoons salt
- 1 tart yet sweet apple (such as Honeycrisp or Fuji), peeled and chopped
- 2 tablespoons honey
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring frequently, until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Do not brown. Add the curry powder and cook a minute more.
- Add the carrots, sweet potatoes, chicken broth and salt and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat until vegetables are very tender, about 25 minutes. Stir in the apples and honey. Using a stick blender, puree the soup until smooth and creamy. (Alternatively, cool the soup slightly, then puree in a blender in batches. Be sure to leave the hole in the lid open, and cover with a kitchen towel, to allow the steam to escape.) Season to taste with salt, pepper and more honey if necessary. Ladle soup into bowls and sprinkle with more curry powder if desired. (Note: As the soup sits, it will thicken up so you may need to add a bit of water to thin it out.)
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The soup can be frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost the soup in the refrigerator for 12 hours and then reheat it on the stovetop over medium heat until hot.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Serving size: 1 1/3 cups
- Calories: 277
- Fat: 9g
- Saturated fat: 4g
- Carbohydrates: 42g
- Sugar: 18g
- Fiber: 5g
- Protein: 8g
- Sodium: 941mg
- Cholesterol: 22mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Comments
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This soup is delicious! Perfect for a chilly Autumn day! I actually used canned sweet potato instead because it was all I had. So I didn’t put them in with carrots until 15 minutes after.
This soup is the perfect Fall starter. Brought it to a potluck dinner of 12 people, I doubled the recipe except for the honey, used 3 Tablespoons. This was delicious and everyone got to doggie containers to go too.
Thank you for sharing your delicious recipes.
This is a beautiful soup, my husband who is a carnivore loved it. Thankyou!
Just saw this recipe in your cookbook and am looking forward to making it tomorrow. Any suggestions for a sandwich to pair with it to make a heartier meal?
I think it’d be great with a Cheddar grilled cheese sandwich (maybe with some apple slices, too). Enjoy!
I have made this soup a few times. It is so simple and so delicious. Perfect for the cooler days. I do not change a thing. YUM!
I thought this was scrumptious. Beautiful autumn soup. I used Penzeys Now Curry and it is perfect because it adds a very subtle heat to the soup which makes it even tastier. I only used 1 Tablespoon of honey and thought it was plenty sweet enough. Next time I will add the honey after tasting the soup because the freshness/sweetness of the veggies and apple has an affect on how much, if any, you would add.
Dear Jen,
I’ve made this soup countless times over the past several years – it has always (without exception) received rave reviews and requests for the recipe! Several family members request that I bring it to gatherings, and my teenagers absolutely love it. I’ve tried quite a few of your recipes now, and they’ve all been wonderful, but this is the one for which I get the most requests!
Thank you for sharing your talent with the rest of us!
Sarah
Delicious, but a bit too sweet for my taste. I will definitely make again and try only 1 T of honey or less or even no honey at all–the vegetables and apple bring plenty of sweetness. This soup is comforting with a layered aftertaste of sweet and spicy. One nice tip: I served with a dollop of yogurt. This cut nicely into the sweetness and added to the flavor. I love the one reviewer’s suggestion of toasted pumpkin seeds–that would be great on top of the yogurt garnish, too.
This recipe is wonderful. I made this today but was intrigued by one reviewers suggestion if using Chinese 5 Spice Powder, so that is what is used in place of curry….it was so delicious. My mother is not a fan of curry and since I was taking some to her I chose to substitute but I have no doubt the curry would be wonderful too. I blended it all in my Vitamix, and the soup was like velvet..thick, creamy with a lovely warm bite from the spice. I will definitely make this again!
It has a nice flavour. I only used 1 tsp of curry powder because my kids don’t like anything too spicy.