Chana Masala (Chickpea curry)

A delicious, fragrant, spicy chickpea stew. Yes, this recipe has a long list of ingredients (mostly spices), but it's very easy and comes together in about 30 minutes. This is great right out of the pan, but gets even better the next day as leftovers after the flavors have had time to meld. Adapted from Smitten Kitchen (http://smittenkitchen.com), which, by the way, is a fantastic recipe site.

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 medium onions, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 tablespoon ground coriander
4 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 teaspoons paprika
1 tablespoon garam masala
2 cups tomatoes, chopped small or 1 15-ounce can of whole tomatoes, chopped small
2/3 cup water (you can also substitute juices from the tomatoes or liquid from the canned or cooked chickpeas for extra flavor)
4 cups cooked chickpeas or 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 teaspoon salt
lemon juice, optional

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion, garlic, ginger and pepper and sauté over medium heat until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Turn heat down to medium-low and add the coriander, cumin, cayenne, turmeric, paprika and garam masala. Cook onion mixture with spices for a minute or two, then add the tomatoes, scraping up any bits that have stuck to the pan. Add the liquid you're using and chickpeas. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, then stir in salt. You can finish with a squeeze of lemon juice if you like, though I didn't and it was still delicious!

Perfectly Pink Roasted Beet Hummus

Brilliantly pink. Ultra creamy. With that deliciously earthy flavor that only comes from beets and a slight smokiness from the addition of cumin. How in the world did I not think of this sooner?!?!?

This recipe will make a party-sized batch. Feel free to reduce it...or just plan to consume large quantities of hummus over the next couple of weeks! It's a real hardship, I know...

3 medium-sized beets
3 C cooked garbanzo beans (I start with dried...you could also use canned)
1/3 C tahini
1 or 2 cloves garlic, pressed or finely grated
zest and juice from 1 lemon
1/2 - 1 tsp cumin
sea salt, to taste
1/4 C plus 1 TBSP olive oil

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Place your beets on a large piece of aluminum foil, drizzle with about 1 TBSP of olive oil, and fold up the foil to make a nice secure packet around your beets. Roast the beets in their foil packet for about 45 minutes, or until they are tender and can easily be pierced with a fork. When they have cooled, gently use your fingers to slide off the skins. Quarter the beets and toss them into your food processor with the cooked garbanzos, the tahini, the grated garlic, the lemon juice and zest, the cumin, and several nice pinches of sea salt. Turn your food processor on and let it do it's thing while you slowly drizzle in 1/4 C of olive oil. Stop the food processor, scrape down the sides, and taste for seasoning. Adjust your salt, cumin, garlic, and tahini levels to suit your taste and process a little longer. Use your best judgement with the oil and if it seems like you need more to get a nice creamy consistency, add more.

Dip into it with chips and veggie sticks, scoop it onto a big green salad, spoon it on pita, spread it on crackers topped with thinly sliced veggies...ohhhh the possibilities are endless!

(See the pretty pink hummus in the back there? Topped with cucumber? SO GOOD! Also, those crackers in front with goat cheese, sliced peach, and balsamic? Not so bad either!)

NOTE: If you are waiting around while your beets are roasting, consider using that time to pop each and every one of your garbanzos out of their skins. I read somewhere a couple of years ago that this made the smoothest and creamiest hummus...but figured that only a crazy person would intentionally put herself through that variety of torture. Well, I had time to kill while my beets were roasting and figured I would give it a shot. The verdict: I felt ridiculous while I was doing it and it was definitely time consuming AND Chris made fun of me a whole lot BUT holy crap this is the creamiest hummus I have ever made!!!

Kadala (Black Chickpea) Curry

Kadala Curry is a dish from Kerala, the southwestern Indian state known for its drop-dead gorgeous backwaters and its amazing food full of cocout. I ate this last night at a fabulous Keralan restaurant in Hyd and couldn't get enough of it . . . it was amazing with appam (Keralan dosas) and paratha, but would also be fan-tabulous with rice.

This recipe is courtesy of "Live to Eat" at http://blog.sigsiv.com/.

2 cups Kadala (black chickpes), soaked overnight
1 cup sliced onions
1/8 tsp turmeric powder
1 cup fresh/frozen grated coconut
1 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
2 cardamom pods
3 cloves
1 star anise
5 whole black pepper
salt to taste
1/4 tsp oil

To Garnish
1/2 tbsp oil
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp sliced shallots
a few curry leaves
1 dry red chilly
Method
Mix the soaked kadala with sliced onions and turmeric powder. Add water to cover the kadala and cook till soft (or pressure cook for about 15 minutes).

In a shallow pan, heat oil and add cardamom, cloves, star anise & black pepper seeds and fry for a minute or two.

Add coconut and fry till brown.

Add red chilli powder & coriander powder and fry on low heat till brown.

Dry grind the fried ingredients in a spice grinder. The oil from the coconut will help form a smooth paste of all the ground ingredients.

Add this paste along with salt to the cooked kadala. If there isn’t enough water in the kadala, add a cup or two and mix well. Bring this to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for a few minutes till the gravy is thick.

To garnish, heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds. When the seeds start to splutter add shallots, curry leaves and red chilly and saute till brown. Pour this over the cooked kadala.

Serve hot with puttu or appam or steamed rice.

Moroccan-inspired Chickpea Stew with Sweet Potatoes, Butternut Squash, and Kale

This giant pot of stew will feed a small army...or you'll have leftovers for a week!

1 small butternut squash
2 medium-sized sweet potatoes, chopped into 1/2 inch chunks
3 TBSP olive oil
2 medium-sized onions, chopped
5 or 6 cloves garlic, minced
2 inch chunk garlic root, peeled and minced
salt to taste
black pepper to taste
1/2 tsp tumeric
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp dill
2 cans chick peas, drained and rinsed
1 can whole tomatoes in juice, chopped
1 medium-sized head of kale, stalks removed and chopped

Cut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out seeds. Place face down in a lightly oiled glass pan and bake at 400 degrees for about half an hour, or until tender. Remove from oven, carefully trim skin off, and chop into 1/2 inch chunks. Meanwhile, place chopped sweet potatoes in a pot with a steamer basket and steam for about 20 minutes.

Heat 3 TBSP olive oil in a large pot over medium flame. Add onions and saute until translucent, about five minutes. Add garlic, ginger, salt, pepper, tumeric, cumin, cinnamon, and cayenne, and saute another two or three minutes. Add steamed sweet potatoes, roasted squash chunks, dill, chick peas, chopped tomatoes with their juice, and about a cup of cold water. Cover and let simmer over medium heat until the stew thickens and all flavors meld, about 20 minutes. While stew is simmering, steam the chopped kale for about five minutes until bright green. Mix steamed kale into stew. Taste and adjust seasonings.

This stew is delicious served over brown rice with chopped raisins. Top it all off with a spoonful of yogurt!

Spicy Moroccan Kale and Chickpea Stew

A lovely, spicy autumnal stew! We served it at our debate watching party this past week and it was certainly a hit. This makes one ENORMOUS pot of chickpeas. Seriously, you'll be eating it all week. Or you can just do what we did: gather all your friends and force them to eat seconds, thirds, etc... Enjoy!

1 lb dry chickpeas
10 C water and/or vegetable broth
2 TBSP olive oil
1 onion, chopped
5-6 cloves garlic, minced
3-4 potatoes, chopped
2-3 carrots, diced
28 oz can whole tomatoes in sauce, chopped
1 large bunch kale, stems removed and chopped
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp oregano
2-3 bay leaves
5 or more shakes hot sauce
salt and pepper

Overnight, soak dry chickpeas in enough water to cover by several inches. Drain and rinse well. In a large pot, combine soaked beans with 10 cups water and or vegetable broth (I used half water, half broth left over from boiling veggies the previous day!). Salt well and bring to a boil, reduce heat, and allow to simmer partially covered for 45 minutes to an hour.

Meanwhile, in a skillet saute heat the olive oil and saute the onions until translucent and fragrant. Add garlic and saute one minute more. Add potatoes and carrots and continue cooking another five minutes. When beans are ready, stir vegetables into the beans along with chopped tomatoes and sauce, kale, all spices, bay leaves, as many shakes of hot sauce as you can like, and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Stir well. Taste and adjust spices as needed. Allow all to simmer at least 30 minutes so flavors can meld.

Serve over brown rice or couscous. Perhaps with a side of roasted root veggies. Mmmmmm!

Chickpea and Brown Rice Burgers

Easy to make and totally delicious. I tried these first as burgers, and then a couple days later made them again but formed little 1 inch cubes instead (for a cube-themed meal!). I served the cubes with a yogurt-cucumber-lime sauce that was pretty awesome too if you're looking for a different option... Enjoy!

Burgers:
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2/3 C cooked brown rice
2 TBSP oats, chopped finely
1 medium carrot, grated
2 TBSP fresh parsley, chopped
2 TBSP fresh cilantro, chopped
2 medium scallions, minced
2 clove garlic, pressed
1 tsp lemon or lime zest
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 large egg, beaten

Salad:
1/2 C cucumber, diced
2 small tomatoes, diced
1/2 green pepper, diced
1 avocado, chopped
1/4 small red onion, slivered
2 TBSP fresh parsley, chopped
juice from 1/2 lemon or lime
1 TBSP olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

In a medium bowl, mash chickpeas until a course texture is reached. Add brown rice and mash until well combined. Add oats, carrots, parsley, scallions, cilantro, garlic, lemon/lime zest, coriander, salt, and pepper and mix well. Add egg, mix until combined, and refrigerate for 10 minutes.

In a separate small bowl, add all salad ingredients and toss gently. Set aside.

Set oven to 400 degrees. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray, form burger mixture into 5 patties and arrange on sheet. Lightly coat tops of burgers with cooking spray. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, flip burgers to second side, and bake an additional 10 minutes.

Serve burgers topped with salad. Yum!