Low fat black bean soup

As most of you might have guessed, my husband and I are gourmands which is great for our taste buds but not so wonderful for our waist line! 😦 But since our families back home are extremely health-conscious, we sometimes feel the guilt of not following their lead. Those are times when we try our ‘diet-foods’. But sadly, these bodhi-esque moments don’t last too long! And our taste buds are back to having a PAARTAY!

One such moment happened to me sometime ago. That’s when I decided to get inspired by my BIL who has lost loads of inches and looks absolutely fab! All you single girlz out there–watch out ;). We started out on a week’s diet of soups for  lunch and dinner, much to the chagrin of hubby dearest! And finding soups that are low in cal is not too difficult. The previous week, a friend of mine had a black bean soup at a nearby sandwich chain. Since I was in no mood to eat (which doesn’t happen very often), I skipped even tasting it. So I decided to make my own version of the black bean soup. We discovered to our utter delight that its a simple, extremely low cal and amazingly comforting dish.

For four large servings:

Black beans-1/2 cup

onion, medium, chopped-1/2 no

tomatoes, medium, chopped-1 no

corn-1/4 cup

green chillies, chopped-2 nos

cilnatro, chopped-7-8 sprigs

cumin powder-2 tsps

chilli powder-1/2 tsp

salt-to taste

Soak the black beans in water for atleast 8 hours(preferably overnight). Pressure cook all the ingredients except the cumin, chilli powder and salt. Once cooked, add the powders, salt and water (if the consistency is too thick). Simmer for 5 to 10 minutes or till it comes to a boil.

Serve with a dollop of yogurt (I substituted it for the sour cream that was served in the restaurant) and fresh mint leaves.

Apart from the nutritional value of this dish, the flavor of this dish is so simple, mild and refreshing.

The all Season Soup

All of us have had those lazy, slow days when all we want to do is curl up on the couch and have someone serve a plate of great food. That’s one luxury I have missed the most since I started living outside India. I still remember the morning after I came here following our wedding. I wasn’t teary eyed at the airport about leaving home or on the flight but the next morning it hit me…I wouldn’t have anyone cooking for me till my next visit! Not that my husband doesn’t cook, he does and does it well when he WANTS to and that wanting doesn’t come by very often. 😦 Its like the famous (or should I say the infamous) dialogue from the Jen-Vince movie, I want you to want to do the dishes (in my case cooking).

I rarely complain about it ‘coz I love to cook but sometimes, like the song goes, girls just wanna have fun!! No seriously, I was quite bugged this week after loads and loads of work from the previous week. I just wanted to take some time off. So I decided to make the quickest, easiest and wholesome soup which happens to be a one-dish, nutritious (if you use whole grain pasta, that is 🙂 )and great tasting meal-the minestrone soup. My first ever minestrone soup experience was in a restaurant called ‘Little Italy’ in Chennai. It was good but didn’t really catch my attention. Later, when I came here and had the Minestrone soup at one of our friend’s place, I knew this was one dish that was going to feature quite often in the menu at our place. I got the ‘You-should-get-that-recipe’ look from my hubby and our hostess was more than happy to share it with me. Thanks R!

We get some great Minestrone soup at Olive garden too and I can vouch that this soup is just wonderful at anytime of the day and any day of the year. Hence the name of the post. The sweetness of its tomatoes combined with the crunchiness of the vegetables and the softness of the pasta makes its extra special. I usually serve it with toasted bread rubbed with garlic and olive oil .

Sprinkling some cheese on the soup gives it the glamour quotient that it rightly deserves!

To make two servings:

chopped garlic-2 pods

tomatoes -2 (if using small ones, make it 3)

chopped onion- 2 tsps

pasta (I used bow-tie, you can use any small pasta)-1/2 cup

red kidney beans-1/2 cup

mixed vegetables (carrots, beans, zuchini, asparagus)-1/2 cup (you can add spinach too but I don’t)

dried herbs – 2 tsps

Pasta sauce-3/4 cup

salt to taste

pepper powder-3 -4 tsps(4-5 if you prefer it spicy)

chopped cilantro-5 sprigs(parsley is the original ingredient but we love the flavor of cilantro)

water-1 cup

oilve oil-1/2 tsp

Cook the pasta as per directions. If you are using raw red kidney beans, soak them the previous night and pressure cook it just before making the soup. I use the canned variety so that life is a little simpler! Heat oil in a pan, add the dried herbs (crush them between your palm and fingers to bring out the flavor) and garlic followed by the onions and saute till the onions turn translucent. Add the vegetables and saute for a 2-3 minutes. Since we like them a little crunchy, I don’t saute it longer. Add the chopped tomatoes and saute till they turn soft. Now add the cilantro and saute for a few seconds. Add the pasta sauce, water, salt and pepper. Allow this to come to a boil and then add the cooked pasta and the red kidney beans. Check the consistency, add water if its too thick. Simmer the soup for a couple of minutes and turn the heat off. Serve with some garlic bread.  I had seen Giada make some great pamesan poppers that afternoon so I served mine with them!

Minestrone soup served here with some parmesan poppers

If I had to make a list of my top ten comfort foods, this is sure to bag a place among the top 5!