Curries have been popular in Australia since the 19th century, reportedly helping newly arrived British colonialists adapt to the island continent’s unfamiliar proteins, like wombat and kangaroo. Here, we offer you a vegan version of the dish.
Ingredients
One 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
1 green chile, roughly chopped (seeded if you prefer less heat)
Coarse salt (kosher or sea)
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 large onions, peeled and finely chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chile powder
1 large head cauliflower (about 1 1/4 pounds), broken into bite-size florets
One 14-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk
3/4 cup unsalted cashews
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1 small bunch cilantro, leaves chopped, for serving
1 lemon wedge, for serving
Cooked basmati rice, for serving
Directions
Step 1
Place the ginger, garlic, and green chile in a mortar and pestle with a pinch of salt. Mash until a paste forms and set aside. Alternately, finely chop the ginger, garlic and green chile together, sprinkle with a pinch of salt, then mash into a coarse paste using the flat portion of your chef’s knife.
Step 2
In a large skillet with a lid, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Cook the onions until golden, about 10 minutes. Add the ginger paste and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes.
Step 3
Stir in the tomato paste, coriander, cumin, chile powder, and 1 1/4 teaspoons salt. Stir in the cauliflower and coconut milk and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the cauliflower is tender, 10 to 12 minutes.
Step 4
Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Fry the cashews, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes. Transfer to a plate to cool.
Step 5
Add the peas and garam masala to the cauliflower mixture and cook, stirring, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt.
Step 6
Top the curry with the cashews, cilantro, and a squeeze of lemon just before serving. Serve with a big steaming bowl of basmati rice.
Serves 4 — Recipe adapted from Made in India: Recipes from an Indian Family Kitchen by Meera Sodha (Flatiron Books 2015)
When food writer Francis Lam’s recipe appeared in Gourmet magazine more than a decade ago, it was called “Let-My-Eggplant-Go-Free! Spaghetti,” a rather curious moniker. And one that doesn’t hint at how satisfying this rather homely dish—Italian peasant food at its best—really is. Whatever you call it, add it to your repertoire.
Ingredients
Coarse salt (kosher or sea)
1 pound eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more to finish
3 garlic cloves, peeled and lightly crushed
Leaves from 2 sprigs thyme or oregano, chopped
1 cup vegetable stock or water
1 pound uncooked long pasta, such as spaghetti or linguine
2 tablespoons minced oil-cured sun-dried tomatoes
6 basil leaves, slivered
Freshly ground black pepper
Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (optional)
Directions
Step 1
Lightly salt the slices of eggplant, stack them back together, and let them hang out for 20 minutes in a strainer. Meanwhile, pour the olive oil into a wide, heavy saucepan over low heat and add the garlic cloves.
Step 2
Dry off the eggplant and cut it into chunks. When you start hearing the garlic sizzle a little and can smell it, drop in your eggplant and stir to coat it all with oil. Turn up the heat a little bit to mediumhigh, add the thyme, and stir. When the eggplant starts to turn translucent and soften, add the liquid and let it come to a boil, then turn it back down to medium-low. Let it bubble for a bit and cover it, leaving a crack for steam to escape. Stir once in a while, so the bottom doesn’t scorch.
Step 3
While the eggplant is softening, bring a large pot of water to boil, salt it, and cook the pasta to al dente. Check on the eggplant while the pasta cooks. The liquid should be mostly absorbed or reduced after about 20 minutes. Once the eggplant looks mashable, mash it up with a spoon and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. It should be silky-smooth and garlicky and humming with oil.
Step 4
Drain the pasta and toss with the eggplant purée. Stir in the tomatoes, basil, and pepper and gild the lily with some more olive oil and a handful of cheese before serving.
Serves 4 as a main course, 6 as a starter — Recipe adapted from Food52 Genius Recipes: 100 Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook (Ten Speed Press 2015)
Barramundi a la Vinaigrette with Quick-Pickled Red Onions Recipe, Spotlight on Leafy Greens, Choosing Whole Fish and Tailoring Exercise Intensity to Goals
Salads easily go from side dish to main dish when you add a protein. Not just for lunch, they can be a healthy and delicious dinner, as you’ll see with this week’s recipe. Dark leafy greens deliver amazing amounts of nutrients, and the research I’m sharing will make you want to enjoy them at every meal. There’s also detail on the latest from the Framingham Heart Study, which now spans three generations of participants and drills down on the relationship between fitness intensity and physical fitness—the findings should encourage everyone to keep moving.
BARRAMUNDI À LA VINAIGRETTE WITH QUICK-PICKLED RED ONIONS
One of the most pleasurable evenings I ever spent in Australia was cooking dinner in the kitchen of food entrepreneur Melissa Wong and her husband, Robert. A simple vinaigrette, whipped up in minutes and serving as a salad dressing, a marinade, and a sauce, is the unifying factor in this dish. If you can’t find barramundi—a popular fish down under—halibut, cod, or another mild white fish is equally delicious. The quick-pickled red onions are a great condiment for this and many other dishes.
Ingredients
For the pickled onions:
1 medium red onion
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
For the vinaigrette:
Juice and zest of a lemon
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons minced fresh herbs, such as dill, flat-leaf parsley, and oregano
For the main dish:
4 barramundi fillets, each 6 to 8 ounces
4 loosely packed cups of baby arugula, spinach, or mixed greens
12 cherry tomatoes, halved
2 Persian cucumbers, diced
1 lemon, quartered
Directions
Step 1
Make the pickled onions: Thinly slice the red onion into rings and place them in a pint canning jar. Bring the water and apple cider vinegar to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir in the sugar and salt and pour the liquid over the onions. Let cool to room temperature before serving.
Step 2
Make the vinaigrette: In a small bowl, combine the lemon zest and juice, vinegar, honey, and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Whisk until the salt and honey dissolve. Slowly add the olive oil, continuously whisking until the vinaigrette emulsifies. Stir in the minced herbs. Taste the vinaigrette, adding more vinegar or salt and pepper as desired. Pour 2/3 of the vinaigrette into a separate container and set aside.
Step 3
Place the fish fillets on a rimmed sheet pan and lightly brush both sides with the 1/3 of the vinaigrette from the mixing bowl. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
Step 4
Toss the greens, cherry tomatoes, and cucumbers with 2 to 3 tablespoons of the reserved vinaigrette to lightly coat and divide among 4 plates. Top with equal amounts of the pickled onions.
Step 5
Light a grill or preheat a well-oiled stovetop grill pan to medium-high. Arrange the fillets, skin side down, on a well-oiled grill grate or in the preheated pan. Cook until the edges begin to turn opaque, 2 to 3 minutes for thin fillets and 4 to 5 minutes for thicker fillets. Carefully turn and cook the other side until the fish is cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes more, taking care not to overcook them. Arrange a fillet on each of the prepared plates. Drizzle with the reserved vinaigrette and garnish each plate with a lemon quarter.
Yields 4 servings.
Healthy Ingredient Spotlight
Great Greens
When it comes to nutrition, dark green leafy vegetables are powerhouses. According to the USDA, spinach, kale, collards, mustard and turnip greens, chard, and other dark salad greens deliver vitamins A, C, E, and K and a high amount of the B vitamin folate; minerals such as iron, magnesium, potassium, and calcium; and antioxidants that protect cells and help fight cancer (check out the amazing new research on spinach below). They’re also a great way to fill up because they’re so low in calories.
Besides salads, get more greens into your diet by sautéing them with some chopped garlic in extra virgin olive oil and cutting them into ribbons to add to sandwiches, soups and stews, stir-fries, and omelets.
Healthy Kitchen Nugget
Choosing Whole Fish
Unless you buy flash-frozen fillets, you might opt for whole fish that you can scrutinize for freshness and then ask the fishmonger to fillet for you. That’s because it’s easier to see the signs of freshness in a whole fish: bright and clear eyes (not sunken), bright-red gills (not rusty red), scales with a sheen, firm flesh that springs back when you press it, and the scent of the ocean—nothing more. If you do buy fillets, they should be uniform in color, with no discoloration or darkening on the flesh and no dryness along the edges. If marked “previously frozen,” they should have been defrosted that day.
For Your Best Health
Spinach and Colon Cancer Prevention
The latest research from a Texas A&M University team of scientists, published in the journal Gut Microbes, has uncovered more detail about the relationship between spinach, gut health, genes, and colon cancer, which is the fourth-most common cancer and second-leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the US.
The team’s previous animal-based studies showed that eating green vegetables and fiber reduces the risk of colon cancer by as much as half and that spinach in particular is very effective in preventing polyps, growths that can develop into cancer. Those earlier findings prompted them to look at how spinach might benefit people genetically at risk for colon cancer from the rare hereditary disease familial adenomatous polyposis, which causes hundreds or even thousands of growths in the colon from a very young age.
Using lab animals, the scientists were able to show that eating spinach led to significant tumor-fighting activity in the colon and small intestine. Spinach boosted diversity in the gut microbiome, led to changes in gene expression to help prevent cancer, and raised levels of healthful anti-inflammatory fatty acids.
The next step for the team is to replicate the study on people. But the takeaway is universal and immediate: “We believe eating spinach can also be protective for people who do not have familial adenomatous polyposis,” said principal investigator Roderick Dashwood, PhD, director of the Center for Epigenetics and Disease Prevention at the Texas A&M University Health Institute of Biosciences and Technology. When to start? “The sooner the better. You shouldn’t wait until polyps arise in order to start to do these sorts of preventive things.”
Fitness Flash
Tailoring Exercise Intensity to Goals
We know that exercise promotes good health. Now a new study involving the third generation of participants in the famed Framingham Heart Study and published in the European Heart Journal offers insights into the connection between physical activity and physical fitness.
Cardiologist, assistant professor, and clinician-investigator Matthew Nayor, MD, MPH, and his team at the Boston University School of Medicine found more evidence that exercise is vital to undo the hazards of a sedentary lifestyle across the board and that people who either take higher-than-average steps per day or do moderate-to-vigorous physical activity have higher-than-average fitness levels. That means that for people who can’t do more intense forms of exercise, a lot of walking is very helpful, even if you do it slowly.
To find out your exercise pace, you can easily time yourself:
60-99 steps per minute is low
100-129 steps per minute is moderate
130 or more steps per minute is vigorous
If your goal is to increase your level of fitness, the most efficient way is with higher amounts of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. The study found that exercise at this intensity is more than three times more efficient than walking at a relatively slow pace.
One of the most pleasurable evenings I ever spent in Australia was cooking dinner in the kitchen of food entrepreneur Melissa Wong and her husband, Robert. A simple vinaigrette, whipped up in minutes and serving as a salad dressing, a marinade, and a sauce, is the unifying factor in this dish. If you can’t find barramundi—a popular fish down under—halibut, cod, or another mild white fish is equally delicious. The quick-pickled red onions are a great condiment for this and many other dishes.
Ingredients
For the pickled onions:
1 medium red onion
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
For the vinaigrette:
Juice and zest of a lemon
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons minced fresh herbs, such as dill, flat-leaf parsley, and oregano
For the main dish:
4 barramundi fillets, each 6 to 8 ounces
4 loosely packed cups of baby arugula, spinach, or mixed greens
12 cherry tomatoes, halved
2 Persian cucumbers, diced
1 lemon, quartered
Directions
Step 1
Make the pickled onions: Thinly slice the red onion into rings and place them in a pint canning jar. Bring the water and apple cider vinegar to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir in the sugar and salt and pour the liquid over the onions. Let cool to room temperature before serving.
Step 2
Make the vinaigrette: In a small bowl, combine the lemon zest and juice, vinegar, honey, and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Whisk until the salt and honey dissolve. Slowly add the olive oil, continuously whisking until the vinaigrette emulsifies. Stir in the minced herbs. Taste the vinaigrette, adding more vinegar or salt and pepper as desired. Pour 2/3 of the vinaigrette into a separate container and set aside.
Step 3
Place the fish fillets on a rimmed sheet pan and lightly brush both sides with the 1/3 of the vinaigrette from the mixing bowl. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
Step 4
Toss the greens, cherry tomatoes, and cucumbers with 2 to 3 tablespoons of the reserved vinaigrette to lightly coat and divide among 4 plates. Top with equal amounts of the pickled onions.
Step 5
Light a grill or preheat a well-oiled stovetop grill pan to medium-high. Arrange the fillets, skin side down, on a well-oiled grill grate or in the preheated pan. Cook until the edges begin to turn opaque, 2 to 3 minutes for thin fillets and 4 to 5 minutes for thicker fillets. Carefully turn and cook the other side until the fish is cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes more, taking care not to overcook them. Arrange a fillet on each of the prepared plates. Drizzle with the reserved vinaigrette and garnish each plate with a lemon quarter.
