Creamy Vegetable Curry

I had a fairly good amount of fresh cream lying in my refrigerator’s chill tray and which was about to die in a day or two. We were just back from a short vacation and I was busy with cleaning, washing loads of clothes, buying veggies and once again doing all the routine work. Having a loaf of bread really helps me with sorting out our breakfast and Neha’s evening snacks atleast for 2 days. Fortunately, the weather in Chennai is a bit

pleasant to have some bread and soup for dinner too. Generally my family loves this combination for dinner once in a while. So this was made as an accompaniment for the warm coconut bread and carrot soup which was served for dinner last night.

I particularly loved this curry which has loads of fresh veggies and which still had a crunch and was not at all over cooked. Fresh vegetables are my weakness and I love to buy lots of them whenever I go to vegetable shop. The vegetables are first blanched and then stir fried with some mild spices and finally coated with thick fresh cream to make it rich and creamy. Moreover, pretty coloured vegetables like broccoli, corn, bell peppers, carrot, beans, cauliflower really make it look very attractive. Perfect to dip a slice of fresh homemade bread and devour. Feel free to use any vegetables of your choice. Green peas and paneer will taste really good along with the veggies used in the recipe. Play around with spices and flavours. Just be creative. Use recipes and blogs only as a base and put your ideas into it and I am sure it will taste even better than the original. Any food prepared with love and passion is gonna taste good. You are the one who is going to put life and soul into a lifeless recipe. Your food reflects you and your state of mind. After all who knows your family more than you 🙂 If you do not have fresh cream, it doesn’t mean you can’t try this out, add some coconut paste or coconut milk or even some almond or cashew paste for the gravy to thicken. Never be scared of experimentations. Every attempt teaches you something. Please share your feedback incase you try this. Happy cooking.

Ingredients:

• Potato 1
• Onion 1
• Tomato 1
• French beans 8-10
• Carrot 1 small
• Cauliflower florets few
• Broccoli florets few
• Fresh corn few kernels
• Ginger a small piece
• Bell pepper cubes 1/2 cup
• Salt to taste
• Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
• Red chili powder 1 tsp
• Coriander powder 2 tsp
• Refined oil 1 tbsp
• Fresh cream 3-4 tbsp
• Whole spices as required
• Coriander leaves 2-3 sprigs

Method:

• Chop the vegetables into small cubes.
• Blanch the beans, carrot, broccoli, cauliflower, potato and fresh corn.

• Heat oil in a heavy pan and add the whole spices and stir for a minute.

• Now add the chopped onion and ginger. Saute till they are translucent.

• Now add turmeric, red chili and coriander powder and mix well.
• Add finely chopped tomato and cook till it’s mushy. Add salt to taste.

• Now add the blanched vegetables and stir for 2 minutes.

• Add the water used for blanching and cook for 2-3 minutes.
• Add fresh cream and mix well.

• Add the chopped coloured bell peppers and mix well.

• Finally garnish it with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.

Notes:

• I have not added any whole spices since hubby doesn’t like cinnamon, cloves etc. But you may add cinnamon, cloves, bay leaf, pepper corns and cardamom if you like.
• Fresh cream can be replaced with thick coconut milk.
• You can use any vegetables of your choice. But do not over cook them. The crunchy vegetables add to the taste.
• You may add some finely chopped garlic too.