Tomato Chickpea Curry with Swiss Chard + Spiced Pepitas

What a perfect dish for a cold, overcast day in Oklahoma. The warming spices of the curry and the smoky, spiced pepitas are super satisfying. Plus, this is similar to another recipe I've posted here before that can be made in 30 minutes which is perfect for a quick lunch that looks a lot fancier than it actually is. There's something about that yogurt zig zag that I love. The contrasting colors and the pretty garnish really make a simple dish feel pretty decadent. This is vegan, if you use a coconut yogurt or a cashew cream instead. It's also gluten free and has great plant-based protein from the chickpeas, the pepitas and the addition of the yogurt. It is great with nan or toasted whole grain tortillas - both can be found gluten free at most health food stores.

INGREDIENTS
1 cup or 1 can of cooked chickpeas
1 can of fire roasted tomatoes or 1 cup tomatoes, oven roasted and chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 1|2 - 2 cups vegetable stock
1|2 of a yellow onion, chopped in large pieces
2 carrots quartered and chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 cups chopped swiss chard
1|2 cup raw pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
fresh cilantro
greek yogurt
juice of 1|2 lemon
1|2 t curry powder
1|4 t cumin, cayenne, smoked paprika
sea salt + black pepper
2 T olive oil
nutritional yeast, optional but recommended

DIRECTIONS
Warm the olive oil in a large saucepan or deep skillet to medium high. Sauté the onions and carrots until they start to brown. Season them with a sprinkle of sea salt. Add the garlic for about five minutes until it becomes fragrant. Stir in the tomato paste and the curry powder. Deglaze the pan with the veg stock. Add about 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast if you have it. Stir in the roasted tomatoes and the chickpeas. Let this simmer and thicken for about 10 minutes. While this is reducing, heat a small skillet over medium low and add a small amount of olive oil. Add the pepitas and a pinch of salt, cumin, cayenne and smoked paprika. Stay with this pan so that they don't burn. When they start to pop after about 5 minutes, remove them from the heat. Season the chickpeas with black pepper and add the swiss chard. Cover the pan and turn off the heat. Chop or tear the cilantro leaves. Mix the lemon juice and the greek yogurt together in a small bowl. If you have a plastic squeeze bottle, add a splash of water to the yogurt. This makes a perfect zig zag and they're super cheap plus great for storing homemade sauces and salad dressings. You can also create the same effect with a spoon. Top your curry with the spiced pepitas, cilantro lemon yogurt.

ENJOY!!

Summer Cucumber Salad

A summer favorite that can be made in under 30 minutes is a real winner when it comes to lunches, picnics and get togethers. Using all of these fresh, seasonal ingredients makes it a snap. They all grow really well in Oklahoma and can tolerate our intense heat during the summer when other plants are struggling to produce. Be creative with homemade vinaigrettes, using your favorite herbs and vinegars. I've included a simple one along with this recipe that I love.

I love the way our little emerald path looks in the summer when it's super green and freshly mowed. This leads to our garden, which makes the walk a little magical when you head out to pick a big bowl of goodies for lunch or dinner. 

I liked using these spicy cayenne peppers for the heat in my salad. You can use jalapeno or pequin peppers. If those are too spicy, crushed red pepper or dried cayenne are more mellow. We have fresh basil popping up all over the yard, even in the cracks in our patio!

Ripe cucumbers are great for lots of uses other than salads and dips. Great with yogurt on felafel and with avocado on sandwiches, they also make a refreshing addition to your cold ice water, infusing it with a green flavor that is unmistakable. You can also let some slices sit in room temperature water for a few hours and use it as a refreshing facial tonic, especially after sun exposure. Nature provides for us exactly what we need when we need it most.

Leafy green parsley is one of the most versatile herbs you can grow all season. Unlike cilantro which bolts quickly and turns to coriander, parsley lasts all summer long especially when clipped back every couple of weeks. It's good on just about everything! Try adding it to pesto, marinades and all of your dressings and sauces. A perfect garnish that should always be eaten!

These young leeks are a variety I've never grown before. They seem to be a cross between that and a flat leaf green onion. I chopped these up for my salad as well and it added just the right amount of mild onion flavor to a raw salad. It's a great substitution for sliced red onion if those are too strong for your liking. They have a mild garlicky flavor which was delicious!

INGREDIENTS
3 - 4 medium cucumbers, peeled and gently seeded
2 - 3 chopped tomatoes
thinly sliced red onion
minced green onion
minced cayenne, jalapeno or pequin peppers (optional)
chopped parsley and basil

HERBED DIJON VINAIGRETTE
1|2 cup sherry or champagne or red wine vinegar
1|4 cup good quality olive oil
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 teaspoon honey
1 clove minced garlic
freshly chopped parsley, thyme and basil
salt + pepper to taste

Toss all ingredients into a small jar and shake vigorously for about a minute until emulsified.
Gently mix everything together in a bowl. You'll want all of the ingredients to be combined but not lose their shape. Toss with your favorite vinaigrette and adjust the salt and pepper. Serve immediately or chill for up to two hours before serving. Delicious as a side dish with grilled chicken, salmon or shrimp.

ENJOY!

Tomato Chickpea Curry with Kale

I think most everyone has a deeper relationship with soups and stews in the fall and winter when warm broth, spices, root vegetables and hearty greens are in season and taste their best. I always look forward to using my kale, spinach and chard this time of year because I can simply walk into my garden and cut a big armful to throw right into the pot. Eating foods that are in season simply means that they are actively producing during the time of year when they naturally thrive. Their nutrients and nutritional profiles are at their peak and our bodies absorb them readily. This principle also applies to nature and wildlife. We eat foods that are higher in healthy fats to support a balance between the cold temperatures and the ecology inside of our bodies. Our feet and hands run cold and our circulatory systems thrive on the boosting properties of warming spices like cinnamon, cayenne, cumin, cardamom, turmeric and ginger. This also the season when we become susceptible to virus and pathogens and these foods and spices are great at stimulating immune response.

Not all soups have to take hours to simmer. I made this one for lunch using organic canned beans and I was sitting at the table in 30 minutes! Obviously, if you have the time to soak and cook your beans and roast your tomatoes, it would be twice as good for you. But if you need to buy canned foods for quickness and ease, always buy organic because you won't find anything in there but a little water and salt, which is optional. This curry is warm, spicy and very satisfying. I made the base of mine a little creamy by using potato broth. You can find this in health food stores in paper cartons, or of course you could make your own (which I did) by boiling down some potatoes in a little water and tossing it in the blender or using an immersion blender. It makes the base of the soup a little heavier without using a bunch of cream.

INGREDIENTS
1 large or 2 medium carrots
3 - 4 stalks of celery
2 large cloves of garlic, minced
1|2 yellow onion, chopped
1 can of fire roasted tomatoes with their juice
1 large can of organic chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
5 - 6 large leaves of kale, stemmed and chopped
2 cups of unsalted potato stock
1 cup of filtered water
1 - 2 t curry powder
1 T nutritional yeast
big pinch of cayenne
salt + pepper to taste
olive oil

DIRECTIONS
Warm enough olive oil in the bottom of a heavy soup pot enough to completely coat the surface. Saute the onion, carrot and celery for about 7 minutes or until it begins to brown. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes. De-glaze the pan with the can of tomatoes. Add the potato stock, chickpeas and seasonings. Cover and let it simmer for 10 minutes. Add the kale for the last 5 minutes until it turns bright green. You're ready! I like to serve my curries with a dollop of plain greek yogurt and some fresh cilantro. You could substitute fresh parsley and sour cream if you wanted to. Other optional embellishments could be pepitas (pumpkin seeds) or toasted cashews.

ENJOY!

Kombucha Home Brewing Workshop 3 + 4

This was the third Home Brewing Workshop for The Herban Fortress, hosted by Native Roots Market in downtown Oklahoma City. We had an amazing turn out and met lots of new faces. Friendships and business relationships were forged. It was a pleasant afternoon in December as we snacked on fresh, crisp radishes picked from my garden that morning. We sipped on different flavors of my home brew and talked about urban homesteading, fermentation, sustainability, health and wellness.

Beautiful green and black teas and hibiscus flowers were displayed to showcase the simple ingredients that go into making a delicious home brew. There was fresh culture and magical starter tea set out to touch, smell and explore.

These picture perfect radishes had been picked just a few hours before the workshop. They were spicy, crunchy and tasty dipped in my roasted red pepper hummus.

I always have a SPIDER CIDER display with me where ever I go, available in three sizes. Integrating this wellness tonic along with 8 ounces of kombucha is what I recommend for a daily routine that keeps your immune system responsive and alert as well as nourishes the gut and the digestive system. They both regulate internal ph and work in tandem to purify the blood and the skin.

Pretty little pro-biotic teas for the starter kits that are teeming with millions of organisms, bacteria and yeast.

I served a roasted garlic and red pepper hummus topped with smoked paprika and fresh parsley, a warm tomato bruschetta with balsamic and wilted basil, fresh mozzarella pearls, crispy radishes and my Herbed Seed and Nut Crackersfrom the blog. Everything was hand made (except for the mozz) and gluten free. These were perfect and delicious for December as I always tailor my table around seasonal foods and flavors.

These raw 'cheesecake' bars were made of cashews, swirled with dark chocolate and had an almond cacao crust. Sweetened with maple syrup and coconut oil, they were also vegan and gluten free. What a treat!

Jelly jars and paper straws for the home brew cocktails.

Proud of this pretty little bundle.

Guests dined, sipped and chatted for the first hour as everyone got to know one another and opened up the conversation about the benefits of home brewing and making kombucha in our own kitchens.

I brought four different flavors of my home brew to taste, showcasing some creative combinations such as black cherry ginger and peach pomegranate.

A BIG thanks to Native Roots Market for generously putting us up in their swanky club house for the day, and to everyone who came and made it special!

I'm happy to announce the date and location of my next workshop! We will gather on May 3 at the BE LOVE Yoga Studio in Tulsa which is formerly the I AM Yoga Studio. They have gone thought some changes and updates recently and are eager to roll out a new season of events and classes.

Check out the official event post on my blog here or visit the studio page to read more. You can pre-register here to reserve your spot. Space is limited!

All photos by Greer Inez

I hope you'll join us - HAPPY BREWING!

Spring Vegetable Omelette with Fresh Mozzarella

The word omelette is kind of traditional and this recipe is far from that. Typically, you layer the ingredients inside the egg and fold it over to make a half moon but I don't really stick to a method. It's really more like a hard scramble. The secret is not to overwork the eggs because they will start to fall apart. Moving them across the pan in large sheets keeps them firm and in larger pieces. I also served my cheese on the side in fresh wedges instead of melting it on top, cafe style. I love eating food that's in season. It's always going to be the freshest in the markets and of course, if you are growing it yourself. This is a good way to incorporate lots of greens into your breakfast. I have so many varieties in my winter garden right now that I eat a combination of them with every meal. I prefer a 2:1 ratio of whites to yolks, so I separated a couple of mine. You can use whole eggs if you prefer. Take a little walk through my winter garden of greens with me on the way to the recipe....

This beautiful, blue kale is my all - star. It performs better than any other cool weather green. It's strong, hardy and vigorous! I keep it pinched back all winter long, eating the larger leaves first. The baby leaves are sweet and tender enough for salad. 

This mesclun mix of lettuces are the glamour girls of the greens. Lacy, pointed and dotted with dark red, they are super delicate and perfect eaten immediately picked and always raw.

Spinach is second in line for hardiness. It hardly blinks under snow and freezing temperatures when protected. Keep the leaves pinched once a week and you will have it until May. It's delicious cooked or raw. I use it both ways all the time because it's so versatile.

This intermix of mache and chervil are really pretty together. Mache has a very green flavor and tastes best mingled with other lettuces. Chervil has a distinct anise flavor and is complimentary with fish, lemon and vinegars.

INGREDIENTS
Fresh, organic eggs - 2 per person, either separated or whole, whisked
asparagus, tough ends trimmed, diced
cherry or grape tomates, halved or quartered
shallot or red onion, thinly sliced
fresh garlic, minced
baby kale or spinach, cut into ribbons
fresh jalapenos, sliced (optional of course)
other optional ingredients could be sliced mushrooms, zucchini or bell pepper
parsley, chopped
fresh water mozzarella, cut into triangles or medallions
olive oil + butter or ghee
sea salt + black pepper

DIRECTIONS
Warm a saute pan on medium and add the olive oil. Add all of the vegetables except the tomatoes, greens and parsley. Season with a little salt. Cook about 2 minutes. Add about a tablespoon of butter or ghee and the tomatoes, greens and parsley. Season with black pepper. Add the eggs. Using a flexible spatula, move the eggs across the pan in sheets, careful to keep them firm and in large pieces. Adjust the salt + pepper. Cook until they have just set. Serve on a nice plate, arranging the wedges of mozzarella around one side and garnish with any reserved parsley and black pepper.

ENJOY!