Polenta & Brussels Sprouts

Such a quick dinner! This was an evening when I was SO HUNGRY, and you know how sometimes when you're really hungry, all you want to eat is a huge bowl of pasta? Well, I wanted to make something that would give me that same full feeling, but just not pasta. Polenta is great because it is still a starch, but it is made from corn instead of wheat.

For the Polenta: See this recipe

For the Brussels Sprouts:

honey

balsamic vinegar

olive oil

sriracha sauce

To Assemble:

Make the polenta first, because it takes time to cook in the oven. While the polenta pieces are crispin, sautee the brussels sprouts in the aforementioned ingredients, playing with amounts until the sauce satisfies your taste buds. Let the sprouts continue to cook for a few minutes, because the vinegar will reduce so it will be less saucy. When both parts of the dish are ready, put the polenta over the sprouts, and dig in! I promise you'll be full.

Eggs & Greens

I came back from a tough spin class this morning and wanted a breakfast that would have protein and would also be filling. I love this open sandwich because it has carbs, veggies, and protein. 

The bottom is half of a brioche roll, from TJ's. The greens are a "power pack" mix of baby greens: baby kale, chard, and spinach. And then an over easy egg on top. I used earth balance butter to saute the greens and fry the egg.

Great breakfast.

Coconut Coriander Chutney

I am so excited about this post, because of all the foods I tasted abroad, this is the one that brings back some of the warmest memories. It is a true comfort food in taste and thought.

Chutney definitely has a presence in the US - I've seen it in Indian restaurants as well as in other restaurants that just offer it as a kind of dip. Coconut coriander would probably come off as more exotic or innovate though in the US, while in India, this was the staple kind of chutney. "Plain chutney" basically implied that it was made with coconut and coriander. I ate this for breakfast often with idly, and sometimes if we had leftover I would have it at dinner too. I could expect to see it at every hotel I stayed at in India, as well as at any wedding or group festivity. Everyone eats this stuff, and I totally understand why.

So after learning from the expert (my amma), I took her recipe back to my kitchen in New Jersey and tried to recreate the chutney, I think successfully.

Ingredients:

• one whole coconut, shredded
• whole coriander leaves (lots of them, leave stem on)
• pinch of rock salt (or some variety that is more of a crystal than a powder - I used sea salt)
• 2 small pieces of tamarind (not paste) (I didn't use this in my re-creation)
• 1 green chile, sliced into 3 pieces
• 2 small chunks of fresh ginger
• sprinkle of compounded asafoetida powder*
• water as needed (approx. 1/2 cup)
• 1T olive oil
• 2T black mustard seeds
• 1T yellow dal

1) Crack open the coconut. I read extensively online about how to do this, but none of the methods (back of a knife, hammer) seemed to work for me. I ended up taking it out to my front lawn and throwing it on the sidewalk, which did the trick even though I lost the fresh coconut water inside, which I was looking forward to drinking. I'll try the hammer technique again next time.

2) Shred the coconut. My host parents in India used the shredder you can see in the picture below, and the one after that is my host dad hard at work scraping away at the inside of the coconut. In my world, I used a watermelon scooper and a knife. When you think you've shredded about as much as you can, throw it in the blender.

3) Add the other ingredients to the blender, and blend it all together, stopping to add water as needed.

Look at the fresh green chiles and ginger from my host mom's kitchen...

4) Ok, last step has to be done in a skillet. Heat the olive oil on medium heat, and toss in the black mustard seeds and dal. Let them cook for about 2 minutes, until they get a little toasty and fragrant. Pour the chutney from the blender into a bowl, and stir in the black mustard seeds and dal.

I understand that these are the two ingredients least likely to already be in an American kitchen, but you cannot forgo these when making the recipe. They are the secret ingredient. The mustard seeds add this little crunch, and true Indian chutney is just not the same without it.

For the record, Whole Foods sells whole coconuts. Trader Joe's failed me this time around.

See if you can guess which pictures are from India and which are from the US!

One last anecdote: My host parents from India were in Boston for two months, the first of which overlapped with the end of my trip abroad. They went back this past weekend and I didn't get to see them. I had gotten in contact with them and tentatively planned to go up last Tuesday, but my plans fell through and I was pretty upset that they were going to fly back across the world without getting to see them for a hug and a meal. I know that if I had gone up to Boston, my host mom would have made me this chutney. So instead of being in Boston on Tuesday, I stayed home and made this. Nothing could have made me feel better. I miss India a lot, but all of these flavors brought me right back to the dinner table in Chennai.

*My host mom used this ingredient (asafoetida powder) in everything and I bought some at an Indian food market in New York, but I still can't figure out exactly what it is. If anyone knows, please enlighten me!

South African Baked Beans

My host mom in South Africa made this dish for me and my homestay partner, both vegetarians, a few times while we were there, and it was our favorite. So much flavor and kick, yet still familiar and easy to make!

Ingredients:

• Onion
• Peas
• Carrots
• Corn (I didn't have any, but they should be used!)
• Baked Beans, with sauce
• Chili Powder
• BBQ Spices
• (Or if you don't have a bbq spice mix like me, some variation):
• paprika
• onion powder
• salt and black pepper
• cayenne pepper

How to Make It:

In a pot, put a little bit of olive oil just to keep onions from sticking, and sauté onions until almost cooked. Add in carrots and let them cook, then add peas and corn. I used frozen peas, so I let them defrost in the pot. When the onions are cooked and carrots have softened, add the baked beans. Add the spices and stir. Let cook until heated throughout. Taste and adjust spices accordingly.

Red, White & Green

A few nights ago I had to throw together a quick dinner for my dad, brother, and myself. I was planning on just making cheese tortellini that we had in the fridge from Trader Joe's, but then my dad said something along the lines of, "I was excited for some interesting vegetarian dish since I heard you were making dinner!" and in my head that translated as a challenge, so plain tortellini just wasn't going to cut it.

The greens are a mix of kale and this baby power greens mix that TJ's sells now, a mixture of baby kale, spinach, and swiss chard. I sauteed the greens with olive oil, chopped fresh garlic cloves, and pine nuts. When that I was done I mixed it in the with pasta, added fresh chopped cherry tomatoes, and sprinkled with fresh parmesan cheese. Maybe not my most creative vegetarian dish, but it definitely beat out plain pasta.

Frozen Mint Lemonade

Nothing better on a hot summer day than a delicious frozen drink that matches the greenery blooming outside. I got the idea for this from Aroma, one of my favorite cafes. This summer they are featuring what they call the "Limonana" - basically lemonade blended with ice and fresh mint. I thought - I can do that! So I bought some Simply Lemonade, picked some mint leaves from my backyard and put them together with ice in the magic bullet. Simple as that! I want to make this again when I'm going to have a long afternoon sitting in the backyard, reading a book.

Lentil Burgers

Yeah I just made this one up. I had a few too many lentils in my fridge that were going to go bad, and they were pretty soft so I knew I could smash them to make burgers.

Ingredients:

• Cooked lentils, about 1.5 cups
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1-2 scallions, minced
• 2T dijon mustard
• 2T lemon juice
• 1/4t cumin
• salt and pepper to taste
• olive oil for frying

ummm I think that's it.

How to Make It:

Mash it all together in a bowl. How you want to do that is up to you - I used my hands, but if you're not into getting messy, then mashing with the back of a spoon or fork and then stirring would probably work just as well. You could also probably put it all in a blender, the only difference is that there wouldn't be whole lentils in the patties.

When you're ready, form the mixture in small patties and add them to a pan with a little bit of olive oil. Flip once, and cook until they are hot and a little crispy on both sides.


Inspired by this recipe.