When no meat is needed.

Today I did a demonstration of a Dhal for my Year 10 (young people rising 15 years old) group today and it went down quite well with them. However, it went down much better in the Staff Room after School was finished.
This recipe is a simplification of the superb Coconut and Spinach Dhal from the guys at What's Cooking in Thame. In order to make it easier for myself I have replaced hard and fast ingredients with choices. I seldom have all the ingredients I want at the right moment in the little kitchen of Corner Cottage! The recipe may seem a little free and open to interpretation and for this, I make no apologies.

Ingredients
Spices whole - 1 tsp Mustard seeds, 1 tsp Cumin seeds, any others you fancy (Fennel might be nice nor maybe Clovers)
Spices ground - 1 tsp Turmeric, 1 tsp Chilli powder (hot as you like!), any others you fancy (maybe Coriander, or even a blend like Baharat)
Fresh Chilli - probably 1 medium
Garlic - a couple of cloves
Ginger - about an ich
1 onion
250 gms Split Red Lentils 
1 tin Coconut Milk
1 tin Plum Tomatoes
200 gms Baby Spinach (you could use Rocket, or even sliced Kale)
Oil (You could use Butter, but with oil it's vegan!)

Fry the whole spices in plenty of oil until the mustard seeds start to pop. Add the onions, chilli, garlic and ginger and fry for a 3 or 4 minutes. Add the ground spices and stir in cooking them for just two minutes. Add the lentils stirring so that they get a coating of the whole spicy mix then pour in the tins of tomatoes and coconut milk. Keep this on a high heat until it boils then add the spinach and wilt down into the dhal. It is important that you do not add salt until the lentils are cooked - none of the pulses really like it, it makes the tough and grainy. Hold the dahl at a gentle boil adding water if necessary. When the lentils are soft and smooth (after about 20 minutes) you might want to add some chopped coriander leaf or mint, you could also add a squeeze of citrus here. Season and serve. A pot of yoghurt on the side will help if you've gone a bit crazy with the heat.

It is really a very long time since I wrote, but I promise there will be more posts this year!