waps January 17, 2011
Posted by kcat in soup, vegetarian.Tags: Peanut, Pumpkin, soup, Stock (food), West Africa, west african peanut soup, yam
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Image by Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library via Flickr
West African Peanut Soup aka Senegalese Soup aka FANTABULOUS!!!! I had been making regular batches of this soup because I love it and many people I know love it and it was in high demand but now my daughter seems to have a peanut allergy. So who knows when I will ever make this again?! I might as well share the recipe with y’all so as to spread the love that is West African Peanut Soup. Enjoy!
west african peanut soup
1 onion
1 stalk celery
3 carrots, peeled
1 yam peeled
1 cup pumpkin cooked or raw(optional)
1 L chicken or vegetable stock
1 L water
1.5 cup smooth peanut butter
2 cloves garlic
thumb sized piece of ginger, sliced
1/2 lemon squeezed
2T cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste
Roughly chop up the onion, celery, carrot, and yam and pumpkin if using. (I usually have some cooked pumpkin left over from baking in my fridge to use up. If you are using the cooked stuff, wait until after the stock is in the pot to add it. If you are using raw pumpkin or squash add it at the same time as the sweet potato.) Saute the veg with a bit of olive oil in your soup pot. Toss in the garlic cloves and the ginger. Add the water and the stock. Bring to a boil then turn down to a simmer for at least one hour or until the vegetables are totally soft. Puree with a wand blender. Add the peanut butter, lemon and paprika. Puree again. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Serve the soup garnished with sliced lime segments, a dallop of plain whipped cream and some crispy fried leeks if you are feeling very fancy. I generally eat it straight up, as quickly as possible.
As easy as this sounds to make West African Peanut Soup is one of my favorites. Please make it often! Spread the love! Maybe one day Maddy will grow out of her allergy and I can once again make this soup in my kitchen. Until then, enjoy!
uuuuuuhg. January 17, 2010
Posted by kcat in main course, vegetarian.Tags: curry, dahl, flatbread, red lentil, spicy
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I am not feeling well. I officially have my second cold of the season. No flu’s yet, thankfully. But this makes two nasty head colds. I feel foggy, a little bit out of it, and just a touch passy-out-y. And (strangely enough) HUNGRY!!! Super hungry. All I want to do is eat the SPICIEST food I can get my hands on and kick this cold into oblivion. In honor of that urge I am going to post a recipe for Curried Dhal with Spinach and my favorite grilled flatbread.
Curried Dhal with Spinach
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, minced
1 carrot, peeled and cut into small dice
1 stalk celery, also small dice
3 cloves garlic, minced
1″ piece of ginger, peeled and minced
2 Tbsp curry powder
1/2 tsp cumin
**opt: 1/2 tsp green curry paste to spice it up a little more.
1/2 cup red lentils, well rinsed
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
Salt and Pepper to taste
4 large handfuls fresh spinach, roughly chopped
Sambal Olek to serve alongside
In a large pot heat the olive oil over high heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery and sauté until the onion is almost cooked through. Add the spices and the ginger and garlic. Fry for several minutes, stirring often. Add the lentils and toss them with all the veggies and spices. Add the stock, cover and allow it to come to boil. Stir, turn the heat to medium and let cook about twenty minutes, stirring several times. Once all the liquid is absorbed, the veggies are cooked and the lentils are soft, remove the pot from the heat and throw in the spinach. Season with salt and pepper to taste and eat with some fresh naan or the try the following flatbread recipe.
pan-fried Flatbread
2 1/2 cups flour
30 mL vegetable oil
pinch salt
1.5 tsp baking powder
150 mL HOT water
Combine the flour, salt and baking powder. Add the oil to the hot water. Make a well in the centre of the flour and dump in the wet all at once. Use your fingers to start pulling the dry into the wet until a dough forms. Knead several times. Divide the dough into 10 pieces. Keep the pieces you aren’t working with covered with a damp towel or a piece of plastic wrap. On a floured surface roll each piece of dough out into a circular shape as thin as you can. Heat up a fry pan and add quite a bit of oil to the pan. There should be enough to cover the bottom of the pan with a thin layer. When it is very hot, add the first bread and fry until golden on each side (about 4 minutes each side). Put it on a sheet pan covered with paper towel while you fry the next. You may need to add more oil to the pan as you go, and adjust the temperature so as not to burn the bread. I usually end up with my heat around medium by the second or third bread. Let cool and eat! This dough is also very good on a grill or the barbeque in the summer. I have used it as a pizza crust to good effect as well. It is quick and versatile. Give it a try!
