Our Veggie Kitchen

Last week, I posted a poll, asking folks what I should make for this Sunday, for my birthday. Tamales made a push later in the week, but the resounding favorite was Indian food. So I poured over some of my cookbooks, recipes and some stuff that I had bookmarked and came up with a menu: Zucchini Masala, Jeera Rice, Mung Dal, Tofu and Parathas. Here's what I came up with:



Gobi Parathas
I'm a big fan of parathas. In the past, I've made them, usually stuffed with cauliflower, and always with issues. Usually, they taste fine, but are horrendously messy to make or just look awful.

I recently found Manjula's website, where she offers recipes and video of her making the recipe. I followed her recipe, made a triple batch (for two people!, and her technique worked without a hitch. Her recipe called for ajwain, which I subbed for thyme. I made them in the morning, then warmed them in the oven for diner. And I've got lots of leftovers.



Zucchini Masala
I've made this a couple of times. I'm working on making a masala sauce that's hearty, healthy and, of coarse, vegan. I relented and added coconut milk this time and it tasted pretty good. It's got 18g fat, but, compared to the heavy cream sauce that it once was, I guess that's not too bad.

Indian Fried Tofu
These were so pretty. I made a soy yogurt batter with lots of Indian spices and a breading of coriander, ginger and cumin seeds. I fried them and slathered them in the masala sauce. This was really a highlight.

Mung Dal
I think I make this whenever I make Indian food. It takes no effort at all and goes with everything. It's got a nice mild flavor, looks good for a dal (that's an accomplishment) and with a healthy portion of dill, is a bit unexpected.



Pumpkin Cheesecake
My wife found this somewhere on the internet. She added some of this and some of that and, we had ourselves a birthday pie. It tasted pretty good, but the texture needs some work. Some time in the near future, I will subject myself to some more cheesecake. . . all in the name of science.

Incidentally, I noticed while shopping that Tofutti makes two versions of sour cream. One has trans fat the other doesn't. The cream cheese still has trans fat, but tomorrow, I'm having trans-fat-free sour cream on my tacos.

---------------

Well, those are the pics. I ate way too much, was really pleased with the tofu, and have lots and lots of leftovers. I'll post some recipes later this week.