Red Curry with Butternut Squash & Chickpeas

I never gave my mom enough credit with being able to put beautiful, delicious, and varying meals on our table every night of the week, in the midst of her crazy busy schedule. Now that I'm an adult and the primary cook in my little family of two (just Chris and I right now), I'm already feeling the struggle of finding the time to grocery shop and get a tasty and satisfying meal on the table each night of the week. I definitely have a few go-to meals that I turn to, and a new one that I've added into the rotation this year has been weeknight curries!

Curries are so incredible for weeknight meals for so many reasons. First of which, I love that most curry ingredients are items I already have kicking around my kitchen, which means not having to run to the grocery store before mealtime. I also love the ease and speed in getting a beautiful, restaurant-worthy curry on the table, not to mention how forgiving they are once reheated. Curries reheat beautifully, making them a fantastic option for weekend meal planning, as well as using the leftovers for lunches throughout the week, and freezing for future emergency dinners. Last but not least, they are so delicious and are a great excuse for enjoying a meatless meal. While curries are fantastic with chicken, beef, seafood, goat, and more, I tend to mostly make protein-packed vegetarian and often even vegan curries so that I don't have to go to the store to buy any additional meat.

I often draw inspiration for my curries from some of my favourite restaurant curries that I've enjoyed around the city. One of my favourites is the red curry from Sukhothai, which includes tender and sweet cubes of squash immersed in the flavourful sauce. With this curry on my mind, and local squash in abundance in the grocery store, I came up with a delicious and feel-good weeknight curry to add to my collection of homemade curry recipes. I often make curries on Monday's before our evening yoga class, so to give this dish a hit of extra protein to give me the energy to get through the class, I also added some chickpeas, that added a bit of texture to the dish as well. I know chickpeas are not traditional in a Thai curry, but for a weeknight meal it's more about creating a delicious and satisfying dish that works for me than going for authenticity.

I hope you enjoy this curry and add it into your own weeknight meal rotation! Let me know what you thought in the comments below.

Ingredients:
4 medium garlic cloves, minced
1-inch piece of ginger, minced
1 - 6 chillies (depending on your heat tolerance)
1/2 Tbsp cilantro stems, finely chopped
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp whole cumin seed
1 tsp whole coriander seed
vegetable oil for sautéing
4 large shallots, diced
pinch of baking soda
5 - 6 Tbsp red curry paste
2 - 2 1/2 cups butternut squash, cubed (you may sub in other types of squash if you wish!)
1 can (540mL) Metro Irresistibles Life Smart Chick Peas with no salt added, drained and rinsed
handful of kefir lime leaves (optional, if you can't get your hands on them, just add a squeeze of lime juice)
400mL coconut milk
1 cup vegetable broth
1 Tbsp lime juice
1-2 Tbsp fish sauce
pinch of brown sugar
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped plus more for garnish
jasmine rice to serve

Directions:

1. In a mortar and pestle grind together garlic, ginger, chillies, cilantro stems, lemon juice and salt until you form a paste. 
2. Heat a large pot to medium heat. Add a glug of vegetable oil and add in the cumin and coriander seeds. Once the seeds become fragrant, add the shallots and pinch of baking soda. Increase heat to medium-high and cook, stirring frequently. Every two-minutes or so, deglaze the bottom of the pot with a small splash of water, using a wooden spoon to scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Continue this process for 7-10 minutes, or until the mixture becomes a deep brown colour. 
3. Add in the prepared garlic paste, along with the red curry paste and butternut squash. Stir to coat and cook for 1-min. 
4. Add the coconut milk, vegetable broth, chickpeas, and kefir lime leaves and bring to a boil. Season with salt and reduce to a simmer, and cook for 20-30 minutes, or until squash is tender. 
5. Add the lime juice, fish sauce, brown sugar, and cilantro and taste for seasoning. Season as needed with additional fish sauce, salt, chillies, and brown sugar to balance flavours. 
6. Serve with jasmine rice, garnished with lime wedges and cilantro sprigs. Serve immediately or keep in fridge for 1-week, or freeze for future use. 

This post was created in partnership with Metro Ontario. 

Listening To:
Roll (Burbank Funk) - The Internet

Metro Seasonal Lunch: Discussing Local Purchasing Initiatives with Foodland Ontario

Photo by Jeffrey Wright

Welcome back summer! As much as I love to rejoice as soon as the summer solstice hits, I have to admit that being a pale ginger kid, I actually prefer the weather in the spring and fall, as opposed to the scorching and humid temperatures that we can expect in the summer in Toronto. Though, yes, I do prefer spring and fall, my absolute favourite thing about summer in Toronto is being able to enjoy all of the incredible local produce that we are so lucky to grow here in Ontario. 

"Locally grown produce allows consumers to put a face to their food, granting them the opportunity to find that personal connection with each meal." 

There's no doubt about it, Torontonians are caring more and more about the food they're feeding their families. People want to know where the food is coming from, how it was grown, and who grew it. For most Canadians food is more than just sustenance, it's a way of showing love, giving to others, and telling a story. It's no coincidence that there are three meals in a day, beginning, middle, and end, just like a story. In order to build on the story of each meal, consumers want to be able to make a connection with the food that they're eating. Locally grown produce allows consumers to put a face to their food, granting them the opportunity to find that personal connection with each meal. 

Photo by Daniel St. Germaine

After waiting so many months for our rainbow of Ontario fruits and vegetables to come back into season, it's understandable to want to have a fridge and counter full of locally-grown goodies at all times. Though farmer's markets are definitely "on-trend" right now and seem to be popping up all over the city, it's not always easy to find access to locally grown goods every day for each meal. Yes, most of us have a local market that's easy for us to get to, but most of those farmer's markets only run once a week, which means looking elsewhere for Ontario-grown foods. 

With so many Torontonians demanding access to locally grown foods, grocery stores are beginning to take note. I recently had the opportunity to attend a seasonally-focused lunch hosted by Metro Ontario, celebrating their new local sourcing initiatives in partnership with Foodland Ontario. The event, which was held in the beautiful exposed-brick Burroughs Building, invited attendees to enjoy a three-course seasonally-inspired meal, and learn about the innovative shopping experience that Metro is beginning to create for their consumers. 

Understanding the importance of having that personal connection with the food their customers are purchasing, Metro has taken it upon themselves to improve the shopping experience. By sourcing more of their fresh foods locally, as well as providing visual aids both in store and in their weekly flyer, Metro has made it so simple for customers to not only easily access Ontario-grown foods, but also effortlessly find those local foods with ease in the midst of their busy schedules.

The Meal

The event was a stunning reflection of Metro's new initiative, celebrating the beauty of our bounty here in Ontario. The three-course meal showcased the big bold flavours of Ontario by focusing on simplicity. The lunch began with a Field of Greens Salad, speckled with Ontario sprouted beans (which also reflects this years International Year of Pulses), red beets, pumpkin seeds, and parmesan cheese, tossed in a maple walnut vinaigrette. Though the Ontario Beer-Brined Chicken and Ontario Rainbow Trout looked exquisite, I had selected the Egg Yolk Ravioli for my second course, having always been intrigued by the surprising dish. The extra-large raviolis were lightly tossed in browned butter and pecorino, and topped with pea shoots to allow the subtle flavour of the ricotta and Ontario green pea filling to shine. The rich and creamy texture and flavour of the egg yolk, kept intact inside each ravioli, tied the whole dish together, and added a welcome surprise as the ravioli was cut open and the yolk oozed out. To end the meal, we were presented with a dazzling finale of Goat's Milk Panna Cotta with vibrant strawberry and rhubarb, dehydrated pink peppercorn meringue, and mint.  

More than just a fantastic meal, I was so taken by the gorgeous tablescape that was created exclusively for the event. The large, glass-topped table had individual panels all along its length, which were each filled with a different Ontario vegetable, creating a rainbow of Ontario produce beneath each table setting. The attention to detail in the execution of the decor was truly spectacular and left me feeling inspired!

Being a huge supporter of the impressive wealth of flavour we are so lucky to enjoy in Ontario, this was such an enjoyable event for me to attend. I had so much fun getting to talk to the engaging Metro and Foodland Ontario representatives about the exciting work that they're doing, and revelling in the uniqueness and quality of Ontario cuisine. I'm looking forward to this coming Saturday, where I will be joining the Metro Ontario team once again to watch chef Anthony Rose create a mouth-watering dish, utilizing Ontario produce, on the Metro Master Class stage at Taste Of Toronto! Who else is going to be there? Tweet me: @thisgingerrose so we can connect! 

Want to stay up-to-date with all of my foodie adventures? Be sure to follow me on Instagram!

Listening To:
Drake - Controlla