Lauki Soup with Soy, Tomatoes, Sweet Peppers & Onion

Lauki is a common Indian gourd. In my impatient quest to basically experiment with "souping" any and all vegetables and fruits, I decided to throw this also into the mix. But, I somehow can't stop with just one vegetable. I have to throw in familiar and comforting ones such as onion and tomatoes as well. 

This turned out to be an extremely flavorful and hardy soup. The lauki provides a creamy and substantial base to the soup. To add some protein to the soup, I added soya chunks as well. A bowl of soup fills you up nicely. The warm and earthy flavor of cumin is just enough to complement the inherent flavors of the vegetables.

Perfect during the wintry months. 

 

Ingredients (serves 5 generously as a main course):

1. 1 medium-sized lauki, peeled and sliced into thick rounds
2. 2 sweet bell peppers, roughly chopped
3. 1 red onion, roughly diced
4. 1 whole bulb of garlic (don't be alarmed, roasted garlic turns sweet and extremely flavorful)
5. 3-4 tomatoes, cut into thick rounds
6. 1.5 teaspoons cumin powder
7. freshly cracked black pepper, as needed
8. salt, as needed
9. 2 tablespoons of olive oil
10. milk, as needed
11. 3/4 cup uncooked soya chunks

Preparation:

1. Cook the soya chunks according to manufacturer instructions. I basically dunk them in hot boiling water for 5 minutes and drain when they are soft. 
2. Cover two baking sheets with aluminum foil. Toss the vegetables (except garlic) onto the sheets and mix and coat them with olive oil, salt and pepper. Wrap the garlic bulb (no need to peel or cut) in aluminum foil and place it on the sheet.
3. Preheat oven to 420 F. Roast the veggies for 25-30 minutes or until they begin to char/brown. When they are cool, grind the veggies with milk (as needed) to make a puree. How to handle the garlic bulb, you ask? When warm enough to handle, basically squeeze out the garlic from the pods and puree with the rest. It's a bit messy, but worth it!
4. Transfer the puree to a saucepan, and add more milk or water/stock to dilute it to desired consistency. Add cumin powder, and check and adjust for salt and pepper. Simmer along with the soya chunks for 10 minutes until hot and bubbly. 

 Remove from heat and serve with crusty or non-crusty bread.

Note: In addition to the above mix of vegetables, I added some beans and carrots as well recently, and these mix of vegetables worked great as well!