Triple Green Curry

This southeast Asian curry has got a triple dose of green. First, you start with a blended green curry paste made with shallots, spices, and chilies. Second, you cook some nutritious green veggies (broccoli and bok choy) in a delicious coconut broth spiked with the curry paste. Third, you sprinkle fresh green herbs (basil and mint) over the whole thing at the end.

Triple Green Curry
From Cooking Light

• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tablespoons chopped peeled fresh ginger
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 8 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1-3 small serrano chiles, seeded (depending on how heat-tolerant you are)
• 2 large shallots, coarsely chopped
• 4 cups coarsely chopped broccoli florets (about 1 head)
• 2 cups sliced baby bok choy
• 2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
• 4 teaspoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 14-oz can light coconut milk
• 14-oz package water-packed organic firm tofu, drained and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
• 2 cups hot cooked long-grain white rice
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

Combine first 7 ingredients (through shallots) in a food processor and process until smooth. Set aside.

Cook broccoli florets in boiling water in a large Dutch oven 3 minutes or until crisp-tender. Remove broccoli from water with a slotted spoon; drain and rinse with cold water. Drain and set aside. Return water to a boil. Add baby bok choy to pan; cook 1 minute. Drain and rinse with cold water. Drain and set aside.

Heat Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan and swirl to coat. Add cilantro mixture to pan; saute 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add sugar and next 4 ingredients (through coconut milk) to pan. Bring to a boil. Add tofu; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 6 minutes or until slightly thick. Add broccoli, bok choy, and juice. Cook 1 minute or until heated, tossing to combine.

Place 1/2 cup rice in each of 4 bowls. Spoon 1 1/2 cups tofu mixture over each serving. Sprinkle basil and herbs over each serving.

Tortellini Salad

I read a fair number of other food blogs in my spare time, you know, for inspiration and recipes and good things like that. One of my favorites is 101 Cookbooks. The author, Heidi Swanson, posts healthy veg recipes accompanied by the most gorgeous photos ever - I'm just constantly drooling over it. Well, it turns out that she recently published a cookbook, so obviously I ordered a copy as soon as I could. And I am in love.

It's called Super Natural Every Day, and every recipe in it is the kind of recipe I would make up if I were any good at making up recipes. It's all fresh and seasonal and contains unexpected but amazing combinations of ingredients. I made my first recipe from it last night and have pretty much the rest of them bookmarked to make in the very near future. For now, here's Heidi's gorgeous tortellini salad.

Tortellini Salad

From Super Natural Every Day

• Fine sea salt
• 1 pound fresh tortellini or about 12 ounces frozen/refrigerated tortellini
• 8 to 10 asparagus spears, trimmed and cut into 1-inch segments
• 1/2 head broccoli or equivalent broccolini, cut into small trees
• 1 small clove garlic
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Small handful of fresh cilantro or mint, chopped
• Small handful of sprouts
• 1/3 cup/1 ounce pine nuts or almonds, toasted
• 1 medium ripe avocado, sliced into small pieces

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt generously, add the tortellini, and cook according to the package instructions. About 30 seconds before the pasta is finished cooking, stir the asparagus and broccoli into the pot. Cook for the final 30 seconds, drain, and run under cold water just long enough to stop the cooking.

In the meantime, to make the dressing, use the flat side of your knife to mash the garlic along with a big pinch of salt into a paste. Whisk together the garlic paste, lemon juice, olive oil, and more salt, if needed. Set aside.

When you're ready to serve the salad, toss the pasta, asparagus, broccoli, and cilantro with about half of the dressing. Add more dressing to taste, if needed, and toss well. Add the sprouts, nuts, and avocado. Very gently toss a couple of times to distribute those ingredients throughout the salad and enjoy. Keep the dressing on hand to refresh leftovers; the pasta tends to absorb it overnight.

Thai Curried Noodles with Broccoli and Tofu

This dish is just easy comfort food in a bowl. Noodles, tofu, and broccoli swimming in a curried coconut broth with a squeeze of lime. What's not to like about that? Did I mention you can make it in about 20 minutes? Yeah. That's right. My work is done here.

Thai Curried Noodles with Broccoli and Tofu

From Vegetarian Times

• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 2 large shallots, chopped
• 2 tablespoons red or yellow Thai curry paste
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 15-oz can light coconut milk
• 1/2 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
• 2 teaspoons light brown sugar
• 1 package firm tofu, drained and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 5-6 oz dry fettuccine
• 5 cups broccoli florets
• Lime wedges

Heat oil in medium pot over medium-high heat. Saute shallots in oil 2 minutes. Add curry paste, curry powder, and turmeric; cook 1 minute. Stir in coconut milk, broth, and brown sugar, and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium, and cook 5 minutes. Stir in tofu and simmer for 10 minutes.

Cook fettuccine in a large pot of boiling salted water according to package instructions. Add broccoli to pot for last 2 minutes of cooking time. Drain, and add to tofu-curry mixture. Mix well and serve with lime wedges.

Miso Udon Stir-Fry with Greens and Beans

Over here at the ol' blog this week I'll be cooking my way through one of my new cookbooks, Appetite for Reduction (also the source of the chickpea piccata recipe in my last post). Like I mentioned, this book is full of healthy vegan recipes that are just right for the new year. If your resolution, like everyone else's, is to lose weight, these could be some great dishes to try.

Tonight I made this yummy stir-fry with udon noodles, veggies (broccoli and chard), azuki beans, and savory miso broth. I thought it was great just as it was, but you if you wanted to, you could definitely turn up the heat with some Sriracha hot sauce.

Miso Udon Stir-Fry with Greens and Beans

From Appetite for Reduction

• 1 pound broccoli, stems sliced thinly, tops cut into florets
• 8-ounce package udon noodles
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 bunch Swiss chard, coarse stems removed, chopped roughly
• 1 cup thinly sliced scallions, plus more for garnish
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• One 16-oz can azuki beans, drained and rinsed (can substitute black beans)
• 1/3 cup miso
• 1/2 cup hot water
• 4 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds

Prepare a pot of salted water for cooking the noodles. Meanwhile, preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. First, saute the broccoli with a bit of nonstick cooking spray and a pinch of salt for about 5 minutes. Cover the pan and flip once or twice. The broccoli should be browned in some spots. Add a splash of water at the end, then cover for another minute. The pan should be steaming. Remove the broccoli from the pan and set aside.

At this point, the water should be boiling. Use a mug to remove 1/2 cup of water; you can use that to mix into your miso in a few steps. Then cook the noodles according to the package directions. Drain when ready.

Now we'll put everything together. Preheat the large pan again, over medium heat. Saute the garlic in the oil for about a minute, until fragrant. Add the chard, green onion, and salt, and saute for about 5 minutes, until wilted. Add the beans and let heat through.

In the meantime, in a mug or a measuring cup, mix together the miso and warm pasta water until relatively smooth.

Add the drained noodles to the pan, along with the miso mixture and broccoli. Saute for about 2 minutes, making sure everything is nice and coated. Taste for salt. To serve, top with sesame seeds and scallions (and Sriracha, optional).