Corn and Yellow Bell Pepper Soup

In a large stock pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion. Cook until tender, about 5-6 minutes, and then season with a dash of salt and black pepper. Add the potato, ginger paste, garlic, bay leaf and cayenne pepper. Cook until the garlic is fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.

Add the vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and then add the corn, squash and yellow bell pepper. Cook until the vegetables are tender, about 20-25 minutes.

Working in batches, transfer the soup to the pitcher of your blender (you could also use an immersion blender). Make sure you do not fill the pitcher the entire way and that you cover it with a towel as you blend. Blend the soup until smooth and creamy, about 2-3 minutes. Transfer it back to the stock pot.
Season with salt and black pepper and let it stand over low heat. If you find the soup is too thick to your liking, you may thin it out with a little bit of water. If you find the soup is too thin to your liking, you may stir in some cashew cream (recipe below).

Serve warm with desired toppings. Enjoy!

Notes:
1. For the cashew cream, place the cashews in a bowl and submerge in water. Cover and let them soak overnight. Once the cashews have soaked, transfer them to a high-powered blender. Cover the cashews with just enough water to submerge. Blend on high for 2-3 minutes or until completely smooth. Strain the cashew cream through a mesh strainer to get rid of any chunky bits if necessary. The cashew cream with store in the refrigerator for about 1 week.
2. Sweet corn off the cob may be substituted for frozen corn. Corn isn’t in season here in Colorado yet, so I opted for the frozen stuff. If you do happen to go fresh, don’t add it to the soup until the rest of the veggies have cooked for at least 10-15 minutes.