Spice Is Right

The inspiration for this dinner was a challenge issued by Lauren, the owner of “Prism Magic Clothing & Imports” in Sparks, to prepare a gluten free meal. If you are local, be sure to stop by and check out the rainbow of tie dye in her shop.

We quickly decided on an Indian themed menu.  Lauren was specific about not including the following ingredients: soy, corn, spelt, quinoa, or rye. She also said “don’t just roast a cauliflower and call it gluten free”!

Well, Lauren, we are abiding by your wishes except we had to roast some cauliflower!

Cauliflower is too perfect a canvas for all of these wonderful Indian spices. We drizzled the cauliflower with olive oil and then rubbed the florets with a mixture of garam masala, ground cumin, coriander, salt and pepper. Twenty minutes in a 400’ oven on a baking sheet and it was done to perfection.

The sautéed spinach was just because.

Sautéed Spinach
Recipe developed by Sue & Meg For Saturday Night Specials  03/08/14

Ingredients

10 oz fresh spinach
2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1 inch fresh ginger, roughly chopped
1 green chili, chopped, seeds and membrane removed
1 teaspoon turmeric
4 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon fresh cream (optional)
salt

Directions

In a pan lightly sauté garlic, ginger, turmeric, cumin, and the green chili until softened and fragrant.

Add spinach and sauté until wilted. Stir in cream and serve hot.

The recipes for the garam masala, rice, cachumber, and carrot halva came from two vegetarian cookbooks Meg has had for a very long time.  The spice, garam masala, is readily available in grocery stores . . . you choose.

Garam Masala
Source: “Vegetarian Epicure Book Two”, Anna Thomas

“A masala is a mixture of spices, either dry or in the form of a paste, and there are many masalas for many uses.  This one is a fragrant blend of spices – not especially hot – which is sometimes added to food during cooking and sometimes sprinkled over a dish just before serving.  It is not curry powder.  It can be used alone, but more often it is blended with other seasonings.”

¼ c cardamom pods
2 T peppercorns
2 T cumin seeds
2 sticks cinnamon, each 2 inches long
2 t whole cloves
1 t ground mace
2 T ground coriander
1 bay leaf

Spread the spices out on a large metal pan and roast them in a 200 degree oven for about 20 minutes, stirring them often and making sure they don’t scorch.

Remove them from the oven and shell the cardamom seeds, discarding the pods.  Crush the cinnamon sticks by wrapping them in a towel and pounding them with a wooden mallet or other blunt instrument.

Combine all the spices and grind them, in batches if necessary, in an electric blender or food processor, until they are a powder.  If you don’t have a blender, you can grind the spices in a stone or ceramic mortar and good luck to you.  Keep the masala in an airtight container, at room temperature.

Note:  We used an electric spice grinder…acquired after we made our first Indian meal long ago.  Save yourself the cost of anger management classes and buy one, you will find many uses for the little guy.


The cachumber sounded fresh and crunchy and was a nice contrast to the cooked elements.

Cachumber
Source: “The Vegetarian Epicure”, Anna Thomas
Serves: 4 - 6

2 large tomatoes
1 large cucumber
½ c chopped green onions
½ c thinly sliced radishes
2 T coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
2 T lemon juice
¾ t salt
1 t finely minced green chilis
black pepper to taste

Cut the tomatoes in ½ inch chunks.  Peel and seed the cucumber and cut it in ½ inch dice.  Combine the tomatoes, cucumber, green onions, radishes, and cilantro in a bowl.

Mix together the lemon juice, salt, and minced green chilis, and our over the vegetables.  Toss everything together so that it is thoroughly combined and add a little black pepper to taste.  Chill for about ½ hour, toss again, and serve.

Note: We used 4 small cocktail cucumbers (so cute) so there was no need to seed the cucumber.

Plain Pilau
Source: “The Vegetarian Epicure Book Two”, Anna Thomas
Serves: 6 – 8

4 T butter
2 c long grain white rice
¼ t cinnamon
crushed seeds from 8 cardamom pods
¾ c blanched, slivered almonds
½ c raisins
1 c shelled fresh peas
4 c hot water
1 ½ t salt

Melt the butter in a large, fireproof casserole and fry the rice in it over low heat until it just starts to color.  Add the cinnamon and the crushed cardamom seeds.  Stir, and continue frying for 1 to 2 minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients and stir briefly.  Bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat, cover the casserole, tightly, and let the rice steam for about 20 minutes.  All the water should be absorbed and the rice just tender but not mushy.

Notes: We substituted 1 tsp. ground cardamom. We used defrosted peas and did not add them until ready to serve the rice

We included a roasted chicken because Sue bought this nifty ceramic chicken roaster at World Market last year, and Meg has been pressing her to use it.  This seemed the perfect opportunity to roast a chicken with Indian spices.

Indian Spiced Roast Chicken
Recipe developed by Sue & Meg For Saturday Night Specials  03/08/14

5 ¾ lb chicken, or large roasting chicken
2 Tbsp. garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. ginger, minced
1 Tbsp. and 1 tsp. olive oil, divided
1 tsp. garam masala
1 ½ tsp. salt, divided
1 tsp. red pepper flakes (or to taste)
1 large baking potato, cut into chunks
½ large onion, cut into wedges
1 Meyer lemon, cut into wedges

Grind garlic, ginger, ½ t salt and olive oil in a mortar and pestle to make a paste. Gently loosen the chicken skin and rub the paste underneath.

Rub outside of chicken with 1 T of olive oil and give the little guy a massage with the spices. 

Because we used the spiffy ceramic chicken roaster, we started with a cold oven. You can roast it as you would normally – on or without a rack with the veggies around it.

Roasting time at 350’ was about 2 hours.

We are lucky to have a jar of peach lime chutney, made with peaches from Sue’s mom’s tree, to complement the roasted chicken.  Chutneys of all kinds are available in most grocery stores.

Peach Lime Chutney
Source: “Farm Journal Freezing and Canning Cookbook”, Doubleday

5 lbs fresh peaches
½ lb seeded raisins
½ lb dates, chopped
1 lemon, quartered, thinly sliced
2 c vinegar
3 c sugar
¼ c fresh lime juice
½ c candied ginger, coarsely cut
½ c nut meats, (optional)

Scald peaches in hot water for 30 seconds, dip in cold water; slip off skins.  Dice in small pieces.  Add raisins, dates, lemon, vinegar and lime juice.

Cook mixture slowly until peaches are tender; stir to prevent scorching.

Add sugar; cook until chutney has thickened, about 1 ½ hours, over low heat.  Stir in ginger (1 ½ t powdered ginger may be added for a stronger chutney).  Add nut meats.

Ladle chutney into hot, sterilized jars; seal at once.  Makes 5 pints.

This is the third time we have had this wine with Indian food. There’s a reason – it’s a good match.

Riesling 2012,  Dr. Heidemanns-Bergweiler , Germany  / $9.99 at Total Wine 

Carrot Halva
(Gajar Halva)

Source: “The Vegetarian Epicure Book Two”, Anna Thomas

1 ½ lbs carrots
1 ½ qts milk
1 c sugar
1/3 c raisins
¼ t crushed saffron threads
Pinch of ground cardamom
¼ t rose extract
1 T butter
1/3 c ground blanched almonds
1/3 c slivered almonds
Unsweetened cream, well chilled

Trim and scrape the carrots and shred them as finely as possible.  Combine the carrots with the milk in a large, heavy saucepan and bring the milk to a boil.  Lower the heat and simmer the mixture very gently, stirring often, for about 2 hours, or until it is reduced by more than ½ and is thick enough to lightly coat a spoon.

Stir in the sugar, raisins, saffron, cardamom, and the rose extract and continue simmering until the mixture is thick enough to hold a soft shape.  This could take another long while, so relax.  Add the butter and ground almonds and stir over low heat for about 10 minutes more, taking care not to let the mixture scorch.  It should now be thick enough to form a solid mass.

Remove it from the heat and allow it to cool slightly.  Turn the halva out onto a platter and shape it into an even mound.  Decorate it with the slivered almonds and serve it either warm or cool, with cream.

Our unsolicited and biased opinions:

What a feast for all the senses! The aroma of the spicy roasting chicken filled the house and is still present as we sit writing.  The air is full of rich and enticing fragrances.  This meal was like taking a trip without packing a suitcase or boarding an airplane. 

The next time around we will add more heat with the spices. None of these dishes were hot, but all were very flavorful.

The carrot halva is time consuming, but Meg had made it previously, (20 years ago), and remembered it being worth the time.  Sue didn’t know what to expect but put her trust in Meg. Luckily, they are still friends. Just teasing, she really enjoyed it and is looking forward to leftovers.

This halva, while not traditional, was a nice bit of sweetness at the end of this meal. 

As an alternative, we think that dates and dried figs would be a nice choice, too, especially served with a hot cup of Chai tea.