“No Croutons Required” and a Delicious Splurge

Tinned Tomatoes and Lisa’s Kitchen are hosting a monthly blogging event called “No Croutons Required.”





This month’s theme is vegetarian soup and my entry is:

Cabbage Soup with Chickpeas and Oats

This delicious soup can be ready in 30 minutes, although like most soups, it tastes even better the next day. The oats add creamy thickness and a sweet, nutty flavor. Since it is winter, I’ve used canned tomatoes and dried herbs.

Ingredients:

1 small head green cabbage, shredded
1 medium onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
1 (15 oz.) can fire roasted tomatoes, chopped
3 cloves minced garlic
6 cups vegetable broth
1 t. dried basil
2 t. dried parsley
1 t. dried oregano
1 t. ground coriander
½ t. dried rosemary
½ t. dried thyme
½ t. dill seed
½ t. dried red pepper flakes
1 (15 oz.) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
½ c. oats (I used 5 minute oats)
1 T. red wine or cider vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In a large soup pot, combine cabbage, onion, carrots, tomatoes, garlic, broth, and herbs. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in chickpeas, oats, vinegar, and salt & pepper. Cover and simmer 5 more minutes. Serve hot.


It’s cold and rainy and this soup was perfect for lunch today.

So what was my delicious splurge? FRESH mangosteen! Importation of these yummy fruits was illegal until recently and fortunately for me, the only market in Texas to now offer them has a location here in Austin. Mangosteens are highly nutritious and have long been used in Asian cultures as curatives. I think strawberry orange is a good description of their taste. I photo-documented my first taste experience because I’m assuming most of you have not eaten these either. (I think Amey and Emilie have.)

Here’s the package of 4 next to a can of coconut milk so you can get an idea of its size.

Here’s the first one, the tester, the one with a rind of thick leather. A clerk at the market warned me that the pink juice stains.

I noticed it has a lovely flowered bottom!

The clerk also told me how to get to the edible part. Run a paring knife through the rind around the equator of the fruit, lift off the top, then pull out the segments.

The brown spots on the segments are your clue to where any seeds are. Not every segment contains a seed.

Yes, I splurged. I paid $10 for four little fruits. I had to work hard to get to the edible segments. They are not at all filling and they stain. But they are delicious like nothing I’ve eaten before. So they were worth every penny. Perhaps mangosteen juice would be a better investment next time....


Austin is full of excitement as Uno, a delightful beagle from here, won Best in Show at Westminster. And also, my favorite all vegan macrobiotic organic restaurant, Casa de Luz, is featured in this month’s VegNews.

Oh, I also splurged on this.

I haven’t eaten any yet, but I’m sure it’s divine!