Curry Hummus

Well, hello! Nice of you to stop by. Today I’d like to present to you a delicious gem of a cookbook I found at a second-hand book store. The book is called Eat, Drink & Be Vegan by the Canadian Queen of Vegan, Dreena Burton.

I had no intentions of buying any books as I went into the shop Fair’s Fair, located in Calgary. Tom was looking for a particular book that he knew they had, and I immediately bee-lined it for the cookbook section while waiting for him to find his book. My jaw dropped when I saw one of Dreena Burton’s books, as I have wanted to own one for a long time. I was first introduced to her cookbooks two years ago, when I lived with a woman for a short while, who owned the book Let Them Eat Vegan. I poured over this book and drew a lot of inspiration from her. You can find blog posts of mine from 2013, when I experimented with the recipes from that book.

I have since discovered that she has written several books, has an amazing website, and is soon to release a new cookbook, Plant-Powered Families. One of the many things I admire about her is raising a vegan family. I think it is important for children to learn about veganism early in life: to normalize it and promote its lifestyle.

I already knew that every recipe would be a total hit, but I am completely amazed by the creativity and variety of recipes in this book, Eat, Drink & Be Vegan. There are some really tasty-looking tofu recipes, and the hummus recipes look to-die-for. That’s why I started off with this lovely variation on a classic dip.

Here is my experience with the recipe Curry Chickpea Hummus with Pappadums.

Ingredients
2 cups chickpeas
Lemon Juice from 1 medium lemon (classic me, adding way more lemon than called for)
2 tbsp seed butter (original recipe called for cashew butter)
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp flax oil (or olive oil, as the recipe calls for)
1 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground tumeric
1/4 tsp agave nectar (sweetener)
Pepper, to taste
4-5 tbs water (I found I needed more like 7-8)
2-3 tbsp raisins or currants (don’t skip this!)

I blended all the ingredients, except for the raisins, in a blender until smooth. I added the water little by little until the hummus was at the consistency whereby a cracker would dip in without breaking. I added the raisins and pulsed the blender to break them up a little.

I made my own pita chips by baking pita bread in slices, drizzled with olive oil an dashed with salt, at 350*F for 5-7 minutes on each side. I do this whenever my pita bread is stale and about to go bad. It’s a great way to quickly use it up without throwing any away.

Again, this humus is fantastic. I’d have no trouble at all polishing off one batch to myself in a few days. I would never suggest that you don’t double it!

Chickpea & Cashew Curry

I could not be more grateful for my father’s acceptance of my vegan lifestyle. In the past few months he has adopted a vegetarian diet, eating vegan during our shared meals together, and has developed a curiosity in vegan recipes. He bought a cookbook called The Vegan Cookbook, which has simple and delicious no nonsense recipes. This chickpea and cashew curry is amazingly delicious and made a great packed lunch the next day. It attracted some attention from the people I was eating lunch with, and prompted me to type out and share the recipe. This is the first recipe that I will post that I have not actually made myself.

Here is one hearty winter dish to get through the cold months.

Ingredients
1 cup diced potatoes
3 tbsp vegetable oil or coconut oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/4-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp tumeric
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 cup cashews
1/2 cup vegetable stock
1 3/4 cups coconut milk
chopped fresh cilantro, to garnish

First, cook potatoes in boiling water for 10-15 minutes, until tender but still firm. Next, heat oil in a saucepan, then saute onions, garlic, ginger, cumin seeds, chili powder, tumeric, and cinnamon until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the drained potatoes, chickpeas, and cashews, and cook for three minutes.

Stir in the stock and coconut milk, then reduce the heat and cook for another 15 minutes, until thick and creamy. Garnish with cilantro and serve with cooked rice.

I can’t seem to find the cookbook online, as I have no author to google, and the title of the book is quite vague. If you do happen to come across it, I also tried and enjoyed the spicy stuffed bell peppers and thai vermicelli soup. Also, I wish I had my own picture, but here is the one from the book.

Chickpea Curry

I originally tasted this curry recipe when my friend Kristy Benz made it back when we lived together during spring school at Bishop’s [insert nostalgic moment]. It turned out that not only did I own the same cookbook with the recipe for that curry, but I used to be obsessed with it back when I was a pre-teen vegetarian. The thing that is so great about the cookbook is that it has pictures of the dishes, allowing your eyes to decide what looks good. It also has recipes varying in difficulty, making it a really useful book for any cook. It is called The Essential Vegetarian Cookbook, and many of the recipes just so happen to be vegan.

My dad had a pot luck at work this past week, and asked me to make a casserole of some sort. I opted for this chickpea curry, and served it on top of a bed of rice, but the recipe claims that it is also delicious inside of a wrap. It could make a good main dish, or a side dish. Also keep in mind that this recipe is saucier than it looks!

Ingredients
2 onions
4 cloves garlic
1 tbsp oil (I used a bit more)
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp tumeric
1 tsp paprika
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp coriander
2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 can crushed or diced tomatoes
1 tsp garam masala

I chopped the onions into small pieces, and peeled and crushed the garlic. Meanwhile, a pan was heating with the oil in it, and I sauteed the onions and garlic until they were clear and tender. I added all the spices, except for the garam masala, and let the mixture cook for one minute. I added the chickpeas and the tomatoes and gave the pot a big stir to combine all the ingredients. Covering the pot, an stirring occasionally, it simmered on low heat for 20 minutes, until the chickpeas were soft. Lastly, I added the garam masala and let the curry cook for another 10 minutes.

Curry without a worry.