I thought I'd show you how I took a favorite component of a recent recipe, made a minor tweak, and turned it into something completely different. Do you remember the herb-packed coconut milk from this green curry porridge? Well, it's good. Good in its own right. And if you have some on hand, it's a nice jumping off point for a meal. The luxe, cilantro-ginger creaminess makes it brilliant as a dressing, drizzle, or sandwich spread...add some eggs and you have an easy tart filling. For today's recipe I thought I'd try a version with yogurt in place of the coconut milk, and it did not disappoint. Lobbing dollops of it over a simple bowl of mung beans and quinoa made for the sort of clean, nutritious lunch I aim for (but don't always achieve ;). Some toasted nuts and a drizzle of paprika oil bring the flair and a bit of textural contrast.

This is also the sort of thing that you could pack in layers in a wide-mouthed mason jar as a portable lunch or picnic. It's good at room temperature and doesn't require much fuss at all once you have the components prepared. And really, don't get too hung up on the base ingredient(s) - like I mentioned, I used mung beans and black quinoa, but if you have lentils and/or brown rice on hand, you're set. Try to work in a substantial protein component though - it'll keep you strong and less hungry compared to, say, a rice-only version. xo -h