Thursday 11 September 2008

Spiced lentil soup with coconut


Red lentils are fantastic, very economical to buy, full of iron (great for adolescents, menstruating or pregnant women) provide slow-burning complex carbs, high levels of proteins, vit B1 and minerals.. This recipe is an unusual twist on a lentil soup, having a mix of the sweet pepper flavour & ginger, spicy chilli and creamy coconut. Great for a autumn day. This is inspired by a recipe in Sarah Brown’s Vegetarian Cookbook.

Ingredients

Half cup of red split lentils (soaked for 10mins in hot water, then drained)
1 tbs oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
half tsp chilli powder
half tsp grated gingerroot
quarter tsp grated nutmeg
1 medium red pepper, de-seeded and diced
1 medium green pepper, de-seeded and diced
1 and a quarter cups of veg stock
2 and half cups of coconut milk (you can used creamed coconut to make it, blended with water)
salt and pepper

serves 4-6

method

1. heat the oil in large heavy bottomed saucepan and gently fry the onion and spices for 3-4mins
2. add the peppers and lentils and continue to fry for 4-5mins, stirring now and again
3. pour in the stock, bring to a boil the simmer gently covered for 10 mins
4. stir in the coconut milk and continue to simmer covered for 35-40 mins, let it cool for a few mins
5. puree the soup, season then re-heat if necessary

today’s illustration ‘peppers’ © Lois Blackburn, please visit www.loisblackburn.co.uk for more examples

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