Curried sweet potato and ginger soup - recipe/book review

I love soups, but...it has to be homemade, its the best thing ever anytime of year but especially now in the autumn. Its so warm and comforting; and nutritionally it can be the best thing, if made with the freshest ingredients and homemade stock! I have made soups for an age and have quite a repertoire that I have perfected over the years, and I can make them in all kinds of consistencies, low calorie, rich and creamy, the whole range. I seldom follow a recipe but seem to get good results, but this week I followed a recipe from a new book I have been sent.
Ingredients:
Soup:
1tsp olive oil
1 onion chopped
3 cloves garlic crushed
1 thumb size of fresh ginger (Include peel) grated
3 large sweet potatoes peeled and chopped in chunks
2 vegetable stock cubes
sea salt and black pepper
1 tsp Garam Masala
1.5 litres boiled water
Turmeric Finishing Yoghurt:
3 Tbsp (I used low fat) live Greek style yoghurt
1 tsp Turmeric
1 tsp Mango Chutney (and/or lime chutney)
Fresh Coriander 

Method:
1. Put the olive oil in a pan and heat, then add the onion,garlic and ginger and cook slowly. Add the Garam Masala and heat gently.
2. Add the sweet potato, stock cubes, sea salt and pepper and about 1.5 litres of water from a boiled kettle. Cook until the potatoes are soft, then use a hand blender to blend everything together.
3. Make the turmeric finishing yoghurt by simply mixing the ingredients together in a bowl.
4. Ladle the soup into a bowl and add a dollop of the finishing yoghurt.

We really enjoyed this soup, it was tasty and wholesome and it packed a tasty punch, the addition of the 'turmeric finishing yoghurt', a rich creamy (low fat) greek yoghurt with turmeric and mango chutney, was an amazing addition. I'm a lover of a drizzle of cream in my soups as a rule, but this low fat alternative was tastier and much nicer.

This soup recipe came from a new book published by Quadrille Publishing called 'Flash Cooking', its been written by Laura Santtini (her second book) and the notion behind the book is not what you think from the title. This book advocates a healthy, tasty and nutritious eating style, and provides recipes to support this. It's not about a punishing lack lustre diet, but it is about a sensible eating philosophy based on 'whats on your plate should equal protein the size of an iphone accompanied by leafy vegetables' AND should be full of a delicious mix of flavours.

The key to the book is the range of flavours that can be created to accompany this philosophy of 'iphone size protein + leafy vegetables'. Put together at the start of the book are recipes, mixes and blends for 'flash flavours'; these are, seasonings, glazes, rubinades, pastes, finishing salts, finishing yoghurts, props and dressings that can be used to top/garnish all manner of fish/meat or vegetable dishes.The second part of the book covers a series of 'flash recipes' for everything from fish to breakfasts.

The recipes are easy to follow and some accompanied by photographs, I was surprised that I could quite easily make most of the recipes in this book for the 'flash flavours' from my own store cupboard ingredients, and I don't claim to be anything like an alchemist in the kitchen. 'Flash cooking' claims to be easy and fast, this soup certainly was. The recipes are protein or vegetable based in the main or use wheat free or complex carbs.

If you have a need to look at your diet this book will be invaluable in showing you how to add interest and flavour to your foods. If you are lucky enough not to need to, or want to significantly change what you eat,  then this book will give you lots of ideas to add delicious and imaginative flavours to your cooking without a great impact on your time.

Watch this to get more of an insight...and you'll see the turmeric and chutney finishing yoghurt here, but be warned this may give you an appetite for 'Flash Cooking'.