Yummy soups for all...

Tomato Soup
Ingredients: 2 tomatoes, 1 small onion, 1 carrot, 1/2 beet root, 2 cloves of garlic, a small piece of ginger, 1 teaspoon jeera, black pepper, salt, water. Optionally 1 potato can be added if you are making it just for your kids.
What you need: Pressure Cooker/deep pan with lid, mixer, spoons.
Method: Cut all the vegetables, add 1 cup of water , add the jeera, black pepper & salt. Cook in the pressure cooker on a medium flame till 2 whistles. Once cool, put it in a mixer to get a fine consistency. If you want to give it to kids then strain it, for the rest the extra fibre will only be good. Heat before serving, garnish with a dash of cream & add some bread croutons.

Mix-Veg Soup
Ingredients: 2 tomatoes, 1 medium onion, 1 carrot, 5-6 french beans, 1/2 beet root, small piece of cabbage, few florets of cauliflower, spinach leaves, few green peas, 1/2 capsicum, 2 cloves of garlic, a small piece of ginger, 1 teaspoon jeera, black pepper, 1 teaspoon garam masala, salt, water. Again potato is an option.
What you need: Pressure Cooker/deep pan with lid, mixer, spoons.
Method: Cut all the vegetables, add 1 cup of water , add the jeera, black pepper garam masala & salt. Cook in the pressure cooker on a medium flame till 2 whistles. Once cool, put it in a mixer to get a fine consistency. If you want to give it to kids then strain it, for the rest the extra fibre will only be good. Heat before serving & add some bread croutons.

Doodhi Soup
Ingredients: 1 small doodhi (50-60 gms), 1 small onion, a small piece of ginger, 10 mint leaves, 7-8 tulsi leaves, 1 or 2 green chillies, 1 teaspoon jeera, black pepper, salt, water.
What you need: Pressure Cooker/deep pan with lid, mixer, spoons.
Method: Cut all the vegetables, add 1 cup of water ,add the jeera, black pepper & salt. Cook in the pressure cooker on a medium flame till 2 whistles. Once cool, put it in a mixer to get a fine consistency. If you want to give it to kids then strain it, for the rest the extra fibre will only be good. Heat before serving, garnish with a dash of cream.

Palak/Spinach Soup
Ingredients: 10-12 Spinach/Palak leaves, 1 tomato, 1 medium onion, 2 green chillies, 2 cloves of garlic, a small piece of ginger, 1 teaspoon jeera, black pepper, garam masala, salt, water.
What you need: Pressure Cooker/deep pan with lid, mixer, spoons.
Method: Cut all the vegetables, add 1 cup of water , add the jeera, black pepper, garam masala & salt. Cook in the pressure cooker on a medium flame till 2 whistles. Once cool, put it in a mixer to get a fine consistency. If you want to give it to kids then strain it, for the rest the extra fibre will only be good. Heat before serving, garnish with a dash of cream & bread croutons.

How to make delicious n crispy bread croutons:
I like to use a thick sliced bread for this. I cut the slices into small squares, then I put them on a baking tray, put generous amount of olive oil on top of the bread pieces and cover them well. No salt is added. Heat these in an oven at 180 degree Centigrade for 12-15 minutes. These are the plain croutons. One variation that can be done is by adding Italian Herbs along with the olive oil to cover the bread pieces well. Rest all remains the same. One can find bottles of mixed Italian herbs in super markets. The croutons are best stored in zip-lock bags with some kitchen paper inside to soak in any unwanted moisture. I keep the bags in the fridge. Make these croutons over a weekend and enjoy throughout the week when ever you make any of the above listed soups.