This dish is a vegetarian and  health nuts dream come true!  With a combination of whole spices this was a curry that packed a major punch on the flavour scale and the roasting of the vegetables gave them a lovely caramelised sweetness that accented the spicy tomato base beautifully.  Finished off with a dollop of creamy yoghurt and  a serve of nutty brown rice……Curry……. You complete me.

Ps:  This really was a punchy curry with the use of whole toasted spices.  I personally love that rather intense pop of flavour when biting into a cumin seed or cardamom seed but it is not for everyone.  To take the intensity of flavour out of it simply use ground spices, the same quantity will be fine, except I would halve the mustard powder and use 1/2 a teaspoon of ground cardamom instead of the pods..

Prep time:  30  Minutes                 Cooking time:  40  Minutes                  $  Low Budget

Serves 4

E V olive oil for frying and drizzling

300gm of butternut pumpkin, cut into 1 inch cubes

1 medium sized eggplant, ends removed and cut into chunks

8 truss tomatoes, separated into lots of 2, truss intact

300gm of green beans, topped & sliced into 3cm batons

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2cm piece of ginger, grated

1 brown onion, halved and sliced top to bottom

11/2 tsp of garam masala

1 tsp of yellow mustard seeds

11/2 tsp of cumin seeds

11/2 tsp of coriander seeds

5 cardamom pods, bruised

1 tsp of turmeric

1 tsp of paprika

1 tsp of dried chilli flakes

400gm tin of diced tomatoes

400gm tin of chickpeas, drained

11/2 cups of water

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

1 tbs of honey

1/2 a bunch of coriander roughly chopped

Sea salt and pepper

Brown rice, greek yoghurt and pappadoms to serve

Pre heat the oven to 200°C

Place the cut eggplant and pumpkin in a large lined baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle over the garam masala, toss with your hands to coat.  Season well with salt and pepper and bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes.

Heat a large pot or pan and add a little oil.  Fry the mustard seeds until they start to pop and then add the cumin seeds, coriander seeds and cardamom pods.  Lightly fry until just aromatic and then add the onion.  Stir fry until it is nice and soft and then add the ginger and garlic.  Fry for a further minute or two and then add the turmeric, paprika and chilli flakes.  Fry for 30 seconds (the mixture will be quite dry) and then squeeze in the lemon juice and pour in the tomatoes, chickpeas, water and honey.  Season generously with salt and pepper, stir to combine and bring to a simmer.  Allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes on a low heat and add a little more water if the mixture gets too dry.  Have a taste and adjust any seasoning if necessary.

Place the tomatoes in a small, lined baking dish, season and drizzle with a little extra virgin.  Pierce them with the tip of a knife in one or two places and bake in the oven for 10 minutes.

Remove the pumpkin and eggplant from the oven and add them to the curry sauce along with the beans.  Gently fold the vegetables through the sauce, cover with a lid and simmer for 5-7 minutes or until the beans are tender but still nice and green in colour.  Scatter over the coriander and stir to combine.

To serve, place a couple of spoonfuls of brown rice on each plate and divide the curry between them.  Spoon over a generous dollop of greek yoghurt and top with the roasted tomatoes and a coriander sprig.  Serve with pappadoms