Bagging the Schedule (Sweet Potato and Cauliflower Soup)

I'm going off script.  I started the schedule to get me to write, and I think, for the most part, it has worked.  But I find often that I don't want to write about the subject I am supposed to.  I want to write about my life and what I'm doing.

I know there are comedians that make fun of people who take photos of the minutiae of their lives, but at the moment, I am really enjoying it.  So that's what I plan to keeping on doing.  (The comedian I'm speaking of is one of my favorites, Jim Gaffigan, who about a year ago did his show, Mr. Universe.  Definitely worth the $5 download to watch. Seriously.)

You see, a couple of days ago, I received a daily email from the Glitter Guide (more on that in another post) which had this recipe for a soup that looked too good not to try.

But like most times I cook, I altered the recipe a bit, to make use of some things I already had in the pantry.

Here's what you need (plus a head of cauliflower, which was already chopped up and in the oven when I snapped this shot, so I peeked inside):

The cauliflower was seasoned just as the recipe suggested, which I was excited about.  I have garam masala, which I never really use, so this was a great use to find.

The original recipe called for 7 cups of water and 7 chicken bullion cubes.  I happened to have three bullion cubes from Friendsgiving last year, so I did a 3 cups of water with the cubes and 4 cups chicken broth (just one of those big boxes).

While the cauliflower is in the oven, chop up your sweet potatoes and have a pre-dinner snack of pickles .  Only three though -- don't spoil the appetite.

I did not have three large sweet potatoes --  I had one large, one medium and one medium to small, and it was just fine.  Throw 'em in the pot with the chicken broth, water and bullion.

Add the diced onion.  I lessened the garlic powder amount to just under 1 tbsp, which was delicious, but plenty.  I also added black pepper, because I love black pepper.

Cook as directed!  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer whilst the potatoes get soft.  I made use of the cooking time by doing a quick vacuum of the apartment, mostly because when you cut cauliflower, it makes a freakin' mess!

Meanwhile, pull your cauliflower out of the oven to cool off a bit.  Sneak a bite -- it's worth it.

And a little closer up...

Worth the extra large image.  So yum!

Once the potatoes are ready, you are supposed to add the cauliflower and divide into two parts, blending one of them.  I decided to add only half the cauliflower and blend the whole thing.  I knew I wanted cauliflower chunks, but didn't really want sweet potato chucks.  I used my amazing immersion blender and it was cake!

I didn't have chives or flax seed, so those didn't make the cut, but I added the remaining cauliflower to the soup and served it up!  Now, I knew I was going to like the cauliflower chunks a lot, so I specifically searched for them when pouring my bowl.  I figured, at the very least, I could also pick up some more, roast that and add it later.  (And now I know for next time to get two heads of cauliflower).

And here it is!

Also worth the extra large image.

I curled up with my bowl of soup, some white wine and The Trip, a very funny movie that I was able to stream with my Netflix account.  Here's a great clip.

It was so, so tasty.  Plus, now I have lunch made for the rest of the week.

I'll definitely be making that again.