Today was no different. I've been extremely sick for the past two weeks and have finally started eating and so was craving something different, but yet with the healthy stuff that helps with colds and flu bugs -- you know, lots of yummy garlic and onion and not creamy milk stuff :-)
So I started looking through the cookbooks and came across this soup recipe -- amazingly enough I had EVERYTHING I needed in my kitchen, except the cheese. Plus it looked really good and I thought the kids might like the dumplings. It comes from "Cooking Light - way to cook vegetarian." I actually followed this recipe almost exactly -- trust me that's a big deal at my house!! The only thing I changed was because I didn't have vegetable stock, I used half vegetarian chicken and half vegetarian beef seasonings to make the stock. Other than that -- to the letter :-) Well, sort of -- I didn't exactly measure the oil, onion, or garlic -- I just chopped and dumped!
Soup --
2 tsps olive oil
1 cup finely chopped onion ( I used a medium sized onion)
2 tsps minced garlic ( I used two cloves)
2 tsps chili powder (yes, I used the whole 2 tsps. and it wasn't extremely spicy, just a little)
2 cups vegetable broth (I used 2 c water, 1 tsp chicken seasoning, 1 tsp beef seasoning)
1 cup water
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 (15oz) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 (14.5oz) canned diced tomatoes, undrained
Dumplings --
1/3 cup masa harina (or cornmeal)
1/4 tsp salt
3 Tbsp hot hot water
1 tsp olive oil
Remaining ingredients --
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice
1/4 c. crumbled queso fresco
Soup -- heat olive oil in a large sized dutch oven or soup pot, add onion and saute 3 minutes or until tender. Add chili powder and garlic, saute 30 seconds, add broth and remaining soup ingredients. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.
Dumplings -- combine masa harina and salt in a bowl. Add hot water and oil, stir until a dry dough forms - you may need to add just a touch more water. Divide dough into 24 pieces, shaping each into a ball, a little smaller than the size of a cherry. Put balls on a plate until all are formed, that way you can drop them into the simmering soup all at a time. Cook, uncovered, for 3 minutes. The dumplings will float when they are done.
Ladle soup into bowls (recipes says 4 one cup servings), sprinkle a little cilantro and cheese on top and then squeeze a lime wedge before serving.
215 Calories per serving
Things I would do differently -- the consistency is pretty thin - I would take 2/3 of the tomatoes and whiz them up in the blender before adding to the soup. I would also double the dumplings -- my pot was big enough around to cook all at once, although I only made a single batch to start and after everyone had been served, I put the soup back on the stove and added another batch of dumplings :-) I might also cut back on the oregano just a little -- it wasn't overpowering, but it was a little strong for my liking - I'm not a big fan.
Other than that -- this was a keeper. I really like the chickpeas in it - something a little different than black beans or pintos that are more traditionally mexican.
It really doesn't need bread or crackers because of the dumplings, or chips and salsa because that's kind of what the soup is with the tomatoes, onions, and cilantro. I would think a nice green salad would go nicely, or even a pineapple/carrot/orange or a citrus style salad would be nice.
PS -- the cilantro and lime really make this awesome - the cheese too, but I could do without it. Definitely don't skip the lime or cilantro! Even if it's just a little bit.
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