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.

Book Club: Dill & Egg Potato Salad and Spring Vegetable Potato Salad

I hosted my Book Club at our house a couple of weeks ago, there were 8 of us here to talk about The Corrections, and catch up on what’s going on in our lives.  Check out what else was on the Book Club menu!

I almost forgot to post the potato salad recipes from when I hosted Book Club.  Since summer is here, these are the perfect dishes to bring over to a friends BBQ, or for a picnic.  I wasn’t sure what kind of potato salad everyone liked, so I decided to make 2 different ones, hopefully satisfying everyone’s taste buds.

I ended up cooking all of the potatoes together to save time, and just divided them amongst the two salads.  Both can be made the day before, just don’t add the vinaigrette until the last minute, or else the salad will get soggy!

Dill & Egg Potato Salad
Adapted from: So Good and Tasty

6-8 baby red potatoes, washed
1/4 cup chives, minced
1/4 cup dill, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp whole grain mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 red pepper flakes (optional)
2 hard boiled eggs, chopped

Add potatoes to a large pot, pour water over them.  Turn on the heat and bring water to a boil, cook the potatoes until they are soft in the middle so a knife can easily pierce through (the time will depend on the size of the potatoes).  When the potatoes are done, rinse them under cold water.  Then chop them into quarters or smaller pieces.

To make the dressing add all of these ingredients into a small bowl, then whisk them together: chives, dill, garlic, vinegar, olive oil, Dijon mustard, whole grain mustard, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.

Toss the potatoes, eggs and dressing together- then serve.

Spring Vegetable Potato Salad
Adapted from: Smitten Kitchen

8-10 fingerling potatoes
1 lb asparagus, chopped into 1 inch pieces
2 cups sugar snap peas, cut into halves
4 radishes, thinly sliced
4 spring onions, chopped (or green onions)
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp whole grain mustard
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Add potatoes to a large pot, pour water over them.  Turn on the heat and bring water to a boil, cook the potatoes until they are soft in the middle so a knife can easily pierce through (the time will depend on the size of the potatoes).  When the potatoes are done, rinse them under cold water.  Then chop them into quarters or smaller pieces, add them to a large bowl.

Bring water to a boil in a small pot.  Add in the asparagus and cook it for 2-3 minutes.  Drain it and place it in a bowl of ice cold water for 3 minutes.  Drain it again, and add it into the bowl filled with potatoes.

To the potatoes and asparagus, add the: sugar snap peas, radishes, spring onions and garlic.

In a small bowl whisk together the ingredients for the dressing: olive oil, whole grain mustard, Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper.

Finally, toss the dressing with the vegetables and serve.

Spring Salsa

I think it’s official that spring has arrived in DC (or is it summer?).  The cherry blossoms are in full bloom, along with every possible flower.  Don’t get me wrong, I love this!  Although I think everyone is worried that this will be a horribly hot and humid summer.

Yesterday was the first day of the Penn Quarter Farmers Market.  We’ll have many more vendors to choose from this year, which I’m very excited about.  I picked up a jar of Thai Basil Jalapeños from Gordy’s Pickle Jar, they’re the spiciest they have.  I also got some Bison Sticks from Gunpowder Bison Trading Company, one sweet and one hot.  I’m holding on to some purchases until Sam comes back from India, he’ll have something yummy to come home to!

I’ve also bought herbs and potting soil so I can start our little balcony garden.  Can’t wait for fresh basil or cilantro!  Between the colors and warm weather, I’ve been craving some fresh vegetables- especially in the form of salsa.

My friend Carolyn is coming over tonight, both of us love Mexican food, and I thought chips and salsa would be a great way to start off the evening!  I’m definitely ready to start seeing some vibrant colors on my plate.  And this is so quick and easy, you can’t say no to it!

Spring Salsa
This salsa can vary every single time I make it, depends what I have in our kitchen.  Feel free to play around with the ingredients, more or less of some, to your liking.  Possible additions/alternatives: avocado, green/orange bell peppers, habañeros, scallions, or black beans.

1 lb frozen corn, defrosted & drained
1 red bell pepper, chopped finely
1/2 red onion, chopped finely
4 tomatoes, chopped finely
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeño, chopped finely (for less spice, remove the seeds)
2 tbsp cilantro, chopped finely
juice of 1/2 a lime
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Combine all of the ingredients together in a bowl.  Stick a chip in, and enjoy it!

The Perfect Breakfast: Lox

Spring is almost here, and every year all of us are yearning for more sunny days.  Nothing says spring like a wonderful breakfast spread, while you’re sitting outdoors on your patio, enjoying the beautiful weather.

The perfect way to start a morning is by eating this:

There are no instructions required, you add what you want onto this sandwich, and how much you want of it.  This lovely image above has this:

Cream cheese:
*I made enough for a number of sandwiches, so there will be leftovers*
1/4 cup cream cheese
2-3 tbsp dill, chopped
1 tsp mustard
1 tbsp plain Greek yogurt

Mix all of the ingredients together, and spread it on the bread

Sandwich Ingredients:
rye bread
Boston lettuce leaves
lox
dill
capers
cucumbers, sliced

I’d love to know what your perfect sandwich is!