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1
Melt the butter in a large pot over a medium heat, and saute onion for 2-3 minutes until softened but not brown.
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2
Add the diced sweet potato and diced pear, and saute for 3-4 minutes.
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3
If using canned pears, only saute the diced sweet potato at this stage and add the pears later.
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4
Add the chicken broth to the pot, bring to the boil and simmer gently for 20-25 minutes, or until the sweet potato (and pears) are soft.
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5
If including wine in your soup, add this in the last 10 minutes while the soup is simmering.
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6
Cool the soup for about 30 minutes.
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7
If using canned pears, drain these well, reserve the juice and add the pears now.
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8
They will help to cool down the soup.
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9
There is no need to chop the pears as the soup is about to be processed.
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10
In batches, process the chicken broth, sweet potatoes and pears until smooth in a blender or a food processor.
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11
Adjust the thickness of the soup so that it is to your liking by adding either more pears or some of the reserved pear juice, or more wine.
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12
Return the soup to the pot.
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13
If serving straight away: gently reheat, without bringing to the boil, stir in a swirl of yogurt and garnish with fresh mint or parsley.
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14
If serving later: refrigerate after processing.
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15
If taking to work for lunch: take the required quantity of yogurt in a separate container and spoon onto soup after it has been heated in the microwave.
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16
If freezing: freeze after processing.
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17
When ready to serve, defrost, gently reheat, without bringing to the boil, stir in a swirl of yogurt and garnish with fresh mint or parsley.
