Aloo Gobi

This recipe from my Mom is Jack's favorite.
_____________________________________________________________

Aloo Gobi (Potato & Cauliflower Curry)

2.5 T Vegetable Oil
1 t Mustard Seed
1 t Cumin Seed
1/2 Onion, diced
2 Potatoes, peeled and diced
2 Tomatoes, diced - optional
1 t Turmeric
2 t Cumin
2 t Coriander
1 t Chili powder
1.5 t Salt
1/4 - 1/2 C Water
1/2 Cauliflower, cut into florets
1/2 C Peas, rinsed & drained - optional
1 t Lemon or Lime Juice
1/4 C Cilantro, chopped

Heat oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add mustard and cumin seeds & onion. Cook, stirring occasionally until the onion is tender. Then add the potatoes & tomatoes. Mix in the turmeric, cumin, coriander, chili powder, and salt. Cover & cook 10 min, stirring occasionally. Add water as needed to ensure the potatoes continue cooking. When the potatoes are almost cooked through, add peas & cauliflower. Stir and cover again to allow the cauliflower to cook for another minute or two. When vegetables are done cooking, add lime juice & top with cilantro.

Curry Puffs

Curry Puffs:

2 Packages Peppridge Farms Puff Pastry Sheets (found in the refrigerated section of regular grocery stores)
1 Recipe Potato Curry


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut pastry sheets into squares and fill each square with a spoonful of curry. Fold in half, making a triangle and use your fingers to pinch the edges shut. Bake on a baking sheet for 7-10 minutes, checking for a golden brown color before flipping over and baking for another 3-6 minutes until golden brown on that side as well. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving warm with tamarind chutney.

Sambar

Sambar

Ingredients:

Chinta Pulusu
1/2 C Tamarind
Water

Dahl
1/2 C Toor Dahl
2 T Channa Dahl
2 Cloves Garlic
1/2 t Cumin Seed
Water

2 T Vegetable Oil
1/4 Cinnamon Stick
1 t Mustard Seed
1/2 t Cumin Seed
2 Red Chilies
1/2 Onion, Chopped
3-4 C Vegetables, Chopped (examples: carrots, celery, tomato, squash, cucumber, potatoes, apples, etc)
1 t Turmeric
1 t Cumin Powder
1 t Coriander Powder
1/2 t Salt
1/2 Cube Bellam* (AKA "Goods" in Hindi, found in Indian Stores)
3/4 C Water
1/4 C Cilantro, chopped
1 t Coconut Powder (found in Indian Stores)

*2 t of Brown Sugar can be substituted for Bellam in a pinch, but it won't have the smoky molasses flavor

Directions:
In a small bowl, place tamarind in enough warm water to submerge completely. Allow tamarind to soak for at least 10 minutes.

To make Dahl: Bring 3 Cups of water and toor dahl and channa dahl to a boil in a saucepan. Once boiling, add 2 whole cloves of garlic and cumin seed. Simmer for about 10 minutes until dahl is tender and mushy, stirring to smash the lentils.

Meanwhile, in a medium pot heat the vegetable oil over medium heat. Add the POPU (cinnamon stick, mustard seed, 1/2 t cumin seed, chilies, and onion) and cook, stirring occasionally until the onions are tender. Then add the vegetables, turmeric, cumin, coriander, salt, bellam, and water. Cover and simmer about 10 minutes until the vegetables are tender, checking often to make sure there is enough water (if not, add 1/4 cup more) and that the bellam is not caramelizing on the bottom of the pot.

While the vegetables are cooking, make the Chinta Pulusu by squeezing the tamarind in the bowl of water so the juice is released. Pour the tamarind juice mixture (Chinta Pulusu) into another small bowl and set aside. Fill the tamarind bowl again with more warm water to submerge the tamarind and squeeze again, releasing the juice. Pour the juice-water mixture into the Chinta Pulusu bowl again, and repeat the process one last time, soaking the tamarind a total of 3 times. Set aside the Chinta Pulusu and dispose of the used tamarind.

When the vegetables in the pot are tender, add the Chinta Pulusu and cook a few more minutes. Then add the dahl and stir well, simmering until the sambar is heated throughout. Add cilantro and coconut powder at the very end and stir again to ensure the dahl is evenly distributed. Serve warm over rice or with Idlis.

Mom's Potato Curry

Mom's Potato Curry

*4 Potatoes, diced into 1.5 in. cubes

*1/2 C Diced Carrots (optional)

*2.5 T Vegetable Oil

*1/2 t Mustard Seed

*1/2 t Cumin Seed

*2 Dried Red Chili Peppers, broken by hand into large pieces (Can be found in Indian or Mexican stores)

*1/2 Onion, Diced

*1/2 C Frozen Peas, rinsed and drained (optional)

*1/2 t Turmeric

*1/2 t Coriander

*1/2 t Cumin

*1 t Salt (Mom says to add salt "andaza" or to taste)

*2/3 C Cilantro, chopped

(Defrost puff pastry sheets if making curry puffs) 

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil, add diced potatoes and boil about 10 minutes until fork tender, being careful not to overcook.  When the potatoes are about halfway done, add the diced carrots. When vegetables are done cooking, drain and set aside. In a large skillet, heat vegetable oil over medium heat. Add mustard seed, cumin seed, red peppers, and onion. This is known as Popu [pronounced as poh-pooh]. Cook until onions are tender.  Add peas and stir. Add turmeric (for color), coriander, cumin, and salt and mix to coat onions and peas.  Add potatoes to onion and pea mixture and smash about half the potatoes lightly with the back of the spoon while stirring. Add cilantro and mix well. Enjoy!

Sweet Potato & Black Bean Tacos

During residency Jack was lucky enough to work with a few other podiatry residents who were LDS and we arranged dinners from time to time so our families could spend time together. One night we were at Keith & Paige Murdock's home and Paige made these tacos. I had never tasted sweet potatoes like this! They were amazing! Not only are they healthy and vegetarian, but they are packed with tons of yummy flavor. When I brought the recipe home, I tinkered with it a bit and came up with my own version. Here they are!

-------

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Tacos

2 Sweet potatoes or yams, peeled and cut into small cubes

1 T Olive oil

1/2 t Salt

1/8 t Chili flakes

2 T Lime juice

2 C Shredded cabbage (green, purple, or both)

2 Green onions, sliced

1 Lime, zested and juiced

1/4 t Salt

1 Can Black Beans, drained and rinsed 

1 t olive oil 1/3 C diced onion 1-2 garlic cloves, pressed or finely minced 1/3 C chicken broth 1/8 t cumin 1/8 t coriander1/8 t oregano 1/4 t salt 1/8 t pepper 1/2 lime

Corn or flour tortillas

Cubed avocado

Sweet Potatoes:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place cut sweet potatoes in a large bowl. Mix together olive oil, salt, chili flakes, and lime juice in a small bowl and pour over the sweet potatoes. Toss to coat. Spread potatoes in a single layer on a baking sheet. Roast 40 minutes turning once at 20 minutes. Cook until golden brown.

Cabbage Salad: 

Place cabbage and green onions in a bowl, toss with lime zest and juice and salt. Stir all together. 

Beans:

In a saucepan on the stove, heat the olive oil to med-high heat. Saute onions for about 3 minutes or until they just start to become translucent. Add garlic and saute abut 30 seconds more. Add beans, broth, and remaining seasonings and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a low simmer and simmer for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. When they are done cooking, remove from heat and add in a few squeezes of fresh lime juice. Then use the back of a spoon or rubber spatula so mash some of the beans. 

Assemble tacos by placing sweet potatoes, cabbage salad, beans, and avovados in a tortilla and enjoy!

Tony's Walnut Crescents

One of my most favorite cookies EVER are Tony Ferriera's walnut crescent cookies. He knows how much I like them & I think he bakes a special batch around the holidays when he knows we'll be around so I can gorge myself on these little delights! I asked him for the recipe, assuming it was some generations-old Ferriera family secret, and I couldn't believe it was one he found on cooks.com! Here it is for our cookie making enjoyment...

*******

Tony's Walnut Crescent Cookies
Recipe adapted from Cooks.com

1/2 lb butter
1/2 C powdered sugar
1 t vanilla
2 C flour
1/2 C walnuts, chopped in small pieces

Cream butter, then work in sugar until well blended. Add vanilla, nuts, and flour. Place in the refrigerator for 1 hour (Tony sometimes skips this step if he's in a hurry and the results are fine). Shape dough into small crescents and place onto an ungreased cookie sheet. bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. While still warm, generously roll in powdered sugar to form a coating. Tony says if you're not choking on powdered sugar, you haven't put enough on. ;)

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies (AKA Copy Cat Doug's Moon Cakes)

***This week I had a random craving for an oatmeal and peanut butter combo cookie so I searched the web a bit until I found one I thought might be decent. Today when I mentioned it to Jack, he said his Dad made oatmeal peanut butter cookies a few times when he was young and called them "Moon Cakes." This stuck out to me for a few reasons. First, I've never seen my father-in-law cook anything except for scrambled eggs. I'm sure he CAN cook, I've just never really seen it. So I was intrigued that he felt motivated enough to make this recipe. Second, I thought the name "Moon Cakes" sounded pretty cool. I googled it, hoping for an awesome cookie recipe and instead found thousands of recipes for a Chinese bakery product. I imagined our posterity reading through a Harvey Recipebox Cookbook some day and having the mental image of Doug Harvey as being someone who baked Chinese treats for his kids. I literally laughed out loud. I still am actually.

Jack said his Dad made these cookies a couple of times but that despite his kids' requests for it afterward, he never made them again. I felt like I owed it to Jack to recreate something that could fill this decades-old-hankering. Or maybe my week-old-craving. Either way, here they are:

------------------

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies

(AKA Copy Cat Doug's "Moon Cakes")

Ingredients

1 C peanut butter (chunky or creamy)

1 C butter

1 C granulated sugar

1 C firmly packed brown sugar

2 eggs

2 t vanilla

2 C quick-cooking oats

2 C all purpose flour

1 t baking powder

1 t baking soda

¼ t salt

1- 12 oz package semi-sweet chocolate chips, if desired

1.       Heat oven to 350 degrees.

3.       Beat peanut butter and butter with electric mixer until smooth. Beat in sugars, eggs, & vanilla until blended.

4.       In a medium bowl combine oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Beat flour mixture into peanut butter mixture just until blended. Stir in chocolate chips, if desired.

5.       Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 11-13 minutes.