Cooking this soup today came about by trying to use up some carrots from my fridge before I head out for holiday travel (and using up some other pantry staples and things I had on hand - an always have on hand - made me realize this is a great pantry soup for when I think there's nothing to make). One should note that it takes about 45-50 minutes to cook, but once everything is in the pot, it's all unattended cooking. So the hands-on time is no more than 10 minutes with chopping and sautéing.

This cumin and coriander-scented soup starts off with sautéed onions and then some garlic. Mmmm... the house smells so good already. It almost covers up the smell of caulk from having our old wood-rotted windows replaced and new ones put in yesterday.

The lentils used here are red lentils and the rice is brown rice. FINALLY... a recipe that already included brown rice and the consideration of the time it takes to cook said brown rice. I usually try to sub out any recipe calling for white rice with brown and although it should be simple to do, sometimes I forget to read ahead and I end up walking on the side you don't want to be on that thin line of having figured it out or having crunchy rice in your soup. Ick. So I am so happy to have found this recipe.

The notes I made in my book for future preparations are to (1) use less salt if I'm using the Rapunzel with salt. It was a bit salty but I'll still gladly eat it this time around and (2) use much less acid at the end (the recipe called for fresh squeezed lemon but I only had lime and even a half of a lime was plenty for me).

I will likely double this recipe next time so I have enough to serve and then enough leftovers to freeze and use for another future Soup Night.

I forgot to mention that adding some chopped spinach or chard would be a great way to get your lentils, whole grain, and greens all in one bowl. :D

 favorite

I was initially reluctant to try this recipe, as I am not a great fan of mashed potato, but because it is a suggested accompaniment to so many other recipes in this book I gave it go. Glad I did, because it is really, really tasty. The cauliflower lightens up the potato a lot, so it doesn't feel heavy and stodgy. I did a garlic herb version and loved it, looking to try garden variety style next time.

This recipe was fantastic. Using the corn cobs in the broth is really effective. I used only 1 tbspn of curry powder and found it was the right amount, as opposed to 2 tbspns (called for in the recipe) which I used for the second batch- too much.

This recipe is perfect for a Sunday afternoon when you have a little more time. It was a great introduction to nutritional yeast flakes. I think I could have added a little more tomato sauce as mine was slightly dry, but otherwise this was a great, light version of lasagna.

The most delicious way to eat brussels Sprouts!