Sweet Potato, Chickpea and Green Lentil Soup

This is a soup recipe adapted from BHG. The original recipe called for pumpkin, red lentils and chickpeas, but with sweet potatoes, green lentils (french puy lentils) and chickpeas in my pantry, I decided to improvise. The sweet potatoes and green lentils turned out to be a great substitute for the pumpkin and red lentils.

I also had sage in stock. Since I am a sucker for sage with sweet potatoes, I decided to fry the sage in butter first and then start the soup with the sage infused butter. The crispy butter fried sage also makes a great garnish.

I was quite pleased that I could make enough and share with friends at work. It turned out to be a great lunch perfect for that rainy day!

4 medium sweet potatoes, washed, peeled and cubed
1 32 oz can chickpeas
3 cups green lentils, dried ( I prefer using dried and cooking it in stock, rather than using pre cooked lentils)
1″ piece ginger, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
3 medium carrots, peeled and diced
3 large tomatoes, chopped
6-8 fresh sage leaves
3 tbsp fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1 dried bay leaf (optional)
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 1/2 tsp coriander powder
3/4 tsp cumin powder
4 tbsp butter
12 cups vegetable stock
2 tsp salt ( split into four 1/2 tsp quantities to be added in layers)
juice from 1 lemon

Melt butter over medium heat until it turns golden brown. Add sage leaves which will start becoming crispy after some spluttering. Remove sage and set aside.

In the sage infused butter left behind in the pan, add garlic, ginger and onions. Cook for 4-5 minutes until the onions are cooked translucent.

Add chopped carrots, 1/2 tsp salt and sauté for 5 minutes until the carrots just start getting tender. Add cubed sweet potatoes, chickpeas, 1 tsp salt, turmeric, cumin and coriander powders. Cook for 10 minutes until the sweet potatoes just start cooking.

Add chopped tomatoes, remaining 1/2 tsp salt and the sage leaves. Cook for 2 minutes and add the lentils, bay leaf and measured vegetable stock. Cover and let cook over medium heat for 40-45 minutes.

Uncover and check for doneness. The lentils should be perfectly tender (but not mushy), the sweet potato, chickpeas and carrots should also be tender yet hold their shape but will melt in your mouth into an explosion of flavors. Add chopped cilantro and lemon juice, turn off the heat and serve hot with any fresh baked bread of your choice.

I served the soup with pumpernickel bread and loved the combination of the smoky earthy soup with the deep and intense pumpernickel bread. The combination was perfect.

Chickpeas and Methi leaf Curry

Methi(aka Fenugreek) Leaves and Seeds are common ingredients in Indian cooking. They have a slightly bitter but intensely nutty and savory flavor. Added to any gravy or vegetable curries, it adds a great depth. Herb combination of Methi leaves and Cilantro is just a great flavor treat!

Using chickpeas or potatoes with methi leaves is most common. Here is a version of methi leaves with chickpeas in a tomato/onion masala.

1 32 oz can Chickpeas
1 cup Methi leaves (aka Fenugreek leaves) cleaned & washed
5 tbsp canola oil
2 tsp salt
1 tsp garam masala
1/3 cup cilantro

To make into a paste:
1 stick Cinnamon
4 cloves
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp coriander seeds
8 Indian green chillis (use 4-5 for a milder version)
1 ” Ginger piece
3 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
1/4 tsp asafoetida powder
1 large tomato
1 medium onion
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1 cup water

Add all of the above paste ingredients to a blender. Add the cup of water and blend everything together to make a smooth paste. Set aside.

Prepare the methi leaves: pluck the leaves from the stem and discard the stems. Put all the leaves in a bowl and fill it with cold water. Let it sit for 5 minutes, all the dirt and grit will sink to the bottom. Gently pick the leaves out the water, pat dry with a paper towel and rough chop the leaves and set aside.

In a pan heat 5 tbsps canola oil over medium heat for 2-3 minutes. Remove the pan off the heat and pour the blended spice mixture into the pan stirring the mixture and the oil together. If you pour the mixture into the oil while still on heat there will be a lot of splattering. Put the pan back into medium heat, sprinkle 1 tsp of salt and cook this masala for 15-20 minutes stirring ever 5 minutes. The raw flavor and smell of the spices will mellow down as it simmers. Your kitchen will smell insanely good by now!

Add remaining salt, garam masala powder and the chopped methi leaves. Mix throughly. Let this cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Add the chickpeas and cilantro making sure the chick peas is really coated well in the masala. Cook for another 7-8 minutes, remove from heat and serve hot. I served it over a bed of hot basmati rice and with Chapatis. Naan would be great too!

This curry tastes even better the next day when the chickpeas has completely soaked into the masala sitting in it all day! In fact I always make this dish in the morning and serve it for dinner. The flavors intensify and marry better the longer it sits.

This is my entry for Weekend Herb Blogging, hosted this week by Haalo from Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once. Here are the rules if you want to participate and  here’s Who’s Hosting Weekend Herb Blogging if you’d like to join the weekly celebration of cooking with fresh herbs.

Leftover Makeover – 2

With my leftover Chickpeas-Mint patties and lemon garlic dipping sauce came this sandwich. Continuing my leftover makeovers, this is such a great snack with crisp fresh veggies, creamy sauce and minty patties.

I used a hearty multi grain bread that adds great flavor and stands up well with all these strong flavors of garlic, mint, chickpeas and lemon. 
1 ripe tomato, sliced 1/2 inch thick
1 onion, thinly sliced
3-4 pickled jalapenos
1/4 head of lettuce, rough chopped 
more lemon juice, optional 

Toast the bread until toasted crisp. Spread one slice liberally with the garlic-cilantro sauce, and place the chickpeas-mint patties over it. I used two patties to make the sandwich more hearty.

Top with crisp lettuce, 2 slices of tomatoes, 1 slice of onion, jalapenos, a tsp more of lemon juice. Spread more of the sauce on the second slice of bread and gently press down to make into a manageable size!

Chickpeas-Mint Patties

A simple and healthy snack with insanely great flavors. With the lemon-cilantro-garlic sauce, it’s a marriage made in heaven!

1 13 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tbsp dried mint
1 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp cumin powder
3/4 tsp coriander powder
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1 tsp salt

Preheat oven to  400F

In a blender, add the the chickpeas, mint, red chilli powder, cumin seeds, cumin and coriander powders, garlic and salt. Pulse blend a few times with no extra water added. Drop the egg and blend completely. Transfer the mixture to a bowl.

Grease a baking tray or a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray liberally. Drop a tablespoon of spoonful of mixture on the sheet and gently flatten them with the back of your spoon.Make the rest of the mixture into patties and place then an inch apart.

Bake for 15 minutes until one side is browned and turn them over and bake 10 more minutes until completely crispy. Serve warm with the cilantro-garlic dipping sauce.

I am entering this dish into the EFM-Savories event hosted by SrishKitchen.

Garbanzo Bean Soup

Here is a Williams-Sonoma classic that I have made so many times but never got to posting it here. And finally, here we go!

The original recipe ‘ Ceci (italian for chick peas) soup’ is mellow and I added some zing to it and topped it off with a nutty cheese.

1 13 oz can cooked garbanzo beans
2 tbsp butter
1 yellow onion, chopped
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
3 serrano peppers, chopped (This makes the soup spicy, use 1 to make it milder and remove seeds to further mellow it down)
6 fresh sage leaves, chopped
2 large tomatoes, chopped
4 cups vegetarian broth ( I used low sodium broth)
1 fresh rosemary sprig, strip the leaves and discard the stem. Rough chop the leaves.
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

Melt butter in a soup pot over medium-low heat. Add the onion, serrano peppers and garlic and cook, stirring, until the onions are translucent, 4 to 6 minutes. Add the sage and tomatoes and cook, stirring, until the tomatoes are tender, 6 to 8 minutes.

Add the garbanzo beans, salt, broth and rosemary and let it come to a boil. Cover the pot and cook for 25 minutes.

Using a hand blender, puree the soup until smooth and blended.If you don’t have a hand blender, transfer the soup in batches to a regular blender, blend and pour back into the soup pot. Stir in parmesan cheese and cook uncovered for another 5 minutes and serve warm. Garnish with rosemary and more parmesan if you wish.

I am entering this recipe for the Foodie Films Event hosted by Joelen’s Culinary Adventures.

I am also entering this for the “winter treat” event hosted by Recipe Center.

Gemili with Roasted Red Peppers and Garbanzo

Here is another simple and delicious weeknight dinner idea. The minute I saw this recipe on American Profile I just had to try it out! The original recipe did not call for roasted red peppers or any heat. But I am huge fan of the sweet and spicy combination. So I added in some crushed red peppers that was great with garlic and basil and also some sweet roasted red peppers that paired so well with the soft and creamy garbanzo beans.

1 pound gemelli pasta ( Substitute with fusili)
1/3 cup olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp red chilli flakes
1 16-ounce can garbanzo beans, drained
1 large tomato, diced
1 cup roasted red peppers, thinly sliced( I used store bought)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Bring water to a boil in a large pot. Add salt and the pasta, cook until al dente (around 8-9 minutes) and then drain it and return it to the same pot you cooked it in.

In the meanwhile, heat olive oil in a pan, add in the garlic, red chilli flakes sauté for about 2 minutes on medium-low heat. Stir in tomatoes and sauté for another 2 minutes until they just start to breakdown. Add the sliced roasted red peppers and chickpeas and heat through. Add salt and cook for another 5-10 minutes. Stir in basil and parmesan cheese.

Add this garbanzo mixture in with the pasta and toss together. Add more parmesan cheese and basil if needed and serve. I served it with simple garden salad and roasted garlic sourdough bread.

I am entering this recipe for the Foodie Films Event hosted by Joelen’s Culinary Adventures.