Chickpea and Aubergine Curry

This curry is so satisfying and provides plenty of prebiotic fibre, antioxidant-rich vegetables, phytoestrogens and liver support.

The chickpeas, cashews and the tofu contain phytoestrogens & calcium. Phytoestrogens are beneficial for bone health and heart health, whether a person is taking oestrogen HRT or not.
Aiming to eat well for your bone health is something to particularly concentrate on in perimenopause, menopause and beyond.  

If you are nervous about using tofu or think you don't like the taste, then give this a try - you'll be surprised. 

If there is an ingredient in this curry that you think does not agree with your gut, simply swap it for another or leave it out, as the base curry recipe is delicious.

 

1 large/750g aubergine/eggplant (or 2 smaller), cut into bite sized pieces
1 large/200g red/spanish onion, peeled and chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled
3 tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 heaped tbs fresh grated ginger
2 large long red chilli, finely chopped*
2 heaped tsp ground cumin
2 tsp turmeric powder
1 cup tomato passatta or 400g tin chopped tomatoes
120g raw cashews
1 tbs honey
250g cooked chickpeas (if using tinned that's from 1 x 400g tin)
280g firm organic tofu, crumbled into small bite-sized pieces
4 handfuls chard or kale or silver beet leaves, chopped

Put the onion, whole peeled garlic cloves, aubergine/eggplant and oil into a large pan on medium/low heat.
Stir around and pop a lid on so they can sweat.
Cook for 15 minutes or until the aubergine/eggplant is beginning to soften. Occasionally remove the lid and stir the pan ingredients around.
Stir in the ginger, chilli, cumin and turmeric.
Warm for a minute.
Then add tomato passatta and 1 cup of water or 1 tin of chopped tomatoes, stir to combine and pop the lid back on to cook for another 5 minutes.
In a high speed blender combine cashews, honey and ¾ cup of water until creamy.
Add this to the curry along with the chickpeas, tofu and greens.
Stir through and allow the greens to wilt and the chickpeas and tofu to warm.
Taste and season with salt and pepper, then serve.

*De-seed the chilli if you like your curry mild.

Each serve contains approximately 16g protein.