Friday, February 22, 2019

Changing It Up

Today was gloomy and chilly...and a good day for soup. When I looked in the pantry to see what was there I decided a hearty lentil soup made in my Instant Pot is what would be for dinner.

Son Brian was the first person in the family to get an Instant Pot, and he gave me one last year. Since then we've shared recipes and tips back and forth. Very early on I made an Indian-inspired lentil soup recipe which used both brown and red or yellow lentils. (The colorful ones took less time to cook and fell apart before the brown ones were done, which made the finished dish wonderfully thick.) I told Brian; he made the recipe and liked it so much it went into his regular cooking rotation. He even started making up batches of a seasoning mix to have on hand, then shared the information with Son Donald, who shared it with me:


Turmeric, chili powder, coriander, cumin, black pepper,
onion powder, and garlic
Today, though, I was in the mood for Mexican, and I wondered why I couldn't spice the basic soup differently. I Googled 'Mexican lentils' and cobbled together portions of three different recipes. My dish started with onions, lots of garlic, and three types of lentils (brown, yellow, and red because why not?). After I sauteed the vegetables and tossed in the lentils I added broth, half of a can of Ro-Tel tomatoes, and a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste, then seasoned with pepper, cumin, oregano, and chili powder. I closed up the Instant Pot and cooked everything for 20 minutes.

When the soup was done I served it up with tortilla chips to continue the Mexican theme. It was so good I forgot to take a photo!

Five years ago today: Welcom-er

18 comments:

  1. OK ... now you've made me hungry. Thank you. I'll leave my computer and go to the kitchen.

    God bless.

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  2. everything sounds delicious. I am so tempted to get an instant pot. I do use my regular pressure cooker.

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    1. I don't know how much room you have to store things in your kitchen, but if I had a pressure cooker I think I'd pass on a similar appliance.

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  3. How fun to share cooking tips and recipes with your son!
    He must of been brought up, knowing his way around the kitchen, Good Mama!

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    1. All of my boys know how to cook, but none of them care to bake, because it's too precise.

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  4. That does sound very good and soup is on my menu for today. Another cold gray rainy one here.

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    1. Here's to soup. I hate extended strings of gloomy weather!

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  5. That sounds like a great soup. I don't like lentils unless they cook up with other things like beans. We love Mexican spices so this would be good for us.

    I make a chicken tortilla soup that is a favorite.

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    1. I've never thought about pairing lentils and beans. Must look into it.

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  6. Sounds yummy and nothing is better than soup on these cold dreary days!!

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    1. I used to only cook soup in the cold weather. Now it shows up all year round, but it really IS best when it's dreary outside.

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  7. That sounds lovey, Mexican lentils, I love lentils.

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  8. Too yummy for a picture is the best praise.

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    Replies
    1. I really need to be better at documenting my life if I want to be a serious blogger :-)

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  9. Soup is perfect for a cold gloomy day, always hits the spot. This one sounds so yummmily dellicious, it's making my mouth water. Thanks for sharing your recipe for this.

    Have a great week!

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