Hi everyone and please click on the title of this post to read more. I just ate an AMAZING chocolate mousse that I will post about next time. For today, however, I’d like to touch on the subject of making the same dish for different friends which will doubly impress with half the work. I do believe it was Peg Bracken who wrote the “I Hate To Cook Book” who said, ” It’s much easier to change your friends than your cookbook”.
Although I do love to cook and love the creative process, what I also like is a positive reaction from my guests about my food that feeds their bodies and their compliments after they eat that feeds my culinary ego :-.) Who doesn’t like to be praised when they have worked hard? It is even better to have provided a delicious meal and have it go toward TWO or more festive events, feeding a whole slew of guests!
For example, I made such a big batch of my new Indian Curry dish that I was able to serve it at my bookclub dinner AND the birthday lunch I had for a friend the following day. Twice the pleasure, half the labor! You will see by the video below that, even the second day, this food brought a local celebrity to song (that may have had to do with the midday Proseco, however).
In summation, if you would like to focus on one dish and practice it to perfection, keep serving it to as many friends as you have until you run out of friends. Then, you can start focusing on another dish and build your repertoire in that fashion. Trust me, this method works. Enjoy the recipe!
Indian Coconut Curried Vegetables
1 head cauliflour chopped into bite sized pieces and steamed
7 potatoes, cut into 1/2″X 1/2″ pieces, steamed until almost fully tender-keep checking so they don’t get mushy and put into ice cold water to stop cooking
3 cus cooked chick peas
1 onion, chopped
1 TBS canola oil
1 inch ginger, grated
2 TBS yellow mustard seeds
1 TBS cumin seeds
3 tsp salt
3 tsp ground black pepper
1 1/2 TBS curry powder
1 tsp garam masala spice (can get at Whole Foods or any Indian Market)
4 curry leaves (can pretty much just find in Indian food stores-not vital)
4-5 whole cardamom seeds (can get at Whole Foods or any ndian Market-they are for flavor so do NOT eat them)
1 cup golden raisins
1 15 oz. can coconut milk
yoghurt sauce:
Mix fat free yoghurt with any Indian condiment like chili sauce, mango salsa or coriander chutney
In a very large saute pan or big pot, heat up oil. When hot, add mustard seeds,cumin seeds, curry powder, garam masala, cardamom pods and curry leaves and stir for a minute or so. Add ginger and stir. Add chopped onion and keep stirring until onions wilt and become clear. Add coconut milk and stir until combined with all the spices . When it starts to simmer, add cooked cauliflour, chick peas and potatoes. Add raisins and salt and pepper. Keep cooking until all the vegetables are hot. Serve with brown rice and some yoghurt sauce. dee-licious!
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One Response
The interesting thing about the whole thing is not whether something is served as leftovers—it's the total impact of having so much delicious food that seems to magically appear. It feels like a magic kitchen. My goal is to replicate that—something that is much harder than making one good dish. For now, I'm making the Chinese Chicken Salad. (yum)–oh and the zucchini rolls… Nicole