Rainbows and Sweet Potatoes

“Gratitudes” – September 4, 2013

Today I’m grateful for:

1. Prism rainbows 
   

2. Another sunny day
3. Honeybees doing their thing to keep life going on the planet
4. The feeling of walking barefoot in the grass
5. Taking time to cloud watch
   

6. The sound of wind in the trees
7. The way dogs look like they’re smiling
8. The silence when construction stops for the day
9. Being able to turn off the air conditioner
10. Ants-On-A-Log (a snack from my childhood that I have a new found love for!)
    

11. Getting carded at the liquor store on a day I felt frumpy
12. Watching TV in bed
13. Fresh Ontario garlic!
14. Old friends
15. New possibilities
16. Having a desk for my computer
17. Colourful scarves
18. 80s movies
19. Magnetic poetry 
    

20. Wall calendars
21. Being able to walk up a hill
22. The sound of birds chirping
23. Old episodes of “The Good Wife”
24. Notepads
25. My new backpack
26. Mason jars
27. Kleenex
28. Learning to trust my instinct
29. Voicemail
30. Blended soups

My go-to soup is a spicy and comforting mix of red lentils, sweet potato and curry. Quick and easy to throw together, you can basically forget about it while it’s cooking and have a nourishing meal on the table without too much work. This soup also freezes really well for a fast week-day supper. If you don’t have sweet potatoes handy butternut squash is also good.

Curried Red Lentil & Sweet Potato Soup

1 tbls olive oil

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced (less or more to taste)

1 inch of ginger, grated

1 tsp curry powder

½ tsp turmeric

½ tsp cumin

½ tsp cinnamon

Sea salt to taste

1 cup red lentils, rinsed

1-2 sweet potatoes (depending on the size), peeled and chopped

Parsley and hemp hearts for garnish (optional)

Heat oil on medium high heat until hot; add onion and sauté until translucent, about 7min. Add garlic and ginger to the pan and sauté for about 30 seconds. Add in spices and sauté for another minute. Use a bit of water to deglaze the pan. Add sweet potatoes, lentils and enough water to fill the pot leaving about an inch of space. Heat to boiling, cover and then simmer for 45min – 1 hour, until lentils are cooked and sweet potato is tender. Blend in batches until you have a creamy soup! I sometimes add in greens at this stage when I’m blending – kale and spinach both work well. I enjoy my bowl of soup garnished with parsley and hemp hearts.