A wave of tomatoes and red peppers has crashed down over my kitchen counters, reflecting gold and pink on to my white walls. Big, melting yellow tomatoes and thick walled peppers boil down into a sweet, punchy soup — kicked up by yellow curry and ginger. Coconut milk makes a creamy stock. You need one soup pot, a sharp knife, a wooden spoon to stir it all, and a metal immersion blender. Then, of course, you need someone with an appreciation for soups to share it with. It goes well with a viewing of Good Morning, Vietnam. And a glass wine.

September is here. September is one of my favorite months -- the heat is just starting to dissipate, so you can still go for a dip and eat ice cream but there's still that promise of cool evenings for sipping soup and cocooning in a felt blanket. At some near date in the future I could break out my squash colored knit dresses and wear layers of socks with ankle boots. A scarf wouldn't suffocate me with its cotton folds. A wide brimmed hat won't flatten my hair down with a ring of sweat. I might even eat birthday cake outside while watching chickadees swing about in shadowed evening light.

Curry Red Pepper & Tomato Soup (Vegan, Gluten Free)

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons whole coriander seeds
• 2 tablespoons curry vindaloo
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium sweet onion, diced
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 2 inch knob of ginger, peeled and minced
• 1 cup white wine
• 6 long Italian sweet peppers, seeded and diced
• 1 large heirloom tomato (about 2 lbs), chopped
• 1 tablespoon coconut sugar
• 1 can full fat coconut milk (reserve 1 tablespoon for garnish)
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• 1 tablespoon coarse sea salt, plus more to taste
• small heirloom cherry tomatoes, to garnish

Instructions

1. In a large soup pot over medium high heat, toast the coriander seeds and curry powder together for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally -- the coriander will take on a toasted color and the mixture will become fragrant. Add olive oil, and fry 30 seconds more. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger and sautee until the onion becomes tender, about 5 minutes. Add the white wine to the soup pot, and let it cook down by half. Add your sweet peppers, tomato, coconut sugar, coconut milk, and vegetable stock and cook over high heat for 15 minutes. Cut off the heat and add your salt. Using a metal immersion blender, blend together the soup until you get a creamy, smooth texture. Serve piping hot, topped with a bit of coconut milk and some sliced cherry tomatoes, to garnish. This is great topped with crackers, as well!