Everywhere you turn, it's cold weather reports, new year's resolutions, health & fitness challenges, financial re-ealuations, and blue Mondays. A little comfort is needed so it's no wonder January is also known as 'Soup Month'.

Add in a pandemic, loss of in-person social connections, work & school at home, and a full lockdown - and better make that some soul-satisfying soup! 

Without too much oversharing, I'm unearthing every great soup recipe I have these days!  The vegetable chopping has become a kind of meditation for me, and my Overnight Sourdough is on repeat.

Chef Joyce's Mulligatawny Soup Recipe

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 cup onion,  ¼” dice
• 1 carrot, peeled and diced
• 1 stalk celery, diced
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tbsp ginger, minced 
• 1 small apple, peeled, cored and diced
• 3 plum tomatoes, diced 
• 1 tbsp curry powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• ½ tsp paprika
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp turmeric
• ¼ tsp cardamom, ground
• ¼ tsp fresh ground black pepper
• ½ cup red lentils (uncooked)
• 3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• ⅔ cup coconut milk
• ½ cup cilantro, leaves picked
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup toasted cashews, chopped
• ½ cup scallions, thinly sliced

Method: 

1. Melt the butter in a large pot over medium-high heat.
2. Add the onion, carrot, celery, jalapeno and salt.
3. Saute for 10 minutes, or until the onions have softened.
4. Add the wine and let it bubble away.
5. Add the garlic, ginger, apples, and diced tomatoes to the pot.
6. Saute for another 3 minutes, then add in all of the spices and toss to coat.
7. Add in the lentils and broth and let the contents come to a boil.
8. Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, stirring frequently to keep the lentils from sticking.
9. Puree about 75% of the ingredients using either an immersion blender or by blending some of the soup in a blender.
10. Return the soup to the pot if needed, then stir in the coconut milk.
11. Taste, and adjust salt and black pepper as needed.
12. Serve topped with cashew and scallions

Missing anything?  See below for all of the essential tools to make this recipe a success!