Double Sweet Potato Lentil Curry

 

Aaaahhhhh. Autumn. It's that beautiful time of year in the south when the temperature dramatically dips into the 80's and we begin craving all things cozy and pumpkin and spiced and comforting. Down here in Texas, there are a good many few of us who can't wait to slip into turtleneck sweaters. Amiright?? J/K. Lolz.

Actually, the weather is quite lovely in the mornings. Newton and I can run a solid 2 miles without alarming passers-by that one of us might overheat and die at any moment. So, our seasons here are a little screwy, but I accept you for YOU, Texas weather!

One of the many great things about my little CSA box, is that I don't have to think about what veggies are in season or out of season (despite the weather). The box just tells me.

Last week, my delivery included sweet potato greens, yellow squash, sweet potatoes, red potatoes, bell peppers, eggplant, okra, onion, patty pan squash, and spaghetti squash. I was able to use three of those items in the recipe I'm sharing today, adapted from smitten kitchen and The NY Times.

What do I mean by double sweet potato? I used the one huge sweet potato along with the sweet potato greens. If you look at the recipes from SK and the NYT, you'll notice that they both used Swiss chard. The fact is, you can use any greens at all. Spinach. Kale. Turnip. Just get 'em in there.

This dish is warm and lovely. Some notes to make it a success:

• There are a lot of ingredients on this list, and a bit of chopping, but I assure you that the cooking part is easy.
• The trick is to get the lentils cooked through all the way. No one likes a crunchy lentil. No one.
• If you don't have garam masala on hand but you do have a plethora of spices, just make your own blend. See my version below the recipe box.  
• Don't skip the lime. 

Double Sweet Potato

& Lentil Curry

Prep time: 15 min

Cook time: 45 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp fresh ginger, minced

½ jalapeno, minced

1 teaspoon garam masala*

1 teaspoon curry powder

3-4 cups vegetable broth, divided

1 lb sweet potato, peeled and chopped into ½” cubes

¾ cup dried lentils (I used green)

1 bay leaf

2 packed cups chopped sweet potato greens

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp ground pepper

1 handful fresh cilantro, chopped

2 scallions, chopped

1 lime, zested

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Sauté onions until translucent (about 4 minutes).

2. Add garlic, ginger, jalapeno, garam masala and curry powder. Sauté for 1 minute.

3. Add 3 cups broth, sweet potato, lentils, and bay leaf. Turn heat to HI, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes. 

4. Add sweet potato greens, salt and pepper. If lentils look dry, add remaining vegetable broth.

5. Cook for 20 minutes longer, or until lentils and potatoes are tender.

6. Serve topped with scallion, lime zest, and lime wedge.

NUTRITION INFORMATION (Per serving):

Calories 220, Total Fat 4.0 g, Cholesterol 0 mg, Sodium: 1138 mg, Protein 5.7 g, Fiber 7.0 g

* Garam Masala: (this makes just enough for the recipe above, adapted from here)

• 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• 1/8 tsp ground coriander
• 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp ground cardamom
• very scant 1/8 tsp ground cloves
• very scant 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

Aaaaaannnnndddd... Finally, DON'T WORRY ABOUT THAT SODIUM. The recipe calculator likely used a high sodium broth. To ensure your sodium intake isn't through the roof, I'd recommend using a low sodium veggie broth.

Happy fall, ya'll!

"Everything" White Bean Hummus

Bagels. I haven't bought a package of bagels in quite some time, but my favorite is always the "everything" kind. You may chalk it up to my notable indecisiveness, but why choose simply "onion" or "poppy seed" or "sesame seed" when you can have ALL THE BAGELS!?

Oh, that's right. I don't have a toaster.

So no bagels. But what about this Everything White Bean Hummus recipe? After making it, I think I actually prefer the more traditional garbanzo bean hummus, but this recipe was an interesting change of pace.

From the original recipe, I chose to cut down on the oil and salt just a bit, and to add some lemon juice. I have it on medical authority that decreasing salt in my own diet isn't a good idea (hello, hypotension), but there is plenty of seasoning in the "everything" mix that I felt it salty enough.

“Everything”

White Bean Hummus

Prep time: 15 min (or 60 minutes, if you need time to roast the garlic)

Yield: Enough for 6-8 people as an appetizer

INGREDIENTS:

HUMMUS -

2 cans white beans (cannellini or great northern), drained and rinsed
1 head of roasted garlic

½ small lemon, juiced

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

SEASONING-

2 tablespoons dried minced onion
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds (I used black sesame)
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1 tablespoon dried minced garlic
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

crudité or pita for serving

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Dump white beans and roasted garlic into a food processor with lemon juice. Pulse until smooth.

2. With the processor running, stream in the olive and sesame oils.

3. Mix seasoning ingredients together.

4. Fold about ½ of the seasoning ingredients into the hummus. Sprinkle the remaining seasoning on top, to taste.

NUTRITION INFORMATION (Per serving, 8):

Calories 234, Total Fat 12.1 g, Cholesterol 0 mg, Sodium: 297mg, Protein 8.1 g, Fiber 5.2 g

It makes quite a bit of seasoning, so I had extra to sprinkle on salads and grilled cheese sandwiches. I think I still have a bit in the pantry! Try it!

Now... if I could only find my battery charger for the camera, I'd get started on the cocoa chai roasted almonds I made last weekend.  Sigh. Unpacking. Gah.

Smoothie Bowl

Since my last post:

• I moved (a long way). 
• I started a new job (the "big kid" kind). 
• I took a huge exam (nailed it). 
• I joined a new CSA (deliveries start next week). 
• And I started a new fitness challenge (#100byHalloween). 

As for all that unpacking that was supposed to happen in August? Still only half finished. (But hey - we can't win 'em all.)

I'll be honest and say that I haven't really been adventurous in the kitchen in the past couple of months. Firstly, with only myself to cook for, I do tend to get a little lazy. And ya'll don't care about my lazy food. Second, I can't find my toaster. Do I use a toaster for many recipes, you ask? No. But I can't remember if I even packed it up or if I simply tossed it out in the heat of the crucial "I DON'T CARE WHAT COMES TO TEXAS ANYMORE" days of Ames.

So how 'bout some smoothies? No toaster required.

I have been on this "smoothie bowl" kick for a couple of weeks now. Mainly, the pictures of these beauties on Instagram are a huge inspiration factor. You should check them out (also try here). Gorgeous breakfast soup.

Normally, I like to liquefy my smoothies to a point where they are more like juice. The Nutribullet lets me do that fairly quickly with the addition of water. The smoothie bowl, however, should probably be of thicker consistency so that you can spoon it up without having to slurp it. Unless slurping is your thing.

The first bowl I invented was a twist on my "Everyday Breakfast Smoothie" which is fresh kale blended with frozen fruit (pineapple, peach, mango, and strawberry) and water. I topped this with fresh mango, unsweetened (dried) coconut, rolled oats, and chia seeds.

The second edition was this frozen fruit smoothie (same blend as above) topped with something called "chia pudding" and fresh raspberries. Chia pudding is basically just soaked chia seeds. Remember those "ch-ch-ch CHIA! Pets" from the 80s? Same seeds. I soaked 1/4 cup chia seeds in 1 cup regular almond milk with a dash of cinnamon overnight. You have to stir it up a bit so it doesn't clump, but I find this to be a nice, weird textural addition to the smoothie bowl. And, most importantly, it looks cool.

Finally, my post-SundayRunday smoothie from this morning. Here, I have a new frozen fruit blend (pineapple, cantaloupe, grapes, peach, and strawberry), layered with the rest of the chia pudding and topped with fresh raspberries and unsweetened coconut.

I actually made some green smoothie with spinach to layer into today's breakfast, but I was afraid the colors would run.... and that wouldn't be so pretty. So I drank it separately! How's that for taking one for the team?

Anyone else out there on the smoothie bowl bus?