The Nourishing Gourmet

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Gluten Free

Creamy Curry Red Lentil Soup

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This creamy, dairy-free soup is frugal and comforting on a cold winter’s night. Cumin, garlic, ginger, and curry powder all help give this soup a robust flavor profile, while the balsamic vinegar provides just the right tang. 

Red lentils cook up in a hurry, making this a wonderful last-minute meal. I love lentils as they are full of essential nutrients, a frugal source of protein, and are delicious too! 

I add gelatin to the soup to add more protein, but that’s optional. This soup is easily made with broth or water, vegetarian or not. 

Serve with muffins, bread, or over brown rice, and a large salad for a complete meal. For those on THM, this makes a wonderful “E” Meal.

Tips

For easy blending, use an immersion blender.

For more protein and collagen, use the optional gelatin. This is a good brand.

I like to keep all of the ingredients for this soup on hand. They are easily made into a variety of dishes, and I can also make this soup for last-minute meals!

Other Soup Recipes 

Creamy Curry Red Lentil Soup

  • 1-2 tablespoons fat or oil of choice 
  • 3 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced 
  • 1 onion, peeled and chopped 
  • 3 celery, thinly sliced 
  • 3-6 garlic cloves, peeled and minced 
  • 2 cups red lentils, rinsed in a fine sieve (remove any small pebbles, if there are any)
  • 8 cups broth or water 
  • 1 heaping teaspoon cumin 
  • 1 heaping teaspoon dried ginger or one tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger 
  • 2 teaspoon curry powder 
  • ¼ cup of gelatin in 1 cup of cool water, optional
  • Around 1 – 2 tablespoons of salt 
  • 2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar 

1. In a large pot, add the fat/oil (just enough to lightly cover the bottom of the pot) and turn on medium heat until the fat is just hot. Add the carrots, onion, and celery, and lightly sprinkle with salt. Stir here and there, and cook until the vegetables start to soften (about five minutes) and add the garlic and cook for one or two more minutes. 

2. Add the red lentils and broth/water, turn heat to high, and bring to a simmer. Turn down to keep at a gentle simmer. Remove with a large spoon any foam that may come to the surface of the soup. 

3. Add the spices. Simmer for around twenty minutes, or until the lentils are soft. 

4. Stir together the gelatin and the water, soften for a few minutes. Stir into the soup, along with salt (to taste, you will need more if you used water) and balsamic vinegar. 

5. For a creamier texture blend part or all of the soup. The easiest way to accomplish this is to use an immersion blender, which you can put right into your pot for easy blending. OR, carefully scoop out some of the soup, and blend in a blender (follow procedures for your specific blender for how to do this safely. For my blender, I vent it, and only fill halfway, and blend on low to start). For blending in a blender, you will need to do at least several batches. I blend about half of the soup. 

6. Check the flavor, and adjust with salt, vinegar, or pepper, and enjoy!

Healthy Pumpkin Spice Granola

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bowl of pumpkin spice granola

This granola is gently spiced, sweetened with pure maple syrup, stuffed with goodness, and is the perfect fall breakfast or snack. I’ve long been a big fan of granola on top of yogurt, but my kids love it with milk. Either way, it’s delicious! We’ve also been known to snack on it plain too.

For those using Trim Healthy Mama (THM) principles, make sure you check out my other version for my THM Pumpkin Spice Granola recipe. 

One note: 

I’ve included two options here. One with pumpkin, and one with a nut or seed butter. It’s a bit of a hot debate, but really, when we call a recipe “pumpkin spice” it’s referring to the spice blend, also known as “pumpkin pie spice.” You don’t have to have the pumpkin, for it to be considered a “pumpkin spice” recipe! 

I made many batches of this granola while I was recipe testing, and here is the difference between the two: The version using pumpkin is just slightly less crunchy, but all of my family favored it a little more than the nut or seed-butter version. The pumpkin flavor will be subtle here, and not overpowering, but still there. 

The seed or nut-butter version is wonderful because of that added protein, and the heartiness it adds, so is another good option, especially when you don’t have any pumpkin on hand! 

Not a fan of the spice blend? You can also just use cinnamon! 

granola bar with fruit and yogurt

Serving Suggestion: 

You can serve this as fancy or as simple as you like. For a fun little spread, you can make a granola “bar” using chopped fruit, yogurt, and milk. 

Healthy Pumpkin Spice Granola (Gluten-free, nut-free option) 

  • 3 cups rolled oats (gluten-free, organic, if desired, you can also use sprouted)
  • 1 cup of pumpkin or sunflower seeds OR chopped nut of choice, such as pecan or walnut (optional) 
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
  • ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice 
  • ¼ teaspoon salt 
  • ¼ melted coconut oil
  • ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup 
  • ¼ cup canned or fresh pumpkin puree OR ¼ cup nut or seed butter of choice (we recipe tested with sunflower seed butter, for a nut-free option. 
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla 
  1. Preheat the oven to 300F. Line a jelly roll pan or cookie pan with parchment paper. 
  2. In a large bowl, combine the oats, seeds, spices, salt and mix gently. 
  3. Melt the coconut oil until just melted in a coffee cup in the microwave, or in a small saucepan on the stove over low. Stir in the maple syrup, pumpkin or seed butter, and vanilla. Pour over oat mixture, and gently stir until coated. 
  4. Scrap onto pan, and spread evenly. Cook for twenty minutes, stir gently, and then cook for another ten minutes. Check the granola. If it seems like it is crisping up, remove. If it seems moist, cook for another ten minutes. In our testing, it was perfect with the seed butter at 30 minutes, and with the pumpkin at 40 minutes. It will continue to crisp after you remove it from the oven. 
  5. Cool and serve. Store in an air-tight container.

Crispy Pumpkin Spice Granola (oil-free)

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This low-fat, THM, yet delicious granola recipe is bursting with spice and pumpkin, and is sure to make your house smell heavenly while it bakes. I LOVE it especially on top of yogurt. I’ll make myself a yogurt bowl with diced apples (or whatever other fruit I desire) and granola. 

It’s a lovely snack or breakfast. It’s perfect for a “E” meal on Trim Healthy Mama (THM), or for those of you looking for a lighter granola recipe. For a THM snack or meal, serve this with fruit and Nonfat Greek Yogurt. If you use a higher fat yogurt it will be a XO (crossover) meal. 

I first learned about this little trick of using egg whites instead of oil from THM recipes. It’s a clever trick, because with the right recipe, they will crisp up in a way that I didn’t think possible without oil. It’s not quite as crisp as with oil, but perfectly lovely all the same. 

I save this version of granola for me, and make this version for my family. They love it! I will make both of these types at the same time, and cook them on separate plans. 

One quick note: For a recipe to be a pumpkin spice recipe, you technically don’t have to use the pumpkin, as it’s really referring to the spice. However, we actually liked the pumpkin puree version better. It’s not quite as crunchy as when we left it out, but it adds so much flavor that it’s worth it. Feel free to leave it out though! I tested this several times without it, and it was great. 

For other THM granola recipes, here’s a shortlist from other bloggers: 

Crispy Pumpkin Spice Granola (oil-free)

  • 2 cups rolled oats (not quick, gluten-free and organic, if desired. You can also use sprouted))
  • ¼ cup erythritol or xylitol, OR 1 tablespoon of THM Super Sweet Blend 
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon 
  • ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice 
  • Sprinkle of salt 
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla 
  • 2 egg whites (4 tablespoons) 
  • 2 tablespoons of pumpkin puree (optional)
  1. Preheat the oven to 300F degrees, and line a sheet pan or cookie sheet with parchment paper. 
  2. Combine the oats, sweetener, spices, and salt, in a medium bowl and give a stir. 
  3. Combine the egg whites, pumpkin puree, if using, and vanilla, whisk together, and then pour over the oat mixture. Gently mix until it is coated. If it’s super dry, you can add a little more egg white, but the mixture will be dryer than oil-based granola recipes. 
  4. Scrape onto prepared pan, and place in oven (near the middle). Cook for twenty minutes, gently stir, then cook for another 10-20 minutes, or until the oats are dryer. They will continue to crisp up after they cool. 
  5. Store in an airtight container once done.

Vietnamese Beef Noodle Salad

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This refreshing, gluten-free salad is full of flavor with the punch of rice vinegar, the saltiness of fish sauce, the sweetness of honey or sweetener of choice, and the herby savoriness of cilantro and/or basil. It also happens to be one of my favorite meals right now. Not only is it delicious, but it is packed with nutrients! 





While, yes, I eat this just because it’s so good, I also aimed to get a rainbow of produce in this recipe, which adds not only more flavor but also important nutrients, antioxidants, and a wide variety of fiber sources. Win-win! 





The other aspect I love about all of the added vegetables is that it helps you stay with an appropriate amount of noodles. We often want a huge plateful of pasta — with this recipe, you can have a large plate of pasta, but half of it is vegetables! 





This recipe also works for those of you who are on THM (Trim Healthy Mama) as an “E” meal. 





We’ve eaten this meal many times through the summer, and it’s perfect for hot weather, but we eat it year-round. 





I named this a Vietnamese recipe, although I do want to clarify that this isn’t a claim to being an authentic Vietnamese recipe, but rather, I’ve used some of the flavor profiles and sauce inspiration from Vietnamese cuisine. 





Notes on the recipe: 





  • Traditionally, a recipe like this would have used white rice noodles, such as rice sticks. I am using whole grain brown rice noodles. You can get something like these stir-fry Thai Kitchen brown rice noodles, though I have been using brown rice fettuccine noodles, as they are cheaper and similar in taste and texture. 
  • This will need to be served right away. If you aren’t serving it right away, you can keep the elements of the recipe separate, and toss right before serving (toss the noodles with a bit of the sauce and/or oil to keep them from sticking before storing them, however, or simply make the other elements – the sauce, the meat, and the chopped vegetables, and cook the noodles right before serving. 





Notes on THM: 





  • While technically you are supposed to use 96% lean meat for an E meal on THM, because I don’t add any fat to this recipe, I use the 93% grasssfed ground beef that I find locally and I think that works well for fat limits for an E meal. If you don’t use a lean meat here, it counts as a cross-over (XO). 
  • Honey isn’t encouraged on THM when in weight loss mode, but the ¼ a cup of honey here is pretty small per serving. I’ve tested this with both honey and xylitol, and both worked very well. Allulose should work perfectly too (and is dog-safe, unlike xylitol). 
  • Brown rice noodles are on plan on THM, but you are encouraged to watch your blood sugar when eating them, if you are sensitive, and to keep your portions small. This recipe works well, because it mixes vegetables with the noodles for a filling meal, without leaning completely on the noodles. 
  • Cassava noodles are not considered on-plan for THM, but for those grain-free, some find that they do well with occasional cassava noodles (cassava is also a wonderful prebiotic fiber!). Some other grain-free noodle options to play with are here. 










Vietnamese Beef Noodle Salad 





Serves: 6-8





Ingredients: 





Meat:





  • 1 lb ground beef (96% or up, for an E meal)
  • 1 tsp dried ginger
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 2 tbsp rice vinegar
  • 1 tbsp tamari or coconut aminos or fish sauce
  • Optional: 1 tsp onion powder and 1 tsp garlic powder
  • Optional: pinch or two of red pepper flakes
  • Add more coconut aminos/tamari/fish sauce, and vinegar to taste





Sauce/Dressing





  • Scant ¼ cup honey or ¼ cup xylitol. Other options: Allulose, or of-plan organic white sugar
  • ½ cup hot or warm water
  • ½ cup rice vinegar
  • ¼ cup fish sauce
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely minced
  • Scant 1 tsp dried ginger
  • Pinch of cayenne pepper





Salad





  • 8-12 oz dried pasta *
  • 2 cucumbers
  • 3-6 green onions
  • 2 large bell peppers (red, yellow, or orange)
  • 1 bunch of cilantro
  • Optional: a few handfuls of (Thai) basil
  • 4 cups shredded or thinly sliced cabbage





*We usually use brown rice noodles, but I also tried this with 8 ounces of cassava noodles for a grain-free option. Both worked! But the cassava needs to especially be eaten right away as it will get mushy if left to sit. Cassava noodles aren’t on THM, although some use it as a personal choice option if needed.





Directions:





  1. Make the sauce by first stirring together the hot or warm water with the sweetener of choice. Add the rest of the ingredients. Set aside.
  2. Prep the vegetables: Peel the cucumbers and cut into small wedges. Seed and thinly slice the sweet bell peppers. Thinly slice cabbage, chop the green onions (removing the top two inches and discarding), and wash the cilantro, remove the stems, and chop.
  3. Cook pasta according to box directions, but make sure you salt well. While the pasta cooks make up the ground beef, adding the seasoning as it cooks, and stirring frequently.
  4. Drain the pasta once just tender, and rinse with cold water. Drain well. Add to a large bowl with the vegetables, and then toss with the dressing.
  5. Serve right away. You can also add more rice vinegar and fish sauce to add more flavor if needed. Over time, the noodles will start absorbing the sauce, so, if needed, you can add a bit more vinegar and either tamari, coconut amino acids, or fish sauce, to taste.