Summer Vegetables with Kale and Curry - Guest Blog by:M.J. Pullen

Today's entry is courtesy of M.J. Pullen, my friend, and talented author of The Marriage Pact, and mom of two adorable little boys. She made a delicious looking summer vegetable curry bake and I wanted to share with everyone. Most of all, it's healthy, easy, and has anti-inflammatory agents, too. 

This year is our first time participating in a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), and we are loving it. The kids enjoy going to the farmer's market and getting our veggies straight from the farmer. They are so fresh and delicious, plus it's giving me the opportunity to cook some things that I never would have thought of before. We got two kinds of Kale, cauliflower, spring onions and kohlrabi in this week's share, along with some other stuff I tried later in the week. This was my first time cooking or eating kohlrabi, so I am attaching a picture of the plant itself. It is very good - sort of a cross between an apple, potato, and cauliflower stem. Interesting!

I had some purple and red potatoes on hand already that needed to be used. I read a few recipes online but ended up making my own with what I had in the house:

4-5 lbs of baby potatoes, halved or quartered (the colorful potatoes made the dish look more interesting)
1 kohlrabi bulb, peeled and cut into chunks
1 head cauliflower, chopped
3 small spring onion bulbs, sliced into rings (I had one white and 2 red)
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 bunch kale, any type, coarsely chopped
3 tbsp yellow curry powder
4 tbsp margarine (optional)
EVOO
3-4 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 tbsp minced garlic (or 2 fresh pressed cloves)
kosher or sea salt, pepper, garlic powder to taste

Preheat oven to 410 F. Put the cut potatoes, kohlrabi, cauliflower and spring onions in a large roasting pan. Coat with EVOO and about 2 tbsp of apple cider vinegar (I pour it on thick and toss the veggies in it, but you could also use a brush if you're persnickety). Sprinkle liberally with garlic powder, the yellow curry powder, then add sea salt and black pepper to taste. You could also add a bit of cayenne here if you like it spicy. I added 4 pats of margarine at the corners of the pan to keep everything moist, but you could probably skip that and add more olive oil instead. 

Roast the veggies for 30 mins, or until the kohlrabi begins to get tender. Add the garbanzo beans, stirring lightly with a spoon, and return to oven for an additional 15 minutes. While it finishes roasting, heat 2 tbsp. EVOO in a large sautee pan. Add the minced garlic and cook for about 2 minutes. Then add the kale and apple cider vinegar and sautee until bright green and tender. Toss the kale in with the roasted veggies before serving. Since I had the whole spring onions, I chopped some of the greens and added them to the top, too, which made it even prettier and more flavorful. YUM!

My almost-three year old loved this dish, especially the garbanzos and the kohlrabi. I mashed up some for my 9 month old (minus the kohlrabi and tearing up the kale into tiny bits) and he loved it, too. I put some of the leftovers in the blender for him later and he gobbled them up! 

Kohlrabi has a bit of a sweet tinge to it, and it really goes well with the apple cider vinegar. The curry smells great while it's cooking, too. We had leftovers the next day and it reheated really well. 


Enjoy!
M.J. Pullen


M.J. Pullen is an author and mom who lives in Atlanta. Check out her blog at www.mjpullen.com 

Her very popular first novel, THE MARRIAGE PACT, is available as an eBook and paperback on amazon.com. 
http://www.amazon.com/Marriage-Pact-M-J-Pullen/dp/1463600682/
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-marriage-pact-mj-pullen/1103851254
Twitter: @MJPullen