Recipe for Curried garbanzos, good enough for a crowd

4 Cups Garbanzo beans/Chickpeas (soaked overnight in plenty of water); throw water for soaking out.

Pressure cook beans with a couple bay leaves till soft but not mushy ( about 30 minutes ) Put water enough to cover it 2 inches above. If in a regular pot, about 1 hour , seasoning midway through cooking with salt . Strain and save liquid from boiling the beans.

While beans are cooking, fry in about 2 tbsp coconut oil:

6 garlic cloves ground into paste with knob of ginger ( 2 inches )
¾ cup coriander seeds
1 tsp. black peppercorns

Let this cook till aromatic and coriander seeds are slightly crispy and light brown.

Then add and sauté one by one :
1 onion, diced
2 tbsp Tomato paste plus 1 tbsp water
2 tbsp. tamarind paste or 1 tbsp. Amchur Powder (dry mango powder) or lemon juice
4 green chilies for heat and extra flavor (optional)
2 tsp sugar
Turmeric powder – 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste

Whole bunch of chopped Cilantro leaves for garnishing
2 tsp. Garam masala
sliced red onions (optional)

Cook until oil begins to separate. That means the spices are tempered. Set aside to cool. Puree it in a blender with 1 ½ cups cooked garbanzos and some of the liquid. Add drained garbanzo and mix till incorporated and simmer for a few minutes. Add some of the reserved liquid and simmer till nice and thick like gravy.

Just before serving, add 2 tsp . garam masala ( optional ) and sliced red onions. You can find garam masala in any Indian grocery or regular grocery. I make my own but that’s another recipe. I can give you my recipe if you want to bother making your own. Just let me know.

Top with freshly chopped cilantro leaves.

Lemon Pesto Pasta adapted from "The Art of Raw Living Food"

Made by Deanne:
Here is the official recipe, which I used as a guide only.

4 zucchini and/or yellow crookneck squash, julienned on a mandoline
4 cups pesto (I used pistachio and basil pesto)
2 cups sundried tomato Marinara
2 cups of fresh or dried portobello mushrooms, diced (I omitted these)
juice of 2 lemons
Fresh chopped basil, for garnish

Toss ingredients together gently. Add salt/ground pepper to taste and serve with sundried tomatoes on top, if desired.
If you have enough pesto (and you need a lot), serve a heaped tablespoon on top of each pasta serving.

How to make Pistachio/basil Pesto:
2 bunches basil
1 cup pistachios, unsalted (get them from the bulk bin at Maiwand Market on Fremont Ave!)
garlic (5 or 6 cloves), smashed to a paste with sea salt and peppercorns. I do this in a pestle and mortar.
Juice of a lemon (add to taste).

How to make the sundried tomato marinara:
A number of ripe tomatoes (the recipe called for 6 Romas, but I would use more)
A little olive oil
smashed garlic (5 cloves or so) with salt/peppercorns
all purpose seasoning (2 teaspoons, to taste)
Fresh basil leaves, chopped (a small bunch)
Sun-Dried tomatoes
The recipe calls for agave nectar, but I don't use it.

In a food processor, chop the tomatoes. Add olive oil, garlic mixture, seasoning and stir in chopped basil. Don't overprocess.

The only thing left to add are the sun-dried tomatoes. Buy them from the store or make them like this:
In a dehydrator:
Slice ripe tomatoes about 4 mm thick.
Mix gently with garlic, fresh chilis/jalapenos (if you have them - dried, if you don't), all purpose or italian seasoning, salt, pepper.
Dehydrate on 115 degrees until the moisture is removed (I start my dehydrator on 140 or so for 2 hours and then turn the heat down to 115 to give the a kick start. It takes a while for the internal temperature of the food to reach the dehydrator temperature so the extra heat at the start won't overheat the food for the raw food enthusiast.
In the oven: Cut the tomatoes in halves or quarters. Mix the herbs/salt/chillis in as per the dehydrator recipe. Put on a low heat (150 degrees) until tomatoes have reduced in size considerably. We just want to intensify their flavor and remove moisture. Then puree them with the other marinara ingredients and you will be ready to toss it together with your pesto and zucchini pasta to complete your dish.
Note: you cannot make too much pesto and marinara for this dish.
Lavishly add both to the pasta. Hopefully you'll have plenty left to spoon over the top of the dish when serving.

Quinoa Papaya Salad

1 1/2 cups quinoa
1/2 ripe papaya, chopped
1/2 red onion, diced
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
1 lemon
1 lime
salt & pepper

Cook quinoa per package instructions. Combine cooked quinoa, papaya, red onion, and cilantro in large bowl. Squeeze lime and lemon over mixture, season with salt and pepper, and toss. Good warm or cold.

Note: best if use really flavorful papaya. If yours is bland, don't use. Other options would be pineapple, mango, red bell pepper, tomato, or avocado. Experiment and see what combinations you like!

By - Elizabeth

Thai Pumpkin Curry from Williams-Sonoma

http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/thai-pumpkin-and-chicken-curry.html
made by Janine

Look for small, sweet pumpkin varieties like Sugar Pie or Cheese or substitute butternut squash. To prepare the pumpkin or squash, steady it on its side on a rigid cutting surface and, using a large, sharp knife, cut it in half through the stem end. (If the peel is thick, tap the knife with a mallet.) Scoop out the seeds and fibers with a large metal spoon. Finally, peel and cut as desired.
Ingredients:
1 small pumpkin or butternut squash, about
1 1/2 lb., halved, seeded, peeled and cut into
bite-size cubes
2 shallots, chopped
3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
1 Tbs. Thai red curry paste
1 can (13 1/2 fl. oz.) unsweetened coconut milk
2 Tbs. Asian fish sauce
Juice of 1 lime
2 tsp. agave or honey
1 Tbs. olive oil
2 Tbs. slivered fresh basil, preferably Thai basil
Steamed rice for serving

Directions:
Cook the pumpkin
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the pumpkin and boil just until barely tender, about 7 minutes. Drain well and set aside.

Prepare the curry base
In a blender, combine the shallots, garlic and curry paste with 2 Tbs. water and process until smooth. In a small bowl, combine the coconut milk, fish sauce, lime juice and brown sugar and stir to dissolve the sugar.

Cook the curry
In a wok or large fry pan over medium heat, warm 1 Tbs. oil. Add the curry base and cook, stirring, for about 10 seconds until fragrant. Stir in the coconut milk mixture and bring to a boil. Add the pumpkin, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the pumpkin is tender when pierced with a fork.

Transfer the curry to a serving bowl, garnish with the basil and serve immediately with steamed rice. Serves 4.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Food Made Fast Series, Asian, by Farina Wong Kingsley (Oxmoor House, 2007).

Cacao Coconut Balls

Made by Deanne
(all amounts are approximate)

2 cups Brazil Nuts
1.5 cups Medjool Dates
3/4 cups large coconut flakes
The pulp from one fresh young coconut
Vanilla essence
cocoa powder (1/2 cup)

Grind nuts in a food processor and set aside
Then puree Medjool dates with coconut pulp.
Mix in vanilla (2 tablespoons?) and cocoa powder.
Finally add the large coconut flakes and mix in gently.

Roll in cocoa power and freeze.
Remove one hour before serving, to defrost.