Good Day Spicers,
I would like to pass along two easy to follow meal ideas. The first easy meal idea is Mushroom Soup Your Way. The second is an Easy Curry Rice. The Mushroom Soup Your Way has been aptly named because any one of the following seasoning blends from High Vibe Kitchen can be used: our Cowboy Blues, One Love BBQ, Spanish Sage Or the Pepper Fennelman or Just One Bite Latin BBQ from our Exclusive line. We have tried them all!
In this video, I went out on a limb and tried using one final blend in the mushroom soup to see if the flavor profiles would work out - I tried our Jamaican Jerk seasoning, which is one of my favorite blends. It makes uniquely flavorful grilled meats and vegetables. Furthermore, with a simple drizzle of honey, a squeeze of lime and a sprinkle of salt - its flavor becomes extraordinary.
You'll also notice in the video that I went easy on the seasoning at first and then added more seasoning later in the cooking process. I was in experimental mode. Additionally, I used 1 large onion, 3 large carrots and a full pound of mushrooms so the broth needed additional seasoning to add depth to the plethora of vegetables.
On a side note, all of our seasonings are specifically designed for freestyle, intuitive and experimental cooking styles because with these blends you simply cannot make a mistake, even if you think you can't cook! If your dish needs more flavor, just give it an extra sprinkle or two of your favorite blend and a sprinkle of salt. For the really adventurous, you can also combine our blends with one another to achieve an endless array of flavor profiles.
In this mushroom soup, we used a beautiful King Black Oyster Mushroom cluster from Third Kingdom Mushrooms which was flavorful and super meaty. At Everything Natural's Fall Health Expo, we served this mushroom soup with our Easy Curry Rice and we put out a bowl of Tzatziki for the shoppers to sample. We then replicated the same meal at Steamtown Hot Yoga's Happy Hour but switched out the seasonings for the Mushroom Soup. At both events, the meal was a real crowd pleaser. I think people really appreciated the vibrancy and layers of seasonings. Personally, I love that I can prepare this entire nourishing meal in under 30 minutes—rice and tzatziki included. You can literally have the soup ready in less than 15 minutes if all of your vegetables are prepped ahead of time.
In this video, the vegetables are lightly cooked and only enough to impart their subtle flavors to the creamy coconut broth. The seasonings are the heavy weight flavor-makers in this soup. The three primary vegetables that are used in this dish are onions, carrots and mushrooms. If you would like to add any other vegetables such as garlic, celery or cooked white beans, go for it! Personally, I love the pop of sweet peas.
If you decide to make this tasty dish, you'll begin by sweating the onions and carrots together on medium heat for about 5-7 minutes or until the onions become slightly translucent. Then add your mushrooms and give it all a stir. Next, sprinkle in 2 - 4 Tablespoons of your favorite seasoning blend (or more if you're just craving rich bold flavor) and two teaspoons of salt —later adding more salt to taste as necessary. Using a good quality salt is important because it imparts beneficial trace minerals while bringing all of the individual elements and flavors of a dish together! Lastly, you will add one can of full-fat coconut milk and about 1/4 cup of water.
Give it another stir and let it all simmer together on medium heat for 5-7 minutes more so the mushrooms have time to soften and impart their earthy goodness. At this point you can fold in some defrosted frozen peas, baby spinach, arugula, fresh herbs or a handful of scallions and turn off the heat. The latter vegetables do not need to "cook" per se. They just need to heat through and wilt from the carry-over heat. I prefer my vegetables to be cooked al'dente. If you prefer softer vegetables, just cook the soup a bit longer. Keep in mind that you may need to add a little bit more water as some of the moisture will evaporate during the cooking process.
The beauty of not over-cooking vegetables is two fold. By not over-cooking them, they retain more nutrients and enzymes. Additionally, if you have any leftovers or plan to portion out your leftovers for meal prep, they will store, reheat and taste just as good on day 2, 3 or even on day 4.
For a little fun fact, carrots contain fat soluble vitamin A — meaning their nutrients are best absorbed by the body when they are cooked and combined with a fat. For this reason, coconut milk and spices provides a perfect medium in which to cook carrots!
I am also including our Easy Curry Rice video because this rice is a perfect side dish for both this mushroom soup and so many other dishes. While filming these videos, I enjoyed topping the curry rice with our Persian Princess Tzatziki, scallions and sliced lox. I have also enjoyed it with wilted greens & toasted cashews served with sliced mangoes, yogurt and avocado. For the most basic eaters, it is perfectly delicious with beans & rice, grilled chicken and/or fish. It's a well-seasoned canvas, for sure!
Hope you enjoy these little videos! Have a blessed week!
~Rebekah
