Vegetable Curry Rice Dish

For some reason, having seen a lot of rice around the internet these past couple weeks, I had a hankering for a warm vegetable curry dish. I was particularly after the thick curry sauce that accompanies these dishes which I had only been able to replicate with coconut milk previously. However, I was looking to make a dish free of any oils or fat so I did some research (ok, it was very minimal...) and discovered a great fix.

This dish would definitely be good on a cold night in the middle of winter but who says you can't enjoy it in the middle of summer too?!

Vegetable Curry Rice Dish (serves ~ 4)

1.5 cups basmati rice
1.5 cups water or vegetable stock (low sodium)

1 medium onion (red or white)
2 medium carrots
1 zucchini
1 bell pepper
2 cloves of garlic
2 tsp minced ginger
1 cup water
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp curry
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
Salt and pepper to taste

Begin by adding the rice and water/broth to a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce to low heat and cook for approximately 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, chop your vegetables into bite sized pieces (as seen in the first picture). Add the onion and garlic into a pan on medium heat, along with a few tablespoons of water, and cook until the onion starts to become transparent. Add the other vegetables, along with the ginger, curry, coriander and cumin and continue to cook for 3 - 5 minutes (adding additional water if the vegetables start to stick to the pan).

Once the vegetables have softened, add the cup of water and cornstarch (dissolved previously or not, it doesn't really matter) into the pan and mix well. Turn the heat to medium-low and let the mixture simmer for about 8 - 10 minutes. The liquid should thicken as it reduces, making for a great sauce over rice.

Serve over rice and enjoy!

Simple Mango Smoothie

All week I've had this craving for mango. Luckily we were able to buy some frozen in bulk. Naturally the first thing I do is throw it in a smoothie. A delicious smoothie.

I honestly just would have thawed it and eaten it as is, but I thought blending it with another simple ingredient would be just as good. That ingredient is..... coconut milk! If you want a tropical feel to your smoothies I suggest adding coconut milk. And who doesn't want that in the middle of a cold, snowy winter?

Yes I had this whole thing to myself (boy was it good) but it was a whole meal for me :)

Simple Mango Smoothie (serves ~ 1 - 3)

4 cups of frozen mango chunks
1 cup light coconut milk
2 cups cold water (add more if it isn't blending smoothly)

Blend with a high speed blender, making sure everything is fully combined and serve immediately!