Another Lunch: Green Curry Creamed Potatoes, Beans, Peanuts with Spinach, Peas and Onions

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Would I even consider this a real recipe? No. It's just the panic-y "I don't want to go grocery shopping - what's left in pantry and freezer?" meal. But you never know if anyone can is it as inspiration! After all, it's a quick and easy lunch.

Simple: Brussels Sprouts FTW

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I always eat Brussels sprouts when Mr. Squirrel isn't home because he hates them. But I don't. :)
A super tasty way to make them is to boil them first and to then fry them.

Curry Coconut Milk Potatoes with Spinach and Cauliflower

Yet another Tuesday work lunch! Monday nights are always a bit of a challenge because I want to cook something nice for my colleague and myself. Something that can easily be taken to work, heated up, and then eaten. And since my friend - unlike me - does not appreciate the taste of meat (and never has), I always want to make sure I make a wholesome, nice meal without making it seem like I'm just bringing side dishes. Curries and chilis are the obvious choice... and for today I did another curry based dish, but a little different from the green Thai curry or the regular tomato based curry. I have something similar every time we are at the Indian restaurant with my boyfriend's parents, ... except they put much more garlic in there. Which I like. But I don't really consider that a great idea for work lunches. So, if you eat this in the privacy of your home or do not care if your breath wreaks havoc on humanity: Don't forget to throw in as much garlic as you like!

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Ingredients for 5-6 servings:

• 1kg of potatoes
• 1 cauliflower
• 500g of spinach
• 1l coconut milk
• 3 onions
• massaman curry paste
• some coconut oil 
• salt - if necessary. I didn't use any because I was happy with the salt content of my curry paste
• optional: fresh garlic (preferably chopped finely and added to the pot along with the onions)

Easy: Winter Stew

As I may have mentioned in earlier blogs, we get a box full of vegetables and fruit from a local organic farmer once a week. This week, one vegetable proved to intimidate me a little bit as I had never worked with it before, the Scorzonera hispanica. In German, it is commonly known by the name "Schwarzwurzel" which literally translates to "black root" - quite fitting. In English, it goes by more impressive names such as black salsify or Spanish salsify, scorzonera, black oyster plant, serpent root, viper's herb, or viper's grass. I like "viper's grass" best! :) It does not necessarily look very edible at first:

Traditional German Cuisine: Roulades!

Roulades with red cabbage, gravy, and potatoes

Roulades with fried napkin dumplings and "bacon" beans

Conventionally, Roulades in German cuisine are made from thinly sliced beef filled with onions, bacon, and pickles. They were served with potatoes (or mashed potatoes), lots and lots of gravy and usually cooked red cabbage. It's the type of dish that many people of my generation (you know, those millenials, generation Y, people born in the 80s) were fed as a special treat when they visited their grandma. The same was true for me. Roulades are a little like individual little roasts that each diner would cut up themselves on their plate instead of being served a slice of a big roast. 

I like roulades. But obviously I wouldn't want any cow or pig on my plate. The boyfriend likes this type of cooking (you may go as far as calling it comfort food because Rouladen are usually associated with the coziness of your grandma's living room, the woman who spoiled you rotten. Yeah, I know that's not true for everyone. But you get the point.) even more than I do, so he insisted we'd try this recipe by Jérôme Eckmeier, a chef who's made himself quite a name in the vegan scene in Germany. We made some slight changes and are convinced that our instructions will be much better than his. ^_^

Himmel un Ääd - Traditional Rhineland Cuisine with Apple Sauce

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Ah, regional cuisine. I come from a place where some roasts are made with horse meat, and most dishes are served with some sort of sausage. Fortunately I have a wonderful man by my side who has mastered the skill of making variations of vegan sausages. He already announced, I'd have to post sausage recipes as well. And I will - eventually. I'd love to include some pictures of how he makes them, so I can post step-by-step instructions.

Today, I am posting a quick recipe that can be mostly prepared in advance. It's very easy, tastes amazing, and may introduce you to food combinations that you may not have experienced unless you live in the Rhineland. We call it "Himmel und Erde" (Heaven/Sky and Earth), but the regional dialect says "Himmel un Ääd." It's called "Heaven/Sky and Earth" because you mix two things that grow in different places: Heaven/Sky stands for the apples, earth for the potatoes.

Himmel un Ääd