hot salad & other stories: shifting into soup mode

Having had my top wisdom teeth taken out this week means that I’ve been eating a lot of soft foods this week, but thankfully the fall weather makes the soup options feel more OK. Monday night, pre-appointment, I made a giant pot of pureed vegetable soup with leeks, carrots, zucchini, onions, ginger… everything that smells good. Three days later, I’m already bored of the flavor and looking for ways to change it up. Enter: curry ramen. I can easily nosh on super soft noodles, 7 minute eggs, and cilantro chopped really small. Whether you make your own Japanese curry paste or just use the powdered is fine, the end result should be comforting and totally slurpable.
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CURRY RAMEN
1 onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
2–3 stalks celery, diced
1 large thumb ginger, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium zucchini, diced
2–3 leeks, cleaned and chopped small
2–3 squares of Japanese curry paste, or 1–2 tablespoons curry powder
1 cup cooked lentils, optional, for protein
3–4 cups stock or water
Cooked noodles of your choice
Toppings: soft boiled egg, wakame or nori pieces, cilantro, lime wedges

- Start the sofrito. In a large pot, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, and celery. Stir occasionally until the vegetables have cooked down and begun to brown. Add the ginger and garlic. Cook a few minutes more.
- Add the zucchini and leeks. Stir together, let cook until the vegetables begin to soften. Stir in the curry paste/powder, and cook for 10 minutes. Add salt if the curry paste/powder doesn’t have any.
- Add the cooked lentils, if using. Add the stock and water. Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes.
- Purée everything with an immersion blender, taste for salt.
- Place your noodles in a big bowl, and ladle hot curry in. Top with a soft egg, nori, cilantro, and a squeeze of lime.

OTHER STORIES
Çilbir: A Turkish egg dish, I make çilbir is even when I’m not on a soft food diet. Poach two eggs. Grate or mince 1–2 cloves of garlic, and warm it in a pan with a few tablespoons of olive oil. To the pan add 1/2 cup yogurt, a pinch of cumin, the juice from 1/2 a lemon, and a bit of water. Whisk to combine. Remove from heat with the yogurt is warm. Spoon the garlic yogurt over the poached eggs. Drizzle chile oil and additional olive oil over the top. Sprinkle with flakey salt and serve with good bread.

Mint Green: Is it weird that I prefer mint chocolate chip ice cream that isn’t dyed a neon green color? Yea, the plant is green, but the fake green color scares me. I search for (and have made) mint ice creams that are either a gentle, more natural color or entirely white like the cream it’s made of.
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I’ve eaten a lot of ice cream this week, healing well and still enjoying the soft food journey.