Kūmara soup with seaweed gomasio

SERVES 4-6 / PREPARATION 10 MINUTES / COOKING 20-25 MINUTES

This very simple kūmara soup gets a little salty sesame lift from seaweed-spiked gomasio. I used dulse flakes but you could also use karengo seasoning/fronds or even kelp granules if that’s what you have at hand. To make this vegan, use olive oil in place of butter.

2 tablespoons butter

½ onion, finely diced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1kg orange (Beauregard) kūmara,

peeled and cubed

4 cups approx (1 litre) vegetable stock ½ teaspoon fine sea salt

1 tablespoon white (shiro) miso paste, or to taste

SEAWEED GOMASIO

6 tablespoons lightly toasted sesame seeds 1 tablespoon seaweed flakes

(I used dulse, but karengo would be great too) 1 tablespoon sea salt flakes

Heat the butter in a large saucepan over a medium-high heat, add onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, for 1-2 minutes or until tender. Add the cubed kūmara, and pour over just enough stock to barely cover, then add salt. Bring to the boil, partially covered with a lid, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes or until tender. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for 5 minutes before blending with a stick blender until smooth, adding a touch more stock or boiling water to thin to the desired consistency. Season with miso paste and a little extra salt, keeping in mind the seaweed gomasio is salty. Serve sprinkled with gomasio.

To make the seaweed gomasio, combine the ingredients in a small food processor and pulse a few times to roughly grind. You don’t want to blend it too much. Any excess can be stored in an airtight container for 2-3 weeks.