inspired edible++vegan tom kha and first foodie swap of 2011

i hated soup as a kid. i’m not exactly sure why, but growing up in hawaii, the only soup i ate regularly was sapporo ichiban ramen. original flavor. the red package:)

since then, i’ve absolutely fallen in love with soup, a welcome warmth when it’s so very chilly out. soup is truly conducive to my natural cooking style: improvise & work with what you’ve got. really great life advice too.

last week, i participated in my first cooking exchange hosted by the lovely eva of monkey in la! we were also hosted by her gorgeous tribe of animals, who allowed us to invade their gorgeous loft downtown to swap our carefully concocted dishes. and snap a few shots.

this christmas, my mom made us an incredible vegan dinner. thai spicy peanut/coconut soup with tofu, carrots & cauliflower, – all garnished withbright green cilantro & scallions. so satisfying, healthy and delicious. which leads to my new year’s quest: to create recipes that are delicious, healthyand use as many local/organic ingredients as possible. As soon as we got home, I tried to recreate the magic, adding roasted eggplant and garlic sauteed collard greens into my edition. both worked beautifully. play around with your veggies:) broccoli and zucchini would also make lovely additions. but drop green veggies in just moments before you are ready to eat, or they will get gross and mushy.

vegan tom kha (sort of)(sort of tom kha not sort of vegan. definitely vegan. )

1 big knob ginger

5 cloves garlic

1/3 onion

1/2 big can tomato paste

1 stalk lemongrass

juice of 1 lemon

1 T sambal/garlic chili paste (more or less to taste depending on your heat tolerance)

1 T salt

1 T honey

1/2 c peanut butter

2 onions, chopped

1 cauliflower, chopped

3 carrots, chopped

1 pack firm tofu, cubed

2 T honey (to taste)

3 T shoyu (to taste)

3 T coconut oil (plus more for brushing)

juice of lemon

1 eggplant, sliced lengthwise, about 1 inches thick

green onions and cilantro, washed and chopped for garnish

1. mix first set of ingredients in a mini chop or if you’re feeling old fashioned, ambitious and strong, a mortar and pestle, until ground to a paste.

2. bring 10-12 c filtered water to boil in a big heavy bottomed pot.

3. add 1/2 paste to pot and stir.

4. brush eggplant with coconut oil, season with s&p and roast at 425º for about 20 minutes, or until soft & golden.

5. add carrots, cauliflower and onions to pot and cook for about 20 minutes. taste cauliflower as you go, it will get mushy if you overcook.

6. add coconut oil, honey, shoyu and tofu to pot- then juice the lemon into it as well.

7. taste soup. the goal is a balance between sweet/salty/sour, and adjust the soup accordingly until it tastes just right to you.

8. chop roasted eggplant and drop into soup pot.

9. serve and top with cilantro and green onion and lemon/lime wedges.