Tortilla Soup

Ingredients

1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed chicken broth
1 1/4 cups water
1 cup whole corn kernels, cooked
1 cup white hominy
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 boneless chicken breast halves, cooked and cut into bite-sized pieces
crushed tortilla chips
sliced avocado
shredded Monterey Jack cheese
chopped green onions
Directions

In a medium stock pot, heat oil over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic in oil until soft. Stir in chili powder, oregano, tomatoes, broth, and water. Bring to a boil, and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.
Stir in corn, hominy, chiles, beans, cilantro, and chicken. Simmer for 10 minutes.
Ladle soup into individual serving bowls, and top with crushed tortilla chips, avocado slices, cheese, and chopped green onion.

Pumpkin Soup

Step 1: You will need

    1 ½ kg pumpkin, peeled and cubed
    1 onion, sliced
    50 g butter
    2 garlic cloves, peeled
    1 liter chicken stock
    1 liter water
    2 tbsp crème fraiche
    1 pinch of nutmeg
    1 pinch of cinnamon
    1 tsp white sugar
    1 tbsp olive oil
    2 slices of whole-wheat bread , cut into small cubes
    2 tbsp maple syrup
    salt and pepper
    1 saucepan
    1 wooden spoon
    1 tray
    1 blender
    1 ladle

1. Step 2: Cook onions and garlic
Place the saucepan on a medium to high heat, and when hot, add the butter, letting it brown a little, followed by the onion. Sweat the onion for about 5 minutes. Now add the garlic, stir, and continue cooking.
2. Step 3: Add the pumpkin and stock
When the onion is slightly brown, add the pumpkin, chicken stock and half of the water. Bring it to a boil, then simmer for 20 to 30 minutes.
3. Step 4: Preheat the oven
Set the temperature to 180ºC or gas mark 4.
4. Step 5: Prepare the croutons
Sprinkle the bread onto the tray then dust with the nutmeg, cinnamon and sugar. Finally, drizzle over the olive oil and mix together until the bread cubes are well coated.
5. Step 6: Bake the croutons
Place the tray in the centre of the oven and bake for 7 minutes. When brown and crispy, remove the croutons from the oven and put to one side.
6. Step 7: Season soup and remove from heat
When the soup has been cooking for roughly 20 minutes, add the maple syrup, season with salt and pepper, stir briefly and take it off the heat.
7. Step 8: Blend the soup
Ladle the soup gradually into the blender. As you go, drain the water back into the pan. This can be added later if necessary. Release the steam from the blender before continuing. Now, pulse the soup two or three times before blending at a medium speed for about half a minute. Add a tablespoon of crème fraiche and blend again. then transfer to another saucepan or bowl Repeat this same process with the remaining pumpkin soup.
8. Step 9: Serve

Manish Water (Classic Jamaican Soup)

Manish Water (Jamaican Goat Soup)

INGREDIENTS :

    Chopped up goat head
    Garlic,escallion.thyme,pimento seed, salt to taste
    Whole green pepper,black pepper,
    1pk. Chicken Noodle
    3-6 green bananas
    ½ lbs.Yam
    3 small Irish Potato
    Flour for dumpling
    2 chochos (optional)
    1 Whole Scotch Bonnet Pepper

METHOD:

    Wash chopped goat head
    Put in a large pot (pressure cooker best) with enough water to cover the meet
    Add 3 teaspoons salt, 8-10 seeds of pimento and let cook and 5 crushed garlic cloves
    Cook on a medium/high stove till meat tender
    Add more water and and also 1pk. Chicken Noodle
    Peel and cut up potatos and chochos and add
    Peel Green bananas (or cut off the top and bottom and slit in skin)
    Add Peel and add Yam when bananas almost cooked.
    When almost done black pepper,thyme,couple pimento seed,escallion, whole Scotch Bonnet Pepper (do not let it burst open) and let simmer
    Serve hot

Cabbage Soup

Cabbage Soup
Ingredients

    3 tablespoons olive oil
    1/2 onion, chopped
    2 cloves garlic, chopped
    2 quarts water
    4 teaspoons chicken bouillon
    1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
    1/2 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
    1/2 head cabbage, cored and coarsely chopped
    1 (14.5 ounce) can Italian-style stewed tomatoes, drained and diced

Directions

    In a large stockpot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Stir in onion and garlic; cook until onion is transparent, about 5 minutes.
    Stir in water, bouillon, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, then stir in cabbage. Simmer until cabbage wilts, about 10 minutes.
    Stir in tomatoes. Return to a boil, then simmer 15 to 30 minutes, stirring often.

Chemeen Vattichathu

God's own country's chemeen vattichathu is an ideal curry for rice, chappati or anything else and is a specialty of Kerala.

1. Medium sized chemeen (prawns) 1 cup
2. Coconut oil
3. Mustard 1/2 teaspoon
4. Fenugreek 1/4 teaspoon
5. Chopped Ginger 1 teaspoon
6. Chopped finel Garlic 1 teaspoon
7. Chuvanulli (small onion) 1 cup
8. Chopped tomato 1/2 cup
9. Thich tarmarind paste 1 cup
10. Salt to taste
11. Coriander leaves, curry leaves chopped
12. Chilly powder 2 tablespoon (Kashmir chilly would be preferred)
13. Turmeric 1/4 teaspoon

To heated coconut oil, add mustard seeds, fenugreek and then chopped ginger, garlic and saute. Then add chopped chuvanulli and saute for some time. After that, add tomatoes and saute for some time. After it comes to a paste like consistency add all the 12 ingredients. Then pour tamarind paste and a little water. Add chemeen too. After it comes to a boil add needed salt. After the chemeen is cooked and the gravy starts thickening, add coriander leaves and curry leaves. Spread a dash of coconut oil on top of it finally. Chemeen vattichathu is ready to be served.

Potato dosa

There are a variety of dosas and many restaurants offer even non-veg dosas for a change. Make potato dosas crispy by spreading it thinly.

Dosa batter 1 big cup
Cooked and mashed potatoes 2
Green chillies finely chopped 1
Onion finely chopped 1 tablespoon
Curry leaves finely chopped
Salt to taste
Ghee 2 tablespoon

Mix the dosa batter nicely adding the mashed potatoes, green chillies, curry leaves and salt. Make crispy dosas adding a dash of ghee. Tastes good with coconut chutney.

Cauliflower bajji

Since cauliflower is a seasonal veggie, it can be prepared for children as snacks in the evening. Easy to make too.

Cauliflower cut vertically 2 cups
Channa dhal 300 gm
Chilly sauce 1 teaspoon
Ginger dauce 1 teaspoon
Tomato sauce 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste
Oil 2 cups

Clean cauliflower and dry it. In another vessel, mix channa dhal, chilly sauce, ginger sauce, tomato sauce and salt along with little water and make a smooth paste. In a kadai, after the oil gets heated, dip the cauliflower florets in the masala paste and deep fry it in oil. Tastes delicious with tomato sauce.