A Little Help

First Thomas, then Jane, followed by Hannah and finally Theo. All sick. As in fever, hacking cough, aching body, laying on the floor moaning. Bronchitis. That kind of sick. It's no fun to be sick but we all get sick sometimes. Just part of life. Sick children are a challenge and a concern. Sick babies even more so. But when the whole family is sick - at the same time - that is a whole new level of no fun. Where is the person to take care of the people who are sick? Once (long ago and far away) I had pneumonia, 5 young children, and a very busy husband. In a tiny part of my tired brain there was a wish that I could have a mommy come put me to bed, sing me a song, take care of whatever needed taking care of .... or some small part of any of that. Remembering, I wanted to be the person that at least tries to do some small part to help. So I made soup for dinner so Hannah could rest. 

This soup is chock-full of healthy, colorful stuff that looks pretty and tastes fantastic. I added some quinoa, another sweet potato and a little more water to the original recipe. Fast and easy to make -  it is a for sure 'make-again'.

Curried Sweet Potato, Carrot & Red Lentil Soup
( from Dinner with Julie  - with a small addition)


Olive oil, for cooking
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
1/2 cup dry red lentils
2 medium dark- fleshed sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 tsp medium curry powder
4 cups chicken broth
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup plain yogurt, or cream
2 cups water
1/2 cup quinoa


In a large pot, heat a drizzle of oil and saute the onion, garlic and ginger until soft. Add the lentils, sweet potato, carrots, curry, quinoa, water and broth. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until the vegetables are very tender.


Season with salt and pepper, add the yogurt or cream and puree with an immersion blender. Or you can roughly mash it with a potato masher for a chunkier texture.

I also made a simple coleslaw to go with the soup. The crunch of the cabbage and the sweetness of the dressing made a nice counterpoint to the soup. All together there is a lot of really good nutritional value in this meal.

Coleslaw


1/2 head of cabbage, sliced very thinly
2 large carrots, peeled and coarsely grated


Dressing:
1/3 cup plain yogurt
1 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp cider vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper


Whisk the dressing ingredients together and pour over the cabbage and carrots. Toss and serve. This keeps quite well for a couple of days.

(I used some very cool purple carrots - well, the outside of the carrots was purple - in my coleslaw. It was pretty and since more colorful means more good for you, I figure this is really good food.)