Bowla

For the past few weeks, I have been struggling. But it's humbling how something as simple as good food can always save me. Like the cake Cathy brought over last week. Long after it was all gone, I still pictured Cathy standing in her kitchen slicing each of the strawberries and whipping cream for the top. Such a simple act, and so comforting.

What I made tonight was Sweet Potato Curry with Red Lentils. It is all my favorite things: savory, spicy, easy, cheap, and healthy. If you want to DIY, the recipe is below.

Sweet Potato Curry with Red Lentils

First thing, finely chop one medium onion and set aside.

Next, peel a large sweet potato and cut into 1-inch chunks.

Next, bring 3 ½ cups of water to a boil in a medium or large pot. Add an organic bullion cube. (You can also just use proper stock instead of water.)

While you're waiting for it to boil, throw in the sweet potato.

Meanwhile, warm some oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and sauté, stirring occasionally. While it's cooking, peel and finely chop a hunk of ginger and a couple cloves of garlic. Put all this into the onions, plus a teaspoon of curry powder and another of freshly-ground cumin. Give it all a stir and keep it cooking for another minute or so.

While you're waiting, add a cup of red lentils to the boiling water and sweet potato. Then add all the onion stuff, stir, and turn the heat way down to simmer.

Cook for 10 minutes or until lentils are softened. The potatoes will already be softened.

You can really put things into the pot in whatever order you want. The key is chopping the onions, garlic, and ginger really finely and getting them softened up before they go into the pot. Also, don't overcook this dish. If you do, it turns to mush, but catch it before that stage, and it will be a lovely golden color with the beautiful orange sweet potato still intact.

Garnish bowls with chopped cilantro and plenty of plain yogurt or kefir. Best eaten with fresh bread for sopping.