Vegan + Delicious = ??

Yesterday one of my FB friends (actually a friend of Ben's) stirred up some chatter about whether or not vegan food could ever be tasty. I've definitely had some pretty bland, not too appetizing vegan food but I *do not* think this means that vegan and yummy are mutually exclusive. In fact, just the other day I realized that one of my all-time favorite dishes to make is in fact vegan.

I should mention that I generally like food that could probably be classified as "weird hippie food", so just keep that in mind before proceeding, but I have to say that this dish is not only tasty but also very simple to make (and cheap depending on the ingredients you decide to use), and it freezes/reheats very well. The original recipe comes from http://www.101cookbooks.com/, one of my favorite cooking blogs. Heidi uses tofu, cauliflower and green beans but you can really use any combination of veggies you want, and I usually omit the tofu. I've made it with a cauliflower/potato combo, and also with a cauliflower/butternut squash combo, both were delicious.

RECIPE: ROASTED VEGGIE AND COCONUT CURRY

Ingredients

1 cup coconut milk

1-2 tbsp. curry powder (I like the Lunds brand, or the blend from Bill's Imported Foods)

1 tsp cayanne pepper (optional - I added it because I like spicyness :) )

1 tsp salt

1/3 cup water

3 (approx) cups roasted vegetables

1 onion, chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, minced

Quinoa or rice to serve the curry over

toasted cashews (optional)

1) chop the veggies into about 1 inch pieces, toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast on a baking sheet until done (about 30 min). While these are roasting, chop the onions and garlic. Set aside.

2) toast the cashews, if using (you can probably use the same baking sheet). Set aside.

3) Pour 1/2 cup of the coconut milk into a large skillet or saucepan and bring to a simmer. Stir in curry powder, cayanne pepper and salt and work out the clumps.

4) Then add the chopped onion and minced garlic and cook for about a minute, then add the remaining coconut milk and water and cook for a few minutes to reduce the sauce and soften the onion. If the sauce gets too thick you can add more water.

5) Add the veggies! Cover and simmer for a minute or so...

6) Serve with quinoa or rice and top with some toasted cashews. Yum :) (I usually use quinoa just because of the nutrition content - high protien and fiber - but I'm sure brown or white rice would be great). This is also a prime opportunity to continue reading about such relevant issues as Johnny Depp's guitar.

I know of several other awesome vegan recipes, so just watch me prove the haters wrong :)