Quick Vegan Pumpkin Dal

Dear Turkey,

If you could smell my

House right now, you would want to

Make this right away

Curried Split Pea Soup With Coconut

Dear Turkey,

This is so easy

And so tasty -- just go and

Make it for dinner

Fall Curry That Your Mom Will Like

Dear Turkey,

Easy and tasty

Makes your clothes smell like autumn

And not too spicy

Restaurant-Style Squash Curry

Dear Turkey,

This really tastes like

Indian food I thought I

Couldn't make myself

Unhealthy-Tasting Lentil Bowl

Dear Turkey,

This tastes like it has

Cream in it, but actually

It is good for you

Curried Pumpkin and Yellow Split Pea Soup

Dear Turkey,

When I made this, my

House smelled like the houses of

My Indian friends

Dahl and Rice

Dear Turkey,

Before you tell me

This is the best dahl ever:

It has cream in it

Quick and Easy Curried Quinoa

Dear Turkey,

Since my constituents don't enjoy quinoa, I usually make it for myself. I think quinoa is awesome, and I could probably eat it for breakfast with butter and brown sugar on it. Or dessert.

This recipe has that satisfying curry taste without the gross feeling that can result from eating a ton of takeout Indian food. And it's really healthy, especially with the nuts and spinach. Quinoa cooks quickly, so it will be done by the time everything else is ready.

Tomato Potato Curry

Dear Turkey,

Potatoes. Rice. Naan. Sounds like I'm going to run ten miles tomorrow.

Even if you're not running ten miles tomorrow, this easy, wintry curry is really satisfying. You can make it in the morning before work, and if you use brown rice, it's not really unhealthy.

Easy Lunch Curry

Dear Turkey,

It's lunchtime. You just went running. Your mom wants you to make something with the random stuff in her fridge, like leftover couscous and expired kale that your sister-rabbit bought on Thanksgiving. You have 20 minutes before nap time.

I saw this curry in one of my favorite blogs and I was saving it for such an occasion. It turned out so healthy and tasty. But not tasty in a healthy way. Tasty in an I'm-hungry-and-this-is-full-of-flavor way. Excuse the cliche, but this is way more than the sum of its parts.

Good Curry That Your Mom Will Like

Dear Turkey,

I love Indian food. However, I sometimes feel gross after I eat it out (since tons of butter, salt, and ghee make things taste good), so I like to make it at home (it's easy, you just say: honey, make me some curry). Making curry for my parents is a challenge because they don't like spicy food (I know). But this is a winner; I didn't feel gross, it was tasty, easy, and used up things from my mom's (the tomato pusher's) garden.

Easy, Healthy, Fast Curry adapted from this quality blog.

Ingredients:

Directions:

Chop an onion and a few cloves of garlic and cook it in a few T of oil in a big, heavy pot with 1-3 T (to taste) of: salt, curry powder, cumin, coriander, ginger, and turmeric. I used ground spices but you don't have to. Add a few T of lemon juice and cook on really high heat until it's splattering all over the kitchen and the spices are so dark you think it's about to burn. Then add a few big chopped tomatoes so your mom doesn't make you take them home, or a can of diced tomatoes (undrained), and two cans of chick peas (rinsed and drained). Cook all of this for a few more minutes until the tomatoes fall apart and the chick peas are starting to brown. Then throw in a handful of spinach that won't even make a dent in the amount that's in your mom's garden. (If it's going to frost that night, your mom is probably worked into a frenzy.) Blend this with an immersion blender, but leave some chunks. Season to taste. 

I served this with Jasmati rice that I cooked with a little salt, lots of Tabasco sauce, and...

...Quick, Easy, Fast (did I say quick and fast?), Naan:

I love the prepackaged Naan from the grocery store, but it costs like $5 for one package. This was really easy (and quick, and fast). I adapted it from here.

Ingredients (for 2 flatbreads -- I would double it next time):

2 c flour

2 T sugar

1 t baking soda

1 t salt

6 T plain yogurt + a few T water to make a workable dough (if you use nonfat yogurt, you can add olive oil instead here)

Directions:

Knead everything with your hands until it comes together. Let it rest, covered, for half an hour or so if you have time. With a floured rolling pin, roll it out as thin as you possibly can (it's hard, don't stress, just give up when you get tired), and cut it into rounds. Then, heat up an ungreased (besides whatever it's seasoned with) cast iron pan on medium heat (the pan should get pretty hot pretty fast). Put a round directly on the pan. You'll think it will stick; it will be okay. It will smell like burning; it will be okay. After a minute or two it will start to get brown with a few black areas. Flip it and cook the other side the same way. Serve with the curry and rice:

Enjoy,
Tofu