The Dalma-niac Soup !! ( Traditional Dalma gets a mad makeover )

There are certain days when the 'makeover' madness takes hold of me and just refuses to let go. I try giving a makeover to everything, either living or non-living, that comes within a few feet radius of me. Not everything that is affected by my Midas touch turns out to be gold and I often end up deleting/discarding/reverting my genius stroke. And in the unfortunate event of there being a certain kind of permanency to my spur-of-the-moment actions, I learn to live with the taunts that come my ways for a not so inconsiderable period.

However, this is one of my more successful experiments which helped me banish ( or to be more honest, just reduce ) rice from my diet to a certain extent. For the uninitiated, Dalma is lentils cooked with a medley of veggies, and tempered with red chilis, ghee, cumin and coconut. I have turned this into a full bodied soup that is guaranteed to banish all hunger pangs.

Read on for the recipe -

Preparation Time - 20 mins

Ingredients -

• 1/2 cup split yellow moong dal
• 1 tsp arwa/jeera/gobindoghog/basmati rice
• 2 cups mixed veggies ( raw papaya, pumpkin, potato, carrot, tomato/green mango )
• 1/2 tsp roasted cumin-chili powder
• 2-3 tsp coconut milk / freshly grated coconut for the garnish
• 1/2 tsp ghee
• salt to taste
• 1/5 tsp turmeric
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 inch cinnamon
• 2 dry red chili

Preparation - Dry roast lentil and rice till they turn fragrant.

Cooking - Heat the ghee in a pressure cooker. Add the broken red chili and spices.

Wash the rice and lentils . Transfer to the same pressure cooker with 2 1/2 cup water. Add the washed veggies, salt and turmeric. Close lid and cook for 2-3 whistles.

Keep aside till steam escapes. Open lid and puree the contents with the help of a hand blender.

Put it back on the flame and add the coconut milk. Let it simmer for 3 mins.

Remove from flame and pour into soup bowls. Garnish with the roasted cumin-chili  powder.

Serve immediately.

Note - Dalma, ghee and arwa chawal is like one sacrosanct trinity and hence I have included all the there elements in the soup. However the other two, i.e., the coconut (sweetness) and cumin-chili powder (pungency) can be omitted (though not recommended) or adjusted as per one's preference.

Almond Broccoli Soup

Almond and broccoli Soup. Just the mere mention of this name evokes a deliciously warm sensation in my mind. Sepia tinted memories of winters spent huddling under warm blankets, sitting around a wood fired oven and enjoying long chats over endless cups of steaming tea turn my otherwise practical self into this all mushy emotional idiot.

However the nostalgic feeling that grips me is a mere eyewash as I discovered this soup quite recently during a Bangalore foodie meet @ The Bungalow, Whitefield. But such is the power of food that it is capable of evoking long buried memories in one's subconscious. That is the precise reason why Ayurveda lays so much of stress upon our eating habits. 'Sattvik', 'Rajas' and 'Tamas' are not merely categories of food but also the personality traits the arise when we embrace one of the former categories of food.

Coming back to this soup, I cannot stop gushing over the nutritional value of the ingredients that go into it. Broccoli and garlic have cancer fighting properties while almond and butter contain LDL and monosaturated fats. The great taste and ease of preparation is an added bonus. Read on for recipe -

Preparation Time - 20 mins

Ingredients -

• 1 1/2 cup broccoli florets
• 5 almonds
• 5 garlic cloves
• 1/2 of a small onion
• 8-10 peppercorns
• 1 tsp butter
• salt to taste
• 1 cup milk

Preparation - Blanch the almonds. Remove the peel.

Wash the broccoli florets thoroughly.

Cooking - Heat the butter in a pan. Add crushed garlic and pepper corn. Saute till garlic turns light brown.

Add the chopped onion and fry till translucent.

Add the broccoli florets and stir fry for 1-2 min. Add 1 cup water, almonds and a little bit of salt. Cover the pan. Cook till they turn soft.

Tip the contents of the pan into a blending jar. Blend into a smooth puree.

Transfer it back to the pan. Add the milk, about 1 cup water (as per desired consistency) and adjust salt.

Bring it to a boil on a slow flame while stirring constantly. Let simmer for 1-2 mins.

Serve hot . ( Add a little garlic butter on top for more taste  )

In the mood for another yummy Broccoli soup, try THIS.

Broccoli Carrot and Baby Corn Soup

Today's recipe is a simple vegetable soup loaded with fiber and nutrients. As is typical of Oriyarasoi recipes, it is easy to prepare and tasty to eat !! This clear soup is sparingly flavored with some light soy sauce and chilli sauce. As I have mentioned before, soups are integral to any weight loss diet and act as great fillers in between meals.

Read on for the recipe -

Preparation Time - 20-25 mins

Ingredients -

• 1 cup Broccoli florets
• 1 carrot (sliced into 2-3 mm pieces)
• 1 cup sweet corn ( chopped into medium sized pieces )
• 3 cups vegetable stock
• 3-4 garlic flakes (finely chopped)
• 1 tsp light soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp Chilli sauce ( or as desired) 
• 1 tsp olive oil
• salt to taste

Preparation - Wash the vegetables thoroughly. Drain off the excess water.

Cooking - Heat the oil in a large pan. Throw in the garlic and fry till brown.

Add all the vegetables and stir fry on medium flame for 3-4 mins.

Pour in the vegetable stock and season with salt. Bring to a quick boil and let it simmer for 15-18 mins.

Remove from the flame and pour into the soup bowls.

Season with soy sauce and chilli sauce as per taste. Serve immediately.

Cabbage Soup

An easy to soup with Italian flavoring, I tried it out recently with great results. There was this unused cabbage lying in the fridge for a week and nobody wanted to eat any cabbage curry. I had used a bit of it in a veg noodles recipe that I had made for my kid. With Maggie going off the shelf, I buy these big chowmein packets and cook it with lots of veggies. It is not only much more healthier but also works out to be cheaper. Coming back to the soup, I was confused about the kind of flavoring that I should use. With opinions divided between an Indian version and a Russian one, I somehow ended up with the classic Italian seasoning of EVOO, garlic and chili flakes.

Read on for the recipe -

Preparation Time - 15 mins

Ingredients -

• 2 cups chopped cabbage (tightly packed)
• 3 tbsp chopped onions
• 2 cloves
• 1/2 inch cinnamon (optional)
• 10-12 peppercorns
• 2-3 garlic flakes
• 1/2 tsp chili flakes
• 1 1/2 tsp EVOO
• 1 tsp Pomace olive oil
• salt to taste
• freshly ground pepper

Cooking - Heat the olive oil in a pressure cooker. Add the peppercorns, cinnamon, cloves and onions. Fry for a minute before adding the cabbage.  Fry for 2-3 mins.

Add 3 cups water and salt to taste. Close lid and cook for 3-4 whistles. Keep aside till steam escapes.

Open lid and use a hand blender to puree the contents of the pressure cooker.

Take the EVOO in a pan. Add the crushed garlic and fry till it is golden. Add the chili flakes and fry for 20 seconds before pouring it over the cabbage soup.

Pour out into bowls, garnish with fresh pepper and serve immediately.