Chicken, Peanut, and Sweet Potato Soup

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 small yellow onion, chopped

1/2 red bell pepper,             chopped (about ½          cup)

1/2 green bell pepper,          chopped (about ½          cup)

1 small sweet potato,          cut into small cubes

(6 ounces, 11/3 cups)

1 tablespoon minced          fresh ginger

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

1/2 cup natural peanut       butter

1 tablespoon tomato          paste

1 14-ounce can diced

   tomatoes in their          juices

6 cups chicken stock

1 cup shredded chicken

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1 jalapeno, minced and    crushed to a paste          with a mortar and          pestle or the back of    a knife

Roasted and salted

   peanuts, coarsely          chopped (optional)

1. In a large soup pot over medium heat, combine the oil, onion, and bell peppers. Cook, stirring, until the vegetables start to soften, about 8 minutes. Add the sweet potato, ginger, garlic, cayenne, peanut butter, and tomato paste and mix well. Cook the mixture until it sizzles and the spices are fragrant, about 1 to 3 minutes.

2. Add the diced tomatoes and stock and bring the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer until the sweet potatoes are tender enough to mash with a fork against the side of the pot, about 20 minutes. Use an immersion blender to partially puree the soup or puree about 1 to 2 cups of it in a blender and stir it back into the soup.

Per serving: 239 calories, 15.5 grams protein, 13.4 grams carbohydrates, 6.2 grams sugar, 14.6 grams fat, 18 milligrams cholesterol, 494 milligrams sodium, 3.4 grams dietary fiber.