Thai Curry Lentil and Shrimp Soup

Nothing is better to me than sitting down on a fall evening after a long day with glass of red wine and bowl of soup in lounging clothes (after a workout of sorts). Looking at the leaves changing, I can no longer worry about the bathing suit season for another 6-9 months! However, pizza, chips, and cookies do not exactly make anyone feel better. Looking at the Ovulatory Phase, where it says chocolate and moderate alcohol and coffee are acceptable, that’s really all you need to get through this week.

That doesn’t work for lunch or dinner. So while the first NFL football game is on last night, and talking about Thai food for the last month, I decide to take a look at some options to satisfy everything I want. I come up with a soup that is spicy, savory, filling enough for me… and my boyfriend. I threw some things that I had in the fridge and freezer and came up with a surprisingly delicious meal! He went back for seconds! If you use less liquid, this could also be served on a place of quinoa.

Thai Curry Lentil and Shrimp Soup

Ingredients:

4 servings of frozen Jumbo Shrimp (about 32)
2 T coconut oil
4 C of light coconut milk
2 C fat free vegetable broth
3-4 T of curry powder (I love my Trader Joe’s curry seasoning)
1 t chili powder
1 t cinnamon
3 T of minced garlic
4 handfuls of baby spinach
1 C frozen sweet peas
1/3 C Red Lentils
2 stalks of celery
½ large white or yellow onion
Salt, pepper, garlic salt


Directions:

In a pot, pour in your lentils, ½ the amount of garlic, onion, liquids, celery and seasonings. **Note: if you’re not used to spicy food, or do not like it very spicy, start with ONE tablespoon of curry and work your way up tasting along the way – it will get spicier the longer it sits. Let this come to a boil, cooking on low-medium for about 40 minutes.

Rinse and thaw your shrimp. Be sure to NOT rinse with hot water because you do not want the shrimp to cook. In the pan, use the remaining garlic and coconut oil heating on medium. Add the shrimp. Salt and pepper to taste. This will need to cook for about 5-10 minutes, and stir often making sure they all get coated in the flavor and cooked evenly.

Add the frozen peas and spinach to the soup pot. Let this cook for the last 10 minutes of the soup cooking time. Then add everything from the shrimp pan (oil, garlic, all of it!) into the soup pot, let sit for 5 minutes, then serve!

**Curry additions: if starting with 1 T, taste after about 15 minutes of cooking. If you need more seasoning/spice, add another at this point. 15 minutes later, if still not spicy enough add the third T. At this point, you may need to add another shakes of cinnamon so that flavor is not hidden. If you love coconut, add some coconut flakes on top!