Mulligatawny

It sleeted and snowed overnight and then some. No power here for hours, but it's back now. So naturally I'm thinking about warm food. I decided just to stay home today and see if I could create something new with what I had available in the pantry. Mulligatawny soup seemed appropriate. Researching recipes, I realized that there are no absolutes when it comes to mulligatawny soup. Sometimes it has chicken, sometimes pork, sometimes it's vegetarian. And the extras range from zucchini to garbanzo beans to cashews. This is just what I had available and it turned out well. Smells great too. Sometimes being snowed in is not all that bad. (Yes, I really had ghee in the pantry, but you can substitute clarified butter.)

Mulligatawny Soup

4 tablespoons ghee
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon garam masala
1 large onion, diced
1 medium green bell pepper, diced
2 cloves minced garlic
2 tablespoons minced ginger
1 coarsely chopped apple (baking apple like Winesap)
1 sweet potato, peeled and chopped
1 cup dried red lentils
6 cups chicken stock
1 cup tightly packed fresh baby spinach
¼ cup dried cherries (or raisins)
1 (14-ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk
Cooked basmati rice (optional)
Chutney (optional)

Directions

Sprinkle garam masala on chicken breasts. In large sauté pan, heat 2 tablespoons of ghee and cook chicken over medium high heat, turning often. Set aside to cool.

Place large Dutch oven over medium heat and add the remaining ghee. Sauté onion and pepper until translucent. Add garlic and ginger and cook for about 2 minutes then add apple, sweet potato, and lentils. Add chicken stock and simmer until lentils are done and sweet potato is soft, about 20-30 minutes. Shred cooked chicken and add to vegetables in Dutch oven. Add spinach, dried cherries, and coconut milk and heat through over low heat, about 5-10 minutes.

Serve over rice, if desired, garnished with a dollop of chutney.