Channa Masala (Indian Chickpea Curry)

Masala = Spice Mix = The heart and soul of any Indian Food

Garam Masala = My new favorite spice = smells like Chai tea

I've been on a bit of a vegetarian Indian food kick lately and have stocked my spice drawer accordingly. Channa masala is a classic Northern Indian dish that I came across on seriouseats.com and decided to give it a whirl after sampling something similar at Trader Joe's (they had a vegetarian Indian food sample night recently). It is a curry made of chickpeas that is beautiful in color, fragrant and rather healthy.

Ingredients (serves 2)
1 T olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove
1/2 T ground coriander
1 t ground cumin
1/4 t ground cayenne pepper
1/2 t ground turmeric
6 T chopped tomatoes (or half a can)
1/2 cup water
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 t paprika
1/2 t garam masala
1/2 t salt
Juice of 1/4 lemon
1/2 jalapeño, stemmed, seeded, and chopped
1 t fresh ginger, grated

Directions

Pour olive oil in a skillet set over medium heat. When warm, add the onion and cook until soft and beginning to brown, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute.

Add the coriander, cumin, cayenne, and turmeric. Stir until combined and cook for 30 seconds or so, or until it is very fragrant.

Stir in the tomatoes. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Dump in the chickpeas and the pour in the water. Stir until combined, and then bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. Add the paprika, garam masala, salt, and lemon juice. Cover and cook at a simmer for 10 minutes.

Sprinkle in the ginger and jalapeno. Cook for another 30 seconds. Season with salt if needed.

Notes

• I served this over Trader Joe's garlic naan. It comes in the frozen section of their store and it is delicious!
  
• I hear it is also served with rice.
• I found all of the spices that you can't find at a regular grocery store at Cost Plus World Market. They have a nice selection of unusual and exotic spices.
• This was pretty mellow in terms of heat. If you want to kick it up a notch add more jalapeno or forget to deseed it!

Spicy Chickpea Green Salad

I got this recipe from my mom (Kristie!) and then added a little bit of extra goodies to it. She's been making it on hot Sacramento summer nights to pair with a crisp glass of white wine and grilled salmon. It can be made to be an entree or side salad depending on serving size. Not only is it vegan, but it is really delicious and healthy! It's also not as spicy as spicy as the title may lead you to think- so if you want it really spicy, you might skimp on deseeding the serrano chiles.

Ingredients (serves 6 as a side salad)
adapted from Food Network's Guy Fieri's recipe
1 clove garlic, minced
1 serrano pepper, seeded, ribs removed and finely diced
1/2 small red onion, diced
1 lemon, juiced
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 (15.5-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1 English cucumber, sliced, skin on
1/2 bunch mint, leaves roughly chopped
1/2 bunch cilantro, leaves roughly chopped
1 head red leaf lettuce, shredded
1 cup arugula
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds

Directions
Combine the garlic, pepper, red onion, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, olive oil and salt and pepper, to taste, in a large bowl.

Add the chickpeas, cucumber, tomatoes, mint, and cilantro. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and toss in the lettuce and arugula. Plate and sprinkle with pumpkin seeds.

Quinoa with Chickpeas, Vegetables and Feta

I thought I should balance out Mel's non-vegetarian dish with something new I created tonight. I had a bunch of vegetables lying around and thought this might make a nice light meal with some quinoa. Quinoa (pronounced Keen-wah) is an ancient food that is not yet well known in North America. It has been cultivated in South American Andes since at least 3,000 B.C. and has been a staple food of millions of native inhabitants. The ancient Incas called quinoa the "mother grain" and revered it as sacred. My quinoa recipe turned out really colorful and hearty enough that it didn't really need a side dish.

I have been reading a few vegetarian cookbooks (Vegetarian Suppers and Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison) that taught me how to cook these grains. These books are really helpful when it comes to the basics of vegetarian cooking. They show how to create virtually anything just like a basic Betty Crocker cookbook would. So far, the vegetarian month has gone easier than expected. I dont' feel that it has changed our lifestyle all that much. Besides the occasional cheeseburger craving, (after almost three weeks), I don't really even want or desire meat anymore. I don't think that this will result in full-blown vegetarianism at the end of this month, but more serve as an eye opener as to what else there is out there to cook besides meat-centered meals. On another side note, I have been reading a book called The China Study which proclaims that for better overall health and less chances of cancer and other diseases, that humans should make meat proteins less than 10% of their diet- more on that later.























Ingredients
2 cups vegetable broth
olive oil
1 cup quinoa
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 a white onion, diced
1/2 cup asparagus tips
1 zucchini, diced
1 can chickpeas
1/4 cup grape tomatoes
1/8 cup kalamata olives
1/8 cup pine nuts
1 bunch watercress, diced
feta cheese for topping
salt, pepper, fennel seeds, oregano, cayenne to taste


















Directions
Boil vegetable broth in small sauce pan. Add quinoa, turn down, cover and cook for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, sautee onion and garlic in large fry pan. After a few minutes, add asparagus, zucchini and chickpeas. When quinoa is almost cooked, add remaining ingredients to heat and season to taste. Pour cooked quinoa over vegetable mixture, stir well and season to taste. Serve topped with a little feta cheese.

Serves 4.