legumes » Thrifty Living

Cauliflower, potato & chickpea curry

Oct 082009

Vegan MoFo logo Mmmm, I love Indian food… such an explosion of flavours. Tonight, my culinary journey took me away from Europe and over to the Indian subcontinent.

Cauliflower, potato & chickpea curry

I’m pretty particular about Indian food, and I find it a challenge to create curries at home which rival our local takeaway’s.

This is one curry that is better… oh so much better… than the takeaway’s.

It started out as Aloo chole from the blog Mahanandi, with a few adjustments and the addition of cauliflower. So I guess that would make it Aloo gobi chole.

We decided to do the fusion thing, and made Indian burritos: tortilla wraps stuffed with curry and chopped fresh tomato, chives, vegan raita and lettuce.

It really is one of those meals you just can’t wait to make again.

And… well, you just know what I’m going to say… I’ll be providing the recipe soon.

Vegan Greek moussaka

Oct 072009

Vegan MoFo logo Traditionally, moussaka is made with tomatoes, sauteed aubergine (eggplant) and minced meat. Although I think of moussaka as a Greek dish, it’s also native to the Balkans and Middle East (thank you, Wiki!).

Vegan Greek moussaka

I made this dish with neither aubergine nor meat (nor faux meat!), but yes, I still dare to call it moussaka.

Many thanks go to Wendy from A Wee Bit of Cooking for her great vegetarian moussaka recipe, upon which mine is based. Wendy set out to duplicate Marks & Spencer’s veggie moussaka, and spent months toiling in the kitchen perfecting her creation.

I’ve actually never sampled the M&S moussaka, as it’s vegetarian and not vegan. Wendy’s version is also vegetarian, and the topping is made with milk, cheese and eggs. But the filling is vegan, and I must say it is simply delicious. Although it’s made with lentils and vegetables, with nary a bit of faux meat in sight, it tastes surprisingly meaty.

I had a few courgettes (zucchini) on hand, so decided to use those instead of aubergine. But next time I make it, I’ll definitely try it with aubergine.

To make the topping vegan, I used soy milk, vegan cheese and omitted the eggs. It didn’t have the same consistency as traditional moussaka topping, and to be honest, needs a bit of work. It tasted really good, but was a bit too thin. Next time I’ll play around with the topping.

For the vegan cheese, I used a combination of mozzarella-style cheese (Cheezly brand) and vegan blue cheese (Sheese brand).

Vegan Greek moussaka

British		American
550g	courgettes (zucchini)	1-1/4 pounds
	extra virgin olive oil
38g	brown lentils	3 tablespoons
38g	Puy lentils	3 tablespoons
120g	onion	1 medium
1	bay leaf	1
1	medium red pepper, finely chopped	1
1/2 stick	celery, finely chopped	1/2 stick
1 clove	garlic, minced	1 clove
1/4 teaspoon	dried thyme	1/4 teaspoon
1/2 x 400g tin	chopped tomatoes	1/2 x 14-oz can
75ml	red wine	2-1/2 ounces
dash	vegan Worcestershire sauce	dash
to taste	salt and freshly ground pepper	to taste
Topping
300ml	vegan bechamel sauce	1-1/4 cups
75g	vegan cheese	3 ounces

1. In a heavy skillet, gently saute courgette (zucchini) in a little olive oil until golden and tender. Set aside.

2. Make the bechamel sauce (I used the same one as Wendy, here, substituting soya milk for milk and margarine for butter. Stir in the cheese until it melts. Set aside.

3. Put lentils in two separate pots. Cut the onion in half, then cut one of the halves in half again. Add one of the smaller onion chunks and half a bay leaf to each pot. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until lentils are cooked. Drain, reserving a bit of the cooking water. Discard onion & bay leaf.

4. Gently fry the remaining half onion in a bit of olive oil for 10 minutes, until translucent. Add red pepper and celery and continue to cook for another 10 minutes. The onion should be golden and the pepper & celery almost cooked through. Add garlic and thyme and cook for a couple more minutes.

5. Preheat oven to 180C (350F).

6. Add cooked lentils to the vegetables and stir well. Add tomatoes and wine. Mix well, increase heat and bring to a boil. Add some of the lentil cooking water if the mixture looks too dry. Add Worcestershire sauce and salt & pepper to taste.

7. Lightly grease a small casserole dish with olive oil. Assemble the moussaka: half the courgette (zucchini); all of the lentil mixture, the other half courgette; and bechamel sauce.

8. Bake for 35 minutes until golden and bubbling.

Makes two generous servings.

Creamy chickpea & potato soup with spinach

Jan 132009

Creamy chickpea & potato soup with spinach

Whilst flipping through a cookbook in the bath t’other day (yes, I read cookbooks like other people read fiction), I came across what sounded like a simple yet interesting soup recipe. Plus, I had all the ingredients on hand.

Chickpeas. Potatoes. Spinach. Cumin, coriander, cayenne. Also tahini and [vegan] cream. I wasn’t sure how the flavours were going to come together in the end, but I’m happy to report that the soup was very, very delicious. The original recipe calls for cornflour (cornstarch) to thicken the soup, but instead I used a couple of tablespoons of red lentils for extra nutrition.

I used Stanley to cook the chickpeas, but a half a 400g/14oz tin (drained & rinsed) could be substituted. (Use the other half to make houmous, mmm.)

Be sure to wash the spinach well, as it is often quite muddy.

Sesame breadsticks are nice with this soup.

British		American
1 tablespoon	olive oil	1 tablespoon
65g	finely chopped onion	1 small
2	cloves garlic, minced	2
1 teaspoon	ground cumin	1 teaspoon
1 teaspoon	ground coriander	1 teaspoon
1/8 teaspoon	cayenne pepper, or to taste	1/8 teaspoon
600ml	vegetable stock	2-1/2 cups
3 tablespoons	red lentils	3 tablespoons
180g	potatoes, peeled and diced small	6 ounces
55g	dried chickpeas, cooked	generous 1/4 cup
	(or substitute tinned, drained & rinsed)
4 tablespoons	vegan cream	4 tablespoons
1 tablespoon	light tahini	1 tablespoon
80g	fresh spinach, shredded	3 ounces
	salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1. Heat olive oil over low heat and saute onion until soft, about 5 to 7 minutes.

2. Add garlic and saute an additional minute or two.

3. Add cumin, coriander and cayenne, and cook another minute.

4. Add vegetable stock and lentils. Cover and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lentils are soft.

5. Add potatoes and chickpeas and continue to simmer for 12 to 15 minutes, until potatoes are cooked.

6. Add vegan cream and tahini, stirring until combined. Season to taste with salt, pepper and cayenne.

7. Add spinach and simmer for two minutes, until spinach is wilted.

Makes 2 servings.

Black bean & sweetcorn soup

Jan 072009

Black bean & sweetcorn soup

In a bid to eat a tad more sensibly in the new year after the excesses of the holiday season, I have decided that soup should play a starring role in our evening meals, a couple of times a week.

I wanted to start off with black bean soup, but most such recipes call for pureeing the soup, and pureed black bean soup does not look particularly appetising, at least to me. I also find the texture of pureed bean soups kinda… meh.

I love Mexican mixed bean and lentil soup, so I used that recipe as a base for creating another Mexican-inspired soup, this time with black beans and sweetcorn.

It was excellent, and I would make it exactly the same way next time. The small amount of red lentils add body to the soup without having to thicken the broth with cornflour (cornstarch) or arrowroot, which doesn’t seem right with bean soups.

I started with 110g of dried black beans, and let Stanley cook them, though a 400g/14oz tin of black beans, drained and rinsed, could be substituted.

We served this with bread and a green salad.

British		American
1 tablespoon	olive oil	1 tablespoon
65g	finely chopped onion	1 small
1/2	fresh chilli, finely chopped (or to taste)	1/2
2	cloves garlic, minced	2
1/2 teaspoon	cumin seeds	1/2 teaspoon
1/4 teaspoon	oregano	1/4 teaspoon
1/4 teaspoon	paprika	1/4 teaspoon
1/2x400g tin	chopped tomatoes	1/2×14 ounce can
500ml	vegetable stock	2 cups
3 tablespoons	red lentils	3 tablespoons
110g	dried black beans, cooked	generous 1/2 cup
	(or substitute tinned beans, drained & rinsed)
60g	frozen sweetcorn	1/2 cup
	salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
	finely chopped fresh coriander (cilantro)

1. First toast the cumin seeds in a heavy, dry skillet (I use cast iron) over medium-low heat until fragrant, a minute or two. Remove to a mortar and pestle and grind to a powder. Set aside.

2. Heat olive oil over low heat, and saute onion and chilli until soft, about 5 to 7 minutes.

3. Add garlic and saute an additional minute or two.

4. Add toasted cumin powder, oregano and paprika, and cook another minute.

5. Add tomatoes and their liquid, vegetable stock and lentils. Cover and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lentils are soft.

6. Add black beans and sweetcorn continue to simmer for 15 minutes to blend flavours. Add salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with coriander (cilantro).

Makes 2 servings.

Vegan no-mad-cowboy chili

Nov 232008

vegan chili

I know that every vegan probably has chili in their kitchen repertoire, so yeah, yawn, another chili recipe.

But this is one darn fine chili, very nicely flavoured with just the tiniest bit of heat (though feel free to crank it up a few Scoville units and set your tongue on fire.)

It’s based on this recipe, though of course it’s much much better in its vegan incarnation. (I say this with confidence although I have never tried the meaty version.) You could serve this up to die-hard carnivores and they’d be none the wiser. And of course, there’s no risk of contracting the human version of that nasty mad-cow disease.

It looks like a long list of ingredients, but it’s mostly spices and flavourings. For more heat, add red pepper flakes, fresh hot chilies and/or hot pepper sauce. For the veggie mince, I usually use Realeat VegeMince.

British		American
1 tablespoon	olive oil, or oil from sun-dried tomatoes	1 tablespoon
1	medium onion, chopped	1
1	small red pepper, chopped	1
3	cloves garlic, finely chopped	3
300g	veggie mince (veggie crumbles)	10 ounces
250ml	water	1 cup
1-1/2 teaspoons	vegan Worcestershire sauce	1-1/2 teaspoons
1-1/2 teaspoons	smoked sweet paprika	1-1/2 teaspoons
1-1/2 teaspoons	ground cumin	1-1/2 teaspoons
1-1/2 teaspoons	cocoa powder	1-1/2 teaspoons
1-1/2 teaspoons	sugar	1-1/2 teaspoons
1 teaspoon	mild chili powder	1 teaspoon
1 teaspoon	dried oregano	1 teaspoon
1 teaspoon	seasoned salt (I use Himalayan herbal salt)	1 teaspoon
1/2 teaspoon	freshly ground black pepper	1/2 teaspoon
4	sundried tomato halves in oil, chopped	4
400g tin	chopped tomatoes	14-ounce can
125ml	passata (tomato sauce)	1/2 cup
400g tin	kidney or pinto beans, drained & rinsed	15-ounce can
60g	fresh or frozen sweetcorn (corn niblets)	1/2 cup

1. Heat oil in a heavy saucepan over medium-low heat. Add onion and saute for five minutes, until softened. Add red pepper, cook another five minutes, then add garlic and continue to cook for another couple of minutes, or until vegetables are softened and fragrant.

2. Add veggie mince (veggie crumbles) and 125ml (1/2 cup) water. Saute until water is absorbed.

3. Next add Worcestershire sauce, paprika, cumin, cocoa powder, sugar, chili powder, oregano, salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly.

4. Now add the sundried tomatoes, tinned tomatoes, passata (tomato sauce) and another 125ml (1/2 cup) or more of water and mix thoroughly. (How much water you add will depend on the brand of veggie mince you use, as some seem to suck up the water more than others. You want a nice bit of sauce, but not too runny.)

5. Add beans, mix again, then cover and bring to a simmer. Cook on low heat for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding more water if it seems dry.

6. Stir in sweetcorn (corn niblets) and cook for 10 minutes more.

Nice served with rice and a green salad.

Makes six servings.

Indian feast!

Nov 022008

Indian feast

Edit 12 Nov 2008: I’ve added the recipe for Spinach toran, per a request by neca from Weighty Words. Enjoy!

Yesterday my FIL came over for tea (Amerispeak=supper). I decided to make curry, as it hadn’t been served up at the Thrifty household in a few weeks. I initially only intended to make one or two dishes, plus rice (the best-laid plans, yada, yada…)

I definitely wanted a mushroom dish. My favourite mushroom curry was one for Succulent mountain mushrooms that I’d adapted from one in the book Mangoes and Curry Leaves by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid, found via blogs One Hot Stove and trialsnerror. Creamy and flavourful, but not hot. I used an exotic mushroom selection from Sainsbury’s, plus a few white button ‘shrooms. (You can use all white button mushrooms.)

The chard I’d picked from our allotment a few days ago got earmarked for Spinach toran, from an old Indian cookbook that Mr Thrifty had lying around.

Hmmm, needed a protein dish… Very spicy, delicious chickpeas from Madhur Jaffrey’s Eastern Vegetarian Cooking, yes that would do.

Then I decided to make rice. And parsnip and potato bhajis.

Crikey! What a feast. But it was most delicious, and worth all the work.

Succulent mountain mushrooms

The original recipe calls for yogurt, not sour cream. But I had some Tofutti sour cream to use up, plus this makes it very creamy. You can substitute 5 tablespoons soya yogurt for the sour cream + water.

British		American
220g	mixed mushrooms	1/2 pound
1-1/2 tablespoons	vegetable oil	1-1/2 tablespoons
1/4 teaspoon	fenugreek seeds	1/4 teaspoon
1/4 teaspoon	kalonji (nigella) seeds	1/4 teaspoon
1-1/2 teaspoons	ginger paste (or minced ginger)	1-1/2 teaspoons
1-1/2 teaspoons	garlic paste (or minced garlic)	1-1/2 teaspoons
1	medium onion, halved & thinly sliced	1
1 teaspoon	ground coriander	1 teaspoon
3/4 teaspoon	salt, or to taste	3/4 teaspoon
1/2 teaspoon	ground cumin	1/2 teaspoon
1/2 teaspoon	turmeric powder	1/2 teaspoon
1/8 teaspoon	cayenne pepper	1/8 teaspoon
3-1/2 tablespoons	vegan sour cream + 1-1/2 tablespoons water	3-1/2 tablespoons
220g	fresh tomatoes, peeled & finely chopped	1/2 pound

1. Heat oil over medium heat. Add fenugreek and kalonji seeds, give it a stir, then add garlic & ginger paste. Saute for 30 seconds.

2. Add onion and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until they are softened and fragrant (about eight minutes).

3. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring, for three more minutes.

4. Turn heat to low. Add coriander, salt, cumin, turmeric and cayenne, and mix thoroughly. Add sour cream/water mixture (or yogurt) and mix again. Simmer for a few minutes.

5. Add tomatoes and continue to simmer for an additional five minutes, until they are broken down and have been amalgamated into the sauce.

Can be prepared ahead of time and reheated.

Makes two to four servings, depending on how many other dishes you are serving it with.

Very spicy, delicious chickpeas

This recipe is slightly adapted from one in Eastern Vegetarian Cooking by Madhur Jaffrey. I notched down the heat by omitting the fresh hot chilli, but you can add it if you like things spicy. I keep fresh ginger root in the freezer, it’s easy to grate super-fine when frozen and keeps for ages.

As usual, you can start with 110g dried chickpeas and let Stanley cook them.

British		American
2-1/2 tablespoons	vegetable oil	2-1/2 tablespoons
1	medium onion, very finely chopped	1
4	cloves garlic, minced	4
1-1/2 teaspoons	ground coriander	1-1/2 teaspoons
1 teaspoon	ground cumin	1 teaspoon
1/2 teaspoon	turmeric powder	1/2 teaspoon
1/8 teaspoon	cayenne pepper	1/8 teaspoon
3 tablespoons	finely chopped fresh tomatoes (peel first)	3 tablespoons
400g tin	chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained & rinsed	14 ounce can
1 teaspoon	roasted cumin seeds, ground	1 teaspoon
1 teaspoon	amchoor powder	1/2 teaspoon
1 teaspoon	sweet paprika	1 teaspoon
1/2 teaspoon	garam masala	1/2 teaspoon
1/2 teaspoon	salt, or to taste	1/2 teaspoon
1-1/2 teaspoons	fresh lemon juice	1-1/2 teaspoons
2 teaspoons	very finely grated fresh ginger	2 teaspoons
1/2	fresh hot chilli, minced (optional)	1/2

1. If you need to roast the cumin seeds, do so first while the pan is clean and dry. Simply add whole cumin seeds to a hot, dry pan and toast, stirring, until fragrant (a couple of minutes). Remove from pan and crush in a mortar and pestle.

2. Heat oil in a heavy frypan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and saute, stirring, for eight minutes, until soft.

3. Turn heat to low and add coriander, cumin (not roasted cumin), turmeric and cayenne. Mix thoroughly. Add tomatoes and cook for couple of minutes, until they are amalgamated with the spices. Add drained chickpeas (garbanzos) and 125ml (1/2 cup) water. Mix well.

4. Add ground roasted cumin, amchoor, paprika, garam masala, salt and lemon juice, and mix again. Cover and simmer gently for 10 minutes.

5. Uncover and stir in fresh ginger and minced chilli (if using). Continue to cook for another minute.

Can be prepared ahead of time and reheated.

Makes two to four servings, depending on how many other dishes you are serving it with.

Spinach toran

This dish is also delicious made with chard. From Step by Step Indian Cooking by Sharda Gopal.

British		American
250g	fresh spinach or chard	1/2 pound
1 tablespoon	vegetable oil	1 tablespoon
1/2	small onion, finely chopped	1/2
1/2	fresh chilli, finely chopped	1/2
40g	fresh tomatoes, peeled and chopped	1-1/2 ounces
40g	grated fresh or dessicated coconut	1-1/2 ounces
	salt to taste

1. Wash the spinach or chard, discard any discoloured leaves and tough stalks, and shake dry. Chop as finely as possible and leave in a colander to drain.

2. Heat oil in a pan and gently fry the onion and chilli until the onion is transparent.

3. Add spinach or chard and tomato, cover tightly and cook on low heat for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until spinach or chard has wilted.

4. Stir in coconut and add salt to taste.

Makes two to four servings, depending on how many other dishes you are serving it with.

Mexican mixed bean and lentil soup

Oct 232008

veganmofo

One thing I love about autumn is that colder weather makes soup taste so much better, especially when one has not yet turned on the heating in the house and it’s flippin’ freezing even when one is equipped with a kibble-heater on one’s lap.

Mexican mixed bean and lentil soup

Mr Thrifty and I both love this soup. In fact, it is so good that it has earned a spot in my Soup Hall of Fame. The small amount of red lentils dissolve into the soup, making it thicker and more substantial. This makes two large bowls of soup. Nice with a salad and garlic bread for a light meal or, of course, as part of a bigger meal.

I used a tin of organic mixed beans, but a more thrifty way would be to let Stanley cook the beans.

This recipe is modified a bit from one in Canadian Living magazine.

British		American
1 tablespoon	olive oil	1 tablespoon
65g	finely chopped onion	1 small
1	clove garlic, minced	1
1 teaspoon	mild chili powder	1 teaspoon
1/2x400g tin	chopped tomatoes	1/2×14 ounce can
500ml	vegetable stock	2 cups
3 tablespoons	red lentils	3 tablespoons
400g tin	mixed beans, drained & rinsed	14 ounce can
2 tablespoons	fresh coriander (cilantro), minced	2 tablespoons
	salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1. Over low heat, saute onion in olive oil until soft, about 5 minutes (covering the pan will expedite this process).

2. Add garlic and saute an additional minute or two.

3. Add chili powder and cook another minute.

4. Add tomatoes and their liquid, vegetable stock and lentils. Cover and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lentils are soft.

5. Add beans and continue to simmer for 15 minutes to blend flavours. Add salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with coriander (cilantro).

Makes 2 servings.

Newer Entries

Thrifty Living

Cauliflower, potato & chickpea curry

Vegan Greek moussaka

Vegan Greek moussaka

Creamy chickpea & potato soup with spinach

Black bean & sweetcorn soup

Vegan no-mad-cowboy chili

Indian feast!

Succulent mountain mushrooms

Very spicy, delicious chickpeas

Spinach toran

Mexican mixed bean and lentil soup

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