Mr Williams & Mr Everett ~ Can't Take That Away From Me
Foo Fighters ~ Long Road To Ruin
Sting ~ I'm So Happy I Can't Stop Crying
Janiva Magness ~ It's Love Baby
Black Stone Cherry ~ Crosstown Woman
Joan Jett ~ Love Is All Around
Jack Savoretti ~ Mother
Sheryl Crow ~ Soak Up The Sun
Shakira ~ Ojos Asi
Debussy: Clair De Lune
Alice Cooper ~ No More Mr.Nice Guy
Jamie Cullum ~ Blame It On My Youth
The day I made this soup we were actually having a rare snowy day. I know that some of you reading my humble little blog are experiencing long hot summer days and I wish you luck with that. As I am in little old England, snow for us isn't that exciting..not like Minnesota, New York and Canada for instance. For us its usually a 'dusting' of snow which looks fantastic as it comes down..settles a while and then is gone as quickly as it has fallen...or the worst, that it turns to a thin layer of slush and then hardens in the cold to form patches of ice that would do an ice arena proud. That is the situation in the area I live as its on the east coast of England. I do remember way back when I was a kid, stomping around in snow that was higher than my wellies, doing my morning paper round and loving every second of it. I love snow. Always have and my first experience of 'real' snow on a winter morning in Minnesota blew my snow loving mind. We actually had to tunnel our way outside. Seeing my first bus doing a full doughnut in the road ahead of me was an interesting moment for sure. Apparently it wasn't a cause of concern or anything out of the ordinary to my partner back then. I also remember sitting on a window seat or even out on the porch, eating a steaming bowl of homemade soup or stew as I watched each flake flutter down. These are cherished memories for me.
So it wasn't out of place to find me making soup on this cold, cold morning. I had found a good recipe in Linda Majzlik's A Vegan Taste Of Mexico. A comforting soup that had all the good stuff in it that you need for a cold winter's day. Red lentils bring the comforting texture, sweet potatoes bring the wholesome goodness to the mix and onion, chilli, garlic and fresh tomatoes starting the recipe off. A good low sodium veggie stock is added along with a good dose of paprika and crushed black pepper so what is not to love about this soup? I chose to completely blitz my soup although Majzlik suggests blending half so you still have a chunky texture to the soup and I will try that option out soon. I scattered chopped fresh coriander over the filled bowls and when that green leafy was in a mouthful it transformed the soup to another level. Delicious..
My best pal and I sat down to two steaming bowls of this soup and it was everything I hoped it would be. Slightly spiced, comforting and very satisfying on the cold winter lunch time we were enjoying. (Well I think I was enjoying it more than Ann..she arrived shaking from the very cold bus ride here..poor thing. No I didn't laugh much...ok maybe a bit..ok alot. Hush!) It was a very welcome lunch...
I have the entire collection of Linda Majzlik's A Vegan Taste of Series...they are very cheap but packed full of fantastic vegan recipes. Some are put off by them having no photos but for me that is never a problem. I haven't made a recipe from any of her cook books that was a bust. Great value for money and such great recipes. Her books were the first vegan cookbooks I purchased after making the transformation to vegan and I have never regretted that purchase...thank you Linda Majzlik.
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| Sweet Potato & Lentil Soup from A Vegan Taste Of Mexico/Majzlik |
Sweet Potato & Lentil Soup Serves 4
(Recipe from A Vegan Taste of Mexico/Majzlik)
12oz/350g sweet potato, peeled and diced
4oz/100g red lentils
4oz/100g tomato, skinned and chopped
1 red onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 small red chilli, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 dsp corn oil (I used rapeseed/canola)
30 fl oz/900ml low sodium veggie stock
1/2 tsp paprika
freshly crushed black pepper
fresh coriander leaves
Heat the oil in a large pan and saute the onions, garlic and chilli until soft. Add the tomato and cook until pulpy. Stir in the lentils, stock and paprika and season with black pepper. Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 15 minutes, then add the potato and continue simmering for another 20 minutes or so until the potato is cooked. Ladle half of the soup into a blender and blend until smooth. Pour back into the rest of the soup and stir well. Reheat, whilst stirring, then spoon into the bowls and garnish each bowl with a few coriander leaves.
Enjoy!
Thanks for stopping by and I hope you all have a good weekend...filled with love and laughter.
~Red~
NB: This recipe is not my creation and therefore take no credit for it. It is the hard work and creation of Linda Majzlik and hers alone. I thank her for such a great set of cookbooks. ~R~
