CSA Noodle Bowls

I'm not sure how to correctly name this soup, so I've gone with: a steaming hot noodle bowl topped with lots of roasted fall vegetables. The inspiration came from ramen, but I wanted a way to vegetarianize the dish, and make it feel healthy and filling. One day, I had a lot of spare CSA veggies lying around and I really wanted ramen. I decided to roast all the veggies, put together a simple broth, and add noodles. Since I only had somen noodles, I used those, and can report happy delicious results. However, the next time I used ramen noodle packets, tossed the flavorings, and cooked the noodles directly in the broth. Delicious. If you crave ramen veggie noodle bowls this will not disappoint.

This is a fun soup to assemble when you've got a bit of extra time. Since there a few steps to getting everything ready I've outlined as follows: first, I cut up a small pumpkin or other another type of squash, into wedges. The squash gets roasted in a half sheet jelly pan for 40-45 minutes. While the squash cooks, I prep two other soup ingredients that will get roasted in the oven while the squash cooks. The first is broccoli and mushrooms, and the second is marinaded tofu. Since both of these can cook in about 20-25 minutes, it makes oven multitasking easier. While everything bakes, the noodles and the broth can be prepped. Finally, I cut carrots into matchsticks for a garnish. If you've still got energy, roast the squash seeds.

When I made this dish, we had leftovers, and ate the soup again two days later. All the ingredients can be assembled ahead of time and prepped just before serving. In particular, the roasted pumpkin, and the roasted broccoli and mushrooms can be prepared ahead of time. Store the prepped ingredients separately so they don't become soggy. I like to prepare the noodles just before serving, as I find they lose their texture.

I'm calling these CSA noodle bowls in honor of my CSA veggies that always get thrown into soup.

CSA Noodle Bowls
Yield: 4 servings 

Ingredients: 
1 small pumpkin or other squash, cut into wedges
1 head broccoli, cut into florets
1 package mushrooms, quartered
olive oil
salt and pepper
tofu, cut into 8 rectangular slabs
1/4 cup peanut oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 T black strap molasses
2 tsp sambal oelek
1 carrot cut into thin matchsticks, or grated
1 package noodles, somen or ramen. If using ramen, use 2 packages for 4 people, omit flavoring packets.

Soup broth ingredients:
6 cups chicken or vegetarian broth, or water
1/4 cup soy sauce
6 strips fresh ginger

Special tools: about 3 mixing bowls, 2 half-sheet jelly roll pans, an 8" by 8" square baking dish, 2 large pots for stock and cooking noodles, cutting board, knife.

Directions: 
Step 1: Preheat oven to 400 º F

Step 2: Cut the pumpkin into wedges, remove the seeds, and toss the squash wedges with 2 tbsp of olive oil. Add salt and pepper to the squash, and place the wedges so the skin is touching the pan, on a lightly greased jelly roll pan. Cook 40-45 minutes, or until the pumpkin is cooked all the way through.

Step 3: Combine the peanut oil, soy sauce, molasses and sambal in a small glass bowl, and set aside.

Step 4: Slice the mushrooms into 1/4" slices and chop up the broccoli. Toss with 2 tsp of olive oil, and add salt and pepper. Lay out on a greased jelly roll pan. After the pumpkin has cooked 20 minutes, place the broccoli-mushroom pan into the oven and roast both the pumpkin wedges and the broccoli and mushrooms for the remaining 20 minutes. Note, the pumpkin will cook a total of 40-45 minutes

Step 5: Cut the tofu up into 8-10 thick rectangular pieces, or cube into 1" chunks. Lay the tofu pieces into a deep baking dish and pour the remainder of the soy-molasses mixture on top. Make sure all the tofu pieces are immersed. Place in the oven and cook for the remaining 20 minutes that the vegetables are cooking.

Step 6: In a large pot add the broth, ginger, and soy sauce and simmer over medium-low heat until ready to serve. Remove the ginger from the pot before serving.

Step 7: In another large pot, boil water for the pasta, and cook the noodles according to package directions.

Step 8: Once the vegetables and squash are done roasting, remove them from the oven, and set aside. Turn the broiler on high and broil the tofu until golden and bubbling, +/- 5 minutes, keeping a close watch on the tofu.

Step 9:  Now for the fun part. If possible line up all the ingredients in order so you can build the noodle bowls. In a bowl, add the noodles, and then top with roasted veggies, a wedge of pumpkin, a few blocks of tofu, and then ladle the broth on top. Garnish with the carrots and serve immediately.

Broccoli cheddar soup

For this creamy version of Souper Saturday (I know it's cheese-y, omg! I can't help myself!) I bring you a lighter, less processed, version of broccoli cheddar soup. I resisted looking up versions of this recipe online. I wanted to think through the steps, and I'm glad I did. This soup is really an altered base for a white cheese sauce.  I use sharp cheddar, 2% reduced-fat milk, broccoli, and spices. I don't use cornstarch, processed cheese, or half and half.  The addition of fresh scallions is really good. This soup is so much better the next day.

Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Yield: 4 servings, 1 and 1/2 cups each

Ingredients
4 cups water for boiling
1 large stalk or 2 crowns broccoli, chopped fine (totals about 2 cups) *see note
3 tbsp flour
3 cups reduced fat 2% milk
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
generous cracked black pepper
1 cup vegetable broth or no-chicken broth
2 cups sharp cheddar, grated
2 medium scallions chopped, reserve a few tbsp for the garnish

Special tools: a large and medium soup stockpot, a colander, a cutting board, box grater, knives, a whisk, and a 4-cup Pyrex glass measuring cup

Directions
Step 1: In a large soup stockpot, heat up the water until boiling.

Step 2: Add 3 tbsp of flour to the 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup. Pour in 1/3 cup of milk and whisk until combined thoroughly. Once the flour is dissolved, pour in the remainder of milk until you have 3 cups. Set aside.

Step 3: When the water begins to boil, add in the prepped broccoli, and cook until the broccoli turns bright green, about 5 minutes. Immediately, drain the broccoli in a colander and rinse under cold water to stop the broccoli from cooking further. An alternative method would be to blanch the broccoli by draining the broccoli and then adding it to a large bowl with ice water. Set aside the broccoli.

Step 4: Wipe out the soup stockpot (or use another large soup stockpot) and heat it over medium heat. Add in the olive oil, and the onions, and saute until translucent about 4 minutes. Add the nutmeg, black pepper, and salt. Stir to combine. Pour in the milk and stir to combine. Be careful to not boil the milk. It should be heating up gradually. Turn down the heat to medium low if the flame is too hot. Once the milk is hot and steamy, stir in the cheese and broth. Continue to stir until the cheese begins to melt. Keep stirring, so the cheese does not settle at the bottom and cook.

Step 5: Continue to heat the soup over medium-low heat until the soup thickens, about 20 minutes. Give the soup a stir every 4-5 minutes or so. Once the soup is thickened, add the cooked broccoli and the scallions, and heat up until hot. Serve the soup by passing chives and slices of sourdough at the table.

*Note: What to do with the broccoli stalk? To use the stalk, cut off the crown, and then trim off the bottom woody end of the stalk. You want to cut off the stem until it gives easily and does not feel tough. Trim the stem by cutting lengthwise revealing a green interior. Dice the stalk and cook it along with the crowns.

The creamy soup series: carrot ginger soup

I've been making creamy soups about once a week. The idea is that they store really well, and make excellent light lunches with bread or some salad. Creamy is really a misnomer - I've hardly used any cream in the soups, but the end result after blending is always silky smooth. I don't promise that these will be fast to prepare, but the end result is really worth the effort.

Do you need any special tools? Making pureed, smooth, soups does require the use of some special tools, but if you are reading this, you are in luck because I am a lazy cook.  For the creamy consistency of this soup, a blender or immersion blender is recommended. Since carrots don't have any fibrous materials, blending is super easy. I sometimes employ a pressure cooker, and would highly advocate purchasing one because of its use in speeding up everything else in your repertoire.

Soup is soup.

For this souper Saturday, you see, I could simply not help myself - I adapted Jack Bishop's Gingered Carrot Soup from his wonderful cooking through the seasons cookbook: A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen. I adapted it by modifying it for preparation in a pressure cooker (PC). If you don't have a PC, stovetop directions follow the "Directions" below.

Creamy carrot ginger soup
Adapted from Jack Bishop's A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen (circa 2004)
Yield: 4 generous 1 and 1/2 cup servings, maybe slightly more

Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 leek, thinly sliced. Cut up only the white and very light green parts
1 tablespoon ginger, grated over a microplane, or very finely minced
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 cup or more dry white wine or vegetable broth
1 and 1/4 pounds carrots, washed, peeled and cut into large chunks
2 cups vegetable broth
1-2 cups milk (can sub soy or almond)

Directions:
Step 1: Heat up 1 tbsp of olive oil in the pressure cooker fry pan over medium heat. Once hot, add in the leek and saute for a few minutes. Add in the fresh ginger and ground ginger, stir, and then add in the white wine until it reduces slightly. Let it bubble up nicely, and once most of the wine is cooked off, scrape any stuck on brown bits from the bottom of the pan.

Step 2: Add in the carrots to the pan. Pour 1 cup of vegetable broth in and note the liquid capacity. If under, go ahead and add the remaining broth ensuring that you don't go over the max liquid capacity line. You will add the remainder of the broth after cooking while blending the soup. Close the PC and bring to high pressure (second red ring) and cook 4 minutes. Use the natural release method. This method is simply moving the PC off the heat and letting the pressure escape naturally.

Step 3: Once the PC is ready (no more pressure is indicated), carefully scoop the cooked carrots and leeks, batch by batch, into the blender. You may want to have a large mixing bowl handy to store the "blended" from the "needs to be blended." Add broth and the liquid from the PC into the blender. Do not fill the blender more than half way full. This is also where I learned an important tip from Chef Bishop. Don't fill the blender along with its contents (liquids) more than half way full. Put the blender lid on, and slightly vent the removal cap (the removal cap is usually in the center of the blender lid). Put a dish towel over the blender lid, including the vented lid,  protecting your hand and any surfaces from any accidental splatters. Blend until silky smooth, about 3-4 minutes on high blend setting.

Step 4: Once everything is blended, gradually add milk until you get the creamy consistency you desire. Taste for salt, and heat up and serve immediately. This soup will get slightly spicier with rest. It is so good!

Regular/Stovetop:
If you don't have a PC, you may follow Step 1 by omitting the PC, but using a large pot. During Step 2, add the carrots to the pot, along with all of the (2 cups worth) vegetable broth. Simmer everything for about 20-25 minutes until everything is soft. Allow the liquid to cool off before blending (let it sit there for about 20 minutes) and then proceed with the recipe from Step 3.

Khadi

Khadi a chickpea flour and buttermilk soup seasoned with curry leaves, cumin seeds, and turmeric.


Chickpea flour, or besan.

Khadi is a Gujarati soup made out of chickpea flour and buttermilk and seasoned with curry leaves, cumin seeds, and turmeric. It's often served with basmati rice in a thali, or it's served on top of kitchdi. Kitchdi is a rice and lentil dish, where they are both cooked together with minimal seasoning.

Kitchdi and khadi are Guju comfort food for me. Growing up, if we had come home from a trip or vacation, and the fridge needed restocking my parents would serve this; if there was nothing to cook, my parents would cook this; if we got sick, my parents would cook this. This is truly a dish you will not find at any restaurant. It is simple down-home Gujarati cooking, and one I'm sure that is passed on as tradition. Thus, the flavor varies widely, but that is half the fun. This is not a hard dish to make, but it does take a bit of pre-planning in that you need buttermilk, chickpea flour, and a few of the spices. Follow the directions as closely as possible.

Mitta limbda or mitto limdo (basically curry leaves), or cilantro are key in lending and infusing khadi with its distinctive flavor. If you can't find curry leaves, sub in generous amounts of cilantro - honestly as much as you think you'll like, I would go for 1/2 cup chopped. Although most Gujarati cuisine is sweetened with some sugar, my mom's version (and to a much larger extent all of her cooking) lacks unnecessary sugar. The basic flavors of buttermilk, cumin seeds, cilantro, and turmeric really carry this dish.

Khadi
Chickpea flour and buttermilk soup seasoned with curry leaves, cumin seeds, and turmeric. 
Serves: 2; recipe by my mom. 


Ingredients:
2 tbsp of chickpea flour (such as besan flour) plus 1/3 cup water
1 cup buttermilk (can substitute yogurt)
2 cups water
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp whole cumin seeds
1/8 tsp udad dhal (optional)
1/8 tsp fenugreek seeds (optional)
pinch asafoetida or hing (optional)
6 curry leaves
2 tbsp chopped cilantro; increase to 1/2 cup chopped cilantro if omitting curry leaves
1/2 - 1 tsp salt, add less if your buttermilk or yogurt is salty
1/4 tsp turmeric

Directions:
Dissolve the chickpea flour in a small amount (approx 1/3 cup) of water in a small mixing bowl large enough to hold 3 cups. Whisk it together (with a whisk) until it is smooth and there are no clumps. Then add the rest of the water and buttermilk. If you don't have buttermilk, yogurt is a fine substitute; in Belgium, I used plattekeis and it was delicious.

Next in a heavy bottom pan, heat up 1 tbsp olive oil (butter or ghee is much better) over medium heat. We're going to do a vaghar (and now you know a word in Guju too). A vaghar is like frying seeds and lentils, and infusing the oil with some of the aromatics from the seeds or lentils. To the oil add in 1/2 tsp whole cumin seeds, 1/8 tsp udad dhal, 1/8 tsp fenugreek, and a pinch of hing or asafoetida. Once the oil begins to get hot, the seeds and lentils will give off a nice fragrance. Don't let them brown too much.  If using curry leaves, add them now. They only need a bit of time and you don't want them to brown. Turn the heat to low.

Make sure you turn the heat to low. When everything is simmering, very carefully pour in the buttermilk/chickpea flour mixture. Stir it together well, and then add in cilantro, salt and turmeric. Stir together. Leave a stainless steel spoon in the khadi. This will prevent it from bubbling over. Stay with the khadi. It will overflow if ignored, and then you'll end up with a big mess. Keep an eye on it, stir it frequently. Adjust for salt. The khadi should be done in 20-25 minutes.

Serve, steaming hot, with some plain cooked rice, or kitchdi (recipe will be posted soon), ghee, and papad.

5-bean chili with Leffe brown beer and chipotle peppers

I try to cook beans from scratch because I like that they aren't too processed, but I use canned beans too. To make it easier to use dried beans, I'll share how I normally prep them. I either soak the beans, in a huge bowl filled with lots of water, first thing in the morning, or I soak them overnight. If you soak them in the morning, you can cook the beans when you prep dinner; if you soak overnight, you can cook them first thing in the morning. They can cook, mostly ignored, in a large soup stockpot, or pressure cooker, or crock-pot (see this post on cooking beans and lentils). Once done cooking, you can store the cooled beans and broth in the fridge until ready to use. If you start doing this 2 days per week, you'll have lots of healthy beans to throw into random dishes. For example, stirring in a cup of mixed beans into a pasta dish, topping a salad, filling a burrito with them, or beans on toast. Or perhaps some spicy chili for a cool fall day?

I've used the Belgian Leffe brown beer for this because it has a balanced subtle sweetness, and I like the malty notes it left in the chili. Use any brown or amber beers (or really any beer you feel like dumping into a soup pot) with a nice body and aroma. Plus it's always cool to cook with beer. 

5-bean chili with Leffe brown beer and chipotle peppers

Ingredients: listed in order of use

Yield: 4 servings, about 1 and 1/2 cups

1 and 1/4 cup dried beans, (any mixture of dried black beans, chickpeas, kidney beans, pinto beans, white beans) soaked and cooked; Canned beans are totally fine too. Use 2 or 3, 14 oz cans of different canned beans.

1 tsp olive oil

1 red onion

1 bay leaf

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup Leffe dark beer, slightly more if foamy at first (let it reduce by half), 

1 cup chopped green bell pepper

2 Tbsp chili powder (recipe below)

1 small canned chipotle pepper, about 1 tbsp chopped pepper, add more for extra heat

remainder of beer

1 cup canned diced tomatoes

1 cup corn, frozen or canned

1 tbsp fresh lime juice

cilantro to garnish

1/2 tsp salt (to taste if not enough)

yogurt and shredded cheese (optional for garnish)

Chili powder:

1 T of smoked paprika

1 T cumin

1 T oregano (or other mixed herbs such as thyme, mint,)

1/8 tsp cayenne powder

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

This is a variation that can be adjusted to your taste and preference. The smoked paprika is very delicious in this dish. I'd recommend adding a tsp to the chili just before serving. Mix all the spices together in a small bowl and set aside until ready to use.

Directions:

1. Saute onions and garlic in the olive oil. Once the onions turn a bit golden, add in 1 cup or more of the beer. It will foam and settle down, releasing a delicious smell. Let it reduce by half, then add in the green bell peppers.
2. Add in 2 T of the spice mixture and the chipotle peppers (a chopped chipotle pepper should be about 2 tbsp).
3. Add the cooked beans to the pot along with the about 1 cup of the bean broth. If using canned beans, rinse and drain them (it removes the salty brine taste), and use 1 cup water instead. Pour the rest of the beer into the chili, along with 1 cup of chopped tomatoes. Stir to combine, turn up heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Before serving add in 1 cup of canned corn (if using frozen corn add it in 10 minutes before the chili is done). Stir in rest of beer and 1tbsp of lime juice.

Top with a dollop of plain yogurt, shredded cheese and garlic bread.

Butternut squash and pear soup

This is an excellent soup, I often heat some up for breakfast in the morning with a slice of toast. I make this soup as soon as butternut squash hits the markets. No blender, no problem. Just mash the contents with a potato masher in the roasting pan and add them in. It makes a chunky soup, but soup is soup. Since the main ingredients are roasted first then made into soup, this makes an excellent soup to make on the weekends, or if you have some free time at home. The prep is all in cutting the squash, but most of the time is spent idly.

Butternut squash and pear soup

Yield: 4-6 servings, 1 or 1 and 1/2 cups each.

Ingredients:

1 butternut squash, chopped in half and seeds removed, leave the peel on.

3-4 pears, peeled and cut in halves, seeds removed

large handful fresh thyme, washed and left whole

4 garlic cloves, unpeeled and left whole

olive oil as needed

coarse salt

1 red onion chopped fine

1/4 cup white wine

2 cups vegetable broth, or water

1/2 cup milk (soymilk or cream is fine too)

salt as needed

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400º F or 200º C. Wash and scrub the squash and pears. For cutting the butternut squash, leave them unpeeled. I like to lay the squash down and cut it in half along the shortest width, the middle of the squash. Then take each side, place them cut side down on a cutting board so they don't slip, and cut them in half; the top half into two halves, and the bottom into two halves exposing the seeds in the middle. Scoop out the seeds and save them. You can roast them (see note at end of post). For the pears, peel them, cut them in half and remove the seeds and stem.

1. Wash the thyme and leave it whole.
2. Peel the garlic cloves and leave them whole. You can give them a quick smash if you want.
3. Pour about 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of olive oil in a roasting pan. Place the pear halves, butternut squash halves (the fleshy part should be touching the bottom of the pan), garlic cloves, and thyme in a roasting pan. Pour about 1-2 teaspoons of additional olive oil on top and sprinkle with coarse salt.
4. Roast in the oven for 30 minutes to an hour. The longer roasting time will help the juices caramelize, the squash is done when golden brown on top and is easily pierced with a fork or knife. Let cool on countertop.
5. When the squash is cool enough to handle, peel the skin off. It should come off very easily. Remove the thyme from the stems. Leave everything in the pan.
6. In a medium size soup stockpot, heat up about 1 tsp of olive oil. Add in the chopped red onions and cook until nice and golden. Add in wine and let reduce. Add the squash, thyme, pears, garlic and all the roasting juices.
7. Add in vegetable broth and bring to a simmer. If you have an immersion blender, turn down the heat and gradually blend everything together. Alternatively, you can place half the contents in a blender (allow space in the cover for steam to escape, and repeat as necessary), and blend together. Returning the blended soup to the pot. Once it reaches a creamy silky consistency, stir in the milk or cream, and heat up.

Note: When the squash is done roasting, you can lay out the washed butternut squash seeds on a baking tray and roast them on low heat. I just add a tad bit of oil and a sprinkling of salt. They take about 20-25 minutes at 200º F.

Potato and Leek Soup with Parsley-Garlic Chutney

Being unemployed means having plenty of spare time to cook and then take dorky cooking pictures of whatever it is that I’m cooking, which then accompanies these intros.

Which brings me to a new outlook: no excuses.

1. Small changes can make big differences. Sounds lame but, por ejemplo, I cook beans from scratch all the time. I let them soak overnight and I cook them in the morning. The difference between being employed and being unemployed is the method in which the beans cook. As a student, or when I was working, I would either cook soaked beans in a crockpot, or soak beans during the day and nuke them in the pressure cooker once I got home (pressure cooking beans takes all of 20 minutes). Now, I can soak them overnight and cook them in the morning, or soak them all day, and cook them along with dinner. Beans are important foods to a vegetarian - they provide protein, and they aren’t processed. I still buy canned beans for those oh crap moments, but I have found my new routine to have less of those moments. These small changes can have excellent benefits. Having cooked beans in the fridge during the week makes throwing last minute meals a reality (as opposed to my new found addiction to the Dr. Oetker’s mushroom pizza).  

2. Cook meals at home and try to do it everyday. Living in a country with limited ethnic food options has improved upon my cooking skills. If I want Indian, I cook it at home (I am not interested in spending my week’s grocery bill on one measly thali).  Craving Mexican? Cook it at home. Thai? At home. Vietnamese? At home.  

3. Plan your weekly meals. I like cooking and eating so I plan meals. This does a number of things, it allows me to plan to use whatever is already in the fridge and pantry. I can cook more of one thing (increase the pot of beans) to be used in multiple dishes, and I can prep vegetables all at once.  It helps me maximize my food dollars. I buy whatever foods I want, but I make sure to use them in dishes that I will cook that week or the next.

4. Get someone in your household to start baking bread everyday.

Today, I had leftover leeks from a week ago (who knew they stored so well), parsley, and some potatoes that were starting to grow. Ew. So, I decided to procrastinate from my CV writing (let’s see how I can translate this “no excuses” mentality into all aspects of my life?), and instead make potato and leek soup. This is good, tasty, hearty, filling, and healthy. 

Leeks are like overgrown green onions, except they are milder and sweeter.  You can cut up the leeks into 4” sections and fan the layers through water. The leek layers tend to be filled with dirt, so if still gritty, place trimmed chopped leeks into a large bowl of water.

Leeks

Peeled potatoes

Leeks ready to be chopped 

Leeks and carrots

These will make a great chutney to top the soup

Potato and leek soup

Potato and Leek Soup

Yield: 4-6 servings
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
3-4 cups chopped leeks, from 1-2 large leeks Use up to 2” of the green parts on the leeks
1 medium carrot, chopped into 1/4” dice
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp oregano, dried
1 tsp dried onion flakes
1 tsp dill, dried
4 medium to large potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 cups (1 quart) vegetable broth plus 1/2 cup water
1/2 cup soymilk, you could also use 1/2 cup of either cream or milk



Directions:

1. In a large soup stockpot (one that can hold 4 quarts) heat up olive oil and butter over medium-high heat. Once hot, add in leeks and saute 5 minutes.
2. Add in bay leaf and carrots and continue to cook 5 minutes, stirring often.
3. Add in oregano, onion flakes, and dill. Stir to combine.
4. Add in potatoes and vegetable broth plus water.
5. Bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, turn the heat down to medium-low, cover slightly and let simmer 20 minutes.
6. After 20 minutes, the potatoes should be cooked through.  Take a potato masher and lightly mash the potatoes until you have a chunky soup. You could also puree half of the soup in a blender or with an immersion blender. The potato masher method is the most convenient requiring far less cleaning than using the blender or immersion blender.
7. Stir in soymilk, cream if using, or milk, and continue to heat 10 minutes until thickened.
8. Garnish with parsley or serve along with parlsey-garlic chutney (see recipe below).

Parsley-garlic chutney
This is more like a tapenade than a chutney; it is delicious and brightens up the soup.



Ingredients:
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/4 tsp grated lemon rind
2 tbsp shredded parmesan cheese (choose a regular, shreddable kind, it can be basic, nothing fancy see note below.)
3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup parsley, finely minced to yield 1/4 cup parsley
salt and pepper to taste



Directions:

1. Combine everything together and season with salt and pepper to taste.
2. Spoon a teaspoon over the soup before serving.

Note: there is a cheese shop, called The Cottage, in town that I really enjoy purchasing cheeses from. The owner and I were chatting and he was telling me how he cannot tell the difference between the regular parmesan and the fancier parmesan reggiano, except for the price between the two. He said they both are salty enough, but the parmesan reggiano is drier and aged longer. This works for me.

Cabbage Lentil Soup and Truffled Parmesan Polenta

I picked up some quick-cooking polenta recently, and am happy to present this recipe. I would recommend slowly whisking in the polenta to the boiling water, and then keeping the add-in ingredients very close by. I was running around the kitchen looking for a lid, while polenta was bubbling like volcanic ash onto my arms, and onto the floor.  You can serve the polenta right away, or you can let it cool into a mold (such as a shallow narrow pan like a small bread loaf pan, or a bowl) to slice later. Allow an hour more if you mold the polenta. Otherwise this can come together in 40 minutes.

Back in Chapel Hill my friend Melissa made a truffle-mushroom-polenta dish. I think she was trying to pan-fry the polenta but it just melted into the oil, and so she just stirred in her truffled mushrooms.  Then as if that couldn’t get any better, she served it up with some bourbon bread pudding. Melissa, one day, I want both of these recipes, and to finally have my very own bottle of Bulleit Bourbon.  

This came together pretty quickly between 30-45 minutes. If you want fancy polenta slices, allow up to an hour, but most of it is idle time, or could be prepared in advance.

Cabbage Lentil Soup
1 tbsp and 1 tsp butter or oil
3 cloves garlic, minced fine
1 cup red onion, chopped (about 2 small red onions)
1 medium carrot, chopped
2-3 tbsp tomato paste plus 2 tbsp water
3/4 cup French green dried lentils
1 vegetarian bouillon cube
1-2 liters water
1 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp red chili powder
1/2 tsp dried garlic powder
1 tsp dried onion flakes
1 tsp oregano
4-5 cups cabbage, cut into wide ribbons.
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 tsp salt
4 tbsp parsley chopped, for garnish (set aside 2 tbsp for the polenta)

Directions:
1. Heat up the butter over medium-high heat in a large soup stockpot.
2. Add in the minced garlic and after 1 minute, add in onions and carrots. Stir for 3 minutes.
3. Stir in tomato paste, and 2 tbsp water, stir to combine.
4. Add in water, lentils, bouillon cubes and the cumin, red chili powder, onion flakes, dried garlic powder, and oregano. Stir to combine. Add in more water if the level looks low. You want enough water so it looks like a soupy and so the lentils can cook. Cook partially covered for 20 minutes. Stir the soup often.
5. Stir in the cabbage and salt and continue cooking for 10 minutes.
6. Garnish the soup with parsley and serve alongside the polenta.

Truffled-Parmesan Polenta:
5 cups water
1 cup ready-cook polenta
1/3 cup parmesan-reggiano, shredded
2 tbsp truffle oil
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
salt to taste cooking spray if using a mold

Directions:
1. Bring 5 cups of water to boil in a medium saucepan and set aside 1 cup of ready-cook polenta.
2. If you have pot holders, put them on for this next step, and turn down the heat to medium-high. For 2 minutes, whisk in the polenta quickly making sure to get rid of any lumps. Quickly, add in parmesan, truffle oil and parsley.  As the polenta thickens the boiling turns into spurts, and you can get burned.  It’s worth it, the polenta is very good. Turn the heat off and continue to stir another 2 minutes.
3. Serve immediately, or follow directions below to make a mold so you can slice the polenta.

Polenta slices:
Put the cooked polenta into an oiled medium mixing bowl, or an oiled medium bread loaf pan.  Set in the fridge (1 hour) or freezer (30 minutes) for rapid cooling.  It can take up to an hour.  
Once cool, slide the polenta onto a cutting board and cut into desired thickness. You can place the polenta in a grill pan (the non-stick ones) used for making grill marks, or put it into a regular skillet and brown with some cooking spray - or you could use a baking sheet and place lightly brushed polenta slices on top and broil on high for a minute or two.

Split Pea Soup with Fried Egg and Chard Open-Faced Sandwiches

It feels darn good to cook again especially when Karl is making fresh bread everyday! Here is a simple split pea soup I felt inspired to cook up (thanks Alyse!) and it's served alongside fried eggs and chard-tapenade open-faced sandwiches.

Serves: 4
Make this split-pea soup, and add 1 T of Thai green curry paste instead of the curry powder. It adds just a little bit of heat.

For the open-faced sandwiches:
1-2 cups chard, chopped (include stems if young using chard)
1 clove garlic
3-4 green onions (bulbs only)
1 tsp olive oil
4 eggs
4 T water
2 T shredded parmesan
pepper to taste
Prepared olive tapenade
4 slices bread

1. Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat, once hot add in chard, garlic and green onions. Cook until the chard is wilted and soft. Remove from pan and place in a bowl.
2. Crack eggs in pan to pan fry. If using large to medium eggs do 2 or 3 at a time. When halfway done cooking (whites will have set, yolks look uncooked) add 2-4 T of water and cover the pan. Let sit 2-3 minutes. When done, sprinkle with pepper. You may need to add more or less water
3. Meanwhile mix parmesan with chard mixture, and toast the bread slices.
4. Assemble the sandwich by spreading tapenade on bottom, then chard mixture on top, then top with egg.

Impressive bread, right?

Kidney Bean Spinach Salad with Caramelized Onions and Mushroom Soup

A Turkish dish adapted to a Belgian kitchen. Essentially I made this with whatever was available from the corner grocery store (and the corner grocery store is basically like a Food Lion). Prepare the vinaigrette first. Then cook the onions. Give the onions enough time to caramelize - they need to be cooked over slow heat for 30-40 minutes. This should give you enough time to prep a simple mushroom soup.

Canned beans are mixed in with the vinaigrette then heated together with caramelized onions for like 2 minutes. The salad and bean-vinaigrette mixture can be mixed together if you'll serve all the salad; store separately if you have extra salad. Beans taste extra delicious the next day.

Vinaigrette:
5-6 T fruity olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 tsp chili pepper flakes
3 T mixed herbs (mint, parsley, tarragon, thyme)
2 T fresh lemon juice
1 T ground cumin
Salt and pepper to taste
1 14 oz red kidney beans (or garbanzo beans) rinsed and drained.

Directions:

1. Mix the olive oil with the garlic and chili pepper flakes until combined. 
2. Stir in herbs, lemon juice, cumin, and beans. Mix together and adjust taste with salt and pepper. Set aside. 

For onions:
1 small or 1/2 of a medium yellow onion, cut into rings.
2 T olive oil or butter (probably 1 T butter and 1 T olive oil would be great)

Directions for onions:

1. Heat up the olive oil or butter in a sauté pan, (cast iron if you can) over medium-high heat.
2. Put the onions in, toss around until they are nice and covered with oil, and then turn the heat to low and stir occasionally until nice and golden (about 35-40 minutes). Prep other items, while the onions cook. 
3. Once the onions are done, toss in the vinaigrette to the sauté pan, just dump the salad dressing with beans into the already hot pan (this adds a charming sizzle and really wakes up the herbs in the vinaigrette). 
4. Warm for like 2-3 minutes and give it 2-3 quick fancy chef's tosses. Remove to a bowl. 

Mushroom Soup:

1 T butter or olive oil

1 small carrot, diced into 1/4" pieces

1 small onion or the other half of the medium onion you caramelized, diced into 1/4" pieces

1 small garlic cloved, minced fine

2 cups mixed mushrooms, wiped clean, stems removed, and sliced

2 T red wine

1 vegetarian broth - no salt bouillon cube in 6 cups water OR 1 quart vegetable stock and 2 cups water

1 T thyme or Italian herbs

1 T parsley for garnish

pinch truffle salt or truffle oil

Directions for mushroom soup:

1. Heat up olive oil or butter in a medium to large stockpot. Once hot add in carrot through garlic. 
2. Pour in wine (this will give you a nice cooking show effect), broth, and the herbs, reserving the parsley for a garnish. 
3. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a slow simmer, and partially cook for 30 minutes. This is really undersalted so adjust salt as needed.  Add in parsley and truffle salt and stir to combine. 

Assemble salad ingredients

I just reserved some raw mushrooms, and carrots from what I cooked, and added in tomatoes and measured about 1.5 cups of  spinach greens per person (a large bag). You could use bell peppers, zucchini, cucumbers, or other lettuces.  Top with kidney bean caramelized onion vinaigrette and serve with a steaming bowl of mushroom soup.

Hot & Sour Soup

Kavitha & Hunter's Hot & Sour Soup - one of the best of its kind.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

2 T cornstarch
4 T water
2 T soy sauce
3 T rice wine vinegar
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 red chili or 1/4 tsp crushed red chili
1 egg
2 T vegetable oil
1 onion, diced
3 3/4 cups vegetable stock
1 open-can mushroom, sliced
2 oz extra-firm tofu, diced 1/2"
1 tsp toasted sesame oil

Directions:

1. Blend cornstarch with water to form a smooth paste. Add the soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, pepper and chili, mix well. 
2. Break the egg into a separate bowl and beat well.
3. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat (or wok) and stir fry the onion for 1-2 minutes.
4. Stir in the vegetable stock, mushroom, and tofu and simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Pour cornstarch mixture into the soup and cook the soup, stirring constantly, until it has thickened. 
6. As you are stirring, stir in the beaten egg very slowly into the soup, to create threads of egg. 
7. Garnish with the toasted sesame oil and serve immediately. 

Mom's Split Green Pea Soup

This is my mom's recipe for soup - which is dump this and that in a pot, and here you have an amazing delicious healthy soup.

Ingredients:

2 cups split green peas
1 can 15 oz tomato sauce (no salt added)
2 large garlic cloves
for creaminess take 1/2 cup milk or cream (sub for tomato sauce)
1 tsp curry powder (no salt added)
salt and pepper to taste

Note: if using a pressure cooker, the lentils will fall apart and there is no need to puree the soup. If you boil them, blend the lentils with an immersion blender once they are cooked, or puree in a food processor or blender.

Directions:

1. Cook lentils in a pressure cooker for 2-3 whistles OR boil lentils and water together until the lentils fall apart about 30-35 minutes. If boiling, boil 2 cups of lentils in 1 quart of water. Leave the lentils in the pot, and if their is no remaining water, add about 1/2 quart as you start the soup. You can puree the soup at this step before combining the remaining ingredients.
2. Next add tomato sauce. For a creamier soup, replace 1/2 of the tomato sauce with 1 cup of milk.
3. Add in crushed garlic and curry powder. Adjust salt if needed.
4. Simmer for about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.

Pesto Minestrone

Remember all that pesto left in the freezer? Come January, Khavanu is soon heading away to be Belgish - so she has many pesto cubes to go through. Nick - this one is for you - and for the fact that we cannot eat your AMAZING pizzas. buh.

(obviously I know it is not really Belgish)

Pesto Minestrone

Cooking spray
1 cup onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
4 medium carrots, chopped
2 cups cooked kidney beans OR 1 can kidney beans rinsed and drained
4 qt water or broth (I used the broth from the beans + extra salt)
1/2 cup pesto
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved OR a 22 oz can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup dried macaroni
2 cups swiss chard, chopped OR spinach
1/2 cup pesto
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. In a large pot big enough to hold soup, spray bottom of pot with cooking spray and heat over medium heat.
2. Add in onions, garlic and carrots. Cook 5 minutes.
3. Add in beans and water.
4. Stir in pesto.
5. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.
6. Add in tomatoes, macaroni, and chard.
7. Cook until macaroni is al dente.
8. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary.

Sambar post

Perhaps what I love more than Indian food is South Indian food. Masala dosa has to be an all-time favorite. Dosa is made from a rice and split black gram fermented batter, poured into a pan like a crepe, and then stuffed with masala potatoes, and served alongside a steamy tuver dhal based sambar with coriander and cumin aromas.

What makes me appreciate sambar more than anything is using your own garden grown veggies in the recipe. Sambar vegetables usually include squash, peppers, and tomatoes. I personally love okra, tomatoes, eggplant, onions (or leeks), and lots and lots of fresh and ground coriander (ground coriander seed + cilantro). Because I enjoy more of a "sour" sambar, I'll use less tomato and more tamarind paste. You could use any variety of soup/stew style veggies.



This is my mom's sambar recipe tweaked with my ocd sambar obsession. If you can't find these ingredients (I've put substitutions or links in the ingredient listing, these are just FYI), try a South Indian Vegetarian restaurant. I recommend Tower in Morrisville, NC. You can't go wrong.

Sambar
Serves 4 or more.

1 C tuver dhal

2 C water

Cook in pressure cooker and set aside (you can also cook on stove top in pot; skim off foamy liquids and mash coarsely when done)

In large stockpot

(vaghar)

1 T oil

1/2 t channa dhal

1/2 t urad dhal

1 1/2 t cumin seeds

1/2 c onions, chopped

1/4 t hing or asafoetida powder (or use garlic powder)

8-10 mitta limbda leaves (or use bay leaves)

1 1/2 c mixed sambar vegetables (shallots, carrots, okra, eggplant, tomatoes)

1 t turmeric

2 T sambar powder
1 T cumin, ground
1 T coriander, ground

1 T tamarind concentrate

1/2 cup tomato sauce or 2 tomatoes, chopped

1-2 cups water

1 t salt

1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

1. Heat oil in large stockpot over medium heat.
2. Add channa, urad, cumin, hing and mitta limbda leaves. Cook 3 minutes.
3. Next add shallots if using and onions.
4. Stir in sambar vegetables.
5. Next add tuver, extra water and bring to a boil. Add salt and turmeric. Bring to a boil cook 5-6 more minutes
   
6. Add sambar powder, tamarind and tomato sauce. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary
7. Garnish with chopped cilantro

Note:

t = teaspoon

T= = tablespoon