Eggplant Masala(ish) Curry

Authentic?  Not particularly, but I like to add my own tastes to the dish, and it's still tasty!

Ingredients:

2 T. vegetable oil or ghee
1 large yellow onion, chopped
6 cloves of garlic, minced
2 medium eggplants, cut into 1-2 inch cubes
1 t. ground ginger (use 2 t. fresh if you have it, it's better)
1 t. ground cumin
1 t. ground turmeric
1 T. garam masala
1/2 t. fenugreek
1/2 t. salt
1 can chopped tomatoes
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1 small bunch of cilantro, chopped

Instructions:

Heat oil over medium heat in a large skillet with a lid.  Add in the onion and cook until a rich golden brown color (this should take about 10 minutes).

Add in the garlic and stir.  Cook for 2 minutes.  Add in the eggplant and spices, stirring to coat.  Slightly brown the eggplant for a few minutes.

Pour the tomatoes into the mixture and bring to a simmer.  Cover the skillet and allow to cook for 10-15 minutes, until the eggplant is cooked through.

Remove the lid and allow the extra juices to cook off, stirring occasionally.  Taste and correct spices to your liking (I ended up adding more garam masala and some Vindaloo seasoning because I wanted some kick to it).

Immediately before serving, stir in the yogurt and cilantro.

Serve with naan and/or rice if you desire.  I just ate it plain and it was delish :D.  You could also serve it as a side dish or add some meat to it to flesh it out a bit more.

Vegan if you omit the yogurt!

Spiced, Baked Catfish with Simple Zucchini

Sometimes during the summer, when it's hot outside and my air conditioner is acting up and I just don't feel like eating a whole lot, I just want a really simple, light dish that doesn't take too much fuss to throw together and clean up.  Today's is one of those meals.

Ingredients:

2 catfish fillets (mine were "basa" fillets and they are HUGE)
Spices, to your taste:  paprika, thyme, salt, pepper, lemon, garlic, and parsley.  I used about 1/2 teaspoon of each.
Juice of 1 lemon
1 T. olive oil

2 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 t. dried thyme
1/2 t. lemon-garlic seasoning (I used Penzey's)
Salt & pepper to taste

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 350F.  Use the oil to prepare 2 pans, one for the zucchini, and one for the fish.

Sprinkle both sides of the fish with the spices and herbs and place in the pan.  Squeeze lemon juice over them.

Stir together zucchini, onion, and spices.  Place in prepared pan.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the fish flakes easily and the zucchini is cooked through (mine was a little undercooked, but I like it like that).

Serve hot, with tartar sauce if you desire.

Sorry for the delays, everyone.  I have recipes, but for posts, you'll be waiting a little longer.   My grandmother has passed away, and I'm sick and making travel plans to get to the memorial service.

Yes, I suck at updating my blog, I know.  I apologize for how busy/lazy I have been.

Back from Halfway Around the World!

Hi, everyone!

No, I did not abandon my blog.  We went to Australia for two weeks!  I meant to post before I left, but I got too busy and didn't have time.  Australia was amazing. I cannot praise it enough.  I have many pictures to share, and ate some amazing food!  Mostly sushi and Thai, but amazing, nonetheless.  For now, the jet lag is killing me, and I have no patience to make a real post.

Announcement!  After some odd symptoms, I have decided to eliminate gluten from my diet for the foreseeable future (my sister has Celiac disease, which means that I likely have it as well, and this is my testing period).  It won't change much in my life since I've been doing low-carb for so long, but a few things will have to be shifted (and restaurants will be harder to dine at).  This blog has mostly been GF already, but now it will be TOTALLY GF!   Hopefully, all works out and I get rid of some problems I seem to be having in my diet.

I hope everyone's summer is going well, and look forward to more posts!  They're coming soon!