Traditionally, soup has not been a significant part of Indian gastronomy. Mulligatawny, spawned by the Anglo-Indian community, is a gorgeous exception. With its orange hue, its creamy base, its use of apple and spice, this soup screams for a cold autumn night, a glass of wine and so-bad-it’s-good television. It’s simple as pie to make. Simpler, in fact. After plunking the ingredients in the pot, you are pretty much free to putter about for a half hour or so, drinking and/or scowling at the fastly darkening sky. A great way too to use up leftover cooked chicken. If you have none handy, you can cook the chicken in the soup. I’ve also found (don’t judge me) that canned chicken works quite well. If you do not have coconut milk, feel free to use heavy cream. This soup is relatively mild in terms of heat, so I like to add a bit of cayenne. Obviously you don’t have to. The addition of cooked rice at the end makes this a meal, but if you don’t feel up to making rice (if you have a rice cooker, you have no excuse), you could always serve this with bread.