[Game of Thrones Special Recipe] Harrenhal Vegetable Stew

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"Winter is coming"..

"A Lannister always pays his debts"..

"When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die"..

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As someone who got into a reading habit pretty late (in her 20's), fantasy genre never appealed to me much. I read Harry Potter in parts and never touched The Lord of the Rings!. My natural inclination is towards fiction with either lots of drama (The Notebook) or suspense (The Thirteenth Tale). My book choices are pretty predictable and never-out-of-the-box. Then 3 years ago, I accidentally stumbled upon George R. R Martin's Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice & Fire series). It was an intimidating set of books with 1000+ pages each and very hesitatingly I started reading on my e-reader. The story of GoT, set in medieval times is filled with swords, sex, gothic creatures and characters hungry for power - always. There are too many Houses to remember and worst of all, as soon as you start liking a(ny) character, the author invariably kills it. Ugh. Anyhow, soon I found myself drawn into this fantasy world to such an extent, that it was very hard to get out. Every chapter had a cliff hanger at the end and it was impossible to resist NOT to read the next one. 

Coming to today's recipe - Harrenhal Vegetable Stew, I have to say whether you are a fan of the show or not, it will appeal to all. Just cut the veggies in season, dump everything into a stock pot and let it simmer. Store the rest in refrigerator and enjoy during those crazy weeknight dinners. (If you were me, while watching an episode of GoT). :-)

Barley Lentil Chunky Soup

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Barley Lentil Chunky Soup

Fall is all around us and during these cold, rainy, gloomy days - we need something that provides some warmth to our sullen bodies and pep us up. Hence this Barley Lentil Chunky soup which is in-short a 'store-house' of all essential nutrients. I made this soup for the first time for dinner in the beginning of the week and served it yesterday for lunch again along with toasted 3-seed Sourdough bread. I have gotten some rave reviews from my other-half. Give this a try and just like me, your loyalty to it forever is guaranteed!

Note: The soup keeps up to 7 days in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer, which makes it a wholesome make-ahead meal ready to be served on those busy weeknights. 

Adapted from here.

Preparation:

1. Rinse and Drain 1/2 cup of green or brown lentils. (I used green).

2. Chop up 1/2 cup of onion, 1 cup of cubed carrots and 1 cup of (fresh or frozen) spinach. Mince 1 clove of garlic.

3. Heat 1 tsp of olive oil in a big sauce pan, saute chopped onion for 3-4 mins. Add in carrots and cook for 5-6 mins, until a bit soft. Add garlic, mix and saute for 2 mins. Season with salt  and add washed lentils, 1/2 cup of pearl barley, 3/4 cup chopped tomatoes, 1 tsp of cumin powder, 2 cups of vegetable broth and  2 cups of water. Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for atleast 25-30 mins or until tender.

Note: If you are using instant pearl barley, then adjust the time accordingly.

4. Finally add spinach and cook for 5- 6 mins. Season with salt (if needed) & pepper and 1 tbsp vinegar.

5. Garnish with cilantro and/or serve with a dollop of yogurt as topping. Yum!

P.S - Don't worry about the proportions. Just keep tasting as you-go. this recipe is very wholesome and very forgiving with measurements. :-)

Variations:

1. Add some fresh lemon juice, instead of vinegar for some tangyness.
2. Dried herbs like thyme, rosemary, basil work very well too.
3. Lentils can be easily substituted with any kind of legumes.

Sending this piping hot soup to My Legume Love Affair # 30, guest hosted this month by Priya, originally conceptualized by Susan of 'The Well Seasoned Cook'.

Hope you all have a relaxing weekend ahead.

until next time,
Siri