Chickpea Curry

Surprised? Well if you were a  part of my family you would be! I have very non fond memories of eating curry when I was growing up. My mom didn't make it often but when she did I either did the a)curry in the cheeks, excuse yourself to the washroom and down the toilet it went. b) shoved it under my dinner plate when no one was looking and hoped it stuck to the bottom of your plate as you brought it to the garborator. Sorry mom, but maybe it was just your curry because the curry I had tonight was delicious. Nah, my mom is a great cook I think the issue actually was that I don't like the flavor of curry powder (the spice already pre-made up and in a jar at the store). When I used my own fresh nutmeg, cinnamon, cumin and coriander it had such a great aroma to it. I actually made my curry the day before in order for all the flavors to really get into the chickpeas. I am so glad I decided to wait an extra day before eating it as I really think it made a huge difference in flavor. I went to one of my favourite websites www.williams-sonoma.com and found this chickpea curry. I did however change a couple things. Instead of adding the garam masala I added in cinnamon, freshly ground nutmeg and black pepper in its place. I also used ground cumin instead of seeds. This curry was served on rice with a great yogurt dip garnished on top.

• 2 Tbs. canola oil
• 1 1/2 cups thin yellow onion wedges
• 3 garlic cloves, pressed
• 3 Tbs. peeled, grated ginger
• 3/4 tsp. cumin seeds
• 2 cups fresh or canned diced tomatoes, with juices
• 2 tsp. garam masala
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 1/2 tsp. ground coriander
• 1 tsp. kosher salt, plus more, to taste
• 2 cups cubed Yukon Gold potatoes
• 5 cups cooked, drained chickpeas
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 Tbs. fresh lime juice
• Steamed basmati rice for serving

To make the cucumber yogurt, spoon 2 cups plain greek yogurt into a bowl. Make sure you use greek yogurt because you want it really thick. Grate 1/2 a cucumber into a colander and squeeze out the excess water. Add the cucumber to the yogurt. mince 1 garlic clove, chop up a small handful of fresh mint and a small handful of cilantro and add to yogurt 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp cumin and 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper. Refrigerate for at least a few hours.

To make the chickpea curry, heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat and pour in the 2 tbsp oil. When the oil is hot, add the 1 1/2 cups onion, 3 garlic cloves minced and 3 tbsp ginger grated. Sauté until the garlic starts to brown, 1 to 2 minutes.

Add the 3/4 tsp cumin seeds or powder, 2 cups tomatoes and their juices, 2 tsp garam masala or enough fresh cinnamon, freshly grated nutmeg and pepper to make up the 2 tsp, 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp coriander, 2 cups water and the 1 tsp. salt and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes.

Add the potatoes and chickpeas and continue to simmer until the potatoes are tender, 15 to 20 minutes more.

Season with salt and stir in the1/4 cup fresh cilantro and 2 tbsp fresh lime juice.Serve on top of rice and top with yogurt dip. Serves 4 to 6.