Sunday, August 26, 2007

Texas Tandoori

I’m not sure if that’s proper nomenclature, but we grilled Indian spiced veggies and tofu for one of the best meals ever. I used the marinade for "Mixed Grill" from World Vegetarian and it was fabulous. We had our first grilled broccoli and cauliflower, along with onions, portobellos, peppers, potatoes, zucchini, and tofu.






One mishap. I must have thought this pepper was from the farmers market, but it had a grocery store sticker I didn’t see.



I had so much fun making chutneys. Chase found the elusive curry leaves for me at our neighborhood Gandhi Bazar and I am completely in love with the flavor they impart.




I made a cooked tomato chutney, using my favorite parts of many different recipes, which was perfect with all the grilled veggies, and added great color.




I also made a cilantro chutney, which tasted just like my favorite jarred chutney from Gandhi, so I just added it to my near empty store bought jar. Chase made a tamarind “yogurt” chutney, but wasn’t happy with it. The BEST chutney recipe came from this week’s food section in our local paper. It’s made with ridged gourds which I buy frequently from my neighborhood grocer. (They’re called Chinese okra there and I buy them because they look like star shaped zucchinis!) The article was entitled “Vegan Chutney Wins Our Hearts.” One of the editors had just become a father and his in-laws from India came to help out with the baby and household chores. One day he brought a chutney (which he called “Indian guacamole”) to work for his colleagues to enjoy on toasted bread. The food editor was so impressed she asked for the recipe and the opportunity to watch it being made. Here’s the link to this wonderful article with the recipe and excellent ingredient tips. And here’s how mine turned out.




We also made "Lentils with Spinach" from World Vegetarian.



And "Coconut Milk Rice" from Rice and Spice which was like risotto and fabulous.



My plate.



I needed a colorful cool salad, so I tossed together one with greens, slaw, cilantro, chickpeas, radish, mango, and tomatoes – yum!




Peanut Butter cookies were our treats. I made Isa’s big soft cookies from this recipe on ppk. These were OMG fantastic! I made the whole batch of 40. I substituted spelt flour for the whole wheat. I added chocolate chips to one third, craisins to another third, and the other third were plain. The ones with craisins were my fave.







The cookies were also a great snack while we prepared dinner.

Chase starts classes tomorrow and has a full load this semester, so we’re going to do family feasts on Saturdays instead of Sundays. The only thing I dread about school starting is the 50,000 students who return to UT and create a traffic nightmare. My commute time will now double and that makes for a dreadfully long work week. I'm going to try to post more frequently with make-ahead and portable type meals for my hard working student, and I also need to get more creative for myself. My diet seems so limited without tofu and wheat (seitan) and although I've been enjoying lots of salads and steamed veggies, I've really gone into a summer slump.

23 comments:

Anonymous said...

I never would have chosen the word slump! Your posts are always varied and colorful. You are such an inspiration and have me drooling every single time.

Anonymous said...

i think your posts are always wonderfull, so full of color and textures yum!!!

Shangrilewis said...

Did you know that spelt is an ancient form of wheat?

I thought you might want to know it's not gluten-free.

Judy said...

Everything looks amazing. The cookies are out of this world good looking.

Anonymous said...

Everything looks amazing. I wish I could have big family feasts like this. Yum!

Vegan_Noodle said...

Certainly doesn't look like a slump to me, but I know what you mean. I feel the same way often (although, opposite from you, sometimes I think I eat too many soy and wheat products).
I love the idea of adding Indian spices and grilling! Your chutneys look fabulous.
And I love those cookies from the ppk, craisins sound like the perfect add!

n/a said...

Oh, that salad is so colorful and looks very tasty! I like that Rice & Spice book, the recipes seem to come out great every time.

Sheree' said...

Wow, everything is so colorful and yummy looking. I need to get World Vegetarian from the library again. The Lentils and Spinach sounds so yummy right now and the rice! i wonder if the library has that book too.

DH is getting cookies for dessert tonight. Thanks for the tip. I have also fallen into the summer slump. Need to get back on track a bit.

vko said...

Everything looks so beautiful, healthy & tasty. I adore chutney and I really should learn to make cilantro chutney because it is one of my most favorite things ever!

I would happily eat anything you cook during your "slump"...

erica said...

You have such a knack for posting the exact food I'm craving! I haven't had Indian in ages and was craving it back before I broke up with William (so, weeks ago).

Peggy said...

Mmm, that food all looks really yummy and colourful! Great pictures, too.

Chutneys are indeed fun to make- throw stuff in a blender and taste. :)

Haha, I've been eating a delicious dinner sooo many times when all of a sudden I get a produce sticker in my teeth. Ick!

laura k said...

Again and again, your posts look fabulous. I love the idea of grilling Indian-spiced veggies. I must find curry leaves--they are elusive!

Amey said...

Sorry to hear about your slump. That's a cruddy feeling. You are really tackling a special challenge by being a committed vegan who is gluten-free and soy-free. I really commend you for your effort & dedication!! I hope you find some new ideas.

That said, this Indian-inspired meal is super awesome! WOW! I wish I could have been there to eat it with you. Thanks for including the chutney recipe, I will definitely check that out. I'm also super interested in the coconut milk rice & the grilled veggies. Oooooh yeah!

Veggie Cookster said...

Looks so yummy! :)

Candi said...

Hi Diann!

Your "slump" is a great one with all those colorful veggies! I tend to get into a 'carb' slump and your fresh veggies make me realize that I have to go shopping!

I did laugh out loud at that sticker on the pepper!! I've done that before. :)

Curry leaves?! Oh yum. I love trying new flavors like that. I've not seen them for sale here, but I've also not thought to look!

The vegan chutney looks very good! (as does the tomato one.) Thank you for the link and recipe. :) I am opening the link now. (I think my computer is slow, since it has been opening that this entire time I've been writing!)

Mango in the salad is a great mix. I definitely need to go grocery shopping now and hit up the fruits and veggies after seeing your blog!

JENNA said...

I've kept many of sticker on store bought peppers. I seem to take them off everything else but peppers.

Anonymous said...

I'm intrigued by the Indian guacamole -- did you have trouble finding the gourds?

I agree with everyone else, your slump looks pretty good to me. The cookies look awesome! I've been hearing a lot about spelt flour lately but wondered it makes a heavy cake/cookie?

Don't Get Mad, Get Vegan! said...

what fresh and vibrant food....as always!

i absolutely love the idea of indian grilled veggies. YUM!

urban vegan said...

I picture you, like the Tasmanian Devil, whirling around your kitchen, making all this stuff. Amazing.

MeloMeals said...

Wowza! This is an amazing post! That inidan feast looks so good, I don't know what is the most tempting... all of it, please!

thanks for the recipe link..

Jacqueline Meldrum said...

It all looks good! But I had to look nomenclature, up in the dictionary!

bazu said...

That dinner looks unbelievably fantastic. It's hard to believe you're in any kind of slump with all those colors and flavors, but I understand that we all need to switch things up once in a while.

Oh, and I so hear you about the kids coming back to school. We live a few blocks from Syracuse University and... let's just say that quiet and parking spaces are a little tough to come by now! See, I'm having end-of-summer angst. Must breathe!

Anna said...

What a feast! An amazing spread...

And I'm going to have to try those cookies now.