It's Thursday night and I have no idea what to make
When I speak to most people about making dinner, I get a common theme. People are busy and tired and don’t want to cook most of the time and they find they are not eating enough healthy food. We often reach for the phone to get takeout or grab a slice of pizza because we are starving by the time we finish work.
I know this struggle very well. Working a crazy schedule and not being home a lot allows for you to start ignoring you refrigerator and ignoring cooking all together. You loose a lot of love when you are tired and what you put into your body suffers
You know what makes you feel good? Soup
Straight up, I’ve never met anyone who would disagree with that statement. Soup is nourishing and can be done in so many different ways, with so many different ingredients. It’s also a meal in one. All you veggies, meat and even carbs (if you want) are all together in one happy mixture.
Soup makes you warm and makes you feel good. It’s also probably the best thing ever when it is cold outside.
As Canadians we know about the lingering effects of winter. It can drag on forever and make you feel yucky, chilling you to your inner core and making you resent everything.
It’s now March and I’m still feeling the effects of winter. It just keeps dragging on and on. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been sick or how dry all of my skin and hair is at this point. We desperately need some sunshine and heat in our lives
Moroccan “Style” Vegetable Soup
Serves 4-6 people
For Soup:
2 stalks celery, finely diced
2 carrots, peeled, finely diced
1 large onion finely diced
1 tbsp. fresh ginger, minced
4 gloves fresh garlic, minced
¾ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp tumeric
¾ tsp paprika
½ tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1 400g can of chopped tomatoes
1 400g can of chickpeas
1 Litre water or veg. stock if you have it
1 bay leaf
200g green lentils
200g plain yogurt or sour cream
Salt and pepper to taste
For topping:
1 handful of chopped coriander
Tbsp. pepita seeds, chopped
Zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 1 lemon
Olive oil, to taste
-Sautee onion, carrot, celery well with some olive oil, then add garlic and ginger
*Cooking your vegetables well when starting your soup is the beginning of the flavour building. The more caramelization, the better the flavour
-Once all is cooked down, add the dry spices and cook out for a few minutes
-Add tomato paste and once it starts sticking, add water and deglaze bottom of the pan
-Add chopped tomatoes and bay leaf
-Add chickpeas and dry lentils, turning down and cooking for about 15 minutes or until the lentils are cooked
-Season with salt, pepper and some lemon juice
-If the soup has not thickened enough, don’t be afraid to cook it for longer
-to make topping, chop coriander and place in a small bowl
-Finely chop pepita seeds and add to bowl
-Zest lemon and add to mix, along with the juice of the lemon
-Finish with some olive oil and salt
-Plate soup in a bowl and add a dollop of yogurt and topping to the soup
-serve with bread and enjoy
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