sweet potato coconut milk soup with sage

i'm getting my (six!) wisdom teeth removed on friday and am seriously considering making a massive batch of this soup to feed on while my teeth heal. earthy sweet potatoes and fragrant sage pair perfectly with floral coconut milk, making a comforting, filling combination which becomes almost velvety once puréed: the perfect winter soup.

sweet potato soup with coconut milk and fried sage
adapted from whipped
serves 5

• 3 ½ lbs sweet potatoes, peeled and quartered*
• 1 can (12 oz) coconut milk
  
• 3-4 cups vegetable stock
• 
1 bunch fresh sage
• 
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 
3 large shallots, peeled and chopped
• 
olive oil

• sea salt

• cayenne pepper
• 
freshly ground black pepper

*my sweet potatoes were white-fleshed and i was afraid of having white soup, but it still cooked up to a passable brown color. if you can, though, use orange-fleshed sweet potatoes.
preheat your oven to 425°F. arrange sweet potatoes on a baking sheet and drizzle on about 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil. add salt and pepper, and toss with your hands to coat. roast for 30 minutes, flipping the potatoes after 25 minutes.

finely chop about 6 sage leaves. pour coconut milk into a small space pan, and throw in chopped sage. cook on low heat until it simmers, and take off heat. set aside.

heat up a dutch oven or heavy soup pot on medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. add shallots and cook for 3 minutes, until translucent. add garlic and continue cooking for 2 more minutes. throw in roasted sweet potatoes and stir. cook for 5 minutes. lower heat and add coconut milk – stir – and add 2 cups of stock. continue to stir, breaking up the sweet potatoes with the back of your spoon (i used a potato masher, just to give my blender an easier job later). stir in the rest of the stock, a little at a time, until fully incorporated. add a sprinkle of salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper. cover and cook for 15 minutes.

taste soup for seasonings and adjust. pour soup (in batches!) into a food processor and purée until smooth. taste a final time--i thought this needed a generous cranking of black pepper. when serving, drizzle on high-quality olive oil and top with fried sage leaves.

to fry sage leaves, heat up a tablespoon or so of olive oil in a small cast iron pan. add sage leaves and cook for one minute--these cook up quickly and will turn brown in seconds, so don't walk away from the pan. drain on a paper towel.

to reheat any leftover soup, stir in a few glugs of stock to thin out while heating soup over medium-low heat.