Lentil Soup

Recipe Source : Giada De Laurentis : Everyday Italian, Food Network
It has been raining cats and dogs here, just the weather for some soup. I had seen this soup on the show "Everyday Italian" (love the show) and had been wanting to try it for quite some time. I had to modify this recipe a little since I was out of a couple of ingredients, but the end result was delicious. Vegetables, Lentil and Pasta make this a wholesome and hearty soup.

1 medium onion, chopped
2 carrots peeled and chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 1/4 cup Lentils (I used 1 cup whole masoor dal)
11 cups low salt chicken broth (I used 9 cups water)
4-6 fresh Thyme sprigs (I used 1 tsp dried Thyme)
2/3 cup elbow pasta (I used a handful of spaghetti and broke it to small pieces)
1 (14 1/2 oz) can dice tomatoes (I used 2 fresh tomatoes, finely chopped)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 cup Parmesan Cheese (I used a 1/2 cup of 3 blend Mexican cheese)
Oil

Heat oil in a pot and add the onion, carrots and celery. Add the garlic, salt and pepper and cook till all the vegetables are tender. Add the tomatoes with their juices. Simmer till the tomatoes break down, stirring occasionally. Add the lentils and mix well. Add the broth and thyme. Bring to boil over high heat. Cover and simmer on low heat until the lentils are tender, about 20-30 minutes.

Stir in the Pasta. Simmer until the pasta has been cooked al dente. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Ladle the soup into the bowl. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and enjoy !!

Mushroom and Corn Soup

Yesterday was the perfect day for a steaming bowl of soup. One of my favorite soups is Mushroom soup. It is so hearty and so comforting. I found a recipe for Mushroom soup in a magazine and fiddled around a little to make it my own. Took a little long to make, but the end result was enormously satisfying.

2 lb assorted mushrooms (crimini, button, portabella, shiitake) sliced into thick pieces.
1 cup corn ( I used frozen corn)
1 cup onion, minced
2 garlic cloves, chopped fine
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp paprika
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 cup dry sherry
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup milk (The recipe asked for 1/2 cup heavy cream, but I used 2% milk)
1 tbsp chopped fresh dill
2 tbsp corn starch
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp unsalted butter
Salt to taste

Heat olive oil and butter in a large pot. Add onion and garlic, and cook 5 minutes till onion is soft and translucent. Add the mushrooms, increase heat and cook till all the moisture evaporates from the mushrooms. Lower heat to medium.
Add sherry, lemon juice, paprika and pepper. Cook till the sherry has almost evaporated. Add broth, frozen corn, bring to boil, reduce heat to medium low and cook for 15 minutes. Add milk and bring to boil.
Whisk corn starch and soy sauce together to dissolve and stir into the simmering soup to thicken. Add salt and the fresh dill. Mix well.
Serve in a bowl and enjoy. It is sure to keep the cold away. :)