Creamy Garlic Soup with Shrimp and Tofu from "Joy Bauer's Superfood!" for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammie) Sundays and #AbramsDinnerParty

I always love getting a new cookbook, even better when their are healthy recipes and it doesn't rely heavily on meat so I was very excited to receive a copy of Joy Bauer's Super Food! from Abrams Books as part of the Abrams Dinner Party. I have a couple of Bauer's other books and like her recipes. I was bit worried about finding the ingredients to cook with as with the whole COVID19 pandemic, not every ingredient is readily found. I did have all of the ingredients to make the Creamy Garlic Soup with Shrimp and Tofu though, so it was the first recipe I wanted to "road test."

First a little about the book and the other recipes I want to try. Joy Bauer's Super Food! has the tagline: 150 recipes for Eternal Youth with Bauer saying she has chosen recipes to highlight the "most stellar superfoods--those that have been highlighted and singled out for being the most powerful, potent, and nutrient-packed." The book is divided by Morning Meals, Breads, Bagels, Muffins, and Biscuits, Soups and Salads, Sides, Spreads, and Dips, Superfood Fries (it's hard not to like a book with a whole chapter on fries!), Superfood Pizza and Pasta, One-Pot Wonders, Enticing Entrees, Vegetarian and Vegan Entrees, and Sweet and Savory Sweets, Smoothies, Slushies, Beneficial Bevvies, and Grown-Up Cocktails. Recipes include an introduction about the superfood, most have a  clear color photo of the dish, and there is nutritional information for each dish.

Abrams Books April 21, 2020

Hardback 288 Pages / 100 Color Photographs

I tagged a bunch of recipes to make including Rainbow Shakshuka, Dirty Chai Overnight Oats, Creamy Scrambled Eggs with Kale Spinach Pesto, Low-Carb tortilla Wraps, Whole Grain Naan with Super Seeds, Creamy Cauliflower Leek Soup with Crispy Seaweed, Detox Salad with Lemon-Chia Dressing, Shaved Fennel, Kale, Oranges, and Feta, Sesame-Garlic Edamame, Charred Shishito Peppers and Radishes, Brooklyn-Style Apple Cider Vinegar Pickles, Kale Pesto Macaroni Salad, Artichoke Salsa, Rosemary Chickpea Fries with creamy Tahini Dipping Sauce, Jicama Fries with Avocado-Lime Dipping Sauce, Creamy Vegan Penne Alfredo, No Noodle Cheesy Spinach Lasagna, Roasted Fish fillets with Smoky Apple Cider Vinaigrette, Creamy Farro Risotto with Riced Broccoli and Parm, Alaskan Salmon Cakes with lemon Avocado Sauce, Roasted Veggies with Cashew Mac  and Cheese Sauce, Black Lentils with Coconut Citrus Slaw, Rosemary-Spiced Walnuts, Dark-Chocolate-Stuffed Raspberries, PB & Strawberry Energy Bites, Gooey Apple Pie Filling with Toasty Pecans, Sweet Cherry Slushie, Salted Caramel Milkshake, Fruit-Infused Frose, and Blackberry Margarita. I think the Blueberry Pie Oatmeal is next up and I'll report back on some of the other dishes I try.

Mahalo to Abrams Books and #AbramsDinner Party for this great new cookbook that I know I will be cooking from a lot. This post is sponsored by Abrams Books, as part of the Abrams Dinner Party however my thoughts, feelings and experiences cooking from it are my own.  #sponsored 

So let's talk about the soup!

Joy Bauer says, "This luxurious soup is easy to make but delivers an indulgent flavor with a sinfully rich texture because of the cashews, which are soaked, softened, and blended into a silky cream. I've added a good dose of garlic for flavor, but that's not its only perk. The kitchen staple can also help manage blood pressure thanks to two active ingredients, allicin and glutamylcysteine. While I often give the option for swapping jarred garlic or garlic powder for the sake of convenience, in this case, I encourage you to use fresh garlic cloves and take the time to mince them, because it's really one of the star ingredients. But I'll offer you another time saver in its place: You can buy precut matchstick carrots. (I'm all about shortcuts!)"

Creamy Garlic Soup with Shrimp and Tofu
Reprinted from Joy Bauer's Super Food!
(Makes 8 Cups | Prep Time: 15 Minutes | Cook Time: 20 Minutes)

1 cup raw cashews, soaked in hot water for at least 30 minutes and drained
4 cups reduced-sodium vegetable or chicken broth, divided
6 large cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp Thai or Korean chili paste
1/2 cup (4 oz) canned tomato sauce
1 to 2 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 lb medium shrimp, peeled and deveined, tail off
1/2 block (8 oz) firm tofu, well-drained and cut into 1/2-inch cubes*
2 medium carrots, cut into matchsticks (about 1 cup)
fresh cilantro for garnish

In a blender, combine the cashews with 1 cup of the broth and blend for about 30 seconds, until completely smooth and creamy. Set aside.

Liberally mist a large pot with nonstick oil spray and warm over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until lightly browned, about 2 minutes, stirring constantly so it doesn't burn. Add the chili paste and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomato sauce and stir to combine. Add the pureed cashews, the remaining 3 cups broth, and the vinegar and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add the shrimp, tofu, and carrot sticks to the pot and continue to simmer for about 4 minutes, until the shrimp are fully cooked and the tofu absorbs all of the yummy flavors. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish each with cilantro.

*Joy notes: If you prefer a firmer tofu consistency, sandwich the drained block between layered paper towels (or kitchen towels) and top with a heavy book. Let sit for at least 30 minutes to drain before cutting into cubes.

Nutritional Information: Per 1 Cup Serving: 170 calories, 14 g protein, 8 g fat (6.5 unsaturated fat, 1.5 g saturated fat) 55 mg cholesterol, 9 g carbs, 1 g fiber, 3 g sugar, (3 g natural sugar, 0 g added sugar) 480 mg sodium.

Notes/Results: Spicy, creamy and indulgent, this is a tasty soup! I kept the recipe mostly as written--although I did use the whole package of tofu (might as well) and extra-large shrimp as that is what I had on hand. I used Thai red curry paste for the spice and added a bit more broth to make it slightly less thick. It made for a satisfying lunch on it's own, although I may add a scoop of rice on the side. Easy to make and lots of flavor, I'd happily make it again.

Let's see who is waiting in the Souper Sundays kitchen this week:

Judee of Gluten Free A-Z Blog brought Cucumber and Red Onion Salad and says, "Grated cucumber salad is extremely refreshing in this hot and humid weather that we have been having in South Florida. I was looking for lighter recipes, when I remembered when I was young, my mother used to make a grated radish and cucumber salad that my father looked forward to on hot summer nights. … Being gluten free, dairy free, vegan, and nut free, this light and delicious salad is allergy friendly and therefore suitable for most guests for any occasion."

Shaheen of Allotment2Kitchen shared Chilli Peanut Carrot Soup and said, "I had been inspired to make this Chilli Peanut Carrot Soup by Judee who blogs at Gluten Free A-Z Blog. Her soup aptly called Pandemic Carrot Peanut Soup was shared on Souper Sundays hosted by Kahakai Kitchen, a space where bloggers can come share together once a week an share homemade comfort foods like soup, salads sandwiches appealed to me for many reasons. I did not have peanuts to hands, so used from crunchy peanut butter. It was really delicious."  

Thank you to Judee and Shaheen for joining me this week!

(If you aren't familiar with Souper Sundays, you can read about of the origins of it here.
If you would like to join in Souper (Soup, Salad, and Sammie) Sundays, I would love to have you! Here's how...

To join in this week's Souper Sunday's linkup with your soup, salad or sandwich:

• Link up your soup (stew, chili, soupy curries, etc. are fine), salad, or sandwich dish, (preferably one from the current week or month--but we'll take older posts too) on the picture link below and leave a comment on this post so I am sure not to miss you. Also please see below for what to do on your blog post that you link up to Souper Sundays in order to be included in the weekly round-up.

and 

On your entry post (on your blog):

• Mention Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays at Kahakai Kitchen and add a link back to this post. (Not to be a pain but it's polite and only fair to link back to events you link up at--so if you link a post up here without linking back to this post or my blog on your post, it will be removed.)
• You are welcome to add the Souper Sundays logo to your post and/or blog (completely optional).

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