I didn't really learn to cook properly until I stopped eating meat, and I wouldn't have learned to cook very well at all without the Moosewood Cookbook (and its sequels). When I was a newly-minted vegetarian, Mollie Katzen's Gypsy Soup was one of the first recipes I ever tried, and my curried chickpea stew reminds me a lot of her recipe. Or maybe it's just a straight-up ripoff. You can decide. The Gypsy Soup recipe is also one of the only recipes I've ever managed to bollocks up twice in exactly the same way. That recipe calls for paprika; I inadvertently reached for cayenne, and the result was inedibly hot. (You'd think this would be a good argument for labeling your spice jars, but I still buy in bulk and go by smell.) My boyfriend at the time actually bought me two different fancy varieties of paprika after that, as a gently mocking gift--which reminds me, I really ought to buy more smoked paprika. It's delicious.
Anyway, you might call this a "stewp," since it starts out like soup and ends up like stew the longer it sits and absorbs the liquid. It's definitely more delicious the next day. And it is easily veganized, and goes great with nooch.
Curried Chickpea Stew
Olive oil for the pot
1 medium onion, diced
1 big carrot, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
3 fat cloves of garlic, minced
1 fat inch of fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1 big can of tomatoes
2 potatoes, scrubbed and cubed
1 can chickpeas, or 1.5 cups cooked if you are a good planner
1/3 c quinoa (optional: I had this on hand and like it for the extra protein and texture.)
1-2 T curry powder (this depends on your taste and your curry powder. I added 2 T and it is a bit much.)
1/2 c plain yogurt/soy yogurt (optional, but tasty)
2 good plops of ketchup. You may judge all you want, but ketchup might be the magic secret ingredient here. You could also stir in some tomato paste and maybe a bit of honey or agave, but this does need a little something sweet.
A big handful (really, as much as you like) of dark greens (kale, collards, spinach), chopped
In a big soup pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery, and saute until onions are translucent. Add garlic and ginger and cook for a minute or two longer.
Dump in tomatoes, chickpeas, potatoes, quinoa, and curry powder, plus an extra cup or two of water (start with one; you can always add more later). When it starts to bubble, reduce the heat and simmer until the carrots and potatoes are tender. Taste the broth and add ketchup and salt to taste. Stir in the greens and cook until wilted. Add yogurt last of all. Taste to adjust the seasonings and serve with crusty bread.
This soup makes excellent leftovers, as evidenced by this picture:
Note the sad office lighting and industrial desk. At least the food is tasty!
When I cook at home, I usually make a whole wack of food so that my manfriend and I have leftovers to take to work for lunch the next few days. But now that I'm working with a dorm-sized fridge and just one eater, I've cut things back a bit. This recipe uses the stuff that's in my pantry and cooks up a bit smaller than my usual soup stylings. It also looks quite unappetizing when photographed unless you happen to love poopy green colors the way I do, so please use your imagination for illustration.
Split pea soup
Olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 large carrot, diced
2 big cloves of garlic, minced
1 t basil
1/2 t oregano
1/4 t cayenne pepper
3/4 cup split peas, picked over and rinsed
1/4 cup brown rice
5 cups veggie broth (I used Imagine's No-Chicken broth plus an extra cup of water)
1/2 a package of frozen spinach
1/2 t liquid smoke
salt and pepper to taste
sambal olek or sri racha for extra spice
Saute the onions and carrot in olive oil over medium high heat until the onions are wilted. Add garlic and spices and cook a few minutes more, then add peas, rice, and broth. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for about a half hour, or until rice is cooked and peas are soft.
In the meantime, prepare your spinach according instructions and stir into the soup when done. (The soup could easily accommodate a whole package of spinach if you like; I just wanted to save some for a pasta sauce.)
Finish the soup with liquid smoke and remaining seasonings (if you so desire). This would also be great with a potato or two, with thyme and/or smoked paprika if you have it on hand, or with curry spices instead of basil and oregano.
This makes more than enough for two people and could probably feed 4 moderate eaters if you serve a salad and bread.
Unfortunately, my friends, it seems that summer has officially ended. September 1 rolled around and brought with it chilly evenings and blustery rain. Oh sure, today around 4 it was fabulous and perfect outside, to the point that running around the lake didn't feel like much of a chore at all. But I know that these days are numbered, and when the nights are chilly, a makeshift cook's thoughts turn to soup.
I've had potato soup on the brain for a few days, knowing that I'm a bit overloaded with potatoes at the moment and need to use them up. This soup whipped up quickly and easily with just a few ingredients and I can't stop eating it. Really, it's still on the stovetop and every time I walk past, I dip another half-scoop of it into my bowl. As soothing as mashed potatoes, but with the kick of jalapeno peppers and the sweetness of corn to keep things interesting.
Spicy Potato Corn Soup
Olive oil for the soup pot
One good-sized onion, diced
2 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded and diced
4 smallish carrots, diced (or two large ones)
3 big gloves of garlic, minced or pressed
1 tsp of cumin
About 2 pounds of gold potatoes (I used 10 medium), peeled (or not, if you like) and cubed
About 6 cups of vegetable broth
1 cup of frozen corn, though if you have fresh, by all means use it
Fresh oregano if you have it
A few handfuls of fresh spinach
2 scallions, chopped
Salt to taste
Chop your veg first. You are probably virtuous and you do this sort of prepping already, but too often I find myself having to chop another vegetable while I'm right in the middle of the cooking, and this recipe has a lot of potatoes which, between you and me, are a pain in the ass to peel and cube.
Then. Heat the oil in your soup pot and add the onions, jalapenos, and carrots. Saute until the onions are translucent and then add the garlic and cumin. Let that sizzle a few minutes more, and then chuck in your potatoes, stir to coat, and add the vegetable broth, which I suspect is what pulls this soup together. I made some from scratch awhile back and froze it, and this is what allows me to say smugly that making your own veggie stock is the way to go.
Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and let everything simmer until the potatoes are tender. At this point, use an immersion blender, blender, or old-school potato masher to puree some of the soup. If you forget to do this until later, like I did, the soup will still be delicious.
Add the corn and cook a bit longer. Last of all, add the fresh oregano, spinach, and scallions, stir it up, and turn the heat wayyyy down or off altogether. Salt to taste and let the soup stand for a few minutes to come together.
Serve with crusty bread, obviously.
I accidentally got a subscription to Bon Appetit, which is less a cooking magazine and more a lifestyle magazine, although really what magazine ISN'T a lifestyle rag? What happened was, I bought something from Amazon's home and garden section and got to choose a free magazine. The last freebie I got was Domino and I have had enough of rolling my eyes at that particular wad of advertorial, so I opted for recipes instead.
So far there's little of real use in Bon Appetit, but this little recipe for Ground Coriander and Cilantro Flatbreads caught my eye because it looked super-easy AND I had an overabundance of plain yogurt that needed to be used. I altered it a bit because I didn't have any cilantro, but damn I bet it would be delicious. Just sub cilantro for parsley. Bon Appetit also calls for whole milk yogurt; use it if you have it, but lowfat worked fine too.
Coriander Flatbreads
1 1/2 cups (or more) AP flour
2 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
3/4 cup (or more) plain yogurt
Olive oil (for frying)
Sift dry ingredients together. Stir in fresh herbs. Add yogurt and moosh together with a fork until dough starts to clump together. Then knead in the bowl, adding more flour or yog as necessary, until you have a soft and slightly sticky dough. Turn out onto floured surface and knead for a minute. Divide into 8 pieces, roll into balls, and then roll out with a rolling pin (or my favorite makeshift, a wine bottle). Heat a generous plop of olive oil at medium high heat in a non-stick skillet and fry the breads three at a time until golden and puffed, about 3 minutes per side.
I made the soup to go with it on a day when I really felt like I had no food in the house. It just goes to show you how pampered and silly I am, because look at the bountiful soup I came up with! I think I'm just craving copious farmer's market veg and we're not quite there yet, weather-wise.
Curried Red Lentil Soup
Olive oil for the pot
1 onion, diced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
1 tbsp garam masala or curry powder
1 large can diced tomatoes
2 cups red lentils
1 large sweet potato, cubed
8 cups of water
Fresh spinach (frozen is fine too)
Salt to taste
Rinse and pick over the lentils, discarding any foreign objects (duh). Drain in a fine sieve/colander.
Heat the olive oil in your soup pot at medium-high heat. Add onions and spices (feel free to improvise), and saute until onions are translucent. Add garlic and cook a bit longer. Add sweet potatoes and stir to coat with spices. Dump in the can of tomatoes, lentils, and water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until lentils are tender and sweet potatoes are cooked through (20-25 minutes). Blend some or all of the soup in your blender or with an immersion mixture (optional). Return to pot, add chopped fresh spinach, and cook just until wilted. Salt to taste.
Serve with brown rice or all by itself, and definitely eat flatbreads.
It hardly seems worthwhile to post a recipe for something as adaptable and easy as miso soup, but I'm home sick today with a head full of snot (bon appetit!) and all kinds of aches and pains and miso soup is one of the only things I reliably want to eat when I feel crappy. It also uses stuff I always have in my kitchen and requires minimal preparation, which is perfect when you really only have the energy to lie on the couch and maybe moan a bit.
Miso Soup
For the broth:
2 cups or so of water, just off the boil
1 plop of miso, to taste--I use about a tablespoon
A squirt of Sri Racha or other Asian hot sauce, to taste
A dollop of sesame oil
For the soup's insides:
1 small clove of garlic, minced
1/2 tsp of fresh ginger, minced
1/2 a brick of firm tofu, cubed
A little oil for the pan
Veggies: shredded carrots, scallions, bean sprouts, chopped spinach, chopped romaine, or whatever your sickly heart desires. Today I used spinach, carrots, and romaine.
Sesame seeds
Heat your water (in a teapot is best!) and heat the oil over medium-high heat in a saute pan. Add ginger and garlic and cook for a bit, then pat your tofu dry and chuck that in the pan too. Sprinkle a little soy sauce or Bragg's Liquid Aminos on the tofu, if you like (I like).
Meanwhile, chop your veggies into sweet little bits. When the water is hot, pour it into your biggest soup bowl and dissolve the miso in it. Add Sri Racha and sesame oil (if you have it). Stir well and taste it to ensure its deliciousness. Finally, scrape your saute pan into the broth and top with veggies and sesame seeds.
This is also delicious with noodles, obvs.
