Vegetarian Curry

Hooray I have a Meatless Monday recipe to share with you! I have made this vegetarian curry dish several times now. It's so easy and so good and so healthy! If you don't like a lot of heat be sure to leave the pepper out of this, as just with curry alone it has a little kick. 

You can add or subtract whatever veggies you like or have on hand. This time I forgot to get chickpeas so I substituted some small potatoes. I think sliced summer squash or zucchini would also be excellent in this! It also is a great recipe to make ahead and keep warm in the crock pot. My friend Jess shared this recipe with me after she got it from our friend Kelly. Thanks ladies! :)

Vegetarian Curry

Serves 4

Printable Version

Ingredients

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 small yellow onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon ginger

1 thai or jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped

1 tablespoon curry powder

1 teaspoon pepper

1 ½ teaspoon salt

1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into ½ inch cubes

1 can chickpeas drained and rinsed

1 can coconut milk

½ cup water

½ cup frozen peas

½ cup diced tomatoes

Directions

Warm oil in dutch oven at medium low. Add garlic, ginger, onion and pepper. Cook until onion is translucent, about 4 minutes. Stir in curry and season with salt and pepper. Add sweet potatoes, chickpeas, coconut milk and water. 

Bring to a boil then reduce to simmer for ten minutes. Add peas and tomatoes and cook until heated through. If you want to keep warm in a crock pot, this is time time to transfer everything over. Serve over rice.

Okonomiyaki (Japanese "As-You-Like-It" Pancake)

For our latest dining out in Okinawa experience, hubby and I went to an Okonomiyaki Restaurant. We happened upon it while out shopping and sight-seeing. We had heard of this type of restaurant, where you choose ingredients for a cabbage batter pancake and cook it on a griddle at your table. It sounds strange, but they are really very tasty! The ingredients all compliment one another and the result is a savory, filling meal. At the restaurant my husband ordered a pork Okonomiyaki very similar to the one I recreated at home. Here is hubby's dinner at the restaurant:

I got a "Mexican" flavored Okonomiyaki. Bad choice. It wasn't terrible, but the spices were strange and I really preferred hubby's over mine. The next day my neighbor and friend Louise asked me if I knew what my next Japanese recipe was going to be and I said I wasn't sure. She gave me a recipe for Okonomiyaki without her even knowing we had just tried it the night before! It was cooking fate, I tell you! I "Americanized" the recipe because I realize you won't be able to find hakurikko flour, pickled ginger or dried fish flakes and I didn't use them in my recipe anyway. The next time you are feeling adventurous or want to try something exotic, I hope you will consider making your own Okonomiyaki. Just the name is cool, don't you think!? :) I listed variations after the recipe, as the sky is the limit with these!

Okonomiyaki (Japanese "As-You-Like-It" Pancake)
Serves 2
Printable Version

Ingredients
2 2/3 ounces flour
1 ounce yam (sweet potato)
3 1/3 ounce fish stock or water
2 think slices of bacon
3 1/2 ounces cabbage
Green onion
1 egg
1 ounce Worcestershire Sauce
1 ounce Mayonnaise
1 ounce Vegetable Oil

Directions
Rinse the cabbage and green onion in cold water. Cut the cabbage into julienne strips and the chop the green onions. Peel the yam and grate. Chop one slice of bacon thinly and leave the other.

Place the flour, stock (or water), and grated yam into a bowl and whisk throughly to create the batter.

Add the cabbage, green onion, bacon and egg to the bowl and mix well. 

Heat a griddle to 400 degrees and add some vegetable oil. Pour the batter onto the griddle and place the other slice of bacon on top. 

Heat for three minutes. Turn the pancake over and allow the other side to cook for five minutes. Flip again and cook for five minutes. Flip again and cook for three minutes. Flip on more time and cook another three minutes. 

Whisk the Worcestershire Sauce and Mayonnaise together and spread on the top layer. Serve immediately!

Variations: Shrimp, cheese, squid, corn, etc. in addition to or instead of the bacon. 

Sweet Potato Salad with Bacon and Celery

I saw this recipe of Rachel Ray's on Taste and Tell and not only thought it looked delicious, by figured it was going to be the only way I could get my hubby to eat some of the sweet potatoes I bought and wanted to use. Anytime there is bacon involved, the hubs is there. I did not have onions or parsley on hand, and I overcooked the sweet potatoes but despite all these set backs, this salad was really good! I love the crunch of the celery with the softness of the sweet potatoes. The bacon is definitely the star in this dish. Hubby even said, "You can't really taste the sweet potatoes". I'm thinking he really does like sweet potatoes but won't admit it! :)

Sweet Potato Salad with Bacon and Celery
As seen on Taste and Tell from Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals
Serves 4
Printable Version


Ingredients
1 1/2 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
Salt
Extra Virgin Olive Oil for drizzling
1/2 cup beef stock (I didn't have any so substituted chicken broth)
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Few dashes hot sauce
1 teaspoon sweet paprika (Didn't have so used regular paprika)
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
4 slices of bacon
2 - 3 celery ribs, finely chopped (I added more to compensate for lacking onions and parsley!)
Handful of parsley leaves, finely chopped

Directions
Put the potatoes in a pot over medium heat, then cover with water. Bring to a boil and salt the water. Cook just until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain the potatoes and return to the hot pot. Heat a small pan over medium-high heat and drizzle in some extra virgin olive oil. Add the bacon and cook just until crisp. Add the stock (or broth) to the pot with the potatoes, along with the vinegar and hot sauce and stir over low heat until combined. 

Turn off the heat and season with paprika and salt and pepper to taste. Transfer the potatoes to a serving bowl and stir in the chopped onions, celery, bacon, and parsley. Dress the salad with a liberal drizzle of olive oil and serve immediately. 

Zucchini Slice

What would I do without Tasty Kitchen? Here is yet another fantastic recipe I found on TK. It's a completely different way to use summer zucchini and it incorporates sweet potatoes. There are 6 eggs in this dish, so it's very thick and tastes somewhat like a quiche. I served it as a side  for dinner and then we ate the leftovers at breakfast the next day. It was great for both! 

Zucchini Slice
From Meech on Tasty Kitchen


Printable Version


Ingredients 
2 zucchini, grated
1 whole sweet potato, peeled and grated
1 onion, chopped fine
4 pieces of raw bacon, chopped fine
1/2 cup of cheese, grated
6 eggs
1 cup flour
1/4 cup vegetable oil
Salt and pepper

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Spoon into a greased baking dish and bake for 45 minutes or until set. It's best to use a small baking dish (such as the next one down from 9X13 pyrex) so the zucchini slice is thick. 


*Meech recommends drizzling sweet Thai chili sauce over this dish, I will have to try that next time!*

Roasted Sweet Potato Fries

These roasted sweet potato fries make a wonderful, healthy side dish. The deep orange color of these fries is beautiful and the flavor is earthy and sweet. I tossed mine with fresh garlic, thyme, rosemary, and kosher salt because those are my favorite fresh herbs, but there are so many different ways you can season these. The aroma of these baking will fill up your house and make it seem that you were very domestic even though this is a very simple recipe.

Sweet potato fries do not crisp up like traditional fries, instead the texture is much softer. These are so filling and yummy I made a batch with just one potato and ate it as my lunch. 

Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients

3 sweet potatoes (some people peel them, but I like the skin on!)

Fresh rosemary 

Fresh thyme 

Garlic, minced

Olive oil

Kosher salt

Pepper

Directions

Preheat over to 400 degrees and spray a large baking sheet or two small baking pans with cooking spray.  Wash the sweet potatoes and cut them into wedges. Rustic is good here! Place the sweet potatoes wedges in a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Season to taste with rosemary, thyme, Kosher salt, and pepper.

Spread out on pans and bake for 40 - 45 minutes, turning the fries every 15 minutes to prevent browning. 

30 Things to Make Before I Turn 30: Sweet Potato Soup

When I received a few sweet potatoes in our recent CSA bag I was elated to be able to cross of another item from my list of 30 things I want to make before I turn 30. I came across this recipe on Simply Recipes.com. I am a huge fan of sweet potatoes but unfortunately they are one the few things the hubby won't eat. I thought I might be able to entice my husband to try this soup because the recipe calls for onions, celery, and leeks, all things he does like. I was right! He actually liked this soup and went back for seconds. If I can get him to eat sweet potatoes I know for sure this recipe is a winner.

The author of the recipe said they serve it at Thanksgiving, but I think this soup is great for these cold, gray seemingly endless winter days in February. It's creamy and has nice notes of sweetness from the maple syrup, nutmeg, and cinnamon and earthy flavor from the sweet potatoes. I used a whole onion instead of just a cup and added in more celery and leeks for the hubby.

Sweet Potato Soup

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup chopped onion

2 stalks of celery, chopped

1 medium leek, sliced (white and pale green parts only)

1 large garlic clove, chopped

1 1/2 pounds (about 5 cups) of red skinned sweet potatoes, peeled, and cut into 1 inch pieces

4 cups chicken stock or broth (can used vegetable broth for a vegetarian option)

1 cinnamon stick 

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 1/2 cups half and half 

1 tablespoons maple syrup

The leafy tops of celery stalks, chopped

Directions:

Melt the butter in a large, heavy bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion and saute for about 5 minutes. Add in the chopped celery stalks and leek and saute for about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute for 2 minutes.

Add sweet potatoes, chicken stock, cinnamon stick, and nutmeg;bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes.

Remove cinnamon stick and discard. Puree soup (using immersion blender, use a blender and work in batches) until the soup is smooth. 

Add in the half and half and maple syrup. Stir over medium-low heat to heat through. Season to taste with salt and pepper. This soup can be prepared 1 day ahead. 

Serve with celery leaves sprinkled on top.