Spicy Chickpea Curry

Recently, friend R shared with me the magic of mole. He described that to make a mole, he mashed up various ingredients to pastes, then browned those pastes over heat to deepen the flavors. This process immediately made me think of an Indian curry recipe I make every once in a while from Neelam Batra's 1,000 Indian Recipes. I make the spicy curry sauce and simmer any variety of veggies and meats in it. In this case, cooked chickpeas and onion. The recipe does take a bit of time to cook, but I think it's absolutely worth it. Additionally, though this recipe makes a lot, this is one of those dishes which tastes even better as leftovers, so it's good to have it kicking around the fridge for a while.

You can use 3 cans of drained chickpeas for this recipe or cook your own from dried, which offer superior texture and flavor. To cook your own, soak chickpeas for at least 8 hours with water 2 inches above beans. Cook until creamy, about 30 minutes at a low boil/simmer with 1/4 t. baking soda and 1/2 t. salt.

Classic Spicy Curry Sauce
3 large cloves fresh garlic, peeled
4-6 quarter-sized slices peeled fresh ginger
1-3 fresh green chile peppers (like serrano or jalapeno), stemmed
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
1 large tomato, coarsely chopped
3 T. neutral oil, like peanut or canola
1 T. ground coriander
1 t. ground cumin
1 t. dried fenugreek
1/2 t. paprika
1/4 t. turmeric
1 t. salt, or to taste
1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt, whisked until smooth
4 cups water
1/4 t. garam masala
3 T. chopped fresh cilantro

In a food processor, puree garlic, ginger, chiles, and onion to make a paste. Put in a bowl and set aside. Separately, puree the tomato.

Heat the oil in a large wok or deep skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the onion mixutre, stirring, for 2-3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until browned, 8-10 minutes (small beads of oil will appear on the top and sides).

Add the tomato, increase the heat to medium-high, and cook, stirring occasionally, until juices evaporate and drops of oil appear on the top and sides, 8-10 minutes.

Add the spices (except for the garam masala and cilantro) and the salt. Cook, stirring 2-3 minutes. Mix the yogurt in a little bit at a time, stirring constantly to keep it from curdling.

Add the water and bring to a boil over high heat. Simmer until sauce is reduced to desired consistency 15-30 minutes. Chickpeas and sliced onion can be added when there's about 10 minutes left of cooking. Serve garnished with garam masala and cilantro.

Go-to Recipes, Part II (plus a bonus recipe!)

Here’s another of our favorite dinners, out of the first adult cookbook I ever owned (the title is very 1999): 1,001 Low-Fat Vegetarian Recipes. This is a snap to put together, and good enough to make as an appetizer for company. (Actually, I think I recall having one of my favorite blondes over for dinner with this dish as the main course. Hi, duffpower!) Add a salad and some fresh fruit, and dinner is served. Whenever Our Hero finds out we’re having this for dinner, it’s sure to elicit an “Oh Boy!”

The fava spread is delicious on a sandwich or as a veggie dip, possibly with some lowfat yogurt stirred in to make a more dip-like consistency. This is great in the summer when light suppers that barely heat up the kitchen are ideal. I’m guiltily using these awful off-season plum tomatoes (still much better than other off-season fresh varieties). When incorporated as a part of a much bigger whole, it ends up working out quite well.

Fava Bean Bruschetta
One bakery loaf crusty whole-grain bread
Cooking spray or olive oil
1 clove garlic, halved
1/2 red onion, sliced into thin half-moons
2 plum tomatoes, sliced
1/4-1/3 cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
1/2-1 cup part-skim shredded mozzerella

2 T. grated parmigiano

Fava Spread:

One can fava beans, rinsed and drained
Generous handful parsley, cilantro, or basil (or a combo thereof - I've used all with success)
1-2 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1-2 T. lemon juice

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Cut bread in half lengthwise, spray with cooking spray or brush with olive oil, then rub with cut sides of the garlic clove. Toast bread in hot oven until crusty, about 8 minutes. Make fava spread by combining all ingredints in a food processor or mashing by hand. Divide fava mixture evenly between toasted bread halves, spreading into an even layer. Top with tomatoes, onion, cheeses, and olives. Bake another 10-15 minutes, until melty and delicious.

Good friend and good cook J sent me this recipe in response to my last post, and I thought it sounded tasty enough to share - enjoy!

Hi [Wellunderstood},
Since you are on the topic of easy regular dishes, here is a super easy soup that you can make for these last remaining days of damp cold winter weather that we can't seem to shake. This is one of those recipes for when you're feeling lazy or where you'll have all the ingredients around even if you are out of everything. It is quite delicious for how simple the ingredients are. (Although it could be easily jazzed up.) Don't feel obligated to make this - just keep it up your sleeve! I was looking for a soup recipe to make and realized I had neglected this one all winter when it used to be a cold-weather staple.

Creamy Dilled Potato Soup
1 diced onion
1 T butter
1 lb potatoes, peeled and diced
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp dill weed
Fresh ground pepper to taste
1.5 cups milk

Saute onion in butter (or oil) until golden. Add 2 cups water, potatoes, salt, dill weed, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until potatoes are tender. Puree, return to saucepan, add milk and heat until hot.
*Forgot to mention - go ahead and double this to get a worthwhile amount!
Enjoy!!!!

J

Thanks, J . . . Keep the recipes coming!

On the Cheap

In Michael Pollan's book The Omnivore's Dilemma, he notes that Americans spend a great deal less of their income (approximately 10%) on food than other nations around the world. It's (one part of) Pollan's argument that in order to eat better as a nation, we must commit to putting more value on what we put into our bodies and spending more money to do so. I think this makes a lot of sense, but does present a serious problem for all those people in the US who have trouble affording even "cheap" food. They may have trouble paying rent, so a shift in even 2% of income to the food budget would be impossible. I find it particularly confounding that whole grains, of which all of the grain-based foods in my kitchen are made (except for Our Hero's pumpernickel sandwich bread), are more expensive than grains that have been processed and stripped of their nutritional value. Makes no sense to me.

In any event, this dish is quite affordable and virtuous, a protein-and-fiber-packed vegetarian meal. Cucumber-cream dresses it up a bit. The original Cooking Light recipe (I told you this month's issue was good) called for baby spinach in the cream, which made no sense to me. I added flavorful cilantro, which was quite refreshing and tasty. And doesn't it look pretty?

Dal with Cucumber Cream
Cucumber Cream:
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
1/2 cup finely chopped seeded peeled cucumber
Dash of salt

Dal:
1 T. olive oil
1 1/2 t. cumin seed
1 t. yellow mustard seeds
1 cup chopped onion
2-3 cloves minced garlic
Equal amount minced ginger
1 t. crushed red pepper
1/4 t. turmeric
3 cups vegetable broth, chicken broth, or homemade stock
1 1/4 cups dried lentils
1 cup water
1/2 cup chopped tomato (plum would work, I used diced canned)
1/4 t. salt
2 T. fresh lemon juice

Prepare dal. Heat oil in a large saucepan or dutch oven over medium heat. Add cumin and mustard seeds, cook 2 minutes, stirring. Stir in onion, garlic, ginger, red pepper, and turmeric. Cook one minute, stirring. Stir in broth, lentils, and 1 cup water; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes or until very tender, stirring occasionally. Uncover and simmer 20 minutes or until thick and creamy, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Stir in tomato, salt, and juice. Serve with hot cooked brown rice and cucumber cream.

Prepare cucumber cream while dal simmers. Blitz all ingredients for cream in food processor. Cover and chill until time to serve.

Yes, Cans

You may have noticed that I often use canned tomatoes and beans, and (occasionally) broth . . . On some of the more (ahem) upscale foodie blogs, canned ingredients are shunned. Let's shun those snobs! Canned tomatoes are a great wintertime staple. I'd just as soon eat my hat as one of those pinky-white fleshed winter "beefsteaks". Of course cherry and grape tomatoes are good winter substitutes as well.

In addition to being generally healthy (watch the sodium content) and tasty, cans are convenient as can be. Cooking Light has a great issue this month, featuring meals that can be quickly thrown together on a really busy weeknight. Perfect! Aside from the aforementioned canned goods, these "quick" recipes also call for bottled minced garlic and ginger or prechopped vegetables to shave minutes off projected cook-times.

I don't use these items. I don't see how it's worth it to spend the extra money to have my deliciously mindless end-of-a-long-day prep work done for me. While I do have my lovely new Cuisinart, I generally don't use it for tasks as quickly run though as chopping an onion. More often than not after a long workday I find it comforting and stress-relieving to prep the ingredients for our dinner. This recipe is great for busy days, and makes plenty (leftovers!). It's from this month's Cooking Light with only a couple of changes.

Sausage and Spinach Soup
10 oz. hot Italian chicken sausage
1 cup chopped onion (about 1 large)
3-4 cloves minced garlic
1/2 cup water
1 15-oz. can small white beans (Goya brand) - cannellini would work too
1 14.5-oz. can stewed tomatoes, undrained
1 14-oz. can reduced-sodium chicken broth (or homemade stock, if you have it around)
2 cups baby spinach
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Pecorino romano cheese, grated

Remove casings from sausage. Cook with a little oil or cooking spray (I use oil) in a large dutch oven or saucepan until browned. Break up sausage with spatula or spoon. Add onion and garlic, cook for 2 minutes. Stir in water, beans, tomatoes, and broth. Cover and bring to a boil. Uncover and cook for 3 minutes (I simmered mine for about 15) or until slightly thick. Remove from heat, stir in spinach and basil. Serve sprinkled with cheese.

COLLEGE!

We have a friend who, telling us a story of a bachelor party dominated by men in their mid-thirties, described how one particularly intoxicated partygoer shouted "COLLEGE!" at irregular intervals throughout their debauched evening. "COLLEGE!" apparently equalled "PARTY!" or, perhaps more likely, binge drinking. But better to say "COLLEGE!" because on top of it all, it's funny.

Far less reminiscent of Animal House is this soup, which takes ME back to college days. My buddy B.A.D. used to make this, her Mom's recipe, and invite a few of us over to relax and have dinner together, like grown-ups. Yes, there are elements of college life here: it's cheap, it is made from beans (as countless numbers of my college-years dinners were), and it makes enough to have several meals worth. But the whole is so much more than its parts, and who (I ask you, who?) doesn't need a good black-bean soup recipe?

I've tried other recipes, with success, but I like this one because of its restraint. It is not doused in handfuls of spices, just a generous amount of dried thyme. It surprises me how lovely the thyme is in this dish, as I'd certainly be tempted to go an oregano-cumin route. This way is much more interesting. The only change I've made is to add a half of a minced habanero pepper to the mix, though this could easily be omitted.

B.A.D.'s Badass Black Bean Soup

1 large onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 habanero pepper (be careful handling this! VERY, VERY HOT!), minced
1 T. dried thyme
1 14-oz. can diced tomatoes
4 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
3 cups chicken stock or 2 cans reduced-sodium chicken broth
Sour cream or yogurt, for serving
Tabasco sauce, for serving

Saute chopped onion and pepper in olive oil in a dutch oven over medium heat until tender. Add garlic and pepper and cook 30 seconds, stirring. Add thyme, rubbing between fingers before adding to the pot. Add tomatoes, beans, and stock. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer at least 20 minutes. Puree soup, either with an immersion blender or in batches in a blender. Serve with desired toppings.

Welcome to 1988

The snow blows, today's high temperature is EIGHT DEGREES: it is hatefully, terribly cold. We spent yesterday helping friends paint the entryway in their new house. Our Hero is basically a pro painter, so he was able to kindly and politely point out to me any errors I might be making. Let's just say I made a few and got to listen to a running play-by-play, a la HGTV of "ARE YOU WATCHING ME ROLL THIS WALL? THE TRICK IS TO MAINTAIN A WET EDGE." He even came up with a closing line for his painting DIY television program: "MY NAME IS Our Hero, KEEP ON ROLLIN'."

In all truth, Our Hero was generally pleasant to work with, and generously doled out (ahem) useful tips. He did a beautiful job, and ah heyulped!

Anyway, we got groceries on the way home, and by the time we were heading there, conditions were white-out. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this, bless your hearts. This means all is bright snow-white. You cannot see the stoplights. You cannot see the cars in front of you. Terrible. Eventually, we made our way home and settled down for what the weather dictated would be an evening in.

And what is better for evil weather like this than comfort food with a tinge of nostalgia? I decided on the classic combo: tomato soup, grilled cheese (made on homemade bread), and a green salad. This soup is quite easy to make, you can have all the ingredients on hand, and freezes beautifully, which is nice for an impromptu dinner or a warm lunch break.

Tomato Soup
(Better than a can)
2 T. unsalted butter
1 T. olive oil
1 medium-large onion, chopped
Salt and pepper
3 T. tomato paste
1/4 cup white whole-wheat or all-purpose flour
1/2 t. dried thyme (or a sprig fresh thyme)
3 cups chicken stock or 2 cans reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 28-0z. cans tomatoes in juice

Heat butter and oil over medium heat in a large dutch oven or pot. Add onion, season with salt and pepper, cook until translucent. Stir in tomato paste and flour, cooking one minute. Add thyme, rolling it between your fingers first to release the flavor. Add stock or broth and tomatoes and juice, breaking tomatoes up with your hands as you add them. Bring up to a boil, skimming off any foam that rises to the top, reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes. Blend in the pot with an immersion blender to desired consistency, or blend in batches in a blender.

Eat, flashing back to lunchtime with mom. And for the love of god, STAY INDOORS!

sunday night chili

sunday nights i generally make a large pot of something. this means that monday dinner is set with some left over to freeze or eat tuesday for lunch. our hero enjoyed this healthy chili recipe for days in a bowl, over spaghetti noodles, and as a nacho topping. it also freezes wonderfully. i've made this a few times since i clipped it from a Cooking Light last fall. i like that the seasonings mainly flavor the sausage, so when you go to assemble it all it's not too difficult. keep in mind; if you decide to make this, make the sausage the night before to get the maximum amount of flavor.

Mexican Black Bean Sausage Chili
Sausage:
1 1/2 T. paprika
2 T. minced garlic
3 T. dry red wine
2 T. sherry vinegar
1 T. chili powder
1 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. dried oregano
1/2 t. ground coriander
1/2 t. black pepper
Dash kosher salt
1 1/2 lb. ground turkey (not breast)
Chili:
2 T. olive oil
2 cups diced onion
1 T. ground cumin
1 T. minced garlic
2 t. dried oregano
3 canned chipotles in adobo, minced
4 (14.5-oz.) cans black beans, rinsed and drained, divided
3 cups chicken broth, divided
3 cups water
1 (28-0z.) can diced tomatoes, drained
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro
Low-fat sour cream (optional)

Combine sausage ingredients in a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add sausage mixture; cook 7 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Add onion, cumin, garlic, oregano, and chiles; cook until onion is tender. Place 1 1/2 cups black beans and 1 cup broth in food processor or blender; process until smooth. Add pureed beans, remaining beans, remaining 2 cups broth, water, and tomatoes to pan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, 45 minutes or until slightly thick. Stir in juice and cilantro. Garnish with sour cream and more cilantro, if desired.

cooking light's clam chowder

i enjoy a good chowder when it's cold and windy, so i whipped this one up last weekend. i would definitely recommend making it ahead of time, letting it cool in your fridge, and then reheating - the flavors develop nicely that way.

i had brought leftover chowder to work for lunch this week, which made me very excited. unfortunately, as i was taking the tupperware from my office to our mini-fridge, i dropped the container. the tupperware actually broke (who knew this was possible?), and i was left to cry over spilt chowder. luckily, i come in to the office earlier than everyone else, so there was no audience for this performance. consider all tears shed a testament to how delicious this healthy chowder is!

Plum Island Sound Clam Chowder
From Cooking Light

4 (6 1/2-oz.) cans chopped clams
2 (8-oz.) bottles clam juice
5 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (i used uncured bacon)
3/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 1/2 t. butter
2 cups cubed red potato
1 T. fresh thyme leaves
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. black pepper
1 bay leaf
2 1/4 cups evaporated fat-free milk
1 1/2 cups 1% low-fat milk
1 1/2 T. dry sherry (i used sherry vinegar because i had it lying around)
1 T. chopped fresh parsley

Drain clams in a colander over a bowl, reserving juice. Add bottled juice to reserved juice to equal 3 1/2 cups. Set aside.

Cook bacon in a Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp, stirring occasionally. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, reserving only 2 t. of bacon fat in pan (remove the rest). Return bacon to the pan, increse heat to medium-high. Add onion, celery, and butter; saute 6 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Add clam juice mixture, potato, and next 4 ingredients (through bay leaf), bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes or until potato is tender. Stir in clams, evaporated milk, 1% milk, and sherry. Cook 5 minutes or until heated, stirring occasionally. Discard bay leaf. Sprinkle with parsley.

MAKE THIS SOUP NOW!

a buddy of mine gave me this recipe several years ago when we were on a recipe listserv, and i've made it about once a year since then. i don't know why i don't make it more often; it really is remarkable.

i don't think j reads this blog, but i'll post his recipe here as it was given to me, with his comments. thanks, j.

My first soup post is of the best soup I have ever, ever had. It came from the New Vegetarian Epicure and everyone who has had it loves it. I made it two weeks in a row and almost ate a whole pot of it myself in about 6 hours because it was so delicious. Please do yourself a favor and make it as soon as possible!!!! A few things: definitely use butter for the sautéing rather than olive oil - it needs the extra richness. Part of what makes this soup so much fun to make, as well as eat, is using wine. I feel very special and French when I cook with wine. I used a pinot grigio, which worked very well, but I'm sure you can use whatever is at hand. Bon appetit!

Butternut Squash and Pear Soup
1 lb. butternut squash
1 large yam
2 cups veg. broth
1.5 cups water
1 stick cinnamon
tsp salt
2 tbsp butter
2 med onions, sliced
3 lg. pears
1/3 cup dry white wine
cup half and half (I used skim milk) (wellunderstood used whole milk)
white pepper to taste (don't use black pepper!)
optional: cilantro or chopped chives

Peel, seed, and dice the squash. Peel and dice the yam. Put them in the pot with vegetable broth, water, cinnamon stick and salt and simmer until tender, about 40 minutes. Discard cinnamon stick. Melt the butter and gently cook the onions in it, stirring occasionally until it begins to caramelize. Peel, core, and thinly slice the pears and add them to the onions. Continue cooking for about 5 minutes, stirring often. Add wine, cover, and simmer for about 10 minutes. Puree. Add cream and pepper and salt if needed. Heat to a simmer but don’t boil.