Curry

I made this delicious Curry last night for my girlfriend, Samantha, who also read some of my blog for the first time ("how did I not know you had a blog?"). It's been a while since I posted anything, and I like to record good recipes somewhere, so why not here?

Veggie Potato Curry - I didn't have cilantro, but if I did I would have added it.

2 yellow onions (small ones)
2 sweet potatoes
3 small red potatoes
1 red bell pepper
handful of baby eggplants
1 zucchini
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed well
1 can coconut milk
1.5 tbsp tomato paste
1 can diced tomatoes (or fresh)
2 big tbsp curry powder
1 tsp ginger
salt and pepper
2 tbsp creamy peanut butter
juice of half a lime
light squirt of sriracha

I dice the potatoes and veggies as I go into about the same size chunks.
In a small amount of olive or peanut oil, cook the diced potatoes and sweet potatoes a few minutes.
Chop onions and add them to pan with a good amount of salt.
Chop and add eggplant.
Chop and add pepper and zucchini.
Add curry powder, ginger, pepper, tomato paste, chickpeas, coconut milk, and tomatoes. Mix well.
Let simmer for 20-25 minutes. Add sriracha and peanut butter, mix well.
Add lime (and cilantro) at the end just before serving.

We ate it stew-style in bowls, but rice or quinoa would work with it too.

Good Fight

After I had gone to bed last night, but before I fell asleep, my lover came home from his adventures with friends. I asked what they had done and if he had fun, and his reply left me with mild disappointment that I was not present for all the adventures.

Now, we are both independent creatures, and want for each other to have fun and exciting adventures with or without the other. My expression to him of my disappointment was met with flippant dismissal, due to this very fact. It hurt my feelings and made me feel ridiculous for feeling the mild disappointment, and I let him know that it was not the appropriate response.

He said he wouldn’t take responsibility for my disappointment and felt I was asking him to with my expression of it. He felt flippancy was not disrespectful and his intention was never to hurt my feelings. I said I didn’t need him to take responsibility, but that I would like comfort or just a statement that it would have been nice if I had been there, rather than a reply that made me feel foolish. I said that in the same situation, I would have wanted him to be with me. He replied that our lives are more intertwined than he has ever experienced in a romantic relationship before, and his independent nature would be threatened had I a need to share every aspect of his life. I replied that I had no such need, and that in the reverse situation, I would want him there not to share every part of my life, but that my desire is to always share “the best” parts. With that I won the argument and he said (after congratulating me for winning :)) he would be more diligent about not being dismissive when I need him to be soothing. 

Neither of us ran from the argument, neither became hysterical or irrational, and we expressed our feelings and intentions and corrected misunderstandings as we talked. It was a minor argument, which gave us an opportunity to strengthen our bond. I am grateful for it and hope every argument is as nice.