Black Bean and Tomato Soup

At home, CK and I are trying to eat more organic foods and less meat these days. I eat out a lot when I'm travelling so when I'm home, I try to eat really healthy to balance the fat, grease and salt I put into my body when I'm away.

Ok, so I don't eat super healthy right when I get home. Because I'm so used to eating out when I'm on the road, I have to ween myself off of the excessive eating and drinking. I have what I call my 'weening period'. Doesn't matter what day of the week I come home, I get to eat what I want, as much as I want (like driving to a late night bakery after stuffing my face at a dinner party, and ordering every type of croissant available for dessert, and then eating it in the car because I can't wait for the 5 minute drive home - yep, I'm sexy and I know it!) for the rest of the week, AND THEN I start my healthy eating and regular exercise.

This delicious black bean soup is my recent healthy concoction packed with protein, nutrients...and gas! Just blame it on the dog if you're eating this with other people.

Most of the ingredients in my recipe were organic, but I didn't list it as such. It's your choice

This recipe yields 6-8 servings.

Black Bean and Tomato Soup
- 4 (19 fl. oz, 540mL) cans of black bean
- 1 ( 28 fl. oz, 794mL) can of diced tomatoes
- 3 carrots, diced
- 3 stalks of celery, diced
- 1 medium red onion, finely chopped
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 cups of vegetable or chicken stock
- 1 tsp of paprika
- 1 tsp of cumin
- 1 tsp of chili powder
- 1 generous cup of cilantro, roughly chopped

Method
1. In a pan, saute the onions and garlic until translucent (about 2-3 minutes). Turn the heat off and set aside.

2. In a food processor, process 2 cans of black beans, the diced tomatoes and some of the sauteed onions and garlic (about 1/4 cup) until smooth.

3. Add the celery and carrots to the remaining garlic and onions to the pan, and continue to saute until the carrots and celery is tender (about 5-8 minutes). Transfer the vegetables into a large pot, along with the processed bean mixture, stock, remaining black beans, paprika, cumin, chili powder, and cilantro and simmer for 15 minutes. Serve hot.

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Spinach Egg Drop Soup

Soup season is officially here! Whenever the weather starts to get cold outside, I default to soup. I have it almost every day until it starts to warm up again. There is something so comforting about a hot brothy soup, full of veggies and goodness, warming up the body when it's cold outside. Kinda like a big warm fuzzy sweater for the soul.

This spinach egg drop soup is an easy soup to whip up if you don't have a lot of time. It is very similar to the Italian stracciatella, but minus the cheese. CK is not a fan of soups, but he says yes to a bowl of this everytime! Now that says a lot.

Spinach Egg Drop Soup
- 300g of baby spinach
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 4 cups of vegetable broth
- 2 cups of water
- 3 eggs
- 1 can (19 fl. oz, 540 mL) of white kidney beans
- extra virgin olive oil
- salt + pepper

Method
1. In a pan, saute the garlic until slightly translucent. Add the spinach and some salt, and continue to saute until the spinach has wilted.

2. In a large pot, combine the broth and water and bring to a boil. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and set aside. When the broth comes to a boil, turn the heat down slightly and add the spinach.

3. While the soup is still hot and slightly boiling, pour the egg very slowly into the middle of the pot. With a fork immersed in the soup, beat the egg as you are pouring it into the soup. This will break up the egg while it is cooking and create a cloud like look. Add the beans. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot.

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Persian Spinach and Noodle Soup (Ash-e Reshteh)

This spinach noodle soup is my secret weapon to staying healthy. When I'm not eating out, I make sure I eat damn well, and this soup is one of my default dishes. This soup is likely the first thing I make when I return from my travels. I make a huge honkin pot that will last me days, and this is how I 'detox' from my travels.

To some, this soup will look extremely unappetizing, but if you keep an open mind, you'll learn that it is delicious. What's best is that you get everything your body craves: protein, vegetables, fiber, carbohydrates...

I recently received an email from a reader asking for the recipe for this soup (after seeing this old post), so here it is. Good luck and I hope you enjoy this as much as I do.
This recipe yields 8-10 servings.

Persian Spinach and Noodle Soup (Ash-e Reshteh)
- 11 oz, 312g package of fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped
- 6 scallions, roughly chopped
- 2 cups of coriander, roughly chopped and loosely packed
- 2 Tbsp dried mint
- 10 cups of water, or broth of choice
- 1/3 cup of dried chickpeas
- 1/3 cup of dried red kidney beans
- 1/3 cup of dried navy beans
- 3/4 cup of dried green lentils
- 3 small onions, finely chopped
- 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
- 2 cups of dried Persian noodles (reshteh)
- 1 tsp of turmeric powder
- salt and pepper
- extra virgin olive oil

Method
1. Steam the chickpeas, kidney beans, and navy beans. To do this, boil 2 cups of salted water in a small pot. Turn off the heat, pour in the beans, and leave the lid on for at least 40 minutes. Drain excess water.

2. In a large pot, sautee the onions and garlic with extra virgin olive oil, turmeric, and a dash of salt. Add 10 cups of water (or broth), and bring to a boil. Add spinach, coriander, scallions, and mint. Simmer for 45 minutes

3. Add the steamed beans. Continue to simmer for 20 minutes. Add the dried lentils. Continue to simmer for 15 minutes. Add the noodles and simmer for an additional 15 minutes. Turn off the heat. Serve hot. If you feel your soup is not thick enough, sift some all purpose flour into the soup.

Once you get comfortable with making this soup, you can go ahead and use any combination of greens and beans you want. For the greens, keep in mind that the majority should be spinach.

If you don't want to spend the time to prepare the dried beans, you can always used canned beans which takes a lot less time. If that is the case, add the beans near the end of the recipe so that they don't overcook.

Persians like to add a hint of sourness to this soup. An option is to stir in a bit of plain yogurt or whey right before serving.

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Chinese Corn Soup

Soup season has officially started. With the cold weather, all I want to do is make soup. Warm, thick, hearty, make your heart feel good soups.

I try to make a different soup each week so that I don't get sick of my own cooking. This week, I made a Chinese corn soup. I used to have this as a kid when I used to visit my aunt. Years later, I finally got the recipe.

This soup is ridiculously easy to make. I love how it is both sweet and salty, and I also really like the crunchy bits of corn you get in every spoonful. This recipe uses shrimp, but you can easily substitute it for chicken or pork.

This soup is usually eaten as an appetizer, so the the serving size is smaller than normal.

This recipe yields 8-10 servings (depending on serving size)

Chinese Corn Soup
- 250g shrimp, de-veined and shells removed
- 2 cans (14 fl. oz, 398mL each) cream style corn
- 1 can (12 fl. oz, 341mL) whole corn kernels
- 3 cups of liquid chicken broth
- 3 tsp cornstarch
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp powdered chicken broth
- 1/8 tsp sesame oil
- 1/8 tsp white pepper
- 2 egg whites, lightly beaten
- salt and pepper to taste

Method
1. Cut the shrimp in 1/2 inch pieces. In a bowl, mix the shrimp, 2 tsp of cornstarch, powdered chicken broth, white pepper, sesame oil, and sugar until the shrimp pieces are evenly coated. Set aside to marinate. In a separate bowl, mix 1 tsp of corn starch with 1 tablespoon of cold water and stir until corn starch has dissolved.

2. In a pot over medium heat, combine the liquid chicken broth, cream style corn, and whole corn kernels until it just starts to boil. Stir occasionally. Add the shrimp and corn starch water, and stir frequently in one direction for 5 minutes or until the shrimp is cooked. Stirring frequently in one direction will prevent the corn starch from clumping. Turn off the heat.

3. Pour the egg white very slowly into the middle of the pot. With a fork immersed in the soup, beat the egg white as you are pouring it into the soup. This will break up the egg white and create a cloud like look. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot.

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Sweet Potato and Leek Soup

Winter is approaching fast. You can just feel it in the air. The cold weather always prompts me to make hearty soups that not only warm up the body, but the soul as well.

The grocery store had leeks and sweet potatoes on special this week, and they were just sitting side by side like they were meant to be together. This, I thought, would be the perfect opportunity to use that sweet potato and leek soup recipe that's been stowed away. I got the recipe from a friend, and never got around to making it...until now, that is.

When I brought the groceries into my car, the aroma of the leeks filled the vehicle up quickly, which made me even more excited to make my soup. This is a very flavourful soup that tastes just like what it is made up of: sweet potato and leek. Serve this with a warm baguette, and you're set.

This recipe serves 6 - 8.

Sweet Potato and Leek Soup

- 8 cups of chicken or vegetable broth

- 2 1/2 pounds of sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped

- 3 leeks, cleaned and thinly sliced (white and light green parts only)

- 3 Tbsp fresh chives, chopped

- salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Combine the sweet potatoes, leeks, chives, salt, pepper, and broth in a pot and bring to a boil

2. Reduce the heat and simmer until the vegetables are soft (approx 30 - 45 minutes)

3. Remove from heat and let the soup cool

4. Transfer the soup mixture to a blender and purée

5. Re-heat the soup on a low setting and serve

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