A super creamy blend of sweet potatoes, red lentils and the flavour and nutrition of hemp hearts! This dairy free sweet potato red lentil and hemp heart soup has a slight sweetness rounded out with notes of garlic, ginger and optional cider vinegar. Makes a great side or full meal for those chilly days! This recipe is also gluten-free.
Most of you can feel Spring in the air...the Daffodils and Tulips have just popped and are ripe for the picking (for the local deer, that is), and we're feverishly planning out this year's plantings. We can officially say Winter is over. And as much I love the cooler months, I am ready to welcome the sunshine, fresh garden fruits and vegetables, and time on the open water with my family.
Creamy & Dairy Free Sweet Potato Soup with Red Lentils & Hemp Hearts
But, before we say goodbye to the snow and chilly weather, I thought I would sneak in one last comforting recipe for you all. This is one of my all time favourite soup blends; a recipe inspired by a humble can on the store shelf!
This soup features a lovely medley of sweet potato, red lentils, ginger and, surprisingly, hemp hearts. It's no doubt a savory blend but with a subtle sweetness and a thick velvety texture (dairy-free of course).
This Recipe is
- Dairy-free
- Vegan friendly
- Gluten-free
- Easy and fuss free
- Contains omega 3's and plant based protein
- Creamy and silky smooth
- Makes enough for 8 servings
Hemp Hearts for flavour, texture and nutrition
Hemp hearts and a wonderful unique flavour and creaminess to this soup; they're know for their earthy taste and they pair well with the other ingredients in this recipe. If you wish, you can certainly omit the hemp hearts if they aren't available in your area; the recipe will taste just as good.
Hemp hearts contain omega 3 and protein. Turmeric adds enhances the beautiful colour of this recipe. An optional touch of cider vinegar rounds out the flavours for a satisfying meal or side.
Ingredients you'll need for this recipe
The ingredient list for this creamy sweet potato red lentil and hemp soup is fairly minimal. There is some prep needed with peeling and dicing, however, the recipe comes together quickly after that.
For this recipe you'll need:
- olive oil
- sweet potatoes
- an onion
- garlic
- minced fresh ginger root
- ground turmeric
- split red lentils
- 1 can of crushed tomatoes
- filtered water
- hemp hearts
- 1 can of full fat coconut milk
- Salt and pepper
- optional apple cider vinegar for seasoning
Equipment you'll need for this Recipe
Other than the basics for vegetable prep and soup making, you really only need an immersion blender. I prefer using an immersion blender because this recipe makes quite a bit of soup and transferring it into a blender is a lot of work and would likely need to be done in two to three batches. Plus, blending hot ingredients in a blender can be dangerous with the build up of steam inside the blending container.
If you prefer to use a full sized blender, make sure you carefully blend it in at least 2-3 portions (depending on the size of your particular blender) and ensure your blender has a properly vented top.
Want more recipes like this?
If you love my creamy sweet potato soup with red lentils and hemp, you may also enjoy:
Winter Vegetable Soup with Chickpeas & Wild Rice [Vegan & Gluten-free]
Creamy Winter Leek, Potato & White Bean Soup
Moroccan-Style Chickpea & Cauliflower Soup [vegan + gluten-free]
Sweet Potato Soup with Red Lentils & Hemp Hearts
A creamy blend of sweet potatoes and red lentils and the nutrition of hemp hearts. This soup blend has a slight sweetness to it rounded out with notes of garlic, ginger and optional cider vinegar. Makes a great side or full meal for those chilly days!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 medium sweet potatoes peeled and diced (550g)
- 1 small white onion chopped (~ 100g)
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger root minced
- ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 cup dried red lentils picked over, rinsed and drained
- 1 398ml can crushed tomatoes
- 5 cups filtered water
- ⅓ cup hemp hearts
- 1 cup full fat coconut milk
- salt & pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar optional
Instructions
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In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil. Add the diced onions, garlic and ginger and cook until slightly browned and fragrant (about 5 minutes). Add the sweet potatoes, turmeric, crushed tomatoes, red lentils and stir to combine. Add in the filtered water and stir to combine.
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Bring the soup to a boil then reduce heat and let simmer for 25-30 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are easily pierced with a fork and lentils are fully cooked.
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Remove the pot from the heat. Add in the hemp hearts and coconut milk (and optional apple cider vinegar) and using an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth. Season with salt and pepper as desired.
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Serve with a sprinkle of hemp hearts for garnish and fresh cracked pepper.
Recipe Notes
This soup will keep well covered in the fridge for several days. If you prefer to omit the hemp hearts, the soup will still be good.
Sandra Reisman says
This recipe is absolutely delicious. Thank you!
Heidi Richter says
I am so happy to hear the feedback, Sandra 🙂
Eric says
Great recipe! My family loved it.
Heidi says
So happy to hear it! Thank you!
Tamara W says
This soup was fantastic. Very creamy and hearty. I was pretty skeptical about the hemp because they have a distinct taste, but they didn't taste much of anything in the final recipe. Thank you!
Heidi Richter says
So glad you like it, Tamara!