Lentil Coriander Soup

Most people seem to have a love-hate relationship with soups. There are the keen aficionados who love everything from the fiery Tom Yum to the nostalgic "sweet corn" soup. And then there are the nay sayers who consider it "diet" food or even "patient" food! I fall into the former category and love trying out different soups. There was a time in my life though when I had only clear soups for almost a year, so that pretty much kept me off soups for the next two years when I actually started eating solid food.

But now I'm back to experimenting both at home and when I'm out - the Tom Yum at The Kitchen in Delhi's Khan Market is absolutely amazing as is the Roasted Pumpkin Soup in Chennai's Eden. I particularly like noodle soups and other one pot meal soups like this one made with beans. I recently tried the Laksa at a new restaurant in Delhi called Tasty Tangles and it was so good we ordered seconds - the coconut milk was just right - not too creamy and spiced just right!

Speaking of coconut milk brings me to the subject of this post - a lovely lentil soup made just a little creamier with some coconut milk and flavoured with lots of coriander. This was one half of a typical soup and salad meal at home - going through my posts I realised that we tend to do these a lot especially during summer when the thought of a full meal is just too oppressive.
I paired the lentil soup with a quasi-Caesar salad - chicken,peppers and bread croutons roasted together with olive oil and herbs but served without the all important mayonnaise dressing - I instead tossed it with a simple vinaigrette. The combination made a very nice meal - lots of protein from the chicken and the lentils and the crunchiness of the bread croutons going wonderfully with the creamy soup.

This lentil soup uses red lentils (masur dal) cooked together with ginger and garlic. I didn't bother blending it in a processor and instead just mashed them with the back of the ladle and mixed in the coconut milk before returning it to the stove. Lots of coriander really lifts this soup, so don't skimp!

This Lentil Coriander soup goes to No Croutons Required - that amazing soup and salad event hosted by Lisa and Holler. This month's event focuses on leaves! "We are looking for a soup or salad that features leaves. Think spinach, watercress, kale, swiss chard, salad leaves, herbs ... Go crazy! If it's leafy, then add it!" says Holler.

Lentil Coriander Soup

Red lentils - 3/4 cup (soaked for 15 - 30 min)
Ginger - 1 inch piece whole or grated
Garlic - 6 cloves
Green chillies - 2 whole, slit
Tomato - 1 chopped
Onion - 1 chopped fine
Oil - 1 tbsp

Coconut milk - 1 cup (I use fresh, but canned is fine too)

Coriander leaves - 1/2 cup chopped

salt to taste

freshly crushed peppercorns - 1 tsp

Method

1. Heat the oil in a heavy bottomed pan or in a pressure pan.

2. Add the ginger, garlic and green chillies and saute 1 min. Then add the finely chopped onions and fry for 3-4 minutes. Once transluscent add the tomato and fry for a further 2 minutes.

3. Add the soaked dal, 6-7 cups of water and cook on the stove till soft and mushy; or pressure cook for 2 whistles.

4. If there is excess water, drain it off and reserve and mash the dal with the back of spoon taking care to remove the slit green chillies and the ginger piece (if not grated). You can also run this through the food processor after cooling it.

5. Add back the reserved lentil stock and the coconut milk to get the consistency you want. Put in the chopped coriander, salt and crushed pepper and simmer gently on low, for about 3-4 minutes taking care not to boil.

6. Serve warm.

Coriander Pesto Yogurt Bread

I finally managed to buy a lot of baking stuff I needed and I'm quite happy that for keeping to my New Year's Day resolution of increasing my baking proficiency! One of my buys was a loaf tin (I know, some baker I am, didn't even have a loaf tin for so long!) I a

I had to use it right away of course; suddenly I couldn't find all those loaf recipes which would haunt me when I didn't have a loaf tin- there were all kinds of free form breads but hardly any loaves. One can use the same recipe of course, but I didn't want to take a chance...

Finally, I gave up and decided to just tweak the recipes I have already tried out. A bit of coriander walnut pesto remaining from this dish went into the bread and also yoghurt I had seen so many recipes using buttermilk (different from our "mor" or "chaach").

I was quite worried when the liquid proportion seemed too much and the dough was much stickier than anything I had handled before. After almost 4 cups of flour totally, I finally stopped and just put it aside to rise. Good thing I had a loaf tin, since a free form bread would have been a small nightmare!

The dough rose beautifully both the times; I left it for almost 2 hours and 15 minutes the first time and the second time for about 50 minutes.

Hubby though, was a bit worried that he wouldn't get a "tall bread" and insisted we should have bought a taller tin - I was already a bit stressed about the dough being so sticky so I told him the comments section was closed at this time!!.

The bread was fine though, I needn't have worried; this is how I have always wanted my bread to be - those lovely holes and soft insides.
This is a nice bread - good crust and crumb and just the right texture - not too dry and crumbly and not too dense. The pesto wasn't enough to make a mark on the bread (though the bread did look greenish) but I could taste the faint hints of coriander. Next time I won't rely on leftovers and make the pesto for this dish itself!

We had the bread for breakfast - as many versions as the people at home - plain with cheese spread for my daughter, sandwich with green chutney, potato and tomato slices for the husband and toasted with home made butter and strawberry and mint conserve for me.

I don't think there's anything to compare with the aroma of freshly baked bread and the pleasure of cutting your own thick slices - I am definitely going to be baking more bread!

Coriander Pesto Yogurt Bread

Ingredients:
Active dried yeast - 2.5 tsp
Warm water - 1 cup ( I would cut this down to half a cup and then add more water to the dough later if needed.)
Sugar - 1tsp

Wheat Flour (atta) - 1 cup
Refined flour (AP/maida) - 2.5 -3 cups
Yogurt - 1/4 cup
Coriander Walnut Pesto - 1/4 cup (can increase it to 1/2 a cup)
Salt - 2 tsp
Veg oil - 3 tsp

Method:

1. Dissolve the sugar and yeast in the warm water and set aside for 10-15 minutes till the mixture is foamy.

2. Take the wheat flour, salt, yoghurt, yeast mixture, pesto, oil and 2 cups of the refined flour in a bowl and mix till well combined. Add refined flour a tablespoon at a time till the dough comes together.

3. Knead the dough till smooth and springy (5 minutes), transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Set aside for about 1.5 hours till it doubles in volume.

4. Transfer the dought to a lightly floured bowl or surface and lightly flatten. Put into a lightly greased and floured loaf tin or shape into a free form loaf; cover with a damp kitchen towel and set aside for another 45 minutes to an hour for the second rise.

5. Pre heat the oven to 190C and bake the loaf for 30-35 minutes.

Pasta tossed with Coriander and Walnut Pesto

This post by dear Mansi of Fun and Food really set me thinking. Though I had known for sometime now that Pesto needn't contain only Basil, I had never tried making it with any other ingredient. Basil isn't very easy to get around here (except the more pungent Holy Basil variety - tulsi).

I made the Coriander Walnut Pesto recipe with a few changes to it. I didn't want it as a dip though but in some form for dinner. So, I boiled some pasta and tossed the pesto in and mixed in some halved cherry tomatoes. Served it warm with some pumpkin soup and a roasted mushroom salad for a delicious meal.

I also had some leftover pasta cold for lunch the next day and it tasted great with the pasta taking on the pesto flavours completely.

There was some leftover pesto which I added to a bread recipe I was making - and voila! Pesto Yoghurt Bread! Thanks for the recipe Mansi!

Pasta tossed with Coriander and Walnut Pesto

Ingredients:

Pesto:

Coriander leaves - 2 cups washed and chopped
Walnut, lightly toasted and skin removed - 1/3 cup
Sweet corn kernels - 1/2 cup
Green chillies - 2-3 depending on heat level
Olive oil - 4 tbsp
salt to taste
Lemon juice - 1 tbsp

Pasta:

Macaroni or Spaghetti - 1.5 cups
Cherry tomatoes washed and halved - 1 cup
salt to taste
Olive oil - 1 tbsp
Crushed Black pepper - 1 tsp
Parmesan cheese - 1/4 cup
Method:

1. Bring enough water with salt and a tsp of the olive oi in a large vesse, to a boil. Add the pasta and cook for about 8-10 minutes; the pasta should not be overcooked but remain al dente (with a bit of bite to it).
2, Drain the water and rinse under cold water for a minute to stop it cooking in its own heat. Toss with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and keep aside.
3. Meanwhile, blend all the ingredients for the pesto together, adding the olive oil a tablespoon at a time till they come together in a thick paste.
4. Gently toss the warm pasta with the pesto, crushed black pepper and the cherry tomatoes till well combined, check seasoning and adjust salt if needed. Sprinkle the parmesan cheese on top and serve immediately.

Cream Cheese and Coriander Spiced Bread

Its been a while since my first attempt at baking bread and this Sunday morning with an empty fridge staring me in my face, I decided to beat back the blues by getting out some yeast and flour. After all, it was Easter Sunday!

I also somehow got into my head to include cream cheese in whatever bread I chose to bake.....so while searching for recipes which would pander to my whims, I found this recipe adapted from the book Beard on Bread. And then I went a bit crazy....

I substituted the sour cream with cream cheese,grated cheddar cheese and fresh cream. Added lots of coriander and then remembering that lovely achaari bread loaf cooked up by J&B, spooned in a generous dollop of - hold your breath! - vathalkozhambu thokku!!! This is a fiery tamarind based gravy which is reduced to a thick consistency and it contains sun dried berries or vegetables (vatthal) which impart a distinctive flavour to it. Usually eaten with steamed rice, I had bought a bottle of this delicious Tamilian delicacy from that veritable institution - Grand Sweets - on my last trip to Chennai.

The other no-so-crazy touches to the recipe - I replaced part of the flour with wheat flour and also toned down the salt since both the pickle and the cream cheese had salt in it.

I sweated quite a bit while waiting for the bread to rise and then rise again and then finally bake. I had no idea how it would turn out and I regretted experimenting with something I was making for just the second time....

BUT, it wasn't a disaster - phew! It had a great crust though it didn't rise as much as I expected it to - I don't really think that that's because of the wheat flour since I have used a similar proportion for the poee before; I suspect the yeast - so out it goes. Its a pity we don't get smaller packets of yeast which we can use just once.

The aroma which came curling out of the oven was absolutely amazing - a mix of the typical yeasty smell of bread and the spice notes of pickle. And the taste matched it completely - a lovely mix of flavours which intensified overnight till the next day one could eat it - just.like.that. No need for any accompaniments. The oil from the pickle and the cream cheese seemed to make it really moist.

Couldnt even wait for the photo session to get over and I already had a bite out of it!

What I would do the next time around - cut down on the sugar mentioned for mixing the yeast and also cut down on the milk....I think the dough needed to be a tad firmer.
We had it with a simple masala omelet and it made a perfect Sunday breakfast.

This goes to the Bread Baking Day #8 being hosted over at Wild Yeast by Susan.
Celebration Bread and she says"For this month’s BreadBakingDay, you are invited to share your own spring holiday bread tradition, explore one you’re not yet familiar with, or start a new one".

While this is not a tradition in our home, it maybe the start of one for Easter every year; I used to get fresh buns and Easter eggs every year when I was a girl from the Anglo Indian family downstairs who doted on me and I hope my daughter does too! Here's to new beginnings then, especially in my brother's home - they have a lot to look forward this year!

Cream Cheese and Coriander Spiced Bread

Ingredients:

Wheat flour - 1.5 cups
Refined flour (maida) - 2 to 2.5 cups
Yeast - 3 tsp
Warm water - 1/4 cup
Sugar - 3 tbsp (2 tbsp should suffice)
Cream Cheese - 1 cup
Grated cheddar cheese - 1/2 cup
Indian spicy pickle - 2 tablespoons (I used vathalkozhambu thokku)
Milk - 1/2 cup
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Baking soda - 1/4 tsp
Chopped onions - 1/4 cup
Chopped coriander - 3/4 cup

Method:

1. Combine yeast and sugar in warm water and set aside for 5 minutes or till its foamy.
2. Take a large bowl, add the yeast mixture, salt, baking soda,cream cheese, grated cheese and pickle.
3. Mix in both the flours gardually adding the milk while kneading all the time. I added the milk all at once and had to add some more flour since it became too sticky. The flour should be fairly easy to handle and not too sticky.
4. Knead well and keep aside in a warm place, covered with cling film for about 1.5 hours till it doubles in size.
5. Lightly punch it down, knead again and divide into two parts. Shape into rounds and place on baking trays or put into loaf tins and set aside covered for another 30 - 45 minutes for the second rise.
6. Pre heat the oven to 375F or 190C and bake for about 25-30 minutes; if baking both together then swap the loaf tins after 15 minutes.