Indian/Asian Feast part two

The Indian Feast continues in my menus. Leftovers of both of these chutneys have tickled my palette with spicy flavor. I used the leftover pineapple chutney to make a quick dessert. It makes a fabulous rice pudding when you add about half this recipe to a cup of leftover Jasmine rice. I cooked the rice replacing 1/2 cup water with 1/2 a cup of lite coconut milk.

I followed the cookbook's suggestion of adding leftover mango chutney to a peanut butter sandwich. Since I also had leftover chopped peanuts, instead of using peanut butter I combined the peanuts with the chutney and spread it on toasted whole grain bread for my second breakfast today. Very tasty.

I think the remaining recipes will have to be in Indian/Asian Feast part three on another day.

Pineapple Chutney

A sweet chutney to serve with curries or as an appetizer spread on toasted flatbread.


1 20-ounce can pineapple chunks in juice
1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger root
1/3 cup raisins
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons cider vinegar

Drain the pineapple and chop the pineapple chunks roughly in half.

Heat a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat until quite hot and add the mustard seeds. The mustard seeds will immediately begin to pop and fly all over the place so have a cover close at hand. Since there is no oil to hold the seeds in the pan, you will also need to remove the skillet from the heat. Remove the cover and stir in the pineapple. Add the raisins, sugar, vinegar. Return the skillet to the heat and bring to simmer. Reduce the heat and cook uncovered on low, stirring a couple of times, until most of the liquid has evaporated.

This can be served hot, chilled or in between. It will keep in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks.

Adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Simple Suppers

Mango Chutney

I almost never use the microwave for actual cooking, but for this chutney it is perfect. And it takes less than 10 minutes.

1 mango
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons finely chopped green bell pepper
1/2 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
fresh ground black pepper to taste

Peel, halve and seed the mango and cut into 1/2-inch cubes. Not experienced with mangoes? Learn how to easily cut the mango into chunks.

Combine the mango with all other ingredients in a deep 1 1/2-quart microwavable casserole.

Cook, uncovered, at full power for 7-10 minutes, depending on your microwave.

Allow the chutney to cool slightly; then cover tightly and refrigerate. It will keep for about a week in the refrigerator.

Makes one cup.

From The New Basics Cookbook by Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins

Sesame Broccoli

2 teaspoons seasoned rice vinegar
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
1 tablespoon vegetable broth or water
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 bunch broccoli (about one pound)
black sesame seeds


In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, sesame oil, and red pepper flakes and set aside.

Cut the broccoli into florets and using a vegetable steamer cook until crisp-tender. ( I am not recommending this particular product, although I see nothing wrong with it. If you do not steam vegetables, this widely available gadget will make it easy for you.) Toss the warm broccoli with the dressing and sprinkle with the sesame seeds. Serve at room temperature.

Adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Simple Suppers

Greek Salad

I don't usually like substitutes for meat, cream, or cheese. My dislike is partly the taste (often disappointing) and partly because they often contain chemicals which I try to avoid consuming. Even so, I keep trying them out to see if I find any that are really good. I like many of the Boca products and some of the sauces I have made with nutritional yeast.

I also try to keep the recipes here as healthy as possible, full of whole foods (unprocessed) as much as possible, and full of ingredients you will easily find at the grocery store. That would make tofu a pretty good possibility.

I have to say this is an amazing substitute for Feta cheese. Is the taste and texture the same as that fabulous sheep’s milk Feta we used to buy at Wegmans? No, of course not, and don’t be silly. But after a couple of years of vegan eating, it is a very satisfying and healthy alternative.

Thank you to How It All Vegan by Tanya Barnard and Sarah Kramer for the basic ingredients.

Faux Feta

1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1 package extra-firm tofu, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

In a large bowl, mix together all of the ingredients except the tofu. Place the tofu cubes in a single layer in a glass or ceramic dish and marinate the tofu in the mixture for several hours.

Use in a Greek salad in cubes or crumbled. The salad can also contain romaine and other greens, chunks of tomatoes, pitted Kalamata olives, red onions, pepperoncini, sliced cucumbers, and whatever else you like. The salad in the photo happens to contain spinach for the greens because that is what I had in the refrigerator.

For a dressing, you can use plain lemon juice or a simple vinaigrette. I often use this one.

White Balsamic Vinaigrette

3 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons water
1 garlic clove, pressed
salt, pepper
1/2 teaspoon sugar


Whisk together and pour over salads. Makes enough for 2 servings of salad.

Indian/Asian Feast part one

Last night a few friends joined us at home for dinner before we all went to a concert. The concert was outstanding, by the way. It was the Palm Beach Pops performing with The Mills Brothers and the Count Basie Orchestra. What an entertaining event that was!

But back to the food. Ever since we became vegans I have not been able to get enough Indian food. I love the taste that is left in my mouth after a meal of Indian food. We especially like Woodlands, a vegetarian restaurant in Lauderhill, where they serve a mid-day buffet 7 days a week. We travel the 45 minutes for a very late lunch and consider it lunch and dinner.

I have been trying to cook Indian food at home, but it seems hard to duplicate without the oil for cooking the spices. So I spent a couple of days cooking a feast without adding oil and the result tasted authentic enough for me. Everyone at the table ate at least two servings of everything, so I think my guests agreed that it was excellent food.

Initially, I was concerned that the Pineapple Rice would be too sweet for my taste, but it turned out to be only very slightly sweet with a nice bite from the red curry paste. It was a fabulous component of my Indian/Asian Feast: Thai coconut soup, sesame broccoli, roasted vegetable curry, spicy potatoes and spinach, pineapple chutney, mango chutney, flatbread (like Indian Naan), and lychees with ginger and kiwi for dessert.

I also found it complicated to be the cook, food photographer and hostess at the same time, but everyone was very tolerant as they waited to be served while I took pictures of the food. I don't usually photograph the food with flash because natural light seems to make a better photo, but this time I had no choice. I don't think the food or the guests would have done too well with my running back and forth between the patio where I shoot with natural light and the dining room.

Here are recipes for the Pineapple Rice and the Roasted Vegetable Curry. The cashews enhance the rice, but if you are being really careful about the fat you can just leave them out. I use lite version to reduce the calories of the coconut milk.

More recipes from the Feast another day.

Pineapple Rice

First, prepare all of the ingredients. Note especially that the rice is cooked before it goes into this stir-fry. This recipe is adapted to remove the fat from a recipe in Moosewood Restaurant Simple Suppers: Fresh Ideas For the Weeknight Table by the Moosewood Collective.


4 ounces extra-firm tofu, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/3 cup Tamari
1/4 cup water
3 garlic cloves, pressed
1 tablespoon peeled and grated ginger
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon Thai red curry paste
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 scallions, minced
2 cups fresh pineapple chunks
4 cups cooked jasmine rice
1/4 cup cashews, toasted


Put the tofu cubes into a small bowl and pour the soy sauce over the cubes. Set aside.

In a non-stick wok or large non-stick skillet, sauté the garlic, ginger, and curry paste in the water for a minute. Add the peppers and the scallions, and the tofu. Stir-fry until the vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes.

Add the pineapple and the rice and stir-fry until everything is hot.

Serve topped with cashews.

Serves 8

Roasted Vegetable Curry

Although the result of your efforts will taste complex, this is a very easy recipe to prepare. As part of the Indian/Asian feast, it was the dish with the most heat. The recipe is also adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Simple Suppers.

1 large sweet potato
1 onion
1/2 small head of cauliflower
spray vegetable oil

Curry Sauce ingredients:
2 teaspoons grated peeled ginger root
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 cup light coconut milk
1 cup diced tomatoes


Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with oil.

Peel the sweet potatoes and onion, cut them into 3/4-inch chunks and place them in a large bowl. Cut the cauliflower into bite-sized florets (about 3 cups) and add to the bowl. Spray with oil and toss to coat. Spread the vegetables in a single layer on the baking sheet. Place the baking sheet on the center shelf of the oven. Roast, stirring once after 10 minutes. Continue to roast the vegetables for another 10 minutes, being careful to only lightly brown the vegetables.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the ginger, curry powder, and coconut milk until smooth. Stir in the tomatoes.

After the vegetables are roasted, place them in an oven-proof serving dish. Pour the curry sauce over them and stir to coat them evenly.

They can be returned to the oven until tender, about 5 minutes or covered and refrigerated for a few hours. If you have refrigerated the assembled dish, about 15 minutes before serving, cover with aluminum foil and cook the vegetables in a 350 degree oven until heated through.

Serves 4

Sweet potato enchiladas

This quick and flavorful dish is both vegan and fat-free. Everyone who has tried it has wanted to have it again - soon. You can make it spicy or not depending on the degree of heat in the prepared salsa you choose and on whether you include the pickled jalapeno slices.

There seems to be an endless corn season here in Florida, so we eat a lot of sweet corn on the cob. It was a perfect partner for this spicy dish along with Mexican rice.

I adapted the recipe from Robin Robertson's Black Bean and Sweet Potato Enchiladas in "Vegan Planet."

Sweet Potato Enchiladas

1/4 cup water
1 garlic clove, pressed
1 large jalapeno pepper, minced (optional)
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-ounce can petite diced tomatoes, drained
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 1/2 cups salsa (use in 2 portions)
6 8-inch fat-free flour tortillas
1/4 cup prepared enchilada sauce
8-12 pickled jalapeno slices, chopped (optional)



In a non-stick skillet, cook the garlic and jalapeno in the water over medium heat for about 3 minutes. Stir in the sweet potatoes, beans, tomatoes, and chili powder. Cover and cook for about 20 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are cooked. Set aside.

Spread 1/2 cup of salsa in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Set aside.

Working with the tortillas one at a time, place about 3 tablespoons of the bean mixture on each tortilla, roll it up, and place seam side down in the baking dish.

Top with salsa and pour the enchilada sauce around the enchiladas where they touch the edges of the dish. Distribute any leftover bean mixture in a line down the center of all of the tortillas.

Cover and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes. Just before serving top with the pickled jalapeno pieces if you are using them.

Groundnut stew

I had my doubts about this meal, but it turned out to be fabulous. It was spicy, rich and delicious. Even Jerry, who sometimes is not pleased with stews, returned for a second helping. I began with a recipe in "Vegan Planet" by Robin Robertson and made some changes. One important change was reducing the fat content. Although this is not fat-free, the only significant fat is that naturally occurring in the peanuts. The Publix near us grinds their own peanut butter every day and they add nothing to it. If you can find a source near you, you will be amazed at the difference between the fresh ground peanuts-only and the commercial peanut butter.

Groundnut Stew

1/4 cup water

1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
1 large garlic clove, pressed
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1 14 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 1/4 cups vegetable broth (use in 2 portions)
1 15-ounce can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons fresh ground peanut butter
2 cups cooked jasmine rice
1/4 cup unsalted dry-roasted peanuts, chopped

In a large saucepan over medium heat, cook the onion in the water until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the green pepper and garlic, cover and cook until softened, about another 5 minutes. Stir in the ginger, cumin, cinnamon and as much cayenne as you like heat. Add the sweet potatoes and stir to coat with the spices. Stir in the tomatoes and 1 cup of stock and simmer over low heat until the potatoes are soft, about 25-30 minutes. Stir in the kidney beans and simmer for 5 minutes.

In a small bowl combine the peanut butter with the remaining 1/4 cup of broth, stirring until smooth. Stir it into the stew being careful not to excessively mush the sweet potatoes.

Place a serving of rice in each plate and spoon a serving of stew over the rice. Top with a sprinkling of the chopped peanuts. Serves 3-4.