Curried Sweet Potato "Bisque" -Anti Chef

Well, for the first time this season the temperature here in Kitty Hawk has fallen into the 30's, and that means two things for my friends and I, huddling in poorly insulated houses, and hot soup! I want to share one of my favorites from many years ago, curried sweet potato bisque. I put "bisque" in quotations for a reason. If you kids follow this blog, the purists among you will undoubtedly have opportunities to catch me in some questionable culinary territory. However, being that this is a fairly simple recipe, I would just like to give you a tiny bit of clarification on what makes a bisque a bisque. First of all, a "proper bisque" is usually made of crustaceans, and the ones that would be considered the "second class citizens" of the seafood world. In the old days, these imperfect animals not fit for the market were cooked with wine and aromatics to make a broth, and then cream was added for thickening and an extra kick of flavor. For those of you new to the culinary world there is an expression I love to use, FAT CARRIES FLAVOR. But getting back to calrification, one other cool fact I found in my bisque research was the term "bis cuites", or "twice cooked". In proper bisque making the shrimp, lobster or whatever you have would have first been lightly sauteed in the shell, and then simmered with the wine and aromatics. Finally, to get really old school and barbaric, the shells would be ground up, and then added at the end as a thickening agent. I don't like eating ground lobster shells, but once, over in Thailand....well, never mind. The bisque, stick to the bisque. It is considered "passable" to call a thickened soup of roasted pureed vegetables a bisque in some circles, so here I go.
Get your oven cranked up, and your favorite soup pot on standby for this late fall fineness.

ingredients:

2-3 medium LOCAL sweet potatoes, peeled and rough chopped (or enough to just about fill a 9x13 inch casserole for roasting)
one medium sweet onion, chopped
one carrot, peeled and chopped
one celery stalk, rinsed and chopped
one or two bay leaves
a quart or two of stock (whatever you have, i like fowl stocks, but veggie is cool too, hippies)
2-4 T. curry powder *
2-3 T. olive oil
1/4 to 1/2 c. heavy cream
shot or two of brandy (optional, bur highly recommended, if you have it)
salt and pepper to taste

method:

- preheat oven to 400 degrees, i like a nice char on the edges of the veggies, adds to the flavor profile a bit
- combine all of the chopped veggies in a bowl and toss with the curry powder and a little of the olive oil to coat evenly
- transfer everything to the baking dish and roast for 35 - 45 minutes, or until the veggies are softened and just starting to char nicely
- move everything to a soup pot and add your stock and the bay leaves. i like to add the stock just enough to cover everything, you don't want to go too thin, you can always thin this later with more stock once you have pureed everything, but it is harder to make it thicker without altering the natural texture
- simmer the soup on medium heat for about 30 minutes, just to make sure everything is cooked thoroughly
- remove the bay leaves and then carefully transfer this to a large blender, and blend to puree. it is best to let this cool a bit first, hot liquid + blender = ow-ee.
- return the puree to the soup pot and bring back to almost boiling, but do not boil. whisk in the heavy cream, season with a little kosher salt and fresh fresh ground pepper to taste
- lastly, whisk in the brandy. this is always a great addition in my opinion to ANY creamy soup
- serve hot with whatever garnish you would like, such as creme fraiche, or even a little drizzle of black strap molasses will go a long way, but you don't need anything really, this is a good and flavorful bowl all by itself

* cook's notes:

-curry powder, most of you will probably have some of this you bought at the store, but you can make your own if you have a saute pan and a spice (or coffee) grinder. many cooks prefer to make their own as it is really easy. It is usually just a mix of whole roasted cumin and coriander seed which has been ground and mixed with turmeric and sometimes a few other seasonings such as onion or chili powder. There are also many different kinds of curry. Indian, Thai, Jamaican...wet or dry, and you should experiment with the full spectrum of flavors. For this particular recipe, I love one I get from a Caribbean grocer up in Norfolk, which includes fenugreek...and I also keep good Jamaican molasses on hand to drizzle, as these two extremes of flavor compliment one another very well. This "bisque" idea came to me because I ALWAYS have those two Jamaican condiments on hand. Also, in Currituck this time of year, fresh, local sweet potatoes are cheap and easy to grab by the bushel, right along the side of the highway. So grab some, and make a local farmer happy, your friends and family will be glad you did. -and maybe that farmer will be one step closer to purchasing holiday gifts, and paying the bills. We are all in this together people, and isn't that what this is really all about? Happy ________-days : )

(safety note)
- hot soup in blender. BAD BAD BAD, unless you know what you are doing. There is a serious possibility/risk of this exploding from the heat and pressure and agitation, so it is best, if the soup goes into the blender HOT, to slightly vent the top of the blender, and cover the it with a kitchen towel. Make sure the lid is held firmly in place with your hand, and always start at a low speed first. I repeat DO NOT ADD HOT LIQUID TO A BLENDER AND JUST HIT PUREE WITHOUT PROPERLY SECURING THE LID, YOU MIGHT LOSE AN EYE!!!
-now that you are sufficiently warned, scared, hungry and/or mad...go ahead. make yourself a nice veggie bisque. You may even eliminate the cream if you like and keep it vegan, but don't call it a bisque, again....(hippies)