Curried Fava Bean Soup With Potatoes And Carrots . Cucumbers Braised In Ghee and Spiced with Curry And Fenugreek

A friend is awaiting this recipe so I am posting it early. It is a simple soup, and using vegetable broth instead of chicken broth makes it truly vegetarian. I have been using curry and fenugreek lately , for I believe that if spices are worth using they are worth trying with everything-


Curried Fava Bean Soup


1 15 oz can fava beans- do not drain.

4 medium red potatoes, peeled and diced

2 medium carrots, peeled and diced.

3 cups chicken or vegetable broth or 3 cups of water and 1 bouillon cube.

Olive oil to saute onion.

1 medium yellow onion, diced.

Sea salt to taste

1/2 teaspoon Helba (Ground Fenugreek)-optional

Curry powder- at least a teaspoon- more if desired

1 tablespoon of melted chicken fat or butter added to olive oil

Saute the onion in olive oil until it is translucent and soft. Flavor with sea salt to taste. Puree the fava beans and their liquid in a food processor or blender, and add to the 3 cups of broth in a sauce pan. Add the onions, the carrots and potatoes. Add the spices and taste and adjust. Bring the soup to a boil, then cover and lower the heat to medium low and cook till the potatoes and carrots are tender. Continue to taste. This soup can absorb a lot of curry. Add salt if needed. Add a little more broth if you desire a thinner soup. Taste. Taste. Taste. That is my philosophy, for spicing up a dish goes beyond the measuring spoon into the realm of instinct and imagination!


Cucumbers Sauteed In Ghee and Spiced With Curry

This is a twist on the usual cucumbers braised in butter and flavored with lemon juice. I developed it because the same friend who wants the Fava recipe gave me five big cucumbers from her farm. I could have made Gazpacho, and probably will, but I needed some way to keep from wasting them, as my ideas for using cucumbers have never been inventive. These taste good, hot or cold. I think they would like a yogurt sauce as well.


1 6-8 inch cucumber

3 tbs Ghee

Sea Salt

1/4 tsp Fenugreek

1 tbs cider vinegar

Curry Powder, to taste. At least a teaspoon, and you may want more.


Peel the cucumber, then slice it thin.

Melt the ghee in a skillet, then add the sliced cucumber.Sprinkle on some sea salt to taste and the fenugreek. Add the cider vinegar, then add the curry powder. Gently poach the cucumber until it softens and starts to become transparent. Taste and adjust seasonings. Turn the cucumber slices at least twice.

Add more salt and spices if you wish. Serve hot or cold. You may want your cucumber seeded. I did not bother.