Curried Cauliflower Soup

Living Up North and trying to be Northern, we joined a CSA and so weekly we get unpredictable loads of vegetables. Last week a nice head of cauliflower which I decided to curry which turned out incredibly flavorful with a nice thick texture, perfect with crusty bread and cheese hunks.

Ingredients and the order thrown to the Dutch oven:
  oil, curry paste
  onion, garlic, hot peppers, carrot
  lots of spices: curry powder, turmeric, ginger, cayenne, chili, paprika, bay leaves, S&P, etc
  cauliflower (then cooked down til soft)
  chicken broth - 2C

This simmers ~20 minutes then puréed in blender.  Note that in real life, the soup is more visually appealing than in the photo below:

Green Split Pea Soup

Almost too trivial to post as recipe here, this soup is very easy to prep and make, so that it can be made in the evening after work.  The whole process take less than 1.5 hours and makes about six servings.  Once made, it is delicious with crusty bread and a hunk of cheese.  I think the same recipe could be used for smaller types of lentils, but those would not need to simmer as long.

ingredients:
1 onion
1 carrot
garlic
spices: S&P, paprika, turmeric, ground mustard seed, really whatever
1 pound dry split peas
6 C liquid: ~2C chicken broth, ~4C water

process:
rinse the peas clean and drain.
sautee the vegetables (used dutch oven)
add the spices, add the peas, stir to mix everything
add the liquids
bring to simmer, simmer covered low 30-45 mins until peas are soft