Moong and Toor Dal Tadka with Coconut and Red Chilies...

I know what you’re thinking, hot soup or dal in the middle of summer? You’re crazy! And normally I would agree with you only I just recently came off five days of being ridiculously ill with what was probably Norovirus and so I didn’t want to push the limits of my digestion. Since Thursday afternoon I’d been living off of crackers, bread, tea, and on Saturday evening when I finally began to feel stable enough to take in something heartier I made a very brothy vegetable soup. It was pretty basic - potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, broth, water, and spike seasoning. It was tasty, but come Monday when I was feeling roughly 85%-90% better I wanted to eat something fun!

I’ve really been craving Indian food lately, specifically lentils, and when I think of lentils I automatically think of dal, there are few things more nourishing and comforting then a big ‘ole bowl of dal. Specifically I wanted dal tadka, which I’ve only recently discovered There’s a great little Vegetarian Indian Restaurant not far from where I live that serves a wicked good Dal Tadka, I had it the week my mother was in town visiting me, and I’ve been kind of dreaming about tadka ever since.

Tadka incase you don’t know is really just a cooking technique in which you fry whole spices in oil so that they release their natural oils, and after a minute or so you pour the whole thing - oil and all - into the dish you’ve prepared. It sound a bit strange maybe since we’re used to putting spices in our food at the beginning of cooking rather then at the end but let me assure you that this technique imparts some truly phenomenal flavor! And that’s exactly what I wanted.

Now, I’m not going to lay any claims saying that this is in any way a traditional dal tadka, or even a traditional dal, but it is delicious. It’s full of ingredients that are delicious and healing, however if you’re unaccustomed to cooking Indian food at home you may not have them all on hand. Still, they should be easy enough to find at your local Indian grocery - that’s where I get mine - and they are well worth hunting down. Trust me once you taste the slightly bitter, onion flavor of Nigella seeds you’ll be hooked! Similarly the buttery, garlic/onion flavor of asafetida can not be matched, and black mustard has a unique flavor itself, different from that of yellow mustard. As for pickled red chilies I make them myself, and so I’m not sure if you can actually buy such a thing anywhere. Though if you have a basic pickling recipe you can easily pickle some of your own chilies. It’s not necessary but I love the added flavor note.

Moong and Toor Dal Tadka with Coconut and Red Chilies 

Dal

1 tsp Olive Oil
1 Large Yellow Onion Diced
1 C Moong Dal - soaked for 1 hour and rinsed
½ C Toor Dal - soaked for 1 hour and rinsed
4 C Water
½ tsp Ground Turmeric
1 - 1 ½ tsp Salt - to taste
1 13.5oz can Full Fat Coconut Milk
½ Bunch Cilantro Minced

Tadka 

2-3 tsp Olive Oil
1 ½ tsp Black Mustard Seeds
½ tsp Nigella Seeds
½ tsp Coriander Seeds
½ tsp Fenugreek Seeds
1 tsp Asafetida Powder
6 Garlic Cloves Minced
1-2 Red Chilies Minced - depending on heat preference.

To Garnish -

Extra Minced Cilantro
Sliced Pickled Red Chillies - optional but highly recommended!

For the Dal 

- Heat the Olive oil in a large soup pot over medium high heat. Add the diced onion and saute for 5-6 minutes until lightly golden.

- To the pot add the soaked and rinsed Moong Dal as well as the Toor Dal. Stir to combine.

- Add the 4 cups of water, the turmeric, and the salt. Cover and bring to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes then reduce the heat and let simmer for 20 minutes.

- Check on the doneness of your dal. If the lentils are still hard, or too firm for your liking continue to simmer for an additional 10 minutes until they become soft. If the lentils are soft already, and have reached a somewhat mushy consistency add in the coconut milk and stir to combine. Simmer for 5 minutes.

- Remove the pot from the heat and add in the minced cilantro. Stir to combine.

For the Tadka 

- Heat the oil on high in a heavy bottomed frying pan. Once hot add in the mustard seeds, nigella seeds, coriander seeds, fenugreek seeds, asafetida powder, minced garlic and minced chili. Fry for one minute or until the seeds pop, the garlic has turned golden and the chilies have softened slightly. It’s okay if the spices brown a little, it adds to the flavor.

- Remove the pan from the heat and scrape the entire contents - spices and residual oil - into your pot containing the dal.

Assembly - 

- Stir the Tadka into the dal until it’s been well combined. Let sit for 5-10 minutes to let the flavors mingle. Then divide amongst serving bowls and garnish with additional cilantro and pickled red chilies if desired.

- Serve with basmati rice, and/or Indian Flatbread. I made a batch of Roti to scoop the dal up and it was a delicious accompaniment.

Indian Spiced Lentil Loaf...

Everyone loves a good lentil loaf right? At least it seems that way. I say that because out of the 100 + cook books that I own I would say at least three quarters of them contain a recipe for a vegan ‘meatloaf’ or some variation of the classic hippy lentil loaf. Now, I was never that big a fan of ‘meatloaf,’ because well... for starters meat shouldn’t come in a loaf, ans secondly when you really think about what it is you’re eating - a big ole slab of ground beef with ketchup and breadcrumbs - it doesn’t really sound that appetizing. Certainly it’s not a very creative dish. A good lentil loaf on the other hand can blow your mind, after all lentils are a really versatile food, and I never fail to be amazed at what they can be made into. Plus on these cold winter nights when you’re dying for something savory and comforting but don’t want to do a lot of work a lentil loaf is perfect. They’re quick and easy to throw together with minimal active time. Once you have it in the oven baking you can take a shower, read a book, do some yoga, or just relax with a hot cup of tea.

Lentils loafs are also rich in nutrients. You get protein from the lentils, plus lots of healthful nutrients, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants from the array of spices and vegetables you decide to put into them. The problem though - at least for me - is that so many of the lentil loaf recipes floating around out there are the same. It’s always the same kind of lentils - usually brown - with the same basic combination of vegetables - onions, carrot, celery, - and the same combination of herbs - parsley, thyme, salt, pepper, basil, oregano. - Vegetable brother is another typical component as is soy sauce and are almost always topped with ketchup or BBQ sauce. Now, don’t get me wrong, I like this combination - a lot - but as you know I like variety. I’ve never been the type of person who makes the same thing over and over again and so I require a little more creativity in my life.

I had been thinking a lot about lentil loafs last November when I happened upon an interesting recipe in Robin Asbell’s book “Big Vegan” it was a French inspired lentil loaf with Herbs de Provence and a Dijon Mustard glaze, yum! I was immediately excited and so I made the loaf. It was beyond excellent, and it got me thinking about what other kind of cultural twists I could throw into a lentil loaf to shake things up a bit. Initially I wrote down a bunch of ideas that I’m eager to try out, but since Indian food is one of my - and my husband’s, - favorites, that seemed the most natural direction to go in first.

When I first came up with the idea I had no idea how I was really going to do it. I had no idea if it would be good or if it would even be edible, but in the end I really surprised myself because the loaf turned out really fantastic. It tasted like a big samosa covered in mango chutney. It had all the great flavors I love about Indian Cuisine, the sweet, the spicy, the pungent, all rolled up in one easy package. My husband loved it too and so we enjoyed this delicious Indian spiced loaf for 2 days as dinner and 2 days as leftovers in lunches. It was the perfect hearty meal for those cold nights that proceeded the beginning of the Christmas season.

One thing to keep in mind about this recipe however is the fact that this makes a very large loaf. It was too large for my regular loaf pan and so I baked it in a cake pan instead. If you’re not looking to make quite so much you could easily half the recipe, but remember that halving it will mean a shorter cooking time also. Anywhere from 25-40 minutes less, depending on the consistency of the loaf at the time you pour it into the pan. Though if you were so inclined to make the recipe as is it tastes fantastic as leftovers, either on it’s own or stuffed into whole grain pita bread with sliced tomato, onion, lettuce, cucumber and a little additional chutney. Or be a little more traditional and roll it up into some Naan bread. However you decide to make it just enjoy it!

Indian Spiced Lentil Loaf 

1 C Green lentils
½ C Red Lentils
3 C Water
1 1/4 C Oat Flour
6 Garlic Cloves Minced
1 Tbsp Ginger grated
1 Yellow Onion Diced
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
3 Yukon Gold Potatoes diced
1 Tbsp Peanut Oil
2 C Cauliflower Chopped
1 Large Carrot
½ Frozen Green Peas
5-6 Tbsp Curry Powder
1 tsp Ground Turmeric
½ tsp Ground Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Ground Cardamom
4 tsp Ground Cumin
2 tsp Ground Coriander
Sea salt and Black Pepper to taste
2-4 Tbsp Mango Chutney
2 Tbsp Tamarind Paste
8oz Mango Chutney

- Preheat oven to 400'F/200'C

- Cook Green and Red Lentils in 3 Cups water until tender and most of water has been absorbed. If not all the water has been absorbed by the time the lentils are tender drain in a colander. If lentils are not tender by the time the water has absorbed add more. Once cooked set aside to cool.

- Steam the Potatoes and Cauliflower until just tender, then set aside to cool.

- In a pan over medium-high heat saute the mustard seeds for a few seconds until they begin popping. Add the peanut oil, the onion, garlic and ginger and saute for 5-7 minutes until translucent.

- In food processor combine the cooked lentils, potatoes, cauliflower, onion mixture, and the oat flour. Pulse until just combined.

- Add the Cardamom, Cumin, Coriander, Salt, Pepper, cinnamon, turmeric, curry powder, tamarind paste, and the 2-4 Tbsp of Mango Chutney. Pulse until it the mixture just becomes cohesive, and the spices have been incorporated.

- Turn the mixture out into a mixing bowl. Add in the grated carrot and the frozen peas. Stir to combine. Taste for flavor and texture and adjust seasoning as needed.  More curry powder, chutney, salt etc... If the mixture is too wet add in a bit more oat flour. If it’s too dry add in a bit of oil, water, or more chutney or tamarind paste.

- Grease a 9 inch round cake pan - I used a sprongform pan, - and scrape the mixture into it. Smooth the top with the back of a spatula then top with the 8oz of Mango Chutney.

- Bake uncovered in the oven for roughly 60-75 minutes until the top is bubbling and the loaf seems firm when you insert a knife or wooden skewer into it.

- Remove from the oven and let cool on the counter top for 10-15 minutes before slicing. Serve with a giant salad!

***Note - I chose to make this recipe wheat-free, but to ensure it’s 100% gluten-free make sure you buy gluten-free oat flour, or make your own by using gluten-free oats. Alternately if you do not have a wheat or gluten intolerance you can use any type of flour that you prefer.***

Marinated Kale Salad with Tomato Bhaji...

A few days ago I was at a salad bar/hot bar, looking for something to eat but finding nothing very appealing. I was about ready to settle on a simple bed of romaine with a few falafels and some humus when I ran into a friend, who was on her way out. After exchanging the usual "Hello, How are you’s" she exclaimed that she’d just eaten the best thing ever! She told me she’d combined the Rainbow Kale Salad from the Salad bar, with the Tomato Bhaji from the hot bar, mixed them together and found herself in heaven. She insisted I try it. I was a bit skeptical, I’d never even heard of tomato bhaji before and when I went over to check it out it just looked like Marinara sauce. However after we said our goodbyes I decided what the heck, it wouldn’t hurt to try it, she’d never steered me wrong before. I read the ingredients on the tomato bhaji and discovered it was an Indian, or at least an Indian inspired dish. Being a lover of Indian Food how could I resist now? Needless to say it was a phenomenal combination, and for days afterward all I could think about was the kale-bhaji combination.

The Bhaji on it's own....

I was so taken with the dish, that I desperately wanted to re-create it so that my husband could revel in it too. Since he’s not very keen on Salad bars - all that food sitting out in the open with Buddha knows who touching it, kind of puts him off - I knew the only way he’d taste if was if I made it at home. Thankfully I’d had the foresight to try and memorize as many of the dish’s ingredients as I could.

The Kale Salad on it's own....

So once home, I started a Google search for Tomato Bhaji recipes. The kale salad I could make my own version of, of course so that was a non issue. The problem was that while I found plenty of tomato bhaji recipes not a single one of them had all of the ingredients I’d memorized, and some of them had ingredients I know for certain were not listed on the tag of the dish I ate. To make things even more complicated most of the tomato bhaji recipes differed form each other as well, not only in ingredients but in quantities. My next step was to check my Indian cook books, both of which did not contain any recipe labeled tomato bhaji. There were a few tomato curry recipes but they were wildly different then the bhaji.

I was totally stumped. What was I to do? The only thing I could I guess, which was to make a few notes on a scrap piece of paper, roll up my metaphorical sleeves and proceed into the kitchen with all of my best intentions. I focused hard on the taste, texture and flavor of the dish I remembered eating days earlier. Remembered it’s perfect combination of sweet, sour and a hint of spice, combined that with all of my accumulated culinary knowledge and my ingenuity in the kitchen and.... voila! Success! A great success actually and I don’t say that lightly. There were definitely some harry moments along the way. A few times where I thought for sure I was going to fail and the whole thing would be awful, but I’m confident this tastes 95% accurate to the dish I ate at the salad bar. Now I can’t make any claims that it’s authentically Indian, since I don’t even know if the original dish I ate was authentic, but it certainly is delicious. It’s a wonderful, new, healthy and creative way to eat your greens, and it’s so damned good you’ll want to eat the entire pan. I know my husband and I nearly finished the entire thing off. My husband went back for thirds, something he doesn’t normally do, so my hope is that you’ll enjoy it that much too!

Marinated Kale Salad with Tomato Bhaji

Simple Kale Salad

1 bunch Kale
½ Red Onion sliced thin
2-3 tbsp olive oil
2-3 tbsp lemon juice
1-2 tbsp maple syrup
sea salt to taste

Tomato Bhaji

1 Tbsp Olive Oil
18 Garlic cloves crushed
½ tsp Black Mustard Seeds
1 Large Yellow Onion (½ finely diced, the other half pureed along with the green chili)
½ Red Onion (leftover from your Kale Salad)
½-1 Green Chili (or more depending on how much heat you like)
1 ½ tsp ground Coriander
3/4 tsp Gram Masala
1/4 tsp ground Turmeric
5 Tomatoes finely diced
3 Tbsp lemon juice (to taste)
2 heaping tsp Red Curry Paste (more if you like heat)
1 6oz can tomato paste
4-5 tsp Dark Brown Sugar (more or less to taste)
Sea Salt to taste

- Make Salad first. To Assemble remove large ribs from kale and rip into bite sized pieces. Place in a bowl with the lemon juice, olive oil, and maple syrup and massage dressing into the kale. You can do this by hand or if you don’t wand to get your hands dirty mix very well with the back of a wooden spoon until kale is evenly coated and starting to break down a bit. A few minutes. Add in onion, and salt and give another good mix. Place in the fridge until ready to serve.

- Add mustard seeds to a dry skillet and cook over medium heat for a few minutes until they begin to pop and smell fragrant. Remove seeds to a bowl and place pan back over the heat.

- Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat, add crushed garlic and saute for 2 minutes.

- Cut your yellow onion in half. Take one half and cut it into smaller chunks then add it to a food processor with your green chili. Puree until smooth. Add this mixture to the garlic and stir.

- Finely chop the remaining half of your yellow onion, along with the remaining half of the red onion from your kale salad. Place into the pan, along with the mustard seeds and saute covered for 3-4 minutes until very fragrant.

- Add Coriander, Turmeric, and Gram Masala to the pan and stir making sure onions are evenly coated. Saute covered another 3-5 minutes until onions are soft and translucent.

- Add your diced tomatoes, stir to make sure everything is evenly coated, then saute covered for 2-3 minutes. Add salt, stir to coat, and saute covered another 2-3 minutes until you see liquid forming in the pan and the tomatoes are beginning to break down.

- Add in the tomato paste, red curry paste, lemon juice and brown sugar. Stir until well combined then cover and bring to boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to simmer and allow to simmer covered for 15-20 minutes. By this time the dish should be thick and saucy like a marinara.

- Taste for sweet, sour and heat, and adjust seasonings as needed.

- To serve distribute your kale salad amongst plates, and top with several scoops of the tomato bhaji. Mix thoroughly before eating and enjoy on its own or with a slice of whole wheat naan or roti.

The whole thing mixed together...

*** Note - Remember that the dish is meant to be a perfect blend of sweet and sour, neither the sweet nor sour should be more prominent then the other. Also while some heat is required you don’t want it to be too spicy, nor do you want it to lack spice otherwise you’re essentially just eating tomato sauce. So keep that in mind if you’re going to adjust the seasonings. ***