So another month's gone by without Mike's pretzel post you all have been waiting for. I'd tell you that he's got another project half-finished in the fridge, but then you might never hear a thing about it from him. Someone once told me something about good things happening for those who wait. I guess I can wait a little longer.This post, however, can't wait another minute! It's Daring Cooks time again!! Seems like we just finished the last Daring Cooks challenge, which might give you a little insight into how busy things have been. This month's challenge resulted in our first every intentionally vegan meal. And it was good! We've had very little Indian food that wasn't good, though, so neither of us were in the least concerned. And while neither of us was worried about going meatless it was a HUGE stretch for Mike to omit the yogurt he considers so vital to nearly everything served with rice. I should mention that this recipe did not require rice, as the intent was to fill dosas, or pancakes, with filling. The mere mention of Indian, however, set Mike's rice button off, and we had a pot of rice cooking almost before anything else.
The Indian Dosas challenge was hosted by Debyi from Healthy Vegan Kitchen. As the recipe contained 3 parts - dosa, filling, and sauce, and would result in a lengthy post, I'll let those who are interested view the recipe on her site.
The dosas were very similar to crepes we've made before, although these were made with spelt. We'd never worked with spelt before, so that was something new. We've got a bag of spelt flour left, so Mike is already thinking of the bread he can make...Oh, the other new ingredient for us in the crepes was almond milk, which we opted for in place of soy milk. The crepes turned out really well - on our first night. We attempted to make them again the next night to eat with our left overs but at that point didn't have any baking powder. The result was a spectacular failure. The baking-soda-less crepes were completely off, so we ate the rest with just rice. Not nearly as fun. The lack of crepes, though, was offset by the addition of yogurt.
We generally followed the recipe as posted, making only 2 additions. We made tamarind and cilantro chutneys I learned from a cooking class with Chef Vinod. Unfortunately, we only got pictures of the tamarind chutney, so you all are missing out on the vibrant green of the cilantro chutney. The filling was a chick-pea and tomato mixture, and the sauce was a curry coconut sauce. We added a little side of cucumber, which was a nice contrast to the softness of the dosas. All in all, it was a good challange, definitely enhanced by the chutneys. Thanks to Debyi for hosting a great challenge and for getting us to eat an entirely vegan meal!
Lastly, if none of the other challenges have so far tempted you, Lindsay, or if you haven't been inspired, maybe this one will do the trick. Can't wait until October when you've got a kitchen!
