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annuinI've been on a bit of a soup making kick lately. I like making them, they're generally fairly easy, and they're always good weekend food... you make one on friday and it'll serve you for dinner (yummy with bread rolls) and cover at least another lunch/snack or two. These recipes come from a low fat cookbook I have, so they're at least on the low fat side of things.
Anyway, I decided to share some recent recipes.
The Spicy Dal & Carrot Soup I raved about a while ago, it's the one I made when![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
vinlander71 and vgnwtch came over a few weeks back. I adjusted it for them as they're vegans, so the veggies among you can eat it too.
Spicy Dal & Carrot Soup
Ingredients:
4 1/2 oz. red split lentils (and you need red lentils, because they don't require overnight soaking)
5 cups vegetable stock
12 oz carrots
2 onions, peeled and chopped
9 oz can chopped tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
2 tbsp vegetable ghee or oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 fresh green chili, seeded and chopped, or use 1 tsp minced chili (from a jar)
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tbsp lemon juice
salt
1 1/4 cups skimmed milk (or soy, which I used in the vegan alternative)
2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
yoghurt, to serve (or not for the veggies ;))
1 Place the lentils in a strainer and wash well under cold running water. Drain and place in a large saucepan with 3.5 cups of the vegetable stock, the carrots, onions, tomatoes, and garlic. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.
2 Meanwhile heat the ghee or oil in a small pan, add the cumin, coriander, chili and turmeric and fry gently for 1 minute.
3 Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice and salt to taste.
4 Purée the soup in batches in a blender or food processor. Return the soup to the saucepan, add the spice mixture and the remaining 1 1/4 cups of stock or water, and simmer for 10 minutes.
5 Add the milk to the soup and adjust the seasoning according to taste.
6 Stir in the chopped cilantro and reheat gently. Serve hot, with a swirl of yoghurt.
The soup I made for this past weekend was Spicy Lentil Soup and very yummy. Also a veggie friendly recipe too.
Spicy Lentil Soup
Ingredients:
1/2 cup red lentils
2 tsp vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped finely
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp garam masala
2 tbsp tomato paste
4 1/2 cups fresh vegetable stock (there's a recipe in the cookbook for that too, but it's too involved for me for a batch of soup, so I cheated and used vegetable stock cubes and water)
about 12 oz can corn, drained
salt and pepper
To Serve
low-fat unsweetened yoghurt
chopped fresh parsley
warmed pocket bread
1 Rinse the red lentils in cold water. Drain the lentils well and put to one side for a while.
2 Heat the oil in a large non-stick saucepan and fry the onion and garlic gently until soft but not browned.
3 Stir in the cumin, coriander, garam masala, tomato paste, and 4 tablespoons of the stock. Mix well and simmer gently for 2 minutes.
4 Add the lentils and poir in the remaining stock. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour until the lentils are tender and the soup thickened. Stir in the corn and heat through for 5 minutes. Season well.
5 Ladle into warmed soup bowls and top each with a spoonful of yoghurt and a sprinkling of parsley. Serve with warmed pocket bread.
Tonight's soup recipe is Carrot and Cumin Soup. Carrots were on sale for extremely cheap, and this is a recipe that uses a fair few of them (and I might make some Carrot and Ginger cake later on to use up another bunch of them, recipe will be forthcoming if that's a success). Once again veggie friendly as well.
Carrot and Cumin Soup
Ingredients:
3 tbsp butter or margarine
1 large onion, chopped
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
12 oz carrots, sliced
3 1/2 chicken or vegetable stock
3/4 tsp cumin
2 celery stalks, sliced thinly
4 oz potato, diced
2 tsp tomato paste
2 tsp lemon juice
2 fresh or dried bay leaves
about 1 1/4 cups milk (soy milk as needed)
salt and pepper
celery leaves to garnish
1 Melt the butter or margarine in a large saucepan. Add the onion and garlic and fry very gently until the onion begins to soften.
2 Add the carrots and continue to fry for a further 5 minutes, stirring frequently and taking care they do not brown.
3 Add the stock, cumin, seasoning, celery, potato, tomato paste, lemon juice, and bay leaves and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer gently for about 30 minutes until all the vegetables are very tender.
4 Discard the bay leaves, cool the soup a little, and then press it through a strainer or blend in a food processor or blender until very smooth.
5 Pour the soup into a clean pan, add the milk, and bring slowly to a boil. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
6 Garnish each serving with a small celery leaf and serve.
Other than that, on a non-soup note, I tried an Oatbran and Applesauce muffin recipe on Saturday. It should have been just oat bran muffins, because the applesauce was undetectable in the muffins, which was a real shame. As that was the only sweetening in the muffins, it didn't make them much more appealing as the applesauce or its sugar content were undetectable. A pity because the recipe sounded appealing enough in and of itself.
I hate when recipes don't live up to your expectations. Of the soups I made 2 were like that. Sweet Potato and Onion sounded and looked promising, but the orange juice in the recipe just didn't make it appealing, and we didn't end up eating much of it. The Beef & Veg I made was nice, but it had the problem of becoming extremely thick in the reheating, which it wasn't supposed to do as a clear soup... I guess the barley in it had other ideas. That one was tasty though, it just stopped looking appealing after it had been reheated. Plus that one took forever to make.
Anyway, expect more soup recipes as I make my way through all the ones that look yummy in the cookbook that I want to try :D
Edit: Can't make the Carrot and Ginger cake because I'm all out of plain flour. So I'm making Oatbran & Peanut butter cookies instead. That finishes off the remaining oatbran I had, and even though it called for plain flour, I used wheat instead. At least this means I can get all the ingredients I need for the Carrot and Ginger cake, because I was going to fudge it and use minced ginger instead of stem ginger and root ginger anyway.
Anyway, I decided to share some recent recipes.
The Spicy Dal & Carrot Soup I raved about a while ago, it's the one I made when
vinlander71 and vgnwtch came over a few weeks back. I adjusted it for them as they're vegans, so the veggies among you can eat it too.Spicy Dal & Carrot Soup
Ingredients:
4 1/2 oz. red split lentils (and you need red lentils, because they don't require overnight soaking)
5 cups vegetable stock
12 oz carrots
2 onions, peeled and chopped
9 oz can chopped tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
2 tbsp vegetable ghee or oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 fresh green chili, seeded and chopped, or use 1 tsp minced chili (from a jar)
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tbsp lemon juice
salt
1 1/4 cups skimmed milk (or soy, which I used in the vegan alternative)
2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
yoghurt, to serve (or not for the veggies ;))
1 Place the lentils in a strainer and wash well under cold running water. Drain and place in a large saucepan with 3.5 cups of the vegetable stock, the carrots, onions, tomatoes, and garlic. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.
2 Meanwhile heat the ghee or oil in a small pan, add the cumin, coriander, chili and turmeric and fry gently for 1 minute.
3 Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice and salt to taste.
4 Purée the soup in batches in a blender or food processor. Return the soup to the saucepan, add the spice mixture and the remaining 1 1/4 cups of stock or water, and simmer for 10 minutes.
5 Add the milk to the soup and adjust the seasoning according to taste.
6 Stir in the chopped cilantro and reheat gently. Serve hot, with a swirl of yoghurt.
The soup I made for this past weekend was Spicy Lentil Soup and very yummy. Also a veggie friendly recipe too.
Spicy Lentil Soup
Ingredients:
1/2 cup red lentils
2 tsp vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped finely
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp garam masala
2 tbsp tomato paste
4 1/2 cups fresh vegetable stock (there's a recipe in the cookbook for that too, but it's too involved for me for a batch of soup, so I cheated and used vegetable stock cubes and water)
about 12 oz can corn, drained
salt and pepper
To Serve
low-fat unsweetened yoghurt
chopped fresh parsley
warmed pocket bread
1 Rinse the red lentils in cold water. Drain the lentils well and put to one side for a while.
2 Heat the oil in a large non-stick saucepan and fry the onion and garlic gently until soft but not browned.
3 Stir in the cumin, coriander, garam masala, tomato paste, and 4 tablespoons of the stock. Mix well and simmer gently for 2 minutes.
4 Add the lentils and poir in the remaining stock. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour until the lentils are tender and the soup thickened. Stir in the corn and heat through for 5 minutes. Season well.
5 Ladle into warmed soup bowls and top each with a spoonful of yoghurt and a sprinkling of parsley. Serve with warmed pocket bread.
Tonight's soup recipe is Carrot and Cumin Soup. Carrots were on sale for extremely cheap, and this is a recipe that uses a fair few of them (and I might make some Carrot and Ginger cake later on to use up another bunch of them, recipe will be forthcoming if that's a success). Once again veggie friendly as well.
Carrot and Cumin Soup
Ingredients:
3 tbsp butter or margarine
1 large onion, chopped
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
12 oz carrots, sliced
3 1/2 chicken or vegetable stock
3/4 tsp cumin
2 celery stalks, sliced thinly
4 oz potato, diced
2 tsp tomato paste
2 tsp lemon juice
2 fresh or dried bay leaves
about 1 1/4 cups milk (soy milk as needed)
salt and pepper
celery leaves to garnish
1 Melt the butter or margarine in a large saucepan. Add the onion and garlic and fry very gently until the onion begins to soften.
2 Add the carrots and continue to fry for a further 5 minutes, stirring frequently and taking care they do not brown.
3 Add the stock, cumin, seasoning, celery, potato, tomato paste, lemon juice, and bay leaves and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer gently for about 30 minutes until all the vegetables are very tender.
4 Discard the bay leaves, cool the soup a little, and then press it through a strainer or blend in a food processor or blender until very smooth.
5 Pour the soup into a clean pan, add the milk, and bring slowly to a boil. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
6 Garnish each serving with a small celery leaf and serve.
Other than that, on a non-soup note, I tried an Oatbran and Applesauce muffin recipe on Saturday. It should have been just oat bran muffins, because the applesauce was undetectable in the muffins, which was a real shame. As that was the only sweetening in the muffins, it didn't make them much more appealing as the applesauce or its sugar content were undetectable. A pity because the recipe sounded appealing enough in and of itself.
I hate when recipes don't live up to your expectations. Of the soups I made 2 were like that. Sweet Potato and Onion sounded and looked promising, but the orange juice in the recipe just didn't make it appealing, and we didn't end up eating much of it. The Beef & Veg I made was nice, but it had the problem of becoming extremely thick in the reheating, which it wasn't supposed to do as a clear soup... I guess the barley in it had other ideas. That one was tasty though, it just stopped looking appealing after it had been reheated. Plus that one took forever to make.
Anyway, expect more soup recipes as I make my way through all the ones that look yummy in the cookbook that I want to try :D
Edit: Can't make the Carrot and Ginger cake because I'm all out of plain flour. So I'm making Oatbran & Peanut butter cookies instead. That finishes off the remaining oatbran I had, and even though it called for plain flour, I used wheat instead. At least this means I can get all the ingredients I need for the Carrot and Ginger cake, because I was going to fudge it and use minced ginger instead of stem ginger and root ginger anyway.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2004-02-24 11:20 am (UTC)And yes, we are due for a trip down there, that Noodle House you mentioned sounds really yummy. In a week or two-three the new Depp movie's opening, Secret Window...
The only engagement that we tentatively have is to go see a show that Cherie and Katie have costumed for which we might go see either this weekend or the next. It's "A Fairytale Festival" with three pieces each night and two different evening set ups, let me know if you're interested. So far the dates remaining are fri 27, sat 28, sun 29, fri 5, sat 6. Most at 8pm, some of the friday ones have a 10 pm option, and some of the sunday ones a 3pm one. It's in NYC. Info on www.sixfigures.com (haven't had a look at that yet, but it's on the promo card I have).
(no subject)
Date: 2004-02-25 08:29 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2004-03-02 09:40 am (UTC)Johnny Depp's new movie opens on the 12th. Would you like to do a Friday night or Saturday night dinner and movie? We can go to the noodle house and then straight to the cinema!
(no subject)
Date: 2004-03-02 09:51 am (UTC)