Vegetable & Lentil Curry

This recipe was inspired first by my good friend Leisha, who I have mentioned in this blog before. She has a reciped blog called "Homemade Toast" And then my mom made it and added a few things. And then I was inspired by my mom (who is pretty much the inspiration or creator of almost all the recipes on this blog!) to make this version that I altered a bit after that! So, there it is...basically this dish is amazing and delicious and take the liberty to make it your own! Thanks so much Leisha and Mom, you girls really know how to cook!

I love these lentils much more than any I've tasted at any Indian restaurant! This is a really satisfying dish with a lot of depth and flavor. If you're not used to making Indian food, give it a shot, I think you will surprise yourself with how easy it is! And how delicious! I just love Indian flavors!

INGREDIENTS:

1 Package of Pre-cooked Lentils from Trader Joe's
1 large yellow onion, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon ginger, minced
2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 cup vegetable broth (I like making my own with boiling water and a vegetable bouillon cube, I think it tastes much better than the canned kind and it is super easy.)

2 cans diced tomatoes

1/2 a head of cabbage

1 head of cauliflower

1 can of Chickpeas aka Garbanzo Beans
1/4 cup curry paste or if you don't have any, I just used a little extra of all the spices listed below
2 Tablespoons curry powder
2 teaspoons ground turmeric

2 teaspoons garam masala
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 cup cilantro or parsley, chopped
Fresh lemon juice from 1/2 a lemon

Directions:
~ Saute the onions, garlic and ginger in olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
~ While the onions are cooking, combine the curry paste, curry powder, turmeric, cumin, garam masala, chili powder, salt and sugar in a small bowl. Then, add the curry mixture to the onions and cook over a medium-high heat stirring constantly for 1 to 2 minutes.

~ Add the vegetable broth and the cauliflower and cabbage.
~ Stir in the tomatoes and chickpeas and lentils and reduce heat to medium-low, allowing it to simmer.

~ Taste and add more spices if necessary...everything I did was just to taste.
~ Stir in parsley or cilantro.

You can serve this over rice, but I like it just with naan. You will love it, ENJOY!

It has a little bit of heat, so for my kids I just diluted it in the remaining vegetable broth and then drained it. Jade loved it and finished her whole plate!