(Almost) Heidi's Cashew Cauliflower Curry

They say that the hotter the region of the world, the spicier the cuisine (think Thailand, India, Malaysia).

Chicago certainly isn't known for its balmy temperatures, but lately it's been as hot and muggy as it is down south this time of year. Maybe that explains my sudden craving for tongue-scorching fare.

I had a great weekend of baby-showering (the arrival of my little nephew is only two months away!), but in so doing, I devoured no less than a dozen egg salad and pimiento cheese tea sandwiches - on white bread, no less! It was also my birthday weekend, which meant several thousand calories consumed that other way you consume calories - in, ahem, liquid form.


So I wanted something healthy, vegetable-y, and yes, fiery. I checked out 101cookbooks.com for inspiration, and found a curry recipe of Heidi's that I'd been wanting to make for some time now. I've made curries that were similar to this, but never so closely inpsired by this exact recipe. I also liked that her Cashew Curry wasn't served with rice - as much as I like rice, the idea of just slurping the spicy curry broth straight from a spoon sounded wonderful.

I did add a few things to Heidi's recipe, but only because I wanted to make her recipe go further - so I could pack several days of lunches this week.

ALMOST HEIDI'S CASHEW CAULIFLOWER CURRY

Serve 3-4

INGREDIENTS

1 can light coconut milk
1 can vegetable broth
big squeeze honey
1/2 head orange (or regular) cauliflower
1/3 lb. fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into pieces
1/4 block extra firm tofu, cut into chunks
1 red chile pepper, seeded and finely minced
1 small yellow onion, or half a large onion
1 medium carrot, peeled and sliced thinly
1 smallish yam, peeled and cut into smallish chunks
1-2 T. curry powder
a little salt
handful roasted unsalted cashews
big handful cilantro leaves

STEP ONE:

Add the coconut milk and vegetable broth in a large skillet. Turn the heat to medium-high. Whisk in the salt and curry powder and honey.

STEP TWO:

Add the rest of the ingredients, except the cilantro and the cashews. Bring to a low boil and cool until all vegetables are tender and the curry broth has reduced and thickened.


STEP THREE:

Stir in the cashews. Pour into bowls or a serving dish and top with a bunch of cilantro. Enjoy!

This is one of my favorite curries I've made to date! I love that it was lightly - but not cloyingly - sweet. The curry flavor was really direct, and the heat level was perfect - enough to make my nose run but not so hot my lips were burning. The vegetables and cashews were hearty and satisfying; I would definitely make this again. And it was super easy - you don't even have to saute the veggies, you just chop and drop.


It would be excellent with shrimp or chicken, too, and also tasty over rice if you wanted to go that way. I can't wait to have a spicy leftovers lunch tomorrow at work...mmmm.

Thanks for reading! More soon...

By Popular Demand, Breakfast for Dinner: Rainbow Burritos!

Yes, Rainbow Burritos.

For two reasons: one, this baby was colorful. Two, I used rainbow chard...mmmm.


I get a gold star for eating seasonally for this post, too: rainbow chard, beans, and potatoes (and a yam is close to a potato, right) are all in season. And what's always in season? Breakfast burritos for dinner, my friends. Fluffy scrambled eggs snuggled up to beans in a warm tortilla...that can't be bad. And this burrito is delicious! And easy! And cost-effective! There's really no reason you shouldn't drop everything and make one immediately.

RAINBOW BREAKFAST BURRITOS

INGREDIENTS

1 T. butter
1 T. olive oil
1 medium yam, diced
1 bunch rainbow chard, ends trimmed, cut into smallish pieces
dash cayenne pepper
a few dashes cumin
black beans, drained and rinsed thoroughly
1 tsp. butter for cooking the eggs (or use nonstick pan spray)
2 eggs, scrambled (or you could use just one)
big handful chopped fresh cilantro
salt and pepper to taste
1 burrito-sized whole wheat tortilla
light sour cream to serve on the side


STEP ONE:

Heat butter and olive oil in a medium skillet. Cook the yams, seasoning with salt, pepper, cayenne, and cumin, until browned on all sides and tender. Add the chard and cilantro and cook until wilted to your liking. (I just piled the chard right on top of the yams in the pan, and since it was still a little wet from rinsing it, some of the water got into the pan - I think this worked out well because it helped the yam pieces to steam a little bit, making them perfectly tender.)



STEP TWO:

Wrap the tortilla in a damp paper towel and place in the microwave for about 20 seconds to soften it. Then place on a plate. Meanwhile, melt the butter in another nonstick skillet. Beat the eggs in a bowl, then scramble them in the pan.

STEP THREE:

Place some of the yam-chard mixture, beans, then eggs in the tortilla. Roll up like a burrito, or, if your tortilla is too small or won't cooperate like mine was, just pile everything on and hope for the best. Serve with a dollop of sour cream and some fresh cilantro sprigs. Enjoy!



The only small snafu I had was that my eggs were a tad on the salty side. I think it would have been a more grievous error if the beans and chard hadn't really been salted at all. Next time I think I'll try this with one egg instead of two - unless of course I can find burrito-sized whole wheat tortillas. This would be great with a little you-know-what nestled in there (cheese, of course), although the sour cream was plenty rich.

Thanks, Tim, for your lovely BFD (breakfast for dinner) suggestion, and I promise to make more BFD meals in the future. Thanks for reading! More soon...