Mung Dal Stew

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So, I have started to slowly add back some legumes into my diet and so far I am doing fine as long as I limit my intake to once a week!
This recipe uses mung (or moong) “dal” that has been soaked overnight (for better digestion). Mung dal is essentially mung beans that are stripped of their outer green coats. This dish has become one of our favourites since it is full of flavours and has a lovely creamy texture. If you like spicy food and can handle the heat (I can’t!) you can add a few dashes of your favourite hot sauce at the end, that’s how mu hubby like his! The amount of liquid I’ve mentioned in the recipe gives a thicker stew-like consistency to this dish, but if you prefer you can add more liquid to thin it out a bit and have it as a lovely soup instead!

Ingredients

1 Cup Mung Daal (soak for 12 hours or overnight)
1 Large Carrot (finely chopped)
2 Celery Stalks (finely chopped)
2 Tbsp. Coconut Oil (for vegan) or Ghee (I used half of each)
4 Cups high quality vegetable (for vegan) , chicken or bone broth (I use half of bone and chicken broth)
2 Tsp. Ginger Powder
2 Tsp. Turmeric
1 Tsp. Cinnamon powder
about 1/2 Tsp. (or more depending on saltiness of your broth) Salt
Fresh Black Pepper
1 Tbsp. Fresh lime juice (optional)
1/2 cup finely chopped herbs (any combination of dill, coriander, chive, parsley, etc)

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Method

1. Add the oil to a large pot and sauté the finely chopped carrot and celery for a minute or two. Then add the spices and sauté for about a minute until fragrant.

2. Rinse the soaked mung daal and add to the pot with salt and pepper.

3. Add the broth and bring to a boil over high heat. Now lower the heat, cover the pot and simmer the stew for about 2 hours (stir the stew occasionally) until the consistency is to your liking.

4. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed. You can also add a bit of lime juice if you like.

5. Turn off the heat and add the fresh herbs!

Serve hot with a side of Basmati rice and green salad!

Serves 4.

Sauteed Shrimp with Maple, Blood Orange & Ginger Sauce

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Another one of my favourite super simple and quick shrimp recipes packed with flavour. I use peeled, deveined, tail-on frozen sustainably farmed white shrimps and thaw the shrimps in the fridge from the night before. You can remove the tails or leave them on! I serve this dish with a side of saffron-spinach-dill Basmati rice pilaf and a large green salad.


Ingredients
40 Large Shrimps (about 1.5 LB)
1 Tbsp. Arrowroot Powder
2 Tbsp. Ghee or Coconut oil (I use half and half)
Finely Chopped Fresh Herbs (e.g. Basil, Parsley) for garnish

Sauce
1 Tbsp. Maple Syrup
1 Tbsp. Saffron Water
1 Tbsp. Water
1/2 – 1 Tsp. Salt (start with less and you can add more at the end if you like)
Zest and Juice of 1 Large Blood Orange
1 – 1.5 Inch Piece Fresh Ginger (finely grated)
1 Tsp. Arrowroot Powder
Freshly Ground Pepper (to taste)

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Method
1. First, add all the sauce ingredients into a glass jar and shake vigorously to combine well. Set aside. You can make the sauce in advance and refrigerate until you are ready to prepare the dish.

2. Put the shrimps into a large bowl, season with a bit of salt and freshly ground pepper. Add 1 Tbsp. of arrowroot powder and mix well to coat all the shrimps.

3. Heat the oil in a large skillet and sauté the shrimps on high heat for about 3 minutes until they turn slightly pink (don’t over cook). When cooked remove the shrimps from the skillet and set aside.

4. Now turn the heat to medium and add the sauce to the same skillet. Stir the sauce until it starts to thicken. Then add the shrimps back into the sauce and stir to coat all and heat through.

5. Turn off the heat, taste and add more salt and pepper if you like and add the chopped herbs (I really like the flavour of basil in this dish, but you can also use parsley, coriander or even dill). Serve hot and enjoy!

Serves 4.

Iranian Roasted Chickpea Cookies, Nan-Nokhodchi (نان نخودچی)

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Roasted chickpea cookies (Nan-Nokhochi) is one of my favourite sweets. I associate its smell and taste with so many sweet childhood memories of Norooz. These cookies are very delicate and crumble and melt in your mouth. Nan-Nokhodchi is made with very fine roasted chickpea flour (not regular chickpea flour, they don’t have the same texture and taste). You can buy roasted chickpea flour from Iranian grocery stores (I buy mine from Tavazo in Toronto).

Notes:
1. Sift both the chickpea flour and the icing sugar. The finer the flour and sugar, the more delicate the final product.

2. After kneading, rest the cookie dough anywhere between 4 hours and up to 2 days in a cool place (don’t refrigerate!). I usually rest mine for 24 hours, this makes the dough easier to shape.

3. The temperature of different ovens vary, so check the cookies after about 10 minutes to make sure they don’t over brown. (UPDATE: with my new convection oven these cookies bake beautifully in 12 minutes at 325F)

4. Finally, as mentioned these cookie are very delicate, so after you take them out of the oven don’t touch them until they are completely cooled down (at least one hour), otherwise they are going to crumble and fall apart. Then transfer them to a wire rack (lined with a wax or parchment paper) and let cool completely.

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Ingredients
500 Grams Fine Roasted Chickpea Flour
260 Grams Ghee (softened but not meleted)
220 Grams Organic Icing Sugar
1 Tsp Freshly Ground Cardamom
Optional: pistachio slivers, saffron water, poppy seeds for garnish

Method
1. Using a hand mixer cream the sifted icing sugar and ghee for 3-4 minutes until its fluffy and cream colour.
2. Add the cardamom and whisk until fully combined.
3. Add the sifted chickpea flour and mix with a spatula or a wooden spoon.
4. You now have to knead the mixture until you have a soft and pliable dough (about 5 minutes).
5. Tightly pack the dough in a container or a plastic bag and rest it for 4 hours – 2 days (see notes above)
6. Once you are ready to bake the cookies, heat the oven to 300F 325F degrees and line a baking sheet with a unbleached parchment paper. Take the dough out of the bag, knead for another minute or two and then roll it out to a height of 1 cm. Now use different cookie cutters to shape your dough. Place on the lined baking sheet, garnish them if you like and bake for 15-25 10-15 minutes (see the notes above).
7. Let the cookies cool down completely in the baking sheet before transferring them (see the notes above).

Enjoy these delicate flavourful cookie with a cup of tea or coffee! <3