Healthy and Delicious Kabocha, Sweet Potato, and Pomegranate Soup
Delicious and Rare Combination of Flavors Will Delight Your Taste Buds
Every once in a while, I come up with some crazy food ideas. I'll think of a few of my favorite foods that you normally eat separately, and wonder if there is some way to put them together into a delicious concoction.
Sometimes this turns out better than others, and it always makes my husband a little bit nervous when I start experimenting, but in my opinion, this food combination was an absolute match made in heaven.
It all started a few days ago when I was thinking about how much I love pomegranates and sweet potatoes (some of my favorite foods for this time of the year), and I wondered if there were any soup recipes that used these foods together.
I did a little Google searching and came across several recipes, and there was one in particular that really caught my attention.
Not only did it have the two ingredients that I was searching for, but it also included Kabocha (Japanese pumpkin) which is another favorite of mine and a few other ingredients that got my taste buds excited just thinking about them.
My husband was extremely nervous when I told him about the idea, but there was no holding me back, and the end result was amazing!
Originally I was going to just follow the recipe that I found online, but I ended up making a few changes to it along the way, so I thought I'd share my rendition of this warm soup that is perfect for a blustery fall evening.
We ate this soup with artisan cinnamon, raisin, pecan bread, and it was the ultimate delicious and nutritious combination of comfort foods making it an ideal meal for a cold November night.
Am I crazy? What do you think of the idea of combining pomegranates and sweet potatoes to make a soup?
These three foods combine to make a soup with a unique flavor that your taste buds will relish.
A Soup That Packs a Powerful Nutrient Punch!
Here are just a few reasons that you want to eat this soup:
- Kabocha is extremely nutrient dense with an emphasis on vitamin A (70% of your daily value), vitamin C, vitamin B, and fiber. If you're not familiar with it, it's very similar to butternut squash but with a fraction of the calories.and carbohydrates.
- Sweet potatoes are full of vitamin A (400% of your daily value), potassium, and fiber. They have more nutrients than regular potatoes with less calories.
- Pomegranates are full of vitamin C, potassium, loads of antioxidants, and fiber.
- Garlic is a good source of manganese, vitamin B6, vitamin C, and selenium. It can fight illness, fight tumor cells, regulate cholesterol levels, and reduce blood pressure among many other benefits.
- Ginger has been widely used for supporting the digestive system, but is also used for reducing inflammation
- Cinnamon is high in antioxidants, helps to reduce blood sugar levels, and can reduce insulin resistance.
What Can I Substitute If I Don't Have Kabocha?
Kabocha is a delicious sweet squash with a unique texture that is hard to replicate in another squash, so i highly recommend using the real thing, but if you can't find kabocha there are some other squashes that could work as alternatives in this recipe,
Some options are:
- butternut squash
- red kuri
- pumpkin
- acorn squash
Like I said before, if at all possible, I recommend sticking with the kabocha. I've never tried the soup with any of these alternatives, and I'm sure it would taste just fine, but kabocha is so good that you don't want to miss out on it.
How much time do I for this recipe?
- 1 Tbs coconut oil, you can be more generous if you're trying to reap the benefits of coconut oil in your diet
- 3 Tbs minced garlic
- 1 Tbs whole wheat flour, or white flour if you don't have whole wheat
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 3 chicken bullion cubes
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup pomegranate juice
- 2 Tbs freshly grated ginger
- 1/2 kabocha squash, peeled, seeded and diced
- 1 sweet potato, peeled and diced
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon, or more depending on how much you like cinnamon
- fresh pomegranate arils, as an optional garnish
Directions
- Peel the kabocha, remove all seeds, and then chop it into 1-2 inch cubes. Peel the potato and cut it into cubes that are the same size. Peel and grate your ginger so that it is ready to be used when you need it. Deseed your pomegranate if you want to use pomegranate arils for a garnish.
- Saute garlic in coconut oil for a few minutes, and then add flour. Cook for a few more minutes stirring frequently. Add in pepper, one bullion cube, and a cup of water. Continue stirring until smooth. Keep cooking and stirring for a few more minutes until the mixture thickens.
- Add in another bullion cube, another cup of water, and the ginger. Let this mixture simmer (stirring occasionally) while you prepare the potato and kabocha.
- Bring water to a boil in a separate sauce pan. Add in potato and kabocha, and boil for 5-10 minutes or until tender. Drain the vegetables. Then pour in the pomegranate juice. Mash the vegetables like you would mashed potatoes.
- Add your mashed vegetable mixture to the soup along with your last bullion cube and the cinnamon. Give the soup a few more minutes to cook and stir it well to combine all the ingredients.
- Serve warm with pomegranate arils sprinkled on top. I love pomegranates, so to be honest, I loaded my soup up with a hefty helping of them, and I thought it was delicious!
What do you think of this recipe?
