Feast Your Nose On This: A Curry Dinner

Mmmm. You're either a curry person or you're dumb not. Here is a three recipe feast for those of you in my pro-curry camp, adapted from Atlas' and Kayte's Vegetarian Express:

Fruit & Spice Pilaf

• 1 cup raw quinoa (the original recipe called for couscous. My instructions below are for quinoa)
• 2 Tbls butter
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 apples, peeled and diced
• 1/2 cup chopped mixed dried fruits (I used raisins)
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• Salt, to taste
• 1/3 cup toasted sliced or slivered almonds (I used walnuts)

1. Rinse the quinoa and combine it with 2 cups water. Bring to boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes on medium or until water is absorbed, cover and let sit for five minutes, then fluff with a fork.
2. As the quinoa cooks, melt the butter in a skillet on medium heat. Add the onion and saute until translucent.
3. Add the diced apple into the onion saute, cover, and let cook for another 3-5 minutes or until the apple has softened. Stir the dried fruit into the apple-onion mixture.
4. Add the cooked quinoa to the skillet. Pour 1/2 cup water into the skillet and sprinkle in the spices. Stir and cook for a couple of minutes, until everything is well-mixed and heated through.
5. Salt to taste. Add the nuts. Serve. (Alternative:  set the toasted nuts aside in a serving dish and let people sprinkle on their own, to taste.)

Creamed Curried Vegetables

• 2 large carrots, roughly chopped
• 2 medium potatoes, scrubbed and cut into large dice
• 3 cups cut broccoli florets (save the stalks for another recipe)
• 1 cup peas
• 2 Tbls flour
• 3/4 cup whole milk or whole plain yogurt
• 1-2 tsp curry powder, to taste
• Salt, to taste
• 1-2 Tbls minced jalapeno pepper, optional

1. Place the carrots and potatoes in a large saucepan with enough water to cover all but an inch of their volume. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook until nearly tender, about 10 minutes.
2. Add the broccoli and peas. Cover and cook another 5 minutes or so, until broccoli is tender-crisp. 
3. As the broccoli & peas cook, dissolve the flour in the milk (or mix into the yogurt) and then stir in the curry powder. Add the mixture to the vegetables, followed by the jalapeno (if using). 
4. Cook, uncovered, another 2-3 minutes until the liquid has thickened. Season to taste with salt.  

Cucumber Raita

• 1 large cucumber, peeled, quartered, and diced
• 1 cup whole plain yogurt
• Salt & Pepper, to taste
• Fresh dill weed, optional

1. If cucumber seeds are large and watery, remove before dicing the cucumber (if small, leave them in). 
2. Combine the cucumber and yogurt in a serving dish and mix thoroughly. Season to taste with salt and pepper (and dill, if using).

Why I love this dinner: The vegetable curry has a snappy zip to it. The simple raita is cool and refreshing. The pilaf is sweet and simple. It's a great combination of flavors to have on one plate. If you're a lover of curry (or suspect you might be) I encourage you to recreate this meal in your own kitchen. It's a great way to warm up as this autumn weather gains hold over summer's warmth, and it's surprisingly quick to make.

Sesame Cucumber Side Salad

What to serve as accompanyment to the Cold Noodles of my previous post? Ms. Atlas' menu provided a simple yet strikingly unusual (and tasty) cucumber salad.

     Sesame Cucumber Salad
          from Vegetarian Express by Nava Atlas & Lillian Kayte

• 1 long English seedless cucumber, unpeeled
• 2 Tbls oil [I used grapeseed oil]
• 2 1/2 Tbls rice vinegar
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp honey
• 1-2 tsp freshly grated ginger
• 2 Tbls toasted sesame seeds

1. Slice the cucumber very thinly.
2. In a small mixing bowl, combine the oil, vinegar, soy sauce & honey. Stir to mix thoroughly, then stir in the ginger. Pour the oil and vinegar mix over the cucumber slices and toss well. Sprinkle the top with sesame seeds. 

Cold Noodles. On Purpose.

Some of my cookbooks may be better bedtime reading than practical kitchen guides, but Nava Atlas' Vegetarian Express seems to contain recipes which I can actually cook. Nice, right? It's been nearly six weeks since my baby was born, and I've made four new recipes;  three were from Atlas' book.  I've already blogged about the dessert but the main and side dishes were also from her book. The main dish was cold and was reminiscent of pad thai.   

     Cold Noodles with Hot Chili-Orange Oil

     from Vegetarian Express by Nava Atlas & Lillian Kayte

• 10 to12 ounces angel hair pasta
• 8-ounce package fresh bean sprouts
• 2 large carrots, coarsely grated
• 6 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

     Dressing

• 1 Tbls hot chili oil 
• or 1 Tbls dark sesame oil plus 1-2 tsp chili powder
• 2-3 Tbls soy sauce
• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 2 Tbls sugar
• 2 Tbls undiluted orange juice concentrate

     Garnishes

• 1/2 cup dry-roasted almonds, chopped [recipe called for peanuts, but my little one is allergic]
• 1-2 seedless oranges, peeled and sectioned (optional)

1. Cook the pasta until al dente. Drain & rinse under cold water until cool. Transfer to large bowl.
2. While the pasta cooks, steam bean sprouts over medium-high heat, covered, until they're just wilted (about 2-3 mins). Drain & rinse under cold water until cool.
3. Prepare the carrots, scallions, and parsley (reserve half the parsley for garnish); combine them in a large bowl with the cooked and cooled pasta and the steamed sprouts.
4. In a small bowl, combine the dressing ingredients and pour the dressing over the pasta mixture. Toss well, coating all strands. Garnish with reserve parsley and nuts. Pass around a plate of seedless orange sections to serve alongside, if desired.

 

It was good, though I found myself wishing it were either slightly spicier or had more of an orange flavor. If I make this again, I'll push it one way or the other.

Pineapple-Yogurt Ambrosia

Can it be called cooking if you don't heat anything? I vote yes, and thus feel little to no shame in boasting (okay, some shame. I can't believe it's been so long...) that I finally cooked something from my cookbooks once again.

A dessert:

     Pineapple-Yogurt Ambrosia
     from Vegetarian Express by Nava Atlas & Lillian Kayte

• 1 lb can unsweetened pineapple chunks, drained
• 1 lb container vanilla yogurt
• 1/4 cup dark raisins
• 2 seedless oranges, peeled & sectioned

     Combine ingredients in a serving dish & stir well. Chill until needed.



Mmmmm. Very tasty. And super easy (i.e., perfect for a new mother!).