The First 5+

In my pantry today:

• 1.25 c frozen spinach
• 1.25c blanched, chopped kale
• 12 0z canned tomato sauce (plain)
• 1 L yellow onion
• 1/4 c olive oil
• 1 tbsp mustard seeds
• 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• 2 tsp garlic paste
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp fenugreek
• 1 tsp fennel
• 1 tsp coriander
• 1 tsp chile de arbol powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• dash asafoetia

I had some major cupboard rearranging to do so I started the onions in oil with mustard seeds on ML and let them rest largely unattended for about 30m. Sprinkle on turmeric a few minutes in, mix. Turn stove to M an mix in pastes and other spices until a gummy mound forms; dispatch the mound with your spatula and a small dollop of tomato sauce. Add greens and let the food processor run for a couple of minutes; spoon it back into the pan and stir in the remainder of your tomato sauce. Heat and eat, or add paneer, meat or a meat substitute — I threw in some cooked chana dal (split chickpeas) and served it over Basmati rice. I ate this for lunch and again for dinner… and maybe I heated my dinner in a small Ikea skillet then ate it then licked the skillet. Don’t you judge me.

I know that eating foods of color is the way to go, so I feel really good about not only the outstanding 5+ spoons of taste this delivers but also because the recipe is full of enough greens for me to want to add a +. Following the Wahls Diet is my goal, but still isn’t entirely possible — both financially (SNAP only delivers so much) and… because I am still a product of my fatty culture and will submit to its baser dietary desires.*

 

 

* Don’t you judge me.

Moong-day, Moong-day (ft. Nutty Cabbage)

In my pantry today:

• 1/2 medium cabbage
• 1/3 c moong dal
• 1/3 c dry roasted peanuts
• 1 c Basmati rice, cooked/cold
• 1 tsp vegetable ghee
• 3 c vegetable broth
• 1 tbsp garlic paste
• 2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp coriander
• 1 tbsp hot curry powder 
• 1 pinch asafoetida

I’ve got to come clean about something.

I really like cabbage.

Cannot lie. Like it, prefer it even over other vegetables. This all came to pass long before I understood its health benefits beyond not being cake. Want to improve your health but can’t afford another prescription? Eat cruciferous vegetables. That being said…

Start the ghee out on ML and when melted add the onion. Cook over ML heat for 10m or so then toss in the raw cabbage. Turn up heat to MH and stir fry for a minute or two; add 1/2 c of broth and cover. Continue letting steam over M heat for another 10 minutes. Remove lid and stir in seasonings, peanuts. Bring back to a boil and stir in moong with remainder of broth. Bring back to a boil and let cook on M until moong is tender (20-30m) and most of the liquid is gone. Remove from heat and toss in cold rice. Put back on ML heat and toss until everything is hot. Maybe this looks like it takes forever, but there were a lot of dishes to wash ‘n junk and it seemed to take no time at all (and precious little effort). As a combined nut lover and one who loves cabbage done its due, I give this 5 spoons!

The Poor Man’s Saag Masoor

In my pantry today:

• 3/4 c cooked lentils
• 1 14.5 oz can kale greens
• 1 14.5 oz can petite diced tomatoes
• 1/2 sweet yellow onion, minced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp vegetable ghee
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1/3 c unsweetened almond milk
• 2 tsp corn starch
• 1/2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• 1 tsp coriander
• 1 tsp cumin

Ok, so if you’ve read even 10% of my posts then you already know the fundamental aspects of how this dish was made… and I’m feeling especially lazy today so we’re all gonna trust each other. Important asides to note? Don’t drain your cans. Put the coriander/cumin in with your hot ghee/oil/onions/garlic and mix until pasty before adding the other stuff. This is a good way both to get your nutrients and to get rid of at least one can from the back of your cupboard. Cheap, easy and still 4 spoons!

 

Moong Dal Curry (or, “So-diumb”)

In my pantry today:

• 3 c cooked moong dal
• 1/2 large Vidalia onion
• 1 14.5 oz can Italian petite diced tomatoes
• 1 c unsweetened almond milk
• 2 tsp ghee
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp Shan® dal curry mix
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1.5 tsp hot red chili powder
• 1 tsp hot curry powder
• 1/2 tsp coriander
• 1/4 tsp asafoetida

A seemingly healthy meal has hidden intentions this time around. At 1990mg of sodium per serving (I know, right!?) I could not in good conscience just “go with” that Shan® spice packet. The package comes with about 1/2 c powdered spice blend… I drew a compromise and used 1 tsp. The canned tomatoes are already salty enough. But I digress.

Mince your onion as well as you can — don’t focus on perfection, only on not lopping off a digit. Add to ghee that’s melted in a pot on ML. Let onion cook for 10m or so, then dial up the heat to full M. Add the undrained can of tomatoes, then all of your spices; mix that, then mix in your moong dal with strategically dolloped milk to guide the way. Let everything come to a slow boil on M, then reduce heat to L and simmer for, well, it’s gonna be several hours until dinnertime. Serve over Basmati rice with naan. 4 spoons!

Now back to inordinate amounts of sodium. I know better than to have prepackaged “spice mixes” at hand, but in my defense they fit both a food-stampaneer’s budget and the work output possibilities of MS. I am here, now, as my own living proof of the blatantly unhealthy eating habits for which every grocery around me rails. As someone who staunchly believes that convenience foods are not at all convenient for the human body, I publicly admit shame. Now I have to face the cupboard with the dilemma of wastefulness (ie; financial v. corporeal waste). What will probably come from this will be a shuffling of some things to the back then forgetting they’re in the pantry. It is yet to be determined whether my conscience will let me give this stuff away to friends and family (funny how strangers don’t want to take mysterious powder sacks from those they don’t know). /soapbox

Roasted Potatoes and Asparagus with Dallandaise Sauce

In my pantry today:

• 1 large baking potato
• 1 lb asparagus
• 1/2 c moong dal
• 1/2 medium onion
• 2 tsp safflower oil
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1/2 c half and half
• 2.25 tsp Greek seasoning
• 2.5 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp hot red chili powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp pepper

The fridge determined that today was asparagus’ day; you don’t commit to the purchase of asparagus without committing to preparing it within a day or so — she is too fine a lady to be kept waiting with the other rabble.

Peel and dice that bigass potato; cut into 1/4″ fan-shaped wedges and toss with 1.5 tsp safflower oil, that onion you cubed, 1.5 tsp Greek seasoning, 1/2 tsp garlic and 3/4 tsp hot red chili powder. Arrange in a gently overlapping, covered layer in a baking dish and put in a 400° oven for 45 minutes. At that point, uncover the pan and add asparagus tossed with 1/2 tsp each safflower oil and Greek seasoning. Fan it out along the top of the taters and put back in the oven for 10-14m, depending on how green you like yours.

In the time between potatoes going in and asparagus going on top of it, make your delicious dallandaise! Boil dal for 20-30m, drain and add back to the pot with butter and 1 tsp garlic. Mush it all together, adding half and half as you go. Dash 1/4 tsp each: Greek seasoning and hot red chili powder (which is being used instead of paprika, as that is a spice without much harumph). If you’d like it a little thinner, add more half and half or unsweetened almond milk.

Serve the potatoes and asparagus hot from the oven smothered in the dallandaise. It was conceived as an idea to add protein to the roasted items so as to make a more complete meal… and it delivered unanticipated WIN. I will be making variations of this again. 5 damn spoons!