Kidney Bean Curry

I would love to have some clever story or entertaining antidote to accompany this post. But the thing is, I spent my day getting ready for and then hostessing a birthday party for my son, and my pregnant self is tired. All I want to do is get to the point, let you know how much we really liked this meal this meal and share the recipe with you.

It's beans. It's hearty, healthy and easy. It's basically a chili with Indian flavor. And it is delicious.

I knew I would love it, so I made a bigger batch to ensure there would be leftovers. Which was very wise, since it tastes just as awesome the next day. Serve with rice or naan (or whole wheat couscous, which was what I was more in the mood for that day) with a dollop of yogurt and a scattering of cilantro.

Kidney Bean Curry
adapted from Smitten Kitchen via Branny Boils Over
serves 5-6

2 tbsp olive oil
1 large green pepper, chopped
1 medium-large onion, chopped
2 tbsp minced fresh ginger
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp cayenne
1 (28 oz) can whole peeled plum tomatoes (or diced tomatoes)
2 (15 oz) cans of kidney beans, drained and rinsed (I used one light red and one dark red)
1/4 cup water
rice (or couscous) or naan
plain yogurt, for serving
chopped cilantro, for serving

Heat oil in a Dutch Oven or large stock pot over medium. Add onions and peppers and cook until becoming soft, about 7 minutes. Add ginger, garlic and spices and cook for a few more minutes.

If using whole tomatoes, use kitchen shears to snip them into smaller pieces right in the can. Add the now chopped tomatoes with juices to the pot and use a wooden spoon to break up any remaining large tomatoes pieces.

Add in the beans and the water, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer gently for about 30 minutes or until thickened.

Serve over rice (or couscous) or with naan, topped with a dollop of yogurt and garnish with cilantro.

Curry Honey Roasted Vegetables with Chickpeas

You know when you take a perfectly good (and probably wonderful, as is) recipe and change it up so much it bares little resemblance to the original, and thankfully that gamble pays off because it winds up being absolutely delicious? Well, this was one of those meals. The other day, I was flipping through the most recent issue of Everyday Food, and spotted a recipe for a side dish of Honey-Roasted Vegetables, which contained carrots, sweet potatoes and parsnips, as well as with walnuts and thyme.

I didn't have parsnips or sweet potatoes, but I did have a golden acorn squash, a butternut and a few carrots, which I figured would work well. I was also out of the walnuts, but I thought I'd just sub in chickpeas, making it more substantial and suitable for a main dish. Now here is where I really took the recipe in a different direction: I decided not to use the thyme. Which if you know my love of the the herb, you realize this is strange. But I decided to go out of my comfort zone, and use curry powder instead. Since we don't always love a lot of curry seasoned dishes, I began to fret as this went in the oven, trying to think up a Plan B, just in case.

I need not have worried- this was awesome! Since I had some cooked brown rice in the freezer, I made a last minute decision to serve it with rice, which went perfectly. A sprinkle of cilantro, and I had a wonderful meal I felt quite proud of.

Curry Honey Roasted Vegetables and Chickpeas
as an entree, serves 3
adapted from Everyday Food's Honey Roasted Vegetables, October 2010

1 medium butternut squash (about 2 lbs), peeled, seeded and cut into 3/4 inch chunks
1 golden acorn squash (around 1 lb), peeled, seeded and cut into 3/4 inch chunks
3 carrots, cut into 1/2 inch chunks
1/4 cup honey
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 tbsp curry powder
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 (16 oz.) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
cooked brown rice and chopped cilantro, for serving

Preheat oven to 375. Arrange squash and carrots in a 3 quart baking dish.

In a glass measuring cup, measure the honey. To this, add olive oil, garlic, curry powder and ginger. Using a fork, whisk until blended, and pour over vegetables. Season with salt and pepper, and toss to combine.

Roast until carrots and butternut squash are tender (acorn squash will have broken down a little bit, helping to "thicken" the sauce), about 40 minutes. Add chickpeas, stir, and return to oven for 5 minutes.

Serve with rice and cilantro.

Sweet Potato Lentil Stew

You know the kind of meal that you enjoy so much that for hours after you eat it, you keep thinking of it? And then the next day, you can't wait to have the leftovers for lunch? And then because you enjoyed it so much the second time, you are giddy because there is still enough for yet another bowl the next day? For me, that was this stew. It even made me doubt myself as a good wife and mother, because I wanted to hide the last of it deep in the fridge just to make sure I was the one who got it.

The funny thing is I stumbled upon this by accident. I knew I wanted a cozy vegetarian meal for dinner. I was wanting soup, and at first I was thinking a lighter version of cream of mushroom. Then remembering I had some lentils, I began searching for mushroom lentil soup recipes. After not finding anything I wanted to make, I decided to check out my favorite blog, A Year in the Kitchen. Ashlee always has great vegetarian recipes as well as lots of soups and stews. Her Butternut Squash and Lentil Soup caught my eye, but I didn't have a butternut or the garam masala, or the time to cook it in a slow cooker. I thought about how butternut and sweet potato are often interchangable in recipes, and after doing a search, found many soups and stews with the combination of sweet potato and lentils.

This stove top version is similar to Ashlee's, only with additional veggies, and spiced with a bay leaf and curry powder instead of the garam masala. I'm not the biggest fan of curry powder usually, but I'm so glad I went to ahead with recipe. The curry wasn't overpowering and gave it a delicious flavor. I did make some minor changes by adjusting quanities, and left out the frozen greens beans it called for. I didn't have any fresh and I don't care for the frozen ones. I also added some tomato paste, which helped thicken it. The recipe suggested topping it with plain yogurt and cilantro at the end, neither of which I had. When I make this again (and you bet I will!) I will make sure to have the cilantro because I love what it adds to soups, but a dallop of lite sour cream worked wonderfully with this. Sage added some diced chicken breasts to his, but afterwards said he would've enjoyed it just as much without the meat.

slightly adapted from wholeliving, about 4 servings

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 large onion, chopped

1 cup of julienne-cut carrots

2 medium celery ribs, chopped
1 bay leaf
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder

4 cups water
1 1/4 cups dried brown or green lentils, picked over and rinsed
2 small to medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut in 1/2-inch dice (about 3 cups)
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes in juice
2 tbsp tomato paste
Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
Plain low-fat yogurt or lite sour cream, for serving

Chopped cilantro, if desired

In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium-high. Add onion, carrots, celery, and bay leaf. Cook, stirring, until vegetables are softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic and curry powder and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute more.

Add water and lentils. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook 10 minutes. Add potatoes and continue to cook, covered, until lentils and potato are just tender, about 20 minutes.

Add tomatoes with juice and tomato paste. Cook until warmed through, 2 to 4 minutes. Remove bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with yogurt or sour cream, and sprinkle with cilantro, if desired.

Curry Pasta Salad

For the 4th of July, I wanted to make some kind of pasta salad, but something different than the typical Italian or Greek styles I normally make. I remembered a curry pasta salad I'd once had. The flavor of the dressing had been really good but it was basically just pasta, raisins or currants and celery. It just hadn't had enough to it for my liking.

I browsed a half dozen recipes that I found online and got ideas for what I'd put in mine. I really enjoyed this! With each bite you got a wide range of flavors and texture. I enjoyed a bowl the next day with the addition of a little honey drizzled on top, so I may experiment with adding a little honey to the dressing next time. And while I liked it with the mini bow-ties, I will most likely make it with orzo next time just to be different. I will also add extra apple. As a time saver, I bought my carrots precut into matchsticks and chopped them, instead of shredding them.

.

8 oz. (1/2 of a box) mini farfalle pasta
1 fuji apple, chopped ( I drizzled with lemon juice to keep from browning)
¼ cup chopped celery
½ cup golden raisins
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/3 cup carrots, shredded or julienned and chopped
Toasted almond silvers

Dressing:
3 tbsp light mayo (I used the kind with olive oil)
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp curry powder
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt to taste

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and cool under cold running water.
2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, blend dressing ingredients.
3. Add pasta, chickpeas, carrots, celery, raisins and apple to bowl, and mix gently.
4. Chill until ready to serve. Top with toasted almonds just before serving.