Why Does Everything Taste Better When Momma Cooks It? :)
From simple bowls of oatmeal…
…salads with extra bell peppers and cucumbers, my favorite…
…to the best aloo parathas in the world (or potato stuffed rotis!)…
…and my favorite vegetarian Indian meals.
John did not need to eat any of this. He had biryanis, roasted chicken, roasted veggies, and two kinds of kebabs - all made with meat. :) They were pretty excited to spoil him!
He was also quite happy when mom sent him home with leftovers and promises of more deliveries. :D
Constant Cravings: Chana Masala or Chickpea Curry
Rewinding to last night, John and I had a super-secret fun errand to run downtown. He came home first for dinner and I made my favorite Chana Masala.
There’s a place for “curry simmer sauces” from Target or Whole Foods recipes but I find that most times, those aren’t very healthy or tasty, and don’t hit the spot.
And then you turn to your boyfriend and say, “Baby, can we go to Cumin,” defeating the whole point! :D
I want Indian food like my mother makes - or that I can get from my favorite Indian place.
This recipe from Smitten Kitchen is one of the best-tasting and authentic but I made a few tweaks (leave out the onion and garlic - RARELY used in Indian vegetable dishes except as a garnish) and I added asoefetida or hing.
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 fresh, hot green chili pepper, minced
1 tablespoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 tbsp asoefetida
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 teaspoons cumin seeds, toasted and ground
1 tablespoon amchoor powder
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon garam masala
2 cups tomatoes, chopped small or 1 15-ounce can of whole tomatoes with their juices, chopped small
2/3 cup water
4 cups cooked chickpeas or 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 teaspoon salt
Heat oil in a large skillet. Add ginger and pepper and sauté over medium heat until browned, about 5 minutes. Turn heat down to medium-low and add the coriander, cumin, cayenne, turmeric, cumin seeds, amchoor (if using it), asoefetida, paprika and garam masala. Cook onion mixture with spiced for a minute or two, then add the tomatoes and any accumulated juices, scraping up any bits that have stuck to the pan. Add the water and chickpeas. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, then stir in salt.
I know what you are saying - this is so much work! And so expensive!
It’s NOT! This is much cheaper than buying the bottles of prepared sauces (which work in a pinch), and allows you to make a range of meals. And even better, the dishes actually taste like delicious take-aways, instead of all tasting like the same vegetable and curry powder combo. :D
Try it and let me know - I love seeing and showing everyone’s cooking!
After we ran our errands, we stopped for frozen yogurt on Michigan Avenue - red velvet cake flavor, and a swirl of chocolate and french vanilla - no toppings for me. :)
We came home late but not before I finally caught up on The Bachelor. And this is what I look like when I watch the family episodes of the show - why are they so awkward?
John thinks I’m crazy because I’m rooting for Courtney. I can’t help it because like Ben, I’ve fallen for her act and really believe she’s in love with him.
Breakfast on Tuesday morning was my new favorite orange, the Satsuma. Or as one of my readers pointed out, the nipple orange.
Alongside a glass of coconut milk!
Happy Tuesday everyone!
Hearty Indian Lentil & Spinach Soup with Sweet Mini Peppers
John and I want Indian food every day. This lentil and spinach soup features a lot of healthy produce and aromatic spices which makes our cravings happy! The recipe can be found below the jump.
We woke up this morning to a lovely snow dusting Chicago which turned into a full fledged snow storm by the afternoon. Since our toes and noses are rosy, it’s a perfect evening to cuddle up under blankets with bowls of hot soup!
Start with the usual suspects for your mirepoix: carrots, celery, onions, and garlic and two tablespoons of olive oil.
I used a half and a quarter piece of onion and four cloves of garlic but I prefer a very strong flavor! Dice everything into the smallest pieces possible since you won’t be blending this soup.
I prepped the spinach from my Fresh Picks order, a delivery service that brings all the organic, lovely produce you see in this post straight to my doorstep. I had never seen a spinach plant with its roots until I got this order.
These are the lentils I had on hand but you can use yellow, red, or your favorite variety! After your mirepoix cooks down add four cups of vegetarian broth and two cups of water. Add two cans of diced tomatoes and when mixture begins to boil, add lentils, lower heat and cover.
We have some acquaintances who really enjoy talking about “authentic” Indian and Thai food - their most common refrain, “That restaurant is not very authentic.” I dread going to dinner with them and only do when my boyfriend makes me. :)
Flavors matter and the easiest way to get it right is to use the freshest spice combination.
{Source}
I get all my spices at The Spice House, a Chicago treasure. The store delivers straight to your door but they are absolutely worth a trip - rows of spices, gourmet salts and sugars, and teas, line the brick walls and smelling from the different jars is one of my favorite ways to spend an afternoon. Buy and store in a tight-closed jar and they last for hundreds of meals.
For my soup, you will need sea salt to taste, black pepper to taste, a teaspoon of cayenne pepper (reduce for less heat), two bay leaves, one and a half teaspoons of coriander powder, and heaping teaspoons of garam masala. Add spices to soup and allow to heat through - take a taste and adjust accordingly.
If you are feeling ambitious and love making Indian dishes invest in some asafoetida or hing - it’s not expensive but can be hard to find. Asafoetida has a harsh smell and taste on the tip of your finger but that disappears when it cooks - and no Indian vegetarian dish is “authentic” or as flavorful without it. My soup uses about a half-tablespoon of hing which I add before the lentils become soft.
Vine sweet mini peppers are my obsession - they are great for dips and a colourful way to dress all my dishes. When the soup had cooked through, I add fresh cut spinach to a bowl and the hot soup - I love the vibrant crunch of green spinach and you can keep it prepped in your fridge so it never wilts and overcooks in your soup pot.
I hope you enjoy this hearty and spicy soup - it’s perfect with whole wheat naan!
Season of Soup Recipes
White Bean and Roasted Garlic Peasant Soup with Sautéed Apples
Golden Roasted Root Vegetable Soup with Pumpernickel Chips
Delicious Moments from Today
My morning smoothie was extra vibrant today! I decided to save my spinach for a salad and enjoy a purple monster - blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, half a banana, Fage Gree 0%, and unsweetened almond milk!
And I nursed a very large coffee with almond milk all day! I’ve gotten messages about this glass and you can find them on Etsy. John got it for a wedding and he didn’t like it because it was too girly for him - so it was passed to me! :D
For lunch I enjoyed Indian Quesadillas! Yes, somewhere my mother just sighed deeply and rolled her eyes hearing the phrase “Indian Quesadillas.”
They were delicious though! We finally found a transfat and whole wheat ready to eat roti because in this house, we are obsessed with Indian food. I prepared the roti and added some non-fat mild cheddar cheese (that would be the sound of my mom passing out). It was delicious! I will be making this for dinner for sure!
Carrot sticks for some crunch and raw goodness on the side!
Workouts
Marathon training for Fargo doesn’t begin officially till February 1st but I’m putting in my base miles and getting my legs prepped as quickly as possible.
My first workout today was a 5K which I ran in 30:29 and my second workout was a sixty minute Hot Power Fusion yoga class!
Let’s see if I have any more in the tank to work out with John tonight - hope you are all having a good day!
Death by Plank and Kicking Our Asanas on Date Night!
Breakfast was a hot coffee with a cup of unsweetened almond milk and a teaspoon of Splenda! Fuel for my first hot yoga class of the day, a C2! It was a toughie doing it two days in a row and my left knee acted up a bit - but no stabbing pain!
Lunch was a veggie falafel footling from Subway which I ate as two meals - I get my bread pulled out and all the veggies.
We had two great abs routines. On Thursday, John picked the following:
Routine 12 of 365:
Sit-Ups, 50 (I can do 40 straight, John does 50)
Bicycle Crunches 25 each
Plank 30 seconds
Toe Touches 20
Sit-up pulses, 1 minute
Sit-up pulses, 1 minute
Bicycle Crunches, 25 each!
Sit-Ups, 50
Routine 13 of 36: This was my routine and it was Death by Plank!!!
Plank 45 seconds
Bicycle Crunches, 25 each.
Plank 1 Minute!
Butterfly Sit-Ups, 25 reps.
Plank 1 minute!
Parallel Shins sit-ups, 25 reps.
Plank 1 minute!
Side Plank - each side, three breaths!
The highlight of today was the arrival of my new super yoga mat - the Manduka Black Mat Pro! I was silly and bought it from my studio but it’s much cheaper on Amazon. The mat lives up to the hype, it’s amazingly thick without being plush and feels really solid underfoot.
Our date night tonight was a hot yoga class with John - he let me enjoy the mat while he used a regular one, but a surprise Valentine’s Gift might be arriving early for someone!
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{John looked like this - except male, six feet tall, and wearing a t-shirt from a recent race!}
I met John at the studio and I was so excited because I’ve been wanting to have a hot yoga date and I haven’t had a two-in-one class day in a long time!
We took a C1 which was perfect after my challenging C2. I love watching John in hot yoga - he is so strong that his chatarungas are perfect and he can kick ass on the arm balances. Me, I still do sexy push-ups! :D
Today, John held crow pose three times: 20, 25, and 30 seconds each!
I was able to hold one for ten whole breaths! Holla yogis!
Now we’re off to an Indian meal feast for our marathon dinner! Happy Friday!
Date Night at “Cumin”
On Friday, we went on one of my favorite date nights this year. We got yummy Indian food at Cumin which is now my favorite Indian restaurant ever, and the Immortals movie right after.
The movie was deep, character-driven, had a great plot-line, almost an Indie flick. No, no it wasn’t. But ladies, you want to go to this movie because Henry Cavill is shirtless for 80% of it and he looks like this. Frankly, all the men in the movie walked around like this. Honey Badger is in love.
If you ever visit Chicago or live here, check out Cumin. It does Indian food right and leaves behind all the traditional trappings of ethnic restaurants with great restaurant decor, good service, and nice tableware. I also loved the drink menu - and settled on the mango martini, because yes, I’m a girl. John went with a Kingfisher beer.
John had the lightest vegetable pakora ever - I was blown away because this tasted like the way my mother would make it!
I was craving chaat which John describes best as “Indian nachos.” They are so yummy and I would eat a small amount after-school with tea. Indian food = home thoughts!
John wanted to get a Nepalese dish from “the foothills of the Himalayas!” :D It was marinated goat with lots of spices and came out sizzling on the tray with lovely veggies. Tandoor cooking is amazing - the entire room fills with the sounds and smells of sizzle!
I went with garlic naan and Malai Kofta, a dish that most restaurants never get right (too creamy, buttery, or spiced wrong). This kofta was PERFECT. The little bowl had a sauce for the goat which we didn’t use.
Indian food always feels like it’s worth every calorie but we’re definitely eating baby spinach salads to make up for this meal! :D
I leave you with my favorite parts from date night, my “mens”:
