Indonesian Tempeh and Vegetables

Tonight I made a version of Indonesian Tempeh and Vegetables substantively similar to one that I teach in my cooking class. I sauteed in a cast iron pan some pieces of tempeh (in class, I have students cut the tempeh quite thin, but used thicker cuts tonight perhaps by way of shortcut :-) ).

In another pan, I began sauteing red onion. A few minutes later, I added thinly sliced garlic, then a minute or so later, broccoli crowns, yellow squash, and purple sweet peppers. I mixed in the tempeh then reduced the heat, and added half of a can of organic reduced fat coconut milk, a splash of soy sauce, fresh organic Hawaiian ginger, a little bit of hot red pepper, and some fresh lime zest. I simmered for a few minutes and served after mixing in a little salt and freshly ground black pepper and a little more zest. I hate to get white rice, but wanted white Jasmine rice to eat this dish with; I cooked it in a little bit of broth (ratio 1 rice to 1.5 liquid, covered and simmered for about 20 minutes) and put fresh lime zest and ground peanuts on top.

By the way, I recently heard about the benefits of raw cacao bean pieces (nibs), proving the "food for the Gods" to us mortals without added sugar or other additives. Chocolate is said to be mood heightening, but the sugar can then plummet one's energy. Apparently raw cacao has the pluses and not many of chocolate's negatives. I have had Sharffen Berger Roasted Nibs some years ago, but today purchased the raw Wholly Cacao, a combination of organic raw chocolate sweetened in this mixture with Himalayan Hunza raisins. We enjoyed a teaspoonful or two of this treat for dessert after dinner.