Your Cooking Coach
Show MenuHide Menu

Tag: vegetarian dishes

Turkish Style Lentil Soup

Yummy lentil soup for meatless Monday!!

  • 1 tablespoon butter or extra light olive oil
  • ½ medium yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon dried mint
  • ½ cup red lentils, washed
  • 1 small potato, peeled and cut in half inch squares
  • 2 to 3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • Fresh lemon juice

Heat a medium saucepan with the oil. Add the onion, ground cumin and mint. Saute on medium heat, stirring constantly for 5 minutes. Add the lentils, potatoes and broth. Bring to a boil and add the salt and turmeric and simmer on medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes adding more broth if necessary. Once the potato chunks are soft, take off the heat and let cool. Transfer to blender and blend till smooth. Pour the liquid back to the saucepan and bring to a boil. Adjust the consistency by either adding more broth or cooking off extra broth. Check for seasonings. Squirt some fresh lemon juice right before serving.

Grilled Vegetables with Cilantro Chimichurri Sauce

These grilled vegetables were absolutely delicious!! The delicious chimichurri sauce brought them to a whole new level…

  • 3 to 4 potatoes, sliced

Transfer the potatoes to a medium pan and top with water. Bring to a boil and drain and let cool.

  • 1 bunch asparagus, ends cut off
  • 2 to 3 red peppers, sliced
  • ¼ cup chimichurri sauce
  • Salt
  • Pepper

Transfer the vegetables including the potatoes to a medium bowl. Add the chimichurri sauce, salt and pepper. Toss well and grill on till all vegetables are golden brown. Serve with steak.

Greek Style Potato Salad

This potato salad is yummy with lots of great flavors like oregano, olives and dills. I prefer my potato salad with a lemon dressing and this one has amazing crunch with cucumbers and pine nuts. It is a great side with burgers or any meat or fish!

  • 4 to 5 large yellow skinned potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch dice

Dressing

  • Juice of 2 large lemons
  • ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons fresh oregano, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons salt

Mix the ingredients in a small bowl and keep aside.

Place the potatoes in a large saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook till the potatoes are soft but not mushy, about 6 to 8 minutes. Drain and transfer to a serving bowl. While the potatoes are still warm, pour the dressing and mix well and keep aside.

  • ½ English cucumber, chopped
  • ½ cup kalamata olives, chopped
  • ½ cup pine nuts
  • ½ cup fresh dill, chopped
  • ½ cup feta cheese, crumbled

Add all the ingredients to the warm, dressed potatoes. Mix well and check for seasonings. Let the potatoes sit for at least an hour before serving.

 

Roast Brussel Sprouts and Haricot Vert

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Haricot Vert I served this with the salmon. I am not sure if brussel sprouts are still around, but if you can find them- they are delicious with the green beans. I added walnuts and cranberries to the mix and came up with a delicious recipe.
read more …

Lentils with Baby Spinach

Lentils with Baby Spinach Here is another vegetarian dish. This could be almost a one pot meal. All you need is some brown rice or quinoa.. well, those are the healthy options. One could also serve this with a rice pulao with lots of cumin and sautéed onions. Either way, this is a delicious dish that is very simple to make and very nutritious.

I love combining the orange and the yellow variety- the names of the lentils are below (actually I am not very good at remembering lentil names .. so I recognize them by color and shape). Anyway, I love combining the two and cooking them with a bit of garlic. I usually cook the lentils in water, but they can be made with chicken or vegetable broth.

Once the lentils are tender and cooked, I added baby spinach to the mix. I finished the dish with a tempering of cumin and mustard seeds.

It is one of my staples, especially when I don’t have a lot of time to cook…
read more …

Cauliflower and Potatoes

Cauliflower and Potatoes Here we go again- this is yet another version of cauliflower. I should go back and look on this blog and count how many different cauliflower recipes I have. It is my husbands favorite thing to eat so I try to make it as much as I can- the problem is, coming up with different versions of the same vegetable- yes you are right- I am patting myself on the back for coming up with a new recipe.

Well, it is really not new. I remember eating this kind of a dish at wedding parties in India. It was not the most healthy way of cooking it.. they would fry the cauliflower florets and potatoes first and then cook it with lots of onions, ginger, garlic and tomatoes. It tasted really good but I certainly didn’t want to make it the same way. So- I decided to roast the vegetables in a large cookie sheet to attain similar results. I roasted them till they were soft and golden brown. I then started a saucepan with oil, cumin seeds, onion, ginger and garlic. I later added the crushed tomatoes and other spices.

Overall, it is a fairly simple dish with a few extra steps- but it is worth the work. The dish is delicious…
read more …

Cauliflower with Potatoes cooked with Mustard Seeds

Aloo Gobi with Mustard Seeds Here we go- I have yet another recipe for cauliflower. I am afraid very soon I will run out of ideas to make this vegetable. As I have mentioned many times before, my husband can eat this veggie 24/7. He never gets enough of it. So, I am always looking for new ways to make cauliflower.

I made this particular one with mustard seeds and curry leaves- they are the dominating flavors in the dish. It is one of my favorite combinations to cook with. I love the nuttiness of the mustard seeds and the curry leaves. I usually pair them with ginger and lots of coriander powder. It always results in a delicious dish no matter what it is.

I served it with freshly made rotis and we had a delicious meal. Please help me out with other cauliflower recipes- do you have a favorite?
read more …