Sneaky Veggie & Beef Soup (paleo)
We all know that some kids are better at eating their vegetables than others. Well, If you happen to have a picky eater in your house, then this recipe is for you. Why do I call it Sneaky Veggie and Beef Soup? Because I sneak 3 stalks of celery, one whole red bell pepper, and 3 packed cups of hearty kale leaves in this dish, but all of the vegetables are blended into a purée before cooking, so nobody would ever know! With the fresh, familiar flavors of tangy lime, smokey cumin, and sweet red bell pepper, this sneaky soup sure pleased all three of my guys at dinner last night, and Nikhil (my fussy one) had no clue that he was eating green vegetables.
To make a meal out of it, I served our soup over jasmine rice that I spiced with a quarter teaspoon each of turmeric and cinnamon, and my two year old gobbled up his first serving and quickly went in for seconds. If you can tolerate dairy (lucky you!), I'd bet that a dollop of sour cream would be a divine accompaniment. And if you are eating Paleo or grain free as I am these days, you could enjoy this delicious soup alone, with slices of ripe avocado, or with some roasted squash or sweet potatoes. No matter how you decide to enjoy your Sneaky Soup, I hope you and your family loves it as much as mine!
INGREDIENTS:
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 pound grass fed ground beef*
1/4 cup dried onion or 1/2 cup fresh yellow or white onion, finely diced (I used dried onion because that's all that I had in the house. Be sure it's dried onion flakes, and not onion powder.)
1 large red bell pepper, seeds removed, roughly chopped
3 large stalks celery, roughly chopped
3 packed cups kale leaves
4 cloves garlic, peeled
2 cups chicken broth**
1.5 tbsp ground cumin
1/2-1 tsp sea salt (depends on your preference and how salty your broth is)
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves
* If you don't care for beef, ground turkey would be a great substitute.
**If you use reduced sodium broth, you'll most likely need to add extra salt at the end to achieve the right flavor.
DIRECTIONS:
Pour 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil into a large soup pot and heat over a medium setting. Add in the dried onion or fresh onion plus your ground beef, and begin to break the beef apart with a wooden spoon. Continue cooking the beef over medium-low heat, crumbling the meat as much as possible, and stirring everything to allow the onions to cook through until at least translucent, if you used fresh onions. If you used dried onions, they will do their thing and turn a little golden brown.
While the beef and onions are cooking, prepare your vegetables: Place the red bell pepper, celery, garlic, and chicken broth in your blender cup, and process until everything is blended into a smooth puree. Add in the kale leaves, and blend again until the kale is pureed (you could try adding all of the veggies on the first try, but kale is pretty bulky so it might not all fit). You'll have a somewhat frothy, watery, strange looking liquid, but don't worry- this will all cook down and turn into a beautiful soup.
Once the beef and onion have cooked through, add the pureed veggies and broth mixture, ground cumin and 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt to the pot. Give everything a good stir, and then bring it to a boil. Once you've reached a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, and let it cook uncovered for about 20-30 minutes until the liquid has reduced and you're left with a rich, somewhat thick soup. The consistency of the soup will be almost as thick as chili, but definitely "soupier."
Once you've reached a consistency that you're happy with, turn off the heat and stir in the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and fresh lime juice. Ladle into bowls and garnish with fresh cilantro leaves. Enjoy!
Khima Matar aka Beef & Peas Curry
This is one of my all-time favorite dishes. We ate a lot of khima matar growing up, and I remember both my grandmother and my mom making it. It's nourishing, comforting, deeply satisfying, and I often crave it when I'm feeling rundown. The sweetness of the green peas pairs nicely with the rich, full bodied flavor of the spiced beef in such a perfect way that not only do Ben and I love it, but both of my little guys gobble this up (especially my 14 month old!). I usually serve this with my spiced jasmine rice for Ben and the boys, and then toss some steamed sweet potatoes in coconut oil for myself, to keep my meal paleo. I know that peas are controversial in the paleo world, but they seem to work well for me if eaten in moderation. Feel free to omit the peas if you don't care for them- this curry is still absolutely delicious without them.
INGREDIENTS:
2 tbsp unrefined virgin coconut oil 1 medium yellow onion finely diced (a little more than 1 cup, packed) 1 pound grass fed ground beef 1 tbsp ground cumin 1 1/2 tsp ground turmeric 4 Roma tomatoes 2 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped 3 large garlic cloves, or 4 smaller ones, peeled 1 1/2 tsp sea salt, more or less to taste 1 1/2 cups frozen peas 1 1/4 tsp garam masala 1-2 tbsp fresh lemon juice 1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro
In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, melt the coconut oil over medium heat. Place the onions in the pot with a pinch of salt and saute them until they are golden brown, stirring frequently to prevent burning. This is the most time consuming step of this recipe (it takes me about 15-20 minutes), but it's well worth the effort. I think of browning the onions as creating the foundation for your curry. It lends a depth and sweetness to the dish that you will definitely miss if you skip this step.
While your onions are cooking, puree the tomatoes, ginger, and garlic in a food processor or blender, and set aside. I use a blender to do this, and my puree comes to almost exactly 2.5 cups.
Next, add the ground beef to your browned onions, crumble the beef with a wooden spoon, then stir in the cumin and turmeric. Reduce the heat to medium-low to ensure that the spices don’t burn, and cook the beef until it is no longer pink.
Add the pureed tomato mix to your beef mixture, along with the frozen peas, garam masala, and salt. Mix well, then cover your pot and allow everything to simmer for 30 minutes or more on the lowest setting. The longer it has to simmer, the better the flavors will meld.
Check for salt just before serving. If you don’t taste the spices, you probably need more salt. Stir in some fresh lemon juice and as much chopped cilantro as you'd like. Serve your peas and beef curry with spiced jasmine rice, or steamed sweet potatoes. A side of ripe avocado pairs nicely with this dish as well. We rarely have leftovers after eating this for dinner, but when we do, it's even tastier the next day.
On a side note...
These are some Molokai sweet potatoes that I picked up at my neighborhood farmers market. I had never tried this variety before, but I steamed them and loved their vibrant color after cooking. Molokai sweet potatoes are indeed sweet, and have a subtle, almost floral flavor along with a dense texture that makes them super satisfying to eat.
I want to know about the special finds at YOUR local farmers markets. What's currently in season in your part of the world that you're enjoying right now?