Coconut-Curry Chicken Soup

image from myrecipes.com

(from Cooking Light via my mother-in-law)

Ingredients:

4 cups water
3 cups fresh spinach leaves
1/2 lb. snow peas, trimmed and cut in half crosswise (I used frozen peas)
1 package (5 3/4 ounce) pad thai noodles (wide rice stick noodles)
1 tablespoon canola oil
1/4 cup thinly slice shallots
2 teaspoons red curry paste
1 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon ground tumeric
1/2 teaspoon ground corriander
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups light chicken broth (I used regular)
1 can (13.5 ounce) light coconut milk (I used regular)
2 1/2 cups shredded chicken breasts (about 1 lb.)
1/2 cup chopped green onions
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
4 small hot red chiles, seeded and chopped, or 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper (I omitted, for a non-spicy version for kiddos)
7 lime wedges

Directions:

Bring water to boil in a large sauce pan. Add spinach and peas; cook for 30 seconds. Remove vegetables from pan with a slotted spoon; place in a large bowl. Add noodles to pan; cook 3 minutes. Drain; add noodles to spinach mixture in bowl.

Heat canola oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add shallots and the next 5 ingredients (through garlic) to pan; saute 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add chicken broth to pan, and bring to a boil. Add coconut milk to pan; reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Add chicken, onions, sugar, and fish sauce to pan; cook for 2 minutes. Pour chicken mixture over noodle mixture in bowl (I added the noodle mixute to my pan instead). Stir in cilantro and chiles. Serve with lime wedges.

Yield: 7 servings

Looks lengthy, but goes together quickly. And very yummy flavor.

Curried Shrimp

I love curry and so does my husband. I take no credit for this recipe, but I did find it at MarthaStewart.com. And I don't know about you, but I love to see a photo of what it should look like. Made it last night and I loved it.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 2 oranges
• 1 pound large shrimp, tails on, peeled and deveined
• 1 tablespoon hot curry powder
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt, plus more to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, plus more to taste
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 2 stalks celery, strings removed, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 cup tomato juice
• 1/2 cup heavy cream or yogurt
• Sprigs fresh oregano, for garnish

Directions

1. Using a citrus zester or the small holes of a box grater, zest oranges. Squeeze juice of oranges into a small bowl. Set zest and juice aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine half of the zest with shrimp, 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Toss to coat.
3. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Cook shrimp until bright pink, 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate.
4. Heat remaining tablespoon oil. Add onion, celery, oregano, and remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder; cook until onion is translucent, about 4 minutes. Add orange and tomato juices; cook until liquid starts to thicken, about 8 minutes.
5. Return the shrimp to saute pan, and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes. Stir in the cream. Add the remaining orange zest; season with salt and pepper. Garnish with fresh oregano, and serve.

Happy Eating, Eva