Lemony red lentil soup

https://www.elizabethrider.com/red-lentil-soup/

Spiced Chickpea Stew with Coconut and Turmeric

By Alison Roman for New York Times Cooking

Spiced chickpeas are crisped in olive oil, then simmered in garlicky coconut milk for an insanely creamy, basically-good-for-you stew that evokes stews found in South India and parts of the Caribbean. While the chickpeas alone would be good as a side dish, they are further simmered with stock, bolstered with dark, leafy greens of your choosing and finished with a handful of fresh mint. When shopping, avoid low-fat coconut milk, coconut milk meant for drinking or cream of coconut: All are very different and would not be suitable here.

INGREDIENTS

• Yield: 4 to 6 servings
• ¼ cup olive oil, plus more for serving
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 1 (2-inch) piece ginger, finely chopped
• Kosher salt and black pepper
• 1½ teaspoons ground turmeric, plus more for serving
• 1teaspoon red-pepper flakes, plus more for serving
• 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 2 (15-ounce) cans full-fat coconut milk
• 2 cups vegetable or chicken stock
• 1 bunch Swiss chard, kale or collard greens, stems removed, torn into bite-size pieces
• 1 cup mint leaves, for serving
• Yogurt, for serving (optional)
• Toasted pita, lavash or other flatbread, for serving (optional)

PREPARATION

1. Heat ¼ cup oil in a large pot over medium. Add garlic, onion and ginger. Season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally until onion is translucent and starts to brown a little at the edges, 3 to 5 minutes.
2. Add 1½ teaspoons turmeric, 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, and the chickpeas, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, so the chickpeas sizzle and fry a bit in the spices and oil, until they’ve started to break down and get a little browned and crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove about a cup of chickpeas and set aside for garnish.
3. Using a wooden spoon or spatula, further crush the remaining chickpeas slightly to release their starchy insides. (This will help thicken the stew.) Add coconut milk and stock, and season with salt and pepper.
4. Bring to a simmer, scraping up any bits that have formed on the bottom of the pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until stew has thickened, 30 to 35 minutes. (Taste a chickpea or two, not just the liquid, to ensure they have simmered long enough to be as delicious as possible.) If after 30 to 35 minutes, you want the stew a bit thicker, keep simmering until you've reached your desired consistency. Determining perfect stew thickness is a personal journey!
5. Add greens and stir, making sure they’re submerged in the liquid. Cook until they wilt and soften, 3 to 7 minutes, depending on what you’re using. (Swiss chard and spinach will wilt and soften much faster than kale or collard greens.) Season again with salt and pepper.
6. Divide among bowls and top with mint, reserved chickpeas, a sprinkle of red pepper flakes, and a good drizzle of olive oil. Serve alongside yogurt and toasted pita if using; dust the yogurt with turmeric if you'd like.

Curried Red Lentil Soup With Toasted Coconut

YIELD:  4 servings

TIME:  40 minutes

Con Poulos for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Fresh ginger along with plenty of earthy spices like turmeric and coriander add complexity to this otherwise unassuming lentil soup. The dish is perfect for a weeknight as the legumes here cook fairly quickly. Pairing the lentils with bold, warming spices gives them a big boost of flavor in a short amount of time. To make the soup feel extra special, toast coconut flakes for a crunchy topping, and put out bowls of roughly chopped cilantro, thinly sliced scallions and lime wedges, so guests can top their soup as they please. If you’re feeling ambitious, a topping of fried shallots seasoned with flaky salt would also be nice.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more as needed
• 1 medium red onion, finely chopped
• 1 medium carrot, finely chopped
•  Kosher salt and black pepper
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 cup red lentils
• 5 cups vegetable stock or water
• ¼ cup unsweetened coconut flakes
•  Cilantro, scallions and lime wedges, for serving (optional)

PREPARATION

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and the carrot, and cook until they begin to soften, about 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the garlic and ginger, and cook 1 minute more, adding a small drizzle of olive oil and lowering the heat if necessary to make sure they don’t burn. Stir in the curry powder, turmeric and ground coriander and cook for about 30 seconds more until fragrant.

Add the lentils and vegetable stock, and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the flavors have melded and the lentils are soft and cooked through, about 30 minutes. If you prefer your soup looser, add in 1/2 to 1 cup more water and cook 1 to 2 minutes longer until heated through.

While the soup simmers, heat a medium skillet over low heat. Toast the coconut flakes, stirring frequently, until they are lightly golden and fragrant, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Taste the soup and adjust seasonings. Serve in bowls and pass the coconut flakes at the table. If desired, serve with bowls of cilantro, scallions and lime wedges at the table.

White Borscht

This white borscht, a nod to the tradition of sour soups in Ukrainian cooking, is simply a perfect meal: rich and satisfying, yet bright and delicate and clean all at once. It's given its distinct tang up front, by soaking a hunk of sourdough bread in the simmering broth, and also at the end, by whisking in a little crème fraiche before serving. At the center is the delicious, subtle, complex broth. 

The better the kielbasa, the better the broth, obviously, and it's worth using the whole garland for that complex smoky seasoning it imparts. There will be extra for snacking. Chopped dill keeps it all bright and fresh and lively in the mouth. A year-round classic to have in your repertoire, it's especially beloved in colder months. When weather forecasters announce a dismal spell of sleeting days in a row, you'll think, oh, good! White Bosch weather!

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 pounds full horseshoe link of high quality smoked kielbasa
• 5 fresh bay leaves
• 3 lbs. leeks (six long, lively leaks)
• 3 lbs. russet potatoes
• 1 cup unsalted butter two sticks
• 1 large yellow onion, small diced, about two cups
• 6 garlic cloves minced
• Kosher salt, such as Diamond Crystal
• 1 (4 ounce) hunk of dense, very sour sourdough bread, crusts removed
• One full tablespoon finely ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup crème fraiche
• 1 bunch fresh dill, woody stems removed, fronds minced

Instructions

Step 1:   Cut kielbasa into four equal lengths, and cover in a pot with three quarts cold water and the bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then let gently boil for 25 minutes more until swollen and cooked through and beads of oil have formed. Pull sausages from the now smoky and seasoned water, and set aside. Save that water!

Step 2:   While the kielbasa simmers, split leeks in half lengthwise, then soak and rinse in cold water to thoroughly remove all sand. Slice leaks into 3/8 in. half moons from whites to dark greens, as far up as viable.

Step 3:   Peel potatoes, trim all four sides to stabilize on the cutting board and trim both ends to "box" the potato. Save the scraps. Cut the boxes into large cubes, about 3/4-in square.

Step 4:   In a sturdy soup pot, melt one stick butter over low heat until foaming. Stir in onion, garlic and a healthy pinch of salt, and let them sweat for a full five minutes until translucent.

Step 5:   Stir in remaining butter, the sliced leeks and another generous pinch of salt, then let sweat slowly over low heat for 8 minutes until moist, bright green and glossy.

Step 6:   Add potato scraps, the cube of bread and half the kielbasa boiling liquid. Let gently simmer 10 minutes while the potato scrap softens and the bread hunk becomes flabby and swollen. If you need to increase the heat to get a little simmer going, do so.

Step 7:   Meanwhile, slice kielbasa in half lengthwise. Place two pieces back into the soup pot as is, and then slice the remaining six pieces into very thin 1/8 inch half moons, and set aside.

Step 8:   Retrieve the soggy lump of sourdough bread with a slotted spoon, and don't worry if you also get a few bits of leek or onion or whatever is floating in the soup when you pull it out.  Also remove about 1 cup of liquid, and set aside.

Step 9:   Add potato cubes and the rest of the kielbasa liquid to the pot.  Add another pinch of salt and half the black pepper.  Let it come back to temperature, and then to simmer until potatoes are cooked through, about 25 minutes more.

Step 10:   Using either a stick blender or a traditional blender, puree the sodden hunk of bread until foamy, using some of the liquid you pulled in step 8 if needed. Stir this back into the soup pot once the potatoes are cooked through, and add the sliced kielbasa as well.

Step 11:  Whisk the crème fraiche with one half cup of the hot reserved liquid. Stir mixture into the soup. Stir in the chopped dill and the remaining 1/2 tablespoon pepper. Serve very hot.