Korma Lentils

I find when I go out in the morning (gym this morning) and am rushing around, its hard to stay motivated to eat something healthy for lunch.  Following is a quick and easy Indian dish which is so easy and takes about 10 minutes max and its healthy too

KORMA LENTILS

ingrediants

splash olive oil (I used ghee prefer the taste)

onion finely chopped

2 tsp Korma curry paste ( I used the Pataks brand, make sure it is paste and not sauce, it lasts for ages in the cupboard, I must of had mine for about 6 months)

tin tomatoes ( I used fresh and chopped them up)

tin brown lentils ( I used Annalise brand from the  Italian shop at about 99 cents) drain.

Saute onion in oil, add paste, stir a minute then cool 1 min.

stir in other ingredients and heat thoroughly, I heated until the tomatoes break down a bit.

Serve with english spinach or other greens and a dollop of natural yoghurt.

When I cook this I halve everything.  Half the tin of lentils (other half in the fridge or freezer for another day. Only a small onion. and 1 tsp of Korma paste.  Indian meals are much better cooked with ghee.  Ghee is a product of butter, think you separate it, it lasts longer than butter.  The first tin I bought was about $7 and it lasted me for ages, this time I found a smaller tin and I think it was $3.99 from an Asian shop.  Coles used to sell it but do no longer.

You can add lemon juice and fresh coriander if you like it.

Give it a try and enjoy

Jacky

Leroy

yesterday I cat and dog sat for Joanne as they had a rent inspection.  2 dogs had to stay in the garage until after the class was over when I let them out, cautiously as the older one is a snarly thing and is like to take a snap at your legs, but she was ok.  Now, Leroy, what a heart breaker, he loves to smooch now.  I was on Pinterest and he sat on my hands then he sat on the keyboard then wanted to smooch my face, so I had to give that up, hmmm maybe I need him around more to stop me going on interest.

He has grown so much since I last had him, he has the longest tail too.  Sometimes I think I would love a cat but then I think what would I do with it when we go away.  So, for the time being, I will just get all my cuddles from Leroy, then send him home.

graffiti art

 I have always liked graffiti art and particularly the stencil graffiti art.  The weekend that I did the Fringe world Laneway Markets, we ventured onto William Street before setting our stall up as we had arrived early.  Some really funky trendy shops in this strip, very creative and unique.  One shop that drew me in was called the Butcher Shop, much to my amusement it was a graffiti art shop, selling books, spray paints and apparel.  My eye was drawn to one particular book 'Stencil Republic' with 20 usable stencils, I had to have it.  The stencils all by well known artists measure 24 x 24 cm, a good size for what I wanted.

Above is the first one I made for my son, to me it says Victory, apt for my son.  The stencil is by Chris Stain.  I used Golden heavy body paints, some poster images from the newspaper and the Ironlak black spray paint I also bought from The Butchers Shop, I found this paint sprayed very well without blocking the nozzle and gave a lovely velvety appearance.  I would recommend wearing a mask as the fumes are quite strong and I sprayed out in the fresh air. Canvas size 25 x 30 cm.

This is the second one I did using same technique and stencil by STF.
I was very happy with how they turned out, maybe next time I will omit the poster images and just make it bare stuccoed wall.

In Memory

today would have been your birthday, I still miss you

Art for this week

 Leading up to Christmas I worked my butt off making Christmas presents, as you know orginasation is not my strong point.  But I always push myself until I get them all done and I seem to work better under presure.

 This journal was a massive project but I was so pleased of it when I finished, it is inspired by a journal Mandy Herring shared with me of one she got that was handmade by DJ Pettit, which I fell in love with.  This was Joannes present and I have started it for her by putting black and white photo's of her maternal line trying to keep them to wedding photo's where I could.  Some, her great great grandmother  I was unable to get.  Above is the cover, it has a fabric wrap signature the back of you can see below.

 Angel wings for kirsty, to hang on the back of her beautiful old mannequin.

    For Raymon, I had done this earlier in the year and only had a few little bits and pieces to complete it.

For Jessica and her little family.

Curry rice and lentils

Recipe I tried from this blog with a few changes, you can see them on the comments on this blog
http://living200.blogspot.com.au/ I loved it will be making it again.  The chorizo sausage was $4 so at reasonable price for a meal for two taking the other ingrediants into account I would say less than $10.

Red Lentil Dahl for my sister

This is a lovely Dahl recipe I got when on one of my dumb diets (giving that lot up) (all of them), it is very versatile and as a vegetarian dish it goes a long way.

SOUTH INDIAN RED LENTIL DAHL

ingredients

1 med onion chopped

2 garlic cloves crushed

2 tbsp ghee (found in supermarket, butter bi product, great for these recipes)

1 tbsp fresh grated ginger

1 tsp of ground cumin, coriander, turmeric and salt (all dried)

1 fresh chilli chopped fine

2 cups of vege stock (I use 1 tbsp dried stock and add 2 cups hot water to dissolve)

1 can coconut milk (approx 375 gram)

1 can crushed tomatoes (I use a couple of fresh tomatoes chopped up)

1 plus half cups dried red lentils well rinsed under cold water (they will all stick together)

1 to 2 cups diced fresh vegetables

1 cup loose pack fresh coriander (to serve)

fresh lemon or lime juice (to serve)

Cook onions in ghee until soft add ginger and garlic, cook 2 mins

add dried spices and chilli, stir well for 1 min (fragrance is released, smells delicious)

Stir in stock, tomatoes and coconut milk.

Add lentils, stir, cover pot and simmer 5 mins

Stir in veges and simmer until veges and lentils are soft (about 15 mins) I tend to overcook but still tastes good

check for flavour and add more salt if needed

Serve with fresh coriander and squeeze of lemon juice

If you have a Indian friend, they may advise you on how authentic this recipe is and how to improve on it.  I find the flavours mild and fresh which suits my palate.  

I divide it into 6 separate meals and freeze 5 for later use, just heating through to cook.  I like to add fresh chopped or sliced vegetables like cabbage, celery, capsicum etc

Enjoy and let me know what you think. Anyone else with a favourite Dahl recipe please share.

Slow down and smell the roses

Jacky xo