Indian, round 1: Potato and Eggplant Curry

I know, I know. "Indian food? Scary!" But really, it's not all that scary. Not if you have an endless list of totally obscure ingredients you've never heard of in quantities much larger than you'll ever need, from the grocery store that's farthest and most inconvenient to the rest of your life.

See? Not so bad.

Today I had a car, and I made sure to take extra-long at my doctor's appointment. Read: I went to the Indian grocery store way the hell down Rockville Pike. I actually thought I'd missed it, and just as I sent a text to google asking where in the world "International Indian Supermarket" was (yea, that's what it's called. It's Indian and International), I found the IHOP, turned left, and there, on the side of the pancake house, was a small slice of Indian heaven. Think curry leaves, dried papadum, dosai mix, whole nutmeg and turmeric and amchur (huh?) and lots of frozen dinners. Daunting? A little, but also ridiculously fun. I was a kid in a candy store. Only I didn't recognize any of the candies. But still, candy store, people.

Here's what I came home with:

1 package toor dal
1 package whole nutmeg
1 package brown sesame seeds
1 tub tamarind paste (crack, as far as I'm concerned. This stuff is amazing.)
1 jar garam masala paste
garam masala and chana masala powders
1 bag curry leaves
1 bag dried papadum
1 box dosai mix
1 large box saffron

True to form, I used only four of the above ingredients in the curry I made tonight, and I used them in proportions that an Indian food connoisseur would poo-poo. And by that, I mean that I made it all up.

But hey, it was edible! In fact, it was so edible that even D ate it. And when it came time to take seconds, she chose my odd creation over the palak paneer (spinach and cheese) from a package. So it really must have been pretty decent.

I'll happily provide the recipe here, but as with most things I make, this "recipe" never really was a recipe as much as a taste-and-adjust experiment. The moral of the story is to always try new things, especially Indian food, because with Indian food, all the flavors on the plate are supposed to blend together -- so if you accidentally over or under-season something, just mix it with something else until it tastes like something you want to eat. Kapish?

Potato, Yam and Eggplant Curry
serves 2, with leftovers.

2 large potatoes of any sort (I used regular old baking potatoes), in chunks
1 sweet potato, in chunks
1 small eggplant (I used most of one Japanese eggplant), in chunks
1/2 a tomato, diced
1/2 a red onion, diced
2-3 small curry leaves
1 1/2 tsp. garam masala paste
1 Tbsp. tamarind paste
1 Tbsp. sugar
peanut oil (veg. oil is fine)
salt to taste

1. Add 1/3 cup peanut oil to a heavy-bottomed pan. Add garam masala paste, curry leaves and diced red onion. Saute until translucent.
2. Add potatoes, and toss to coat with seasoning. Saute five minutes.
3. Add eggplant, and toss to coat. Saute 2 minutes.
4. Add water by the cupful (I added about two cups), until curry stops sizzling. The idea here is to bring the water to a low boil, and allow it to cook of gradually. This will create a sauce with concentrated flavor, and it will also allow the potatoes to cook through.
5. When the first round of water is mostly evaporated, add a cup or two more and keep cooking. Continue this process until potatoes are easily pierced with a fork; then allow the water to boil down to a thickened sauce.

Raita
makes 1 cup.

1 cup yogurt
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. finely diced onion
finely diced cucumber and carrot, optional

Combine the above ingredients and serve as a condiment. It offers some relief from the heat (temperature) and heat (spice) of the curry.

A Very Vegetarian Thanksgiving

Having spent 22 Thanksgivings with my family, I've seen my fair share of crowded dinner tables, overstuffed tummies and packed fridges. This year will be no exception. As promised, the array of dishes that my mom and I made for Thursday's feast is so vast, turkey simply will not be missed. We planned a menu with something for everyone (and too much for any one person) to eat. Below, I've outlined every step of our process, complete with shopping lists, directions, and substitutions for those with allergies or dislikes. I hope this comes intime for your prep, and as always, I'd love any and all feedback on recipes, readability, etc. Happy shopping, cooking, and eating!

SHOPPING LIST

Squash Stuffed With Red Quinoa, Pears and Cranberries

• 1 red onion
• 2 firm pears, any kind will do
• 1 stalk celery
• ¼ cup pecans
• 1 bunch fresh thyme
• 1 small container apple juice (total ½ cup)
• 1 small container vegetable broth (total 2 cups)
• 4 delicata squash, depending on size, or substitute butternut squash
• 1 box red quinoa; can substitute regular quinoa or wild rice

Jalapeno-Fruit Chutney

• 2 jalapeno chilies
• 1 package dried apricots
• 1 package cranberries
• small package crystallized ginger (total 1 Tbsp)
• white and brown sugar (total ½ cup of each)
• cloves, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg – whichever you have

Cornbread Broccoli Rabe Strata

Note: we made half a recipe, in a square pan; we’re guessing people will love this, but they’ll only take one helping. It’s pretty rich!

• olive oil
• 1 head garlic (you’ll only need 1 clove for this)
• crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 lb. broccoli rabe, or rapini -- those big leaves with what look like little broccoli florets
• 1 red pepper
• 1 small container kalamata olives (total ¼ cup)
• 1 quart whole milk
• 8 eggs
• whatever you need to make cornbread – we do from scratch, but there are easy mixes out there as well
• 1 container ricotta cheese OR farmer cheese (we did farmer cheese, and prefer it)
• 1 block gruyere cheese (6 oz. total)

Mushroom Soup

• 1 ½ lbs. mushrooms of any kind (we used a mix of white, baby bella, cremini, chanterelles and shitake. If you’re on a budget, use baby bella and cremini, which run much cheaper than chanterelles and shiitake.)
• 8 cups of broth (we bought two cartons of no-chicken broth, which was perfect)
• 5 shallots
• 2 cloves of garlic (one head of garlic will suffice for all the recipes we made)

Squash Stuffed With Red Quinoa, Pears and Cranberries Quinoa adapted from “Cranberry Pear Wild Rice Stuffing” by Nava Atlas, chutney adapted from this recipe in delicious living magazine Serves 8-12.

Red Quinoa:

• • 2 cups vegetable broth or no-chicken broth
  • 1 box red quinoa (approximately 2 cups)
  • 1 red onion, diced small
  • 1 celery stalk, diced small
  • 2 medium firm pears, cored and diced
  • ½ cup dried cranberries
  • ¼ cup finely chopped pecans or walnuts
  • 1 tsp. fresh thyme (can substitute ½ tsp. dried thyme)
  • ½ cup apple or pear juice
  • 4 delicata squash, or substitute butternut

Fruit Chutney:

• • 1 cup dried apricots
  • 1 ½ cups water
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • 1 Tbsp. crystallized ginger, chopped
  • ¼ tsp. cloves
  • ¼ tsp. allspice
  • 1 package cranberries
  • 2 jalapeno peppers

For the Quinoa:

1. Bring the broth to a simmer in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the quinoa and cook according to the directions on the package. (We cooked ours over medium heat for ten or so minutes, then turned off the heat and let it steam the rest of the way.)
2. Once the heat has been turned off, add the diced pears and cover the pot, allowing them to par-cook with the quinoa.
3. Meanwhile, sauté onion and celery in a couple Tbsp of olive oil over medium heat, until soft and translucent. Add thyme, and continue to sauté. (Here’s the truth: we let the onion and celery go on a bit too long, and it got a bit charred…and delicious. I highly recommend charring the onion and celery!)
4. Add the cranberries, onion/celery/thyme, pecans and apple juice to the cooked quinoa, and toss. If needed, add salt and pepper.

For the Squash:

1. Slice squash lengthwise, and remove seeds. (If you save them, you can prepare them this way.)
2. Roast squash, upside down, in a pyrex with an inch of water in the bottom. For delicate, 30 minutes is plenty; butternut need about an hour. Remove squash from the oven when you can easily pierce their flesh with a fork.
3. Fill the crevices of the squash with the red quinoa filling.

For the Fruit Chutney:

1. Bring 1 ½ cups water to a boil and pour it over the apricots in a small bowl. Leave for ten minutes; this will reconstitute the apricots. Keep the liquid when done!
2. Meanwhile, roast the jalapeno peppers under the broiler until the skin blackens and develops blisters, 10-15 minutes. (If you have a gas stove, you can char them over an open flame much more quickly.) Remove them from the oven and insert them into a brown paper bag. Allow them to steam in the bag for 5 minutes, then remove them and slide their skins off under running water. Chop them into a fine dice; they should total about 2 Tbsp.
3. Into a pot on medium heat, add apricots, jalapeno, cranberries, crystallized ginger, spices and the leftover liquid from the apricots plus enough extra water to total 1 ¼ cups. Allow all of the ingredients to simmer until cranberries start to pop and the mixture gels, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat, and allow the chutney to set.
4. Top squash and quinoa with a dollop of the chutney, and serve some alongside as well.

Alternative recipe: Add chickpeas to the quinoa, and mix in some salsa with the fruit chutney for a more savory topping.

Mushroom Soup Adapted from this recipe on Epicurious

• 1 ½ lbs. assorted mushrooms
• 5 shallots, diced
• 5 cloves garlic, chopped
• 3 Tbsp. olive oil
• 6 cups broth
• salt and pepper as needed

1. Rinse or wipe mushrooms clean, then pat dry; chop roughly into two or three pieces each. Save two or three mushrooms, which you can later chop and use as a garnish.
2. Sauté shallots and garlic in olive oil until soft and translucent.
3. Add mushrooms and sauté over medium-low heat until mushrooms start to emit liquid, about 10 minutes.
4. Add half the broth, and allow to simmer for 15 minutes.
5. Remove mushrooms and shallot pieces with a slotted spoon and put into a food processor. Puree them with 1 cup of broth until smooth. Return to the pot, add the rest of the broth, and simmer 15 more minutes. Remove from heat.
6. Serve warm, with mushroom garnish.

We also made:

• pumpkin bread
• pumpkin pie (my mom did this before I arrived, but I imagine her recipe is pretty standard)
• pumpkin cheese cake (I'll be getting this recipe soon!)

We will also be making:

• cornbread broccoli rabe strata (recipe from the New York Times; we're making half a recipe, and baking it in a square pan.)
• sweet potatoes two ways: with marshmallows, and with lime syrup
• a greek salad
• cranberry-etrog sauce
• apple-cranberry pie
• pecan pie

If I'm forgetting anything, it's hard to tell. See why it's so hard to miss turkey with this thanksgiving feast?

The most interesting salad

This week at the farmers' market, I got lucky: I found two bags of greens left over from the previous week, labeled $1 each! One was pea shoots, and one was baby rainbow chard. I snagged 'em both and ran home to make something yummy.

I've never used pea shoots before; they're quite pretty. There are lots of small, round leaves, and little tendrils on the tip of each sprig. They also taste quite sweet, much like peas...

And rainbow chard, from what I can tell, is a prettier, more exciting version of baby spinach. The texture is similar, but the stems are colored red, orange and yellow.

I tossed a handful each of the two greens with other farmers' market finds: radishes, mushrooms, honeycrisp apples, and an extra-sharp cheddar. The honeycrisp apples are as their name suggests -- sweet-tart and extra crunchy. They go very well with sharp cheddar.

Since the cheddar was quite creamy, I wanted to keep the dressing light and tart. I settled on a dijon vinaigrette: equal parts lemon juice, dijon mustard, and blue agave syrup (can substitute brown sugar or other sweetener; see note below for details). I poured a stead stream of one part olive oil into the mix, stirring vigorously to emulsify, and poured the dressing over the salad.

Pea Shoots, baby rainbow chard, radishes, mushrooms, honeycrisp apples, sharp cheddar, dijon vinaigrette: how's that for a whimsical little salad?

T-Day at my house: vegetarians, stay tuned

I'm always surprised that people are such haters when it comes to veggie Thansgiving meals. "What? You don't have turkey? How dare!" say their astonished faces. Well, now you know: I don't care about turkey. It's dry almost every time I have it, and frankly, I'd rather a spring chicken any day. Plus, when you have two kinds of cornbread, two stuffings, four things that could easily qualify as mains, four or five cranberry sauces and chutneys and relishes, plus pecan pie, apple cranberry pie and pumpkin pie for dessert, turkey becomes an afterthought.

Anyway. I'm writing to all the vegetarians lurking in cyberspace who read my blog. Yes, you: stay tuned, because I'm going to my parents' house on Sunday to help mom cook, and I'll be taking the usual array of photos, notes and tastes....and, of course, sharing recipes. So keep reading, and I promise some fantastic T-day suggestions soon!

Also, a note to you carnivores who are hosting T-day yourself: veggies need to be looked after. If you don't think carefully, you'll end up with "bacon in the brussels sprouts, gravy on the mashed potatoes, dressing stuffed into the bird and chicken stock in everything else" (from Melissa Clark in NYT; I couldn't have said it better myself.) So do make sure that you have some completely vegetarian dishes at your table. For any and all suggestions...you know where to find me.

***picture above is pumpkin and delicata squash ravioli with brie. The recipe was nothing to write home about, but like I said -- more to follow.