Vegan Night

Without realizing it I made an amazing VEGAN dinner. This was such a welcome surprise since I'm trying to be more mindful of how much meat and dairy I consume. While making the dinner I glanced over the recipes and ingredients on the counter and realized that it was not only "meatless night", it was our first ever "vegan night".

I recently tried the new Ballard restaurant, Golden Beetle, and LOOOOOOOVED it. We tried a ton of stuff and I loved every bite of the meal. I especially loved the kale which was sauteed and had toasted almonds. So, you know me, I tried to re-create it. I used my latest kale recipe and added cumin and toasted almonds. My kale wasn't exactly like the Golden Beetle's but it was delicious and a perfect pairing with the Curried Red Kidney Beans and Cauliflower that was the main course for my vegan dinner.

Whenever my husband gets home from work he peeks over my shoulder to see what we're having for dinner. If it's meatless night, I always hear a sigh followed by "meatless night!" which he says with a sarcastic enthusiasm. It's funny that he acts less than thrilled because he always ends up liking it, and he always goes back for seconds! (...even on this vegan night!)

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Sauteed Kale
Inspired by The Golden Beetle

1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted
1 T canola oil
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
2 T garlic, minced
1 T ginger, minced
Few pinches of red pepper flakes
1/4 t cumin (Rough estimate. I just sprinkled it on once or twice.)
One bunch kale, rinsed well and roughly chopped
Few splashes red wine vinegar
Fresh lemon juice

Heat oil in a large pan over medium heat. Saute onion until soft. Add garlic and ginger and saute for several more minutes. Add red chili flakes, cumin and kale. Saute for roughly 5 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. When it's almost done, add a few splashes of vinegar. Stir to combine. Squeeze a little lemon juice over the top and stir in almonds.

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