The Food We Eat

Dhaba (roadside eatery) ka Dal

Ok, so many of you have been not so happy with me as I do not have a post up on my blog for 'Dal' yet. What's my excuse? Nothing really. Its just that Dal is such an everyday thing at our house (I could practically make it in my sleep). No, I'm not showing off, Dal really is an everyday thing if you grow up in an East Indian vegetarian family. It is the main source of protein. Also, dal is an amazingly inexpensive way to feed a crowd (and boy, is it nutritionally dense or what?), so it is a staple of the East Indian diet. Oh, you're not sure what dal is? Check it out here.

But, the reason why we all love dal is not because it is cheap, or it makes nutritionists do the approving nod. It is simply because it is comfort food at its best. For hubby and me, nothing beats hot dal and rice when we are feeling very tired, gloomy, cruddy, or have just returned from a trip. In fact, J counts on me making dal for him when he returns from a business trip. I've told him that the day he comes home from a trip and finds a turkey sandwich for dinner, he knows he is in DEEP trouble :-)

Many of my friends ask for my standard dal recipe. However, it is a bit more complicated than that. There are over 25 varieties of dals that I make. Each uses a combination of, hmmmm lets see --different type of lentil, different seasonings, different vegetable matter, etc. So, how about this. I propose to familiarize you with many different types of dals over the next few months. Now that winter fall is here in Seattle, I can promise you we will be eating a lot of dal to cure the SAD.

Anyway, without further delay, below is the recipe for a delicious dal called Dhaba dal. The name comes from the fact that you see this combination of lentils very often in roadside huts or 'dhabas' in India. The Urad dal used in this particular preparation lends a very comforting texture. Might take some getting used to, but I promise, it is quite addicting in a mom's cookin' sort of way.

Oh wait! One last, but important thing before the recipe.This is regarding the proper way to cook dal. Most Indian households own a pressure cooker. If you don't have one, PLEASE get one. They are great! If you don't want to use one, be prepared for long cook times, or use one of those slow-cooker thingies. I am all for making dal occasionally in this stove-top fashion, but if you eat it as often as we do, you gotta go get a pressure cooker. If you do, it is sheer magic. Soak the beans overnight, and you can have dal on the table in 30 minutes. Bet Rachel Ray can't beat that!

Dhaba ka Dal

Serves 4 to 6

Adapted from Tarla Dalal

1/2 cup dried urad dal (split black lentils), with skin on

1/2 cup chana dal (split bengal gram)

1/4 cup dried rajma (kidney beans)

1 tbsp ginger/garlic paste*

1 cup finely chopped yellow onion

2 serrano or thai chilis, split in half

1 cup finely chopped tomatoes

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 tsp red chili powder

2 tsp fresh cumin powder

1 tsp turmeric

1 tbsp kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves)

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

2 tbsp vegetable oil , or ghee

2 tbsp salt (more/less to taste)

Method:

1. Clean, wash, and soak the urad dal, chana dal, and rajma in 6 cups water overnight (or at least 6 hours).

2. Drain the soaked dals and rajma. Add 5 cups water and pressure cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the dals are completely cooked. If not using a pressure cooker, cook on stove top in a large thick-bottomed pan, covered. You want the dals (and rajma) to be completely cooked, otherwise the texture of the finished dal suffers.

3. Heat the oil. Add the ginger/garlic paste, onions, and green chilis. Saute for 5 minutes, till the onions are slightly pulpy and golden brown in color. Add the turmeric, chili powder, and cumin powder, and saute for 1-2 minutes more.

4. Add the tomatoes and tomato paste. Cook over a high flame till the tomatoes get mushy, approx. 5 minutes.

5. Add the cooked dals with the cooking water (if you have too much water, reserve some. You can always add it back later, but overly-thin dal is not good). Mix well, add the kasuri methi, and simmer for 10 minutes.

6. Add the cilantro, heat another minute or so, and serve with roti and/or rice.

* I make my own ginger-garlic paste. Take equal parts ginger and garlic. Puree in a food processor, and freeze flat in a ziploc bag. Break off what you need, and you're good to go. If you really really really must, use the bottled ginger-garlic paste. I can't stand the stuff. Smells chemical-ly to me. I think you'd be better of using fresh minces ginger and garlic.

Yam and Swiss Chard Quesadillas

I devoured tasted these quesadillas a few months back at a good friends' house and thought they were absolutely scrumptious. I recall seeing a similar recipe in Deborah Madison's book, but I haven't bought a copy yet. So as is typical for me, I have morphed the recipe to suit my taste. What results is a quesadilla that is as good for you as it tastes. It is perfect for casual entertaining, as the filling can be made ahead of time and all you do at the last minute is assemble and brown the quesadillas. I used whole wheat tortillas, but you could use whatever suits your mood and taste. As much as I love corn tortillas, I think they woulld not work so well here.

As go the greens, I have been using Swiss Chard for this recipe. You could easily use spinach instead (fresh only please, not that frozen brick stuff). What a great way to use up that farm-fresh Swiss Chard from the CSA.

You could serve these with the standard quesadilla/taco accompaniments. I served these with a tangy southwestern corn and black bean salad. A dollop of sour cream to cool things down, and there you go. Muy delicioso! Enjoy!

Yam and Swiss Chard Quesadillas

Makes 6-8 large quesadillas

Filling:

3 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp red chili flakes (optional)

2 large yams

1 large bunch swiss chard (about 15 leaves)

3 cloves chopped garlic

1 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp salt (more/less to taste)

Other ingredients:

Large flour tortillas (I used whole wheat ones)

2 cups shredded Monterey Jack or colby jack cheese

Sour Cream or Crema Mexicana

Method:

1. Slice the yams very thin. I used a mandoline because it makes the job very easy and quick. If you don't have a mandoline, try and slice the yams into approx 1/8 inch slices.

2. Wash the swiss chard. Remove the tough stems. Cut into 1/4 inch ribbons.

3. Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan. Add the garlic and chili pepper flakes. Add the swiss chard. Saute on med-high heat for a few minutes so the chard just wilts. Add the yams, salt, and cumin powder. Add a few tablespoons of water if needed and cook, covered, over med-high heat till the yam is cooked through. If you slice the yam thin, this should take only about 10-15 minutes. The yam will turn mushy. You want a little bit of mush as this will help the filling stay together in the quesadilla.

4. To assemble the quesadillas, scoop approximately 1/2 cup filling on one half of the tortilla. Be sure to leave a 1/2 inch border, so the filling doesn't ooze out. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup shredded cheese. Heat a large cast-iron pan. Coat with olive oil and cook each quesadilla till the cheese melts and the outside develops a nice crust. Transfer to a wire rack for 5 minutes, so the filling sets a bit. Slice into wedges (a pizza cutter works great for this) and serve immediately.

Emerald City Green Salad

This salad is inspired by the namesake at the PCC Natural Markets deli. This is a wildly popular item at the deli, and it is delicious the way they make it, but of course I always like to tweak recipes my way (not that I know the recipe they use even if I wanted to exactly duplicate it). This makes for a fantastic lunch - it is nutritionally dense and very filling.

We harvested some fresh Kale and Swiss Chard from my local CSA farm this week, and this salad is a fantastic way to use up those yummy dark greens. Kale can be tough when eaten raw, but the magic is in how you cut it. Take out the stems, stack the leaves, roll into a bundle lengthwise, and cut into thin 1/4 inch wide ribbons. Treated this way, kale tastes like a complex salad green. Do the same for the swiss chard. I do like to cook with the swiss chard stems, but I saved them for another use. But I don't like kale you whine say. Well, if it gets you to eat the salad, you could use spinach if you want in addition to, or instead of the kale or swiss chard.

Also, chopped red onion would be nice in the salad. Some chopped up fennel bulb would be awesome, but I didn't have any. As goes the cheese, I love the sharp, tangy, stinky properties of gorgonzola and I think it adds a nice punch to an otherwise earthy salad, but if you don't care for gorgonzola, you could use feta or even goat cheese. If you're vegan, you could leave out the cheese entirely. You see, the beauty of a salad is that it is  like an artists canvas. You can add in whatever color or texture you are in the mood for.

In any case, this is a wondefully filling and crunchy salad. And you just feel so damn healthy when you eat it. But most importantly, it is absolutely delicious. Do give it a try and let me know what you think.

Emerald City Green Salad

Inspired by PCC deli and Cynthia Lair

Serves 4-6

Salad:

8 Swiss chard leaves

6 Kale leaves

1 Red bell pepper

1 Orange bell pepper

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1/4 cup chopped basil

1/4 cup dried cranberries

3 cups cooked wild rice

Gorgozola cheese for garnish

Dressing:

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

Grated rind of 1 orange

1 tbsp agave nectar

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Method:

1. Cook the wild rice. I use a ratio of 2 1/2 cups water or stock: 1 cup raw rice. Cook for approx. 1 hour until the grains are cooked al dente. Do not cook into a mush.

2. Wash and chop the greens. Chop the bell peppers into small cubes. Rough chop the basil and parsley.

3. Make the dressing by simply mixing all the dressing ingredients.Toss the greens, bell peppers, parsley, basil, and cranberries with the salad dressing.

4. Add the warm rice on top of the greens and wait for 5 minutes. This will just barely wilt the greens and really bring out the color. Now toss the rice and greens, mixing well. Check for seasoning. The salt might seem less, but be cautious before adding more. Remember that if you are using cheese, that will add some saltiness to the salad.

5. Garnish with cheese, if using, and serve at room temperature. A cup of green tea is great on the side. Bring on the goodness!

Fish (Salmon) Tacos

Ok, so there are a gazillion recipes for fish tacos out there. And many claim to be the 'best'. Well, you know what? It's kinda hard to ruin 'em. But, that said, I am a minimalist when it comes to fish tacos. I mean, why ruin good fish by dousing it with a ton of condiments. I could deal with piling on tons of stuff on chicken and beef tacos, but fish? No sir. Simple is good for me. Is this the 'best' fish taco recipe I have you ask? Well, I'll take the fifth on that, but this my friends, is pretty close.

So what do I mean by simple? Well, it sort of depends on what fish you use. Last night, one of my girlfriends was coming over for dinner and this girl likes good food. Awesome! We had some copper river salmon in the freezer, so I decided salmon tacos it would be. Given the fattiness and strong flavor of this fish, some acidity is much called for. But you don't want to overpower the salmon-y flavor too much. So, a simple marinade with olive oil, lime, some fresh cilantro...yum! I whipped up some chipotle sourcream to go on top, and simple shredded cabbage for crunch. That is it!

If you like, some pico de gallo would be ok too, but in my opinion, the chipotle sourcream does great all on its own. The gentle heat from the chipotle, the coolness of the sour cream - why ruin this party?

Good accompaniments would be some black beans and/or spanish rice.

Margaritas would have been great, but it was a school night, so boo hoo. I guess wine had to do. Tough life, eh?

Salmon Tacos

Serves 4 generously

1 1/2 lbs salmon fillets

2 tbsp olive oil

12 corn tortillas

2 cups shredded cabbage

Marinade:

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup fresh lime juice (one large lime)

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp fresh ground cumin

1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Chipotle - Sour Cream:

1/2 cup sour cream

2 tbsp milk

1/4 tsp salt

2 tbsp (less if you want) chipotle chilis*

Method:

1. Skin the salmon fillets and cut into 1 inch chunks.

2. Add all the marinade ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Pour the marinade over the salmon pieces, coating each piece well. Marinate for 30 minutes. Please time this well. You don't want to marinate for much longer, or it will compromise the texture of the salmon (we are not trying to make ceviche here).

3. Chipotle-Sour Cream: Look for canned chipotle in adobo sauce in the latin section of your grocery store. You don't need much, so I usually puree the entire can contents (chilis + adobo sauce) and freeze the paste flat in a quart-size ziploc bag. This way, I break off what I need and use. In this case, I used 2 tbsp of this puree. It is Spicy, so go easy if you can't handle spice. If you are cracking open a can, you could use 1 chili (with some sauce clinging onto it). Mash well or puree into a paste.

Mix the chili paste with salt, sour cream, and a couple tablespoons milk to thin the sour cream mixture out. Set aside in the refrigerator. 

4. Heat a large non-stick pan. Coat with 1 tbsp olive oil. Cook the salmon pieces in one or two batches. Please don't overcook the fish. On med-high heat, it should only take 2 to 4 minutes for the salmon to cook.

5. Meanwhile, heat the corn tortillas. My favorite way to do this is to hold the tortillas over an open flame for about 30 seconds on each side. The tortillas get nice and pliable, and you cannot beat the smell of the toasted corn. Much better than microwaving or heating in an oven. Keep the tortillas in a towel-lined container, covered, until ready to serve.

6. To serve, scoop some cabbage onto a tortilla. Add a couple pieces of salmon. Spoon on some sour cream and call it dinner, my friends.

Green Bean Salad

My CSA loot last week consisted of the freshest, most tender, and sweet green beans I have seen in a while. I really wanted to use them in a way that showed off their freshness. You see, growing up, in India, folks had a way of cooking the c--- out of green beans. What a crime! These green beans had absolutely no trace of the yummy crunchiness that green beans ought to have.

A had just come back from school and was particularly wiped out on Friday. We decided to snuggle up on the couch and 'chill' (that is A's favorite word this year). Then A says "Mom, can we watch a cooking show?" Atta boy! I love this kid. So we checked out what our dear friend TiVo had for us, and that's how we stumbled upon an episode of Jamie Oliver's show.

What you see here is his version of a Green Bean salad. I think I managed to remember how he made it, but I could've missed a couple things. Either way, I assure you, this is a delicious way to eat your green beans. I made this as a side and took it to our friends' place for dinner. We had the beans alongside some salmon and rice. I could just eat a ton of the beans for lunch, dinner, or a snack!

Green Bean Salad

(From Jamie Oliver)

Serves 6

2 lbs fresh green beans

3 tbsp shallots, diced very fine

2 tsp dijon mustard

1/2 cup olive oil

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

4 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped fine

Method:

1. To prepare the beans, all I did was wash them. They were so fresh and tender that I didn't need to trim them or remove the side fiber. If you like, feel free to trim them.

2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

3. While the water boils, prepare the vinaigrette. Add shallots and dijon mustard in a large bowl. Whisk in the vinegar, salt, and pepper. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, whisking as you go. You should end up with a nice emulsion.

3. Blanch the beans till crisp-tender, just about 2 - 4 minutes. Drain.

4. Add the beans (still nice and hot) to the bowl with the dressing. Toss well. Add the parsley. Toss again.

5. You could serve the beans immediately, but I think it is much better after sitting for about 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Beef Stew with Guinness and Mustard

Ok, this may sound very much like a recipe for Irish Beef Stew, but I can tell you, it isn't. Not quite. For many reasons that go (a) No Irish roots here and I did not look up a recipe for authentic Irish beef stew, (b) this recipe is a sort of amalgamation of flavors I like in stew, (c) if I am correct, Irish beef stew has potatoes in it and this one doesn't, (d) I made the recipe up as I went along, and I was quite pleased with the results.

Would I change anything next time around? Sure! Most importantly, I would add some red wine, maybe a dash of worcestershire sauce. I think that is pretty much it. J and I enjoyed the stew quite a bit, but it was a total flop with the boys. I think the whole Guinness thing put them off. That's all I can think of, since otherwise the stew had all the basic components they love. Well, I guess it also might have to do with the fact that they ate their cheese quesadillas (packed for school this morning) at 3:30pm (after school). Monkeys! Sometimes I don't know why I go through all the headache of packing a decent lunch for them. Oh well...a mommy's gotta do what a mommy's gotta do I guess.

I served the stew with smashed yukon gold potatoes. Call me crazy if you want, but I actually prefer smashed potatoes with a dash of butter over mashed potatoes. Unless you give me those ultra-silky butter and cream laden mashed potatoes you eat at restaurants. But at home, thanks but no thanks. Low-fat mashed potatoes are nasty and I'll save my butter and cream quota for dessert.

I even made buttered egg noodles for the kids, but I guess that Ronzoni whole grain egg noodles thing didn't cut it for the boys today. In their defense though, the noodles were pretty yucky! Nothing like the silky, soft, soothing buttered egg noodles we hoped they would be. Oh well. You win some, you lose some.

Beef Stew with Guinness and Mustard

Serves 4-6

1.5 lbs beef stew meat

1/2 cup all purpose flour

2 tbsp fresh thyme

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp salt

4 tbsp olive oil

1 can Guinness beer

1 1/2 cups beef broth

1/2 cup tomato sauce

2 tbsp tomato paste

1/2 tsp dried basil

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp stoneground mustard

3 large carrots, cut into 1 inch chunks

1 large onion, cut into large chunks (baby cippolini would be better, I didn't have any)

1 lb white button mushrooms

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces

Method:

1. Mix flour, pepper, salt, and thyme in a large bowl. Toss the beef pieces in the flour mixture. Shake of excess flour.

2. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large dutch oven. You don't want to crowd the beef too much, so brown in two batches preferably. The beef I used (organic, grass-fed) was pretty lean, so I used 2 tbsp oil to brown the second batch too. If the beef you use is very greasy, you might want to drain some off the fat off between batches and omit the oil. Set the beef aside.

3. Add the guinness to the dutch oven and scrape up all the precious brown bits on the bottom of the pan using a wooden spoon. Add the beef back to the pan.

4. Add in all the other ingredients (except the vegetables). Bring to a simmer and add in the carrots, onions, mushrooms, and bell pepper.

5. Cook, covered in oven at 350F for 1 1/2 hours or until beef is fork tender.

6. Adjust seasonings and serve.

Curried Cashew Chicken

My Cooking Light magazine showed up in the mail and they had a feature on Stir Fry. Have I told you how much I love stir frys? What a fantastic cooking technique! It is fast, easy, delicious, nutritious, and most importantly it lends itself to a great balance of textures and flavors. Did I already say fast? I mean c'mon, whats not to like? 

Fall is here in Seattle. You can tell, because the temperature drastically falls when evening sets in. The curried chicken recipe just jumped out at me. The warmth of the curry heat.....fabulous! Of course, I have this disease where I can never just follow a recipe without making my tweaks. So I did that here too, and IMHO I like the changes I made. For one thing, I like a bit more liquid in my curried chicken. I love the way the brothy stuff soaks up into the rice.

I served the curried chicken over brown rice, but white rice would be great too. Unfortunately, I omitted the dried red chilis, which is too bad because I think they would have been fantastic. I need to work on the spice tolerance for the kiddos and then they would be absolutely perfect little kids :-) If you can tolerate some spice, please add in a few dried red chilis. Add them to the oil at the point I add the red chili flakes. For extra oomph you can add the whole chilis and the chili flakes. Now that's my kind of stir fry.

Another added bonus of this dish is that it makes the kitchen smell divine. J walked in the door and had a huge grin on his face. A said his favorite part of the dish was the chicken and the cashews. He prefers his bell pepper raw. R, the carbo lover, liked the rice the best. No surprises there. Oh! the carrots too. I had to pick the onions out of his plate which was quite a pain given how many there were, but not too shabby. At least I am not cooking separate meals for them anymore. Baby steps.....

Did I mention the cilantro is fresh? Here is R harvesting cilantro from the farm. He was really getting into it.

Curried Cashew Chicken

Adapted from Cooking Light magazine, Sep 2008

For Sauce

2/3 cup chicken broth (canned is fine)

1/4 cup water

3 tbsp fish sauce

2 tsp sugar

1 tbsp rice vinegar

Remaining Ingredients

2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts (approx 1 lb)

1 tbsp cornstarch

1 tbsp soy sauce

3 tbsp canola or peanut oil

1 1/2 cups sliced onion

3 scallions, green parts only, cut into 1 inch pieces

2 carrots, sliced on the bias

1 green bell pepper, sliced into 1/4 inch strips

1 tbsp finely minced fresh ginger

1 tbsp minced garlic

2 tsp curry powder

1/2 tsp dried red chili flakes

1/3 cup chopped cilantro

1/2 cup roasted salted cashews

1/2 tsp salt (more/less to taste)

Method:

1. Cut chicken across the grain into 1/4 inch slices; flatten and slice again into 1/4 inch strips. Cut strips in half, so each is approx. 2 inches long.

2. Sprinkle chicken pieces with cornstarch and soy sauce. Mix well and set aside.

3. To prepare sauce, combine the first five ingredients in a bowl. Set aside.

4. Heat a large wok over high heat. Add 1 tbsp oil, swirling to coat the wok. Add half the chicken, stir fry for 2 minutes till chicken develops a nice golden crust. Spoon cooked chicken into a bowl. Repeat the procedure using one more tbsp oil and the other half of the chicken.

5. Add remaining 1 tbsp oil to the wok, swirling to coat. Add the red chili flakes. Then add the onions, scallions, ginger, and garlic; stir fry 1 minute or until lightly browned. Add the carrots and bell pepper. Stir fry 3 minutes, till vegetables cook through just a bit. Add curry powder. Stir fry 30 seconds till fragrant. Add sauce and chicken to the wok. Stir fry another miniute or so till the sauce coats everything evenly and slightly thickens. Add in the cashews and cilantro. Serve immediately over rice.

Spanish-style Swiss Chard with Garbanzo Beans

After a long break, I am happy to report that I am back in the kitchen. We returned from a fantastic, low-key, yet highly soul-soothing vacation to India a couple weeks back. I had grand plans of taking just a few days to tackle jet-lag, and then cooking up a storm (you see, I really did miss cooking while I was on vacation. I helped mom, but didn't really cook). But alas! A nasty viral bug chose to adopt my body as its favorite host (my guess is on the plane), and my well-laid plans of culinary rediscovery were thwarted. Unless you count chicken noodle soup from a can (organic, of course) and Ramen noodles as culinary achievements.

So anyway, all is better now. A is off to school (first grade, can you believe it?) and R is back in preschool. I am feeling a heck of a lot better, and I'm sure J is excited to have me back in the kitchen. The poor guy! Went from being presented with a veritable feast every meal for 5 weeks in India to chicken noodle soup with toast! What a nasty shock to the poor taste buds!

Okay - go on say it. I have let you down. I go on and on about coming back to the kitchen, and you are expecting some mind-blowingly complicated recipe, and I present you with a humble vegetarian dish?? Is that the best you can do, you ask? Well, my dear friends, don't dismiss this humble offering quite so fast. It is simple, yes, but that is what makes it so beautiful. The flavors are simply sublime. And what better way to use up a whole bunch of swiss chard from the farm?

So, let me plug in my locavore thing here. Dishes such as this are meant to show off nature's bounty. So the end result is only as good as the quality of the ingredients you put in it. Ever wonder why food in Italy, Spain, France (heck, most of Europe) tastes so damn good? Well, it is in large part due to the fantastic quality of the stuff they put in. So go ahead, please use good, organic, local stuff. I promise you, it is well worth the trouble.

My six year old, A, gobbled it up saying "Mom, could you drizzle some more olive oil on mine? I love my stew with extra oil on top". If you knew this kid when he was 2 and 3, you'd never believe me. A was the pickiest eater you've ever seen. Who woulda thunk it. This kids eats anything now. R reluctantly ate up his portion and then piped in "Yummy, with some fresh organic water". Makes no sense? You're not alone. Welcome to the  world of a 4-year old...

You can serve this dish with rice, couscous, or even a nice crusty loaf of bread. This version is an adaptation of Madhur Jaffrey's recipe for espinacas con garbanzos, a Spanish tapas dish served in tapas bars across Seville. I liked the slight bitterness that the swiss chard lends, and I think it works especially well when you serve this as a main course alongwith rice or couscous. That said, I really like the original recipe using spinach too.

We had some whole-wheat couscous in the pantry, so that is what I served. Couscous is extremely quick and ridiculously simple to prepare. I like to use a 1:1.5 ratio of dry couscous:water, or even better, use chicken broth instead of water. Bring the water or broth to a rolling boil, add 1 tbsp olive oil. Then add the couscous, stir, cover and take off the heat. Let the pot sit undisturbed for 5 minutes (don't peek). Then take the cover off, and fluff lightly with a fork. That is it! Ta Da! I told you it was ridiculously simple.

To serve, spoon some couscous on a plate. Top with the stew. Drizzle some good quality olive oil on top. Scatter a few marcona almonds on top and Voila! A glass of red wine to accompany (I still have remnants of a cold, so sadly no wine for me) and here's to a good hearty meal.

Spanish-style swiss chard with garbanzo beans

Adapted from Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian

2 bunches swiss chard (about 20 leaves)

1 15oz can organic garbanzo beans, washed and drained

1/4 cup olive oil

5 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

2 tsp freshly ground cumin

1 tsp freshly ground coriander

1 1/2 tsp spanish paprika (Pimenton)

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1 - 1 1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1/2 cup tomato sauce

1/2 cup water

Method:

1. Wash the swiss chard well. Remove the stalks from the leaves. Set aside. Cut the chard leaves into ribbon-like shreds. Finely chop the stalks.

2. Heat the oil and add garlic and red pepper flakes. Saute till garlic smells fragrant. Add the swiss chard stalks and saute for a few minutes. Add the cumin, coriander, paprika, cayenne, and salt. Saute a few minutes till spices smell fragrant. Add the swiss chard leaves and saute till the leaves wilt. Add the garbanzo beans, tomato sauce, and water. Stir well.

3. Cook on medium heat, uncovered, for approx. 30 minutes. Stir occassionally. Cook until there is just a bit of juice left at the bottom of the pan.

4. Serve hot or warm. I like to drizzle some olive oil on top just before serving. Garnish with marcona almonds for a nice crunch.