Winter Veg and Dahl in an Indian Flavored Tomato Coconut Sauce over Yellow Rice

We had another day of sleeping in this Sunday which will be our last for a while since the gym reopened on Monday. For breakfast I had a cup of leftover miso soup and Dan had his favorite green smoothie.

Even though we had a late breakfast we both were a little hungry around 1:30 and decided a little snack would hold us over until the 3pm meal with my parents. We decided to have an orange with two Brazil nuts for the selenium.

My omni parents seem to be more comfortable with soups and stews than most of my dishes which is why you see those quite often on the weekend. We hadn’t had Indian food in a few days so I wanted to make that for lunch. I love that Indian food is typically easy, quick and healthy since I consider that to be the perfect combination in a recipe. ;-) Here is what I did:

Winter Veg and Dahl in an Indian Flavored Tomato Coconut Sauce over Yellow Rice
Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 cup channa dahl (or substitute yellow split peas or red lentils)
4 cups water (you may need to add more depending on whether you fully or partially cover the pot during cooking)
1 quart canned tomatoes (no salt) or 2 – 15 ounce cans diced tomatoes
1 large red onion, peeled and chopped into bite sized chunks
8 cloves garlic, peeled and minced (approximately 2 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon coriander seed, ground (grinding is optional)
1 teaspoon fennel seeds, ground (grinding is optional)
2 teaspoons black mustard seed
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon powdered ginger
2 carrots, cut into bite sized chunks
2 peeled sweet potatoes, cut into bite-sized chunks
1 small head cauliflower, separated into bite sized florets
½ of a 14 ounce can light coconut milk (freeze the remainder for another dish)
1 lime, zested and juiced
¼ cup fresh cilantro, minced
yellow rice or other grain to serve as a bed – optional
¼ cup roasted cashews, roughly chopped for garnish

Directions:

Combine the beans and water and cook until they are tender, about 30 minutes but if the beans are older it can take longer to cook.

Once the beans are tender add the onions, garlic, tomatoes and spices and cook until the veggies are tender (about 20 minutes). Add the remaining veggies and coconut milk and cook until these veggies are tender (about 30 minutes). Just before serving add the lime zest and lime juice and stir it into the pot. Taste the dish for seasoning and adjust as necessary. Stir the cilantro in at the last minute so it will retain it vibrant color and flavor.

Serve as is of over yellow rice. We had ours over yellow rice on Sunday but without it on Monday.

Nutritional Information (without the yellow rice or cashews):

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 296.74
Calories From Fat (12%) - 36.97

Total Fat - 4.03g
Saturated Fat - 2.02g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 135.11mg
Potassium - 1741.43mg
Total Carbohydrates - 55.71g
Fiber - 19.71g
Sugar - 13.29g
Protein - 15.35g

Comments:

This is a simple crowd pleaser and was enjoyed by the omnis and vegans at the table. I love Indian food because everyone seems to like it. The flavor is rich from the coconut milk but not overly fatty since I only used ½ a can of the reduced fat version.

Did you notice the fiber on this dish? I am certain that is why it was so filling. I have read many times that the average American consumes 12 grams of fiber per day on average. But when I made individual dishes with almost 20 grams I find it hard to imagine why people are so low on fiber. However I suppose if most of you calories are coming from meat, dairy, oil, and processed a food that is why their fiber content is so low.

You can make this dish with any number of vegetables. I vary those depending on what I have on hand. Dried or fresh mushrooms are also good in this. I had intended to add dried mushrooms but forgot about them until the last minute. That is what happens when you don’t plan.

After I cleaned up from the late afternoon meal with my folks Dan and I headed to the library and Wegman’s. No surprise I had a few books that were due back to the library on Monday and I always need something from the grocery store so we took care of both tasks since they are near each other.

As we were heading to the expressway I saw the most brilliant sunset and snapped a pic through the windshield with my phone. Of course, Dan was driving so I could do this safely in case you were wondering. ;-)

This is what I love about Wegman’s they have everything including things you didn't know you needed. How often do you see Turkish Pine nuts in the bulk section of your local market? *shakes head*

When we got home from the store and got things put away I still needed to write a post and get dinner and be in bed early to get up at 5am for the gym. Needless to say dinner had to be quick since the others things were more or less fixed. Dan and I discussed having smoothies or oatmeal for dinner (since we had no leftovers) but decided on salad. Our dinner salad contained: mesclun, red bell pepper, cucumber, Mississippi caviar, avocado and red wine vinegar. The leftover black eyed peas were very good in salad. I will be exploring variations of this in the future.

After our salad Dan had his favorite dessert, strawberry banana soft serve before bed. As usual I had few spoons after I gave him 95%+ of the batch. While Dan needs the calories I don’t so I keep my portion to nothing more than a taste.

It was really tough to turn in as early as we intended. It would have been much easier if we had stayed on our usual sleeping schedule. It is hard to go from being a night owl to a morning person but we are trying to do it. I am hoping it gets easier the longer we do it. ;-)

Happy Thoughts:

It is amazing how easy it is to find things to be happy about in your life when you just look for them. I know many people that seem to revel in being unhappy. However I think life is too short for that. We can all find things to complain about or we can look for what went right in our day. This is section of my blog is remind me and you that good things can be found anywhere if you just look. Here are my happy thoughts:

• Coming home from for Wegman’s last night I happen to notice this in the window of a house in our neighborhood. I could not stop giggling. How great is it that someone has the lamp from “The Christmas Story” in their window. That really does dispel the myth that Roland Park is stodgy. LOL

• I am always happy when I realize that both Dan and I enjoy salad for dinner. There was a time when salad would have been nothing but a warm up and now it is our meal. It amazes me when I realize how far we have come in cleaning up our diet.

• Sunday evening we got to see the most beautiful sunset because we were out running errands. Even going to the grocery store you can find a reason to be happy if you look. ;-)

• After dinner last night Dan and were discussing life and the future and he is still encouraging me to follow my dream regarding nutrition. I am not yet ready to devote years to going back to college for another grad degree but I am starting to think more about taking a few courses. I am very thankful to be in a position to follow my dream if I decide to.

• I am also grateful to still have both my parents. While they know how to push my buttons I am still happy to have them around and to be able to look in on them and make certain they are okay.

• I almost forgot to mention my major accomplishments for 2010; I ended the year weighing less, with lower blood pressure, a lower resting heart rate and wearing a smaller size. Not bad considering I will be 49 this year. The best part is that I feel like I have a much better relationship with food now and can’t imagine “falling off the wagon” as I have in years past.

Signing out:

It is almost time for Dan to head home from work so I need to run. I am trying to live up to my 2011 goal of being a better wife and spending less time on the computer or with my nose in a book when my hubby is home.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Monday and a great start to 2011. Talk to you again tomorrow.