Vegetable Purée with Wakame, Turmeric and Ginger

Method

1. Chop the base vegetables: celery, carrot, and onion into small cubes and add them to a pot.
2. Peel and finely chop fresh ginger and fresh turmeric, then add them to the pot.
3. Chop a garlic clove and add it to the pot.
4. Quarter cherry tomatoes and add them to the pot.
5. Add water until it covers the vegetables by two fingers. Bring to a boil.
6. While waiting, peel a potato, cut it into cubes, and soak in cold water to remove excess starch.
7. Once boiling, lower the heat, add a pinch of salt, add the potato cubes, and cook for 10 minutes.
8. After 10 minutes, add the optional vegetables (pumpkin, bell pepper, cauliflower, eggplant, zucchini) and the spices (bay leaf, sage, rosemary, thyme). Cook for 10–15 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender.
9. Remove the bay leaves.
10. Blend the soup with an immersion blender until smooth.
11. Add more turmeric powder and black pepper (the pepper is necessary for turmeric absorption). Season with salt to taste.
12. Rehydrate the wakame seaweed in cold water for a few minutes, drain, and add to the soup. Do not cook further.
13. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and let the soup rest for 5 minutes before serving.
14. Serve garnished with fresh basil leaves and a final drizzle of olive oil.