Aloo Gobi - Indian Spiced Potatoes and Cauliflower with Peas

I really enjoy Indian food. I think I mentioned before, that some of my co-workers are from India. We order food often from restaurants near the office. But now that I'm on Weight Watchers, there's just no way for me to calculate the restaurant foods. They are small restaurants and don't provide nutritional information. So what's a girl to do? Make her own!

Of course my versions won't have all the cream, butter or oil that traditional recipes have but once you get used to eating lower fat foods, you really don't miss those things.

This recipe for Aloo Gobi called for vegetable oil to fry the spices and onions in, but instead I used cooking spray, and when I found the pan to be getting a bit dry, I added a few drops of water. You could use vegetable broth. It would probably add more flavour. I didn't think of it until the end. Next time!

You can buy garlic and ginger paste at the store in little jars, or make your own in the blender. Either way, use fresh, not ground.

I'm taking half of this recipe for lunch tomorrow, and the other half the day after. I'm serving it with fat free yogurt mixed with some ground cumin and dried mint from my mother-in-law's garden.

Replace the honey with a vegan friendly sweetener if you wish.

2 servings
(Per serving : 6 PointsPlus)

Ingredients
cooking spray      
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fresh ginger paste
1 teaspoon garlic paste
1 large onion, sliced
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon salt
1 dried chili pepper (I didn't have fresh)
2 teaspoons honey
1/2 cup water
2 cups potatoes, diced (I just cut mini ones in quarters)
3 cup uncooked cauliflower, cut into bite size pieces
1/2 cup frozen peas
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro or parsley

Directions
Heat a nonstick pan over medium heat. Once it's hot, add a few spritzes of cooking spray. Add the mustard and cumin seeds and cook them for a few minutes until they start to pop. Stir in the ginger and garlic, and cook for a minute.

Stir in the onions and allow them to cook for about 5 minutes or until soft and they start to turn golden. If you find your pan getting a bit dry, add a few drops of water.

Once the onions are golden, stir in the garam masala, turmeric, salt and chili pepper. Then add the honey, water and potatoes. Give it a good stir and put the lid on the pan. Cook this for about 8 minutes or until the potatoes start to get tender. Check on it a few times and stir it up. If the pan gets dry add some more water or vegetable broth.

Add the cauliflower and peas. Stir again and cover. Cook for another 8 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Stir occasionally and check to make sure the pan doesn't dry out. At the last minute, stir in the lemon juice. Garnish with parsley.

Tip: For 1 PointsPlus, add 1/4 cup of fat free yogurt mixed with 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin and 1/2 teaspoon dried mint to complete your lunch.

Adapted from SippitySup.