Day 7: Chana Saag from Everyday Happy Herbivore
Today I decided to revisit Lindsay S. Nixon’s recipes, this time from her book Everyday Happy Herbivore. This book is full of “over 175 quick-and-easy fat-free and low-fat vegan recipes.” While I like quick and easy recipes (who doesn’t!), I don’t necessarily seek out recipes that are fat-free or low-fat as it’s not a priority for me at this time. But for a quick weekday lunch, something lighter and healthier is definitely welcome, and if you’re looking for oil-free or low-fat recipes this book is a great resource. I love the variety of recipes in both of her books that I own. I had tons of chickpeas and a bunch of baby spinach to use up, so this Chana Saag was the perfect recipe for today.
I used a chana masala spice blend instead of the individual spices listed in the recipe since the blend appeared to be basically the same thing. I started with 2 teaspoons then added more to taste. Other than that, I followed the recipe exactly. This was super easy to make. I started by sautéing onions, garlic, and ginger in some water as directed. Tomato sauce, spices, chickpeas, and spinach completed the dish. Would this have been tastier if I used oil instead of water? Absolutely, but it was still pretty good as an oil-free meal. I served it with some rice, pita bread, and an improvised tofu sour cream on top (just silken tofu with some lemon and salt to taste). Steve and I liked this meal overall - he gave it an 8.2/10 (oddly precise), and I think I would agree. It wasn’t the greatest thing I’ve ever eaten, but it worked perfectly for today’s lunch.
After lunch I was watching The Great British Bake Off which made me want to eat cake, as it often does. I knew there was a mug cake recipe in Everyday Happy Herbivore, so I decided to try it out as it would only take 5 minutes. A couple of things concerned me as I read through the recipe. Applesauce replaces oil, brown sugar is the sweetener, and it cooks for 3 minutes in the microwave. I mixed everything together and tasted the batter. It was real weird and in desperate need of a pinch of salt, and my brown sugar was all clumpy so a lot of mixing was needed. I added chocolate chips and hoped that the microwave would magically make this taste good, and wow, it did not! After 3 minutes cooking, the consistency was rubbery and the taste was still odd. Perhaps my microwave was too powerful, but even so, the flavor was just not there. My personal stance on desserts is that I’d rather eat no dessert than eat one that is mediocre and not worth the calories. That being said, I really wanted cake so in true British Bake-Off tradition, the first one went “into the bin” and I made this always dependable and truly delicious One Minute Chocolate Mug Cake from Chocolate Covered Katie instead.
