curry « Low Fat Vegan Cooking

June 12, 2010

Curried Cauliflower and Sweet Potato Salad

Filed under: Gluten Free, Higher Calorie Density, Indian Cuisine, Low Calorie Density, Salads, Side Dishes — Tags: cauliflower, curry, low fat, salad, summer, vegan — admin @ 1:03 am

Curried Cauliflower and Sweet Potato with Currants and Red Onion

Curried Cauliflower and Sweet Potato Salad

This is another adaptation in my attempt to learn to present my cooking more attractively.

I really loved this salad, and as i always do, i made enough for the next day too. But overnight in the frig did not improve it. The onion “cooked” in the vinegar, a flavor i love in pressed salad, but it did not go at all with the curry spices. So that’s why i am saying serve it the day you make it. It needs to sit an hour or two for the curry to flavor the cauliflower, but that’s all.

The recipe called for currants. I thought i didn’t like them, and have been substituting raisins for any currants i come across in recipes for years, but i decided to try them again, just to be sure, and i loved them. The organic ones i tried were sweeter than raisins and didn’t have the annoying little seeds i remembered.

I also recommend the optional toasted pine nuts and sunflower seeds. They really add beauty and flavor to the salad. Sunflower seeds are another food i thought i didn’t like, except for in granola. I figured out this is because they are toasted – it makes all the difference.

Makes 4 servings

Preparation about 15 minutes

Serve within a few hours

The veggies:

1 head cauliflower, any color

1 small red onion

2 medium sweet potatoes

The dressing:

½ c. rice vinegar

2 T. vegan sugar

2 t. curry powder, hot or mild

½ t. salt (optional)

1/8 t. ground black pepper

The currants:

½ c. currants

The garnishes (optional):

½ c. toasted pine nuts

¼ c. toasted sunflower seeds

½ c. chopped cilantro

Early in the day, bake or microwave the sweet potatoes until quite soft and tender. Cool. Peel and chop into bite sized pieces.

Cut the cauliflower into florets, or half florets, if they are not bite sized. Steam the cauliflower in or over boiling water about 4 minutes, until just tender. Drain.

Meanwhile, mince the onion, and start the dressing:

Mix the ingredients for the dressing together in a small bowl.

Put the cauliflower, onion, sweet potatoes, and currants into a bowl or storage container. Pour the dressing over this and mix well but carefully so as not to damage the florets.

Refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Sprinkle with the pine nuts, sunflower seeds, and chopped cilantro, if using.

Adapted from Great Chefs Cook Vegan by Linda Long

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November 10, 2009

Indian Potatoes With Cauliflower and Peas

Filed under: Gluten Free, Low Calorie Density, Main Dishes — Tags: Aloo Gobhi, Aloo Gobi, cauliflower, curry, indian vegetables, low fat, vegan, vegetables — admin @ 1:01 am

Indian Potatoes with Cauliflower and Peas

“Aloo gobi (Hindi: आलू गोभी), also spelled as alu gobi, or aloo gobhi, is a dry Indian dish made with potatoes (aloo), cauliflower (gob(h)i) and Indian spices. It is yellowish in color, due to the use of turmeric, and occasionally contains kalonji and curry leaves. Other common ingredients include garlic, ginger, onion, coriander stalks, tomato, and cumin. A number of variations and similar dishes exist, but the name remains the same.”
Wikipedia

I used to love Indian food, in fact i had it for lunch and dinner on my birthday every year… but without cream and butter or yogurt, most of was just too spicy for me when i first started eating lowfat vegan food… except for aloo ghobi. The potatoes make it sort of creamy and balance the spices, even for someone who still remembers what it was like to have an ulcer. I’ve indicated what that you might like to use a more reasonable amount of chili and cayenne if you like your food on the hotter side.

You can find garam marsala in some markets, or maybe you’re fortunate enough to live near an Indian Market. We think it tastes fresher if you make it yourself. I’ve put a recipe for garam marsala below if you want it.

For the fresh chili, i use half a pastilla pepper, which is very mild. I usually buy one as soon as i run out, and chop it and keep it in the freezer.

Indian Potatoes With Cauliflower and Peas

makes 3 – 2 3/4ths c. servings

preparation time including cooking – about an hour

1 onion – about 1 c. chopped
2-4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1″ raw ginger, peeled and minced
1 T. garam masala
1 t. ground cumin
1/8 t. or more cayenne
1/2 t. turmeric
1/2 t. salt (optional)
3 c. water
2 medium potatoes, chopped
3 c. cauliflower, chopped (1 head)
4 carrots, chopped
1 or more fresh chili pepper, mild or hot, chopped
1 c. frozen or fresh peas
1 medium tomato (optional)

Cook over medium heat the onion, garlic, ginger, and spices in the water about 5 minutes. Add the potatoes, cauliflower, and carrot, and cook about 20 minutes until tender. Add chili, peas and tomato and heat about 5 minutes.

Anything with potatoes in it does not freeze well.

Adapted from Aloo Gobi in La Dolce Vegan by Sarah Kramer (see links)

Nutritional information – not guaranteed to be accurate:
per serving – 269 calories/9.7 g protein/.9 g fat

Garam Masala

Garam Masala

preparation time – about 5 minutes

1 t. ground coriander
3/4 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. ground black pepper
1/4 t. ground ginger
1/8 t. ground cardamom
1/8 t. ground cloves
1/8 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 crushed bay leaf

Adapted from:

http://indianfood.about.com/od/masalarecipes/r/garammasala.htm

The recipe listed here calls for roasting whole seeds and makes more than you need for just this recipe.

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November 3, 2009

Indian Vegetables with Eggplant

Filed under: Gluten Free, Low Calorie Density, Main Dishes — Tags: curry, eggplant, indian vegetables, low fat, vegan, vegetables — admin @ 11:57 am

indian_eggplant

It has been hard for me to find a way to cook eggplant that really brings out the flavor without oil. Here is a recipe that i think succeeds. I use a lot of greens in my recipes. Many years ago i was looking at the various nutrients that different vegetables had, and i was surprised to see kale at the top of several of the lists – vitamin B and A, for example. I figured i ought to eat a lot of it and the other greens that are high on the lists of nutrients – not only for what they have, but for what we have not yet discovered that they have.

Indian Vegetables With Eggplant

4 medium servings

1 1/2 c. water
2 medium eggplant, peeled and chopped
2 onions, chopped
8 cloves garlic, minced or pressed through galric press
4 stalks celery, chopped
1 medium red pepper
1 bunch kale, throughly washed and drained and chopped
(optional: 2 large tomatoes, chopped)
2 t. turmeric
4 t. coriander
2 t. cumin
2 t. paprika
1/4 t. black pepper
(optional: 1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro)

Chop the eggplant, onion, and press or mince the garlic, and put them in the 1 1/2 c. water over medium high heat. Add the spices. Cook until the eggplant is soft and water is reduced by about half. Meanwhile, chop the rest of the veggies as listed. This will take you about as long as the eggplant needs to cook, so you can add them as you finish each veggie. Add more water if needed, 1/4 c. at a time. Turn heat to low until kale wilts, a few minutes at most.

Serve over rice, quinoa, potatoes, etc.

adapted from a recipe called India Eggplant in The McDougall Health-Supporting Cookbook Volume 2 by Mary McDougall.

Nutitional information: without optional tomatoes – not guaranteed to be accurate
per serving: 94 calories/4.2 g protein/1.1 g fat

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