All Reds Soup

I was very sceptical of using beets in my regular tomato soup because I have tried it in a smoothie with a lot of other ingredients to mask it and still didn't like it much. But this soup came out delicious and full of healthy goodness.

This makes soup for 2 healthy servings.

You'll need
3-4 large tomatoes
2 medium carrots
1 beet
1 cup water/stock
1 tsp garlic
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp crushed black pepper
1 tbsp roasted ground cumin
Salt to taste

Boil, purée, and strain the tomatoes, carrots, and beet. Add the water or stock for a soupy consistency.

In a saucepan, add the oil then the butter.

Once it's hot, add the crushed pepper, bay leaf, and garlic.

Add the purée and salt to taste. Add the roasted cumin powder and bring to boil.

Remove the bay leaf before serving it hot.

Bombay Bruschetta

This is a mix of a classic bruschetta and a Bombay sandwich. The chutney base can be made and stored for a few days so it's also a good quick breakfast option.

For the chutney:
1 bunch of coriander
1-2 green chillies
2-3 garlic cloves
Juice of 1 lemon
Seasoning
1/2 cup water

Wash and dry the coriander leaves properly. Mix all ingredients in a blender and add water according to desired consistency. It should not be too watery else it'll get the bread soggy.

For the assembly:
Bread (hard bread like ciabatta or baguette)
1 finely chopped tomato
1 finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped mint leaves (optional)
Seasoning
1 tbsp olive oil to drizzle

Mix the tomato, onion, and seasoning in a bowl. You can either add the oil to it now or drizzle on top after assembling the bruschetta.

On sliced bread, spread the chutney and top it up with the salad mix. Drizzle the olive oil and add crushed pepper on top.

Serve immediately.

Tomato Juice

I love tomato juice - V8 is my favourite but it has way too much salt. I wanted to try for a healthier alternative at home. It tasted good, but it was a bit more effort for the small output (2 small glasses).

You'll need:
5-6 large tomatoes
4-5 celery stalks (no leaves)
salt/pepper to taste
1 tbsp sugar (if needed)

Wash the tomatoes thoroughly. Pour some boiling water on it so that the skins come off.
Boil the skinless tomatoes in 1 cup of water for about 5 minutes.

In a blender, put in the tomatoes and celery stalks and blend till smooth. Add some water if the consistency is too thick (but not the water the tomatoes were boiled in).

Sieve the paste and add water and seasoning to preference
and taste.