Roasted Chestnut and Red Lentil Soup

Hey Lovelies!

I decided to try roasting chestnuts on Christmas Eve.  I saw people roasting chestnuts on big, cast iron grills, all over Rome and didn't get a chance to try them.  And they seemed like a totally idyllic thing to eat at Christmas (cue the Nat King Cole).  So I bought some chestnuts, painstakingly scored little crosses on them with my utility knife, tossed them with olive oil, salt, pepper and fresh rosemary, and waited with anticipation of festive bliss as they roasted in the oven.  

I had ten guests over on Christmas Eve and not one had tried a roasted chestnut before.  Once cooled, I proudly brought a massive platter of the toasty beauties into the dining room as a curious crowd gathered.  After wrestling with the peels a bit, we popped the crumbly innards into our mouths with excitement. . . "It tastes like a dry, baked potato."  "Yeah, a really dry potato, but a bit sweet."  A potato?  A dry potato?!  It was certainly not what any of us were expecting, least of all me.  No buttery crunch?  No toasty, warm nuttiness?  None.  Maybe they're better roasted over an open fire?

It goes without saying that I was left with a massive amount of skin-on, roasted chestnuts.  On Boxing Day (the day after Christmas here in Canada) my darling father took to the task of peeling said chestnuts and reserving their meat in a bowl.  "You can't just waste them!" he argued.  So I did what any chic, modern, resourceful gal would do, I Googled!  And that night, I adapted a recipe by Nigella Lawson (LOVE her!) and made a fabulously festive dinner out of my unconventional holiday leftovers.

Roasted Chestnut and Red Lentil Soup
Ingredients:

- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 large carrot, chopped
- 2 sticks of celery, chopped
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg
- 2 veggie bouillon cubes
- 6 cups water
- 1 cup red lentils
- 1 cup roasted chestnut meat (To roast chestnuts:  Buy 2 cups of chestnuts.  Deeply and carefully score an X on the flat side of each nut.  Toss with 2 tbsp olive oil, S&P and some fresh rosemary if you like.  Place the chestnuts in an even layer on a big piece of aluminum foil and then gather up the foil edges around the nuts, leaving a nice big opening at the top.  Place on a baking sheet and roast in a pre-heated 425 degree oven for 30 - 40 min or until the peels curl up a bit.  Let cool and then peel.)
- S&P
-Optional garnish: soy sour cream or cashew cream and chopped parsley

In your favorite soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the onion, garlic, carrot and celery.  Sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper.  Cook the veg mixture until slightly softened.  

Add the cinnamon, cumin, coriander, nutmeg and bouillon cubes and cook for one minute or until very fragrant.

Add the water, crank the heat to high and bring to a boil.  Add the lentils and reduce heat to medium low.

Add the chestnuts and simmer the soup until the lentils are very soft, about 20 - 30 min.  You will know they are done when you can smush them on the side of the pot with a spoon very easily.  

Puree the soup with an immersion blender (if you haven't got one, go buy one!  They are very inexpensive and make blending soups such a breeze!) and season with S&P.  

Ladle into soup bowls and garnish with a swirl of soy sour cream or cashew cream and a sprinkle of chopped parsley.      

This is very festive soup and warms you up from the inside out!

XOXO
V.V.  
 

Vegan Dill Pickle Soup

Hey Sweetums!

It's getting chilly willy in Winnipeg so I figured it is time for yet another Vivacious Vegan soup recipe!  Today, I would like to share a super yummy soup that ATM and I had a version of at a little restaurant just outside of Edmonton.  It was an Italian restaurant, so we were a little weird-ed out when our server informed us that the soup of the day was Dill Pickle.  ATM, a serious pickle lover, ordered it and fell in love.  I became determined to make a vegan version as soon as we got home and it will definitely be on regular rotation during the colder months in our home!  I know it probably sounds a little strange, but it is basically potato soup with pickle brine, pickle chunks and fresh dill.  It tastes just like dill pickle flavored potato chips!

Vegan Dill Pickle Soup
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 6 cloves garlic, chopped
- 6 cups (about 6 medium sized) Yukon Gold  potatoes, scrubbed and diced (you can use whatever potatoes you have, goldies are my fave <3 )
- 6 cups veggie stock (or water with 3 tbsp tamari soy sauce)
- 1/2 cup pickle brine (from the pickle jar!)
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 cup chopped dill pickles
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh dill (or 2 tbsp dried) plus a few extra sprigs for a garnish
- S&P

In your fave soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the onions and garlic and cook until fragrant (about two minutes).  

Add the potatoes and saute for ten minutes, stirring often.  Add the veggie stock or water and bring the whole shebang to a boil over high heat.  

Once the soup has reached it's boiling point, drop that heat to medium and simmer until you can easily smush a potato chunk on the side of the pot with a wooden spoon, about 15 minutes or so.

Remove the pot from the heat and puree everything to silky smoothness with an immersion blender.  Add the pickle brine, nutritional yeast, chopped pickles and dill and blitz with the immersion blender until everything is well combined, but there are still some chunks of pickle love left.  Return the pot to low heat and simmer for ten to twenty minutes to let the flavors become BFF's.  Taste, and season with S&P.  

Serve and snuggle!

XOXO,

V.V.

Curry Coconut Noodle Soup

Hey Gorgeous Ones!

  V.V. is a soup FREAK (or maybe I just love one pot cooking. . .lazy bones. . .) so today I would like to share a recipe for a soup that is perfect for Spring: colourful, bright and spicy in flavor, with a serious kick to put some spring in your step (sorry, I couldn't resist the seasonal pun)!

  I use a blend of yellow and green curry pastes (is that even allowed?) because while I love the fresh, lemongrass/lime leaf flavor of green curry, I find it much, much, MUCH too spicy to use on it's own in this recipe.  Yellow curry would be just fine on it's own if you want a nice mild soup and even red curry paste is cool too.  Use whatever ratio of curry pastes to suit your taste, but V.V. will strongly caution you about using exclusively green curry (unless your tongue and digestive tract are lined with asbestos. . .it's HOT. . .or maybe I'm just a wuss!).

Curry Coconut Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

-1 pkg rice noodles

-1 tbsp veg oil

-5 tbsp curry paste, your call on the ratio, I use 3 tbsp yellow curry paste and 2 tbsp green curry paste and while the soup definitely has a kick to it, it wont burn your face off.

-4 cups veggie stock (or 4 cups water and some veggie bouillon cubes - staples in the V.V. kitchen!)

-1 tbsp tamari soy sauce

-1 can coconut milk

-juice of half a lemon

-your choice of garnishes: chopped basil, cilantro, spring onion, diced tofu, julienned cucumber, carrot, mango or red bell pepper, steamed cauliflour florets - whatever your little heart desires!

Cook the rice noodles according to the package directions.  Drain and rinse the noodles in cold water, then toss them with a bit of veg oil so they don't get too sticky icky and set aside.

In your fave soup pot, heat the veg oil over medium heat.  Cook the curry paste for a minute or two, until your kitchen becomes filled with the frangrant, exotic, scent of curry deliciousness. 

Add the stock and soy sauce and bring to a boil on high heat.

Reduce the heat to a low simmer and whisk in the coconut milk.  Simmer for ten minutes so the flavors become BFF's.

Add the lemon juice, taste the broth and season with S&P.

Divide the noodles and garnishes amongst some soup bowls and ladle the gorgeous broth over them. 

Seriously, how easy was that?

XOXO

V.V.

Homemade Alphagetti

Dearests,

My four siblings and I (plus our respective significant others) recently had another one of our bi-monthly-ish themed potluck dinners.  Our chosen theme was 'comfort food' and so rather than make yet another failed attempt at vegan mac-and-cheeze (does anyone know of a recipe that isn't absolutely disgusting?!  Send it my way PLLEEAAASSEE!!) I decided to make a homemade version of a childhood favorite: ALPHAGETTI!  You know, the canned alphabet shaped noodles in tomato sauce!  I think it might be a Canadian thing. . .  Alphagetti itself is actually vegan, but as I get older, I get more and more creeped out by things in cans (I don't know why) and homemade is always better anyways.  I also figured it was a good way to get ATM to stop hounding me about making her something with the alphabet shaped pasta she had brought home.  The girl sure loves her adorably shaped noodles. . .

Do I need to state the obvious and mentions that kids LOVE this stuff?  And ATM too :)

Homemade Alphagetti

Ingredients:

-1 box alphabet shaped noodles (you can use whole-wheat or regular, and whatever baby soup pasta shape you like, little stars would be cuuuuute!)

-1 jar of tomato pasta sauce (Any brand as long as it's smooth and plain, NO CHUNKS, I used Ragu Traditional Old World Style Sauce)

-1 tsp organic sugar

-1 tsp basil (I use freeze dried basil and if you do too, up it to 1 tbsp)

-S&P

Cook the alphabet pasta according to the packing instructions (you know the drill, boil water, cook pasta until tender, drain).  In a large pot, mix together the tomato sauce plus 2 jars worth of water.  Add the basil and sugar and the cooked pasta.  Bring to a boil over medium heat and reduce to a low simmer.  Let it simmer and the noodles suck up the sauce for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently.  Season with S&P.  Sooo gooooooooood. . .



XOXO
V.V.

Tomato Basil Soup with Rainbow Rotini

Hey Babes,


Typical Winnipeg - two days ago it was humid and and sweltering hot and today the wind is howling and the temperature barely makes it into the mid teens.


It's time for V.V. to post     yet    another  soup recipe!


Tomato soup is the easiest thing to make. EVER.


When ATM was home a couple  weeks ago, she found herself a touch under the weather (too many 'welcome home' cocktails the night before, perhaps?) and requested a bowl of tomato soup.  This is what I whipped up - I think it's my new favorite hangover cure ;)

Tomato Basil Soup with Rainbow Rotini
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 6 - 8 cloves garlic, chopped
- pinch chili flakes
- 1 can whole tomatoes
- 2 tomato cans worth of water OR veggie stock
- S&P
- 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh basil
- 2 cups of cooked rainbow rotini
For garlic crostini garnish:
- sliced ciabatta bread
- olive oil
- 1 garlic clove sliced in half
 - S&P


Heat the olive oil in your favorite soup pot over medium heat.  Add the onions, garlic, chili flakes and a pinch of salt and saute until the onions are translucent, try not to brown 'em.

Add the can of tomatoes and two tomato cans full of water or veggie stock and bring the whole thing to a bubbling boil over medium high heat.

Once the soup reaches boiling point, reduce the heat to medium low and simmer it for ten minutes.  Puree the soup with an immersion blender (this method is waaaaay easier than doing it in a blender, go pick up an immersion blender at Superstore for just over ten bucks, it's wooorrrth it) and stir in the basil and rotini.  Season with S&P and simmer for an extra five to fifteen minutes to let all the flavours become bff's.

For the garlic crostini: Heat up your broiler and place the ciabatta slices on a baking sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with a bit of S&P.  Toast the ciabatta slices under the broiler until they are golden brown and then rub them down with the cut side of the garlic clove.  Serve the crostini afloat your bowl of deelish tomato basil soup :)

How easy was that?

XOXXOXOXOXOXO

V.V.

Smoky Corn Soup with Tempeh 'Bacon'

Hello my dearest darlings!

I had to take a short hiatus from my blogging and I sure have missed it!  I hope you haven't forgot about me :( 

Spring has sprung!  After what seems like an endless season of wintery days and cold, dark nights, the sun now shines brightly and the whole city is bursting with greenery.  Winnipeggers especially appreciate this changing of the seasons (we are known to wear shorts and t-shirts as soon as the temp reaches above 0 degrees C) and our menu's reflect the weather:  It's BBQ season, baby! 

Bee and I discovered a working BBQ on the common patio of our apartment a couple weeks ago and made some DELISH grilled corn on the cob with chili oil.  A week later, Bee met the man who actually owns the BBQ and upon asking for occasional use of the Q in exchange for some cash, she was promptly (and rudely) rejected.  Bee figures she can get away with grilling things after midnight ;)
Stay tuned for midnight vegan BBQ recipes (and don't tell Mr. Cranky upstairs!).

Speaking of corn:  Here is a recipe for a yummy yum yum soup that you can make with either frozen or fresh corn right off the cob.  To remove fresh corn from the cob, peel off the green husks and corn silk and discard them.  Then stand the flatter end of the corn up in a large bowl and hold onto the tapered end.  Using a sharp knife, slice the kernels off the cob, starting at the top, in a downward sawing motion.  Try to keep the knife as close to the cob as possible.  And for heavens sake, DON'T SLICE YOUR FINGERS OFF!  . . .Otherwise just go buy a bag of frozen corn niblets :)

Tempeh is made from fermented soybeans, pressed into a block.  It is readily available at health food stores and I have seen it at many grocery stores (including the natural foods aisle at Superstore).  Tempeh bacon is a marinated, sliced tempeh product that makes for a tasty addition to breakfast or vegan BLT's.  I bought a pack at VitaHealth and plan to buy more :)

Smoky Corn Soup with Tempeh 'Bacon'
Ingredients:
-2 tbsp veg oil
-1 large yellow onion, diced
-5 cloves garlic, chopped
-1 tsp chili flakes (or more if ya like it spicey)
-1 tsp cumin
-1/4 tsp chipotle chili powder (optional)
-3 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels
-6 cups veggie stock or water
-S&P
-6 to 8 strips of tempeh bacon, chopped into bits
Garnish:
-1 avocado, diced
-1/2 red bell pepper, finely diced

Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in your favorite soup pot over medium high heat.  Add the onions, garlic, chili flakes, cumin, a sprinkle of salt and chipotle powder (if using) and saute until the onions are translucent. 

Add the corn and cook for a further two or three minutes then add the stock or water and crank the heat to high.  Bring the soup to a rolling boil and then reduce to a simmer over medium low heat. 

Simmer for fifteen minutes and then puree using an immersion blender OR using a slotted spoon, remove the veggies from the broth and transfer them to a blender with just a BIT of the liquid (CAUTION: hot things expand once you turn on the blender and coup explode and burrrrrn ya, so don't overfill!  Puree in bathces if you have to!) and puree the veggies to a smooth consistency, returning the puree to the broth in the soup pot.  Season with S&P to your taste.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a skillet over medium high and cook the tempeh until it is golden brown and crisp.  Stir it into the soup, reserving some for a garnish.

Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with extra tempeh bacon, diced avocado and finely diced bell pepper.  Serve to hungry friends ;)

XOXOXOXOXOOXOXOXXOXOXOOXOXO,
V.V.

African Peanut Soup with Quinoa

Holy cow do I really have 21 followers?!

That's super awesome guys, and some of you aren't even my close friends and family, so I know this wee speck in the vast infinity of the blogosphere is gettin' out there in some little way :)

(not to say I don't LOVE that my friends and family follow V.V.! <3)

I figured out that you can actually check your blog 'stats' on blogger and it seems that my spicy peanut noodle soup blog gets hit up hella often.  For those who can't get enough of peanut soup deliciousness, here is my recipe for an African inspired version, full of yummy and HEALTHY quinoa, that I hope you love!

That's our couch monkey in the picture with the soup.  Bee found him abandoned in our storage closet and he now lives on the arm of her big, pink sofa.

African Peanut Soup with Quinoa

Ingredients:

-2 tbsp veg oil

-1 large red onion, peeled and diced

-2 large carrots, peeled and diced

-1 large yam, peeled and diced

-6 to 8 cloves garlic, peeled and...roughly chopped ;)

-2 tsp (or more) chili flakes

-6 cups veggie stock or water

-1/4 cup soy sauce

-1 cup quinoa

-1 can coconut milk

-1/2 cup natural chunky peanut butter

-1/2 cup chopped cilantro, plus more for garnish (or flat-leaf parsley if you hate cilantro)

-S&P

-chopped peanuts and sriracha sauce for garnish

Heat the veg oil in your favorite soup pot over medium heat.  Saute the onion, carrot, yam and garlic and chili flakes for five minutes uncovered then place the lid on the pot and cook for a further 10 - 15 min or until the veggies are tender.  

Add the veggie stock or water and soy sauce and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer the soup for about 15 minutes or until the sweet potatoes and carrots are easily smushed by a fork.  

Using an immersion blender (hand blender) puree the soup until very smooth.  If you do not have an immersion blender, transfer SMALL amounts of the soup to a blender at a time and puree.  BE CAREFUL!  Hot soup will expand once you turn that blender on and if it's too full, it could explode and give you a mighty burn.

Once the soup is pureed, add the quinoa and bring the soup back to a boil over medium-high.  Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the quinoa is fully cooked (about 12 min).  Then stir in the coconut milk, peanut butter and cilantro.  Season the soup with S&P.

Garnish with a sprinkle of cilantro and chopped peanuts (and a swirl of sriracha for those who like it HAWT!)

Hope you enjoy this as much as my other peanut soup recipe :)

XOXO
V.V.

BREAD!

G'day Mates!

Today I am posting a recipe for a delicious loaf of homemade bread.  Making bread is very rewarding: from the kneeding to the rising to the punching to the baking - you will feel a HUGE sense of accomplishment when you lift that golden, steaming loaf from the oven.  Annnnnd making bread is sooooooo EASY!!!  It does take a little bit of time, but during that time you don't even have to be near the bread!  Give 'er a try, and then give yourself a big pat on the back for mastering an essential life skill!

Homemade Bread

Ingredients:
-1 1/4 cups warm water
-2 1/4 tsp yeast (aka one package)
-1 tsp salt
-1 tbsp sugar
-1 tbsp vegetable oil
-approx 3 cups all-purpose flour (you may need more, ya may need lessssss)

Makes one loaf, double everything for two!

Pour the warm water into a large bowl and stir in the salt and sugar until they are dissolved. Sprinkle over the yeast and wait about 5 min, the yeast will probably foam up a little.  Stir down the yeast mixture and the veg oil.
Add the first two cups flour and mix wellllllll (I like to get my hands right in it). Add a little more flour, a small handful at a time, until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl.On a clean, floured surface, turn out that dough and KNEEEED IT for about five - ten min, or until the dough is smooth and stretchy and elastic. You may have to keep adding more flour...
Oil the bottom and sides of your bowl with a little more veg oil and plunk your dough ball in the middle. Cover it with plastci wrap and a tea towel and let it rise for an hour somewhere warm and cozy.

After an hour, punch the dough down (fun!) and kneed again for a minute or two. Then drop it into an oiled up bread pan.  Let it rise again, uncovered, for another 30-45 minutes. Score the top of the loaf with a few knife slashes (this makes it look super authentic hee hee) and brush the top of the loaf with a little water (makes for a golden crust).

Bake yo bread for about 45 minutes or until it looks mighty golden in a pre-heated 375 degree oven.

Turn the loaf out of the pan and let coooooool...

YUM YUM!

If you want to make an herbed version, add a tsp of your fave herbs (basil, oregano, thyme, sage, whatevs) to the flour before you kneed and replace the veg oil with olive oil.

If you want cinnamon bread, increase the sugar to 2 tbsp and add 2 tsp cinnamon to the flour before kneeding. Ah hell - throw in 1/2 cup chopped raisins if ya want too!

The stew in the picture is a quick Tomato Kale Stew that I just whipped up by sauteeing 2 chopped garlic cloves, some chili flakes and two cups of chopped kale in some olive oil and adding a can of diced tomatoes with the liquid.  Maybe a splash of red wine, too.  Then just bring to a boil, simmer for a few min and season with S&P.  Very simple, very hearty and yummy soup!

Until we meet again,

XOXO
V.V.

The Quest for the Perfect Spicy Peanut Noodle Soup Part I

Hey hey HEY!


There is a Chinese restaurant here in my Osborne Village 'hood called the Spicy Noodle House.  My sister 'Boomer', who refers to the owners of the resto as Mr. and Mrs. Noodle, brings home a brown paper bag from said noodle house once every week or so that contains a huge vat of the most incredible spicy peanut noodle soup.  The Boom custom orders it by asking for the vegetable tofu noodle soup with the spicy peanut soup base.  I don't know if it's even vegan, but I DO know that it's incredibly good and I have been obsessed with perfecting the recipe at home.  This is the recipe I have come up with and it's delish!  It's great for utilizing pantry staples (peanut butter, udon noodles, chili flakes, veggie stock) and veggies you are likely to have around (carrots, onions, and whatever other veg you might throw into a stir fry).  Besides, there's nothin' like a little spice to keep ya warm on a chilly November day ;)


KITCHEN TIP ALERT!:  There is nothing like fresh ginger.  Save the ground stuff for baking and spice rubs.  Store fresh ginger root in your freezer.  It keeps for a looooooong time and it's super easy to grate when it's frozen!  Just peel it, put it into a little freezer bag and use it as you need it.  I also like to freeze slices of peeled ginger to make ginger tea (fresh ginger slices steeped in boiling water with honey) for any time I feel under the weather (great for tummy troubles, coughs, colds and flu!) 

Spicy Peanut Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

1 tbsp grapeseed oil

1 tsp sesame oil

1 large onion, diced

8 cloves garlic, sliced

3 tbsp fresh grated ginger
2 tsp chili flakes (or more if ya need it HOTTA)

2 carrots, cut in half lengthwise then sliced into half-moon shapes

2 cups sliced mushrooms, a mix of crimini and shitake

2 cups chopped bok choy or other Asian cabbage

8 cups veg stock or water

6 tbsp tamari soy sauce

1 cup natural peanut butter (I like chunky!)

2 pkgs udon noodles
1 pkg medium tofu, cubed
1 can sliced water chestnuts, drained and rinsed

S&P

In your favorite soup pot (every soup lover has one), heat the oils on medium heat.  Saute the onion, garlic, ginger, chili flakes and carrot until tender.  Add the mushrooms and bok choy and saute just until soft.  Add the stock or water and tamari.  Bring the soup to a boil and then drop the heat to a simmer.

Stir in the peanut butter until totally blended into the broth and then add the udon noodles, tofu and water chestnuts.  Simmer the soup for fifteen - twenty minutes and season with S&P.  All you crazy spice freaks can add some sriracha hawt sauce right about now. 

The quest for the perfect replica continues...

Spicy Kisses,

V.V.

Butternut Squash Soup with Mushroom Saute and Toasted Pepitas

Hey Babes,

Here's a classic fall soup brought to a whole other level with a saute of wild mushrooms and some toasted pepitas...mmmmmm...

Butternut Squash Soup with Mushroom Saute and Toasted Pepitas

Ingredients:

1 butternut squash, halved, seeds scooped out and baked cut-side down in a 375 degree oven until soft (about 30-40 min)

1 tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, diced

4-6 cloves garlic, chopped

4 cups water or veggie stock

1/8 tsp fresh ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp cinnamon

S&P

2 cups chopped mushrooms (your choice! use mixed wild mushrooms, shitake, portabello, crimini JUST NOT WHITE BUTTON MUSHROOMS, THEY ARE SO BORING, PEOPLE!)

1 tbsp vegan butter

2 tbsp shoyu

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/2 cup toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

Saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil in your favorite soup pot over medium heat until they are nice and translucent and soft.  Add the water or stock and flesh of the butternut squash (just scoop it from the skin).  Bring to a boil over medium high and then reduce heat to low, add nutmeg, cinnamon and season with S&P.  Leave the soup to simmer while you make the mushroom saute..

Heat the vegan butter in a skillet over medium high heat.  Add the mushrooms and saute until browned.  Add the shoyu and thyme and cook until liquid is absorbed. 

At this point, you are gonna wanna puree your soup with an immersion blender or a regular blender (in batches).  Then you can add shoyu (for more umami), non-dairy milk (for creaminess), crispy sage leaves (for herbiness), hot sauce (for HAWT) or just plain old S&P to your taste.  It's your soup, go crazy!

To serve, ladle the soup into soup bowls and then carefully float a couple tablespoons of the mushrooms in the middle.  Sprinkle over the toasted pepitas and maybe a couple drops of good olive oil.

YUM YUM KISSES,

V.V.

Spicy Pumpkin Miso Soup

Spicy Pumpkin Miso Soup

Ingredients:

2 tsp safflower oil
1/2 tsp chili flakes (more if you like it HAWT)
4 cloves garlic, chopped finely
2 cups water
2 tbsp shoyu (Japanese soy sauce, darlings)
1/2 cup pure pumpkin puree
2 tsp light miso (I always use aged barley miso)
2 sheets nori, crumbled
pinch fresh ground nutmeg

In a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat.  Add chili flakes and garlic and cook for one minute.  Add water and shoyu, cover and bring to a boil.  Once the broth has boiled, reduce the heat to low and add the pumpkin.  Simmer for ten minutes then add the miso (take care not to boil miso as it destroys the enzymes), crumbled nori and nutmeg.  Add shoyu to taste.  This is so delicious and so easy, perfect on a fall afternoon!