Varada's Kitchen and Garden

Soup in summer? Yes, I made soup in summer. We had a lot of rain a few weeks back and soup felt good for a change. Red bell peppers, in my opinion, add a ton of flavor to any dish they are used in. Roasted red bell peppers are even better. I love the aroma in the house as they are roasted. And the family loves the end result.  I like to add almond milk for a creamier texture. It adds flavor and is perfect for soup in summer. You will need (4 servings) 2 red peppers 1 tbsp. oil 1/3 medium onion, prefarably red, but others will work too 1 medium carrot 1 clove garlic, minced 1 tbsps tomato paste 1 tsp. paprika 1 2/3 cups broth or water salt and pepper 2 tbsp. almond milk Roast the bell peppers. I do it on the stove top. I stick a fork in the pepper and place it directly over the heat. I turn it around to char the skin evenly. When done I wrap it in aluminium foil and keep it aside for at least 15 minutes. Meanwhile, dice the onions. Heat the oil in a pan and

A few days back I had soaked garbanzo beans without checking to see if I had all the ingredients I normally use to cook them. The next day I was in a bind. I had no time to visit the grocery store and did not have anything else prepped. I had an avocado in the refrigerator and some left over feta cheese. A simple dressing of lime juice, salt, pepper and I had a delicious salad ready. You will need 2 cups cooked garbanzo beans or chickpea 1 avocado 1/4 cup feta, adjust to taste salt and pepper to taste juice of half a lime If using dry beans, soak overnight and pressure the next day. Discard the cooking water. Peel the avocado and remove the seed. Dice finely. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl. Enjoy! This is my entry for week one, day one of BM #66 for the theme 3 Vegetables that are fruit. Check out the  Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#66 .

Pesto is a green sauce traditionally made with pine nuts, basil and olive oil. Pesto is rich in fat and while a well made sauce is very flavorful it may not always be the preferred choice. If you are looking for an alternative this recipe is for you. I had some left over cottage cheese I trying to use up and needed a sauce to bind it as a filling. The walnut kale pesto worked perfectly. I would not say the flavor is close but this pesto will work just as well as the traditional pesto recipe. You could add a bunch of basil leaves along with the kale to bring the taste profile closer to that you are used to, but in my family we really like this recipe. You will need 2 cups Kale leaves 1/2 cup toasted walnuts 1 clove garlic salt to taste Bring water to a boil in the microwave safe cup. Add the kale leaves to the water and let it sit on the counter top for a few minutes. Drain the water, rinse the leaves in cold water and you are have instant blanched kale. Alternately you cou