Creamy Comfort Soup: Lemongrass, Turmeric, Ginger, need I continue

Today was another one of those days when I roamed around the pantry, improvised a dish, and felt exceptionally pleased with myself. I'll enjoy it while it lasts.

With assorted ingredients I already had, I made a lemongrass curry soup with homegrown baby eggplants.

It turned out even better than I expected. Here's how to make it; as always, feel free to substitute ingredients at will, depending on what you have around:

Ingredients
2-inch piece of ginger, peeled and minced
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 stalk lemongrass, tough leaves and outer hull removed, tender part sliced thin
1-2 tsp turmeric powder
4 kefir lime leaves
2 bay leaves
ground black pepper
1/2 sweet onion, slivered
1/2 block firm tofu, cubed
a handful of baby eggplants or any eggplants you have, cut in 1-inch pieces
red bell pepper (here: dehydrated, because it's what I had lying around)
1 can coconut milk
1 tbsp coconut oil
Better than Bouillon-brand mushroom base, to taste (~1 tbsp)
noodles (rice or wheat; pictured here are local saimin noodles)

Optional: Thai basil if you have some. My basil bolted and it's practically a tree now.

Method

Sauté onions, [bell pepper if using], ginger, and leaves in coconut oil until slightly browned. Add garlic and eggplants and sauté for a minute more, then add a good amount of water (a little over half the amount of broth you want at the end, or ~4 cups); add tofu, turmeric, black pepper, and broth paste.

Cover and let boil until eggplants are softened, ~5 minutes. Add noodles OR cook noodles separately in boiling water and hold aside for serving.

Technically you shouldn't boil saimin (wheat) noodles directly in the broth, since it makes them gummy. But I was hungry so I did it anyway. Do it the right way in polite company.

After the noodles were done.

Once the noodles are cooked, add the can of coconut milk. Add extra broth paste or salt if needed. Otherwise, serve up and enjoy.

Glistening with yumminess.