Update of recipe for Red Curry Lentils with Sweet Potatoes and Spinach

I made this recipe again tonight, and found myself thinking, "I wish I could have people over for dinner so I could serve this to them!" If you haven't tried this yet, I do encourage you, especially now that I've simplified the recipe a little bit, combining some steps together. The original recipe called for browning the sweet potato first, and then taking it out of the pot to cook the onion. But I forgot to remove the sweet potatoes, and the few extra minutes of cooking did no harm. So I've changed the directions to cook them together. And since I like to chop garlic, ginger, and onions in sequence in my food processor, I've changed the directions so these ingredients are all added in together. Finally, I took out the original recipe's suggestion that cilantro and toasted coconut be used as final add-ons at the table. I used neither tonight, and think they're entirely unnecessary. The flavors of this stew are already complex and delicious, so why bother with more ingredients?

So, here's a link to the revised recipe. Enjoy! 

https://penny-inthekitchen.blogspot.com/2020/01/red-curry-lentils-with-sweet-potatoes.html

Cooking for lunch: Tomato and White Bean Soup with Lots of Garlic

It's rare for me do any real cooking for lunch. Standards are things like pouring boiling water into a container of dry soup, maybe a peanut butter sandwich or tuna fish, or if I'm feeling ambitious, matzah fry (scrambled eggs with a piece of matzah crumbled in). But when I saw this recipe in the NY Times, it sounded really good to me, and so simple and quick to make that I decided to try it for lunch. I highly recommend it!  This is basically tomato soup, but with much more substance/depth than opening a can of Campbell's. I had the soup with an apple and some nuts, and found that to be a very satisfying meal.

(Sorry for the extra spaces between the lines before the instructions--something odd going on, making it impossible for me to make them single spaces.)

TOMATO AND WHITE BEAN SOUP WITH LOTS OF GARLIC

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020733-tomato-and-white-bean-soup-with-lots-of-garlic

4-5 servings

10 garlic cloves

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 (14-ounce) cans white beans, such as cannellini or great Northern, including their liquid. Drain one can but use both beans and liquid from the other can.*

1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes

1 cup stock or water, plus more as needed

 Kosher salt and black pepper

 Heavy cream, for serving (optional)

 

Peel the garlic, then smash the cloves using the flat side of a chef's knife or the bottom of a heavy skillet until wispy and flat.

In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, heat the olive oil, then add the crushed garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes.

Add the white beans and the liquid from one can, crushed tomatoes, stock or water, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then partly cover, reduce heat, and let simmer until thickened and fragrant, 15 to 20 minutes.

Using an immersion or regular blender, purée the soup until smooth. Add stock or water to thin as desired. (I did not thin.) Season to taste with salt and pepper. (I did not use any salt.) Option: Drizzle with heavy cream before serving. (I happened to have cream on hand, so drizzled some on the first time I served the soup. I forgot about it the next day when I had the soup for a second lunch, and didn't notice any difference. So, no need to add cream!)

*This is what I did, following advice from one commenter. The original instructions were to not drain either can, and use the liquid from both cans. I might try that the next time, as it makes it that much easier to leave out a step and not have a colander to wash.