Meatless Monday: Lentil Kale Soup

Summer is a time for salads and lighter fare, but when the weather turns abruptly cool, as it has today, a hearty soup can be a pleasant change.

In honor of 2014 Kale Day, I shared an original recipe for Sausage Kale Soup. In recognition of Meatless Monday, and as another small step in the vegan direction, today I offer you Lentil Kale Soup. Just a few small switches transform the former recipe into the latter. Lentil Kale Soup is deeply satisfying, economical, rich in vitamins, and delicious, too! And, if the hot weather suddenly comes back, pop the leftovers into the freezer. This recipe makes at least 8 hearty servings, and it freezes really well.

LENTIL KALE SOUP

Ingredients

• Olive oil (enough to cover the bottom of your pot)
• 1 medium sweet onion
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 qt vegetable broth (or 1 vegetable bouillon cube + water)
• 2 large sweet potatoes
• 3 large carrots
• 2 stalks celery
• I cup red lentils
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 28 oz can Muir Glen Fire Roasted crushed tomatoes
• 1 large head curly kale
• 1/8 teaspoon powdered cayenne pepper

Method

• Peel and chop the onion.
• Peel and mince the garlic.
• In a heavy soup pot, sauté onions and garlic in olive oil until onions are soft, being careful not to burn the garlic.
• Add the broth.
• Peel the sweet potatoes and carrots. 
• Cut the sweet potatoes into 1 inch cubes.
• Quarter the carrots and cut into 1 inch pieces.
• Dice the celery.
• Rinse the lentils.
• Add vegetables and lentils to the broth along with the thyme.
• When the sweet potatoes are fork tender, add the tomatoes.
• Add the cayenne pepper.
• Wash well and roughly chop the kale
• Add kale to the soup when the tomatoes are hot.
• The soup is done when the kale is tender.
• Serve hot.

This soup is delicious as is. Optional pairings include shredded cheddar cheese or plain Greek yogurt for a topping, or a hearty whole grain bread as a side.    

For the past few Meatless Monday posts I have been floating the idea of working towards making Meatless Monday a dairy and egg -free day. For those who missed the original post, the idea stemmed from a desire to become a more ethical eater.

I proposed starting with small steps. Here are links to other recipes in the series: Vegan Lemon Loaf Cake, Avocado Mayonnaise, a one-pot vegan pasta dish, and Avocado Chocolate Mousse. I hope you enjoy the latest addition to this series.

Happy Meatless Monday!  Have a great week.

On Mondays I often blog on food, food issues, or gardening in support of Meatless Monday, one of several programs developed in the Healthy Monday project, founded in 2003 in association with Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Communications. Meatless Monday’s goal is “to help reduce meat consumption 15% in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet.”

Meatless Monday: One Pot Vegan Pasta

For the past few Meatless Monday posts I have been floating the idea of working towards making Meatless Monday a dairy and egg -free day. For those who missed the original post, the idea stemmed from a desire to become a more ethical eater.

I proposed starting with small steps. The first week I baked a vegan cake. The next week I made Avocado Mayonnaise. 

This week it’s a one, pot vegan meal — “Pasta alla Puttanesca with Chickpeas and Artichoke Hearts” from Shannon at Yup, it’s Vegan. The recipe is my niece’s response to my daughter-in-law’s call for quick and easy recipes to make at home.

It sounded too good to be true, so I tried it. 

This delicious dish is quick, easy, and made up entirely from items that can be easily stored in your kitchen cupboard. The prep time is 10 minutes, cook time 25 minutes. Here is the link to Shannon’s original recipe. 

In the pot, ready to cook

I have a few notes/suggestions. [Are you surprised?]

• I used Muir Glen fire roasted tomatoes for extra flavor.
• Vegetable bouillon cubes dissolved in water can be substituted for stock.
• Be sure to stir the pasta up from the bottom of the pan, right from the start.
• You may want to substitute a heavy pot for the skillet, unless your skillet is REALLY large.

This recipe offers the added benefit of conserving water, a particular concern for those living in drought-stricken California where Governor Jerry Brown imposed water restrictions last week. 

For years cooks have debated whether or not the amount of water traditionally used to cook pasta is really necessary. The pasta cooking water ends up being poured down the drain [You can’t turn pasta water into soup stock.] and the larger the pot of water, the more energy is required to bring it to (and keep it at) a boil.

The liquids added to this dish stay in the dish. AND, with just one pot there are fewer dishes to wash.

There is one more bonus as well. If you are serving this to just two adults (even with hearty appetites) you are likely to have leftovers. They are excellent when reheated in the microwave, just the sort of meal new parents need! 

Come back next week for a good for a 60 second vegan dessert certain to please almost everyone.

Happy Meatless Monday!  Have a great week.

On Mondays I often blog on food, food issues, or gardening in support of Meatless Monday, one of several programs developed in the Healthy Monday project, founded in 2003 in association with Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Communications. Meatless Monday’s goal is “to help reduce meat consumption 15% in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet.”

Meatless Monday: DIY Mayo without the Eggs

Last week I floated the idea of working towards making Meatless Monday a dairy and egg -free day. For those who missed the post, the idea stemmed from a desire to become a more ethical eater.

I proposed starting with small steps, like the ones I am taking. Last week I baked a vegan cake. This week, for my 500th blog post, I went on a quest to find more uses for the heart-healthy avocado, now in-season in California and quite reasonably priced in East Coast supermarkets. [Yes, it travels quite a distance to get from the West to the East, but then so does much of the produce this time of year.] 

After a bit of googling, I ended up at Brit + Co, an online media and e-commerce platform where I found the article “Ditch the Mayo, These 12 Recipes Use Avocado Instead.” Included in the dozen recipes was one for a simple mayonnaise, via the blog Choosing Raw. 

A recipe doesn’t get much easier than this:

Simple Raw, Vegan Avocado Mayonnaise

Ingredients

• 1 medium Hass avocado, cut in half, pit removed, and flesh scooped out
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1/8 teaspoon sea salt 
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Instructions

• Add the avocado, lemon, mustard, and salt to a food processor or high speed blender and process until well blended. Stop a few times to scrape the bowl down.
• With the motor running, drizzle in your olive oil. Continue blending till the mixture is creamy.

Remember me for next year's St. Patrick's Day!

You won’t miss the eggs one bit! With its creamy texture and delicious taste, this would pass for premium mayo were it not for its bright green color.

The recipe calls for a Hass Avocado, currently the most popular variety of avocado, but this was not always the case. You can read more about the Hass Avocado here. 

Come back next week when I explain how to make a delicious, one pot vegan meal!

Happy Meatless Monday!  Have a great week.

On Mondays I often blog on food, food issues, or gardening in support of Meatless Monday, one of several programs developed in the Healthy Monday project, founded in 2003 in association with Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Communications. Meatless Monday’s goal is “to help reduce meat consumption 15% in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet.”