Curried Split Pea & Lentil Soup + Whole Wheat Beer Batter Bread

It was a cooled down, rainy Sunday evening, and I felt like making some fresh bread and soup. This is my clean out the fridge adaptation of the Angelica Home Kitchen cookbook’s Curried Golden Split Pea Soup. My recipe makes about a double batch of what theirs does too, only with less water. The beer batter bread recipe below is a little variation of my regular one, only adding vital wheat gluten to balance out using all white whole wheat flour. The combination of both of these made the house smell awesome!

Curried Split Pea & Lentil Soup

3 c. split peas and/or lentils, picked through & rinsed
(I used about 3/4 c. each of golden & green split peas and 1.5 c. of red lentils)
12 c. of filtered water
2 – 3″ pieces of kombu (seaweed)

extra virgin olive oil for misting pan
1 medium onion, chopped finely
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped finely
6 small carrots, peeled and chopped finely
4-5 celery hearts, chopped finely
2 tbsp. good curry powder
2.5 tsp. sea salt, plus more to taste
fresh ground pepper

Directions:

1. In a large dutch oven (5.5qt) or stock pot, bring 12 c. of water, seaweed, and peas/lentils up to a boil over high heat. Cover, and lower heat to simmer for 1 hour.

2. Meanwhile chop up all other ingredients. With 20 minutes left of the simmer, heat a large skillet to medium and mist with olive oil. Saute for 5 minutes, cover and sweat at low heat for 15 minutes.

3. Add vegetable mixture to soup and simmer for another 10 minutes, adjusting seasonings if necessary.

Whole Wheat Beer Batter Bread

3 c. white whole wheat flour
2 tbsp. of vital wheat gluten
1/4 c. (4 tbsp.) brown sugar, optional for a little sweetness
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 bottle of beer at room temperature (i like yuengling. you can always pop it in the microwave to warm it up!)
3 tbsp. melted vegan butter

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375*F and grease a loaf pan.

1. In a large mixing bowl combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder and salt. Pour beer into dry mix, and stir until combined. The batter will look lumpy.

2. Turn dough into prepared loaf pan and drizzle top with melted butter. Bake for 40 minutes, or until cake tester inserted into center comes out clean.

3. Let it rest in the pan for about 5 minutes, and then place on cooling rack. Eat it as soon as it’s cool enough to handle : )