RECIPE: Carrot, Vadouvan Yogurt Dip made with WET vadouvan curry paste

I have another recipe for this dip, made with dry vadouvan curry powder, which is slightly different.

This recipe, made with the more complex WET Vadouvan curry paste, has less yogurt so it has a stronger carrot flavor which I like very much, but my husband doesn't.  He prefers the milder dip made with the dry vadouvan curry powder and more yogurt.  As you can see in the photo below, this one is a much more orange color.

Original recipe: Vadouvan Scented Carrot Raita

Carrot, WET Vadouvan, and Yogurt Dip

 

Makes 3 cups

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup water
• 5-8 large carrots (about 1.5 pounds raw) peeled and sliced 1/8" thick
• water
  
• 3 T. ghee
  
• 1 ball Vadouvan WET spice mix recipe
• 1 lemon
• 3/4 cup full fat plain yogurt
• Salt and pepper.
• Chile flakes and kalonji (nigella) seeds for serving.

INSTRUCTIONS: 

For this recipe I started with 1.5 pounds of raw carrots, which became 1 pound after I washed, peeled, and removed the tops.  Rather than slice them into coins, I sliced each carrot into 2" pieces and sliced each piece into 1/8" slabs.  It seemed faster than slicing coins.  One pound of sliced carrots cooked down into exactly 2 cups.

Carrots before and after slicing into slabs

Put the carrots in a medium skillet and add enough water to just barely cover them.  Heat over high heat until it boils.  Reduce the heat and simmer on medium heat until the water has almost all evaporated.  The carrots should be very soft, falling apart.

Add the ghee to the skillet and stir to coat the carrots.  Cover the pan, and cook for 5 minutes.  Uncover the pan and stir the carrots.  Cover the pan again and cook until the carrots are slightly caramelized, about another 5 minutes.  (If you don't cover the pan, too much moisture will be lost, and the carrots will be too dense for the blender to puree - it will cavitate and you will need much more yogurt.)

Carrots, boiled and then caramelized

Turn off the heat and let the carrots cool slightly.  Measure out 2 cups and add them to a blender or a food processor fitted with a metal blade.  A blender will create a smoother puree.  Add the vadouvan to the carrots.

Zest the lemon then mince the zest.  Add to the blender along with the juice of half the lemon (about 2 T.), plus 1/2 t. salt.  Puree the carrots. 

Add the yogurt, plus another pinch of salt.  If you have less than 2 cups of carrots, you may need less yogurt. Process until very smooth.  Taste and add more salt or lemon juice, if needed.  

Before serving, sprinkle with chile flakes and kalonji seeds.  We have some friends who cannot eat spicy food so I separated the chile flakes from the kalonji seeds. 

I have enjoyed this with sliced carrots, sliced fresh apples, apple chips, cassava chips, flatbreads, and hearty crackers.  It seems to go with everything! 

 

RECIPE: Carrot, Vadouvan Yogurt Dip made with DRY vadouvan curry powder

For Friendsgiving this year, I wanted to use Vadouvan in an appetizer so I searched for a recipe and found a dip by Curio Spice Company whose Vadouvan I had used the first time I made the Carrots with Vadouvan Spice and Yogurt!  I made the recipe using half Curio Vadouvan, and half WET Vadouvan curry paste.  NOTE: Curio Vadouvan has a lot of turmeric, and it stained my processor blade!

The dip was delicious, but I forgot to take a photo, and I wanted to see what it tasted like without the hard-to-make wet vadouvan, so I had to make it again.  The second time, I used the DRY vadouvan curry powder, which has more ingredients than the Curio version, and much less turmeric.  It also has no garlic or shallots, so it's quite different than both the Curio version and the wet version.    

I wanted to use a higher ratio of carrots to yogurt - perhaps even eliminate the yogurt entirely, so I used 5 huge carrots, and sliced them really thin so they would cook through.  These were storage carrots, so I covered them with a little water first, to encourage them to soften.  Once the water was almost evaporated, I added the ghee. 

When the carrots were soft, I did not add the lemon or vadouvan to the pan, but I did add the garlic.  It was late, so I transferred the carrots to a measuring cup and put them in the fridge.  Surprisingly, there was only 2 cups of cooked carrots, and I knew that when they were pureed there would be even less and I would need to add yogurt.  I stored them in the fridge until the next morning.

I didn't have Greek yogurt so I used regular.  I zested the lemon and then minced the strips.

After pureeing the carrots, adding 3 t. of the vadouvan and 1 cup of yogurt, the flavor was very harsh, bitter even.  I added another 1/2 cup of yogurt and the flavor transformed into one of the best dips I've ever made!  I've eaten it with cassava chips, sliced carrots, and sliced apples, and I love it with all of them.      

Original recipe: Vadouvan Scented Carrot Raita

Carrot, DRY Vadouvan, and Yogurt Dip

Makes 2 cups

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup water
• 5-7 large carrots (about one pound) peeled and sliced into 1/8" thick "coins"
• 3 T. ghee
  
• 1 T. dry Vadouvan Curry Powder or one ball Vadouvan WET curry paste
• 1 T. chopped garlic
• 1 lemon
• 1.5 cup full fat plain yogurt
• Salt and pepper.
• Chile flakes and black onion seeds for serving.

INSTRUCTIONS: 

Heat 1/2 cup water in a medium skillet set over high heat until it boils.  Add the carrots and simmer on medium heat until the water has evaporated. 

Soften the carrots in water.

Add the ghee to the skillet and stir to coat the carrots.  Add a generous pinch of salt and pepper, cover the pan, and cook for 5 minutes.  Uncover the pan and stir the carrots.  Cover the pan again and cook until the carrots are soft and slightly caramelized, about another 5 minutes.  

Carrots lightly browned

Uncover the pan, add the garlic and vadouvan, stir and cook for 1 minute.  Turn off the heat.

Zest the lemon and then mince the zest.  Add the zest to the carrots and let the mixture cool for 5 minutes.  Measure how many cooked carrots you have.  If you have less than 2 cups, you may need less yogurt.

Put the carrots into a food processor fitted with a metal blade.  Add the juice of half the lemon, the yogurt, plus another pinch of salt.  Process until very smooth.  Taste and add more salt or lemon juice, if needed.  

Before serving, sprinkle with chile flakes and black onion seeds.  

Serve with cooked vegetables, crudites, flatbreads, or hearty crackers.

RECIPE: Vadouvan Curry

If you saw this post on Carrots with Vadouvan Spice and Yogurt you know I've been looking for a homemade recipe for the vadouvan spice blend.  This article at Serious Eats lists several places where you can purchase it, but I wanted to mix my own with organic ingredients. 

There were several recipes for the spice mixture that appealed to me - with my criteria being a good number of different spices which I thought would result in a more complex flavor.  There were two I decided to make, one a DRY powder, the other a WET paste.  

Here is the link for the DRY Vadouvan Curry POWDER.

Here is the link for the WET Vadouvan Curry PASTE.

Next week, I am going to made a dry powder of the spices in this recipe and see how it compares to the dry recipe above.  I may also add some DRY shallot, garlic, ginger, and curry leaf powder and compare that, too.

Another recipe from Feast Magazine.

Another recipe from Ludo Lefebvre which, interestingly, does not have any curry spices.

Another recipe from Le Creuset. 

And another recipe from Tasting Table with several suggestions on how to use it.

Le Sanctuaire Vadouvan adds onion, shallots and garlic to their house blend curry powder and states that it's a powerful blend to be used sparingly.  The one-pound size costs $92 (in Dec 2025) and there is a waiting list! 

RECIPE: DRY Vadouvan Curry Powder

If you saw this post on Carrots with Vadouvan Spice and Yogurt you know I've been looking for a homemade recipe for the vadouvan spice blend.  This article at Serious Eats lists several places where you can purchase it, but I wanted to mix my own with organic ingredients. 

There were several recipes for the spice mixture that appealed to me - with my criteria being a good number of different spices which I thought would result in a more complex flavor.  There were two I decided to make, one a DRY powder, the other a WET paste.  This recipe is for the DRY one.

Simple Dry VADOUVAN curry powder

Makes about 1/2 cup 

Original recipe:  DRY Vadouvan Curry Powder

• 1 t. fenugreek seeds 
• 2 t. cumin seeds
• 1 T. coriander seeds
• 1 t. ground turmeric
• 20 FRESH curry leaves
• 1 T. brown mustard seeds
• 2 t. dried chili flakes (I used Kashmiri)
• 1 t. salt flakes
• 1/2 t. black peppercorns

Toast all ingredients until fragrant, cool, then grind to a powder in a spice grinder.  Store in a sealed glass container.   

I used this mix to make Vadouvan Carrot and Yogurt Dip and it was FANTASTIC!  

RECIPE: WET Vadouvan Curry Paste

If you saw this post on Carrots with Vadouvan Spice and Yogurt you know I've been looking for a homemade recipe for the vadouvan spice blend.  This article at Serious Eats lists several places where you can purchase it, but I wanted to mix my own with organic ingredients. 

There were several recipes for the spice mixture that appealed to me - with my criteria being a good number of different spices which I thought would result in a more complex flavor.  There were two I decided to make.  This recipe is for the WET vadouvan curry PASTE:

WET VADOUVAN Curry PASTE

Vadouvan WET CURRY

Makes 12 2-inch balls

   Original recipe: WET Vadouvan Curry Balls

• 1 T. ground cumin
• 2 t. salt
• 2 t. ground coriander
• 2 t. turmeric
• 1 t. ground fenugreek
• 1 t. ground cardamom
• 1 t. sugar
• 1 t. yellow mustard seeds
• 1/2 t. fennel seeds
• 1/2 t. ground nutmeg
• 1/2 t. cayenne pepper (I used kashmiri)
• 1/2 t. black pepper
• 2 cloves, ground
• ghee for frying
• 2 pounds shallots finely chopped
• 12 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 inch piece of ginger, grated
• 1 T. finely chopped fresh curry leaves 

Toast the dry spices over medium-high heat until fragrant.  Remove them from the pan and set aside.

Add the oil to the pan, add the remaining ingredients ( shallots, garlic, ginger and curry leaves) and saute on low heat for 30 minutes.

Sauteing the alliums

Return the dry spices to the pan and saute for 10 minutes.

Adding the spices

Preheat the oven to 275F.

Line a baking pan with parchment and thinly spread out the onion-spice mixture.

Roast at this low heat for 2 hours, then cool.

The original recipe instructs you to shape it into balls using about 2 T. per ball.  If you won't be using them right away, they freeze well.  I made a few balls and put the rest into ice cube trays and froze them.

Vadouvan curry ball (2 T.)

 

 

This curry paste smells HEAVENLY!  It isn't hard to make, but it does take more time, and mincing 2 pounds of shallots was a labor of love (next time I'll use the food processor)!  Two pounds of (organic) shallots was also quite expensive.  She says you can use red onions instead, but think that will adversely affect the flavor. If you must, I would use sweet onions instead, and only replace half the shallots. 

I used one ball to make Carrots with Vadouvan Spice and Yogurt and we inhaled it!

I used another ball to make Carrot Vadouvan Yogurt Dip and it was delicious!  

Next, I am going to made a dry powder of the spices in this recipe and see how it compares to the dry recipe above.  I may also add some DRY shallot, garlic, ginger, and curry leaf powder and compare that, too.

Another recipe from Feast Magazine.

Another recipe from Ludo Lefebvre which, interestingly, does not have any curry spices.

Another recipe from Le Creuset. 

And another recipe from Tasting Table with several suggestions on how to use it.

Le Sanctuaire Vadouvan adds onion, shallots and garlic to their house blend curry powder and states that it's a powerful blend to be used sparingly.  The one-pound size costs $92 (in Dec 2025) and there is a waiting list!  

RECIPE: How to clean and store fresh curry leaves

As you know, we love Indian food!  Many recipes call for curry leaves, preferably fresh, which aren't available locally.  I did see one blogger say she had a curry plant she keeps in her kitchen, which I will look into. but that may not be a viable option in New England.

Fortunately, I was able to buy FRESH ORGANIC curry leaves on Amazon, shipped to me from a small farm in Arizona.  I'm not sharing the link because the seller is out of stock now, but there are other sellers.  Just be sure you buy fresh, not dried.  Dried organic curry leaves are available from Pure Indian Foods but the fresh ones have more flavor.

Fresh curry leaves (keep the stems, they have lots of flavor)

How to Clean and Store Fresh Curry Leaves

THIS INSTAGRAM POST shows you how to clean them and freeze them.  

Following her instructions, I removed the leaves from the stems (keeping the stems as they have lots of flavor).  A few (very few) of the leaves I received were damaged - I threw those leaves out.

I rinsed the leaves in a bowl of water, drained them in a sieve, and dried them on multiple changes of paper towels until they were DRY.

Fresh Curry leaves, washed (on the left) and drying on paper towels (on the right)

 

I then stored them 4 different ways:

• plain in a small glass container in the fridge, 
• coated with oil and then wrapped in paper towels in the fridge, 
• coated with oil, wrapped in parchment-lined foil and then frozen in a freezer bag.  
• I stored the stems in a small plastic bag in the fridge.  

From left to right: coated with oil, wrapped in paper towels, wrapped in parchment-foil

One month later, the stems had some mold on them.  I scrubbed them clean and used them to make dal.  Next time I will freeze the stems.

The leaves coated with oil and stored in the fridge were starting to turn black in spots.  I threw out the bad leaves and used the rest in dal.

The  uncoated leaves stored in a glass container fared the best.  Next time, I will store more of them that way.  

I haven't yet used the frozen leaves.  I'll report back when I do.

 

RECIPE: Zucchini Brownies - Gluten Free and Low Carb - with cinnamon and cayenne

Oops, sorry, I try to post recipes in the month where the ingredients are most likely to be in the farm store.  I did make this for the first time 2 months ago, but it didn't rate inclusion on the blog, and I didn't make it again until a few days ago to use up the last of the Zephyr squash before our first hard freeze.  I'm sure this can also be made with either carrots or beets, and will try that next.

The original recipe showed up in my feed one morning, and it looked like something I could adjust to make it more healthy for us.  The first time I made it, it was still too sweet, so I made further adjustments and this time it was delicious!  

I used the Zephyr squash my husband grew this year, so other squash besides zucchini will definitely work!  I'm going to try using beets or carrots next!

Original recipe: Incredibly Fudgy Zucchini Brownies

Zucchini Brownies - GF and Low Carb - 

with cinnamon and cayenne!

Makes one 8" x 10" OR 9" x 11" pan (see note)

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 cups zucchini, washed, trimmed, and cut into chunks.  No need to peel.
• 6 t. butter, melted
• 6 large eggs
• 2 t. vanilla extract
• 1/2 c. maple syrup granules or coconut sugar
  
• 1/2 c. Allulose
• 1 c. unsweetened cocoa
• 2 t. Vietnamese cinnamon
• 1/2 - 2 t. cayenne powder (optional, depending on your heat tolerance)
• 1 t. baking powder
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 c. sprouted oat flour (I use One Degree)
  
• 1/2 c. low-carb mini chocolate chips (like Choc Zero)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. 
2. Lightly butter a 9 x 11" pan and then line it with parchment*
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients
4. Combine the zucchini, melted butter, eggs and vanilla in the bowl of a processor and process until smooth.
5. Add the dry ingredients to the processor and pulse just to combine.
6. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan.  Sprinkle the chocolate chips on top and stir gently to incorporate them. 
7. Bake for 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few pieces of moist crumbs clinging to it.  
8. If it's not ready after 30 minutes, turn off the heat and leave the pan in the warm oven, checking periodically. 
   
9. Remove brownies from the oven and allow them to cool completely.
10. The original recipe called for frosting but we found them sweet enough without it.

*The butter will help the parchment stick to the pan.

NOTE: I used an 8" x 10" pan and the brownies were a little tall.  A 9" x 11" would have worked better.  If you like the way they look in my photo, use an 8" x 10" pan!

 

 

RECIPE: Best Ever Egg Salad with Jalapeno, Cilantro and Scallion

Egg Salad is one of our "must-always-be-in-the-fridge" items that we use for breakfast, brunch, and snacking.  I try to vary the seasonings - curry, red-onions-and-capers, green-onions-and-celery, red-peppers-and-sumac, chive-blossoms-and-dill -  using whatever flavor of mayonnaise I have in the fridge.  

This is the first time I've used jalapeno-cilantro-lime mayonnaise and it was delicious!  

Egg salad needs a crunchy element, or it become too mushy-cloying, so I often add onions.  In this case I used scallions.  Even though there were jalapenos in the mayo, I added one to the eggs, as well as half a small green bell pepper for even more crunch.

Egg Salad with Jalapeno, Cilantro and Scallion

Egg Salad with Jalapeno, Cilantro, Scallion and Green Bell pepper

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 8 medium-large hard boiled eggs (see note)
  
• 1/2c - 3/4c. of jalapeno-cilantro-lime mayonnaise*
• 1 small jalapeno, seeded and minced
• 1 medium green onion, minced
• 1/2 small green bell pepper, seeded and minced
• 1/2 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt

INSTRUCTIONS: 

*Make mayonnaise with 2 jalapenos, 1/4 c minced cilantro, and lime juice instead of lemon.

Mince the jalapeno, scallion and bell pepper.

Minced scallion, bell pepper, jalapeno

 

Chop the eggs into 3/8" pieces.

Mix everything together, using mayonnaise to taste: we like a lot of mayonnaise, some people like just enough to hold everything together.

Hard boiled eggs, scallions, jalapeno, bell pepper, mayo

Taste and adjust seasoning.

Serve with chips for dipping, spread on toast for breakfast, spoon into lettuce leaves and roll up for a quick snack, or fill a pita for a light dinner.

Note: we get our pasture-raised corn-free soy-free eggs from a local farm.  Their size varies - some are small, some are large.  I use a variety to even out the size differences.  If you use ex-large or jumbo eggs you will need to increase the other ingredients.

 

RECIPE: Green Beans in Garlic Red Pepper Sauce

This has been a mast year for green beans!  I've made this recipe in the past using roasted red peppers.  A few days ago, right after I made the red bell pepper powder, I decided to make this recipe using that powder, and it was both delicious and easy so I'm sharing it here.  I served it with Chapli Kebab and long-grain rice.  My husband had three servings!

 

Green Beans in Garlic Red Pepper Sauce

Green beans in garlic red pepper sauce

Serves 4  

INSTRUCTIONS:

• 1 pound green beans, trimmed
  
• 2 t. butter or ghee
• 1 garlic clove grated on a microplane
  
• 1 T. red bell pepper powder
• 1/2 t. hot pepper powder (optional)
  
• 1/4 cup cream
• 1/2 t. himalayan pink salt

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Cook the beans in boiling salted water for 7 minutes (any longer and they will lose their green color)
2. Drain using a colander.
3. In the pot where you cooked the beans, melt the butter or ghee over medium heat.
4. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant.  
5. Add the pepper powder(s) and allow to hydrate in the fat for a minutes or two.
6. Stir in the cream and bring to a simmer, stirring to incorporate the pepper.  (Add additional cream if you prefer a more creamy sauce)
   
7. Add the beans back to the pot and stir into the cream.
8. Taste and adjust seasoning. 

RECIPE: How to roast bell peppers.

Yes, there are many tutorials online on how to roast bell peppers...but, in my opinion, they do it the hard way.  Leaving the peppers whole while you roast them means they will char unevenly.  You will also have to turn them multiple times to char all sides.  Once charred, when you clean them they will make a mess, the seeds will stick to everything, and it will take you longer than it needs to.  

 

Here is my easy way.

 

Original recipe: How to Roast Peppers

Easy Way to Roast Bell Peppers

Makes: as many roasted peppers as you have available

You can roast any color of bell pepper.  You can also roast poblano, anaheim, hatch, wax, banana, and even jalapeno.  For this tutorial I am using red bell peppers, my favorite.  I also roast poblano and banana peppers every year

 

Remove the top and bottom of the pepper as well as all the seeds and pith.  (Use the tops and bottoms to make bell pepper powder.)  You now have a tube of bell pepper.  

 

Bell pepper with top, bottom and seeds removed.

Make a cut down one side and flatten the tube into a sheet. 

 

Place this on a sheet pan.  If parts of the pepper are damaged, remove and discard those pieces.

 

Continue will the remaining peppers until your sheet pan is full:

 

Flattened red bell peppers on a sheet pan.

 

Broil until the peppers are evenly charred.  In my oven, it takes 10 minutes.  Yours may take more or less.  Watch them closely.

 

Perfectly charred red bell peppers!

 

Remove the sheet pan and cover the peppers with a towel.

 

When the peppers are cool, peel off the charred skin.  

 

Roasted red bell peppers and the skins that were removed

 

You can now freeze them, or use them in any of these recipes!