Here is a soup that is perfect for cold winter days, the ginger in it providing lasting warmth. The ginger also helps if you have a cold and acts as a stabilizer for those who suffer from travel sickness. Apart from all its health-giving properties (which Indians always have in the back of their heads), this is a delicious soup that can be served at any meal.

　　

Ingredients

serves 4¿6

　　4 cups chicken stock

　　10 ounces spinach, well washed and coarsely chopped

　　1 medium carrot, peeled and cut crossways into thick slices

　　1 medium (4 ounces) onion, coarsely chopped

　　1 large potato (8–9 ounces), peeled and coarsely chopped

　　1/2–1 fresh hot green chili, chopped (if using a jalapeño, use 1/4)

　　One 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and very finely chopped

　　2 whole cloves

　　10 black peppercorns

　　Salt

　　1/2 cup heavy cream, plus a little more for dribbling

　　2 teaspoons lemon juice

　　

Step 1

Pour the stock into a good-sized pan, and stir in the spinach, carrots, onions, potatoes, green chili, ginger, cloves, and peppercorns. Bring to a boil. Cover, turn heat to low, and simmer 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

　　

Step 2

Blend the soup in batches until smooth. Pour back into the pan through a coarse strainer, adding 3/4 teaspoon salt (more if the stock was unsalted), the 1/2 cup cream, and the lemon juice. Mix and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring and tasting for balance of seasonings. Dribble a little bit of cream on top of every serving, if desired.

　　Excerpted from At Home with Madhur Jaffrey: Simple, Delectable Dishes from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka by Madhur Jaffrey. Copyright © 2010 by Random House. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.Buy the full book from Amazon.