30 Minute Cauliflower & Chickpea Curry

11 Comments

20140526-DSC_7021-2As a food blogger, I love to cook. And I love to eat! But most week days, the last thing I want to do after work is cook. The weekends are another story. I usually marathon cook and bake on the weekends! After work, I often look to meals that will take about 30 minutes (for both the prep and cooking time). This cauliflower and chickpea curry is one of our family favourite quick & easy recipes. We have it a few times every month. Not only does it come together quickly, it’s also incredibly delicious and packed with protein and fibre. It’s filling and leaves us enough left overs for lunch the next day. Bonus! The ingredient list may look a tad long, but most of the ingredients are spices you likely have in your pantry. I prefer to use fresh ginger and garlic for this recipe, but ground ginger and garlic powder are just fine. Since I use ginger in a lot of cooking, I like to keep a few pieces of peeled ginger in the freezer. Whenever I need a bit of ginger, I pull a piece out of the freezer, grate enough for my recipe and put the rest back in the freezer. Works great!

Here’s a few of our other favourite 30 minute meals:

Pineapple & Cashew Quinoa Curry Bowls

Sweet & Sour Vegetable Stir-Fry

Roasted Cauliflower and Red Onion Pasta

Veggie Chili Mac

Chilled Thai Noodle Salad

Cheesy Vegetable Tamale Pie

Mexican Mac & Cheese

Moroccan Roasted Vegetable Couscous

Vegetarian Thai Peanut Stir-Fry

What’s your favourite 30 minute meal? (feel free to include a link in your comments!)

Print
30 Minute Cauliflower & Chickpea Curry

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Serving Size: 1 and 1/2 cups

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon of olive oil
  • 1 large yellow onion, diced
  • 1 tablespoon of sugar
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon of grated ginger (or 1 teaspoon of ground ginger)
  • 2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon of curry powder
  • 1 teaspoon of ground cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne (optional)
  • 2 cups of low-sodium vegetable broth
  • 1 small to medium cauliflower, cut into florets (about 6 cups)
  • 1-14 ounce (398ml) can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 cup of unsalted cashews
  • 1/2 cup of golden raisins
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • parsley or cilantro for garnish
  • 4 cups of cooked brown rice or basmati rice

Method

  1. Cook rice according to package.
  2. In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and sugar. Sauté for 6 minutes, or until the onions are soft and translucent. Add the garlic, ginger, balsamic vinegar, curry powder, cumin and cayenne. Stir until the spices and onion form a paste. Whisk in the vegetable broth.
  3. Add cauliflower florets and chickpeas. Bring curry to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cook for 15 minutes on low-medium heat. Add the cashews and raisins. Cook for 5 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper (about 1/4 teaspoon each).
  4. Serve curry over brown or basmati rice. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley or cilantro.

Source: loosely adapted from Canadian Living Magazine 

Frosty Coconut Mango Lassi

11 Comments

20140523-DSC_6931We always have a few bags of chopped frozen fruit in the freezer ready for smoothie-making. The one fruit I never go without is mango. It’s my absolute favourite. It’s creamy, juicy and has just the right amount of sweetness. In my opinion, mangoes are the best fruit for smoothie-making. This past winter, I spent two weeks in Hawaii. I’m not ashamed to say that I had one or two fresh mango smoothies each day that I was there. They were the best! Lanikai Juice – you nearly bankrupted me!

Recently, I went to make my usual mango smoothie for a snack when I decided to try something a bit different. I wanted something more like a lassi which is a thick, yogurt-based drink popular in India. A classic lassi is made with yogurt, water, and spices. However, it is becoming more common to add fruit to a lassi as well. To keep things dairy-free, I opted to use coconut milk and coconut milk yogurt. My favourite brand of coconut milk yogurt is by a Canadian company – Yoso. But I also recommend the So Delicious brand. To the lassi, I added some frozen mango chunks to make the lassi a delicious, icy treat perfect for summer. A splash of agave (or honey) sweetens the drink up nicely.  And, a pinch of ground cardamom really brings it all together and gives it a unique and addictive flavour.

Wishing you all a wonderful week. xo

Print
Coconut Mango Lassi

Total Time: 5 minutes

Yield: 4

Serving Size: 1 cup

Ingredients

  • 2 cups of frozen mango chunks
  • 2 cups of unsweetened coconut milk (such as So Delicious Coconut Milk)
  • 1/2 cup of plain or vanilla flavoured coconut milk yogurt
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons of agave or honey (to desired sweetness)
  • pinch of ground cardamom

Method

  1. Add all ingredients to a powerful blender. Blend until smooth and creamy. Enjoy!

Source: The Fig Tree

Creamy Lemon Herb Stuffed Mushrooms

10 Comments

20140523-DSC_6793Throughout my elimination diet, people have consistently asked “if you’ve cut out gluten, processed sugar and dairy – what the heck are you eating!?” My response has been that I’ve never eaten better. Seriously…so much delicious food! Not only do I feel better having eliminated certain foods,  I am also a lot more creative in the kitchen. I’ve discovered so many ways to use plant-based ingredients to make incredibly delicious food such as these creamy, flavourful stuffed mushrooms! They are seriously the perfect appetizer. Mushrooms are filled with a cashew cream loaded with fresh flavours such as lemon, parsley and chives. Then, the mushrooms are baked until the filling is bubbly hot. Let me tell you – these little guys are incredibly addictive! They are rich, yet filled with bright flavours. They bake up nicely with the mushroom developing a light crust. They are an ideal finger food perfect for parties, BBQs, or even as a tasty side dish.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend. Happy Memorial Day weekend to my American readers :) This weekend, I am hoping to do a lot of cooking and baking. Lots of recipes up my sleeve! Since the weather is FINALLY nice, I also hope to go for a few long walks, a bike ride and maybe some sangria out on a patio!

20140523-DSC_6811

Print
Creamy Lemon Herb Stuffed Mushrooms

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Yield: 24 mushrooms

Ingredients

  • 24 large cremini mushrooms, washed and stems removed
  • 1 and 1/2 cups of unsalted cashews, soaked in water for a minimum of 4 hours
  • 1/4 cup of almond milk
  • 2 cloves of garlic, grated on microplane
  • juice of one small lemon
  • 1 teaspoon of lemon zest
  • 1 tablespoon of olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon of fresh chopped chives
  • 1 tablespoon of fresh chopped dill
  • 2 tablespoons of fresh chopped parsley
  • 1/4 teaspoon of salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon of pepper

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 400'F.
  2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place mushrooms hollow-face down on the baking sheet. Brush with oil or lightly spray with an oil mister. Bake for 8 minutes the remove from oven. Reduce heat to 375'F. Allow the mushrooms to cool then transfer them to a plate lined with a paper towel to absorb some of the moisture. Line rimmed baking sheet with a new sheet of aluminum foil.
  3. Drain cashews. In a blender, purée cashews with the almond milk until creamy. Depending on the power of your blender, this may take a few minutes. You want the texture to resemble a creamy ricotta. Add more almond milk as required. Pour cashew cream into a medium mixing bowl.
  4. To the cashew cream, add the olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, grated garlic and herbs. Season with salt and pepper. Mix well to combine.
  5. Place mushrooms hollow side up on the foil-lined baking sheet. Using a decorating bag, pipe approximately 1 tablespoon of filling into each mushroom cap. If you don't have a piping bag, you can spoon the filling into the mushrooms.
  6. Bake mushrooms for 12 minutes. Serve hot.

Source: The Fig Tree – inspired by Canadian Living Appetizers cookbook