Black Bean & Pumpkin Dahl

With the start of fall, all my food ideas are leaning toward soups and stews and how I can add pumpkin to them! I adapted a recipe for yellow spilt pea dahl to make it much more fall-ish and pumpkin-ful.

This recipe is vegan and gluten-free. It's also super easy, hearty and super yummy!

Sorry, I didn't take a photo of it.

Tell me if you try it and what you think!

Black Bean & Pumpkin Dahl

by me

Ingredients:

2 cups dried yellow split peas, rinsed and sorted

1- 15 oz can of light coconut milk (about 2 cups)

4 cups water

1 large onion, diced

1-15 oz can of pureed pumpkin

1-15oz can of black beans, rinsed and drained

2-3 cloves of garlic

2 Tablespoons of Garam Masala

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Salt & pepper to taste

Cilantro (optional)

Fresh spinach (opt)

Serve with basmati rice

Directions:

1. Rinse and sort the yellow peas. Cover them with water and soak for 10 minutes
2. While the split peas are soaking, sauté the onions for about 10 minutes or until just starting to become translucent and soft.
3. Add garlic and spices to onions and sauté about 1 minute more, or until the spices become fragrant. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. Bring water and coconut milk to boil. Add the peas and the pumpkin stir and turn down the heat to low.
5. Stir in the onion & spice mix and cover. Continue cooking on low heat for approximately 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. While the peas are cooking, cook the basmati rice
7. Stir in the black beans and continue cooking for about 5 – 10 minutes, or until the peas are soft.

Serve over rice and add cilantro on top.

Another serving option is to put the rice in the bowl, add fresh spinach, and then top with the dahl. The heat from the dahl will cause the spinach to wilt perfectly.

Serve with basmati rice

Ok, Fall.

All right, Fall. Looks like you're beelining your way into my future whether or not I'm ready for you.

Today was the first bone-chilling soccer game we've had all season. It took me 2 hours and about a gazillion layers after we got home to shake the cold inside.

I'm starting to see the leaves change into the glorious reds, yellows and golds.

We are beginning to plan out costumes for a Halloween-themed wedding.

I'm seeing the hiatus quickly approaching of my early morning dog walks as our mornings get darker and darker.

Fall is actually my second favorite season. Sometimes I just have a hard time adjusting to the change when my first favorite season, summer, abruptly gets up and walks out of the room without a good bye of any sort. how rude.

But Fall, I think I am ready for you. Cozy coats and blankets and books and hot tea when it's windy and crisp outside. Belly-filling stews and soups and red wine. Golden and rouge leaves and clear bright blue skies.

Ok Fall. You can come. But only if you bring your hot friend, Brussels Sprouts.

http://honestfare.com/maple-glazed-brussels-sprouts-hazelnuts/

found: lovely poem by P

I could build a house with all the paperwork that comes home from my kids' school. A couple months ago, we were clearing out some paperwork and ran across this beautiful poem by my daughter. She is a very talented poetress and writer. This gem on nature was written in October 2009, at age 10.

A Nature Poem, by Paloma

escape.

to a scenic place.
escape.
follow.
fascinating lily pads to a willow tree.
follow.
create.
a sculpture of the scenery.
create.
scattered.
across the ground with leafs.
scattered.
climb.
to the top of the tree.
climb.
descending.
down the tree from the crescent moon.
descending.
conscience.
Ignore it.
nature will sweep you away sometimes, but it is okay.
conscience.
escape.

new track

As a not-your-average-suzie, I wear many hats, some average and some not so average: wife, mother, home chef, photographer, and DJ.

Late to the party, I just discovered SoundCloud. Oh, joy! The site is full of wonderful songs to listen to and download. I even joined and can add up to 2 hours of music for free.

Please enjoy my live mash of two of Claude Von Stroke's songs that I am currently obsessed with: "California" and "Beat that Bird."

Check back for more uploads!

Beat that CA Bird, a mash up by Sparkletrot (me!)

http://soundcloud.com/sparkletrot

First Published Story!

And because I have not posted in months, you are getting a magic THREE posts today!

I was approached by a friend who is a content manager for an MSN site, published worldwide. She asked me to write a fictional story based on a classic portrait of a woman. The guidelines were pretty loose: write a first person account of the woman in the portrait, but with a modern twist. There were some rules here, but mostly they felt loose and vague. Oh, and it must be MSN-friendly.

I was given three portraits to choose from. It was a no-brainer. This shot has always rocked my world and intrigued me since I was a little girl.

Woman with Ermine, Davinci

After a few rough drafts and a few back-and-forths between my friend, the editor and the client, my story was published.

I had forgotten how wonderful it is to write a creative piece. Music, photography and reading are my great escapes. I rediscovered that I also love to tap into the artistic flow for writing.

Falling and Floating, by me:

http://www.womanityglobal.us/?section=walldetails&mediaid=1211856&cpdocid=24462096

Baby Beet Risotto

This should also get you in the mood for fall!

Baby Beet Risotto

By Suz

1 ½ cups Arborio rice

1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil

1 quart veggie broth

1 cup red wine

2 bunches of baby beets, trimmed, peeled and quartered

1-2 T brown grainy mustard or country mustard

1 cup Sheep’s milk romano cheese, grated (very tasty addition, but can be left out for a vegan recipe)

Salt and pepper to taste

1. heat vegetable oil in medium sauce pan over med-high heat. Add rice to the oil, stirring until coated with oil.
2. meanwhile, bring the veggie broth to a boil, then turn heat to low and continue to simmer.
3. While soup is heating, put beets in boiling water. Boil until al dente, about 15-20 minutes. Remove beets from water, reserving the cooking water.
4. add the wine to the rice, stirring often, until most of the liquid is absorbed. Add broth, one cup at a time, stirring often until most of the liquid is absorbed. Continue adding broth and stirring until the broth is gone. Should take about 20 minutes
5. take 1 cup (or more if needed) of the reserved beet water and add to the rice, stirring until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is al dente. Add more water if needed.
6. remove rice from heat. Stir mustard into the rice. Add the cheese and stir until well- combined.
7. add the beets to the risotto and mix- in gently
8. salt and pepper to taste

prodigal post

oh hai, ye 2 faithful readers!

it's been a while.

I keep meaning to write, but life has been busy.

let's see. Summer happened since I saw you last.

Georgetown's Artopia with P (and a robot!)

a rare shot of my teen
and another

sunset at Gasworks park

fun on Camano Island

kiting to glorious colors

on a ferry with friends from LA

us, then & now, 14 years later

R's tag he created during grafitti class

atomic pink for my girl, a new 6th grader!

Ready for fall? I think I may be. Crisp mornings, changing leaves, soccer Saturdays, cozy stews and soups, windy evenings...yes. ready.