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Curried Chickpeas with Habanero Mango Chutney

March 12, 2011 in Food, recipe by traveleatlove | 7 comments

Meal #1 of the Spring Health Challenge was a success. It wasn’t really any different from regular meals, but as it is fairly healthy and inexpensive, I made a huge batch for freezing. Adding protein to my diet? Check! Drinking more water? Check! Going for a run and doing strength training? Check!

I can honestly say I am feeling better already. That might also have something to do with being done with the nasty old flu. . . I hope.

Anyway, I am always up for Indian-inspired food at home, and I was jonesing to use the slow-cooker. Thus was born slow cooker curried chickpeas with mango chutney.

My recent discovery that dried beans cook up really well in the slow-cooker made me brave enough to just toss in a 16 ounce bag of chickpeas, covered by about an inch and a half of water. To this, I added a couple shakes each of cinnamon, cayenne pepper, curry powder, paprika, black pepper, and crushed coriander seeds. I also added a can of crushed tomatoes, a scoop of coconut oil, and six potatoes, sliced into discs.

I set it and forget it, leaving the chickpeas to cook on high for four hours, then lowering them to low for three more hours. I checked on them about every hour and added more water and crushed red pepper toward the end.

I didn’t want to just have the curried chickpeas on their own, so I decided to whip up some mango chutney as well. I started with two cups of frozen mango and added it to a pan with two habaneros, just chopped in half.

I covered the mixture with white vinegar, added a spoonful of honey for sweetness to balance out the habanero spice, and cooked the chutney on low for a little over an hour.

Eventually, it got syrupy and smelled lovely. Just be sure to strain the habaneros out before serving!

To serve, I filled bowls with the chickpeas, chutney, and topped it with a scoop of Fage 0% Greek yogurt, served with a glass of Travessia Un-Oaked Chardonnay.

The husband said it was better than Indian food at any restaurant we have been to; I will take that as a sign of success!

Now for the giveaways: The winner of the $30 CSN gift code is. . . Melissa! And the winner of the restaurant gift cards giveaway is. . . Shannon! Ladies, please email me so I can match you up with your prizes!

Tags: chickpeas, curry, Fage, healthy, healthy recipes, Indian Food, mango chutney, recipe, vegan, Vegetarian, yogurt

Greek-Inspired Meatballs with Spiced Yogurt

March 3, 2011 in Food, recipe by traveleatlove | 17 comments

I made an amazing dinner last night, if I do say so myself. My kitchen creativity has been off with my health, somewhere where I can’t seem to catch it, but last night I definitely felt it coming back. Now if only I could feel better and find my energy. Last week the doctor said I could expect to be exhausted for 10-14 days, but honestly I am over looking forward to bedtime at 11 am, coughing, and feeling achy all day long.

But I digress. Dinner last night. My original plan was to make traditional turkey meatball subs with mozzarella cheese, onions, peppers, and red sauce. After a quick survey of things I needed to use up before California, I decided to make a Greek-inspired dinner, starting with half a block of Athenos feta.

I started by chopping and crumbling the feta until it was in small crumbs. I mixed it with a container of ground turkey, an egg, a teaspoon of oregano, and about a cup of panko bread crumbs.

Feeling un-well, I was totally grossed out by making the meatballs, but I rolled up my sleeves and got to work, placing them on a baking tray and then putting the meatballs in the oven at 375 until they were starting to brown.

At the very end, I turned the oven to broil which was a nice finishing touch.

To top the meatballs, I used some of the abundance of Fage 2% yogurt that we have to make a quick sauce. It couldn’t have been easier. I popped four garlic cloves, peeled, a jalapeno, a handful of cilantro, and some ground black pepper in the food processor.

Then I added about a cup of Fage, whirled it all around, and had a tangy sauce for the meatballs. Despite the jalapeno, it wasn’t spicy, just really flavorful.

I served up the meatballs in romaine lettuce leaves, topped with the yogurt sauce, with a side of Trader Joe’s naan.

I actually added more lettuce and sauce after the photo shoot, but thought this was kind of pretty Smile We do usually eat more than what is in my photos.

And now for a little giveaway for my Boston area readers. You may remember the awesome swag bag I got at the Boston Food Bloggers launch party. Well, it was so chock full of good stuff that I really can’t use it all, especially the items that require a car, so I am putting together a little package of fun for one lucky winner:

1 Free Make Your Own Cupcake at Treat Cupcake Bar

a free bowling pass to King’s in Legacy Place

a $5 gift card to Wicked Restaurant & Wine Bar

$20 toward dinner and $10 toward lunch at Acquitaine

To enter, just leave a comment on this post, and I will pick a winner over the weekend.

After I took the swag bag out to go through it, I was writing this post and heard a rustling noise. Scout was apparently interested in the bag’s contents.

Tags: cheese, cilantro, cooking, dinner, feta, feta cheese, Food, garlic, giveaway, healthy, healthy recipe, jalapeno, nmeatballs, recipe, romaine lettuce, turkey, yogurt

Vegan Joe’s

March 2, 2011 in Food, recipe by traveleatlove | 11 comments

One of the things I have been focusing on while recovering from my flu, especially now that I can eat, is replenishing my body with whole foods. Having seen a few vegan Sloppy Joe recipes around the blog world. including Veganomicon’s Snobby Joe recipe, and with an abundance of dried lentils and beans in the house, I decided to bust out the slow cooker for my own version of a Sloppy Joe.

Working from home is amazing. I was able to start my recipe out by soaking two cups each of yellow lentils and black beans two times before actually starting them in the slow cooker.

While they soaked the second time, I mixed up a flavorful sauce that included 1/4 cup organic maple syrup, a tablespoon mustard, and a can of tomato paste.

I also pureed 1/2 a Vidalia onion, two habanero peppers, and four cloves of garlic into a nice paste.

When it was time to get cookin’ I threw all of the ingredients in my slow cooker. The beans and lentils were added to a few cups of water, plus the sauce and veggies. I mixed it thoroughly, then put the lid on and cooked on high for four hours, checking to make sure there was enough liquid to soften the lentils and the beans.

Before I left for a night of fun blogger events, I put the slow cooker on warm and left whole wheat rolls next to it for my hubby. I also left instructions that there was potato salad and cabbage slaw in the fridge; the slaw recipe is amazing, and I will be able to share it in a few weeks when it is launched in a new recipe app.

I decided to forego the roll when I got home, eating two bowls of the Sloppy Joe with the spicy slaw. The contrast between cold and warm, crunchy and soft, spicy and somewhat sweet was perfection. Though not at all fancy or complicated, this meal really “got” me. I could eat it again and again.