AUBERGINE, LENTIL & COCONUT CURRY

I seem to have been posting lots of cakes and treats recently so I thought it was time to redress the balance and post a lovely healthy dinner recipe!
This one is really easy to throw together and ideal for a mid week supper.
I find aubergines a great replacement for meat, they have an interesting texture and work really well in curries and spicy dishes. Gone are the days when you had to salt them for hours then fry them in loads of unhealthy oils!  In this recipe, just dice and add them straight to the pan, easy, peasy!

This dish contains many ingredients with amazing health benefits. We have my usual favourites;

Red onions, packed with antioxidants, great source of fuel for our gut bacteria and great infection fighters.

Garlic which is just a nutritional superstar on every level,

Turmeric which even surpasses garlic in the health stakes, improving pretty much every health issue from brain health, to fighting cancer to reducing inflammation from arthritis, improving digestive issues and improving skin health.

Ginger another amazing anti inflammatory and great for soothing the digestion.

Coconut milk, deliciously creamy, full of healthy fats, metabolism boosting, antifungal, antiviral and antibacterial and something that I sneak into as many dishes as I can. I just love it!

Lentils of any kind support every body system and are packed full of fibre, protein, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. They are also cheap, versatile and easy to cook and an essential ingredient in my kitchen.

Coriander a fantastic herb for detoxing, especially good at removing heavy metals from the body and high in antioxidants and cancer fighting phytochemicals.

Spinach another nutritional superstar containing 22 different phytochemicals and a great source of iron, calcium and magnesium.

Once you start to think of food in terms of nutrition, you become much more mindful of what you are actually feeding your body and that is a very good thing!

I tend to think in terms of every time we eat or drink something, we are either feeding disease or fighting it and I choose to support my body by choosing nutritionally dense foods which support me on every level.

Admittedly no one is perfect and eats well all the time but we need to find a balance where we can be our best selves and that means eating decent food the majority of the time.  
Since I am Nourished by Nature, for me this is mostly plants and wholefoods, natures' super-foods!

The 80/20 rule is a good one to follow and means we can eat really well 80% of the time and allow ourselves less healthy food and treats the rest of the time. 
Life is for living and being happy and healthy, its not about deprivation, guilt and regrets so don't make your life about these things.

There ends my sermon for the day!

Right back to the recipe. I had no frozen peas since my freezer broke this week, and it was full of kale from my garden, frozen berries and bananas! Luckily I could squeeze some of it into my other freezer but the frozen bananas were just mush. Anyway I discovered a bag of edamame beans in my other freezer so added them instead. They are such a nice colour, almost lime green and sweet and delicious.
I also had a bag of lovely wee organic potatoes which I wanted to use so I cooked them separately and added them to the dish at the end. I served it with some lovely steamed green beans. 
So here is the recipe.. enjoy!
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AUBERGINE, LENTIL & COCONUT CURRY

Ingredients
1 cup of puy or green lentils (250g)
650ml vegetable stock or water
1 tablespoon rapeseed oil or coconut oil
1 large red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed or finely chopped
2cm piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and grated or finely chopped
1 level teaspoon dried chillies (more if you like it hot!)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground coriander
​sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 can coconut milk (400ml) 
2 aubergines, washed and cut into cubes
1 cup of frozen peas or edamame beans
Handful of chopped fresh coriander
Big handful of spinach

Method

1. Rinse​​ the lentils then put in a pan with the stock or water and heat until gently simmering. Partially cover the pan and simmer until the lentils are just tender - about 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Heat the oil in a large pan, add the onion and cook over a low heat, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes.
3. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for 1 minute.
4. Stir in the dried chillies, cumin, coriander, turmeric, black pepper and cinnamon and stir to combine. Add a tablespoon of water if the mixture is sticking.
5. Add the aubergines, the lentils and any remaining cooking water and the coconut milk and simmer gently for 15 minutes.
6. Add the peas and simmer for 2 or 3 minutes.
7. Turn the heat off and add the spinach, put the lid on until the spinach has wilted.
8. Give it a good mix, stir in some chopped coriander and serve with brown basmati rice and a wee yoghurt dip if you fancy!

         ........your health in your hands......