The Slimiest Post I've Ever Written...

     Coming from the South, I have eaten my fair share of okra.  I don't have a problem with the slime in okra.  Except frozen okra which should be banned for all eternity 'cuz ew.   Ditto frozen peas and carrots.  Blugh.  And spinach.  No frozen spinach.  I'm starting a revolution...  But first!  Back to the okra!  Like I said before I got stuck in the frozen foods aisle, okra slime is no big deal to me.  However I know a few people, OK a lot of people, who wouldn't eat okra if you paid them.  One sure-fire way to kill the slime is to douse them in breading and deep fry them.  But then, you know, that's not super healthy is it?  Boiled okra will have the exact opposite effect.  The slime produced by boiled okra will even make our pet slug, Agamemnon, sit up and take notice.

See the mighty Agamemnon receive his finger massage.  He loves massages...

     My husband is one of those people who isn't super crazy about the viscosity of okra, so he regarded them rather skeptically when I brought a big ol' bag home a few years ago.  I found a recipe online which is about as far away from Southern cooking as you can get and it has been the only way I've cooked okra for years now.  It came from the International Vegetarian Union website, and is simply called "Okra Recipe."  Originally posted by Sarah Gallagher, but it apparently came from a cookbook called World-of-the-East Vegetarian Cooking by Madhur Jaffrey.  In my bookmarks it's called, "Okra that hubby loves."

Indian Okra My Hubby Loves
1.5 lbs fresh okra
2 large onions
6 Tbs oil
6 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp tumeric
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4-1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
freshly ground black pepper

Sauté the onions and garlic in oil for about 5 minutes.  Add the okra and sauté for another 5 minutes or until the okra has turned bright green.  Add the spices and mix to coat the okra with them.  Add 1/4 C water, cover, and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until okra is tender.  Uncover and cook down until any water is gone.  Serve over rice.

Tips:
I realized last night, after I cooked the okra, that I usually leave it whole.  It helps cut down on the slime factor even more, though these cut pieces cooked faster.

My Substitutions/Additions:
I like to add ghee in place of some of the oil... You can use much less than 6 Tbs of either, btw.  I usually use less salt as well.  I omit cayenne when the boys are sharing with us and add about 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp of curry powder.  It changes the flavor to the point of making it a completely different dish, but adds the tiny touch of heat hubby and I agree this recipe needs while still being palatable by the littles.

Review:
I was surprised by how much my husband loved this recipe.  It is a good one, very simple and easy to prepare, which is a plus in this it's-too-hot-in-the-kitchen time of year.  The boys like it, too!

When Life Gives You Lemons...

...make honey mustard chicken!  I got this recipe years ago from my friend Susan who, knowing I was hopeless at cooking meat, kindly suggested this recipe to feed some friends we had coming for dinner.  Now that we have kids, I don't just save it for friends because my family loves it!  I usually leave the curry powder out for the kids, though...  I made a single breast for the kids to share last night, so that's what I photographed for all you lovely people.

Honey Mustard Chicken
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 tsp paprika
8 thin lemon slices
1/4 C honey
1/4 C spicy brown mustard
1 tsp dried onion (1/4 C onion)
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp curry powder

Sprinkle chicken with paprika and top with two lemon slices per breast.  Bake chicken in 13X9 inch pan lined with foil for 30 minutes at 375°. 

Microwave remaining ingredients for 2 minutes on High.  Drain breasts and discard juice.  Spoon sauce over chicken.  Continue baking at 375° for 10-15 minutes or until done.

Review:
Super simple, quick and my family really likes it.  I love using the stone-ground mustard on this because when it all cooks down, the whole mustard seeds make it look super special, like it's got sprinkles!   I served this with fried green tomatoes and a mixed green salad.

A Lucious Sweet Potato Curry

Someone was nice enough to copy page 42 out of Betty Crocker's Vegetarian Cooking for me at some point, not very long ago.  But for the life of me, I don't know who it was or when.  I'm just going to say here that this is some really good stuff right here.  Holy Crow.  Thank you, Mystery Friend!

Curried Sweet Potato and Lentil Stew
Prep: 10 min; Cook: 45 min
4 Servings

2 tbs margarine or butter
1/2 onion
1 T curry powder
2 T flour
1 (14 1/2) oz can ready-to serve vegetable broth
3/4 C dried lentils (6 oz), sorted and rinsed
1/2 t salt
1/2 C apple juice
3 C 1-inch pieces peeled sweet potatoes
1 C frozen cut green beans
Sour cream or plain yogurt, if desired
Chutney, if desired

1. Melt margarine in 3-quart saucepan over medium-high heat.  Cook onion and curry powder in margarine 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Stir in flour; gradually add broth, stirring constantly, until thickened.
2. Stir in lentils and salt; reduce heat to low.  Cover and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Stir in apple juice, sweet potatoes and green beans.  Heat to boiling; reduce heat to low.  Cover ans simmer 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender.  Top each serving with sour cream and chutney.

1 Serving: Calories 325 (calories from fat 65); Fat 7g (Saturated 2g); Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 810mg; Carbohydrate 67g (Dietary Fiber 14g); Protein 13g.

My substitutions/additions:

• I used less than 1 T curry powder because mine says "mild" but really means "hotter than the pits of Hades and also your children will never eat it."
• I used 1 T butter

Review:
So very, very good.  I served it with basmati rice and plain yogurt.  Even the littles ate it!

It's a Thai! (Curry Soup, that is...)

This soup is fantastic.  I made it a few weeks ago and am just now getting to type it up.  I got the recipe in my favorite grocery store from my favorite grocery store chef who was giving out samples.  It was apparently created by the Central Market Culinary Resource Center.  Hoity Toi!  Those of you who read last week's post know my feelings about cilantro.  But I have to say... *sigh* this recipe needs it.  I tried to leave it out and it just wasn't as good.   Don't get all excited.  I still don't like it.  It just had to be in this soup.  Also, big surprise to regulars is I actually did use the World Foods curry sauce because it's vegetarian and it's hard to find vegetarian Thai curry sauces.

Thai Red Curry Squash Soup

1 Tbs olive oil
1 C chopped onion
1 large apple, peeled and diced (jonagold, braeburn or similar variety)
1 4 lb squash (butternut, kabocha, blue kari, or hubbard) seeded, peeled, and cut in 1-inch chunks
3 C chicken broth
1 C World Foods Thai Red Curry Sauce or your favorite red curry sauce
1/2 C coconut milk
3 T chopped cilantro
Salt and Pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a 6-quart stock pot over medium heat.  Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes; add the apple and cook for another 5 minutes.  Add the squash and broth.  Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and then cover and cook for about 20 minutes or until the squash is tender and falling apart. 
Use a potato masher if you like some texture, or a hand blender if you want the soup smooth.
Once the desired texture is reached, add the red curry sauce, coconut milk, cilantro, and salt and pepper to taste.
Add shrimp or croutons if desired.

My substitutions/additions:

• I probably used a fuji apple because that's mostly what we buy...
• I used veggie broth.
• The chef and I both agreed it needed a dairy element.  I said yogurt, he said maybe yogurt or sour cream.  I used yogurt.  I was right...  =)

Review:

Awesome.  Even the boys liked it.  Boy 1 actually keeps asking for it weeks later!  Keepin' it!

*Update:
Ever since I posted this, I have had a really hard time finding the World Foods brand red curry sauce.  I discovered that Trader Joe's brand of red curry sauce is also vegetarian and tried some tonight.  It worked great!  Slightly less spicy, but still super yummy.  I garnished it with crème fraiche tonight, on a lark, and it was very nice indeed!

Mixed Vegetable "Curry"

I took this recipe from a cookbook*.  I own the cookbook.  Don't ask me why I copied it onto a recipe card.  Really, don't ask me... because I don't know.  This is a mediocre curry, but a pretty good low calorie veggie dish.  Just don't go into it thinking it's going to taste like a proper Indian curry.

1 1/2 T ghee or vegetable oil
2 C chopped onions
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 T curry powder
1 t ground cinnamon
1 t ground tumeric
1 t ground ginger
1/2 t ground cumin
3/4 C water
3 C carrot chunks (1-inch pieces)
3 C green beans (2-inch pieces)
2 C cubed potatoes (1-inch pieces)
2 C tomato wedges
1 C peas, fresh or frozen
1/2 t salt, or to taste

1. In a 4 quart sauce pan, heat the ghee or oil over medium heat.  Add the onions and garlic; cook, stirring, until onions are transparent, about 2 minutes.  Stir in curry powder, cinnamon, ginger, turmeric, and cumin until absorbed.  Add water; bring to a boil.
2. Add the carrots, green beans, potatoes, tomato wedges, and peas.  Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes or until vegetables are soft.  Stir in salt.

Variation: Stir in 1 to 2 cups of cubed tofu when the vegetables have finished cooking and cook until heated through.

My substitutions/additions:I used vegetable oil instead of ghee.  I still haven't found an Indian grocery around here, but I also haven't looked so that's all me...
I covered the pan.  Even then, it took longer than 30 minutes.
I served it with rice and yogurt.
Other nice additions would be sweet potatoes, cauliflower, and/or winter squash.

Review: Too much cinnamon.  Just... like, way too much.  It's all you can taste.  Also, it needs more salt, but that's easily remedied.  It is also very low calorie, which is a big plus in our house these days.  The yogurt helps and it will probably taste better on the second day when the spices have had a chance to really soak into everything.  But it's not curry.  I will keep making this tweaker, though I am throwing out this recipe card.  Really.  I have the cookbook.

*1,000 Vegetarian Recipes, by Carol Gelles.  The first vegetarian cookbook I ever owned and still one of my favorite resources.  Her saag paneer is top notch!