Corn and Red Pepper "Sunset" Soup

I adapted this recipe from Nigella Lawson’s Recipe for Sunshine Soup in her incredible book – Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home. It’s a book I page through regularly, I love reading the beautifully written recipe introductions and the photography is something to aspire to.

Nigella’s Sunshine Soup consists of Corn and a combination of Orange and Yellow Peppers. I thought it would be interesting to use all red peppers instead, firstly because I love the taste of Red Peppers and second because the store I shopped at only had red peppers! The Soup Color was a luminous orange reminiscent of a moody sunset. Hence why I’ve dubbed this recipe “Sunset Soup”.

I fed a cooled bowl of the soup to Mr 22 Months and he LOVED it. Think it was the sweetness of the corn and smoky flavor from the blistered peppers that kept him asking for “more, more!”

Safety Note – Make sure you blend the soup in batches. I attempted to pour the whole lot into my food processor and came pretty close to being burnt by the soup erupting from all ends of my machine! I quickly removed over half of it and then proceeded to blend it in smaller batches.  Also – whether you’re using a blender or food processor, make sure you remove the top funnel or cap so that the air has a chance to escape when you blend. It could get pretty dangerous if you try to blend hot soup in an unventilated little machine.

Corn and Red Pepper “Sunset” Soup
Adapted from: Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home
3 Small Red Peppers
1 Large Onion, peeled and diced
1 Tablespoon Oil
500g Packet Frozen Corn Kernels
1 Litre Vegetable or Chicken Stock
Salt and Pepper to taste
Parmesan (Opitional)

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C, line a baking tray with aluminum foil and grease with a little oil.
2. Cut the tops off the Red Peppers, remove the seeds and white bits, cut into quarters and place onto the prepared baking tray.
3. Bake the red peppers in the preheated oven for 25 minutes.
4. In a pot over medium heat, gently soften the diced onion in the oil and then throw over the frozen corn kernels.
5. Give the pot a good stir and then pour over the vegetable or chicken stock and salt and pepper to taste.
6. Turn the heat up and bring the pot up to the boil. Once boiling, turn the heat down and simmer for 20 minutes.

8. Once the pot of corn has had it’s cooking time, take it off the heat, stir through the red peppers and allow to cool a little before blending.
9. In 2 to 3 batches, very carefully, pour the soup into the food processor and blend until it reaches your desired consistency.
10. Pour the soup back into the pot and heat through before serving.
11. Serve with a side of crusty bread and a sprinkling of (optional) Parmesan.

Serves 4