I saw this recipe on pinterest recently and given I (ironically, it is a long list) had all of these ingredients, I could not stop thinking about it. I strayed really far from the original, but am happy with where I ended up. I could eat this all day long. I am aware it is not a truly authentic Thai list of ingredients, but it tastes delicious at the end so I'm not concerned. I don't like rambling on to sell you a recipe so instead, here are a few podcasts I listened to this past week that I really enjoyed. Not sure how you listen to podcasts, I trust you can search for them.
It is a long list of ingredients, and quite a bit of chopping, but worth the time. I add some grilled chicken or tofu, both of which I marinate in sriracha, sesame oil and a bit of tamari. Salmon would be AMAZING here. Any leftovers will keep for a few days, covered in the fridge.
The Salad
1 bell pepper, small dice
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1/2 a red onion, small dice
2 Persian cucumbers, small dice
1/2 a small head of purple cabbage, finely shredded
1 mango (or 2 ataulfo mangos, preferable if you can find them), small dice
1 small bunch cilantro
1 small bunch mint
1 large lime
sea salt and pepper
nub of coconut oil
1 medium head of cauliflower, riced (about 1 1/2 cups prepared)
1/2 cup canned coconut milk
2 avocados, for garnish
toasted cashews, for garnish
Peanut Sauce
1/2 cup creamy, salted peanut butter
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup rice vinegar
juice of two large limes
2 inch nub of ginger, grated
1 clove of garlic, grated
dash of fish sauce, optional
1 Tbsp. honey or agave nectar
2 tsp. tamari or soy sauce
sea salt and pepper
Recipe Instructions
Put all the prepared produce in a large mixing bowl. Chop the cilantro and mint, add that too. Squeeze the lime over everything, add a pinch of salt and pepper and toss everything to mix. Set aside, room temperature or in the fridge.
Heat the coconut oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Add the riced cauliflower, pinch of salt and pepper and saute until it begins to soften. Add the coconut milk and saute another 2-3 minutes until softened. Set aside to cool down.
When the cauliflower cools, make your sauce. In a bowl, combine the peanut butter, water, rice vinegar, juice of both limes, grated ginger, garlic, fish sauce if using, honey or agave and tamari. Add a pinch of salt and pepper and whisk everything together until smooth. Taste for seasoning, if you like some heat, add a dash of sriracha or cayenne. Add water or lime juice to thin if needed. Keep it mind it will firm up in the fridge.
Add the cooled cauliflower to the bowl of vegetables and toss everything together. Season with salt and pepper as needed. Serve the salad with the peanut sauce, avocado and toasted cashews on top.
This is likely not the first time, nor will it be the last, you'll hear praises for Melissa's cookbook, The Minimalist Kitchen, in the food blogsphere. Over the last few years, Melissa has pared down her kitchen and cooking to focus her work on a "less is more" approach to food. It is concise and reasonable. Delicious by way of straight forward techniques. This recipe for example. I usually roast our cauliflower straight from florets, but the pre-steam made such a difference in their texture, more tender and gentle. I like them both ways. It's little things like that. I believe there are a few kinds of cookbook consumers; this book is for the person looking for quick, weeknight, crowd-pleasers made from ingredients you likely have in your pantry, or will have no trouble finding - Chilaquiles, Thai Spiced Rice Bowls, Make-Ahead Yeast Rolls - timeless sorts of things. She has tips for staying organized and decluttering your equipment and make ahead tips or pairings for nearly every recipe. It's a meal planners dream tool, really, a book to solve weeknight dinner issues. I plan on gifting to a handful of mom friends who just want real food, without the fuss. Not to mention HER HOUSE, which I have envied for years now, but that is a personal problem. Cheers, Melissa, you nailed it. Now, where's my label maker?
CURRY CAULIFLOWER // Serves 4 From The Minimalist Kitchen by Melissa Coleman Harissa is sold usually as more of a spice paste, but you can also purchase it dried. It is sold online, Trader Joes, and most health food stores.
1 large head of cauliflower, cut into small florets 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil 1/2 tsp. sea salt 2 tsp. curry powder 1/2 tsp. harissa 1/8 tsp. cumin
plain yogurt, cilantro, toasted cashews (our personal additions for serving)
Preheat the oven to 450'. Line a baking sheet with parchment and set aside.
In a saucepan fitted with a steamer basket, add water to just below the bottom of the basket. Bring to a boil. Add the cauliflower, reduce the heat to medium, cover and steam for 5 minutes. This will begin the cooking process. Transfer the cauliflower to the prepared baking sheet. In a small bowl, stir together the remaining ingredients. Drizzle over the cauliflower and toss to evenly coat. Bake for 15 minutes. Stir, and bake for another 15 minutes until the cauliflower begins to char on the edges. Taste and sprinkle with salt to finish. We served ours with plain yogurt, and garnished with toasted cashew pieces and cilantro.
I have an overflowing clipboard of recipes I've ripped out from magazines. You read that correctly, clipboard, probably not the right tool for the task but I love them. In my other life of wanting to be a director or boss of something I carry clipboards around and wear trendy glasses and carry almond milk lattes and graciously boss people around. Though I'm sure real boss people these days use their phones. Alas, I suppose I am the boss of my kitchen so therein my clipboard lies. This recipe came from the stack and I can remember exactly when I ripped it out - on an airplane along with a tortilla soup recipe that suggested a nub of butter to make the broth silky smooth and I still do that. There are about three or four dips or dressings on this site that are different amounts of the same-ish ingredients and I can't help it, I like what I like. When our quick meals are sandwiches, bowls of leftovers, salads and tacos, it's the spreads and dressings that bring the otherwise average meals to life. Our fridge sometimes has 8+ jars of things up top but they are my arsenal for quick meals. Many things can be thrown over rice or in a tortilla and qualify as dinner with a good sauce. My best lunch this week was this sauce, roasted sweet potatoes (which I already make a big batch of for Cleo), my fave feta and more herbs in toasty corn tortillas. Hope you can find a good home for it too.
MAYAN PUMPKIN SEED DIP // Serves 8 Recipe adapted from Food and Wine 2013
The original recipe said to remove the jalapeno seeds but I strongly disagree. The dip needs the heat for flavor and there is enough fat here to mellow it out. It could handle two peppers if you really like spicy. I'm a baby with spice and I know every pepper is different but I threw in the whole thing and it was great.
1 cup pumpkin seeds 2 Tbsp. grapeseed or other neutral oil 3 cloves garlic, chopped 1/2 cup chopped shallots (about 4) 1 large jalapeno, stemmed and chopped sea salt, to taste 1/3 cup each parsley and cilantro juice of one lime 1/4 cup orange juice 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil 1/4 cup water
In a saucepan over medium heat, toast your pumpkin seeds until just fragrant, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a food processor. Add the oil to the pan to warm up. Add the garlic, shallot, jalapeno and a generous pinch of salt. Saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the food processor to cool. Add the parsley and cilantro, lime juice, orange juice, oil, water and another pinch of salt. Run the processor until combined but still a little chunky. Add water or citrus to loosen if needed - you want it to be more like guacamole than nut butter. Salt to taste. The dip will keep in the fridge for a week, where I believe it gets better.
