Cream of Broccoli Soup.

Cream of Broccoli Soup is a filling and healthy soup which makes for a meal by itself. I prefer serving it with bits of sauteed Broccoli rather than with croutons. Do blanch it for about fifteen seconds in hot water and then refresh with cold water . This is to take care of any insects that may be present.

Ingredients:

1 head of Broccoli weighing 250 gms

5 cloves of garlic chopped fine

1 tbsp butter

1 cup milk

Pepper, chilly flakes and oregano as per one’s taste

Salt.

Method:

Melt the butter in a pan. Tip in the garlic and roast to a golden brown. Add the blanched florets of Broccoli and toss till they wilt. Allow to cool. Keep a few aside for the garnish. Blend the remaining in a mixer to a smooth puree. Pour it into a vessel, add a cup of milk, the seasoning and salt. Bring it to a boil. Add enough water to adjust the consistency.. Serve hot garnished with pieces of sauteed Broccoli.

Copyright © 2024 by Vinaya Prabhu. All rights reserved.

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Skyu

Skyu is a soupy one pot pasta dish popular in Ladakhi villages and it makes for a filling meal. It is hand made flour pasta cooked with local herbs, spices and seasonal vegetables. At times meat is also added to the dish. This soupy delicacy can be served along with Momos and is mostly enjoyed during the winters.

Ingredients for the pasta:

1 cup whole wheat flour


1 tablespoon oil


Water for kneading the dough


Pinch of salt


Ingredients for the gravy:


1/2 cup carrot chopped into cubes


1/2 cup green peas


1 potato cut into cubes


1 tbsp butter


1 tbsp oil


1 tsp ginger grated


Bubs of the green onions


A handful of spring onion greens


A pinch of Garam masala


1 tomato chopped fine


1/2 tsp black pepper powder


2 green chillies slit


2 cups water


1 cup coconut milk/ Regular milk

Method:


Tip the flour in a bowl add salt, oil and water. Knead a soft dough.
Pinch make small thumb size pieces of the dough and shape the pasta by pressing your thumb into it. Heat a pan with the mixture of oil and butter. Add in onions and the green onions. Toss for a couple of minutes.
Add ginger, green chillies and the vegetables. Saute for a few seconds. Drop in the tomatoes and cook till they turn mushy. Add water, garam masala, pepper powder and salt. Allow it to boil on a gentle flame for five minutes. Add the pasta, cover and cook for ten minutes. The pasta begins floating on the surface when it is done. Pour in coconut milk or regular milk. Simmer till a soupy consistency is reached. Serve Skyu hot.

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Copyright © 2023 by Vinaya Prabhu. All rights reserved.

Gahat ka Shorba.

The traditional food of Himachal Pradesh, Gahat ka Shorba is a delicious soup made with Himachal’s native Gahat grains or what is known as Horsegram/ Kulith. It is flavoured with garlic and garnished with coriander leaves.
Horsegram is rich in antioxidants and high in protein and calcium. Enjoy this Pahadi version of the soup.

Ingredients:

250 gms Horsegram, washed and pressure cooked in enough water till mushy.

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

A large pinch of asafoetida

3 tbsps coriander leaves

1/4 tsp cumin seeds

1 medium sized onion chopped

1/2 tsp coriander seeds

1 tbsp garlic chopped

10 garlic cloves roughly crushed

2 inch piece of ginger grated

1 large tomato chopped

Salt

2 tbsps Ghee

Method:

Tip the cooked Horsegram in a pan and allow it to cool. Heat one tablespoon ghee in a pan. Add mustard and after it splutters add the cumin and coriander seeds, ginger, garlic, and onion. Roast till transparent. Add the asafoetida and when it starts releasing flavour, add the roughly chopped tomato and coriander leaves. Toss for a minute, remove and keep aside to cool. Blend the cooked Horsegram and the seasoning to a fine puree. Add enough water to bring it to a soupy consistency and strain it. Bring it to a boil and add salt as required. Heat the remaining tablespoon of Ghee and add the crushed garlic cloves. Roast till they turn golden brown. Tip this seasoning into the boiling soup and simmer for a couple of minutes. Switch off and garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves.

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Copyright © 2023 by Vinaya Prabhu. All rights reserved.

Sweet corn soup

Winters are fast approaching and one feels satiated when there is a hot soup ready at dinner time.

My mother never added cornflour to any soup. Vegetables were pulverized to lend texture to a vegetable soup, cream and tomatoes were blitzed together in a cream of tomato soup and sweet corn was pressure cooked and sauteed in butter, cooled and ground to a fine paste… Minced vegetables were invariably added.

Posting a soup today sans vegetables. I thank my friend Chef Prajakta Pai Shahpur for her recipe. It’s just sweet corn all the way.

Ingredients:

Two corn cobs pressure cooked and kernels separated from the cob.

5 flakes of garlic

3 tbsps Amul butter

1 green chilly minced

Pepper and salt to taste

Method:

Sautee the corn and garlic in butter till the corn turns slightly white. Allow to cool and grind it to a fine paste. Tip this paste on the pan in which the corn was sauteed. Add enough water to adjust consistency and the finely chopped green chilly. Season with salt and bring to a boil. Simmer for a couple of minutes and serve hot sprinkled with pepper.

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Moong and palak Shorba.

A filling and highly nutritious soup/ shorba which can be served as a meal on the days that one is rushed for time or would like to take it easy. The term Shorba comes from the Arabic word Shurba which means soup. It is generally thick and can be enjoyed with bread or on it’s own.

Ingredients:

100 gms Moong/ green gram

1 bunch of palak/ spinach

2 green chillies

1 inch piece of ginger chopped

7 cloves of garlic minced

1 onion sliced

1/2 tsp pepper powder

1 tsp cumin seeds

Salt

Lemon juice as per preference

1 tbsp Ghee/ clarified butter.

Method:

Wash and pressure cook the moong till mushy. Wash and chop the palak roughly. Heat ghee in a pan and drop in the cumin seeds. After they splutter drop in the sliced onion, ginger, green chillies and garlic. Roast on a gentle flame till the raw smell disappears. Drop in the chopped palak and roast till the palak wilts. Allow to cool. Tip in the cooled mixture along with the cooked moong into a mixer and grind to a smooth consistency. Tip it into a pan along with pepper powder and salt and bring to a boil. Allow to simmer on a gentle flame for five minutes. Switch off and add lemon juice as per taste. Serve hot.

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Tomato Shorba

Nothing to beat a hot soup with a few croutons or a small loaf of Garlic bread on a cold wintery evening. Tomato soup is an all time favourite with me and I always make it a point to try out the recipe whenever I chance upon one, as no two soups are the same. I already have posted a cream of tomato and a clear one in this website. Posting the recipe of the one which my friend Sona Savoor Kasargod shared with me.

Ingredients:

6 tomatoes pressure cooked and de skinned

1 large onion sliced

1 tbsp butter

Salt

Pepper

2tbsps Tomato ketchup

Cream to garnish

Method:

Heat butter in a pan. Tip in the sliced onions and saute till they are translucent. Allow to cool. Puree the de skinned tomatoes and the onions together. Pour it into a pan, season with salt and pepper and adjust consistency by adding the water in which the tomatoes were cooked. Bring to a boil and simmer gently for a couple of minutes. Serve hot garnished with a little cream.

Serves three.

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Palak/ Spinach and corn soup

A delicious and healthy soup that the family will love. The secret ingredient in this is tha Maggie magic cube which adds a zing to the soup. My heartfelt thanks to my friend Nandini Bhandarkar for having shared her recipe.

Ingredients:

A small bunch of Palak

1 inch piece of ginger

100 gms sweet corn pressure cooked with a little salt

1 Maggie Magic cube

Salt and pepper as required

1 tsp wheat flour

1 cup milk

1 heaped tsp Amul butter

Method:

Wash and discard the hard stems of the Palak. The tender stems can be used. Blanch the Palak. ie. Put it in some boiling water for just half a minute and then remove and plunge it in cold water. This helps retaining the lovely green colour of the leaves. Puree them with the ginger and a little milk. Tip it into a container. Heat the butter in a pan. Add the wheat flour and roast it for a minute. Add the remaining milk and keep stirring till it starts thickening. Pour this sauce into the palak puree and tip in the sweet corn along with the water in which it was boiled. Add salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer on a gentle flame till the rawness of the Palak is gone. Serve hot with grated cheese if desired.

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Pumpkin soup

A warm filling soup with just a hint of pepper and garlic. My friend Bala S Ajay who shared this recipe with me added toasted walnuts as well. I skipped them as the family isn’t too fond of them in a soup or a gravy. Two bowls of this healthy soup with a piece of French toast or a croissant and you are done with dinner.

Ingredients:

250 gms Pumpkin de skinned and chopped into chunks

1 very large onion sliced roughly

3 tbsps fresh cream

2 tbsps butter

2 cloves of garlic chopped

Salt and pepper to taste.

Method:

Heat the butter in a pan and keep tossing the pumpkin till it’s nicely roasted. Alternatively you may brush it with oil and bake it in the oven. Once the pumpkin is roasted remove it from the pan and add the onion and garlic. Roast till the onions wilt and the garlic turns a rich golden yellow. Cool thoroughly. Blitz the mixture along with the cream in a mixer till it forms a puree. Tip it back into the pan and add either vegetable stock or water to thin it down. Adjust the consistency as per preference. Add salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for a couple of minutes. Serve hot .

Serves two.

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Tomato, spinach and Kidney Beans Soup

Food for the soul! A hearty soup of Kidney Beans, chickpeas, spinach and tomatoes. It is filling and in fact serves as a meal. Two bowls of this delicious soup and you can skip the rice, bread or Roti. Excellent soup for weight watchers. My heartfelt thanks to Veena Shenoy for the recipe .

Ingredients:

One fistful each of Red Kidney Beans and Chickpeas soaked overnight and pressure cooked

25 leaves of spinach chopped fine

5 tomatoes quartered

1 large onion sliced

Salt

1 tsp Kashmii chilly powder

1/2 tsp pepper powder

5 tbsps Maggie sweet and sour sauce

Method:

Pressure cook the tomatoes, spinach and onions to one whistle. Drop it into the mixture of the cooked Kidney beans and chickpeas. Allow it to cool. Strain some of the kidney beans, chickpeas, tomato and spinach , mash it or pulse it in the mixer and add it to the soup to thicken it. Add the chilly and pepper powders, salt, the sweet and sour sauce and bring to a boil. Simmer the soup for a few minutes. Serve hot.

Serves six.

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Lemon and Coriander soup

A nice tangy and flavourful soup for a cold wintery evening. The recipe was shared by my friend Vijaya Nair. One can use vegetables of choice. I have used those which I had on hand. The two main ingredients are lemon and coriander which impart their flavour to this soup.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of finely chopped carrots

1/4 cup of finely shredded cabbage

1/ 2 cup finely chopped onions

4 cloves of garlic finely chopped

1 inch piece of ginger grated

2 green chillies minced

1/2 tsp pepper powder

1 tbsp butter

Salt

For the slurry:

A slurry is paste made of flour and water . Here it is cornflour.

1 tbsp corn flour

1/4 th glass of water

For the garnish:

2 tbsps finely chopped coriander leaves

Juice of one large lemon or as per taste.

Method:

Tip in the butter, green chillies, garlic and ginger into a pan. Saute for a minute. Drop in the onions and salt. Saute till the onions turn translucent. Drop in the cabbage and carrots and saute for two more minutes. Add four glasses of water. Bring it to a boil, lower heat and add the pepper powder. Allow it to simmer for a couple of minutes. In the meantime make a slurry of corn flour and water. Take care to see that there are no lumps in the slurry. Drop it into the simmering soup. Allow it to boil for a couple of minutes. Switch off. Add the coriander leaves and lemon juice. Cover and allow the soup to stand for a couple of minutes for the flavours to infuse. Serve hot.

Serves four.

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