Gather the family around – it’s soup night! Down with small portions of flavorless, diet broth. Let’s eat hearty, delicious, comfort food and get our bellies filled! Golden Chana Soup can be found on page 99 of the Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook. Anybody with blood sugar issues such as diabetes, pre-diabetes, or hypoglycemia should use chana dal, an Indian legume, as a frequent option for E meals. Its healthy carbs burn extremely slowly in the body. Incredibly, chana dahl has a rating of only 8 on the glycemic index. (Most other beans and legumes have glycemic indexes in the 30s and 40s.) It has three times the fiber of most other beans and legumes, yet has a beautiful creamy texture. This recipe is found on page 399 of the Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook.
Golden Chana Soup
Description
Gather the family around - it's soup night! Down with small portions of flavorless, diet broth. Let's eat hearty, delicious, comfort food and get our bellies filled! Golden Chana Soup can be found on page 99 of the Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook. Anybody with blood sugar issues such as diabetes, pre-diabetes, or hypoglycemia should use chana dal, an Indian legume, as a frequent option for E meals. Its healthy carbs burn extremely slowly in the body. Incredibly, chana dahl has a rating of only 8 on the glycemic index. (Most other beans and legumes have glycemic indexes in the 30s and 40s.) It has three times the fiber of most other beans and legumes, yet has a beautiful creamy texture.
Ingredients
Instructions
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Put all the ingredients except the chicken or Just Gelatin (if using) in a large soup pot. Bring to a simmer over mediumhigh heat, then reduce the heat to low and and cook for several hours, until the dal is very soft.
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Lightly blend the soup with a stick blender in the pot or transfer a few cups to a blender and puree. Add back to the soup and stir.
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If the soup is too thick for your preference, add a bit more water. If using chicken breast, add some (any amount) or a few tablespoons Just Gelatin to boost protein, but you can just leave the soup as is, if preferred. Taste and adjust the seasonings to “own it.”
Note
Recipe Suggestions:
This lovely golden legume looks a bit like a chick pea (garbanzo bean) but should not be confused with a chick pea. You can easily find it online, or at an international food store, but even many stores like Walmart carry it as well.
Soaking is a must for chana dahl. You’ll want to start cooking your soup mid-afternoon (at 2-3 pm) as this soup is better cooked long and slow. Start your soak early in the morning, as you’ll want the dal to soak for seven hours. Place the dal in a bowl, cover with water, and sprinkle in 1 tablespoon baking soda. The baking soda helps bread down the hard shell of the dal so it can soften; if you're cooking the soup in a crockpot all day, though, there is no need to add the baking soda.
SERVING IDEAS: Serve with a dollop of Greek yogurt and garnish with a sprinkling of skim-milk mozzarella for E or with a grated full-fat cheese like cheddar for a Crossover.
