African Peanut Soup

I tried to find a proper name for this west African soup, but all my searches kept coming up with the title above.  It's very similar to mafé, so I'm pretty sure this is just the vegan version and in a more soupy than stew form.

This is what I decided to make for Purim, and it did not disappoint.  Rich, filling, and yet very healthy.  It did not taste vegan.  Like, not at all.  No one would know if you didn't tell them.

As usual, I omitted the jalapeño for my own use, but I can see how a bit of spice would meld well with the other flavors.  I didn't even sub red pepper flakes, which I sometimes do.  Instead, I stirred in about 2 tsp of horseradish, which wasn't even strong.  It just perked up the flavors, as did the ginger.

This didn't feel like a lot of ingredients when I was putting them into the pot.  I didn't realize until starting this post that there's a lot going on in this soup.  It's a lot like a curry, and you could decrease the broth to serve it over rice.

1 Tb olive oil
*1 C diced onion
*1 rib celery, diced
*3 cloves garlic, minced
*1-1/2 tsp freshly grated ginger
*1 Tb tomato paste
1 tsp cumin seed or 1/2 tsp ground cumin
*1/4 tsp dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste
3 C vegetable broth
1 lb sweet potato, peeled and diced in soup-sized pieces
1 15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 jalapeño, seeded and diced, or up to *1 Tb prepared horseradish
1 C canned diced tomatoes
1/2 C natural (un-homogenized) peanut butter or 3/4 C roasted peanuts run through the food processor
*4 C de-stemmed kale, chopped
*cilantro and chopped peanuts for garnish

1.  Heat the oil in a soup pot over medium heat.  Add onion and celery and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add garlic, ginger, tomato paste, cumin, and thyme and cook until fragrant, another 2-3 minutes.  It's going to look a lot like a curry starter, only less orange.

2.  Stir in broth, diced sweet potato, chickpeas, tomatoes and their juice, jalapeño or horseradish, and peanut butter.  Stir until the peanut butter breaks down.  Bring to a low boil.  Cover and reduce heat.  Simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes.

3.  Stir in chopped kale and re-cover for another 5-10 minutes, until wilted.  Taste broth and add salt and pepper as necessary.  Serve hot, garnished with cilantro and/or chopped peanuts.

Difficulty rating  :)