by Abigail McShinsky

It’s cold outside! And despite the mild New Hampshire winter we have had, I still find myself sitting near the fireplace at night, a warm, comforting meal in my hands as I wind down for the evening. Often, comfort food is synonymous with dense, gooey casseroles and fried foods – Macaroni and cheese, fried chicken, mashed potatoes. While it is easy to indulge in these foods when the thermometer dips, it can be just as simple to create nourishing healthful dishes that are warming to the core.

Below are two traditional warming recipes with huge comforting potential. I might argue that nothing is more comforting than a large pot of homemade vegetable curry simmering on the stove during the cold winter months. Curry spices are generally regarded for their warming and health promoting benefits – its components support healthy inflammatory response, digestive health and detoxification, among others.

Chai shares many of the same herbs as curry – cinnamon, black pepper, cardamom, as well as ginger and clove, making it another fantastic warming option for long winter nights.

Warming Winter Curry (serves 6)

Ingredients:

One tablespoon olive oil

One medium onion - chopped

2 cloves garlic – chopped

2 tablespoons curry powder (or more to taste)

4 large carrots – chopped crosswise

One head broccolini (or broccoli, if you prefer) - chopped

2 cups snow peas

2 cups garbanzo beans (dried, soaked overnight and simmered for at least an hour – check for doneness) or alternatively, one can organic garbanzo beans

Vegetable stock – enough to cover vegetables in pot

1 cup coconut milk (from can)

Salt and pepper, to taste

In a heavy-bottom Dutch oven or soup pot, add oil and warm over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and sauté for 5 – 7 minutes until onions are translucent and fragrant. Stir in curry powder. Add carrots, broccolini, peas, beans, and vegetable stock. Simmer for half an hour on low heat. Add coconut milk, and stir to combine. Simmer for another 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot over brown rice or with tempeh for a complete, nourishing meal.

Warming Night-time Chai (serves 4)

Ingredients:

1 cinnamon stick

6 whole green cardamom pods

6 whole cloves

1 (1-inch) piece ginger root, peeled and thinly sliced

4 whole black peppercorns

3 cups water

1 tablespoon loose rooibos tea

2 tablespoons dark brown sugar

1 cup organic milk/non-dairy milk

Place cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, ginger, peppercorns and water into a small pot and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to let steep for 10 minutes.

Return pot to the heat and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, add tea, cover and set aside to let steep for 3 to 5 minutes. Strain through a fine mesh sieve, discarding solids, and then return liquid to the pot. Stir in sugar and milk and heat over low heat for 1 minute. Pour into cups and serve.