Winter Comforts: Spicy Dal With Roasted Vegetables

Ah, winter, waiting to arrive in just days time. The sign of its onset is already evident here and there. This is a great time to be in the desert Southwest. The days are cool and evenings are cooler, but not cold. We hardly stay indoors these days. The drive around the block, a walk in the park, is all I yearn for during these nights.

‘Do you think we need a jacket?’
‘We’ll carry and keep it in the car; just in case’

Its that pleasant here. I see a lot of people still cruising around in their city shorts, taking in this wonderful weather, as much as they can. So, to my friend who bragged about fishing on a July afternoon on a mild 80F degree day, I say ‘Touche’. And, for those who were nice to me during summer, please visit us and enjoy the beautiful desert evenings.

To add to the beauty, it rained the whole of this week. The air was crisp, and was, for a change, humid. When I opened the curtains in the morning and saw the pouring rains, I craved for a bowl of steamy hot soup. Not just any soup, but the thick, creamy, hearty kind. With no particular idea on mind, I chopped the vegetables and tossed in the oven. Not wanting to cut any more vegetables, I chose a lentil base for the soup. The soup was everything I craved for and more. All that was left behind were empty bowls, full stomachs and content smiles.

Roasted Vegetables With Roasted Garlic
(4 servings)

Ingredients

Sweet potato – 3, small
Potato – 4
Carrot - 2
Parsnip - 2
Bell pepper – 2
Garlic – 1 head
Fresh thyme – 2 tbsp
Salt
Pepper
A splash of olive oil

Method

Cut all the vegetables into big chunks. Set bell peppers aside. Mix rest of the vegetables with thyme, salt, pepper and olive oil. Spread on a baking sheet covered with foil.

Cut the whole head of garlic into two halves, horizontally. Season with salt, pepper and olive oil. Wrap the halves in separate pieces of foil. Keep the prepared garlic head nestled among the vegetables.

Bake at 450F for 30 minutes, turning once in between. Add the reserved bell peppers, toss and bake for another 10 minutes. The vegetables should be caramelized around the edges. Let cool slightly.

Squeeze the some or all of the roasted garlic over the vegetables, per your liking. Refrigerate the rest in an airtight container for about 10 days.

Serve the roasted vegetables as such, or with any other carbohydrate like lentils, rice, quinoa, pasta, etc. Even if there are only two of you, make a whole batch, or even double it. The vegetables refrigerate well and leftovers come very handy.

Spicy Dal

Ingredients
(serves 2)

A mix of toor, moong and masoor dal – 2/3 cup
Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
Ginger – 1 tbsp, chopped
Green chillies – 2, slit
Salt

Ghee – 1 tsp (Use oil for a vegan version)
Cumin powder – 1 tsp
Red chilli powder – 1 tsp

Method

Wash all the lentils together. Pressure cook dal with 4 cups of water, minced ginger and green chillies for 4 or 5 whistles. Let the pressure die down. Take the cooked dal from the cooker, add salt and whisk vigorously until it becomes soupy. Add more water if required.

Heat ghee over medium heat. Take off the flame and add cumin powder, followed by chilli powder. Whisk immediately taking care not to burn the spices and add to the dal. Serve dal as such or mix about 2 cups of roasted vegetables.

This is my second entry of My Legume Love Affair, Sixth Helping - Hot & Spicy.

This has been an active week in the blogging front. Well, I wanted to post my entries to MLLA before I take a short break. I will not be around for 2 weeks starting next Monday. So if your mails go unanswered, please be patient. I am hoping to schedule few posts while I am gone, if time permits.

23 comments:

Meeta K. Wolff said...

Simply gorgeous! I just love comfy dal recipes like this. I just bought some channa and moong dal and think this would be great for dinner tonight!

Raaga said...

Yummy... I eat plan dal with a side dish at night sometimes :-) feels like soup :-)

I carry my jacket around everywhere these days... I'm perennially in the "better safe than sorry" mode.

Pavani said...

OMG..Suganya.. You are making me soooo jealous.. Its almost freezing up here. I wish I was there. Well I can definitely have your spicy dal & veggies.. Have a fun weekend. We'll just bundle up and get ready for the upcoming cold front:o(

AnuSriram said...

Thats delicious! Nice presentation!

Priya said...

aah, just what I want too! Winter is well over us now, with snow, rain and sleet visiting us more often than I would like. Have a fun holiday and Happy New year to the two of you!

Anonymous said...

This looks really good, easy and hearty. Perfect for what we need in the east coast where it is snowing. I am all for comfort food.

Sabina said...

Absolutely wonderful recipes - thank you!!

Happy Holidays!!

Anonymous said...

Delicious idea of having roasted veggies with dal. I love roasted veggies and make it as sides with about anything... never with dal tho'.

Unknown said...

Like the garlic flavour with roasted vegeables. Bowl of soup looks very comforting.

Shalini said...

Awesome tasty postes here.....intereseted in link xchange????

Aparna Balasubramanian said...

This way of making dal is unusal to me. It sounds pretty good, though.
And happy holidays.

amna said...

the roasted veg is such a nice idea, especially love the fact that it makes for good store-and-use-later dish :)

Varsha Vipins said...

Suganya..A comfort food indeed..:)

Anonymous said...

OMG - I made this tonite - the roasted veggies and the dal along with some cheddar muffins - and it was absolutely scrumptious. Followed the recipe exactly, except used butternut squash instead of the sweet potatoes and rosemary instead of thyme coz I had those on hand. So satisfying in this cold weather. Thanks SO much - will be making this again.

Shreya said...

Amazingly healthy and tasty :-) Happy Holidays..

Passionate Eater said...

That sounds so warming and delicious. I think I need to turn my oven on and get to roasting!

sra said...

Happy New Year, Suganya!

Cynthia said...

This is a fantastic idea. I am now longing for simple fare and I know I was going to make a dal tomorrow but I will hold off a bit and get some veggies and make your dal.

Happy New Year!

Srivalli said...

Oh wow..thats beautiful picture..you are taking a vacation already...I thought you would do a recap for me...

Wish you a very Happy new year Suganya!

Mandira said...

looks fabulous Suganya! Happy Holidays and have a great year ahead :)

Vaishali said...

We've been having plenty of cold, rainy days here in the northeast, and a bowl of hot soup like this one would just hit the spot. Nice pictures, Suganya.

30 days ago said...

Hi Suganya,
I've saved your blog on Delicious because I really loved your Chepakazhangu fry recipe, and because I can't stop staring at those gorgeous photographs. I just made these roasted veggies. they turned out great and my husband love them too. I just had a question about the garlic. Is it supposed to drip juice when you squeeze it? because mine just gets pulpy.
Thanks for

Suganya said...

Aruna, the garlic does get pulpy after roasting. Makes it easier to mash.

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