Food Matters Project #36: Dal with Lots of Vegetables

To make it 3-in-a-row, yesterday was another gloomy Monday.  Last week we made the Provencal Pasta Sauce to keep us warm and toasty.  But yesterday it wasn’t just rain, there was even a little bit of snow on the ground here in DC!

Yes, we got snow on March 25th, it must be a record.  Fortunately, today it’s sunny and getting warmer by the hour- I think everyone is ready for spring!

Yesterday’s Food Matters Project recipe was perfect for a gloomy day.  It was chosen by Anita, of Cooking Poetry.  She hosted Dal with Lots of Vegetables from Mark Bittman’s Food Matters Cookbook.  Check out her blog and the Indian feast she had made- I’m a little jealous, everything looks delicious!  There are also other versions of the meal from other FMP participants here.

I’m a huge fan of Indian food, thanks to Sam.  He introduced me to the spice  soon after we started dating, and I have craved this cuisine ever since.  My favorite reason behind it is because you can make most of the dishes vegetarian, and not feel like you’re missing out.  Slow cooking the lentils and vegetables gives them extra flavor and fills you right up.

Want to try some of our other Indian creations?  Golden Red Lentil Soup; Indian Chicken Soup; Indian Chicken Curry Wrap; Baingan Bharta; Curry with Vegetables; Samosa Casserole; Spicy Veggie Lentil Curry.

Dal with Lots of Vegetables
Adapted from: Food Matters Cookbook (page 362)

Feel free to swap vegetables for what you have on hand- for example, I’ve had half a bag of green beans I’ve been needing to use up.  If you don’t want this dish to be as spicy, don’t use the jalapeño or chili powder.  Not into a deep curry flavor?  Just halve, or quarter, the Indian spices. 

2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp minced ginger
1 jalapeño, chopped
1/2 head of cauliflower, florets & stems cut into small pieces
1 medium eggplant, cubed
1 zucchini, cubed
1 cup green beans (I used frozen)
2 cups fresh spinach
3 cups of water
1 cup dried brown lentils
1 tsp curry powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp Punjam Red Tandoori powder
1 tsp chili powder
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Add oil to a large pot, and allow to heat up.  Then add the onion, allow to simmer until the onion is translucent.  Next, add in the garlic and ginger and cook for about 3 minutes.  Then add in the rest of the vegetables: jalapeño, cauliflower, eggplant, zucchini,  green beans, and spinach.  Cook the vegetables, while stirring, for at least 5 minutes.  Then add in the water, lentils, curry powder, garam masala, Punjab Red Tandoori, chili powder, salt and pepper.  Stir all of the ingredients together, bring to a boil.  Then turn the heat to low and simmer for at least an hour (up to 2 hours).

Serve over rice, or with a piece of naan.

Samosa Casserole

So I know I’ve been a little absent from the blog world, but there is a reason for it.  We’re on vacation!  Yes, remember this post?  Since our travels began, we’ve been enjoying some great food, and yes, we’ll be sure to write about it here the moment we get back!

Until then, here’s a recipe I had made for my Book Club about a week prior to our trip.  Our last book was filled with short stories about Indian families living in the US- so naturally, I had to make some Indian dishes!  Searching around, I had stumbled upon this one, and thought it’d be a hit (and it was!).

The great thing about this dish was that I prepared it the night before.  I had made all of the filling, and then stored it overnight, covered in the fridge.  Then next day, I had made the crust and baked it.

Samosa Casserole
Adapted from: Vegetarian Times (Jan 2010)
6-8 servings

1 cup of flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp vegetable oil
10 tbsp cold water
1 1/2 lb Russet potatoes, quartered
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
3 medium carrots, diced
5 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp mustard seeds
1 cup peas, frozen
1 cup of water
1 vegetable bouillon
1 tbsp curry powder
1/2 tbsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Knead together flour, salt and vegetable oil.  Once it starts clumping, add cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time.  Continue kneading until you can form a ball.  Cover with a towel and set aside.

Cook potatoes in boiling water until they are tender, then drain them.  Next, add them to a bowl and mash them- try leaving some chunks for texture.

In a saucepan, heat olive oil.  Then add the onions, carrots and garlic; sauté for about 5 minutes.  While the heat is still on, slide the vegetable mixture to one side of the pan.  In the empty space add mustard seeds.  Toast them for about 30 seconds, then mix them into the vegetable mixture.  Stir in peas, water and a vegetable bouillon.  Finally, add the curry powder, ground ginger, ground cumin, garam masala and red pepper flakes.  Stir well, mixing in all of the spices.

Once it is all incorporated, add the vegetable mixture into the bowl with mashed potatoes.  Also, add honey, salt and pepper.  Make sure it’s well incorporated.  Spread the filling into about a 9-inch pan (any shape).

Preheat the over to 350ºF.

Roll out the dough on a floured surface.  If the pan is 9-inch, then the dough should be around 11-inches.  Cover the filling with the dough, pressing down to eliminate all of the air pockets.  Trim off the excess dough.  In the center, cut in an X, to let the steam out.

Bake the casserole for about 60-70 minutes, until the crust is golden brown.  Let it stand a couple of minutes before serving.

Baingan Bharta (Eggplant)

My love for Indian food has grown over the last 2 years and as I’ve gotten better at making it, it’s become even tastier.  You have no idea how excited I was to pick up garam masala from the store a while back since that would help me make Indian dishes even more delicious.

When I found this recipe from a new blog which I had discovered, I couldn’t wait to try this out.  It’s a very simple, but an extremely flavorful dish.  I was able to make this in between finishing up some cleaning around the house.  Low-stress recipes are always the best, especially during really busy weeks.  In addition, this is a vegan recipe that will not require any meat additions- it’s just perfect on its own.  It’ll taste great over rice or with a piece of naan bread.

Baingan Bharta
Adapted from: Eat, Live, Run

1 eggplant
1 tbsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeño, chopped
(we also added a habañero- so that’s an option)
1 green pepper, chopped
small (1 inch) piece of ginger, chopped
3 tsp garam masala
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp chili powder
2 tsp curry powder
1 15oz can of diced tomatoes

Preheat over to 400°F.  Slice the eggplant lengthwise, and sprinkle with 1 tbsp of salt on the fleshy side.  Also, rub the whole eggplant (fleshy and skin sides) with 2 tbsp of olive oil.  Then, place the eggplant on a cookie sheet, flesh side down.  Bake the eggplant for 30 minutes.  Switch the oven to a broil, and broil it for another 5 minutes.  Then take it out of the oven, and let it cool off.

In a large skillet, heat up 1 tbsp of olive oil.  Once it’s heated, add the onion and garlic.  Sauté until the onion is translucent, then add: jalapeño, green pepper and ginger.  Sauté all of the vegetables until they are tender, about 5 minutes.  Next, add the garam marsala, cumin seeds, turmeric, chili powder and curry powder.  Add the tomatoes, and stir well.

Next, once the eggplant has cooled off a bit, scoop out the seeds.  With what is left over, try to cut it up into a couple large chunks (skin included).  Add the eggplant to the skillet and cook for another 5 minutes.

Lastly, ladle all of the vegetables into a food processor.  Process the mixture until it is smooth.  Serve over rice, and with a piece of naan bread.