Ok so this one’s a little fancy, but I want to give it a shout-out anyways, because I love love love my Vitamix. Seriously, I don’t know how I functioned without it. Ok, that’s not true, and I was vegan for 3 full years before I had a Vitamix so it’s clearly possible – but I highly recommend you don’t wait that long. I know it costs what seems like a fortune, but I use it practically daily and it is worth every penny. Plus it pays for itself in all the homemade soups, nut milks, sauces, green smoothies, etc that you will make instead of paying a premium to buy them pre-made at the store.
Not a fancy restaurant I swear! Just a fancy dinner at home. Recipe below. :)
So what is a Vitamix actually? A Vitamix is a high-speed, high-power blender. In reality you can use any blender that fits that description to make some amazing creations (there’s a constant Vitamix vs Blendtec debate), but the point is that something along those lines will add that something special to your kitchen and make your life so much easier. My Vitamix can make a green smoothie as smooth as juice in less than a minute. All those little green specks? Gone. It can make a smooth as silk creamy sauce in a few minutes out of unsoaked cashews. And it can make hot steaming soup out of nothing but veggies and water (and whatever else you feel like throwing in!) in 5-6 minutes. It spins so fast that the friction creates soup right in the blender. You have to see it to believe it. :)
And on that note… here’s the recipe for the delicious, elegant, rich, creamy pumpkin sage soup I put together in the Vitamix for a dinner party over the holidays. It had guests licking their bowls and clamoring for seconds.
Oh, and those guests – not vegan. By the way. Didn’t seem to matter. :)
So smooth, so good…
Recipe
Pumpkin Sage Soup
2 15 oz cans pureed pumpkin
7 small potatoes
1 C cashews
~25 fresh sage leaves
2 T olive oil
2 T lemon juice
1 1/2 t salt
1 1/2 t white pepper
1 1/2 C water
1. Add all ingredients to Vitamix.
2. Blend, using the tamper to incorporate all ingredients as necessary. Allow to blend until hot, about 5 minutes.
3. [Optional, but allows the flavors to deepen, and allows for space to thin out the soup – I like my soups thick, but I think extra water was beneficial in this case.] Transfer to a large soup pot and continue to heat over medium low heat on the stove for an extra half hour or so, adding as much more water as necessary to reach desired consistency.
Enjoy!!
Note: Of course you can make this without the Vitamix, and I hope that you do! It just may not get quite as silky in a regular blender, or with the immersion blender. Let me know if you try it and how it goes.
Changes I recommend if not using a Vitamix or other high-speed blender:
- Soak the cashews for a few hours before starting
- Cook all the ingredients together over medium-high heat, adding at least 2 more cups of water
- Blend when potatoes are soft, then return to pot to continue cooking over medium-low heat to allow flavors to meld for at least another 15 minutes
Fancy
