Our Veggie Kitchen

We had friends over this weekend and the adults unanimously agreed that we wanted Indian food. There were a couple of things that I immediately thought of. I knew absolutely that I wanted koftas (Indian meat/veggie balls). And I just had to make parathas, and chapatis for the kids. After ignoring the health factor and considering the pain-in-the-butt factor, I added pakoras to the menu. Each of these was beautiful and delicious.

The problem, was that Indian food is not typically kid friendly. We were to have six kids in the house and three of those are insanely picky. I didn't want them to subsist on deep fried pakoras and flat bread, so I needed to add something else . . . and something the adults would like as well . . . and something Indian.



So I started with a curry sauce, adding a bit of this and a bit of that. I abandoned the idea of low fat, so I used coconut milk, and some yogurt to keep things mellow and came up with this curry. It has a creamy, subtle flavor, an undercurrent of cumin and no heat whatsoever. Two of the picky kids wouldn't try anything Indian. They ate rice, carrots bananas. The third said later "yeah I ate your crap!" He's so cooperative. The other three ate it without hesitation . . . and it was a hit with the adults too.

I'll post more from the meal later this week.



Kid Friendly Curry
2 tbs vegetable oil
2 tsp whole cumin seed
1 tsp whole mustard seed
1 onion, chopped
1 tbs ginger, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 serrano pepper, seeded and chopped
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
10 curry leaves (optional)
14 oz coconut milk
1 cup plain soy yogurt
1/2 lemon, juiced
2 red potatoes, unpeeled, diced
2 medium carrots, cut into batons
1/2 head cauliflower florets

Heat oil in a saute pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add the cumin and mustard seeds. Cook until they begin to pop, then add the onion. Saute until the onion softens and add the ginger, garlic and chili pepper. Saute for another minute and add the remaining spices. Stir to combine and add the coconut milk and curry leaves. Bring to a boil and stir in the soy yogurt and lemon juice.

Blend the entire contents and return to the pan. Add the vegetables and bring back to a boil. Pour contents into a 9x13 casserole and cover. Bake until the veggies are cooked, about 30 minutes. Serve with rice, roti or naan.

4 Servings: 500 cal (25g fat, 42g carbs, 8g protein)