Week 9: Curried Eggplant With Tomatoes and Basil

Vegetable ingredients: Eggplant, tomatoes, chickpeas.


I feel I'm running out of vegetables that I like. Or at least don't dislike. A student recommended recipes published by the magazine Real Simple, so I gave their website a try. I didn't really find many appealing (to me, anyway) vegetarian recipes. In the end, I decided on Curried Eggplants with Tomatoes and Basil, mainly because I have never cooked a dish with eggplants (I think). Getting adventurous, right?

Ingredients

• 1 cup white basmati rice

• kosher salt and black pepper

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 onion, chopped
(love pre-chopped onions!)

• 2 pints cherry tomatoes, halved
(very expensive at Whole Foods, $8 or so, so I settled on a large can of diced tomatoes instead -- not sure if that helped or harmed the dish, but it cut down on prep time) 

• 1 eggplant (about 1 pound, cut into 1/2 inch pieces)

• 1 1/2 teaspoons 
curry powder

• 1  15.5 ounce can chickpeas, rinsed
(it took me a while at Whole Foods to figure out that chickpeas = garbanzo beans, which tells you all you need to know about my culinary talents)

• 1/2 cup fresh basil
(basil really made a difference!)

• 1/4 cup plain low-fat-yogurt, preferably Greek (I used 1/2 cup whole-milk yogurt)

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, combine the rice, 1 ½ cups water, and ½ teaspoon salt and bring to a boil. Stir the rice once, cover, and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 18 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, for 5 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 4 to 6 minutes.
3. Stir in the tomatoes, eggplant, curry powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
4. Add 2 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until eggplant is tender, 12 to 15 minutes.
5. Stir in the chickpeas and cook just until heated through, about 3 minutes.
6. Remove the vegetables from heat and stir in the basil. Fluff the rice with a fork. Serve the vegetables over the rice with yogurt, if using.

Verdict: 6/10


My family found it "vegetably," but I quite liked it (more than I had expected, eggplants are not really my thing, they look better than they taste). It was easy enough to prepare and would have served 4 (as stated in the recipe). My daughter didn't eat any of it, no, she ate a single chickpea and then frowned. Ah well. We enjoyed the leftovers the next day, when it was more like a stew. I forgot to take a picture, but the recipe website (linked above) has a pretty accurate one. It seems like something one could take to a potluck.

Week 8: Fruited Tofu Curry Salad

Vegetable Ingredients: Grapes (does tofu count?)


It was very warm this week, which is why I decided to make a cold dish: Fruited Tofu Curry Salad (no coconut milk, no mayonnaise).

• Ingredients

• 1/2 cup white rice
(I made more to set aside for the next day)

• 2 cups extra-firm tofu, drained and cubed
(I used a 1 pound package from Trader Joe's)

• 1 cup yogurt

• 2 tablespoons lime juice

• 1 tablespoon curry powder

• 1 cup halved grapes
(I used a bit more because I ditched the dried cranberries. Hate the texture)

• 1 tablespoon dried cranberries
(ditched)

• 1/2 cup diced celery
(ditched. I detest celery.)

• 3 tablespoons diced green onions

• 1/4 cup walnuts

• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. In a saucepan bring water to a boil. Add rice and stir. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes; set aside.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook cubed tofu for 3 minutes; drain, and set aside to cool.
3. In a bowl, blend yogurt with lime juice and curry powder; set aside. In a large mixing bowl, toss together halved grapes, cranberries, celery, green onions, walnuts, rice, and tofu. Drizzle with curry dressing, and toss until well coated. Season to taste with salt and pepper, as desired.

Verdict: 7/10


It looked rather unspectacular (a little beige-y), but really grew on us, especially the fruity flavor and the crunch of the walnuts, and the leftovers were eaten the next day. The flavor of the green onions and the lime juice seemed rather pronounced (perhaps use less lime juice and sautee onions next time). The little person tried a tiny piece of tofu and frowned. Overall, an okay dish, good for summer. This would make a good potluck or party dish. (Potluck invitations always make me nervous because I have no repertoire to draw on. Well, perhaps I now have.)

Week 4: Risotto with Parsley and Basil

Vegetable ingredient(s): Parsley and basil (does that count?)


This week's recipe is from a great cooking book: How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman. It seems that many people are afraid of making risotto, but I can attest to it being a fairly uncomplicated dish. One just has to stay near the oven. (That's what audio books are made for.)

Ingredients:
4-6 cups chicken or vegetable stock (sorry, I don't make stock from scratch, one has to draw the line somewhere)2 table spoons olive oil1 medium onion, minced1 1/2 cups Arborio ricesalt, pepper1/2 cup dry white wine1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves2 table spoons butter1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation:


Warm stock, place oil in skillet, heat, add onion, cook for 3-5 mins.
Add the rice and stir until coated with oil, add salt and pepper, add wine
Begin to add warm stock, 1/2 cup at a time, let stock evaporate, add more
Begin tasting after 20 mins, it could take up to 30 mins


Verdict: 7.5/10


I love risotto and this one turned out well (was supposed to make 4-6 servings, but it's more like 3-4 servings for hungry eaters), but it didn't feel very healthy -- all that rice, butter, and cheese. Still, the great thing about risotto is that one can easily make different versions of this dish (by adding vegetables, such as mushrooms, spinach, or peas). The little person didn't eat anything.