Red Lentil Sweet Potato Soup

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup water, plus more as needed (or sub 2 tsp oil as recipe is written)
• 1 cup diced white or yellow onion (~1 small onion as recipe is written)
• 3 cloves garlic (~1 Tbsp minced garlic as recipe is written)
• 2 tsp fresh minced ginger (~1/2-inch or 1 ¼-cm piece as recipe is written)
• 1 healthy pinch each sea salt and black pepper
• 4 cups peeled, cubed sweet potato (cut into 1/4-1/2-inch cubes- see photo // ~2 small-medium potatoes as recipe is written // or sub sweet winter squash such as butternut)
• 3/4 cup red lentils
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 small pinch ground cloves (optional)
• 1 healthy pinch cayenne
• 1/4 tsp sea salt (or to taste)
• 1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk (plus more to taste)
• 1-2 tsp maple syrup (optional)

Directions

1. Turn on the sauté function on your Instant Pot (to the default “Normal” — not high or low). Once hot, add water (or oil), onion, garlic, and ginger. Season with a healthy pinch each salt and pepper and stir. Sauté for 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently, or until onion is translucent and fragrant. Add a little bit more water as needed to prevent sticking.
2. Add sweet potato and stir. Sauté for 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently and adding a little more water as needed to prevent sticking (we added 2 Tbsp (30 ml)). Sweet potato should be slightly tender when pierced with a fork or knife.
3. Turn off the sauté function by pressing “Cancel.” Then add red lentils, vegetable broth, water, turmeric, cinnamon, clove (optional), cayenne, and sea salt, and stir.
4. Put on the Instant Pot lid and turn to seal. Pressure cook on HIGH for 5 minutes (it will take about 5-10 minutes for the Instant Pot to pressurize before cooking begins). Once the timer goes off, let the steam release naturally (~15 minutes), or carefully press the quick release if in a hurry. Turn off the Instant Pot by pressing “Cancel.”
5. Carefully open the lid and add coconut milk and maple syrup (optional) and purée with an immersion blender until smooth (or let cool slightly before transferring to a high-speed blender). Taste test and add more maple syrup for sweetness, coconut milk for creaminess, cinnamon for warmth, cayenne for heat, and salt for overall flavor.
6. Option to garnish with toasted pepitas, a swirl of coconut milk, and a pinch of cinnamon and cayenne. Best when fresh. Leftovers will keep 4-5 days in the refrigerator or up to 1 month in the freezer. Reheat in a saucepan on the stovetop.