sweet miscellany

seasonal vegetarian recipes

winter

Simple Thai Red Vegetable Curry

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I’ve made it a point this year to eat vegan as much as possible.  This is really easy for me to do at home, but not so easy when I eat out, particularly because I have to eat gluten free as well.  Since I can completely control what I eat at home, I’ve been coming up with some easy and tasty meals that are both gluten free and vegan.  As long as my pantry is pretty well stocked and I have plenty of fresh vegetables, the options are almost infinite.

A couple of weeks ago I began playing around with some store-bought Thai curry paste.  I would love to be able to make my own, but considering how hard it is to get things like galangal and kaffir lime leaves, this is one ingredient I don’t mind buying pre-made.  Since most of the flavor is in the paste, you can simmer it with coconut milk to get a really nice curry base.  Add a few things like coconut sugar, tamari, and fresh vegetables and you’ve got yourself a delicious curry!

This curry is super simple, easily customizable based on what you have, and of course, really delicious.  Plus, it’s ready in about 20 or so minutes.  All of this earns it a permanent spot on my dinner rotation.

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Marmalade: Choose Your Own Adventure

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**warning!  this post is a little wordy so bear with me…

One of the first cookies I tested when I was going to open up my etsy shop was a thumbprint cookie.  While pondering over what to fill it with, I decided I should go completely handmade and make my own jam.  I ended up deciding on a blood orange marmalade in part because I had never made marmalade (or jam for that matter) and also because blood oranges intrigued me.  The blood orange marmalade was a tasty success and ended up becoming a permanent part of my thumbprint cookies.  It was this first batch of blood orange marmalade that led my brother to suggest I sell jams and marmalades in my shop, too.  It’s crazy to look back and remember the evolution of Sweet Miscellany.  In some ways it feels like that was just yesterday, and in others it feels like a million years ago.

Anywho, shall we get back to marmalade?  This is prime time for citrus so there are plenty of tasty options to choose from.  My favorites to use for marmalade-making are blood oranges (that color!) and meyer lemons.  Although I love grapefruits, their bitterness is hard to tone down so the process of making marmalade with them spans more than 2 days.  The first time I went through the long process of making marmalade, I thought I’d never do it again until I tasted it.  I was sold at that moment.  It’s sweet, tart, and just a tad bitter with a nice bit of texture from the peels.

Since marmalade is a bit of a process, it’s definitely a good activity for blustery, cold winter days.  My marmalade making process is spread out over 2 days, but they don’t necessarily have to be 2 consecutive days as long as you don’t wait longer than a week in between each day. On the first day, you’ll remove and finely chop the peel of your fruit, then squeeze every last bit of juice out of them.  You’ll simmer the juice, peels, and a bit of water for a bit, then you’ll park this mixture in the fridge overnight.  The resting phase allows the peels to break down a bit and reduces the bitterness that can put some people off.  The next day, you add some sugar (and a bit of flavoring if you want) and make your marmalade.  You can keep it simple and put your jars in the fridge, or, you can go the extra step and can your marmalade to extend its life and make it shelf stable.  It’s really up to you.  Let’s get started on this adventure!
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