Post Pan Pasta: Sisters Cook

Super Veggie Enchiladas

This recipe is really all about the sauce. The filling is very simple - sauteed vegetables, black beans, and some cheese - but paired with the sauce it is perfect.  My go-to enchilada recipe had been Mollie Katzen’s Eggplant Almond Echiladas, which is amazing, but a ton of work and actually kind of expensive.  This recipe is much easier, but just as delicious.

I found the sauce recipe on Food.com and made it exactly as it was written, even though a lot of the commenters said they made changes to it. 

This made 2 pans of enchiladas. I used really large burrito tortillas and filled 7 of them. You could use normal burrito size tortillas and probably fill about 10 - 12. This is more a function of the size of your pans than anything.

So here it is:

Ingredients:

For the Sauce:

3 T chili powder

3 T flour

1 t. cocoa powder

1/2 t. garlic salt

3 c. water

1 eight-ounce can tomato sauce (not spaghetti sauce)

For the echiladas:

7 or 8 large (10”) tortillas or 10 or 12 regular (8”) tortillas 

2 small zucchinis, sliced into half moons

2 onions, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, chopped

1 box of mushrooms (white or baby bella), chopped

1 can of black beans, drained

8 oz package of shredded jack & cheddar cheese

salt & pepper

olive oil

Directions:

1. To make the sauce:  Combine the dry ingredients (spices, cocoa powder, flour) in a medium pot (one that will hold at least 3 cups).  Stirring constantly, add enough of the water to make a thin paste. Once you have a thin paste and no lumps, add the rest of the water. Place over medium heat, and stir constantly until it thickens ( 5-10 mins). Once it thickens, stir in the tomato sauce & remove from the heat. Set aside.

2. Make the filling: In your biggest pan, saute the onions in a bit of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt.  Once they start to get soft, add the garlic and zucchini and a sprinkle of salt & a grind of pepper. Saute a couple minutes more and then add the green pepper and mushrooms, and another sprinkle of salt & grind of pepper. Saute until all is tender, but not mushy (remember it will bake in the oven too).

3. Assemble your enchiladas: Place a bit of sauce in the bottom of the pan(s).  Lay out a tortilla and put a couple spoonfuls of the veggie mixture, a spoonful of the beans, and some of the cheese down  the middle of the tortilla. Roll up and place in the pan, seam side down. Do this for each tortilla, or until you run out of filling or room in your pans!   But try to leave some cheese for the tops. Pour the rest of the sauce over the enchiladas in the pan(s) , making sure to cover everything and not just let it run off into the sides.  Sprinkle with remaining cheese and any remaining veggies.

4. Bake uncovered for about 20 minutes in a 375 degree oven.

Enjoy! 

10am

Baked Oatmeal

I have been making this for the past couple of months and eating it for breakfast nearly every day. You make a big pan of it and then its ready to go every morning for at least a week.  It is very filling and definitely gets me through to lunch.

I’ve tried lots of variations, so I am posting a list of the building blocks that are needed and then I will list two variations I’ve done recently.  The original idea is from the blog Budget Bytes and she has some more variation and pictures here . I didn’t even try to take pics of mine — just look at hers. They’re very nice :)

Basic Ingredients:

2.5 cups old fashioned oats (not quick oats)

1.5 cups milk or soy milk

1.5 cups mashed banana or applesauce (or combination of both)

2 eggs

2 tsp. sugar (can omit if using vanilla soymilk)

1 tsp vanilla extract (can omit if using vanilla soymilk)

scant 1 tsp salt

1 tsp. baking powder

1-2 cups of chopped fruit 

Versions:

Blueberry, Cranberry, Pecan:  use 8 oz frozen blueberries, a large handful of dried cranberries, and a large handful of chopped pecans. Go with applesauce (not banana) for this one.

Apple/Pear Pie: Use the applesauce. Use 2 chopped apples or pears for the fruit. Add in 1/2 tsp cinnamon and 1/8 tsp ground cloves. Throw in a handful of butterscotch chips if you happen to have those around :)

On the Budget Bytes blog she has a chocolate banana version, a peach & blueberry one, and a blueberry banana one.  I tried her blueberry banana one and I liked that too. 

Method:

1. In a large bowl combine the wet ingredients: egg, milk, mashed banana or applesauce and vanilla .  

2. Measure the oats into a small bowl and add the dry ingredients to them — baking powder, sugar, salt, and any other spices. Stir a bit just to distribute the baking powder, sugar & salt.  Then add the dry to the wet.  Stir well. 

3. Add the fruit and stir gently.  (Alternately you can follow the directions on Budget Bytes, which say to put the fruit at the bottom of the baking dish for more of a cobbler-like result.)

4. Lightly spray an 8x8 or 7x11 baking dish and pour the mixture into it. 

5. Bake at 375 for 30 -45 mins (depending on if you had frozen or fresh fruit and the particulars of your oven. Just check if after 30 mins by sticking a knife or fork in — you want the knife or fork to come out clean).

-Aliza

1pm

VEGGIE BURGERS!!!

I had a couple of old boxes of veggie burgers in my freezer and was looking at them, wondering if I should use them or throw them away. I read the ingredients on them and got inspired to make some more natural veggie burgers with less fillers and weird unpronounceable things in them.

In the last two weeks I have tried 4 veggie burger recipes, which will all be included in this post. I liked them all!  I didn’t really eat any of them with buns, because veggie burgers often have some kind of starch in them already. I like them over salad, or just on a plate with lots of toppings. Heidi Swanson from the 101 Cookbooks blog makes the veggie burgers into the buns themselves, by cutting them in half and filling them with what would have been the toppings - cheese, sprouts, lettuce, onion, etc.  I don’t think I could successfully cut it in half horizontally without it falling apart, so I haven’t tried this, but maybe in the future I would make thinner burgers and just use two.

Here are the  burgers I tried and some toppings to go with them.

#1) Smokey Black Bean Burgers with Avocado & Lime (and mango salsa)

This came to me via Mom. She found it on a blog somewhere & I think posted it on our blog a long time ago. I made a couple of changes, so here is my version. I liked it a lot and so did Chris.

Ingredients:

Olive oil

1/2 cup onion, chopped


1- 2 T sauce from a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (you can use the peppers in a recipe for black bean dip i will post soon)


2 cloves garlic, minced


1/2 cup fresh cilantro


One 15-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup whole wheat bread crumbs



1/2 teaspoon chili powder


1/2 teaspoon cumin



1 avocado


1 lime


Salt

Mango Salsa ( I got some fresh from Whole Foods)

*Note: Original recipe had an egg in it. I didn’t put it in because they were already holding together just fine.

1. Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a saute pan. Add the onions, and cook until they are just beginning to brown. Add the garlic, and cook for an additional 30 seconds.

2. Transfer the onion mixture to a food processor. Add the cilantro, and process for just a few pulses until the mixture is roughly chopped. Add the beans, and pulse just a few more times until the beans are broken down but still in small chunks. You do not want a puree.

3. Transfer the bean mixture to a bowl, and add the bread crumbs, chili powder, cumin, and a sprinkle of salt. Mix well, and form the mixture into four burgers.

4. Heat another drizzle of olive oil in the saute pan. Add the burgers, and cook for approximately 3 minutes to brown. Flip the burgers when they are brown.

5. While the burgers are cooking, mash the avocado in a bowl. Add a sprinkle of salt and a squeeze of lime juice.

6. Serve the burgers topped with the mashed avocado and the mango salsa. I also served it with sweet potato oven fries. 

#2) Quinoa Lentil Burgers

Next I tried these. I liked these a lot, too, though they were very different from the black beans ones. I made them as smaller patties and took a few over salad one day for lunch. Chris ate some on a toasted bagel with pepper jack cheese, hot sauce, and arugula and was quite pleased!

Ingredients:

1 c. cooked lentils (about a scant 1/2 c. dry)

1/2 c. cooked quinoa ( I think this works out to about 1/6 c. dry — I don’t know why this recipe is like this!)

1/2 c. mashed cooked sweet potato (I used mashed cooked butternut squash)

1/2 c. onion, finely chopped

1/2 c. shredded carrot (I left this out)

1/2 c. mushrooms, finely chopped (left this out, too)

1/4 raw sunflower seeds, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. olive oil

1/4 c.  chopped fresh parsley

1/2 to 1 tsp. chili powder

1/2 to 1 tsp. cumin

black pepper

1. Saute garlic & onion in 1 tsp. oil.  Add mushrooms & carrots and saute until mushrooms sweat.

2. In a bowl, combine cooked lentils, cooked quinoa, sweet potato or squash, cooked veggies, seeds, spices, parsley salt & pepper.  Taste and adjust salt & pepper or spices to your liking. 

3. Let rest a couple of minutes to firm up.

4. Form into 1/3 c. patties about 1/2 an inch thick.  

5. Heat olive oil in pan and saute for about 5 mins on each side til lightly browned.

#3) White Bean & Sweet Potato Burgers

These were the easiest of all four burgers.  Also different from the others, but also really tasty. We had them with a red cabbage & cilantro slaw and I will give them recipe for that, too. The burgers were fine by themselves (perhaps a tad dry) but with the slaw they were great!

Ingredients:

2 cans of cannellini beans

1 large sweet potato, baked or cooked in the microwave til soft

1 -2 T tahini

1 T maple syrup

1 tsp cajun seasoning or lemon pepper seasoning

1/4 c. breadcrumbs

garlic powder, black pepper, cumin, salt, and any other spices you like

1. In a mixing bowl mash together the beans and the sweet potato and all the other ingredients, except bread crumbs.

2. Form patties and roll in the bread crumbs (preferably panko). 

3. Heat olive oil and fry on each side in the oil for about 5 minutes OR  place on a baking tray (lightly oiled on the spots where you are putting the burgers) and bake at 425 degrees for 15-20 minutes. 

Red Cabbage & Cilantro Slaw

Mix together the following really well:

1 package of shredded red cabbage (I forget how much is in the bag, but I think it’s a standard size - maybe 2 or 3 cups)

a squeeze of lemon juice

1/4 c. white onion, finely chopped

2 T tahini

3 T cider vinegar

1/2 c. chopped cilantro

4 scallions, minced

1 T mirin

1/4 t. cayenne

salt, pepper

handful of dried cranberries

And… veggie burger #4…

Baked Broccoli & Chickpea Burgers with Tahini Dressing

Sounds weird, tasted great. Probably the most time consuming of the burgers to make, but I really enjoyed it.

Ingredients:

1/3 c. dry couscous

1 c. water

1.5 c. steamed broccoli florets

2 t. olive oil

1/2 c. chopped yellow onion

1/2 c. chopped scallions

2 tsp. cumin

1 can chickpeas, drained & rinsed

1 T tahini

1/4 c. lemon juice

salt, pepper

1/4 c. fresh parsely

1/2 c. breadcrumbs

Dressing:

1/3 c. tahini

1/3 c. water

1/4c. +1T lemon juice

2 cloves garlic, minced

3/4 tsp salt

1. Boil 1 c. water and add dry couscous. Remove from heat & cover. Leave it and let it fluff up for 10 -15 mins.

2. Saute the onions and scallions in the olive oil until softened and starting to brown.

3. Put the steamed broccoli, chickpeas, spices, cooked onions & scallions, lemon juice, salt & pepper, and parsley in a food processor and process until almost like a thick hummus.  Taste and add more salt & pepper if needed, You can also add some cayenne pepper at this point if you like. 

4. Scrape out into a bowl and add the cooked couscous. Combine well. Add the  bread crumbs. Taste and add more salt, pepper, or lemon juice. 

5. Form into a 4 or 5 patties and bake on a tray lined with foil at 400 degrees for 50 minutes, turning half way through. I also sprayed the burgers lightly with olive oil on each side to get a nice brown.

6. For the sauce, mix all ingredients together & drizzle over the cooked burgers!

-Aliza

8pm

Lentil Pilaf

This is comfort food. Great for colder weather, makes a big pot you can eat all week. Probably makes about 6-8 cups. I adapted it from a recipe for “Lebanese Lentil Pilaf” from Epicurious. It’s not very photogenic, but it is yummy!

Ingredients:

2 tsp. olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 large carrot, chopped

2 stalks of celery, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 and 2/3 tsp cumin

1 tsp cinnamon

2/3 tsp allspice

4 cups of broth (or 4 c. water & 3 heaping teaspoons Better than Boulllion)

1 c. brown lentils, rinsed and picked over

1 c. basmati rice, rinsed

red wine vinegar

optional: parsely & cilantro

Directions:

Heat oil in a large pot. Saute onions, garlic, carrots, celery, and spices for about 5 minutes or until onions begin to soften.

Add broth and lentils.  Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes. Stir in rice and return to a boil. Reduce heat back down to a simmer and cover again. Cook covered until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, about 15 minutes more. 

Add salt to taste (depending on  how flavorful your broth is). Top with chopped parsley and cilantro, if desired. Just before serving, sprinkle with a bit of red wine vinegar, or let people add vinegar to individual servings. 

If tomatoes were in season, fresh tomatoes would be good on top!

-Aliza 

5pm

Spinach Pie

This turned out to be really tasty.  I knew it would be good as soon as I mixed all the filling part together and it smelled so good with all the fresh dill.  I think it’s pretty healthy, too, since it uses only 6 sheets of phyllo dough. It’s really mostly veggies :)  This makes 4 very large servings in a 7 x 11 inch pan. The original recipe called for an 8 x 8 pan, so I guess that size would work, too. 

Ingredients:

Olive oil 

12 scallions sliced

16 ounces fresh spinach, roughly chopped

3/4 c. crumbled feta

2/3 cup low fat cottage cheese

1/2 cup fresh dill, chopped

2 eggs lightly beaten

1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

6 sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Oil your baking pan (either 7x11 or 8x8 by brushing with olive oil or spraying with olive oil). 

2. In a  skillet heat 2 tsp. of olive oil. Add the scallions and cook for about 1 min. Add the spinach, stirring until just wilted. Drain off any excess liquid. 

3. Stir the cheeses, dill, eggs, and pepper into the cooked spinach. 

4. Lay down a sheet of phyllo dough into your prepared pan. Spray the sheet (with actual olive oil in a spray bottle - not nonstick spray) or brush it with olive oil and a pastry brush. Let the edges hang over the pan. Lay down a second sheet of phyllo and spray or brush with oil. 

5. Spread the spinach mixture over the phyllo.

6. Cover the filling with 4 more sheets of phyllo, spraying or brushing each one and tucking the edges of the phyllo into the pan.  Spray or brush the top.

7. Bake in the oven for 30 -35 min or until golden on top.

Enjoy!

-A

8pm

Slow Cooker Curry

This is the first thing I have made with my second slow cooker. I abandoned the first one (along with many other kitchen tools… tear) in St. Louis. It just didn’t fit in the car when we moved back to DC and I was not a big fan of it anyway. I thought everything that came out of it was kind of bland and I had given up on it as just not useful for vegetarians.

So, why did I buy another one two years later? Because I want to make fondue for New Years Eve and I decided that purchasing a crockpot to keep the fondue warm on the table was better than purchasing a fondue set. More of a chance that I would use the crockpot again. So I decided to try slow cooking again and I did some research online about how to be more successful with it this time.

The main things I learned are use less liquid and more spice. And cook stuff that benefits from long cooking times. Curry seemed like a good thing to try, so after looking through a few recipes I made this one up and I am happy to report it is really tasty! I recommend it!

Chris wanted it to be spicier, but that is someone who LIKES it when their food is so spicy it makes them sweat. Not kidding.  I thought it was just right.

Ingredients:

1 14oz can light coconut milk

1 can garbanzos, drained & rinsed

1 T tomato paste 

2.5 T curry powder

1 t cumin

1” knob of ginger, peeled & grated or chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

a  few small pieces of banana pepper, chopped (depending on how much heat you like. I used about 1 -2 teaspoons of it, probably)

2 small potatoes, peeled & cut into chunks

1 Roma tomato (or other similarly sized tomato), cut into chunks

2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped

1 stalk of celery, chopped

1/2 c. green peas (frozen OK just defrost by running under hot water. Make sure they are dry when you put them in - you don’t want to accidentally add excess water)

2 -3 T golden raisins

salt to taste

Instructions:

In a 4 qt. slow cooker mix the coconut milk, curry powder, cumin, and, tomato paste until no lumps remain. Add the garlic, ginger, and chopped banana pepper.

Add all other ingredients EXCEPT the green peas, golden raisins, and salt. 

Cook on High for 4 hours.

Add the green peas and golden raisins. Cook 20 minutes longer. Salt to taste and serve over rice.  Enjoy! 

(Side note: You’re not supposed to open the slow cooker while it’s cooking, but I did once to stir, when it seemed like the sides were burning a little (the edges were turning darker) Probably fine either way.)

-A 

4pm

Soba Noodles with Kale & Tomatoes in a Tahini Lemon Sauce

I was intrigued by this recipe Hannah found on Cate’s World Kitchen, so I decided to make it tonight. Seemed like an unexpected combination of ingredients. It turned out great. It is a very rich, layered flavor, somehow almost smokey. I love the lemon and tahini combination!

The only changes I made were to use soy sauce instead of Liquid Aminos and I used baby kale instead of regular kale so I didn’t have to cut it. I used ALL of the sauce :) 

Here is the recipe as written on Cate’s World Kitchen

Ingredients

• 8 ounces soba nooodles
• 1 bunch kale (curly or Tuscan - whichever you prefer)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• red pepper flakes, to taste
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• 4 tbsp tahini
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 tbsp Bragg’s liquid aminos

Instructions

1. Cook the soba according to package directions, then drain and rinse under cold running water. Drain well and set aside.
2. Chop the kale into bite-sized pieces
3. Heat the oil in a skillet and cook the garlic for minute or two, until fragrant. Add the kale and red pepper flakes and saute until tender, about 5 minutes.
4. Whisk together the tahini, liquid aminos, and lemon juice.
5. Toss the kale and soba together in a large bowl with the tomatoes, and add the tahini mixture to taste.

-Aliza 

6pm

Nutella mousse jars

This was awesome! We basically followed this recipe: http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/978089/layered-nutella-mousse-in-a-jar

Things to tweak:

- we used more like 3 tbsp Nutella 

- you need a little more Oreos than they say too, and Mom says you could leave out the butter. In her words, “Like, why?”

It’s cute and delish!

-H

3pm

Tofu and Chickpea Curry with Green Peas

We adapted this recipe a bit from this original post: http://www.partial-ingredients.com/archives/3686. Came out very well!

Ingredients:

• 2 yellow onions, chopped
• 8 oz. tomato paste
• 1 tbsp vegetable or olive oil
• 1 package firm tofu, cut into 1 inch cubes and dry fried until lightly crispy on the outsides
• 30 oz. chickpeas, rinsed
• 14 oz. coconut milk
• 1/2 cup cream or milk
• 1 cup water
• 1 or 2 jalapeño peppers, minced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1.5-inch knob ginger, minced
• 1 1/2 cups green peas
• 2 tsp cumin, ground
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon, ground
• 1/4 tsp cloves, ground
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp coriander, ground
• salt and pepper to taste
• steamed rice 

Method:

1. Mix the cumin, cinnamon, and cloves together in a small bowl. Heat up the oil in a big skillet and add the spices for 1 minute, until fragrant.

2. Add the chopped onions and saute over medium heat for 5 minutes, until soft.

3. Add the garlic, ginger and jalapeño; saute another couple of minutes. Then add the turmeric, chili powder and coriander and mix to combine.

4. Add the tomato paste, coconut milk, and milk or cream. 

5. Add the dry-fried tofu, chick peas, and peas (can still be frozen). 

6. Turn the heat down and simmer together for 10-15 minutes, salting/peppering to taste.

Serve with rice!

-H

3pm

Everything Bread

Mollie Katzen calls this bread “Everything Bread” in her cookbook Sunlight Cafe. It’s nothing like an everything bagel, which is what that makes me think of, so I want to rename it but I’m not sure what! Will have to think on that. 

This bread is amazing. It is full of whole grains and raisins and sunflower seeds, yet is is light and fluffy and mmmm mmmm mmmmm. I highly recommend making a loaf! 

Mollie says you can use any kind of cooked whole grains - she recommends a combination of oat groats, wild rice, and quinoa, but I didn’t have any of those on hand. I had cracked rye berries that I had gotten to make Heather’s Danish Bread. This bread is so much easier to make and much lighter than that bread, yet uses the same cracked rye berries and sunflower seeds. 

Here is how I made it:

Ingredients:

1.5 c. milk

2.5 t yeast (1 package)

1 T honey or maple syrup ( I used barley malt syrup, also had that from Heather’s recipe)

2 T canola oil

2.25 t salt

about 4 c. unbleached all purpose flour

3 c. cooked whole grains — Notes: I used cracked rye berries (1 c. uncooked equaled 3 cups cooked and it cooked in about 15 minutes), but other options are oat groats, brown rice, wild rice, pearl barley, quinoa, millet, buckwheat groats, amaranth, cracked wheat, spelt, kamut, or a mixture). 

1 c. sunflower seeds

1 c. packed golden raisins

nonstick spray

cornmeal

How to:

1. Ahead of time, cook the grains and let cool. 

2. Gradually heat the milk in a small saucepan until very hot, but not yet boiling. Remove pan from heat & set aside until it cools to wrist temperature.

3. When the milk is cooled (a drop on your wrist feels neither hot nor cold), sprinkle in the yeast and let stand for 5 minutes.

4. Stir in the oil, honey/syrup, and salt. Measure the oil in your Tablespoon measure first and don’t wash it, this way your honey/syrup won’t stick. Beat with a whisk until incorporated. Switch to a wooden spoon, and stir in the cooked grains, sunflower seeds, and raisins. 

5. Add remaining flour 1 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition. At some point you will need to use your hands. Keep adding flour and mixing until you have a uniform dough. 

6. Lightly flour a work surface. Turn the dough out onto it and knead about 3 mins or until dough starts to feel smooth & elastic but not sticky. I had to add a fair bit more flour to keep it from being sticky, maybe because my grains were on the mushy end of the spectrum.

7. Wipe out the bowl and spray it with the nonstick spray. Put the dough back in the bowl , spray the top of the dough, and cover it. Place in a warm place for about 1.5 hours or until it rises by 50%. 

8. Generously sprinkle a  baking tray with cornmeal. Lightly flour the work surface. Punch down the dough and turn it out onto the work surface. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes, adding only as much flour as you absolutely need to keep it from sticking. Form the dough into a large oval or circle (or two smaller ones) and set on the prepared tray.  Cover loosely with a towel or foil and set in a warm place to rest for 35 - 40 minutes. Preheat oven to 350.

9. Bake in center of oven for 35 - 45 minutes, or until bread is lightly browned all over and makes a  hollow sound when you tap it.  Transfer to a rack and cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing (oops, didnt’ do that!)

-Aliza

9pm

Roasted Winter Vegetables with parsley, dill, and Lemon

Yum, yum. Carrots, radishes, and red onions - roasted to a nice nutty sweetness but with a bright bite from the radishes and the lemon and herbs!  And colorful too! I am bringing this to my work holiday party tomorrow.  Simple, easy, and fresh.

Ingredients:

1 lb. baby carrots, each cut in half

8 radishes, cut in quarters or eights depending on how large

2 red onions, cut into large chunks

2 T chopped fresh parsley

olive oil

salt

pepper

1/2 a lemon

dried dill

Method:

Preheat oven to 425. Lightly oil a large sheet pan. Place onions, carrots, and radishes on pan. Sprinkle with salt, fresh ground black pepper, and dill.  Drizzle about 2 T of olive oil over it and stir the veggies with a spoon, shake the pan, or just get your (clean) hands all over it to get the veggies coated in the olive oil and spices. Alternately, you could toss the veggies with the spices & oil in a bowl and then place on the pan, but then you’d have an oily bowl to wash. Blah.

Put in the oven and bake for about 25 mins, or until veggies are nicely browned in some spots, giving it a stir every 5-10 minutes. 

Remove from oven and allow to cool a bit. Throw on the parsley and squeeze the lemon half over it. Taste to correct salt & pepper. 

Serve warm or room temperature.

Enjoy!

-A

11pm

Japanese-inspired cabbage & cucumber slaw

There used to be this sushi place in St. Louis that made a salad like this and I loved it. They also noted how many calories things were on their menu and 2 cups of this was like 40 calories or something ridiculous. Even before the place closed I tried to re-create it at home and I think my recipe was pretty successful. I just made this for tonight, so I thought I’d post it after a few years of making it!

Ingredients:

7 or 8 scallions, sliced into 1/4” pieces

8 ounces shredded green cabbage

1 medium cucumber, peeled & seeded

5 T cider vinegar ( you might prefer less, I like vinegar a lot!)

1 T good sesame oil

4 pinches of salt

a few grinds of black pepper

a drop of honey

1 T sesame seeds

2 -3 T unsalted dry toasted sliced almonds

Method:

1) Slice the cucumber into thin strips and then diced that into small dice.  Combine the cucumber in a large salad bowl with the cabbage, the sesame seeds, and the scallions.

2) Make the dressing: combine the vinegar, sesame oil, salt, black pepper, and honey and whisk well.  Pour that over the slaw and stir to combine well. 

3) Refrigerate slaw for about 30 mins to let flavors come together. 

4) When ready to serve top with the sliced almonds and give it a stir.

 You can also add dried cranberries if you want a sweet kick. 

-A

5pm

Balsamic Tofu and Veggie Sandwich

The tofu:

Slice into 1/4-inch steaks and dry fry in your best non-stick (make sure the water is pressed out of the tofu and don’t use oil). Salt and pepper one side, flip it, and salt and pepper the other. After 3-4 minutes, throw in a tablespoon or so of balsamic vinegar and fry for another 1-2 minutes so it gets soaked up by the tofu. 

The veggies:

I used avocado, cucumber, sprouts, and red pepper. Use whatever you want! 

Other things:

My bread was a little soft and didn’t hold up so well. Use a heartier bread. Hummus would also be tasty.

-H

11am

Green Curry with Tofu & Vegetables

Serves 4. 

So considering that Hannah’s last post was more of a link than a post, I guess the bar is not set too high on this blog and I will post a recipe I made tonight,  but failed to photograph.

I read this recipe for Green Curry with Tofu on another blog called the Vegetarian Ginger and decided to give it a try.  It turned out DELICIOUS! The vegetables I used were very good for it, but I could also imagine using other veggies such as red and green pepper strips, mushrooms, eggplant, yellow squash, broccoli, cauliflower, tomatoes, fresh spinach. You just want to par-cook the veggies first — ie. don’t expect them to cook in the pan with the sauce. 

I made a few changes to the recipe on that blog, so below I will post my version.

Ingredients:

• 1 T vegetable oil
• 3 T green curry past (Thai Kitchen brand)
• 1” chunk of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
• 3/4 t salt
• 1 (14 oz) can light coconut milk
• 1 (14 oz) package of tofu, drained and pressed under a plate and cut into chunks
• 1/2 c. vegetable broth
• 1 small can bamboo shoots, drained & rinsed
• 1/2 cup sliced carrots
• 1 cup  green beans cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1/2 a lemon or lime, cut into slices
• A pot of jasmine rice

Method:

1. Place carrots in a bowl with some water and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave for 2 minutes, or until softened. Drain.

2. Place green beans in bowl with some water and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave for 1 minute or until slightly softened. Drain. 

3. Heat the oil in a big sauce pan or wok. Fry curry paste, grated ginger, and salt, stirring to keep from burning for a couple of minutes.

4. Add the coconut milk and broth to the pan.  Stir until the mixture is even - no clumps of paste. Bring to a boil and then turn down to a low simmer.

5. Add the tofu, bamboo shoots, carrots, and green beans. Let it simmer and stir every now and again for about 10 minutes or until the sauce is slightly thickened and the tofu is heated through. 

6. Serve over rice with lemon or lime slices on the side to squeeze over top. 

-Aliza 

7pm

Soft Ginger Molasses Cookies - really soft!

10am