Lentil Soup

On Thursday I made Roasted Pepper Red Lentil Soup.

ROASTED PEPPER AND RED LENTIL SOUP
Ingredients
2 red peppers *
200 g red lentils (about 3/4 a cup)
500 ml vegetable stock (about 2 cups)
red wine vinegar
1 onion
olive oil
Parmesan cheese
parsley/coriander **
2 bay leaves
tablespoon red pesto ***
salt and pepper
Method:
Halve and seed each pepper and grill under a hot grill until the skin starts to blister and blacken.  Remove, pop them into a ziploc bag and let them sweat for about 10 minutes.  You should then be able to pull the skin off easily.

 

Sauté the chopped onion in some olive oil until translucent, add the vegetable stock, lentils and the two bay leaves and simmer for about 15 minutes, until the lentils are tender. Add the peppers and simmer for another 5 minutes.
Allow the soup to cool, remove the bay leaves and puree with a wand mixer until smooth and creamy. You can also press it through a fine sieve if you want it smoother, but I liked the fact that the soup had some texture.
Check for seasoning, add salt and pepper as needed and add some red wine vinegar for a little tartness.   (You can also add  a tablespoon of red pesto for flavour.)
Serve with shaved Parmesan and decorate with some parsley or coriander leaves.

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* I used a red bell pepper and a yellow bell pepper, because that's what was available.  I thought it tasted fine.

** I didn't use either, but I think some fresh cilantro would've been really yummy in it.

*** I couldn't find red pesto, so I just used the regular green basil pesto.

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On a scale of -5 through 5, Jesse gave it a 4.

8/14

I am sooooo thankful for a cozy bed and personal space heater.

Right now I am sleepy, exhausted, and sore.

A cozy bed sounds wonderful, inviting, and comforting.

I'm thankful for a warm room and a safe place to rest my body.

7/14

I'm thankful for shoes.

I love shoes.  They're so fun and cute and the potential to make or break an outfit.

I'm especially glad for shoes when it's cold outside, because they keep my feet warm.

Oh, and when it's blistering hot outside, so my feet don't burn on the pavement.

Or when I'm stepping in rocks or littered areas, so I don't cut my feet.

Or when I'm in a contaminated area so that I don't get infections or parasites, such as elephantiasis.

Seriously.  I am so blessed and so thankful to have multiple pairs of shoes to protect my feet, especially when I become aware that millions of kids around the world don't have shoes and sometimes don't even have clothes (especially not warm ones).

This is also why I love Toms... because they're working to give each kid a pair of shoes.  Next time I buy a pair of shoes, it's gonna be Toms because I want someone else to share in the blessings I have.

Soy Sauce Chicken (Chinese Noodle Soup/Vietnamese Pho?)

Yesterday I tried another new recipe that I found on userealbutter.

Soy Sauce Chicken
4-6 chicken drums (organic is preferable) (I used 4)
4-5 stalks green onions, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
8 slices ginger root, peeled
2-3 whole star anise
2/3 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp sugar
enough water to cover the chicken
 
1)  Place all ingredients in a pan with a tight lid (or use a crockpot). Bring to boil and then reduce to a simmer so that when you cover the pot, the liquid will not boil over. Simmer for 2 hours.

2)  I like to remove the bone and skin from the chicken and serve the meat with the broth over Chinese noodles with bok choy, napa cabbage, or spinach for a Chinese noodle soup.

I didn't have the ingredients for step 2, so instead... I removed the meat from the bone/skin/fat.  I let the broth cool and the fat congeal and skimmed off the fat and and also removed the chunks of ginger and anise (the anise is a HAVE to - it wouldn't be the same without it.  I found it in the Mexican aisle at Wal-mart.  It was about $1 for 20 or so anise stars)  Then I sauteed the few Chinese-type ingredients I had (celery, snowpeas, mushrooms, and two more green onions) until they were slightly cooked, but still crunchy.  I put the vegetables and meat back in the broth and served with some rice noodles I purchased at the Asian market.

The verdict?  It was delicious.  It actually wasn't salty at all (I thought it would be with all the soy sauce), but I also didn't drink the broth, I just ate what was inside of it.  It had flavor, it was fresh tasting, and the chicken was super tender and not bland like most boiled chicken is.

I will admit though, that it smelled a little gross while it was cooking (you'll understand what I mean if you make it).  I thought I was going to hate it. But... thankfully, its smell and taste were completely different.

On a scale of -5 through 5, Jesse said it was between at 3 and a 4.  I'm guessing that's a 3.5.

If Jesse liked it that much and he doesn't usually like Oriental food, you know it must be good. ;-)

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Oh.  I also made cookies on Monday.  They were scrumptious.

6/14

I am thankful for art/creative expression.

I'm not much of an "artist" myself, but I am totally mesmerized by the things people can create with their hands; drawings, charcoals, acrylics, watercolors, anime, oil paintings, metal sculptures, pottery/ceramics, clothing, blankets, calligraphy, wall hangings, statues, ornaments, glassware, jewelry, graphics, movies, etc.

I think it's fantastic, the resources we have to use our talent to express ourselves, our beliefs, our emotions, our stage in life.  Art has such power.

I also think art goes past what I mentioned above, into the fields of music, photography, and writing, and probably more things I'm missing.  I attempt to use photography and writing to express myself.  I try to paint pictures with words.

Clothing are especially awesome, because people have their own unique style that says something special about them.  Clothing style is definitely an artistic way of expressing yourself and your individuality.

 So yes.  I'm totally a thankful for this!