Have you caught up with Kale craze yet? I have been reading about Kale so much in blog world and watching it on TV regularly these days. First time I tried making something with Kale, no one wanted to even try it. I tried few different things and this soup is one dish that we all enjoy very much. I make these kind of hearty soups regularly for V’s and Ishaan’s lunch boxes. Even the little one enjoys few spoonfuls of these soups.
Wiki says – Kale is a vegetable with green or purple leaves, in which the central leaves do not form a head. It is considered to be closer to wild cabbage than most domesticated forms of vegetables.Kale is very high in beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, and rich in calcium. Kale is a source of two carotenoids, lutein and zeaxanthin.Kale, as with broccoli and other brassicas, contains sulforaphane (particularly when chopped or minced), a chemical with potent anti-cancer properties.
This soup is derived from white bean vegetable chili that I posted a while ago.
Pictorial: Remove the thick stems of kale and cut into small pieces. Chop the vegetables and fry them in little oil. Add beans, kale, spices and water or stock. Cook till done.
Kale and White Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 1 cup white beans
- 1 cup chopped carrots
- 2 cups chopped kale
- 1 tea spn chopped ginger
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1/2 cup chopped celery
- 2 tbl spn lemon juice
- 1/2 tea spn coriander powder
- 1/2 tea spn cumin powder
- 1/4 tea spn pepper
- Olive oil
- 2 cups water or vegetable stock or chicken stock
- Salt
Instructions
- Soak white bean in water overnight.
- Remove the thick center stems of kale and chop into small pieces.
- Heat little oil and add onion, celery, carrots, ginger and fry for few minutes. (I make this directly in pressure cooker).
- Now add kale and fry for few seconds.
- Add soaked beans, coriander powder, cumin powder, salt.
- Pour in water or stock, pressure cook for 3-4 whistles.
- When it is cooled down, add lemon juice, pepper.
- Serve hot.
Kale and White Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 1 cup white beans
- 1 cup chopped carrots
- 2 cups chopped kale
- 1 tea spn chopped ginger
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1/2 cup chopped celery
- 2 tbl spn lemon juice
- 1/2 tea spn coriander powder
- 1/2 tea spn cumin powder
- 1/4 tea spn pepper
- Olive oil
- 2 cups water or vegetable stock or chicken stock
- Salt
Instructions
- Soak white bean in water overnight.
- Remove the thick center stems of kale and chop into small pieces.
- Heat little oil and add onion, celery, carrots, ginger and fry for few minutes. (I make this directly in pressure cooker).
- Now add kale and fry for few seconds.
- Add soaked beans, coriander powder, cumin powder, salt.
- Pour in water or stock, pressure cook for 3-4 whistles.
- When it is cooled down, add lemon juice, pepper.
- Serve hot.
My friend P celebrated her 40th birthday last month. Although I had all plans of baking a birthday cake, it did not happen. I knew she likes my cakes, so I promised her I will bake one for her soon. She said she loves carrot cakes. She also mentioned that she likes her cakes without any frosting on them. I have few recipes of carrot cakes that I have already tried like – carrot cake with apple filling , eggless banana cake with carrots and raisins , banana-carrot cake . I wasn’t sure she would like banana flavor in cake, so I thought of trying out a new recipe. I used Alton Brown’s carrot cake as the reference and changed few spices in it to suit our taste.
The following quantity made two oval cakes. P came in when it was still warm, just out of the oven. Half of one cake was finished before it even had time to cool down. She said she does not want icing, so she had plain one. I packed the other oval cake for her to take home. V and Ishaan declared it was one of the best cakes and Ishaan wanted me to bake one the next day. I have promised him to bake it soon again, may be for his birthday. P told me the cake was completely finished within 10mins of her reaching home.
Pictorial: Make the spice powder. Sieve together the dry ingredients. Mix the wet ingredients. Fold in the flour and then carrots. Grease the baking dish. Pour the batter in the baking dish and bake.
Carrot Cake with Cardamom
Ingredients
- 2 and 1/2 cups 12 oz cake flour
- 2 cups 10 oz grated carrots
- 3/4 cup 6 oz yogurt
- 1 tea spn baking powder
- 3 eggs
- 1 tea spn baking soda
- 3/4 cup 6 oz oil
- 8 pods of cardamom
- 2 " cinnamon
- A small piece of nutmeg almost size of a small cardamom pod
- 1 and 1/3 cups sugar
- 1/4 tea spn salt
Frosting (optional)
- 1 and 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
- 5 tea spns orange juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven at 350F for 10mins.
- Grease baking pan/s with butter and sprinkle flour, shake the pan such the the flour covers the the pan Then remove the excess flour to make sure there is only a very thin coating of flour (I used a parchment paper at the bottom of the pan and then applied butter on top of it and sides. This way the cake cake out of the pan very easily).
- Take out the seeds of cardamom and powder them with cinnamon and nutmeg.
- Sieve together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and the cardamom powder just made.
- In a mixing bowl, take eggs, oil, sugar and mix well.
- Then add yogurt and beat till mixed.
- With a spatula, fold in the flour mixture, a little at a time.
- slowly mix in grated carrot (do not over mix).
- Pour the batter in the pan. (I equally divided them in two oval pans).
- Bake at 350F for about 40mins or till a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Let the cake cool before topping with the icing. It can also be served warm.
- For the icing, beat together confectioners sugar and orange juice till it forms a uniform mixture.
- When cake is completely cooled, add it on the cake.
