Spicy Coffee Soup

We barely made a dent in yesterday morning’s pot of coffee. I couldn’t bear to toss it to make some fresh coffee today, but reheated coffee it is pretty blah so I decided to experiment.
I’d made soup. Coffee and Indian curry spices go well together, as it turns out. The coffee adds an interesting depth to the usual flavor of a curried soup. Toss in some lentils, rice and a few vegetables and you have a nice lunch that will perk you up for the afternoon.
I’d like to try it again in a creamed variation using potato instead of lentils. Thanks to the enormous amount of coffee we didn’t drink yesterday, I certainly can.
Spicy Coffee Soup
serves 2
1 cup coffee
2 cups water
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 tsp ground corriander
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp dried garlic
2 dried chilis
1/3 cup brown lentils
1/3 cup brown rice
1/4 cup frozen corn
1/4 cup frozen peas
salt and pepper to taste
Put everything except the corn and peas in a pot. Bring to a rolling boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook until the lentils and rice are soft – about 30 minutes. If you let it simmer longer, you may wish to add a little more water. Add the corn and peas for long enough to heat them through, then serve the soup.