"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife"

gaaah, Pride and Prejudice. I'm rereading it now, and, I gotta say, man. it's just so good.

anyway.

not a bad day at work. got to play with the most wonderful SD (and discuss our girl and boy problems), and worked 8 straight hours with the main man target. mmm :)

it is thanks to this main man target that I have a delish din-din to immortalize for future reference. I was hungry as shit after work, but, after halfway implying to him we should have a playdate later, I realized I shouldn't gorge too much. it needed to be filling, but light. yeah. opposing concepts. I know.

I was like, "Well shee-it, I'll just make a small supper with hella flavor and call it a night. And if He doesn't call after 10 or so, I'm gettin' some goddamn fro-yo. Hell, I may just get Yoloberry anyway, dairy-bloat be damned!"

and so this curry was born. I used to love my momma's chicken curry*, but, since I do not indulge of the flesh anymore (unless it's the main man target... sigh. if only.), I'm not privy to its pleasure-play of flavors. it's shredded chicken, apples, raisins, celery, curry... so good. well, since it's freezing around here anyway, I figured I'd stew it up and ignore its chilled-bird roots.

Pre-Playdate Curry

1 large clove of garlic, minced
1 red jalapeno, coarsely chopped
1/2 golden delicious or other mild, firm apple, chopped
1/2 pound asparagus, cut into 1-2 inch bites
olive oil
1/2 cup veggie broth
2 TBS tomato paste
1 TBS curry
2 tsp tumeric
2 tsp cumin (these are all just accounting for my more or less generous dashes)
half a handful red lentils

saute the garlic, jalapeno, and apple together in the olive oil on low 'til they begin to get nice and fragrant. mix in the asparagus, and cook for about 2 minutes, until everything begins to sizzle. when it does, add all the spices, broth, and tomato paste, bring to a simmer, and then mix in the lentils. cover, turn back down to low, and cook until lentils are soft, and sauce has reduced, about 15 minutes.

hoo baby, this was good. I wanted to serve it on wilted collards (my current favorite green), so I mixed in the lentils to thicken it up (the red lentils are great because: a) they cook fast; b) they break down nice and quickly, making a really tasty mush; c) I got a BUNCH of them NC'd :D), but more broth can be added to make it more soup-y - probably would just need to adjust tomato and curry ratio.


*Mark Darcy: ...I realize that when I met you at the Turkey Curry Buffet I was unforgiveably rude... and wearing a reindeer jumper. That my mother had given me the day before. But the thing is, um, what I'm trying to say, very inarticulately, is that, um, in fact, perhaps despite appearances, I like you. Very much.
Bridget: [Bitterly] Apart from the smoking and the drinking and the verbal diarrhea...
Mark Darcy: No, I mean I like you very much. Just as you are.

damn, son, I just tied this entire post together. the P&P quote from the title and the content of this meal are brought together by Bridget Jones's Diary. I knew there was a reason I loved that movie.