Sausage and Red Lentil Soup

I suppose that when you get bogged down by the first sniffles of the season, you know well and truly that winter has arrived. Not that it was a big consolation for me when I had to take not just one, but two days off work last week. And while days off work are great, it's not so great when you are forced to take it easy at home. And made to wrap up snugly in bed. 

Wait, who am I kidding? That sounds like my ideal day. Minus the stuffy nose of course.

With that being said, I've had my fair share of soups over the past few days. There's just something about soup - I am fairly certain even the sickest person perks up a little bit when they get that first whiff of something hot and steamy. No, not McSteamy - although I'm sure that could also cause some perkiness...

One of my favourite things about soup (which I relayed to my imaginary cooking show viewers the other day - what, like you don't pretend sometimes?) is that it's just so versatile. You can throw the most ordinary of ingredients in a pot, allow to simmer for a while in a liquid of your choice and voila, you've got a great (and usually pretty balanced) meal at the end. With very little effort. Bonus points if your soup is a little bit out of the ordinary, a little bit zingy perhaps or even a smidge fiery like this one. 

You can vary the heat to your liking of course, but I do think the bite of chili adds a lovely dimension to this Italian inspired soup. You may notice the inclusion of a rather odd last ingredient - olive jam. I had a semi-finished bottle hanging out in the fridge which just begged to be part of this spicy production. How could I say no?

Sausage and Red Lentil Soup
Serves 4 - 6

2 red bell peppers, seeds removed and quartered
1 cup red lentils
2 tins (410g each) tomatoes
2 1/2 cups water
1 tsp olive oil 
1 tsp minced garlic
400g pork sausage, sliced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp dried mint
1/2 - 1 tsp dried red chili flakes
1/4 tsp salt, plus more to taste
1 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp olive jam (optional)

1. Place bell peppers on an oven tray at 180C to broil. This will take roughly 5 - 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, add lentils, tinned tomatoes and water to a large pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to cook, covered for 10 - 15 minutes or until the lentils have softened and broken down.  
3. While the lentils are cooking, heat olive oil in frying pan over high heat. Add garlic and fry for a few seconds, then add the pork sausage.
4. When the pork sausage has browned on all sides, add oregano, mint, chilli flakes, salt, lemon juice and olive jam (if using). Cook for another minute or two to develop the flavours. Set aside.
5. When bell peppers are done, remove them from the oven and puree in a food processor with a little bit of water. Add this to the lentil mixture along with the sausages.
6. Stir to combine everything, taste and adjust seasoning if needed, then cook for another 5 minutes to blend the flavours.

Nutritional info (per serving): Calories 449.7, Total fat 33.3 g, Saturated fat 11.7 g, Polyunsaturated fat 4.4 g, Monounsaturated fat 15.3 g, Cholesterol 77.3 mg, Sodium 1072.2 mg, Potassium 803.9 mg, Total carbohydrate 18.6 g, Dietary fiber 5.6 g, Sugars 4.3 g, Protein 19.9 g

Good source of: Vitamin C 181.4 %, Vitamin A 58.4 %, Thiamin 50.2 %, Selenium 38.2 %, Vitamin B6 32.6 %, Folate 26.0 %, Niacin 26.0 %

Vietnamese Chicken and Pineapple Soup

It is freezing in the Western Cape at the moment. Yes, I know I proclaimed my love for winter just the other day, but it would be nice if the temperature could be dialed up to juuuust a notch above freezing. Just saying.

This month Joanne from Eats Well with Others chose Vietnam as the theme for the Regional Recipes event and when I saw that I did a silent "hell yeah!" in my head. Because you see, I  love asian food. Chinese take out (the greasier the better), all-you-can-eat buffets and tempting noodle-y dishes at our local Thai place, you name it, and I'll probably like it. Sad thing though: I tend to not cook a lot of asian food at home. Yes I do the odd stirfry, but that's where it stays. Mostly.

So this was the perfect opportunity for me to get out of my rut and into my kitchen. Except it was really cold yesterday. And while Asian foods are many things, comforting is not the first word that springs to mind. Or maybe I've just been ignorant so far?

Nevertheless I set off without fear or trepidation into the hallowed halls of the internet where I stumbled across a vast array of warming soups and even a curry or two. Comfort meal? Hells yeah! But one stood out. Vietnamese Chicken and Pineapple Soup. Yes, okay, the reason I was attracted to it, was because of the odd combination. Pineapple? In soup? Eh... 

But it works! Oh and does it ever. TheHusband and I slurped this motley crue of ingredients right up. And we want more. MOAR I say! Any volunteers for making me another batch?

I'm submitting this to Regional Recipes - Vietnam, hosted by Joanne from Eats Well with Others.

Vietnamese Chicken and Pineapple Soup

Adapted from Pots & Pearls

Serves 4

2 small pineapples

approx 8 cups water

2 tbsp sunflower oil

1 - 2 tbsp dry red chilli flakes

3 tsp minced garlic

1/4 cup + 2 tbsp fish sauce

1 lemongrass stalk

120g fresh shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced

2 large tomatoes, chopped

1 tsp black pepper

2 skinless boneless chicken breasts (approx 250g)

200g rice noodles, softened

1/4 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped

1/4 cup fresh mint, roughly chopped

1. Peel and core pineapples, discarding only the peel. Chop the cores and puree with 1/2 cup of water in a blender. Strain using a sieve and pressing down on the solids to extract the most liquid. Discard the solids and set the juice aside. Chop the remaining pineapple pieces and set aside as well.

2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large pot, then fry the chillies and 2 tsp garlic for a minute or two until fragrant. Add 1/4 cup fish sauce and cook another 2 minutes to reduce.

3. Add enough water to the pineapple juice to make up 8 cups, then add to the pot with the lemongrass stalk.

4. Bring to the boil, then add mushrooms, tomatoes, reserved pineapple pieces and 1/2 tsp pepper. Return to the boil, then cover and allow to simmer for 10 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a frying pan, add rest of garlic, along with a pinch of chilli flakes and the remaining 2 tbsp of fish sauce. Cook 2 minutes or until reduced, then season chicken with 1/2 tsp pepper and add to the pan, frying briefly until just cooked.

6. Stir chicken into the soup and simmer for 1 minute.

7. Divide noodles amongst serving bowls, then ladle in the steaming hot soup. Sprinkle with chopped herbs and serve.

Nutritional info (per serving): Calories 327.5, Total fat 8.8 g, Saturated fat 0.8 g, Polyunsaturated fat 4.9 g, Monounsaturated fat 1.5 g, Cholesterol 33.8 mg, Sodium 2236.7 mg, Potassium 577.9 mg, Total carbohydrate 50 g, Dietary fiber 5.3 g, Sugars 24.4 g, Protein 16.3 g 

Good source of: Manganese 212.2 %, Vitamin C 80.0 %, Magnesium 23.8 %, Vitamin E 20.1 %

Citrus Burst Carrot & Butternut Soup

Wait a minute! Didn't I just post an Indian Carrot Soup recipe a few days ago? Yup, guilty as charged. You don't even need to bring the warrant of arrest, just show me the handcuffs and I'll step forward willingly to accept my fate.

But what's a poor blogger to do when she still has a load of carrots left in her freezer? And in the meantime our pantry of freebies has also grown to include butternut, potatoes and sweet potatoes. I swear we don't go begging, these things just find their way into our home. Perhaps because we are so likeable? Or more likely because our benefactors didn't have a clue what to do with the mounds of veggies in their cupboards... And so they passed the buck. (Yes I'm looking at you MIL)

But fear not! Because I bring you Carrot Soup: Round 2. Which also, conveniently, includes butternut. Will there be a round three? Dun-dun-dunnnnnnnnnnnn.

Okay all jokes aside though, this soup was truly phe-no-me-nal. Yes, I know I said that about the last one, but you want the truth? That previous carrot soup is no match for this one. There I said it. I'm sorry Indian Carrot Soup, but you just don't have that x-factor. Okay you might have the x-factor, but this one? It has the x, y and z factors. 

The citrus and especially the complex notes from the preserved lemon* gives a lovely twang to this otherwise rather ordinary rendition of carrot and butternut soup. And the toasted seeds on top? Heavenly bits of crunch. I think all soups should have toasted crunchy bits on top. Don't  you?

* Disclaimer: I might be slightly biased as I'm a recent preserved lemon convert & addict. I have to stop myself from eating it from the jar. True story.

Citrus Burst Carrot & Butternut Soup

Adapted from Running with Tweezers

Serves 6 - 8 as starter

(Serves 4 as main meal)

7 medium carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

1/2 butternut, peeled and roughly chopped

1/2 large onion, roughly chopped

3 garlic cloves (whole)

2 tbsp (30 ml) olive oil

1 tsp (5 ml) salt

3 cups water 

1 tbsp (15 ml) honey

6 tbsp (90 ml) orange juice

6 tbsp (90 ml) lemon juice from jar of preserved lemons*

1/4 preserved lemon, finely chopped*

3 tbsp (45 ml) sesame seeds

1 1/2 tsp (7.5 ml) cumin seeds

finely grated zest from one orange

yoghurt, to serve (optional)

1. Arrange carrots, butternut, onion and garlic cloves in an oven roasting tray. Sprinkle with salt and drizzle with olive oil, then place in oven at 180C to roast for 30 minutes. Vegetables should be soft at this stage.

2. Add all the veggies to a blender, including the garlic which you've squeezed out of it's skins, add a little bit of the water and puree.

3. Spoon the puree into a large enough pot, then add water, honey, orange juice, lemon juice and preserved lemons. Stir, cover and cook for another 10 - 15 minutes over medium heat.

4. Meanwhile, toast the sesame and cumin seeds in a small frying pan over medium-high heat for a few seconds (be careful as they burn easily).

5. Ladle the soup into bowls, drizzling with yoghurt (if using) and sprinkling with the toasted seeds and orange zest. Serve immediately.

* If you don't have a jar of preserved lemons handy, you can replace the juice with an equal quantity of lemon juice, and adjust the salt to taste. The taste, however, won't be quite the same.

Nutritional info (per starter serving): Calories 158.9 , Total fat 6.3 g, Saturated fat g, Polyunsaturated fat 0.9 g, Monounsaturated fat 1.3 g, Cholesterol 6.7 mg, Sodium 880.4 mg, Potassium 652.2 mg, Total carbohydrate 26.8 g, Dietary fiber 6.3 g, Sugars 6.8 g, Protein 2.8 g

Good source of: Vitamin A 327.2 %, Vitamin C 57.8 %, Manganese 23.2 %, Vitamin B-6 16.0 %