Chorizo Sweet Potato Soup with Cheesy Thyme Bread

We found this great recipe from A Recipe for Aperture, a wonderful blog you should check out if you haven't! Our local grocer didn't have dry-cured chorizo, which is what the original recipe called for, so we had to use regular chorizo. We made a few other substitutions too, including converting the measurements since Jennie at A Recipe for Aperture is British. =) The soup is quite tasty, but very filling. Next time I think we'll try to drain the chorizo a little more after it is cooked to get out as much grease as possible. The cheesy bread is sooo yummy! And easy too. Definitely give it a shot to go along with any soup or salad!

Ingredients

SOUP

• 1 large sweet potato, peeled
• Salt, to season
• Pepper, to season
• 1 lb bag frozen lima beans
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 lb Spanish chorizo, casings removed
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 large garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 cup sherry
• 1 3/4 cup chicken stock
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 tsp sugar

BREAD

• 4-6 slices french baguette, about 1/2 inch thick
• 2 heaped tbsp crumbled feta cheese
• 2 heaped tbsp gorgonzola cheese
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 tsp fresh thyme

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375F
2. Scrub sweet potatoes. Cut into 1 inch chunks and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and roast for 20 minutes. Turn and cook for a further 15 minutes or until crisp and browned.
3. Meanwhile, cook lima beans according to package instructions.
4. Meanwhile, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large pan over medium-high. Add chorizo and cook, breaking up with a spoon until browned and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Set aside onto a paper towel to soak up extra grease. 
5. Add onion to the pan and cook until just softened. Add the garlic and paprika and cook for a further 30 seconds or so. 
6. Add chorizo back to the pan followed by the sherry, scraping up any crispy bits. Once the wine has evaporated stir in the stock, tomato paste, tomatoes and sugar. Bring to a boil then simmer for 20 minutes.*Begin bread at this point if making it
7. Add lima beans and cook for a further 5- 10 minutes. Stir in the roasted sweet potatoes and serve.

BREAD

1. Preheat broiler to high.
2. In a small bowl, mix together the olive oil, cheeses, garlic and thyme until creamy. Spread equal amounts onto each slice of bread. Place in oven and cook 2-3 minutes or until crisp and golden.