Dinner with Julie

Red Lentil & Sweet Potato Curry with Spinach

I have news! (No, I’m not knocked up. I was, again. But I’m not, again. It’s been a bit of a crazy spring.) Remember Sue? She and I are writing a book! A for-real, gonna-be-published-and-put-in-bookstores cookbook. When I went out to stay for the weekend during the olympics we came up with it, and pitched it, and the publisher jumped on it, and within a few weeks we had an actual contract and a deadline. !!!!

It’s occurring to me now that that was two months ago. HOW DID THAT HAPPEN? Does anyone else’s life feel like the Polar Express? With the stoned guy in the hoodie at the helm, asking if we want to go faster and ignoring our screams to PLEASE STOP. OR AT LEAST SLOW DOWN. Because I just might throw up. Which isn’t going to be pleasant for either of us.

So yeah, Sue and I are writing a cookbook together. Something I’ve wanted to do for a very long time. (A project like this with her, that is.)

And it’s due in June. JUNE. That’s a good half a year from now, right? At least 6 months. No? Six weeks?? Perhaps if I enlist a hundred monkeys on a hundred typewriters, smoking a hundred cigarettes…

But for real – I cannot WAIT to share some of these recipes with you. We’ve been baking with beans – I made wonderful (if I do say so) yeasted cinnamon buns using pureed beans in the dough, making them higher in fiber than if they had been made with whole wheat flour, with the light, chewy texture of white dough. I’m not going to spill all the beans – ha – pun totally not intended – because that would leave nothing new for the book, which is scheduled to be released next spring. Spring 2011. Doesn’t that sound like the year you finally get your own jet pack?

But we do need a title. Beans and grains is just not sexy, no matter how you say it. The combo brings to mind gastrointestinal issues.

But they are so good for you. Their parts can stand on their own, but the sum is fantastic. The idea came about as we chatted about how I really want/need to eat more beans and grains, and want to seek out more meal options so that ideas come as readily and naturally as they would when faced with some chicken parts or a pork tenderloin. Or John Cusack.

Did I tell you I’m following him on Twitter? I’m pretty sure he’s not following me. Which is a shame. But Michael Ruhlman is! Ruhlman! Following me! The day I learned this I developed a severe case of Twitter performance anxiety.

So to digress, we need some title ideas for the book. Badly. I’ve never had such a total mind block – usually something comes to mind, and it’s a matter of weeding through the cheese and cliches and finding something that works. This time – nada. But you’re a smart and creative lot, so I thought I’d toss it out there for you to chew on.

Also – chew on this. I made this lentil and sweet potato curry on our last night in Tofino and actually toted it all the way back to Calgary in my cooler bag and reheated it today. It’s easy. It’s good for you. Lentils, sweet potatoes and spinach, all in one bowl?

Red Lentil & Sweet Potato Curry with Spinach

canola or olive oil, for cooking
1 onion, chopped
1 fresh jalapeño, seeded and finely chopped
1 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp. curry paste or powder
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. turmeric
1/2 tsp. salt
1 medium dark-fleshed sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2″ cubes
1/2 cup dry red lentils
1 14 oz. (398 mL) can coconut milk
1 cup water
a big handful of baby spinach leaves

In a large, heavy skillet, heat a drizzle of oil over medium-high heat. Saute the onion for about 5 minutes, then add the jalapeño, ginger, garlic, curry paste, cumin, turmeric and salt. Cook for a few more minutes.

Stir in the sweet potato, lentils, coconut milk and water; bring to a simmer, then cover, turn the heat down to medium-low and cook for about 20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender.

Uncover and tear in the spinach; stir, return the lid and cook for another minute or two, just until the spinach wilts. Serve immediately, over rice. Serves 4-6.

April 16 2010 | beans and veg and vegetarian | 93 Comments »

Tofino Wrap-Up and a Treasure Hunt

We’re back in BrownTown. I mean Calgary. I do love this place, but I’d love it more if I had a condo in Vancouver and a private jet. Wait right here while I go buy a lottery ticket.

As usual, I’m seriously behind. This time I’ve been slacking in this department, not keeping you abreast of our meals. This wasn’t an actual holiday in that I brought my work with me – it’s been a kind of half working, half playing couple weeks, with the goal that I’d spend more time with W than I have been of late. So I have been working – just not as much – and I wanted to remind him that I do have a face and am (almost) as much fun as dad, and the computer isn’t an actual appendage.

It might sound from your end of the computer that we’ve been living on crab, cookies and pancakes. And that’s partly accurate, but we’ve been eating out a bit, too. I’ll get to that in a minute – first, I neglected to tell you the whole story of Tonquin park, but I can chalk that up to a hot bath and a half bottle of Red Over Heels. The combination amounts to the opposite of a motivational speech.

The short version of the story is: we found treasure on the island at Tonquin. I heard that something was buried there, in a teeny cave, and had the foresight to (finally!) bring my little video camera so that I could take you on the forest walk, then share the discovery of said treasure. And post it! I didn’t, unfortunately, have the foresight to bring spare batteries – they died as I came to the end of the path and out onto the beach. Which really is in keeping with the theme of the past couple weeks.

So there’s this global game called Geocaching, where people with GPS systems track down these well-hidden “treasures” placed around the world. (I’d try to explain the concept in more detail but the website would do a better job of it.) This spot was on a teeny island you’ll see just as you get to the end of the path from the road to the beach. On it is a tiny cave, not much bigger than a breadbox.

W was on cloud 9, let me tell you. He was a bit disappointed though, when we didn’t run into trouble with any pirates, and the box we dug out wasn’t full of gold dubloons.

It was Tupperware, in fact.

We left the string of beads from Mike’s cowboy hat, and a hand-written recipe for Chocolava cookies. W left the fuzzy little blue rabbit he got in his Kinder Egg and was convinced was magic.

I chose a well-worn double decker bus keychain, left by an Aussie who left a note with a brief version of his story:

Which is appropriate in ways I couldn’t begin to explain. Also – the keychain I’ve had for at least 10 years got wrecked a few weeks ago, and I was, likely due to stress and lack of sleep, unreasonably upset about it.

When I pulled my keys out of my pocket to attach the bus, I noticed that the keychain I reluctantly replaced mine with a couple weeks ago had broken. Huh.

I have to tell you too about Ukee Dog – a hot dog joint (and so much more) in Ucluelet, where we went after visiting the wee aquarium.

There were homemade cinnamon buns in three varieties – raisin, apple or blueberry.

The pies were all hand-made too, and rows of jars full of cookies.

We pooled our cash and brought home a half dozen pies – salmon Wellington, curried veggie and curried beef, and a beef-mushroom. They were all divine.

The hot dogs were pretty good too.

And of course – we lunched at SoBo.

The boys had enormous bowls of bouilliabaise,

K had their famous fish taco,

we shared an order of polenta fries (which are getting better, if that’s possible),

even the kids had plates with bowls of buttered noodles and sides of cheese with beans, carrots and corn alongside (not a chicken nugget in sight),

and I had a salmon pizza.

And look at that pie! I want to marry it.

But did I tell you about the hail? And snow? We had to seek refuge indoors, really.

I’ll have a new recipe for you tomorrow – and some free stuff. Promise.

April 16 2010 | eating out | 14 Comments »