My family loves Paneer... me not so much.  This dish works for the whole family, greens for me and paneer for them.  Easy to make and full of flavor. 

This recipe yields 3 to 4 servings. 
​ 

​This is a variation of Chole - a north Indian chickpea dish that is available in most restaurants.  
This recipe serves 8. 

​Ingredients:

• 4 1/2 Cups  cooked chickpeas (if using canned chickpeas - approx 3 cans drained and rinsed)
• 2 Tbsp light cooking oil (I use grapeseed oil)
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 large onion, diced small
• ½ cup  crushed tomatoes
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp ginger, minced
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 ½ tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• 2 tsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp turmeric
• ½ to 1 tsp cayenne powder
• ½ cup cilantro chopped
• Salt to taste

 
Directions:
Heat oil in a pan on medium heat.  Add onions, cumin seeds and a pinch of salt.  Stir until onions start to soften and cumin seeds start to slightly darken.  Add garlic, ground, cumin, coriander, turmeric, garam masala and cayenne.  Stir until fragrant.  Add chickpeas, a little water and salt.  Mix well to ensure that the chickpeas are coated with the spices.  Cover and cook for 5 minutes.  Add tomatoes and a little more water to ensure that the spices aren’t sticking to the bottom.  Cook for 10 minutes.  Add the coconut milk, stir and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.  Taste, if more salt needed, this is a good time to add it.   Stir in ½ the cilantro and simmer for 2 more minutes.   Add the rest of the cilantro right before serving. 
I served it on top of Jasmine rice.
 
Enjoy!   

This recipe is a healthier and quick variation of the Chicken Tikka Masala.  
Serves 2 to 3 people. 

Ingredients:
6 chicken thighs, skinless and boneless
2 1/2 cups buttermilk
½ cup plus 2 tablespoon tandoori paste (store bought or homemade)
2 Tbsp oil
½ tsp whole cuimin
1 poblano pepper, chopped
½ red bell pepper, chopped
1 large tomato, roughly chopped
1 medium onion, cut in half and sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tbsp tomato paste
½ to 1 Tsp cayenne pepper
1 Tsp lime juice
2 Tbsp clilantro
Salt to taste
 
Directions:
Mix 2 cups buttermilk and ½ cup of tandoori paste. Add chicken.  Marinate for 1 hour or more.  Heat grill on medium.  Grill the chicken until almost done.   While the chicken is cooking, in a cast iron pan or skillet, saute onions, peppers, cumin seeds and garlic until soft.  Sprinkle some salt.  Add tomatoes, lime juice, cayenne pepper, tomato paste and tandoori paste.  Stir and cook over low heat until tomatoes start breaking down.   Thin out the remaining 1/2 cup of buttermilk with 1/3 cup of water and stir so it’s blended. Add the thinned out buttermilk to pan.   Take chicken off grill and slice it.  Add chicken to the skillet and stir. Simmer on low until the sauce thickens a little and chicken is done.  Stir in ½ the cilantro.  Serve over jasmine rice and top with rest of the cilantro.

This recipe yields 3 to 4 servings.

to Ingredients:
For Chicken –
2 large chicken breasts – cubed in 2 inch pieces
1 tbsp veg oil( I used grape seed oil)
¼ tsp of ground cumin, salt, turmeric, garam masala
1/8 tsp of cayenne pepper
 
For the greens sauce –
2 tbsp of Veg oil
2/3 cup onions, diced
½ tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp ginger paste
1/2 tsp garlic paste
5 oz  baby spinach(approx. 4 large handfuls) 
4 stems of swiss chard(remove stems and finely chop, julienne the leaves and set aside with spinach)
½ tsp of turmeric, ground cumin, ground coriander, garam masala
¼ tsp cayenne
Salt to taste
lemon wedges ​
 
Directions:
Heat a large thick bottom pan, add oil. Coat the cubed chicken with all the spices and lightly brown.  Remove chicken and set aside.
Add 2 tbsp of oil to pan, add onions and cumin seeds.  Season with salt. Once the onions start to soften, add chopped stems of swiss chard, sauté for 2 min on medium heat.  Add ginger and all the spices.  When the onions become translucent, add the water, spinach and julienned swiss chard leaves. Stir and let cook until soft and wilted.  Using a handheld blender(stick blender), blend the greens until pureed. 
Add the chicken back to the pan, cover and simmer over low heat until cooked through.  Squeeze lemon on before serving.  Serve with naan bread/roti and rice.

About This Recipe
"I wanted to make a soup at Thanksgiving which celebrated my Indian Heritage as well as my life in America. Being a vegetarian myself, I know how hard it is to find soups which are friendly to vegetarians and vegans. This is a great soup for Vegans as it uses coconut milk instead of cream. It is a sweet and spicy soup."
​
Ingredients
3 tablespoons grapeseed oil or 3 tablespoons canola oil
1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed
1 1/4 cups onions, chopped
1 1/4 cups carrots, chopped
4 celery ribs, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 scallions, chopped
32 ounces vegetable stock ( unsalted)
2/3 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cumin seed, Toasted and ground
1/2 teaspoon cayenne ( add more or less depending on spice preference)
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/3 teaspoon garam masala
salt
pepper
 
----
 
Directions
 
1.Heat oven to 400 degrees.
2.Place butternut squash in a cookie sheet, drizzle with 2 tbsp of oil, sprinkle 1/4 tsp of salt and pepper.
Roast until squash is tender but not mushy. Stir the squash during the roasting process for even cooking.
3.While the squash is roasting, heat 1 tbsp of oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrots and celery.
Once the onion is translucent, add garlic and green onion, stir and cook for 1 minute. Turn the heat on low, add all the spices to the pot, stir and cook for 2 minutes. Add roasted squash and stock. Cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Turn off heat. Puree soup using a stick blender or in a blender. (If using a blender, pour soup back in pot).  Stir in coconut milk. Salt and pepper to taste. Turn heat on low and warm through.