Greek Indian Fusion, An Amazing Thanksgiving Hors d oeuvre

Thanksgiving morning, 7am and dark but not too cold. The November blast of winter in the western United States isn’t what they’ve made it out to be. I spent part of last evening making Spanikopita Indian Style. I adapted my Saag Paneer (Curried Spinach and Fresh Cheese) recipe. My periodic adventures into making Spanikopita have me keeping phylo dough in the freezer. I’ve loved making hors d oeuvre-sized Spanikopita. I fold them into 1" x 3" oblongs placing a dozen at a time in plastic containers and freezing. If you are going to do the buttery folding of working with phylo dough, always double the recipe, have containers ready for freezing and make a bunch. Once you are on a roll it gets smoother and is actually fun. It’s definitely something most people won’t make or think to buy. They make wonderful breakfast treats or impressive hors d oeuvres. I love to give them as gifts frozen and ready to bake. There is a disposable plastic container that holds a dozen. I tie one or two containers with a ribbon as gifts for friends or hostesses and they are always appreciated.

Lately on my quest for simplifying the preparation of delicious Indian dishes I’ve been refining Saag Paneer. I studied lots of different recipes and came up with a simple tasty version of my own that is delicious. My for-fun website on Simple Adventures with Indian Cuisine outlines the recipe and making it. https://sites.google.com/site/simpleadventuresindiancuisine/

Invited to sis-in-laws for Thanksgiving, my task is to make the hors d oeuvres. Of course I’ll bring the deviled eggs that are family tradition. The plate with brim with olives, pickled beets, dill pickles, and celery chunks with peanut butter. I wanted to bring a delicious Indian dish but the vegetables are covered. Last year I took an amazing Yam Curry (http://ourpastourfuture.blogspot.com/2008/11/aromatic-and-yummy-alternative-to.html) I kept thinking how I could expand my hors d oeuvres impressively with an Indian cuisine element. It occurred to me that the Saag Paneer without the cheese chunks would make an amazing, though different, spinach filling. So, yesterday afternoon I set about caramelizing an onion, stirring into it some garlic paste and spices and spinach then adding sour cream. I let the filling cool in the fridge and later began the phylo dough adventure.

My triangles look beautiful and I’m going to bake one for breakfast to see if my inspiration isn’t as brilliant as I think it will be. Traditional Spanikopita with spinach sour cream and feta cheese has an interesting, pleasant taste. I love them in the morning for breakfast. This Indian- inspired spinach filling will have more dimension with the blending of spices. I’m serving it with Mango Ginger Chutney for dipping. Trader Joe’s, an eclectic grocery chain out west, carries the chutney. I keep jars on hand for gifting and it’s perfect for dipping. My husband uses it, at times, as part of a cooking sauce for meat. It’s amazing in place of the mint jelly with lamb.

Taking Fried Potatoes to a New Level on a Saturday Morning

It’s a hazy Saturday morning and I was in the mood to cook something. Fried potatoes sounded good, and I had some Russets on hand, but I wanted more complexity. I was in the mood to cook as well as eat. So, I hopped onto the Internet, typed fried potatoes + recipe into www.Bing.com and then started refining. I added + onions and + tomatoes.

My search came up with an interesting dish, seemingly Indian-like but with no Indian spices (it used metric measurements, maybe it was British as it had Malt vinegar and was baked in pastry.) It called for sautéed tomatoes and onions and crisp fried potatoes and sour cream wrapped in pastry pockets and baked.

The pastry part sounded a bit much, both the making and the extra carbs, but the mixture sounded good so I improvised and made a casserole.

The onion tomato mixture simmered up into the potatoes, and the sour cream tied it together. It has a creamy sweetness and would make a yummy breakfast casserole or side dish to a meat-based supper for folks who like good ole’ American food (sans the Mexican seasoning if they aren’t fond of cumin). It would be interesting to make again and experiment, replacing the Mexican seasoning with Indian spices and maybe frying some ginger with the onions and adding chopped cilantro.

My husband felt it tasted kind of like a creamy baked potato. I know my Mom and Dad and cousin Donna would have been game to try it with Mexican or Indian seasonings, but they would have loved it plain. It would have tasted like comfort food to them. Funny, there was never any thought of sauteing tomatoes with onion and certainly not adding tomatoes to fried potatoes in the foods of my growing up years. I love that I've learned about doing that from the Indian cuisine. (See cooking tip below)

Creamy Fried Potato Casserole

Ingredients:
1 large or 2 medium onions, chopped
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 14oz. can petite diced tomatoes, drained
2/3 of a 14oz. can black beans, drained
½ tablespoon Malt Vinegar
½ tablespoon brown sugar
½ teaspoon Mexican Seasoning, (if omitting this and add salt to taste or other seasonings you like.)
4 medium Russett potatoes, sliced thin with skin on (I sliced them by hand in 1/8" slices)
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
Salt to taste
Paprika if desired

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Fry chopped onions in olive oil on medium until edges are browning.
Add tomatoes, beans, vinegar and sugar, simmer until thickened.
Remove from pan and wipe out or use an other pan.
Heat vegetable oil and add sliced potatoes (patted dry). Fry on medium high with lid on until they are getting brown and then turn to brown other side. Salt to taste.
When potatoes are done, place onion mixture in a buttered shallow casserole dish, top with potatoes and frost generously with sour cream. Top with paprika if desired.
.
Bake at 400 degrees for 10 min.

Cooking Tip:
Next time you are frying up some onions to use in fried potatoes or another dish, add some diced tomatoes. Chopped onions or onions and garlic fried up with some diced tomatoes are a great base with which to do lots of things. You can then add the mixture to fried potatoes, or toss in some other parboiled vegetables or meat and any spices you like.

With easy in mind, fry up some onion, garlic and tomato and freeze for a quick base that can turn leftovers into a quick casserole or sauteed dish.

1 large onion equals about a cup, I'd say two onions to 1-14oz. can of diced tomatoes drained.

Whipping Up A Quick, Delicious Indian Dish On A Busy Thursday Night

I was in the mood for an Indian dish and I had some thawed frozen peas that needed using. But…it was Thursday night and I have an early appointment. How to concoct an Indian dish quickly and with easy clean up.

Keeping our large electric frying pan handy and easy to use is great.

I was building the dish around my peas.

I quartered 5 red potatoes and boiled them till done but firm.
I rinsed and put away the kettle.

First the triad, I only had a large red onion (I’d never used red onions) I went ahead and chopped half of it. I took 1 inch of a fat piece of ginger, peeled and grated it. I crushed two large garlic cloves. I did my triad chopping, grating and crushing on the same flexible cutting board.

For some reason I had a lot of celery so sliced two stalks into thin diagonals onto the cutting board.

Measured into a small dish ½ teas. Garam Masala, ½ teas. Cumin powder, ¼ teas. chili powder.

When potatoes were done, I heated 2 Tablespoons of vegetable oil into which went

the triad: ginger, onion and garlic with the addition of the celery.

Sautéing that until soft I enjoyed the aromas. When soft, I added the spices and mixed well.

Into that I dumped a 16 oz. can of diced tomatoes. Then I stirred in the potatoes and the 2/3 of a 16 oz bag of frozen peas that need using.

Salting to taste, I let it blend for a bit on medium heat while I quickly washed the cutting board, and small spice dish.

Serving myself in a bowl I topped it with about 1 Tablespoon melted butter.

It is truly comfort food. The only trouble with this dish is I’m eating too much, three bowls! It was so tasty. You may not believe it, but the way the spices blended they were really subtle.

What a way to “get your vegetables” and use up leftovers.

Boiling the potatoes took the most time. So if planning ahead for some busy evening dinners you might boil the potatoes ahead.

I keep diced tomatoes on hand.

I was caught short on onions (usually have sweet on hand). But, the red onion worked fine.

I happened to have a lot of celery on hand thus wanted to use some and it was a great addition.

Instead of peas, I could have added frozen or parboiled sliced carrots, cauliflower, broccoli or other vegetables. I could have used left over vegetables of any type.

I like the texture of the potato pieces in this dish. Wow, I can't think of an American dish that pairs potatoes with tomatoes?

I enjoyed making this and only had a cutting board, a tiny bowl for the spices, the potato boiling pan and the frying pan to clean up.

I’ve placed the left over’s (lots) in a zipping bag glad to have found a way to use my peas. I'll enjoy this again tomorrow and I’ll deliver some to Mina, my friend from Goa. I know she will appreciate the treat as I’ve appreciated her lessons in this delicious, intriguing cuisine.

Here's the ingredient list

5 red potatoes, quartered
1/2 to 2/3 of a 16oz. bag of frozen peas, (frozen or thawed). 2 stalks celery
1 16 oz. can diced tomatoes
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil for frying
1/2 onion, chopped
1" piece of fresh ginger peeled and grated (or 1/2 to 1 teaspoon pregrated ginger).
2 large or equiv. garlic cloves
1/2 teaspoon Garam Masala
1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
1/4 teaspoon chili powder

My New Favorite Sandwich

August is Sandwich month. Without knowing that, for last night's dinner, my husband came up with my new favorite sandwich. The varying flavors and textures had me craving more. In fact, I'm having a smaller, meatless version for breakfast. And to think vegetables aren't his favorite food!

He buttered and toasted 6" sections of a narrow crusty baguette.

He broiled Iserno brand Mild Italian Sausages keeping them whole.

In butter and white wine, he sauteed asparagus, red bell pepper, sweet onion and mushrooms.

To serve he slathered the toasted roll with guacamole. He placed a whole sausage on the roll and lightly melt a slice of Provolone cheese on top. He then topped it with the warm vegetables.

The crispness of the roll, the heartiness of the sausage and surprising sweetness of the vegetables all bound by a bit of cheese-it's a keeper and definitely one I'd serve to guests. It would allow you to please vegetarians, just leave off the sausage as I'm doing for breakfast.

My New Favorite Sandwich

Ingredients

one crusty baguette split in two lengthwise and sliced into 6" chunks

Ready made or fresh guacamole - We keep ready to go Wholly Guacamole in the freezer, you could use just fresh avocado spread onto the bread.

Deli thin slices of Provolone

Asparagus

Red Bell Pepper sliced into 1" strips

Sweet onion sliced into 1" strips

Sliced mushrooms

White wine (he used a sweeter white wine, a Riesling)

Butter

Instructions

Saute the vegetables in butter and white wine until soft.

Butter and toast the bread sections. (He used the toaster oven, they could be toasted under the broiler.

Broil the sausages until done.

Slather guacamole on the hot rolls. Place a whole sausage on each roll and a slice of Provolone. Melt with a quick slide under the broiler.

Top with the mixture of vegetables.

It looks gorgeous, has diverse flavors and textures that all flow together for a definite taste treat.

Italian-Indian Fusion

A friend was giving away cookbooks so I took one titled Sicilian Vegetarian Cooking, by John Penza. I have to say, since my adventure into Indian cuisine, I’m interested in vegetable recipes. With respect to Italian cooks and Mr. Penza, the recipes in this book, seemed quite boring. Every other recipe had ¼ to ½ cup Italian Parsley, whoa, not a very exciting ingredient, at least to me. There was garlic, onion, tomatoes, wine, lots of cheeses and very few spices - tiny amounts of nutmeg, red pepper flakes and oregano. I did, though find a thorough discussion of how to cook polenta. That was followed by a recipe for polenta layered with cheese and a tomato, mixture. The seasoning for the tomatoes beyond garlic was 20 whole Basil leaves 1 teaspoon oregano and the ubiquitous Italian Parsley. I couldn't stop thinking about a recipe I have for an Indian Dahl that has tomato, onion, zucchini, green pepper, garlic, and ginger. It sings with flavor from garam masala and has the textural addition of yellow peas cooked with onion. I decided the polenta layered with cheese and my Tomato, Onion Zucchini Dahl might just be very exciting. As I was making the Dahl for a picnic, and needed an hors d oeuvre for the following evening, I doubled the batch and kept some for this idea.

I considered that there might be a correlate in Indian cuisine for polenta so I went searching in my Indian and Eastern cookbooks. An eye opener - Madhur Jafferey, a famous Indian cookbook author, wrote a 460 page Vegetarian cookbook of recipes from India and numerous other Far Eastern countries. In this huge volume of vegetarian recipes there were only 3 that contained corn. I called my Indian cooking mentor, Mina, to ask about what they would use similar to polenta and she offered, "It would be Semolina, we don't grow much corn." Wheat, I thought, hm. Then it hit me, that's Cream of Wheat! I had that in my cupboard. But, I decided, I wanted the rougher texture of the cornmeal for this recipe so decided to stick with my fusion idea. (Actually, Cream of Wheat was close but Indian markets sell a straight Semolina grain for cooking.)

On my quest for polenta, I dropped by Whole Foods which sells it in bulk. Treating the cooking of the polenta like I do my Indian dishes, I set aside some time, organized everything and took the time to make slow cooking polenta from scratch, stirring it for 30 minutes. I spooned it in 1/2' layers into a round casserole (a layer topped with plastic wrap, another layer more plastic wrap and a third layer) and popped it into the frdge to cool and thicken.

I discussed with my husband, a great cook, the best cheese to use. The Italian recipe called for Mozzarella. I wondered if maybe a stronger tasting cheese might meld better with the flavorful Dahl. Then there was the idea of using cottage cheese such as in lasagna. Our cheese larder currently has American cheese slices, grated cheddar, some smoked mozzarella (I bought it for a pasta salad but it’s too smoky and intrusive a taste, I decided), some Queso Fresco (a very bland Mexican cheese I bought for chilies relleno), some pepper jack cheese (a suggestion from my husband but maybe too intrusive, I’m thinking). I chose to go with color, cheddar against the whiter polenta. (For later versions I've used freshly grated Parmesan which is a great choice.)

It was fun, my first attempt at a fusion, Italian-Indian. On top of  polenta I layered some Dahl then some cheddar cheese added another layer of polenta. On top of that, more Dahl, more cheese and topped with a third layer of polenta more dahl and grated cheddar to melt on top. I heated in the oven to meld all the ingredients and brown the cheese on top.

I served it in small wedges that tasted amazing.  People couldn't stop eating it. I'm definitely making it again. If you have to make a meal for guests that include vegetarians, this would definitely impress everybody.

Tomato, Onion, Zucchini Dahl

(In Indian cuisine, “dahl”generally refers to a dish that includes dried peas, beans or lentils)

Serves 8 (I double it and freeze it in small portions)
Ingredients

The Boiled Peas
8 oz yellow split peas (often available in bulk at natural food markets)
1 - 14 oz. can chicken stock, if more liquid is needed add water (vegetable stock for vegan)
1 small to med onion, coarsely chopped
(I leave out salt because of the salt in the stock)

The Vegetables

2 tablespoons oil
1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds (at East Indian stores or natural food stores.)
1 inch piece fresh ginger root, grated (available fresh or in jars of ginger paste in supermarkets)
1 large sweet onion, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 green pepper, chopped coarsely
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoon garam masala (an Indian spice mixture available in bulk at natural food markets but is in most supermarkets)
2 6” zucchini, scrape the skin a bit leaving some green (I use a zester) and slice into 1/4” rounds
1 – 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes. (I like petite diced))
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
2 Tablespoon water
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

 

Coarsely chop the onions. and separate into dishes ready to add.

Wash the split peas and place them in a saucepan with the stock, the small chopped onion and some salt. Cover, bring to boil, then simmer for about 25 minutes, until the peas are soft but still whole. Drain the soft, but still whole, yellow peas. Set aside.

While peas are cooking, measure garam masala and turmeric in a small dish, and brown mustard seeds in another, ready to add.
Coarsely chop the green pepper and add to the large chopped onion. Slice the zucchini and place in a separate bowl ready to add. Crush the garlic and peel and grate or finely chop the ginger placing both on a plate or in a bowl ready to add.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan or wok, add the mustard seeds, cover and fry briefly until they start popping (don’t let them burn).

Quickly add the large chopped onion, the ginger, garlic and green pepper and fry gently for about 5 minutes.

Stir in the turmeric and garam masala and cook for 1 minute, (the aroma will be amazing) then add the zucchini, tomatoes, lemon juice, about 2 tablespoons water, and salt and pepper to taste. Cover and simmer until zucchini has softened.

Carefully fold the split peas into the vegetables.

If serving as a main dish, serve over basmati rice, or as a side dish with Nan bread (Trader Joe’s Frozen Garlic Nan is a treat.)

Polenta

You can buy polenta in rolls ready made to slice into the layers. I like the process of the slow cooking process, it relaxes me.

Ingredients:
3 cups water
1 cup polenta (sold in bulk at places like Whole Foods and in bags in Safeway)
1 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons butter

Instructions:
Bring water with salt to a boil. Add Polenta in a thin stream whisking it in so it doesn't lump. Turn down to medium heat and whisk pretty regularly until thick and done 25 to 30 minutes. Butter the Casserole dish you will use, pour in 1/2 inch layer of polenta. Cover it with a sheet of plastic wrap. Pour in another 1/2 inch layer of polenta, top with another sheet of plastic wrap. Pour in a third 1/2 layer of polenta.  Put in refrigerator to cool and thicken.

Extra polenta? Pour into buttered muffin tins, freeze then remove into zip sealed freezer bags and keep on hand for a new idea for spaghetti sauce or fry slices for a breakfast treat.

Amazing Cauliflower Curry

I had a head of cauliflower. It sat in the vegetable drawer begging for a chance to shine. I felt guilty and almost boiled it as my mother always had after which she would pop it in the oven topped with grated cheddar cheese. Now don’t get me wrong, I still love munching on cheesy cauliflower but my Indian cookbooks were calling me. “Celebrate that head of cauliflower! Let it play a staring role in an amazing mixture of partner vegetables, sauce and spices.”

OK, it didn’t take much prodding as it was late Friday afternoon and my husband was out on his own adventure. I had thought of making a tasty crock pot curry recipe I have, but then decided to get more adventurous. Looking over numerous recipes involving cauliflower I decided to whip up a curry involving potatoes. Many recipes involved half a cauliflower and I had a whole one so my curry amount grew and I was prepared with freezer bags for freezing some of my creation. Finding I didn’t have the potatoes (I thought I did), I hopped onto the dock and borrowed one from one neighbor and two from another. Dock living is like the neighborhoods used to be growing up in the 1950’s.

I put in a CD, Songs That Won The War, creating the 1940’s ambiance I love, donned an apron and set off on another Indian food adventure to honor my head of cauliflower. One recipe I used as inspiration was called Phulkopir Dalna or Bengali Cauliflower Curry. I grabbed my tub of Indian spices, looking forward to seeing into what tastes the mixture of spices called for would blend. I had them all and set about organizing the ingredients for easy combining.

I’ve learned that when a list of spices looks daunting, to take the time to prepare and mix the spices ahead in small dishes for easy additions. You then start cooking with a buffet of ingredients and bowls of spices ready to go.

Since I had a large head of cauliflower. I decided to double the recipe as I do often now leaving plenty for sharing with friends and neighbors and freezing for future meals. Thanks to my acquaintence, Deb Taylor Hough, I'm prepared for freeze portions of dishes I make for later, my fridge top freezer has numerous interesting choices these days.

First I trimmed and cut the cauliflower into flowerets and put them in a bowl ready to go.

I peeled and cut up the potatoes and put them in a bowl covered with water.

I opened two cans of petite diced tomatoes and drained the juice. Sans the juice two cans offered up two cups of tomatoes, perfect for the recipe. It called for fresh tomatoes but the canned blend in nicely.

Into a small bowl went the turmeric, chili powder and water. I used a glass bowl as the turmeric will color any surface it gets a chance to. For this first attempt at this recipe, I decided to use the amounts of spices called for. With so many spices in many Indian recipes, changing amounts and even types of spices can be done easily, but I’m learning about the subtleties of blending spices and so don’t vary too much with newer recipes.

I removed the seed from the cardamom pods placing them into a small cup with the cumin seeds, cinnamon stick and cloves.

In another small bowl I mixed the cumin powder and coriander powder.

I then took a 2 inch piece of frozen ginger from the freezer (always on hand and easier to peel and grate when frozen). I peeled it with a potato peeler and grated it with the small side of my box grater, (I have a small ginger grater but it had disappeared for some reason.) It grated to about a teaspoon more than called for and I used it all. I set the ginger aside with the cauliflower, potatoes and spice bowls.

Heating 2 Tablespoons of cooking oil in my electric frying pan, I began to brown the cauliflower. I thought about my Mother and how interesting she would have thought of the idea of frying cauliflower, something she, nor I, had ever done. It began to brown nicely on the edges and the aroma was earthy and delicious. I kept turning the pieces for 8 minutes and then removed them to a bowl.

I heated 2 more Tablespoons of oil I put in my potato chunks. More frying and turning as the potatoes browned. It was a pleasant afternoon, music regressing me to earlier times, the frying and turning was fun. I really attended to each piece for 8 minutes and then removed my resulting lightly browned potato pieces to their own bowl.

I loved seeing all my ingredients sitting neatly, ready to go. Cooking most American dishes, I can’t remember ever attending to preparing ingredients ahead of time like this.

In my frying pan with lid ( I have a stainless steel Faberware electric model that I love), I heated 2 more tablespoons of oil over medium heat. I then added the cumin seeds, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom seeds, sautéing for 2 minutes.

Next went in the turmeric mixture and 30 seconds more of sautéing.

In went the rest of the spices, coriander, cumin powder and ginger (moving the spices around vigorously) for 30 seconds.

Then I tossed in the browned cauliflower and potato pieces coating them well with the spice mixture. I reduced the heat to medium-low and continued to sauté the vegetables. The recipe suggested a little water, 1 tbsp at a time, to prevent burning. I didn't have to add much water and cooked the vegetables until they were semi cooked, about 6 to 8 minutes.

Then, I stirred in the tomatoes, salt and sugar. I covered the pan and cooked it until all was blended, about 5 minutes.

I added 1 cup of water, covered and cooked until vegetables were soft and a little liquid gravy remained, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Serving up a portion, I drizzled a little melted butter over top this dish and was in heaven. I am so amazed what Indian cuisine does with vegetables. For the first time I can understand how people can be vegetarian. What a celebration for my lowly little head of cauliflower!

Amazing Cauliflower Curry
(Plan to freeze the extra or share with a friend or neighbor)

6 tbsp oil, divided
1 large head cauliflower, cut into 1-1/4 inch pieces
2 large or 3 med. Russet potatoes, cut into 1-1/2 inch pieces
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 1-inch pieces cinnamon stick
10 whole cloves
10 cardamom pods (seeds from the pods)
3 tsp coriander powder
1-1/2 tsp cumin powder
6 tsp ginger, fresh grated (or paste available in jars in produce sections)
2 14-1/2oz cans diced tomatoes (drain the juice off)
2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
Melted butter

(Natural food markets, like PCC in the Puget Sound area, often have all the spices needed in bulk. Smaller amounts stay fresher.)

Instructions:
In a skillet, heat 2 tbsp of the oil over medium heat. Add cauliflower and sauté, turning pieces to cook evenly, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove and set aside

In the same skillet, heat 2 tsp of oil over medium heat. Add potato and sauté, turning pieces to color evenly, 8 minutes. Remove and set aside.

In a small bowl, mix together turmeric and chili pepper. Stir in 6 tbsp water. Set aside.

In a small cup mix cumin seeds, cinnamon stick, cloves and cardamom seeds. Set aside.

In a second small cup mix coriander and cumin powder. Set aside.

Place the sugar and salt in a small dish.
Get the tomatoes ready to go, cutting into chunks if fresh.

Grate ginger and set aside

In a large frying pan with lid ( I used electric), heat remaining oil over medium heat. Add cumin seeds, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom seeds. Sauté for 2 minutes.

Add turmeric mixture and sauté for 30 seconds.

Add coriander, cumin powder and ginger and sauté vigorously for 30 seconds.

Add cauliflower and potatoes and mix well. Reduce heat to medium-low. continue sauté vegetables, adding water, 1 tbsp at a time, to prevent burning, until vegetables are semi cooked, 6 to 8 minutes.

Add tomatos, salt and sugar and mix well. Cover and cook until tomatoes are soft (if using fresh), about 5 minutes. Mash fresh tomatoes with back of spoon. (I drained most of the juice from two cans of petite diced tomatoes and used those tomatoes instead of fresh. It was perfect.)

Add 1 cup water. Cover and cook until vegetables are soft and a little liquid gravy remains, 8 to 10 minutes.


Drizzle melted butter or ghee over top. Serve hot with any Indian bread like fresh Nan.

The spices blend in this dish offering a complex and delicious taste without anyone spice overwhelming. Remembering the single vegetable side dishes of my youth, this dish takes vegetables to a sophisticated and interesting level.

(In the Seattle area Trader Joes has fresh Nan and a great frozen Garlic Nan you can keep I the freezer.)

Franco American Where Are You?

Truly Uh Oh, Spaghetti O’s. There’s been a recall of an American Classic for undercooked meatballs?! I don’t remember meat as a large component of Campbell's canned noodles of any shape.

http://www.q13fox.com/news/kcpq-061710-spaghettiorecall,0,3898855.story

Actually I can’t remember eating Spaghetti O’s specifically but, I’m certain they have the same sauce as a favorite of mine from my teenage years, Oh what was the name…Franco American Spaghetti. And, my husband piped up, "The Ravioli". Yes, I remembered that too. In my memory, they all had the same sauce, am I wrong? Guess in the 60’s they hadn’t perfected turning noodles into O’s.

Investigating my ol’ fav, Franco American Spaghetti I found another Uh Oh. Campbell's retired the Franco American brand name in 2004.

http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2004/11/18/uh_oh_franco_american_is_no_more/

Well, there's proof in this blog that I like healthy food but I also feel nostalgic for American Classics.