Summer Lunch, #49 and 50

I had planned to make tomato rasam and chapati or roti, but with a lot of leftover bread from dinner last night and knowing we're having home-made pizza tonight, I decided on a somewhat lighter lunch. I still made the tomato rasam, and along with it drank some refreshing limeade with real brown sugar.

The rasam, a slightly spicy (which for me is pretty spicy) soup from The 30 Minute Vegan's Taste of the East by Mark Reinfeld and Jennifer Murray is pretty awesome. It is only the second recipe I've made from that book, and the first, a potato and spinach recipe that I was hoping would approximate the same dish I love at Saffron, was an utter failure. I couldn't eat more than a couple of bites. This was much different. I used canned tomato instead of fresh (mine moulded on the counter last night!) and I'd recommend waiting for the soup to cool about 10 minutes before eating, but it was amazing, if a touch spicy for me. The second bowl tasted better to me than the first, and after my second bowl I kept eating extra spoonfuls from the pot! Next time I make it, I think I will lessen the mustard seeds a touch as well, and maybe add the cilantro at the end, since I didn't have any on hand today. I'd give it an A. Some wilted spinach might make a good addition, too.

Cooling down my sensitive taste buds was a real brown sugar limeade from the drinks chapter in Viva Vegan. It uses a pure brown sugar called panela to make the syrup, along with 1/2 cup of freshly squeezed lime juice. I added about 25% more water than the recipe stated, and once I weakened it that bit, it was lovely. How refreshing and summery!

So here it is! I have made it to 50 new recipes this summer! I still plan on trying to hit 100, even if it lands me late in fall. When I do reach 100 I will celebrate with a run down post explaining what I liked most, least, and what has become a regular part of my cooking. Maybe I can at some point start posting original recipes too, eh?