by amvandenhurk | Curry, Indian, Plant-Based Eating, Vegan, Vegetarian Slow Cooker
The slow cooker has saved the day many times over the past three months. Slow Cooker Chickpea Butternut Squash Curry has been to the rescue a couple times one. I kept buying butternut squash saying I’m going to make x or y, but then it just sits there in the fridge with the great potential to end up in the compost bin. It is a simple and quick recipe to throw in the slow cooker then forget about it until you need to make the rice or heat the naan.
Now back to my slow cooker saving the day. This year has flown by and I have been on it by the seat of my pants. Between managing a busy family, working at the lighthouse foundation, servicing my public relations clients, attending graduate school, and launching a new business, let’s just say cooking hasn’t been top of my action list. We are attempting to eat well while adding plant-based meals without resorting to pizza or Chinese delivery. And we have done that more than we would like to admit since September. The slow cooker provided us with hot wholesome meals after long days.
This recipe is made with simple ingredients, but packs a lot of flavor. It isn’t spicy nor sweet. Just a nice balance of flavors. Add rice or naan to round it out. I buy the pre-cut butternut squash. I have no patience to peel then cut one up so I do the pre-cut.
If you are looking to add more plant-based meals to your diet then this is a good one to start with since it is so flavorful.
Enjoy!
Slow Cooker Chickpea Butternut Squash Curry
Ingredients
- 1 13.5 oz can coconut milk
- 2 T curry powder
- 1 T minced garlic
- 2T grated fresh ginger
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 14.5 oz can fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 1 14.5 oz can chickpeas, drained
- 1 small butternut squash (about 2.5-3 lb), peeled and diced or sweet potato
- Chopped fresh cilantro
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Preparation
- Combine all ingredients except for cilantro in the slow cooker
- Cover and set to LOW
- Cook 8 hours
- Add chopped fresh cilantro
- Serve over rice
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https://wellwornapron.com/slow-cooker-chickpea-butternut-squash-curry/ 
by amvandenhurk | Curry, Indian, Meatless Mondays, Plant-Based Eating, Vegetarian
Indian Fried Cabbage and Peas Breaks the Cabbage Image
Cabbage. This vegetable has an image problem. Cabbage, like many vegetables, has a bad reputation. It has been cooked to death without much thought to flavor. It is known as dreary, boring veg that is served in gulags. It was a poor person’s food. Easily available and cheap. Plenty of butter and salt makes it ok to eat. Back in the day, spices were a luxury, but it is 2019 and spices are abundant. So let’s move away from cabbage boiled to mush. There are other ways to prepare cabbage where you will want to eat it. Without being threatened that there will be no dessert until you finish it.
Sometimes I just buy veg at Aldi on a whim and cabbage was my most recent purchase. I do like a challenge. I had an idea to use a recipe out of the Thug Kitchen for roasted cabbage, but I decided to go South Asian with a curry base. Indian Fried Cabbage and Peas breaks the cycle of bland and boiled. While it is soft, it is bursting with flavor and color. If you are trying to cut down on rice, then this is a good substitute in texture if you chop it finely enough. I used my food processor. It was efficient getting the pieces to a perfect size for quick cooking.
Kitchen Gadgets
While I love kitchen gadgets, none of my kitchens have been big as well as moving a lot, I have had to be very selective with my gadgets. My Kitchen Aid food processor is twenty or so odd years old and I am glad I have it. It is a workhorse making hummus, sauces, and shredding veg. Gadgets have to have a purpose and used weekly for me to keep them in the kitchen or at all. Guess I am the Marie Kondo of kitchen stuff. My list of must-have for the kitchen is electric tea kettle, slow cooker, toaster oven, stand mixer, air fryer, and food processor. I do not own a hand mixer, an electric can opener nor juicer.
Fried Cabbage and Peas
Back to the Indian Fried Cabbage and Peas. This recipe was quick and simple. Cabbage, cumin seeds, coriander, paprika, salt, pepper, fresh ginger, and green peas. All should be pantry items. I use fresh ginger in a bottle. It is just great to have on hand ready to go into a recipe. Same with bottle minced garlic. All the flavor without the fuss.
While Indian Fried Cabbage and Peas can be the main dish if you add another veg dish such as Okra Tomato Curry. Instead of rice, I served this with Coconut Cilantro Curry Grilled Chicken.
Indian Fried Cabbage and Peas
Ingredients
- 1 Cabbage, shredded or finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive or veg oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin Seeds
- 1 inch ginger, grated or a tablespoon of squeezable ginger
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon coriander powder
- 1 cup frozen or fresh Green Peas
- Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
- Heat oil in a pan over med-high heat and add cumin seeds and ginger sautéing for a minute
- Add cabbage, paprika, coriander powder and salt mixing well
- Add 1/4 cup water.
- Cover the pan and cook for 8-10 minutes till the cabbage is tender.
- Add in the green peas and cook for another minute or too.
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https://wellwornapron.com/indian-fried-cabbage-and-peas/ 
by amvandenhurk | Chicken, Curry, Dinner, Indian
Delicious Coconut Cilantro Curry Grilled Chicken
Can’t say we had the best spring this year. Rainy, windy, and cold made me look for food from warmer places as our neck of the woods starts to come to alive. Often I ask myself when I’m planning a meal: where do I want to go? With spices and sauces, I can travel around the world. Lots of good ways to do that with spices and cooking techniques. So we started the grilling season off with a flavorful coconut cilantro curry marinade for chicken.
The Marinade
It just makes sense to blend spices, lime juice, coconut milk, cilantro, and salt. A blender or food processor comes in handy to have. Today I used it 3 times for different recipes. While I love kitchen gadgets. There are a couple of appliances I must have in the kitchen: slow cooker, electric tea kettle, Kitchen Aid Mixer, and the food processor. During the summer the food processor is used more to make sauces, dressings, and marinade. Pour the Coconut Cilantro Curry marinade into a Ziploc bag with the chicken. Best to let sit in the fridge for 2 or more hours for the flavors t to blend. If you are short on time then 60 minutes will do.
The Meal
The outcome is fresh, light flavorful Coconut Cilantro Curry Grilled Chicken. It was moist. Almost melted in the mouth.
You can pair it with anything really. I had a cabbage in the fridge and made fried Indian cabbage and peas. It was a perfect combination. Using the food processor, the cabbage was sliced thin and when cooked it gave the texture of fried rice.
Coconut Cilantro Curry Grilled Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 to 6 chicken breasts
-
- Marinade
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- 1 can regular or light coconut milk
- 2 Tbsp curry powder
- 3 Tbsp lime juice (2-3 limes)
- 2 Tbsp honey
- 1/2 bunch cilantro
- 1 tsp. kosher salt
- pepper to taste
Preparation
- Place chicken breast filets into a large Ziploc bag.
- Add all marinade ingredients into a blender or food processor blending until smooth, then pour over the chicken and seal the bag.
- Keep bag in the fridge at least 2 hours before serving so the chicken has a chance to soak in the flavors.
- Place chicken filets on grill and discard excess marinade.
- Grill chicken over medium high heat until each side has nice grill marks and chicken is thoroughly cooked which is about 12 minutes.
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https://wellwornapron.com/coconut-cilantro-curry-grilled-chicken/ 
by amvandenhurk | Indian, Life, Lifestyle, Vegetarian
Plant-Based Eating – Not Just for Hippies
I’ve been down this road before regarding cutting down on meat in our family’s diet. It is a struggle to come up with varied, filling, and tasty vegetarian meals to serve to my guys that they will eat willingly. It is especially given all that is going on in my life. I’m leading two lives being a history hero by day and a cyber warrior by night. It is all good. I’m using both sides of my brain and regaining awareness of the world around me again I have not had in ages.
Helping the Environment
Being an environmental stewart has been part of my life for decades, but moving to an island has brought it front and center. We recycle, use reusable containers, reusable bags, conserve water, and compost. It isn’t easy in a culture built on ease and convenience. It is tough to remember to bring my own reusable straw. And many places will not fill your reusable bottle if it isn’t their branded cup. As a PR person, I get it from a branding perspective, but as someone who wants to do the right thing, it is frustrating with ending up with a collection of plastic drink cups. Maybe that’s a sign I need to give up my unsweetened iced tea habit from fast-food places. Add in the fact that many grocery stores have everything wrapped plastic, it is hard to get away from plastics. In fact, it seems that everything we use on a daily basis is made with plastics.
Going Towards Plant-Based
Acknowledging the above, we still have a lot more to do. One way we are working towards a more Earth-friendly life is getting serious about plant-based eating. Plant-based eating is being either a vegetarian or a vegan. Now those two words are loaded for people. That is sad since most of the planet, plant-based eating is the norm, not the exception. Meat is a special treat. The terms have become socially and politically-charged in Europe and the US. But over history, there have been movements to encourage people to eat more fruit and veg. I’m a supporter of eating more of a plant-based diet. For me, it isn’t political or a social statement, my body just feels better the more fresh fruit, veg, beans, and legumes I eat. What you eat is your choice and I will never shame anyone into eating plant-based, but I’d suggest you try one recipe a week. Start a tradition of Meatless Monday. We are up about 4-5 days a week now.
Pantry is Key
Outside of how it makes me feel, it is also budget and time friendly. Meat is expensive especially if you are purchasing, for example, natural or organic beef. Beans, rice, and legumes are priced well and you can purchase them in bulk. The key to plant-based eating for me is having a well-stocked pantry. In my basement, I have shelves of canned goods like various types of tomatoes, beans, and coconut milk as well as containers of veggie broth, rice, lentils, and pasta. I keep onions, potatoes, and sweet potatoes down there as well. My freezer has frozen veg such as corn, peas, and mixed veggies and naan bread. Types of fresh peppers, cauliflower, cilantro, minced garlic, crushed ginger, curry pastes, cheeses, and other sauces are always in my fridge. On my counter, I always have apples, lemons/lime, avocados, and tomatoes. I buy the spices in bulk I use a lot of at an Indian store or Asian grocery. If one isn’t near you, it is worth it doing one big stock-up making an adventure about it. Go with a list. Once you have the pantry stocked just purchase the fresh items you need. There are times my grocery bill is $20 in a week since all I need is the fresh stuff.
Simple Recipes
We aren’t 100 percent plant-based. We love dairy products a little too much. And my guys enjoy chicken and pork. (And so do I) Fish is on the menu at our house, too. We aren’t vegetarian or vegan. That would be very hard for us, but as I said earlier we are at 4-5 times a week eating plant-based with some added dairy depending on the recipe. That said we are moving slowly towards plant-based by cutting down on dairy and have cut out beef from our grocery list.
If you are interested in a plant-based diet then I have some easy recipes to start with in my vegetarian section such as Lentil Ragu over pasta pictured above.
Or this recipe for Black Bean and Sweet Potato Tacos with Avocado-Lime Creme. Simple ingredients to pick up at your local grocery store. I used Indian store chili powder for the sweet potatoes causing it to be very spicy. So depending on where you got your spices, amounts will change. Grocery store chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon is enough, but for me having the Indian store spices which by the way are typically stronger than the grocery store spices, I will need to cut it in half. I forgot to get yogurt so I used sour cream. Also, I used a bagged kale salad with red cabbage. Recipes like this are flexible. Adapt it to what you have on hand.
Black Bean & Sweet Potato Tacos with Cilantro-Lime Creme
Ingredients
- 1-2 medium sweet potato, cubed
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- Flour Tortillas
- 1 can black beans, drained, and rinsed
- Kosher and freshly ground black pepper
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- Avocado-Lime Creme
- ½ cup Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 1 small avocado
- ½ garlic clove or a small one
- Juice of 1 lime
- Kosher salt & fresh black pepper
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 400° F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Toss the sweet potatoes with olive oil, chili powder, salt and pepper, and spread onto the baking sheet. Roast for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.
- In a food processor or blender, combine the yogurt, avocado, garlic, lime juice, and a few generous pinches of salt and pepper. Pulse until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings.
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Take the Turtle Approach
Take baby steps in moving to plant-based eating. Introduce it slowly into your lifestyle as you build up a pantry and an understanding of what foods you like. The food is colorful and flavorful with lots of different textures. It will be an adjustment in mindset over the meat, starch, and veg approach most of us grew up with as kids. A good documentary to watch is Forks over Knives. Find out what works for you and then go for it.
by amvandenhurk | Holiday, Indian, Plant-Based Eating, Sides, Vegan, Vegetarian
Cranberry Chutney – A Multipurpose Condiment
Most American holiday tables from Thanksgiving to Christmas have some sort of cranberry dish. I grew up the jellied kind that came out of a can. Just slice it up and serve it. Sometimes my Mom would make a cranberry mold. All of it was good. It felt like I was eating dessert with my main course.
I never got my Mom’s cranberry mold recipe before she passed and she never wrote her recipes down so I had to make my own way. And maybe why it is important to me to write this blog for my son’s sake. I want to preserve and share family favorite recipes. I want my son to be able to have access to them to make for his friends and family when I am gone hopefully passing them on family traditions.
In our first year in Newport, we hosted a Thanksgiving dinner. And what is a Thanksgiving dinner without a cranberry product? Not Thanksgiving that’s what.
As I wandered through BJ’s, I came across a huge bag of cranberries from New England. On the back of this bag of Cape Cod Select cranberries was a recipe for a cranberry chutney. Why not I thought. Let’s just go for it. The huge bag of cranberry was in my cart.
This is a super easy recipe. A tart apple like a Granny Smith is best, I use Gala or whatever apples I have on hand. I recently made a batch and added overly ripe pear with the apple to the mixture. And very versatile. While you can serve this with turkey, you can serve it with other food. Warm some brie up and top it with this cranberry chutney. You can serve it with roasted pork. Top plain yogurt for an added punch to breakfast
Ingredients
- 4 cups cranberries
- 1 large apple
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1 cup water
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
Preparation
- 1. Chop up an apple. A tart apple is recommended, but use whatever you have on hand.
- 2. Combine all ingredients in saucepan.
- 3. Bring to a boil stirring along the way.
- 4. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 30 minutes. Apple should be tender and the mixture thickens.
- 5. Serve warm or chilled.
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https://wellwornapron.com/cranberry-chutney/ 
by amvandenhurk | Curry, Indian, Meatless Mondays, Plant-Based Eating, Vegan, Vegetarian
Farm Fresh for Eggplant Okra Curry
During the summer, local fresh produce is abundant like eggplants and okra. Perfect for this simple eggplant okra curry dish that’s vegetarian. As I am traveling up the East Coast of the US on my way to our new home in Newport, Rhode Island, I plan on taking advantage of locally grown produce. Currently, I am on the Northern Neck of Virginia which is on the Chesapeake Bay. Farm fresh produce and just off the Bay seafood is in abundance. Honestly, I have been here since Friday night and it is Monday now and I have been to the produce stand three times! So glad they take bank cards as payment. The tomatoes, corn, peaches, berries…. yum! You can not OD on fresh tomatoes and corn, can you? If yes, then I will gladly go that way. I think by the end of three weeks here they will know me by name and I will know them.
Back to the eggplant okra curry. The produce stand had a quart okra and small local eggplants. How could I pass them? They needed to come home me and have me cook something. I am trying to get back on the plant positive lifestyle again so I decided to make a veggie Indian curry. Indian cuisine like many of the regions of the world is focused on veggies and fruit. As I traveled with a trunk of my spices, Dutch ovens, and other favorite cooking things, I had everything on hand to make it. The ingredient list is simple with spices you can get at your local grocery store. If you have fresh tomatoes, you can chop them up. It would take about 5 Roma or 2 big slicing tomatoes. I used my canned since I rather eat those beauties of slicing tomatoes with a little salt and pepper.
You can make it as a meal by adding naan or rice, serve it as a side for grilled chicken, or throw it in a food processor making a warm dip. Either way, it is not over powering and I have kept it mild in spiciness for those who aren’t into the heat. If you are looking for more Indian-style or vegetarian recipes, check out here.
Now go find a local produce stand and see what you came make. Since I have leftover okra, I will be trying out Thug Kitchen’s Baked Okra and Potato Hash.
Simple Eggplant Okra Curry
Ingredients
- 2-4 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoons cumin seeds
- 1 small onion, sliced thinly
- 1 teaspoons turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 large eggplant, chopped into 1 inch cubes
- 1 15-oz can petite diced tomatoes
- 1 lb okra, trimmed and chopped
- Kosher salt to taste
- Generous turns of the pepper grinder
- Bunch of cilantro, chopped
Preparation
- In large Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium to medium-low heat.
- Fry the cumin seeds until fragrant.
- Add the onion cooking until soft
- Then add turmeric, cumin, and coriander cooking for a minutes.
- Add the eggplant and okra cooking for about 15 minutes just until it begins to soften. (you may have to add more oil.)
- Add the tomatoes and cook for another 15 minutes.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Stir in cilantro.
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Hello! I'm Ann Marie and I wear the well-worn apron. Join me as explore plant-based eating while I live on an island off the U.S. state of Rhode Island.