Winter Orange Lentil Soup

Yes it is almost February and summer is just around the corner. Living in Tel Aviv it is literally around the corner. So we are going to be posting delicious healthy recipes to help you eat right and look great. 

Photo: Jill Schweber

There's nothing better then lentil soup made from scratch on a cold winter's night. This soup is healthy, delicious, vegetarian, and easy to make. 

Lentil Soup

oil for frying

1 onion

1 leek

1 fennel

3 carrots

half a butternut pumkin (or full if its small)

2 cups of lentils (orange lentils)

1 cup cilantro (finally chopped)

2-3 cm of fresh ginger, (chopped)

1 tsp of oriental cumin 

1tsp of paprika

chicken stock

salt&pepper

spring onion for topping

Instructions

Heat up some cooking oil in a big pot. Roughly chop onions and throw them in together with the ginger. Add the spices. Chop the leek, fennel and carrots and throw them in once the onions soften. Peel and chop the squash and put that in as well. Pour water in the pot (enough to cover vegetables). Simmer till the carrots are soft which takes approx. 20 minutes. Put in two cups of orange lentils. Season with salt, pepper and chicken stock. Simmer for another 20 minutes until lentils are soft. Throw in the cilantro and use a hand mixer to blend until smooth. Just before serving top it off with chopped spring onion. Enjoy! 

 © 2013 Jill Schweber and Channa Waje, all rights reserved

Leeks with Lemon, Currants and Goat Cheese

Oriental food is often simple to make but with interesting flavors and colors. Here is a Turkish recipe with baby leek and currant. The currant is giving this dish a beautiful color and a sour, yet sweet taste. Leek is a very straight forward ingedient that is often forgotten. For this recipe we used current from the garden and self-grown leek. Life in Sweden can be fun (when it's not raining). 

Leeks with Lemon, Currants and Goat cheese

750 g baby leek or 4 large leeks (if large, sliced them)

125 ml olive oil

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 1/2 tsp caster sugar

finely grated zest from 1 lemon

35 g currants

50 ml freshly squeezed lemon juice

375 ml chicken stock

2 thyme sprigs

125 g tulum cheese (goat cheese)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180 C degrees. 

2. Trim the leek 3-4 cm from the tops and clean them proper. Make sure that the root ends keep together or they will fall apart during cooking.

3. Place a single laying in a large rosting tin. 

4. Heat the olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for about two minutes or until fragrant. Pour the oil mixture over the leeks in the tin. 

5. Scatter over the sugar, lemon and currants then pur over the lemon juice and stock; season with freshly ground black pepper. 

6. Cover the tin tighly with foil and bake in the oven for about 25 minutes (50 minutes if big leeks). 

7. Remove from the oven, drain the leek and set a side, reserve the cooking liquid. 

8. Transfer the cooking liquid to a saucepan and bring to boil. Cook for about 10 minutes or untilt he liquid has reduced and thinkened, the pour it over the leeks. 

9. Season with salt and cool completely. 

10. Before serving, scatter the crumbled tulum cheese and serve. 

Enjoy!