Red Lentil Mulligatawny Soup

Sunday I was craving burgers. Earlier that week the market across the street from my place received a nice selection of huge Portobello mushrooms, so I searched through my extensive recipe collection and found the recipe for Portobello Mushroom Burgers. That made me almost happy. Almost, because I also felt like a salad with my burger…something with fruits…..oranges…… something different from the usual Green Salad with sesame dressing I make.

Flipping through the pages of the recipe-binders I saw a picture of the Sweet Potato and Orange Salad! That was exactly what I had in my mind…. But wait a second, this Red Lentil Soup looks so yummy……coconut milk….. cumin….. hmmmmmm….. can we eat burger, salad, and the soup? Why not!

Having all of this figured out I thought of desert. Something fruity and not too complicated would be great. Apple-pecan cookies? Poached pears? Baked apples?! Yeah, Baked Apples with maple syrup, raisins, and nuts.

After couple of hours of cooking we’ve enjoyed:

Red Lentil Mulligatawny with Apple-Celery Salsa

Image from Cooking Ligh

The recipe comes from the Cooking Light magazine. I “veganised” it by replacing the chicken stock with the vegetable broth.  This rich, creamy soup will thicken as it cools. Thin with hot water, a tablespoon at a time, to the desired consistency.

Salsa

2/3 cup finely chopped Granny Smith apple

1/4 cup finely chopped celery

1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

1 tbsp fresh lime juice

Soup

3 1/2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

1 cup dried small red lentils

1 cup chopped onion

1 1/2 cups light coconut milk

3 tbsp tomato paste

1 tsp grated peeled fresh ginger

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/8 tsp ground turmeric

1 tsp fresh lime juice

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

To prepare salsa: combine the first 4 ingredients; cover and chill.

To prepare soup

• Combine broth, lentils, and onion in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until lentils are tender.
• Process lentil mixture in blender until smooth.
• Add coconut milk, tomato paste, ginger, cumin, and turmeric; process until smooth.
• Return soup into pan. Cover and simmer over medium heat 10 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in 1 teaspoon juice, salt, and pepper.
• Ladle about 1 cup soup into each of 4 bowls; top each serving with 1/4 cup salsa.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup soup and 1/4 cup salsa)