Good food. Better life.
I created this soup when I was on a mini detox where I mainly consumed fruit and veggies. Whether you need a healing soup for detox purposes or not you’ll want to make this warming soup in the cooler months and it is highly adaptable. For the vegans, just add in some beans and for the carnivores try venison, chicken or pork sausage.
Serve with roasted Brussels sprouts-
This highly nourishing vegetarian soup is adapted from Nigel Slater’s Pumpkin Dal Soup recipe. He has a tradition of serving soup on New Year’s Day, but you won’t want to wait until then to try my simplified version. I’ve paired it with the nutritional powerhouse, Brussels sprouts, a hearty fall/winter vegetable that tends to sweeten during roasting and just happens to be my youngest’s favorite vegetable.
Serve in lettuce cup with seasonal fruit and whole grain rolls-
My transition between the gym and early school pick up usually finds me at Rolling Oats Market so I can heal my muscles with this protein-rich chicken salad. This curried version is one of my favorites from this local natural market. I’ve recreated it at home so that I can enjoy any time of the week. I have suggested scooping the salad into a large Bibb lettuce leaf but feel free to stuff it into pita bread or sandwiched between two slices of bread.
Serve with basmati rice and peas
One of my culinary highlights of 2013 was learning how to cook Indian food from my friends Taru Raman and Nirmala Kakkuppi hosted in the kitchen of my friend, Susan Hawkins. It was a fun afternoon filled with friendship, knowledge, and incredibly fragrant and visually delightful cuisine. As a newbie to Indian cooking, I feel honored to have learned from women who confidently prepare their traditional dishes commonly thought to be intimidating my most westerners. They broke this myth as I now prepare Indian food with confidence too (well, the recipes that they taught me).
The original recipe is vegetarian, “Paneer Butter Masala” (paneer is a type of Indian cheese), but I have replaced the paneer with chicken. You can find “Butter Chicken” on many Indian restaurant menus, but I was told this preparation is the real thing. You are in for a treat because either version, paneer or chicken, is amazing and surely to become a family favorite. For the vegetarian paneer butter masala recipe, see Suggestions below.
Some of the spices you may not have and if you do not plan on making more Indian dishes, try to find a market that sells spices in bulk so you can purchase only what you need. Garam masala and dried fenugreek leaves (kasoori Methi) can be found at Indian markets and more gourmet supermarkets.
I created The Whole Meal with a vision of educating others in mealtime preparation focusing on delicious, healthy and simple recipes. To good food and a better life!