Pumpkin Curry

Sunday, October 23, 2016 - Dinner
Pumpkin Curry  (Recipe from The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau)

This pumpkin curry was delicious, and perfect for a cool fall day.  I made it a little spicier than the recipe suggested, and it was nice and hot with a hint of sweetness.  The only thing that made it a little weird was the texture of the coconut - at first, I thought that the lentils were undercooked, but it was just pieces of coconut.  Perhaps next time I could blend the coconut before adding it to the curry sauce.  This curry dish was tasty and satisfying, and it made 10 servings, so I have plenty of leftovers for lunches!  

Aloo Gobi (Curried Cauliflower and Potatoes)

Saturday, February 27, 2016 - Dinner
Aloo Gobi (Curried Cauliflower and Potatoes)

This recipe was delicious and filling, and I will definitely make it again.  The photos don't do it justice.  I used poblano peppers, and I could make it spicier next time by using hotter chili peppers.  The dish also included cauliflower, potatoes, tomatoes, spices, and fresh italian parsley.  Served with naan (from the bakery) and basmati rice.

Masoor Dal (red lentils)

Sunday, January 31, 2016 - Lunch

Masoor Dal (red lentils) - Recipe from The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

This is a quick and easy curry that can be made even more spicy by simply adding extra cayenne pepper.

I only made a half batch (4-5 servings instead of 8-10), because I made several dishes as part of a big Indian feast for lunch.

Served with: basmati rice, Chana Masala (curried chickpeas), and Naan (leavened North Indian bread)

Indian Feast

Sunday, January 31, 2016 - Lunch

Indian feast (multiple recipes from two different cookbooks by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau)

Today for lunch, I made multiple Indian dishes:

Chana Masala (curried chickpeas) from The Vegan Table
Masoor Dal (red lentils) from The Vegan Table
Naan (leavened North Indian bread) from The Joy of Vegan Baking

Served with basmati rice

It was a delicious and filling meal, and there are plenty of leftovers for the week!

Sweet and Spicy Pumpkin Soup

Saturday, November 21, 2015 - Lunch
Sweet and Spicy Pumpkin Soup (Recipe from The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau)

This soup was a great lunch on a cool day.  It was a nice blend of sweet and spicy, and it was hearty and filling.  The leftovers were also very good.  The soup tasted like a delicious mixture of sweet curry and pumpkin pie!

Saffron-spiked Moroccan Stew

Wednesday, November 11, 2015 - Dinner
Saffron-spiked Moroccan Stew (Recipe from The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau)

This delicious stew had a great combination of sweet and spicy flavors.  The base of the soup was sweet potatoes, tomatoes, bell peppers, and chickpeas.  It had a variety of seasonings and spices, ranging from cinnamon to cayenne.  I used fresh ginger (after great results in the sweet & sour sauce).  The recipe called for saffron, which I have never used before - I was surprised at how expensive it was!  This pot of stew required $10 worth (about 1/2 teaspoon) of saffron threads, which are the dried stigmas of crocus flowers.  I'd like to make this stew again, because it was very good, but I would probably try it once without the saffron.

The stew was delicious and very filling.  Per the recipe's suggestion, the stew was served over couscous.  I used Moroccan couscous the first day (pictured), and larger tri-color Israeli couscous with the leftovers for lunch the rest of the week.  

If you left out the couscous and chickpeas, this stew would even work for my paleo friends!

Mango Hot Sauce

Monday, May 25, 2015
Mango Hot Sauce (Recipe submitted to Runner’s World magazine reader comments, May 2015, by runner and chef Allan Grossman)

This hot sauce is deliciously sweet and spicy (with the addition of habañero peppers, not called for in the recipe).  It is tasty on tortilla chips, and it would be good on a variety of foods: tacos, burritos, potatoes, tofu, breakfast sandwiches, etc.

This recipe made a large amount (about 3 cups) of hot sauce, so I plan to enjoy it for a while!

Thai Curry with Veggies

Wednesday, May 20, 2015 - Dinner
Thai Curry with Veggies  (Recipe from The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau)

I was really excited to try this recipe, because I love thai curry, and because the pad thai recipe from this cookbook is probably my favorite meal.
However, I was a little disappointed in the results. The food was good, but a little bland and not at all spicy. After trying the dish and noting the lack of flavor, I went back and mixed in more red curry paste. I ended up using about 4x the amount of curry, and the result was a hint of curry flavor, but still no spiciness.
So I don't know if I got a "dud" jar of curry paste (it was still way before the expiration date), or if it just still needed more. The recipe said that it should yield 2-4 servings, and it actually made 6 servings. So perhaps the curry was overwhelmed by the amount of coconut milk and vegetables.

For the leftovers, I added crushed red pepper, and that elevated the spice level a little. (It also seemed to bring out the curry flavor.)

This dish was good, but it has potential to be even better. I want to try this recipe again - I will buy a different brand of curry and add hot peppers.  This dish would also be tasty with any variety of vegetables, in addition to or instead of those in the original recipe.

Crispy Potato Squares and Tofu Scramble

Sunday, April 12, 2015 - Lunch
Crispy Potato Squares and Tofu Scramble (Recipe from Vegan Cooking for Carnivores by Roberto Martin -- Ellen Degeneres' & Portia de Rossi's personal chef)

This was a very satisfying post-run lunch, and it was fairly easy to make.  I enjoy tofu scramble whenever I order it at restaurants, so it's surprising that it has taken me this long to make it myself.  (Note: those who don't like tofu could easily substitute eggs for the tofu in this dish.)  I modified the tofu recipe slightly - it called for zucchini, red bell peppers, and asparagus, but I omitted the asparagus because it had gone bad in the fridge since I bought it last weekend.  The tofu scramble still turned out very well, just with fewer veggies.  

The potato recipe called for the potatoes to pre-soaked in hot water, then covered in Blackening Spice (recipe from Vegan Cooking for Carnivores by Roberto Martin) and fried in a little oil.  I also modified this recipe slightly - it called for peeled potatoes, but I like potatoes with the skins, and I hate peeling them, so I just diced the whole potatoes with skins.  The potatoes turned out very well.  Soaking the potatoes helped them cook fully without getting mushy (versus boiling), while not getting burned during the pan-frying process.  I will definitely use this method again for fried potatoes.  The blackening spice added some heat and crisped the outsides of the potatoes.  

The potatoes were much spicier than the tofu scramble, so I added Tabasco sauce (smoked chipotle flavor) to the tofu to balance the spice levels of the two dishes.  The potatoes and tofu complemented one another well, and I plan to mix the leftovers together and take them to work for lunch this week.  

Penne Arrabiata

Sunday, March 22, 2015 - Dinner:
Penne Arrabiata (Recipe from The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau)

This spicy fire-roasted tomato sauce was fantastic!  I will definitely make this again, and possibly use it as a base for other sauces as well.  The sauce was fairly simple, so this is a quick and easy, delicious dish!