Happy National Soup Month!
I’d really like to know who comes up with the stuff. Â I’m going to declare next month National Wine Month. Â I kid… I’m eating cleaner.. less wine, more water. Â Unless I figure out how to turn it into wine… hmmm…
Did you know that the first soup can be dated back to ~6,000 BC and was made of a hippopotamus?
As much fun as it is to say, I can’t imagine hippopotamus being fun to eat.  Seems like it would be chewy.
No hippos were harmed in the making to this Babaganoush Soup. Â In fact, it’s vegan.
The nutty tahini in this makes it reminiscent of a hummus or chickpea soup. Â But it’s better – the flavors from the roasted red pepper and onion take this soup to a whole new level.
You will taste it before blending and think it’s too strong. Â Blend it before adjusting… the purred veggies do balance it out.
Then you’ll think it’s missing something but you won’t know what… but you’ll ladle the soup and squeeze the lemon juice in it and realize this soup has reached perfection.
Don’t be scared of the fats from the tahini – sesame seeds are good fats!  They are a great source of copper, manganese, and calcium.  And – at the risk of sounding like a grandma – 9g of fiber in a bowl is pretty awesome.  Two of sesame’s more unique properties – sesamin and sesamolin – are special fibers called lignans, that can lower cholesterol and prevent blood pressure.
Creamy and satisfying, this one left me licking the bowl.
Save some leftovers – most soups taste even better on day two after the flavors have a chance to meld and this soup is no exception!
Babaganoush Soup
- 1 large eggplant
- 1 large red bell pepper, sliced
- 1/2 yellow onion, sliced
- 1 tsp grapeseed oil
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 San Marzano tomatoes (or 1 large regular tomato)
- Â 1Â 1/2 C vegetable stock
- 1 C water
- 2 tsp ras al hanout*
- 1/4 cup tahini
- Lemon
- S+P, to taste
- Optional Garnish: red pepper flakes, cilantro
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Cut eggplant into 1/3 in slices and lay on a foil-lined baking sheet (spray with cooking spray if not anti-stick foil). Â Salt generously and allow to rest 10-20 mins. (this draw out moisture and helps to remove bitterness). Â When done, wipe away moisture with paper towel. Â Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper, add red pepper and onion slices to the sheet, and roast for 25 mins.
Let cool and rub off any blackened pepper skin. Â Rough chop peppers and eggplant.
Heat oil over medium-high heat then add garlic. Saute for ~1 minute until just beginning to turn golden.
Add the stock, tomatoes, eggplant, red pepper, and onion. Stir in ras al hanout. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for ~10 mins allowing the flavors to combine. Â Remove from heat and add tahini.
Using an immersion blender (or regular blender), puree until smooth.
Ladle into bowls and finish with fresh lemon juice, cilantro, and freshly ground pepper.
Makes 6 cups (3 mains or 6 sides).
Approximate Nutritionals (for main dish serving): 211 calories, 12.6g fat, 1.7g saturated fat, 22.3g carbohydrates, 9.1g fiber, 8.5g sugar, 6.4g protein.
*Ras al Hanout is a spice blend I had not heard of until reading Cara’s blog.  I made her blend with a few modifications.  It’s also delicious with sautéed spinach and onions!
Ras al Hanout
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp coriander
- 3/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
***
“I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas” is now stuck in my head. Â Ugh.
What kind of soup are eating for National Soup Month?
 Do you make your own spice blends?Â
I just have to say thank you.
Thank you.
[Also, I just purchased some roasted tahini on Sunday…perfect timing. Can we put this on the menu at our restaurant?]
Welcome. 🙂
Of course it can be on the menu! Maybe we should add zucchini to fit the squash theme?
DELICIOUS! I can just imagine how wonderful this soup smells and tastes.
And I think I’m going to try making asparagus soup sometime soon. My sister found a healthy, simple recipe that sound yummy!
Yum! I made one last year and topped it with crumbled TJ’s salt and pepper lentil chips to give it some crunch. Perfect, clean meal!
looks so pretty. i’m not a big eggplant fan but i might even be willing to try this 🙂
Do it! This is perfect for people that have texture issues with it – not even the slightest hint of “sliminess.”
I love your veggie heavy recipes even more than your sweets – this sounds so good after taking a break from eggplant (I ate so much of it in Italy!).
Black Bean is my go-to soup. 🙂
Thanks love! Italy was eggplant heavy… which for some reason on increased my addiction. Go figure.
Sounds awesome – I love the addition of the roasted pepper! Makes it a lot prettier too 🙂
Mmm…soup. I still haven’t had much soup this winter – what is wrong with me?! Love that this one is loaded with veggies and looks very rich and creamy!
This looks WAY better than hippo-soup. Yikes. This babaganoush (so fun to say) is perfect for naughty bread dipping…mmmm
That’s true… babaganoush is almost as much from to say as hippopotamus. 😉
What a great idea for a soup – the tahini in it is such a great addition. So colourful.
Thank you! The tahini definitely “made” the soup. 🙂
I love soup but for some weird reason, Jason mostly likes the kind from a can. Isn’t that strange?
I had no idea it was national soup month! I’m posting soup all week :D. But this babaganoush soup looks wonderful! I like the red pepper flakes sprinkled on top!
Wow this looks so, so delicious! And so thick and creamy… man. I am in love. Definitely goes on my to do list! 🙂
As for wine, pretend it’s the middle ages in Europe. Wine is so much safer than water for your health!
True… it’s cheaper than water too!
Yum..I was thinking of making a ratatoule soup but I like this idea even better. So wonderfully thick and I love the color!
Yes! I have been waiting for this since I saw you post a pic on Twitter.
This actually looks realllly good! And I say ‘actually’, because the last time I tried my hand at BG, it was an udder disaster… Seriously, probably in the top 5 worst things I’ve ever made, ha!
Oh no! Let me know if you try this one out – it’s pretty fail-safe (famous last words). 🙂
Yay! I am totally down with celebrating National Soup Month! I have been dreaming of transforming my beloved Massaman Curry dish into soup form. Potatoes, carrots, coconut milk, curry spices… Aw, yeah. Your soup looks gorgeous (great photos!) and sounds even better! Happy Soup month to you!
L O V E this soup! The flavors are perfect. And way better than anything with hippo in it…
This soup looks (and sounds!) amazing. I only have a few eggplant recipes that we all like, but I’m really excited to try this one. I love tahini, too!
What a gorgeous, inventive soup! I love all the flavourings and can imagine how wholesome and warming this would be in my tummy. I’m forwarding this post to my sister who made me my first ever Babaganoush dip! I know she’ll love this. Thanks Laura.
p.s. just pinned this beautiful recipe on my Healthy Eating board 🙂
Thank you so much for passing it along and for the pin! Please let me know if you guys try it out.
P.S. Isn’t Pinterest the BEST?
That hippo super rules. This soup sound magical! I looove babaganoush, often times more than hummus these days, so this is definitely right up my alley!
I read this and thought you said you liked babaganoush more than HUMANS these days – LOL! I agree with both statements. 🙂
This looks soo good!!! Laura! STOP IT! Too many awesome recipes! I’m never going to stop eating in time to run!
LOL! We need to just start a bloggy supper club – you guys are all cooking up stuff that makes me drool.
I KNEW I liked January for a reason – another reason to eat soup! Clam chowder is my favorite, but I just found a GF Cream of Mushroom soup that I can’t wait to try!
Ohhh… in a can or did you find a recipe for the mushroom soup? I LOVE mushroom soups.
Everything you make looks awesome! I’ve been making this lentil-vegetable stew that’s so easy and delicious. Can’t beat that combo!
Thank you! I love lentils too – they are such a great protein source!
This looks amazing! I just got an immersion blender, so I definitely want to make something with potatoes or squash that I can try it out with!
Guuuurl… that immersion blender will change your life. I got it when I broke my jaw and had to blend OATMEAL… which is actually delish blended with fruit, btw.
Tasty sounding recipe and lemon juice is always the great equalizer.
BTW…stop talking nonsense about drinking more water than wine. Wine is typically over 80% water, so by definition if you’re drinking wine you’re drinking more water anyways. 😉
Excellent point you make – and we all know how important it is to stay hydrated!
I’ve never seen anything like this, but it’s gorgeous! I need to cook with eggplant more.
Thank you so much – that’s a huge compliment!
Absolutely LOVE roasted red pepper hummus, so I am all over this. (Also, I simply like to say “babaganoush”!)
This looks so fabulous. I’m totally making it for lunch this week and I love the tahini addition! I’m always looking for new ways to use tahini.
Thank you! I’m a little addicted to tahini, so this was perfect. Have you ever made chocolate tahini truffles? That’s another great way to incorporate it… and it’s you use dark chocolate it’s practically a health food. 😉
Oh my! I have to try this! What a super delicious idea. Never heard of babaganoush soup before.