Dahl of the Day

Indian Dahl

Eating a plant-based diet can present problems when going out for dinner.  Scan any restaurant menu and you will likely find that every entree will either contain meat, poultry, seafood or cheese. That is with one exception – the ethnic restaurant.  Asian, Indian, Caribbean, Mediterranean and just about any other ethnic type of establishment you can think of will have vegan options aplenty.  One of our favorite such places is The Mintt, an Indian restaurant on Banksville Road in the South Hills of Pittsburgh.  The herbs and spices in this type of cuisine are strong, but we have grown to really like them.  One of our favorite dishes there is called simply  "Dahl of the Day".  Dahl (also spelled Dal) is a dried pulse, or legume as we would refer to it, that has been split.  Pulses are high in protein as well as B vitamins.  The word "Dahl" is also used to refer to a thick stew or soup made with pulses.  The "Dahl of the Day" at The Mintt is an Indian soup made with red lentils and simmered with greens, tomatoes, and a variety of spices. Interestingly, according to Wikipedia, "[a]rchaeologists have discovered traces of pulse production around Ravi River (Punjab), the seat of the Indus Valley civilization, dating circa 3300 BC."  India is the largest producer of pulses.  So here is my take on The Mintt's dish using this ancient legume and swiss chard from Clarion River Organics.

Dahl of the Day

1 1/2 cups split red lentils, rinsed
3 1/2 cups vegetable broth or water (or a combination)
1 tbs olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 tbs curry powder
1/2 teaspoon garam masala (see Note)
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (less or leave out if you don't like spicy heat)
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, drained (see Note)
1 bunch Clarion River Organics swiss chard, center rib removed and leaves chopped (see Note)
salt and pepper to taste

Rinse the lentils in a colander or fine sieve.  Transfer the lentils to a medium-sized bowl of water to soak for 20 minutes.  Drain the soaked lentils and add to a soup pot with the broth or water.  Bring to a boil.  Once boiling, reduce heat so that the lentils are just simmering.  While the lentils cook, heat the oil in a fry pan over medium heat.  Add the onion to the fry pan and sauté until translucent (about 5 minutes).  Add curry powder, garam masala, ginger, and cayenne (if using) and cook 1 minute.  Add tomatoes to the onion/spice mixture and continue cooking about 5 more minutes.  Add the onion/tomato/spice mixture and the swiss chard to the lentils in the soup pot and continue to simmer until lentils are soft - about 15 more minutes.  Serve over brown basmati rice.  Serves 6 as a first course or 4 as an entree.  

Notes:
• Garam masala is a spice blend used in Indian cooking.  If you can't find it, use cumin and/or coriander.
• With just a bit of extra work you can use fresh Clarion River Organics tomatoes.  Use 2 fresh tomatoes that have had the skins and seeds removed.  See procedure to do that here: Tomato Time.  Chop the tomatoes after removing the skins and seeds.
• Instead of swiss chard, you can also use spinach, kale, or any other green you like.
• To complete the Indian theme, serve with naan bread available in the frozen foods of many grocery stores and at Indian grocers.  

Tomato Time!

Tomato Salad

The other night we went to the monthly vegetarian dinner at Kaya in the Strip District.  They offer a prix fixe four course vegetarian/vegan menu on the third Wednesday of each month.  From the dishes they served this month, it is clear that this is corn and tomato season!

Penne with Tomato Vodka Sauce

So no surprise this week when I received 7 or 8 nice, plump roma tomatoes in the
CRO delivery along with a bright box of grape tomatoes.  I don't love overripe tomatoes so I try to use these sooner rather than later.  I have a very quick and easy tomato vodka sauce for penne that I love.  You can make this recipe with a 28-oz can of crushed tomatoes in winter, but in summer, when the tomatoes are freshly picked, I like to go the extra mile and prepare the tomatoes for sauce. This means removing the skins and seeds.  The procedure is in the recipe below.  While it might seem like a little bit of trouble, the results are worth it.

Remove stems, skin, and seeds from the tomatoes by blanching.

Penne with Tomato Vodka Sauce

1 lb penne pasta
6-8 ripe CRO roma tomatoes (use all you received plus any left from last week)
1 small onion, diced (or use some of the CRO candy onion - a few slices should do it)
1/4 cup vodka
1 Tbs chopped fresh marjoram or 1 tsp dried
1/2 cup non-dairy milk (I used rice milk)

Roughly chop the tomatoes before adding them to the pot.

1/2 cup white beans (any white bean), cooked or canned and drained/rinsed

Removing the tomato skins and seeds


Here's a trick you may not know: put the tomatoes in a large pot of boiling water for 1 minute then remove them with a slotted spoon to a bowl of cold water (the fancy name for this is blanching).  When they have cooled, remove the stem with the tip of a knife.  Now you can just peel off the skins with your fingers.  The skins should practically slide off the tomatoes.  Then cut the tomatoes in half and squeeze or scrape out the seeds.  You don't need to be militant about this - just get most of the seeds.  Finally, chop the tomatoes roughly.

Preparing the Sauce
Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat.  Add the onion, cover, and sauté 5-7 minutes until the onions are translucent.  Add the vodka to the pot and let cook 1 minute to burn off the alcohol.  Add the tomatoes and marjoram and simmer about 10-15 minutes.  Use the back of a spoon to crush the tomatoes as they cook.  

While the tomatoes are cooking, place the non-dairy milk and white beans in a blender or food processor and process until smooth.  When the tomatoes have sort of fallen apart and are cooked, add 1 cup of the sauce to the blender and process again until smooth.  Add the puree back to the pot with the sauce.  Add the cooked pasta and stir.  Serve immediately
Serves 4.


I served the pasta with a side of this simple tomato salad.  You can make this while the sauce is cooking.

Tomato Salad

1/2 box CRO multi-colored grape tomatoes, quartered

2 slices CRO Candy Onion, chopped

1 handful fresh basil leaves, torn or snipped into small pieces

1 tsp olive oil

1 Tbs balsamic vinegar

Combine tomatoes, onion, and basil in a medium bowl.  Sprinkle with olive oil and toss.  Sprinkle with the balsamic vinegar and toss again.  Serve immediately or refrigerate to marinate which really brings out the flavors.

Serves 3-4.

Doesn't get easier...Roasted Tomato and Basil Pasta

If you still have the saladette tomatoes, here is a very quick, easy pasta dish to try.  The only other ingredients are pasta, basil and olive oil.  This also works well with any other tomatoes you have, just cut them up into smaller pieces if they are large.

Roasted Tomato and Basil Pasta

1 pint saladette tomatoes, halved lengthwise
1 Tbs olive oil, plus a little extra to sprinkle on tomatoes
6-8 ounces pasta of choice
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces
salt, peper

Place tomatoes (cut side up) on a baking

sheet lined with parchment paper.  Drizzle with a little olive oil (or spray with olive oil).  Sprinkle on salt and pepper, if desired.  Roast in oven at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes until tomatoes begin to brown and shrivel slightly.  While tomatoes roast, heat water and cook 1/2 package pasta of choice according to package directions.  When tomatoes and pasta are done, drain pasta and toss with tomatoes, basil and 1 tbs olive oil.  Serves 2.

Kale and Tomato Pizza with Basil "Ricotta Cheese"

This pizza is a little bit of work, but when you taste it you will say it was worth it.  If you have a lot of basil to use up (more than what we received from CRO this past week) then this is the pizza for you.  It is topped with both basil pesto and basil "ricotta cheese".  Add some of the kale and tomatoes you received and you have one great pizza!  I make my own pizza dough from scratch,  but it is easier to just buy pre-made crust or dough that you can roll out.  




Kale and Tomato Pizza with Basil "Ricotta cheese" 
(adapted from Vegan with a Vengeance "Isa Pizza")

12 to 14 inch pizza crust
1/2 cup jarred pizza sauce
2 large CRO kale leaves, center rib removed and chopped
1 CRO heirloom tomato, sliced into rounds and then the slices cut into quarters

For Basil Pesto:
3 cups packed basil leaves
1/2 cup walnuts
3 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup nutritional yeast (optional)

For Basil "Ricotta Cheese"
1 block tofu (14 oz)
2 tsp lemon juice
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
10 basil leaves, finely chopped
1/4 tsp salt
dash pepper
2 tsp olive oil
1/4 nutritional yeast

Prepare Pesto:  Place all ingredients in a food processor and process until it has a grainy consistency.  Set aside

Prepare Basil "Ricotta Cheese":  Place tofu in the bowl of an electric mixer and break apart with a fork.  Now turn on your mixer and blend until crumbly. (I use an electric mixer.  If you don't have one, just mix by hand, but it will take longer to get the right consistency).  Add lemon juice, garlic, basil, salt and pepper.  Blend until the consistency of cottage cheese.  Add the olive oil and mix again until it has the consistency of ricotta cheese.  Add the nutritional yeast and blend until just combined.  Set aside.

To assemble pizza:  Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Spread pizza sauce over crust leaving a rim around the edge.  Place dollops, about 2 tablespoons each, of pesto all around the crust.  Repeat this with the "ricotta".  Top with slices of tomato and the kale.  Bake for 8-12 minutes.  It is done when crust edges are light brown.