Red Lentil and Tomato Daal

Knowing of our love for Indian food, Austin's sister Brisbane gave us Cooking School Indian for Christmas a couple years ago. The recipes in it sounded great and looked even better, yet the book just sat on our shelf, not a well-loved food stain on it. The main reason I pretended not to hear the books desperate cries for some action was that I was intimidated. The recipes called for ingredients like like red lentils, sev noodles, and several exotic spices, none of which I could find at the well stocked grocery store closest to us. Had I opened my eyes a bit wider I would've realized that we lived less than two minutes away from a store called Little India and another one called -- wait for it-- Spice Bazaar. It actually took several of my friend Rayn's enthusiastic recommendations for me to actually visit these establishments, which he became a patron of within a couple months of moving to Durham. Rayn 1, Sara 0.

Spices and other exotic ingredients in hand, I started cooking up an Indian storm. Austin and I even decided to cook up an Indian Feast for Valentines Day instead of going out. A daal similar to the one we had for dinner tonight was the star of that meal. While it was good, I thought it could use a couple tweaks so I modified it before sharing it with you. The result rivals some of the tastiest daals I've eaten at restaurants and was a lot cheaper. Yes, it takes about an hour to cook, but most of that time you can spend doing something else, since the daal only needs to be tended to occasionally. It also contains ingredients that you probably don't have in your pantry but the all-knowing Google can probably lead you to a place where you can procure them. While you're at it, why not purchase some other exotic food to experiment with? Who knows, wonderful things could happen.

Red Lentil and Tomato Daal
Adapted from Cooking School Indian's Tarka Daal
Makes 4 servings

• 1 cup red lentils (actually they're more orange than red), rinsed until the water runs clear
• 3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped
• 2 jalapeños or Indian green chiles, minced
• 1 teaspoon black or brown mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
• 1 28 oz / 794 g can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro

1.  Put the lentils and the broth in a medium pot that has a cover. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook uncovered for 10 minutes. Using a big spoon or a ladle, skim off the froth that forms on the surface of the lentil cooking liquid. Cover the pot and cook for another 40-45 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the lentils are tender.
2.  While the lentils are cooking, heat the oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add the mustard and cumin seeds and saute for about a minute. Toss in the onion and chile, cooking for another 5 minutes over medium low heat. Sprinkle in the turmeric and ground cumin and cook for another minute or so. Deglaze the pan by pouring in the tomatoes. Cook for another 5 minutes, then set the mixture aside.
3.  Once the lentils are done, stir in the tomato mixture and the cilantro. Take the pot off the heat and let it rest covered for 5 minutes to let the flavors mingle. Serve hot over rice (about 1/3 cup, measured before cooking, per person), maybe with a side of naan.

Baked Sweet Potato and Green Pea Samosas with Mango Chutney

Who doesn't love doughy pockets of goodness? You can choose from empanadas, turnovers, spanakopita, pierogi, gyozas, and, my favorites, samosas. Samosas are normally deep fried but that's not how I cook them since I don't deep fry anything. Don't get me wrong, I love deep fried goodies but they're not exactly healthy and they make a mess out of my kitchen. So it's really laziness that keeps me from making samosas the traditional way. The filling in these is not exactly traditional either, but I throw authenticity out the window any day if I can sneak sweet potatoes in a dish. That's why when I saw Robin Robertson's recipe for baked samosas, with sweet potatoes no less!, in Vegan Planet a few years ago I knew they'd become regulars at my dinner table.

Per the recipe's directions, I started off making my samosas really small which meant I had to spend a long time stuffing them. I used to ask Austin for help but it always took a little coaxing.

Me: Do you think you could help me fill the samosas?
Austin: Meh, I don't really feel like it.
Me: Pleeeeeease. You know mine come out kind of sloppy; I'm not very dexterous.
Austin: Fine. Let me show you how it's done.

Tired of having to enlist help, I decided to make my samosas much larger (it only took me making them oh, ten times, to realize this), which had the added benefit of giving me a higher filling to dough ratio. I am now a much happier samosa maker.

I like these best with mango chutney. We usually buy the Trader Joe's kind but I saw a couple bags of frozen mangoes in the freezer and decided to make my own. It does take some time but the process is pretty darn simple. This homemade chutney is just as good as the store bought stuff and it is definitely cheaper. You can also make a big batch and freeze whatever is left over in anticipation of future samosa nights.

One last thing. I tagged these as an appetizer but I must confess that we make a meal out of them, partly because making them is a bit of a process and partly because they're so delicious. Hey, we all have the right to indulge a bit every now and then.

Baked Sweet Potato and Green Pea Samosas
Adapted from Robin Robertson's Vegan Planet
Makes 18 samosas

For the dough

• 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons water
• 3 tablespoons canola or olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

For the filling

• 1 1/2 medium sweet potatoes, baked or steamed and cubed
• 3/4 cup green peas, fresh or frozen 
• 1/2 medium red onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon red curry powder (you could use yellow curry powder for a more mild taste)
• 1/8-1/2 teaspoon cayenne, depending on your desired spice level
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• 2 tablespoons olive or canola oil
• Olive oil cooking spray or an extra couple tablespoons of oil for brushing

1.  In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the flours and the salt. Form a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and add the water and the oil. Mix with a spatula until combined and then knead with your hands until the dough is smooth.  Drizzle the dough with a bit of oil and set it aside to rest while you prepare the rest of the ingredients, for about 30 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 375 F / 190 C. In a large saute pan, heat the 2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat. Toss in the onions and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, for about another 3 minutes. Season with the spices and the salt, cooking while stirring for another minute. Add the peas (if they're frozen they'll thaw, don't worry) and the sweet potato, stirring to coat in the rest of the ingredients, and saute for about 5-7 minutes or until heated through. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cilantro.
3.  Divide the dough into two pieces. On a floured surface, roll the dough into a 1/8 inch / 1/3 cm thick square. Cut into thirds in each direction, which should leave you with 9 samosa wrappers. Put a heaping tablespoon of filling in the center of a wrapper. Fold over one corner to meet the opposite one. Before you close the the samosa, dampen the inside rim with some water to seal it shut. If you'd like, you can crimp the edges with a fork, but that's more for flare than functionality. Repeat the process with the rest of the wrappers and the other half of the dough.
4.  Place the samosas on an oiled or parchment lined baking sheet. Spray them with some cooking spray, or brush them with oil, on both sides. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy them warm with some mango chutney.

Mango Chutney
Inspired by Alton Brown's recipe

• 2 lbs / 900 grams fresh or frozen peeled and seeded mangoes, cubed (I used Trader Joe's frozen mangoes)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 medium red onion
• 1/8-1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 2 teaspoons dried ginger or 2 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced
• 1 tablespoon red curry powder (or yellow curry powder if you'd like a more mild chutney)
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 cup unsweetened pineapple juice
• 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
• Salt to taste

1.  In a medium pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until translucent, which should take about 5 minutes. Season with the red pepper flakes, curry powder, and ground ginger, if using, and toast for about a minute. If using fresh ginger, add it and cook for about 3-5 minutes. Add the mango, stir to coat it in the other ingredients and cook for a couple minutes. Pour in the juice, vinegar and sugar, whisking to dissolve the sugar.
2.  Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 30-45 minutes or until the mixture has the consistency of preserves. If you'd like to cool it down fast, put the pot over and ice bath and stir the chutney frequently until it's about room temperature. Serve with samosas, over rice, baked tofu or whatever else you'd like.

International Brunch

On Valentine's Day Austin absolutely insisted that I make parathas to go with our Indian feast. I had been wanting to try my hand at making flatbread for a while so I rose to the challenge. They were so delicious that I've been craving them something fierce ever since. Yesterday morning I finally caved and made them again. While I contemplated eating exclusively flatbread for brunch, that seemed a little too indulgent, even for a carbivore like me. For the sake of nutritional diversity I decided to whip up a sweet potato hummus, inspired by one of Gena Hamshaw's recipes, to go with the parathas.

I topped the open-faced sandwiches with some tomatoes which were a nanosecond away from going bad and some bell pepper that was hiding, practically forgotten, in the fridge. Although this brunch required a bit more time and effort than I'm usually ready to put into anything on a lazy Saturday morning, it was incredibly tasty and kept me satiated until my late dinner.

Parathas (Indian Flatbread)
Makes 12 parathas

• 2 cups whole wheat flour plus extra to keep the dough from sticking
• 2/3 cup water (you may need more or less depending on your flour)
• 1 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons of canola oil for the dough
• 1/2-3/4 cup oil for spreading between the layers and frying
• Optional: cumin and red pepper flakes for sprinkling in between the layers.

I used this recipe as a guide to make the dough and these instructions to assemble them. The process looks complicated but I promise it's actually quite easy and fun. After rolling the parathas into a circle, before forming the layers, I added a sprinkling of cumin and red pepper flakes. Parathas are great for open face sandwiches, sopping up saucy curries or just eating on their own.

Sweet Potato Hummus
Makes 2 1/2 to 3 cups

• 1 small to medium sweet potato, roasted, baked or steamed
• 1 15 oz can chickpeas, drained and liquid reserved
• 1/2 cup chickpea canning liquid (add more if you like smoother hummus)
• 1 tablespoon almond butter (or tahini if you'd like to go more traditional)
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and black pepper to taste

1. Put all ingredients except for the oil in the food processor and blend until smooth, scrapping down the sides if necessary. If the mixture is too dry, add more of the canning liquid or water.
2. With the motor running, drizzle in the olive oil.
3. Serve, with another drizzle of olive oil on top if you'd like.