Showing posts with label Lunch / Dinner. Show all posts

Baked Falafel Beetroot Wraps

Baked chickpea falafels and hummus in a beetroot flatbread!

Mediterranean food has so much to offer to vegetarians - dips, salads and of course, the ever so loved Falafels. The falafel is a great meat free option for anyone eating Mediterranean food, it is full of protein and fiber. While traditionally falafels are made with fava beans and are deep fried, I chose to make them with the easily available chickpeas and to bake them. I love fried falafels, but when one moves to eating healthy, one has to find the alternative to balance both health and flavor. And I can tell you for sure, there was no loss of flavor here!

Falafels are served in so many different ways - as an appetizer with dips, stuffed inside a pita pocket to make a sandwich or as a part of a bowl meal. I chose to serve it inside a vibrant pink beetroot wrap.

I have an obsession for wraps and rolls. I simply love them, they are so easy to eat and not so messy. And they are usually healthier than the sandwiches made with leavened white bread. When it comes to wraps, I always go for whole wheat.

Baked Falafel Beetroot Wraps

Baked chickpea falafels with hummus and vegetables rolled in a whole wheat beetroot flatbread.

Recipe Type: Main
Cuisine: Mediterranean Indian Fusion
Prep Time: 8 hours (includes soaking time)
Cook time: 60 minutes
Yield: Makes 6 wraps

Ingredients:

To make the Baked Falafels:

200 gms Chickpeas
1 Onion
2-3 Garlic Cloves
0.5 cup Coriander leaves (tightly packed)
2 Green Chillies
1 tsp Cumin powder
0.5 tsp Coriander Powder
0.5 Lime
0.5 tsp Baking Soda
1 Tbsp Corn Starch or Flour (Optional)
3 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
Salt to taste

To make the Beetroot Wrap:

2 cup Wholewheat Flour (atta)
1 large Beet root
0.5 tsp Red Chilli Powder
6 tsp Oil
Salt to taste
Water as required

To assemble the Wrap:

6 Beetroot Wraps
12 Falafels
6 Tbsp Hummus
4-5 leaves of Ice berg lettuce or Cabbage
0.5 cup julienne Capsicum
1 small Onion, sliced

Method:

To make the Baked Falafels:

Soak the chickpeas overnight or for 8-10 hours if using dried chickpeas. If using canned chickpeas, skip the soaking.
Drain out all the water and transfer the chickpeas to a food processor or a mixer.
Add the garlic, chopped onion, coriander leaves, chopped green chillies, lime juice, baking soda, cumin powder and coriander powder to the blender along with salt.
Pulse the food processor until everything is combined. Do not over process it and make it smooth and mushy. The batter has to just sticky enough to hold when pressed together.
Add corn starch or flour if the dough is too wet.
Refrigerate for 20-30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 180 degree C.
Divide the mix into 12 equal portions.
Roll them into balls and flatten them.
Brush a baking sheet with oil. Place the falafels on the baking sheet.
Brush the falafels with oil.
Bake for 10 minutes, then flip them over and bake for another 10-12 minutes, until the falafels have browned.
Remove from the oven and keep aside.

To make the Beetroot Wraps:

Boil and peel the beetroot.
Allow it to cool and then puree it until smooth. Run through a sieve to get a smoother puree.
Transfer the uree to a large plate or bowl. Add 0.5 tsp of salt and red chilli powder and mix well.
Add in the whole wheat flour and start kneading. Add water as required.
Knead until the dough comes together.
This can be done while the falafel batter is resting in the fridge.
Divide the dough into 6 equal portions and roll them into balls.
Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough as thin as possible. Use wholewheat flour for dusting.
Heat a tava or a griddle and brush it with oil.
Cook the wrap on medium-high heat. Brush the wrap with a little oil and flip over.
When the wrap has a few brown spots, remove from heat and keep aside.
Do the same for all 6 portions.

To assemble the Baked Falafel Beetroot Wraps:

Spread hummus on the wrap.
Place the julienne capsicum, sliced onion and lettuce on the hummus.
Place 2 falafels on each wrap.
Roll and serve.

Garlic and Herb Roasted Potatoes

Oven roasted potatoes flavored with crushed garlic, oregano, rosemary, paprika and salt.

oven roasted potatoes flavored with garlic and herbs

Who doesn't love potatoes? Did you just say "Yes"? Then I suggest you pack your bags and head over to Bangalore so that I can serve you a plate of this delicious Garlic and Herb Roasted Potatoes that I cannot get enough of.

That humble little golden tuber tastes so great irrespective of how it is cooked - boiled, roasted or fried. Especially fried! I see no reason to not like it. It is also one of those vegetables that has gained such a bad reputation among dieters. But hey, a little potato never killed anybody, so dieting or no, I wasn't going to miss out on cooking or eating these luxurious purple potatoes. If you are counting calories, I'd suggest eat just a little bowl, but don't miss it!

Gee went to Malaysia a while ago and she picked these purple beauties there. I know right, how foodie of her. Well, when you have a food blogger for a sister, you walk in super market aisles even when on vacation. My brother in law claims he wasn't too claims he wasn't too happy about it, but hten he is a big potato person, so I don't think he has too many complaints now. Our daily calls when she was there focused more on what she ate rather than what she saw. "Ooh you saw Petronas, greattt! now, what did you eat for lunch? Tell me all about it". She got my mouth all watering, that we went out for some 100% vegetarian Malay food as soon as she was back - Mamak Mee Goreng and Nasi Goreng at Nasi and Mee. If you like Malay food (and are in Bangalore), you should check out this place.

Back to potatoes, while Indians love their potatoes, the only variety we get here is a regular white-yellow potato. The only other variety we do get is the Sweet Potato which isn't orange as most one abroad are. This is white too, with a pink skin. So Gee got really excited when she found the purple ones and immediately called me up to ask what I could make of them. What better way to celebrate a potato, than to make a Roast Potato Salad. Why you will love it:

So easy to make
Flavorful
Colorful
Pairs well with anything
Salty
Potatoes - yes, just because they are potatoes

Potatoes are a winter or cool-season crop. So they are the freshest in winter. Most of the potatoes we get in summer are actually from cold storage. And with winter almost on its way out, this recipe is right on time. May be you still have time to go pick up this seasons potatoes. And while you are at it, pick a nice mix of them - purple, red, fingerling, gold, sweet. I added some local white potato and sweet potatoes to the make the dish a little more interesting with different colors and flavors. But if you cannot find the various varieties, just go with what you have cause there is no reason one should miss out on some serious potato action.

While the plain salted roasted potatoes taste good, make it better with added flavors. I added crushed garlic, dried oregano, fresh rosemary, smoked paprika and salt. I rubbed the potatoes with all the herbs and garlic along with some good quality extra virgin olive oil and baked them until they crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. The trick to getting them crisp is to allow them to touch the pan, so don't overcrowd them if you want a crispy exterior on all your potatoes.

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Garlic and Herb Roasted Potatoes

A mix of potatoes, roasted in the oven along with crushed garlic, oregano, rosemary and paprika.

Recipe Type: Side

Cuisine: International

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 45 minutes

Yield: Serves 4-5

Ingredients:

750 grams Potato (mix different types)

3 Tbsp Olive Oil

4-5 Garlic Cloves

0.5 tsp dried Oregano

4-5 sprigs of Rosemary or 0.5 tsp fried Rosemary

1.5 tsp Salt

1 tsp smoked Paprika

A handful of fresh Coriander leaves

Method:

Preheat the oven to 200 degree C.
Wash the potatoes thoroughly and dry with a kitchen towel.
Chop them into bite sized chunks while retaining the skin and put them into a large bowl.
Crush the garlic cloves and chop it finely.
Add the oil, garlic, oregano, rosemary, smoked paprika and salt to the bowl.
Mix well so that the oil and seasoning coats the potatoes well.
Spread the potatoes in a single layer on a baking sheet.
Bake for 20 minutes.
Remove the baking sheet carefully from the oven and flip the potatoes using a fork or a pair of tongs.
Place it back in the oven and continue to bake for another 20-25 minutes until the potatoes are done.
Taste to check for seasoning. If it is less, add it when the potatoes are hot and mix well.
Garnish with chopped coriander just before serving.

Roasted Vegetable Torte

Roasted Vegetable Torte is made by baking thinly sliced roasted vegetables along with herbs, spices and cheese. Oh, SO delicious, you have to make extra!

I gave up refined sugar for a whole year back in 2015-16 and I did not suffer from withdrawal symptoms. But take away my internet for a week and I'm cranky all week. We had a double whammy last week. We decided that since we barely watch TV, we should disconnect our cable TV for while. That was a mutually agreed decision that we were ready to live with, after all we had internet and a prime video account. We could survive!

That was until our internet broadband provider decided, we did not need them anymore and deactivated our account by mistake and could not enable it back. After their wait time went from 2 hours to over 24 hours, we were done with the provider - Hathway. We applied for a new connection from a new provider on Sunday and are still waiting for the connection to arrive. Until then, we are depending on connecting to the faint WiFi signals from my sister's house. Not a good week!!

No TV, no internet makes Anu an extremely cranky girl, when she is not occupied. So I've been cooking more - I even started my second attempt at a sourdough starter, I'm attempting a slow rise no knead bread. I have been walking more, reading more. We also started composting again, something we had stopped in the past few months since our apartment complex had started doing it for us. So yes, I've been trying to keep busy this last week.

So in my keep-myself-busy week. I made this wonderful roasted vegetable torte again. It is:

healthy
fresh
low cal
vibrant
and delicious!

And the best part is it fit right into my healthy diet. This Roasted Vegetable Torte is made by layering thinly sliced vegetables in a baking dish with spices and cheese thrown in between.

I LOVE vegetables, do you? Let us go ahead with the thought that you are as veggie crazy as me. Otherwise why would you be here, right? This Roasted Vegetable Torte is perfect for us veggie lovers, it is bright, colorful and so full of flavor. It is so beautiful, it could almost be a center piece on the table.

The first time I made this Torte, I made it without roasting the vegetables first, and took all the pics then, hence, the intermediate steps may not necessarily match the recipe. Apologies for that. This time, I roasted the veggies for a while before placing them in the torte tin. The difference in the end product is not in the flavor but in the texture. If you roast the vegetables before setting the torte, they will be soft and easy to eat. If you don't mind slightly crunchy vegetables, then you can skip the roasting. Although I recommend roasting if using vegetables like butternut squash or potatoes. If you are using quick cooking vegetables like zucchini, tomatoes, mushrooms and onions, you can skip the roasting.

If you like this recipe, do not forget to share it with your friends and family!

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Roasted Vegetable Torte

Roasted Vegetable Torte is made by layering thinly sliced vegetables in a baking pan with herbs, spices and cheese in between and baked until done.

Recipe Type: Main
Cuisine: International
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes
Yield: Makes 2 tortes, Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 Zucchini
1 small Butternut Squash
2 firm Tomatoes
2 handfuls Spinach or Kale leaves
2 medium Brinjals or 0.5 large Eggplant
1 small Onion (optional)
1 cup grated Cheese
4 Tbsp Olive Oil
4-5 Garlic Cloves
1 tsp Oregano
1 tsp Red Chilli Flakes
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Method:

1. Slice all the vegetables thinly except for the spinach or kale.
2. Preheat the oven to 200 degree C.
3. Mix salt, pepper and 2 tbsp of olive oil in a small bowl.
4. Place the butternut squash, zucchini and brinjal on a baking sheet and brush them with oil.
5. Bake for 8-10 minutes until soft.
6. While it bakes, crush the garlic and chop it finely. Add it to the remaining oil along with red chilli flakes, oregano, a little salt and pepper.
7. Grease two 6" springform pan or a loose bottomed cake pan.
8. Start by placing the butternut squash as the lowest layer in both the pans. Then layer the zucchini, tomato, onion in both pans.
9. Drizzle a little of the garlic flavored oil. Spinkle a quarter of the cheese in each pan.
10. Layer in the fresh spinach or kale. You can chop it roughly or use it whole.
11. Place the eggplant, zucchini and butternut squash on the spinach.
12. Drizzle the remaining oil and top each pan with remaining cheese.
13. Cover loosely with an aluminium foil and bake for 8-10 minutes. Prefereably keep a tray in the lower rack to collect any juice that drips.
14. Remove the foil and bake until the cheese melts and browns. This may take 5-7 minutes.
15. Wait for 4-5 minutes before removing the torte from the pan.
16. Cut into slices using a sharp knife and serve.

Onion Stalk and Brinjal Curry | Eerulli Kaavu Badnekai Palya

Simple vegan stir fried dry curry made from Onion stalks and brinjals. Ready in less than 30 minutes!

Vegan stir fried dry curry made of fresh onion stalks or flowers and brinjals, Eerulli huvina palya, eerulli kaavu palya

Ever walked by a vegetable aisle wondering what "that" vegetable is and how one cooks it?

Happened to me a few years ago when I saw a lot of vegetable carts on the road side stocking up on green stalks with a tiny white bulb at the end. Curiosity made me ask what it was. And I was introduced to the "Onion Stalk / Flower" or "Eerulli Kaavu"/"Eerulli Hoovu" as they call it in Bangalore. The green stalk is the onion plant with the flower at the end. If you have never seen it or tasted it, the closest thing to it would be green onions or spring onion stalks. It is never sold with the onion bulb attached. While sometimes, it can be pungent like onions, most often it is simply sweet and crunchy.

And the good news is, it is right now in season in Bangalore and you will see it stocked all over the local markets and supermarkets.

I love cooking with seasonal vegetables. They taste so much better and are fresher than those annually available veggies. The first time I saw these onion stalks, I asked the vendor how one cooks it. He told me just stir fry it in oil and add spices. That's it! His recipe was so simple and it was tasty, if you like onions a lot. I do like onions, but I'm not a fan of a bowl full of them. So I went looking for different ways to cook it and I chanced upon this recipe by Chandrima . She added stir fried brinjals or eggplant to the fried onion stalks. Adding brinjal added some substance and texture to this dry curry.

These onion stalks are versatile, I added them to "Thalipeeth" and it tasted really nice. I made this same curry with potatoes instead of brinjals and everyone loved that too.

If you like this recipe, do not forget to share it with your friends and family!

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Onion Stalk and Brinjal Curry | Eerulli Kaavu Badnekai Palya

Vegan stir fried dry curry made of fresh onion stalks and brinjals.

Recipe Type: Side
Cuisine: Indian
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Yield: Serves 2

Ingredients:

8-10 Onion Stalks
5-6 small Brinjals
4 tsp Oil
1 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
Salt to taste

Method:

Chop the brinjal into chunks.
Heat 2 tsp oil in a kadhai / pan.
Add the brinjals and cook on low heat until done.
Add in a little salt, turmeric powder and stir fry for 1 minute.
Chop the onion stalks into 1" pieces.
Heat the remaining oil in the kadhai and add the onion stalks.
Add salt and turmeric powder. Mix well.
Cover and cook until done. I left mine crunchy, cook longer for a softer texture.
Add in the cooked brinjal and red chilli powder.
Mix well and stir fry for 2-3 minutes.
Serve hot with rice and dal or with rotis.

Healthy Miso Noodle Soup

This 30 minute vegan healthy Miso Noodle soup is perfect for those cold winter nights!!

Vegan healthy soup made with white miso, wholewheat noodles and fresh vegetables

Miso Soup... I'd read about it, seen it but never got a chance to try it. Reason? It usually contains fish. Even the ready to eat soup packets have fish in them. So I knew the only thing I could do was make it myself, without fish, of course. But for that I needed Miso Paste. Hard that it may sound, but not many people have actually heard of Miso Paste, not just in India but in a lot of South East Asian countries as well. I looked for it high an low in everywhere nope, I did not find it. It is more apt to say I did not find it in the quantity and the cost that I was actually looking for. I did find it in a Japanese store in Cambodia but it was over 1 kg in quantity and with everything written in Japanese on the cover, I was completely lost on what the ingredients were. It is available in India, however, it is either not too good or way too expensive. I finally purchased my first batch in Whole Foods, Chicago and have been loving it. It is fish free, salty-sweet and delicate in flavor. I could it just by the spoonful.

Miso is a paste of rice and soybeans that has been fermented using koji. Shiro Miso is the mild light colored one and also the one I used in this recipe. It just adds a hint of flavor but a lot of health to the soup. It is a great source of iron and protein. You can replace it with the red miso or Aka Miso, but definitely reduce the quantity as that is much stronger than the white miso.

Traditionally, the base of a miso soup is a Japanese stock called dashi which is made from sea kelp (kombu) and fish flakes (bonito flakes), but that is not something I would eat. So I skipped that totally and made it vegan. If you can find some sea weed like wakame or nori, add it to enhance the umami of the soup. I would have loved to, but I did not have any.

I know all my talk is about Miso here and it is a Miso soup, but even if you cannot find a good miso paste, don't be disheartened. Make the soup anyway, just call it Noodle Soup :) The soup is very healthy because of all the vegetables it contains. It is also super low in calories, with one serving being under 150 calories. All the more reason to make it, don't you think? It is absolutely guilt free. And if you thought it won't fill you up, let me warn you right away, you are wrong. I could never drink/eat 2 whole servings because all that fiber from the vegetables filled me up right away.

I used whole wheat noodles in the soup, you can substitute it with soba noodles. Udon noodles wouldn't be bad as well. This soup is the healthiest thing you can have on a cold winter night. And the best part, it takes less than 30 minutes to make.

If you like this recipe, do not forget to share it with your friends and family!

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Healthy Miso Noodle Soup

Vegan healthy soup made with white or shiro miso, wholewheat noodles and fresh vegetables.

Recipe Type: Soup
Cuisine: Japanese
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Yield: Serves 3-4

Ingredients:

3 tsp Shiro Miso Paste
50gms Wholewheat Noodles
1.5 Tbsp Dark Soy Sauce
1 Tbsp Sriracha Sauce
30gms Tofu, cubed
4-5 Mushrooms, sliced
3 baby Bok choy, chopped roughly
0.5 cup Broccoli florets
1 small Onion
1 cup Cabbage, shredded
1 small Carrot, julienned
3 tsp Oil
1 liter Vegetable Broth or Water
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Method:

Cook the noodles as per instructions on the packet. Drain and keep aside.
Heat oil in a deep pan and fry the onions until they are translucent.
Add the broth or water and bring to a rolling boil.
Dissolve the miso paste in half cup of water and add it to the pan.
Add the soy sauce, sriracha sauce, salt and pepper to taste.
Boil for 2-3 minutes.
Add the bokchoy, broccoli, mushrooms, cabbage and carrot and boil for another 2 minutes.
Add the noodles and tofu and serve hot.

Vegan Thai Green Curry

Fragrant, creamy and vibrant vegan Thai Green Curry made with fresh ingredients!!

Happy 2018 guys!!! I know I’ve been AWOL for way too long from the blog and I feel extremely guilty. It may be a new year but my excuses are the same – work, home and travelling took up so much time that I could not devote enough to my one passion – my blog. I’ve missed blogging much more than anything last year and I don’t wish to repeat that again. So hopefully, you’ll see more of me and more consistently in 2018. Cheers!!

If you’re following me on Instagram, then you know what I’ve been eating and where. No? What are you waiting for, go follow me here or search for @oneteaspoonoflife on Instagram.

How to make vegan thai green curry recipe, asian curry recipe, how to make thai curry without fish sauce, vegan green curry recipe at www.oneteaspoonoflife.com

Just to catch you up a little, I spent the last week in Chicago freezing myself. I went from a comfortable 20 degrees C (Positive) and to -20 degrees C (negative) for one week. My fingers froze when they weren’t in the coat pockets and my ear hurt when it errantly slipped out of the cap. I applaud those who brave this weather regularly, but I’m not made for that chill. While it was an a nice to experience just how that cold feels, I’m happy to be back to warm weather where I don’t need even a light jacket and I can roam around in open sandals.

I am one of those weirdos who actually likes airline food. I look forward to meals on planes. But after 8 meals in a span of one week plus a week of eating in restaurants, I’m just simply glad to be back to eat warm clean food at home. A touch of spice, a lot less cheese and a lot of health – that’s how I like my everyday food.

So my first recipe of 2018, is this warm flavorful Thai Green Curry with lots of vegetables that is perfect for cold winters. Did I tell you how much I love it? It is simply delicious plus it is hearty, healthy, vegan, gluten-free and full of fiber. Serve it with a bowl of brown rice for a healthier meal. I also had so much fun making this curry. I found all the fresh ingredients in the market and they were such a colorful bunch. I enjoyed shooting this recipe, all those colors popped beautifully.

Back to the recipe, one might be discouraged by the number of ingredients, but I ask you to look beyond it. The number may be more, but the effort is really not too much. The prep here is more time consuming than the actual cooking. And this is the perfect recipe to engage your family – ask your partner or kids to help out in peeling, chopping and slicing. Make it a family recipe and you won’t be so daunted.

If you like this recipe, do not forget to share it with your friends and family!

Honey Cake - Bangalore Iyengar Bakery style honey and orange cake. Video Recipe.
Banana Bread - Delicious dense banana bread/cake.
Fresh Fruit Tart with Mango Cream - Tart filled with a fresh mango cream and fresh fruits
No-Bake Strawberry Cheesecake - Strawberry cheesecake made without egg or gelatin.

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Thai Green Curry (Vegan)

Easy to make vegan Thai green curry that is made with a fresh green curry paste and creamy coconut milk along with lots of stir fried vegetables.

Recipe Type: Main
Cuisine: Thai or Asian
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Yield: Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

For the Green Curry Paste:

3 Lemongrass Stalks
2 Tbsp chopped Ginger
4-5 cloves Garlic
1 small Onion
2-3 green Onions (spring onions)
2-3 green Chillies
1 Tbsp fresh Turmeric or 0.5 tsp Turmeric Powder
Handful of Basil leaves
Handful of Coriander leaves
2 tsp Coriander seeds
1 tsp Cumin seeds
0.5 tsp Peppercorns
Zest of 1 Lime
1-2 Tbsp Lime juice
1 Tbsp Palm Sugar (Jaggery/Sugar)
Water as required
Salt to taste

For the vegan Thai Green Curry:

1 cup thick Coconut Milk
1 cup thin Coconut Milk
3 Tbsp fresh Green Curry Paste
75 gms firm Tofu (cubed)
0.5 diced Capsicum
1 cup Broccoli florets
0.5 cup sliced Zucchini
1 small Carrot sliced
4-5 Mushrooms sliced
0.5 cups cubed Sweet Potato (boiled)
1 diced Bokchoy or handful of Spinach
3-4 Tbsp Oil
Salt to taste
Water as required

Method:

To make the Green Curry Paste:

1. Powder the coriander seeds, cumin seeds and peppercorns coarsely. I hand pounded these in a mortar with a pestle.
2. Remove the outer later of the lemongrass stalk and chop into slices.
3. Roughly chop the green chillies, onions, green onions and garlic.
4. Add the pounded spices, lemongrass, green chillies, onions, green onions, garlic, chopped ginger, chopped turmeric, coriander leaves, basil leaves, lime zest, lime juice, sugar/jaggery and 1 tsp of salt to the food processor or a mixer and give it a whizz.
5. Scrape the sides of the jar and grind again. Add water by the spoonful to get a smooth paste.
6. Adjust salt, sugar and lime as per your taste.
7. Fill in sterilized glass jars and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
8. This recipe makes approximately 1.5 cups of curry paste.

To make the vegan Thai Green Curry:

1. Heat oil in a wok or kadhai.
2. Drain the excess water from the tofu using a kitchen towel. Add the tofu to the wok and fry until golden.
3. Remove the tofu and keep aside.
4. Add the carrots, mushroom, zucchini, broccoli, bokchoy stems and capsicum and stir fry them for 3-4 minutes.
5. Add the bokchoy leaves or spinach and stir until they are wilted.
6. Cook until the vegetables are cooked to your liking and remove it from the wok and keep aside. Preferably, the vegetables should be crunchy and not overcooked and mushy.
7. Heat the remaining oil and add the green curry paste. Stir fry it for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
8. Add the stir fried vegetables along with the boiled sweet potato to the wok.
9. Add the thin coconut milk and cook it for 3-4 minutes.
10. Add the thick coconut milk and salt and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
11. Add the tofu before serving. Serve the curry hot with steamed white rice.

Lentil Soup with Roasted Pumpkin and Dumplings

Warm hearty healthy vegan Lentil Soup with cumin roasted pumpkin and broken wheat dumplings for cold rainy evenings!

how to make vegan lentil soup recipe, roasted pumpkin soup recipe at www.oneteaspoonoflife.com

I'm blogging after a long time - one and a half months!! The last two months were tough. Too much happening at work, I was stressed out a lot and the thought of opening my laptop once I had shut down the office one was so stressful, I let the blog slide for a while. Add to that I had some unplanned weekend travel that left me exhausted. Toss in a sore throat and a runny nose with that and I'm sure you understand how bad the past 2 months were for me.

I did not stop cooking though, I cooked a lot!! Hoping to get all those recipes on the blog soon. First one comes today - Lentil Soup with Roasted Pumpkin and Dumplings!! (whew! long name)

Is it raining where you are? It definitely is pouring cats, dogs and elephants where I am and I have a higher chance of survival if I were a whale. Not sure if it is our friendly South West monsoons gone rogue or the effects of a depression in Bay of Bengal, but we've received a lot more rain than the city can handle. Flooded roads are adding to traffic and increasing travel time exponentially.

With rain, comes wind - sharp and cold!! And all this cloudy cold is making me crave is hot hot HOT.. What's hotter and more comforting than soup on a cold windy day? Let us assume that I'm only talking about food for now. So Soup it is!!

I was browsing through some really old magazines of mine and I chanced upon my sole copy of BBC Good Food magazine. I'm really upset they stopped the magazine in India. I hope they see the merit of starting it again someday. Waiting with crossed fingers! But yeah, the magazine had this exact recipe of Lentil Soup with roasted pumpkin and dumplings that I adapted from.

This soup has 3 components - Lentils, Pumpkin and Dumplings.

Lentils - While the recipe mentioned Puy lentils, I used whole red lentils or Masoor. This cut down my cooking time as well as expense in half. To start with, just boil the lentils in water along with a little salt until they are done. Stop cooking before they are mushy enough to become dal. The lentils should preferably hold their shape and have the slightest of the bite in them. Cook them in vegetable broth for added flavor.

Pumpkin - Red pumpkin is roasted along with olive oil, salt, chilli powder and lots of cumin. Cube it and then roast it to reduce cooking time. These taste fabulous, so advise you to make a little extra, you can nibble on them as you cook. I definitely lost a good quantity of them to Raj and Gee while I cooked. A part of the pumpkin is pureed with the lentils and added to the soup while the rest can be just tossed in adding to the texture of the soup.

Dumplings - The recipe called for fine Bulghar wheat, what I used was Dalia or broken wheat, an Indian breakfast staple along with some millets. I soaked both the dalia and fox tail millets (navane) for half hour before draining and mixing in chopped onions, chopped coriander, salt, pepper, a tiny teaspoon of oil and plain flour. Mixed it and shaped into marble sized balls. I boiled them in water for 15-20 minutes until the wheat was almost cooked. Boil them in stock for added flavor.

The last step was combining all the 3 components and simmering for 10 minutes until everything came together. Garnish with chopped coriander and you are ready to serve.

This soup is very hearty and filling, it can keep you going for hours.

If you like this recipe, do not forget to share it with your friends and family!

Black Bean Soup - Mexican style black bean soup. Vegan.
Creamy Vegan Pumpkin Soup - Thick creamy vegan pumpkin soup.
Panchrangi Dal / Panchmel Dal - A dal from West India made with 5 different types of lentils.

You can find more soup recipes here.

Lentil Soup with Roasted Pumpkin and Dumplings

Lentil soup with added cumin roasted pumpkins and dumplings made of broken wheat.

Recipe Type: Soup
Cuisine: International
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook time: 60 minutes
Yield: Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

150 gms Whole Red Lentils / Masoor
150 gms Pumpkin
4 Tbsp Broken Wheat / Dalia
2 Tbsp Foxtail Millet
2 Tbsp All Purpose Flour / Maida
1 small Onion
3 Tbsp chopped Coriander
1 tsp Cumin Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1 tsp Pepper Powder
2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt to taste
Water as required
4-5 tsp Oil

Method:

Soak the lentils in water for 30 minutes.
Soak the broken wheat and foxtail millet in water for 30 minutes.
Boil 3 cups of water in a large pot and add 0.5 tsp of salt to it.
Drain the lentils and add to the pot of boiling water and cook until the lentils are done.
Drain out the broken wheat and millets. Add all purpose flour, finely chopped onions, 1 Tbsp chopped coriander, salt and 0.5 tsp pepper. Mix until combined. If it is runny, add more flour.
Shape into marble sized balls.
Boil 2 cups of water in a pot and add the dumplings into it. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until the dumplings are cooked.
Dice the pumpkin into bite sized pieces. Rub with olive oil, red chilli powder, cumin and salt. Lay onto a baking sheet.
Preheat the oven to 200 degree C. Bake the pumpkin for 20-25 minutes or until done.
Blend 1/3rd of the pumpkin with 1/3rd of the lentils and add to the boiled lentils. Add salt and pepper as required. Add more water if required and simmer for 10 minutes.
Add the remaining pumpkin and the dumplings and simmer for 5 minutes.
Garnish with the remaining chopped coriander and serve hot.