No Croutons Required Entry Middle Eastern Minestrone

This is an exciting day for us, it's our first entry into a blog competition.  No Croutons Required is a monthly competition run alternately by Lisa's Vegetarian Kitchen from London, Ontario in Canada, (the town I grew up in!) and by Jacqueline of Tinned Tomatoes in Scotland.

There is a different theme each month and for February it's 'Creamy Soup or Salad' and Tinned Tomatoes is the host.   We've made this Middle Eastern Minestrone before but didn't take a photo (probably too hungry) so were happy for the opportunity to make it again and post the blog.  It's creamy and rustic and was an ideal lunch with some crusty bread. 

Middle Eastern Minestrone

Yotam Ottolenghi is a chef with 4 cafes in London, their philosophy is to create food that is familiar and straightforward but highly innovative.  I have been to the cafe in Islington and it is amongst the few places I would choose to eat out, there is a focus on fresh ingredients and the food is the key player and passion, it comes across too.  Yotam was born in Isreal and the focus of most of the dishes shows his culinary roots, this version of his Middle Eastern Minestrone, was adapted to be sattvic, without onions and garlic from a recipe in his weekly vegetarian column in the Guardian. 

His latest cookbook Plenty is vegetarian.





Middle Eastern Minestrone 

125 g dried chickpeas, soaked overnight in water with 1 tbsp baking soda
125 g dried butterbeans, soaked overnight in water with 1 tbsp baking soda
1 stalk of celery, chopped
80g clarified butter
Pinch asafetida 
1.5 tsp turmeric
Salt and black pepper
225 g yellow split peas
2 litres vegetable stock
35 g chopped parsley
35 g chopped coriander
15 g chopped dill
150 g spinach
150 g yoghurt cream
1.5 tbsp white wine vinegar
4 limes, halved for serving

1. Drain and rinse both the chickpeas and the butterbeans, then boil them separately in lots of fresh water until almost cooked, anywhere between 25 to 55 minutes and drain.
2. In a large, heavy bottom pot, saute the celery in butter on medium heat until soft and golden brown, stir in the asafetida, turmeric and some salt and pepper.
3. Add the chickpeas and butterbeans to the pot, then add the split peas and stock.  Simmer for 30 minutes, skimming off the froth occasionally, or until the peas are tender.  Add the herbs and spinach, stir and cook for 15 minutes more, add extra stock or water if the soup is very thick.  Taste and season generously.
4. Stir in the sour cream and vinegar, adjust the seasoning and serve at once, garnished with extra sour cream.   Squeeze limes over each portion.