Tofu Vindaloo

On Friday we decided to let the girls choose their own dinner, then we put them to bed and enjoyed a "date" in our basement. For our date meal we had Tofu Vindaloo from Vegan Planet. This stuff is hot, as vindaloo should be, but if you can't take the heat you might want to stay away from this recipe (it calls for 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper). Cooking this dish filled our house with the aroma of an Indian restaurant, it was great. We both enjoyed this dish, and our "date" very much. We're thinking of turning it into a weekly thing, so you might seem some more "adult-friendly" food here.

By the way, in case you wondered, the girls chose mashed potatoes, black beans, tortillas and apples as their dinner. Not something I would have come up with on my own, but quick and healthy so I can't complain!! I mean, we gave them the choice, there were many worse things they could have gone for.

Masoor Dal

I got the recipe for this Red Lentil (Masoor Dal) soup from Mothering.com a long time ago. It is a very mildly spiced Indian soup. Since red lentils cook quite quickly, it's a very quick meal to throw together on a busy night, and it's mild enough for the kids. When I went to the site to post the link to the recipe, it is no longer available, so I will copy the recipe here for you.

Red Lentil Soup with East Indian Spices

recipe by: Cynthia Lair

1 Tbs ghee (I used Earth Balance)

1 onion, chopped

2 Tbs minced garlic

1 tsp tumeric powder

1 tsp cumin powder

1/8 tsp cayenne

1 cup chopped tomatoes

1 cup dried red lentils

4 cups water

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp ghee (use Earth Balance)

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp mustard seeds

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Heat Earth Balance in a large pot, saute onions slowly until browned. Add garlic and spices and stir 2 to 3 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook until they break down. Wash and drain lentils. Add lentils and water to pot. Simmer 45 minutes (my lentils were cooked much sooner than 45 minutes), stirring often. Stir in salt. Heat 1 tsp EB in a small skillet and fry seeds over low heat until they pop. Stir fried seeds and cilantro into finished soup. Makes 4 servings. (I left out the fried seeds, I don't like the flavor and crunch that they add to the soup, for me it doesn't pair well with the smoother texture of the soup)

Palak Paneer

Initially I was going to make Palak Soybina Panira from Eat, Drink and Be Vegan. As I was looking over the recipe this afternoon it hit me that Dreena's version of Palak Paneer totally left out that creamy component that makes Palak Paneer so good. So, I set out to hunt down another recipe. I came across this recipe and decided it looked easy to veganize, so this is the one I went for.

For the paneer I used Dreena's recipe of cubed tofu marinated in lemon juice and tamari, and I subbed soy creamer for the heavy cream. Otherwise, I followed the recipe exactly. While this isn't exactly like the Palak Paneer you'd get at an Indian restaurant, it is a pretty close replication. I was very pleased (although the photo looks less than appetizing!!). As was Rob, this was one of his favorite meals we've had in a long time. It is a bit spicy, so you could definitely cut down the red chili powder if you'd like it milder. It was too spicy for the girls, however I only used about 1/2 of the tofu in this dish and they loved the other half.

To help cool the mouth we munched on this delicious homemade naan. I used this recipe, subbing soy yogurt and Earth Balance for the yogurt and ghee. A few of my naan got slightly too thin, and therefore over-cooked. But, even the crispy one's were nice. A terrific Indian feast.