Masala Cabbage Curry and Spicy Dal!

Last weekend, I made two dishes. One was Masala Cabbage Curry and the other was Spicy Dal (Lentils)! Both dishes are easy to make and very low in fat. They are both high in fiber, nutritious and quite tasty!

Here are my recipes:

Masala Cabbage Curry:

Ingredients:

1. 1 small cabbage, shredded
2. 2 Red Bell Peppers, de-seeded and sliced into longish pieces
3. Mustard seeds - 1 Tsp
4. Grapeseed/coconut oil - 1 Tbsp
5. 1 large onion - chopped
6. 4 garlic cloves - minced
7. 1 Tbsp Garam Masala
8. 5 green chilies - diced

Preparation:

1. In a large pan, heat up the oil. When the oil is hot, mustard seeds, let'em splutter. Next, add the garlic and the onions. Turn down the heat and saute them, until the onions start to get tender.
2. Turn up the heat to medium. Add the cabbage and the diced chilies. Put a lid on the pot and cook covered until the cabbage is almost done.
3. Add the red bell peppers, cook until they peppers turn slightly soft --- not mushy!
4. Stir-in the Garam Masala and add salt to taste!

Spicy Dal:

Ingredients:

1. 2 cups of cooked Dal/Lentils
2. 5 curry leaves
3. 2 Red Bell Peppers, de-seeded and sliced into longish pieces
4. Mustard seeds - 1 Tsp
5. 3 Tomatoes - sliced
6. Grapeseed/coconut oil - 1 Tbsp
7. 1 large onion - chopped
8. 4 garlic cloves - minced
9. 1 Tbsp Sambar Powder
10. 5 green chilies - diced

Preparation:

1. In a large pan, heat up the oil. When the oil is hot, mustard seeds, let'em splutter. Next, add the garlic and the onions. Turn down the heat and saute them, until the onions start to get tender.
2. Turn up the heat to medium. Add the diced chilies, curry leaves and the Red Bell Peppers. Put a lid on the pot and cook covered until the Red Bell Peppers are almost done.
3. Add the lentils, cook for 2 more minutes on medium heat.
4. Stir-in the Sambar Powder and add salt to taste!

 Bon appetit' :)

Super-Spicy Tofu Sticks!

I am not ashamed to admit that I was addicted to Cheese Bread Sticks when I was a student. They cost more than the non-cheese kind, but we were all richer when we were students on an stipend or living off student loans, right? :)

Recently, my great wife taught me how to make Tofu Sticks, which are a great replacement for Cheese Bread Sticks, at least in terms of fat content.

This is how we make them:

Ingredients:

2 blocks of extra-firm, high protein tofu, cut into 1" wide strips 

   - squeeze Tofu blocks between paper towels before cutting and remove the excess water

Hot sauce - I use Sriracha brand

Fresh-ground black pepper

Preparation:

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees
2. Line two baking pans with parchment paper
3. Place Tofu strips on the pans, leave some gap between adjacent pieces
4. Apply some hotsauce to the Tofu strips
5. Sprinkle fresh-ground black pepper on the strips. I was very generous with the black pepper!
6. Bake for about 20 minutes
7. Remove from the oven
8. Apply hot sauce and black pepper to the other side of the Tofu strips
9. Bake for another 20 minutes or until crispy-enough for you

Here are the Tofu strips coated with Sriracha sauce! Shortwave anyone?

Here is our end product!

Bon appetit' :)

PS. Don't go to town with the hot sauce - it can get very spicy! But some like it HOT!

PSA: Non-GMO Shopping List!

I am a fan of Dr. Mercola. He has posted some information on non-GMO foods in his Newsletter. One key takeaway for me was the non-GMO shopping list.

Here are the shopping guides. For more details please refer to nongmoshoppingguide.

Peace :)

Sauteed Mushrooms and Red Bell Peppers!

Ingredients:

1 LB chopped mushrooms

2 Red Bell Peppers

1 large Onion chopped
1 tbsp grape seed oil

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 tbsp Sherry Wine
1 tsp salt / salt to taste

Preparation:

1. Heat up the oil in a pan, add the onions, chopped Red Bell Peppers and the mushrooms.
2. Add the vinegar and sherry.
3. Stir the mixture so that until the mushrooms are somewhat soft.
4. Add salt to taste.
5. Serve on a bed of fresh spinach.

Here is my end product!

 Bon appetit' :)

Almond Butter!

I made a batch of Raw Almond butter last night. The recipe is super simple:
Ingredients:

2 cups raw almonds
2 tbsp olive/walnut/grape seed oil
1 tsp salt / salt to taste

Preparation:

1. Blend the almonds in a food processor/blender for about 8 minutes, on high speed.
2. Stir the mixture so that all of the ground-up almonds are of the same consistency.
3. Add the oil to the mix. Add salt if desired.
4. Blend for another 2-4 minutes, or until desired consistency is reached.

Here is my end product!

We used to buy Raw Almond butter from the store and as you very well know, it is sold for about $10 a 16 oz bottle. If I bought the almonds in bulk, I can get them for $3.50/LB or $3.50/2-cups. So, the cost of making 16 ounces of Raw Almond butter, if I make it myself, is only $3.50 + $2 (olive oil + electric) +  $0 (for 20 minutes of my free time) = $5.50.

The part I enjoy the most is that I know exactly what goes into my almond butter. I do not have to believe all that the manufacturer claims.

By the way, I did not add any salt to my Almond butter. I know it tastes different if you salt it. I just don't care for salt in my Almond butter.

I could taste the Extra Virgin Olive Oil in the Almond butter. I don't mind it one bit, but some might. One viable option to the Olive oil might be Walnut oil. Perhaps, I will try that next time just for fun!

Bon appetit' :)