Add Some Spice to Your Life

The wealth of knowledge that USU Dietetics students have is amazing. We decided it was time to have their share some of their knowledge with you!  We gave the junior dietetic students  an assignment to write a post for the blog. They had free rein in their topic…but it had to relate to Soup of course! This is a wonderful post written by USU Dietetic student Tracey
Munson about how spices can spice up your soup or life! 




It’s about time we spice up our love life--our love for cooking, that is. Adding a variety of spices to a meal is often overlooked while cooking. We love our salt and pepper shakers, and are so content with them that we forget there’s an array of spices out there. These spices can completely transform a dish, whisking you away to all the different tastes of the world. They allow you to be creative and have fun with cooking. They are the culinary paintbrushes to an otherwise bland canvas.

As if the aroma alone isn’t enough reason to fall for spices, they’re also full of health benefits. Spices are simply dried, ground up seeds, fruit, bark, or vegetables. Since the food is concentrated into a little powder, spices can contribute significant amounts of vitamins with very low calories. The recipe below for Indian Vegetable Soup will not only help you get over a cold, but it will also transport you to a land of Bollywood, bright colors, and curry. So much curry.

Indian Vegetable Soup: 6 to 8 servings (Recipe by Lisa Turner of “Lisa’s Kitchen” at foodandspice.blogspot.com)
Ingredients	Amount	Directions
Olive oil or butter Onion	2 teaspoons 1 large	Heat olive oil or butter over medium heat in a large soup pot. When hot, cook onion, stirring, until the onion begins to brown.
Ginger Chili Peppers Coriander Cumin Cayenne Turmeric Garam Masala* Chili Powder	1-inch piece, fresh, minced Small handful, minced 1 tablespoon 1 teaspoon ½ teaspoon 1 teaspoon 1 teaspoon ½ teaspoon	Add the ginger, chili peppers, ground spices, and stir for a minute.
Potatoes Mushrooms Carrots Vegetable Stock Tomatoes	2 medium, diced 6 to 8, roughly chopped 1 large, diced 4 to 6 cups 2 large, finely chopped	Add the potatoes, mushrooms, carrots, vegetable stock, salt and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes (or until vegetables are tender).
Lemon Juice Coconut Milk Frozen Peas	3 tablespoons (or 1 lemon) ½ cup coconut milk 2/3 cup frozen peas	Add the lemon juice and coconut milk and simmer for another 10 minutes. Add the peas and cook for a few minutes longer.
Fresh Parsley	2 tablespoons, chopped	Stir in fresh parsley and serve hot.

*Garam Masala can be found at the Tandoori Oven gas station (720 E 1000 N Logan).