Tahinosoupa (Tahini Soup), Creamy Noodles for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammie) Sundays

I have made a few different soups with tahini in them and love the creaminess and flavor that it adds. I wanted to try this simple Tahinosoupa or Tahini Soup from Food From Many Greek Kitchens. Author Tessa Kiros says, "This is a very simple soup that can be made in minutes. Traditionally it's from the Cycladic islands and is eaten in the week leading up to Easter, or on Good Friday, when simple meat-free foods are eaten." This makes it a great choice for our I Heart Cooking Clubs theme this week of Lighten Up!

Since I didn't have time (or want to hassle with) to make the egg-free noodles or go out looking for them, I used some yolk-free egg noodles I had in the pantry. I did whip up a batch of my own tahini for the soup and to make some hummus later in the week--using the recipe I previously posted about here. I also added a can of chickpeas to the soup because I thought they would add a fun texture to the bowl of noodles.


Tahinosoupa (Tahini Soup)
From Food From Many Greek Kitchens by Tessa Kiros
(Serves 4)

2 tsps sesame seeds
1/2 tsp paprika
sprinkling of ground chile, optional
1 tsp grated lemon zest
about 5 1/2 oz fresh egg-free noodles or 2 3/4 oz dried (I used No Yolks Egg Noodles)
1/2 cup tahini (I used a homemade tahini and used about 2/3 cup)
juice of 1 1/2 lemons (I used 2 lemons)
olive oil for serving
freshly ground black pepper

(I added 1 (15 oz) can of no-salt chickpeas, rinsed and drained)

Toast the sesame seeds lightly in a small dry skillet. Add the paprika and the chile, if using, and cook briefly, taking care not to burn it. Stir in the lemon zest and transfer to a small bowl.

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a pot with some salt. Add the hilopites (noodles) and boil until just tender, about 2 minutes, or according to the package instructions if dried.

Meanwhile, put the tahini and lemon juice into a bowl, add a ladleful of the boiling hilopites water and whisk until smooth. When the hilopites are ready, pour the tahini mixture in (and the chickpeas) and stir gently over the heat for a couple of minutes. Taste for salt. Serve in bowls with a drizzle of olive oil, a scattering of the sesame-paprika mixture and a grind of pepper.


Notes/Results: Creamy with the subtle, toasty and nutty flavor of the tahini and bright notes from the lemon. This is a very simple soup that goes together quickly and is warm and filling. I added a bit more lemon and tahini to mine as I wanted more flavor and brightness but you can adjust it for your own tastes. The topping is a good textural contrast and the slight kick of pepper and the smokiness of the paprika are a nice addition. A very satisfying meat and dairy-free soup that doesn't feel heavy, I would make this again.

You can see how the other IHCC participants lightened up by going to the post here and following the links.

Now let's check out what delicious dishes are waiting in the Souper Sundays kitchen made this week.


My friend and fellow Cook the Books host Rachel, The Crispy Cook has a Creamy Black Bean Soup with Roasted Fennel to share and says, "The home run ingredient was roasted fennel.We ate some of that as a side dish for our supper and then the next day was dedicated to a liquid diet, so I decided to add the leftovers in with some sauteed carrots and celery to a simple vegetarian black bean soup and the fennel joined with the fresh taste of its celery cousin and the whole thing was really sublime."

Janet of The Taste Space tried a hearty Roasted Garlic and White Bean Soup with Greens and says, "I always have high expectations when people say this was the “best dish ever”. I don’t think I seasoned it properly but it was still good. Just not GREAT. I liked the chunky yet creamy roasted garlic and white beans (I used marrow beans from Whole Foods). I omitted the nutritional yeast since my go-to vegetable broth powder includes nutritional yeast I think kale would be better, but I substituted collard greens since they needed to be used."

Margo of SaucyCooks.com made a colorful Winter Borscht and says, "For those of you who aren’t familiar with Borscht, even if it sounds like a luxury car, it’s not. The origins of this beet-based delight are Ukrainian and there are many versions. Some include meat and any vegetable you can find in your root cellar (hopefully most of us have graduated to refrigerators at this point), others don’t. Every version I’ve seen includes that little reddish purple jewel known as the beet. I love this little tuber because it’s ugly…until you peel it! Once it’s peeled it not only glows with deep, ruby tones, it also shows off gorgeous patterns that you might only find on the dash of a very expensive car."

Tina of Life in the Slow Lane at Squirrel Head Manor joins us this week with a nourishing and warming Black Bean Soup and says, "Ok, who is tired of this gloomy weather? It’s still cold. My place of employment doesn’t exactly turn up the heat and I am always in need of a sweater or jacket during the winter. So, hot lunches are a necessity to warm the body and energize. I need soup for lunch. Black bean soup is easy, full of protein and heats in a flash."

Judee from Gluten Free A-Z made this brightly-hued Moroccan Spiced Carrot Soup and says, "This rich Moroccan spiced carrot soup calls for a hot Moroccan spice blend called "harissa" which is a pasty combination of hot chili, cumin, coriander, garlic and other spices typically used in North African cooking in countries like Morocco, Algeria,and Tunisia. You might really like it, but it's too hot for me. I toned my recipe down and just used the cumin, coriander, and garlic, but I left out the hot peppers and added some white wine( Chardonnay) for flavor."

It's nice to have Torwen of Torwen's Blog back at Souper Sundays back and with a healthy Couscous Salad with Lukewarm Balsamic-Wilted Spinach Salad. Torwen says, "Couscous itself is a very good source for B-vitamins and some added veggies and lemon make it perfectly healthy and on top very tasty dish. I added some spinach which I wilted in the pan with some aceto balsamico and although it maybe doesn't look all that nice (wilted things never do, right?) it sure tasted delicious :).

And one sandwich from Joanne at Eats Well With Others, this Roasted Red Pepper Pesto and White Bean Dip Sandwich. She says, "With the sweet and almost buttery flavor of roasted red peppers combined with a fresh hit of basil, this dip will certainly leave you feeling refreshed and completely satisfied. And when you have trouble stopping at just five spoonfuls? Well. Don't say I didn't warn you... I made the white bean dip variation on what was originally a pesto recipe. The only changes I made were to omit ALL the oil and to use pecans instead of walnuts (I just used what I had on hand). I served it on a sandwich with roasted eggplant and baby spinach."

Delectable dishes this week--thanks to everyone who joined in. If you have a soup, salad or sandwich that you would like to share, just click on the Souper Sundays logo on the sidebar for all of the details.

Have a happy, healthy week!