A full pantry equals no dinner hassles
A well-stocked pantry might be all the inspiration you need to make an interesting dinner.
As this U.S. blogger puts it, if you have a good variety of basics on hand, you minimize last-minute runs to the grocery store. Jodi Moreno, Brooklyn, N.Y., is the author of More With Less: Whole Food Cooking Made Irresistibly Simple (Roost/Penguin Random House, $47).
She starts her user-friendly collection of more than 130 recipes with a detailed chapter on what she has in her pantry.
This term, to her, includes the refrigerator, freezer, countertop and even your backyard garden.
Her extensive pantry includes a variety of vinegars, grains, seeds, nuts and carefully stored spices.
Among her favourite basics are yellow split peas, allowing her to whip up this meal-in-one dish.
If you don’t have any sweet potatoes, she advises using squash or carrots.
She likes to top the stew with sliced dry shallots, which she coats with chickpea flour and browns in grape seed oil. Chopped green onions make a suitable substitute. Serves: 4
■ 3 cups (750 mL) peeled, diced sweet potatoes (about 3)
■ 2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil
■ 3 tbsp (45 mL) ghee or olive oil 1 medium onion, diced (about 2 cups/500 mL)
■ 3 large cloves garlic, minced 2 tsp (10 mL) curry powder Freshly ground pepper
■ 1 cup (250 mL) uncooked yellow split peas, rinsed
■ 5 cups (1.25 L) water
■ 1 tbsp (15 mL) sea salt Juice of 1/2 lemon (about 1 tbsp/15 mL)
■ Coconut milk (optional)
1. Preheat oven to 400 F (205 C). Spread sweet potatoes on a baking sheet and drizzle with 2 tablespoons (30 mL) olive oil. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes, until soft.
2. Mash coarsely with a fork and set aside.
3. Heat the 3 tablespoons (45 mL) ghee or oil in a heavy saucepan over medium heat and cook the onion for about five minutes until soft. Add garlic, curry powder and pepper, and cook another two minutes. (Do not add the salt yet.)
4. Add the split peas, mashed sweet potatoes and the water. Stir the mixture gently, bring it to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and partially cover it. Cook for 30 to 40 minutes until the peas are soft.
5. Stir in salt and lemon juice and simmer an additional 10 minutes. Keep on low heat until ready to serve, or refrigerate, covered, for up to three days, then reheat.
6. Pour stew into four heated bowls and top with a drizzle of coconut milk and crisp fried shallots or fresh chopped green onions.