A few weeks ago I rambled on and on here about how great it is to share recipes with people you actually know, to keep a collection of recipes given to you by friends and family, passing on traditions and stories and all that sentimental stuff. And then I admitted that some of the most fundamental things I learned about cooking I learned from the internet. I’m such a hypocrite.
Well, here is another recipe passed along to me by a friend. She knew I like to cook, and one evening she handed me a sheet of paper with this recipe scrawled across it. I thought, “That looks kind of boring,” and I filed it away in my recipe folder and promptly forgot about it. Until last week. Let me tell you, it’s not boring at all. And while it might not be that attractive, don’t let its relative monochrome palette deter you. This stuff is wonderful. It’s both exotic and comforting at the same time. Alright, I might leave out the lentils in the future, and serve it over rice pilaf instead, but serve it again I most certainly will. Even if I’m just serving it to myself.
The original recipe my friend gave me didn’t include potatoes. I decided to add them because I wanted more substance, and I’m quite glad I did. The potatoes were perfectly cooked (quite a feat, for me) and ended up almost creamy. The original recipe also didn’t include lentils. But I had a box of black Beluga lentils I found at the best grocery store ever, and I wanted to use them to add a little contrast, a little color, to this otherwise very beige dinner. They weren’t bad, actually, except I think I undercooked them a little. Oops.
This is a great dish for early fall. It’s not too heavy, but still feels warm and comforting. And the curry flavor is just right: not too spicy, but just enough to warm you up a bit. I used a combination of curry powder and green curry paste, but you could probably use one or the other.
The more I think about this, the more I think I need to make it again immediately. Mr. X, what do you think about eating this stuff all weekend?
Curried Cauliflower and Potatoes
- 1 head of cauliflower, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 russet potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 T. peanut oil
- 1/2 white onion, diced
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- a good shake of dried ginger (probably a bit less than a tablespoon)
- 1 c. coconut milk (I used the light variety)
- about 1 T. curry powder
- about 1/2 T. green curry paste
- salt and pepper
- chopped cilantro for garlic
- rice or lentils or couscous to serve it with
Preheat the oven to 450F. Toss the cauliflower and potatoes with oil, and a bit of salt and pepper, and lay them out in a relatively flat layer in a baking pan. Roast them for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, mix together the onion, garlic, ginger, coconut milk, curry powder, curry paste, and a bit more salt and pepper. After the cauliflower and potatoes have roasted for 10 minutes, remove them from the oven and toss them with the curry sauce. Then toss them back in the oven for another 30 to 35 minutes, or until the potatoes are nice and soft. Garnish with a bit of cilantro and you are good to go (you might want to cut up the cilantro. I got lazy, so I didn’t).
Once again, I find myself in the throes of a new semester, and while I am cooking and eating quite well, I’m having a hard time finding enough spare minutes to share any of it. I have pictures backing up on my camera, yearning to be seen on the interwebs, and today I actually made braised short ribs. Which weren’t quite as awe-inspiring as I expected, but fantastic for a busy student, because they just cook all day in the crock pot while I’m at work and school and organizing a million events and meetings.
All that to say I do have many lovely and exciting things to share, and I hope to do that soon. Perhaps after the panel discussion we’re organizing for Banned Books Week, which is next week. So while you wait breathlessly for my next missive, go to the library and check out a book that someone, somewhere doesn’t want you to read. And come back soon. There will be ribs.