Punjabi Dal Palak 

(North Indian Kale & Legumes)

This was based on the spinach dal recipe of My Tasty Curry. I had kale, so I figured I'd try it this time; next time, it'll be spinach, like the recipe. I made the dish in an Instant Pot (not sponsored). Basically, I just cooked everything together for about 18 minutes on Manual/High Pressure, and let the pressure come down by itself.

This is a blend of spices, fresh ginger, greens, tomatoes, and 3 different kinds of legumes. I used mung dal (yellow split mung beans) and toor dal (pigeon peas), like the recipe, as well as masoor dal (red lentils). I didn't even think of pre-soaking the toor dal, but as I prefer to overcook dal anyway, it came out okay. I know better, so I count that as "operator error" (= my own error). The end result was just a little heavy and very thick -- but that just lends it more to other uses, so it's all good! 

I like having so many nutritious ingredients cooked all together like this. Next time, I'm sure it will be even yummier! 

My Tasty Curry Website, Punjabi Dal Palak

Healthy Carrot Soup

This was based on the recipe of Kouzounas Kitchen. I was inspired by her recent Instagram Live demonstration of how to make this soup. It was also convenient to try, after I had already steamed carrots in an oven-safe parchment bag. I wanted something simple and nourishing.

I made a much smaller batch than the recipe, with olive oil, chopped onions, the steamed carrots, some cumin and dried basil and mint, water, and salt. I also added some cinnamon, as I thought was mentioned in the Instagram Live video. I don't mind unblended soups, so I left it as it was; I added creamy whole-milk yogurt (not pictured), instead of coconut milk, which I didn't have. (The soup is supposed to be vegan, suitable for those observing Lent, and I thought maybe it wouldn't be nice to show off the dairy. )

The soup was warm and comforting. Hopefully I'll make it again some time soon, when I have coconut milk.

Kouzounas Kitchen Website, The Governor Olive Oil Review & Healthy Carrot Soup Recipe

Madzoune Telamadj Abour 

(Armenian Yogurt Soup with Pasta)

This recipe is from Claudia Roden's The New Book of Middle Eastern Food. I kept thinking of this soup, but also needed to use up some older milk. I decided to make Paneer (Indian cheese) from the milk, and then to use the leftover liquid (whey) for the base of this soup. I'd heard you could use the liquid in soup, but never tried it before. (Whenever I make Paneer, I have to figure out, How am I going to use that liquid this time?) I thought it would be similar enough, and I wanted to make sure to use up the liquid.

The soup is supposed to be an onion-flavored base of stock and yogurt, with vermicelli, sprinkled with dried mint. Instead, after the Paneer was drained, I reheated the liquid and cooked the vermicelli in that. (This was very thin vermicelli from a Middle Eastern grocery store, which is similar to that found at Indian grocery stores.) On the side, I fried some frozen, chopped onions, in a little oil; when they were done, I added them to the soup. When I served myself some soup, I stirred in some whole-milk yogurt, and sprinkled on some dried mint. The soup was very warm and soothing, especially now that the weather has tuned cold.

I have included here below, links to a few recipes of Armenia yogurt soup, which are similar to the original recipe I used.

Diasporina Website, An Armenian Soup that I Don't Like: Spas Recipes

Tourism Armenia Website, Armenia yogurt & noodle soup (scroll down to find the recipe)

The Armenian Kitchen Website, 'Spas' - Madzoon (Yogurt) Soup with Grains

Heghineh Cooking Show YouTube & Website, Armenian Yogurt Soup video & recipe

Shorbet Adds 

(Egyptian Spiced Creamy Lentil Soup)

This was from a recipe of Claudia Roden in The New Book of Middle Eastern Food. Although the soup looks somewhat thick here (esp as it was the next day), it was actually fairly creamy in texture. I ground up the dry red lentils, added water to them, covered them, and let them soak for a few hours, before adding them to the soup. (Red lentils don't usually need to be soaked, except by me. )

Aside from the lentils, this also contains onions, olive oil, ground cumin and coriander, and salt. A pinch of Indian pav bhaji masala spice mix stood in for ground red chili pepper. I used frozen chopped mirepoix (onion, carrot, and celery) for the carrot and celery in the recipe, as that's what I had.

The soup is supposed to be served with a garnish of fried onions, but I was too tired to add that. For the toasted pita bread croutons, I toasted half a pita, and then broke it up into irregularly-shaped, crunchy pieces. Instead of adding lemon juice directly to the soup right after it was cooked, I just squeeze a few drops of fresh lemon juice into the bowl, before I eat it.

Havuç Çorbasi 

(Turkish Carrot Soup)

This is a lazy version of Havuç Çorbasi, Turkish Carrot Soup. The original recipe, from Claudia Roden's The New Book of Middle Eastern Food, calls for carrots to be cooked very well in stock with salt, sugar, and cinnamon, and put through a blender or food processor. I just cooked it very well in water.  

The next step is to separately make a bit of a white sauce, add egg yolks, and then carefully add it to the soup, to thicken it. However, I tend to just skip all this, and mix in a whole egg, right into the soup (like egg-drop soup). I'd roasted some carrots in the oven a few days ago, so I added in the last few here, along with some cilantro, and a bit of scrambled egg.

Accompanying the soup, are some Plain Harcha (Moroccan Galettes/Biscuits), made from the recipe of My Moroccan Food. The meal was light but with a nice flavor. 

My Moroccan Food Facebook

My Moroccan Food Website, Plain Harcha/Zaatar & Black Olive Harcha

Spring Veggie Sambhar

This version follows the general method in Healthy South Indian Cooking, by Alemalu Vairavan and Patricia Marquardt. Sambhar is a soupy veggie and dal/legume dish of South India. This one includes a spring veggie mix, of carrots, zucchini, and yellow squash. Too bad that several ingredients that make it look pretty, always sink to the bottom! 

I used, for the first time, the ground up "flour" of toovar/toor/arhar dal (split pigeon peas). For me to be able to eat legumes, they have to be thoroughly soaked (even if normally they wouldn't require soaking), then cooked twice as long as normal, and then ground up in a food processor or with an immersion blender. This takes a lot more time and effort than usual; even a pressure cooker would only help somewhat. So, I decided to try grinding up dry dal, mixing it with some water, and leaving it for a couple of hours to "soak." Afterwards, I would then add it to the dish, and cook it for a normal time. This dish, is the first time I've tried this method, and it seemed to work well.

As part of the sambhar here, I used carrot water, drained from the canned carrots used in the Handvo featured here recently. (I didn't want to waste the vitamins!)

Thai Curry Potato Soup 

This soup is from a Foxes Love Lemons recipe. It was fantastic! I had it with some fresh-squeezed lemon juice, and homemade bread (not pictured here). It was well-spiced, but not too hot for me (as I have to be a bit careful with that). All the ingredients just melded so well together. A real winner! 

Based on what I can't/don't have, I substituted the following: rasam powder for curry powder, water for chicken broth, and storebought Thai red curry paste for sambal oelek. Also, for some reason, I don't know why, I don't really like very smooth, blender-ed soups, so I skipped putting the soup through a blender. I did mash the potatoes in the soup with a spoon, however, and they melted right in. Yummy!

Foxes Love Lemons Website, Thai Curry Potato Soup

Foxes Love Lemons Facebook

Tomato Sambhar 

(South Indian Soupy Veggies & Dal/Legumes),

with Korean Wheat Noodles

The sambhar was simple, made with leftover tomatoes and masoor dal/red lentils, along with mustard seeds, frozen mirepoix (onion, celery, and carrot), urad dal, and sambhar powder. These noodles cooked very quickly -- done in one minute! I was too tired and hungry to add another vegetable (aside from the tomatoes) and wait for it to cook, and decided simplicity was the best strategy here.

Wikipedia Website, Sambar (dish)

Potato, Cauliflower, & Onion Soup

This dish is based on a Supper with Michelle recipe for Potato, Cauliflower, & Leek Soup, of Jan. 26. (Accompanying the soup here, is some of the pizza topped with fresh tomato slices, from my photo of a couple days ago. Another time, it was some of the Veggie Bites pictured yesterday.) It was another fabulous recipe! The soup was warm and very comforting, during the cold weather. 

I usually have to be careful what I eat, and so I often have to modify recipes. In this case, I used some onions instead of leeks, and less oil, and left out the garlic and half-&-half. I wasn't sure that flour would work so well with so little oil, so I used some potato flour to thicken the soup. I mixed in some creamy whole-milk yogurt to the soup while eating. I would rather have had the original, but I really enjoyed this version (especially with the pizza). Yummy! 

Supper with Michelle Website, Potato, Cauliflower, & Leek Soup

Potato Soup with Poached Egg and Veggies

I must be feeling better!  I managed to make a potato soup with olive oil, dried Italian herbs and basil, salt, water, peas and carrots, and some potato flour. An egg poached in the soup added some protein and extra nutrients.

Sweet & Sour Soup

This is my version of a Sweet & Sour Soup. With noodles. And tofu. I was feeling a little under the weather today, so I decided soup was in order. With soup, as with nothing else, I tend to go without a recipe, and to experiment. 

This soup was made of water, salt, a little corn oil, onion powder, ground ginger, dried basil, ground cashews, brown sugar, low-sodium soy sauce, frozen peas-&-carrots, five-spice powder, and leftover oven-fried tofu. Lastly, the noodles: chuka soba noodles, which are basically unflavored ramen-like noodles that cook quickly. I was pleasantly surprised at how well the soup turned out!