Vegetable soup - short and simple

This one turned out lovely by fluke, so although I'm putting it up I'm not too sure of its success. Whatever it is, it's simple and nutritious!

Ingredients(measurements not at all accurate):
4 small Carrots(200g), cut into sticks of equal volume
Beans(150g), cut into about 2 inch long pieces.
Peas(200g after shelling)
1 medium Onion, cut into semi-rings of about 1/8in thickness
1 inch Ginger, cut into thick slices
4-5 peppercorns, slightly crushed.
Salt to taste(about 1.25 tsp)
Butter on top(optional but delicious).

Method:
Add salt, ginger and beans to water, bring to boil.
After about 1 minute add carrots and peppercorns. Some trial and error necessary to figure out the relative timings and how to cut the veggies for uniform boiling.
After another minute or two add peas and onions.
Boil until vegetables are soft to taste.
Remove from flame and add butter.

Using onions and ginger without garlic gave the soup a wonderful flavour. I'll try experimenting with onion/garlic and ginger/garlic some time.

simple noodle soup with lots of veggies

I made this soup for sunny boy one afternoon, when he hadn't gone to the kindergarten and was home. I didn't wish to make an elaborate meal, which I do in the evenings usually when we all eat together. After asking sunny boy, I choose to make this soup and he liked it a lot.
Although there are many ways of making it, I made it this time with the Indian tadka in the beginning and you can always replace broccoli with cabbage or beans or any veggie of choice.

For 2-3 persons

Ingredients:

a few broccoli florets, cut into small pieces
3 small carrots, thinly sliced or cubed
a few mushrooms, chopped or thinly sliced
2 handfuls soup noodles (or vermicelli)
salt, to taste
400 - 500 ml water
2 tbsp coriander leaves (I had none)
1 tsp organic vegetable broth (optional)

Tadka
1 tbsp mustard oil (use any other)
1 tsp cumin
1 pinch hing (asafoetida)
1 tbsp coriander seeds, ground
1/2 tsp turmeric
chili powder to taste

Method:

• clean, wash and prepare the vegetables
• in a large sauce pan heat oil and splutter the cumin
• reduce heat and add the remaining spices,
  
• stir quickly and immediately add the veggies,
  
• stir for a few minutes on medium heat
  
• add water, broth and salt and cook till the water begins to boil
• add the soup noodles / vermicelli and cook till done*
• if you wish, you can add a teaspoon of mustard oil, olive oil or ghee to the ready soup at the end and some chopped coriander leaves to garnish

Bon Apettit!

*NOTE: depending on the cooking time of the noodles and the type of veggies, the cooking time of veggies before adding the noodles could change. Adjust accordingly.

a quickfix meal with scrambled bread and veggies eggs

Before I begin with the actual post, let me just inform you that after a few exchange of emails we have sorted out things and everything is fine! :)

I made this meal for my sunny boy in a jiffy as we had been out of the house in the afternoon and by the time we came back it was late and he was hungry, a bit early for dinner, but that's how it is with children. So, I had to make something quick which was wholesome too. And this is what I made:

For 2 servings

Ingredients:
1 tbsp ghee or oil
2 slices of bread (white , whole wheat or gluten free), cut into small or large squares
2 eggs, beaten to make very frothy, like with a twirl whisk
1 small onion, finely chopped (optional)
6 mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 small carrots, grated
1/2 tsp cumin (optional)
1 tsp ground coriander seeds (optional)
1/4 tsp pepper, or to taste
1/4 tsp turmeric (optional)


Method:

• cut and prepare the bread and mushrooms and carrots
  
• you can also choose veggies of your own choice like very finely cut cauliflower, cabbage, zucchini or green beans, or peas
• heat the ghee or oil in the pan and add cumin so that it splutters, add coriander and turmeric, stir shortly, add onion and veggies and stir and cook on medium heat till done
• add the bread pieces, stirring for another one minute
• add salt and pepper and stir to mix
  
• add the beaten eggs and either prepare like scrambled eggs for another one minute
• or just simmer till the eggs have been cooked through
  

I initially thought of making a french toast with the egg mainly on one side and veggies on the other, but then it didn't work out, so I cut up the bread into small pieces and mixed with the eggs.
Sunny boy enjoyed it a lot. He ate it with some home made apple onion and tomato chutney, but you can substitute it with anything else you have handy at home.

Carrot, the best way to eat them....

...is with some oil or a type of fat. Give them to kids grated or cut into thin slices.

It is the oils and fats which are necessary for the good pro-vitamin A (β carotene) to be absorbed by our body. Let the children chew the carrots properly as well.

These are three tempting ways that I remember of doing it for the kids:

1. A yoghurt dip: mix some yoghurt (strained, if possible)/curd/low fat- quark with whipped cream or clotted cream (Indian malai), add some salt and pepper or a pinch of ground roasted cumin. Serve with carrots, grated or cut into thin sticks or rings to be eaten as finger food
2. Just sprinkle grated carrots (or in any form) with some edible oil (which has not been heated!), a teaspoon of lemon juice and a pinch of salt and pepper or ground roasted cumin
3. A vinaigrette: mix some olive oil (or oil of choice) with natural white wine vinegar , salt, mustard (optional), roasted ground cumin, pepper or a pinch of chili powder, stir thoroughly with a spoon till you get homogeneous mass and dip your carrots in it, like we did today (see picture above)

We will use the leftover vinaigrette tomorrow, maybe again with carrots or some cucumber and tomatoes.

TIP: try to use as much oils high in unsaturated fatty acids (mono and poly unsaturated), as they contain the types of fatty acids which cannot be produced in our body. For example.

cold pressed rapeseed oil
cold pressed mustard oil
extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

These oils are not good for deep frying, as they mono and poly unsaturated fatty acids degrade on heating on high temperatures, the reason why one needs to buy these which have been extracted by cold pressing. But, these can still be used for cooking or (stir-) frying or baking

Some examples of oils which should :

1. not be heated (at best to be used cold),
   
2. always kept in the dark,
   
3. in air-tight containers (should not come in contact with too much air - oxidative degradation)
   
4. and at best be used up fast as they are very unstable, being so rich in unsaturated fatty acids which make them so healthy :
   

• walnut oil
• sesame seed oil
• almond oil
• pumpkin seed oil

Some more comparatively stable oils, which are good for deep frying (should not be done too often, of course!):

• peanut oil
• sunflower oil
• coconut oil
• ghee - not a plant oil, but animal fat, but, is also a good substitute. But, one should keep in mind the high amount of saturated fatty acids and cholesterol in it
  

Therefore, deep frying should best be done not more than once a month, or at best even lesser.
Any type of oil should always be stored in airtight containers otherwise it degrades (becomes rancid) and even the comparitively stable ones, once heated on high temperatures, also start to degrade much more and faster, so repeated heating of oil, especially in large gaps of days is not good. Do not store deep fried oil for long, but, either use it as much possible in the next few days or throw it away. Wastage or not, nothing is wrong if it is for your health.
Give me more names of oils if you want to know about them which I have left out. I have only mentioned the most common ones.