The Cure-y for the No Cheese Blues

cheese=happiness

Some people call themselves “flexitarian”; others “semi” or “part-time vegetarian”. I like the name eatmeatonlyacoupletimesaweek-arian. I didn’t enter 2015 planning to do this. It just sort of happened as a result of changing my overall eating habits. Though it is healthier and better for the environment (and if we all ate less meat, arguably better for the edible animals themselves), I find it very easy to fall into the trap of substituting the high from meat, with the high of cheesy, carby deliciousness. No meat doesn't automatically equate to healthy. After all, both a hamburger and a grilled cheese sandwich have about 300 calories and a lot of carbs.

So I have had to go beyond vegetarian lasagne, pesto-y pasta, quesadillas, and feta stuffed mushrooms (all of which I love and make from time to time) to find meals that are cheese-less as well as meatless and lowish-carb.

my new favourite multi-grain rice

Lisa’s Kitchen http://foodandspice.blogspot.com/ is one of my go to websites when I need a recipe and/or inspiration. She’s heavy into Indian food but has a range of cuisines and dishes. As long as I have the four S’s (salt, spice, sweet, sour), I end the meal satisfied. While I do have all of these ingredients, I think you could get a similar result with a good curry powder and some cumin.

Ingredients of original recipe plus my changes.

Chickpeas, Mango and Spinach in a Tomato Coconut Gravy

• 1 cup dried chickpeas (I used canned)
• 2-inch piece cinnamon stick (I used ground)
• 2 black cardamon pods, crushed (I used green)
• 1 tablespoon coconut or other cooking oil
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds (I used black)
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced or crushed
• 1-inch piece fresh ginger, minced or grated
• 2 to 3 red or green chilies, seeded and finely chopped (I made a paste with above)
• 1/2 to 1 tablespoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/2 teaspoon amchoor powder (optional)(I used this, it adds a bit of sourness)
• a few handfuls of dried curry leaves (I store mine in the freezer)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• 2 teaspoons coconut sugar or brown sugar (I used jaggery)
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1 large red mango, peeled and diced
• 1 teaspoon garam masala (I used madras masala)
• 1/2 cup water, or as needed
• 2 cups packed fresh spinach leaves, washed and torn (I used kale and added carrots, peas, and green beans as well)

my 6 euro mortar and pestle

I begin any curry I make by pounding the hell out of garlic, ginger, chillies, and any herb I have on hand like mint, cilantro (shhh, don’t tell Stephen. He’s one of those weirdos who thinks cilantro tastes like soap), parsley, or even basil. For some curries, I’ll also throw an onion in too. Pulverising herbs for 10 minutes is cheaper than a therapist or massage, and there’s the added bonus of releasing the antioxidants in the garlic.

 

Raghavad Iyer of 660 Curries fame was on one of my favourite podcasts, The Splendid Table, a few months ago and he explained how you can get 8 unique and distinct flavours from ONE spice such as cumin seeds. 1) as is 2) ground 3) toasted, no oil 4) toasted and ground 5) toasted in oil, 6) toasted in oil and ground, 7) soaked in a liquid, 8) soaked in a liquid and ground.

 

For this curry, the mustard seeds and cumin seeds are toasted in coconut oil and unground. I love when they just start to release their nutty, smoky aromas. I then add the paste and the other spices and cook for a few minutes so the curry doesn’t taste of strong raw onion and garlic.

Then plop in chopped tomatoes, jaggery (Indian sugar), salt, and any other vegetables. Chickpeas and coconut milk come next and mango is added last so it doesn’t get too mushy.
I ladled it over my new favourite multi-grain rice so it is very colourful with the bright yellow curry and the purplish rice. So yummy, so filling, and damn healthy. Win!