these days

January floated right by me. Despite adhering to a strict schedule, there still doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day. Between studio time, responding to emails, attending meetings, volunteering, and slowly editing my way through a pile of images that have been on my plate for way too long, I keep finding that the clock strikes midnight about five hours before I need it to. I often wonder if me quitting my adult job is completely reckless and irresponsible. My friends are talking marriage, babies, and mortgages and all I can think about is creating, despite the comfort of a steady paycheque. For the first time ever, I feel like I am where I'm supposed to be. Come hell or high water, I'm clinging to that feeling.

Thai Red Lentil Soup with Aromatic Chile Oil
Adapted from Plenty More

You'll make more chile oil than you need for the soup, which means that everything you cook from here on out will be covered in the stuff. It's crazy good. The chili oil will keep covered and refrigerated for up to a month. 

For the Soup 

1 tablespoon sunflower oil
1 medium onion, finely sliced
1 ½ tablespoon Red Thai Curry Paste
2 lemongrass stalks, give them a bash to split them a bit
12 dried lime leaves 
250g red lentils
600ml water
1 lime, juice only
1 ½ tablespoon soy sauce
Small handful of fresh coriander, roughly chopped
Season with salt and pepper

Chilli Oil

50ml sunflower oil
1 shallot, roughly chopped
1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
a thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
½ red chilli, chopped
½ star anise
1 teaspoon chilli powder
1 teaspoon tomato puree
½ lemon, zest only 

First make the chile oil. Heat 2 tablespoons of the sunflower oil in a small saucepan. Add the shallot, garlic, ginger, chile, star anise, and curry powder and fry over low heat for 5 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the shallot is soft. Add the tomato paste and cook gently for 2 minutes. Stir in the remaining oil and the lemon zest and simmer very gently for 30 minutes. Leave to cool and then strain through a cheesecloth-lined sieve.

For the soup, bring a small pan of water to boil and throw in the sugar snap peas. Cook for 90 seconds, drain, refresh under cold water, and set aside to dry. Once cool, cut them on the diagonal into slices 1/16-inch/2-mm thick.

Heat the sunflower oil in a large pot and add the onion. Cook over low heat, with a lid on, for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the onion is completely soft and sweet. Stir in the red curry paste and cook for 1 minute. Add the lemongrass, lime leaves, red lentils, and 3 cups/700 ml water. Bring to a boil, turn down the heat to low, and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the lentils are completely soft.

Remove the soup from the heat and take out and discard the lemongrass and lime leaves. Use a blender to process the soup until it is completely smooth. Add the coconut milk, lime juice, soy sauce, and ½ teaspoon salt and stir. Return the soup to medium heat, and once the soup is almost boiling, ladle into bowls. Scatter the snap peas on top, sprinkle with cilantro, and finish with ½ teaspoon chile oil drizzled over each portion.

Currently:
reading (and bawling my way through) this
listening to this
dreaming about this