Gingered Roasted Sweet Potato and Carrot Soup with Brown Butter Shrimp, Macadamia and Blood Orange

My favorite color is orange. The candy that makes me happiest is the classic orange slice, and the combo of orange and chocolate is a one-two punch I’m fully powerless to defend against. I spend a lot of time at Anderson High School these days – school colors: orange and black. As a child I’d make copycat Orange Juliuses (Orange Julii?) in the blender and IMHO the best canned soup of all time is Tesco brand Tomato and Orange soup – an elusive flavor I’ve been chasing for years.

As I lay out the evidence of my deep love for Citrus sinensis on the dining room table of my memory palace, it’s a bit of a mystery as to why I haven’t turned to this ingredient more in my soupsplorations. The only logical explanation: an abiding disdain for all most things Floridian.

Recent quick trips have perhaps opened my eyes to the fact that I actually don’t capital-H Hate Florida (in December, at least). That said, I’m counting this soup as evidence of me bucking against my implicit bias. Using more orange in my cooking is a milestone on my wokeness journey.

Or it just tastes good.

This number really set the stage for a night of opulence and indulgence, by which I mean eating on the couch while watching the Oscars and wearing athleisure.

Fresno chili oil: More-ange.

This soup feels luxurious and decadent but there’s plenty to love from a health perspective, too. Ginger: anti-inflammatory and good for digestion. Sweet potato: has a whole buncha fiber, vitamins and minerals. Carrots: great for attracting for cute widdle bunny wabbits. Shrimp: Lean, low-calorie protein with omega-3s. Blood orange: treat that pesky scurvy you’ve been fighting ever since your stint on that pirate ship back in the 1710s.


Or it just tastes good.

Sweet Potato: Now with patented EZ-Peel technology!

This soup may not have a catchy and concise name, but it is going to be tough to beat this year for Best Flavor. It's the Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) of the 2020 Soupcademy Awards. Last clumsy portmanteau, I promise.

Every bite is equally comment-worthy, but the bites with a bit of toasted macadamia are definitely more equal. It's also going to top every Best Dressed list, obviously. This might be the prettiest thing I've ever made, to the degree that I'm not really sure how it managed to come fully from my imagination. I'm totally fine with crediting the Oscars for the extra creative energy in the air, along with an extra-strength dose of elegance. It may not be as stunning as Natalie Portman's dress was, but Ms. Portman wouldn't look too out of place eating it at an after-party.

*insert photoshopped image that I'm not patient/skilled enough to make*

The good thing about the Dickensian amount of detail I've included in this recipe title is that it really doesn't leave much mystery about taste: it tastes like all those things. Even so, should you decide to make it, you'll be surprised by just how good all those things are when they work together toward the common goal of improving your quality of life for 3-15 minutes (depending on your typical gobblin' time). In other words, teamwork makes the soup of my dreams work. GO TEAM!

Bird's eye view. Now get outta my house, bird!

Gingered Roasted Sweet Potato and Carrot Soup with Brown Butter Shrimp, Macadamia and Blood Orange

Serves four as a starter or two as a meal

1 large sweet potato

2 blood oranges

Extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

1 shallot, diced

1 tablespoon peeled and chopped fresh ginger

3 cups vegetable broth

4 carrots, peeled and chopped

2 tablespoons macadamia nuts, roughly chopped

¼ lb raw shrimp

Fresh chives

Optional: fresno chili infused olive oil, clementine infused olive oil

Heat oven to 400 F, then throw your sweet potato in there on a piece of aluminum foil just in case it decides to get messy. Let it roast for 45 minutes or so, until you can stick a fork in it easily and it’s nothing but squish inside. Remove from oven and let cool until you can peel the skin away without hurting your fingers.

Cut two thin slices from the center of one of your blood oranges, cut each slice in half, and place them on another small piece of foil. Dab with a bit of olive oil. Place your macadamia nuts on another part of the foil, and place in the oven until orange slices are crispy and nuts are toasty and golden, 8-10 minutes.

Melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium-low heat in your soup pot. Add shallots and ginger, season with salt and pepper, and cook until shallots are translucent and soft, about 7 minutes. If using, add a splash of fresno oil, then add carrots, sweet potato flesh and vegetable broth. Increase the heat to bring the broth to a simmer for about 20 minutes or until carrots are tender.

Meanwhile, heat remaining tablespoon of butter in a small skillet over medium heat. The butter will foam; once the foam subsides, watch it carefully and catch it when it’s starting to brown and smell nutty but hasn’t burned. Toss in your shrimp, season with salt, and let them cook in that brown butter goodness for 90 seconds to 2 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. Remove from heat and chop into bite-sized pieces.

Remove soup from heat and blend with an immersion blender until very smooth. Squeeze all juice from the blood orange you’ve already cut directly into the soup and stir. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Zest half of the remaining blood orange and set zest aside. Remove skin with a knife, exposing the sparkling orange segments. Cut out each segment, then chop into bite-sized pieces.

Toss together shrimp, macadamias and blood orange pieces. Ladle soup into bowls and top each bowl with a spoonful the shrimp salad. Drizzle with clementine olive oil, if using, and garnish with snipped chives and a roasted orange slice. Serve with pride and get excited for magic that’s about to happen in your mouth.