Creamy Yam Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 large yams
• 4 leeks, sliced (white part only)
• 4 ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, chopped (or a 28oz can of tomatoes)
• 10 fresh basil leaves, chopped
• Bay leaves to taste
• 4 cups vegetable stock
• Freshly ground black pepper

Method:

1. Bake or boil the yams until they're soft. When they are, mash them.
2. Simmer the leeks, tomatoes, basil, and bay leaves in the vegetable stock for 20 minutes.
3. Puree the soup in batches in a blender, or better yet, remove the pot from the stove and go at it with a hand blender. For $25, no amateur cook should be without one!
4. Return the soup to the pot (if you used an old-fashioned blender) and stir in the mashed yams.
5. Serve with freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Makes 4-8 servings (depending on how big your yams and tomatoes are).

Source: Fat Free, Flavor Full by Gabe Mirkin and Diana Rich. ISBN 0-316-57473-2. There are some modifications and hints by me. If you don't already have this book, you should get it!