Vegetables

Fried Brown Rice With Kale and Scallions

This dish (recipe here) is just one version of what might be my favorite meal in the world - brown rice with veggies, sauce, and garnish.

The sauce can be anything - tahini, umeboshi vinegar, miso, soy sauce, even barbecue sauce.

The garnish can be sesame seeds, nuts, and/or herbs.

The veggies can be practically anything you can think of.

This particular version is brown rice, lightly fried with chopped kale, garlic, and scallions.  It is drizzled with soy sauce and sprinkled with sesame seeds.  It came from Gwyneth Paltrow's cookbook, My Father's Daughter.  Her kids call it "green rice" and apparently gobble it up.

That's because it's delicious.  Perfection in a bowl, if you ask me.  Proof that food can, and should be, healthy and addictive.

Pizza Night!


I think we’ve started our own little tradition!  Pizza night on Sundays.  It’s really easy to make the pizza dough in advance and freeze it, so you have homemade pizza whenever you like.  I use Gwyneth Paltrow’s recipe, which you can get a variation of here, or here.  The crust turns out so well you can top it with the simplest of things, and the pizza will be delicious.

Our pizzas here are topped with A) olive oil, mozzarella, homegrown tomatoes, and salt & pepper and B) olive oil, caramelized onions, olives, and anchovies.  Both tasted perfect.

There's something really fun and special about homemade pizza for dinner!

Masala for Crispy


Chris had been talking about potato cauliflower curry (or aloo gobi) for weeks.  But I kept getting distracted by homegrown tomatoes (heck if I’m going to cook those things down! we had them as sandwiches, with fresh creamed corn, and sliced on homemade pizza instead) and other cravings that weren’t hot, spicy curry.  It is summertime, after all!

But I did have potatoes from momma’s garden, sitting there waiting and starting to whither.  And I do love my Chris.  So last night I made him not only potato cauliflower curry, but homemade banana naan to go with it, even though we had a package of storebought garlic naan.  That’s how much I love him (and cooking).

And even though my naan didn’t meet my expectations exactly (I’ll have to try it again, since it is super quick to make), it’s a good thing I went for homemade because we tried the storebought naan and Chris declared it disgusting, after saying mine was yum. J

Kale and White Bean Caesar Salad

I highly recommend this salad! Just not the dressing (I tried a healthy raw vegan caesar dressing which turned out to have a check beside every important category except 'tasty' - it wasn't bad, the salad was still yum, but we can do better).

Go find yourself a good caesar dressing recipe (UPDATE: I suspect this one might be perfect!!) and make this delicious, beautiful, healthy salad.

Kale & White Bean Caesar Salad

1. Chop up a whole ton of dinosaur kale.  I mean really chop it. I hate big leaves in my salad, and for kale you especially want to "tame" it by chopping it to bits with a big chef's knife.
2. Massage the leaves with your (good) caesar dressing. Besides coating the leaves very well, massaging helps tenderize the kale, so they say.
3. Toss in some sundried tomatoes (in oil, or dried ones reconstituted by soaking in warm water for 15 minutes), navy or other white beans (isn't it ironic that navy beans are white?), and homemade croutons (cut bread into squares, toss with oil and salt, toast under a double broiler).
4. Season heavily with black pepper. If your caesar dressing isn't salty enough, you can add salt to taste to the salad.

Sexy tattooed arms not included.

Broccoli and English Pea Soup

This photo is actually my broccoli and pea soup on Day 3.  Not bad for leftovers, right?

This bright green soup is tasty, healthy, pretty, and a snap to make. Garnish with croutons or whatever you like.  Chris had his with tangy feta the first night.  I like mine plain or with toast.

Broccoli and Pea Soup:

olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 large heads broccoli, chopped
5 cups vegetable broth
1 package frozen peas
Coarse salt & fresh ground black pepper

Saute the onion and a generous pinch of kosher salt in a bit of olive oil until translucent.  Add the garlic and cook a minute or so.  Add the broccoli and the vegetable broth, bring to a simmer, cover, and cook until the broccoli is just tender and bright green.  Turn off the stove and remove from heat. Stir in the peas and allow to warm through.  Puree in batches in the blender. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Gwyneth Paltrow's Corn Chowder

Verdict on My Father's Daughter's corn chowder, made from fresh corn I bought at the farmers market on Sunday: delicious.

And a cinch to make.

Also, I made it without the cream, and I don't think it needs it.  I do get tired of every soup recipe calling for cream.  I mean, yeah, if I top every meal I make off with cheese and cream and bacon, it will probably taste good.  It takes a little more skill to make something decadent without all that stuff, right?

*One tip. I grew up harvesting, shucking, creaming, and freezing corn every summer.  Creamed corn, if you don't know, basically involves running the cob down a cheese grater.  That way you get all the creamy starch from the cob.  Whereas simply using a knife, you just get the intact kernels.  I like to use a knife to remove the kernals, then run the cob over a grater to get the rest of that good sweet starch out.

Classic Summer Squash Casserole

No squash casserole compares to my Momma's squash casserole.  You may think I'm biased, but everyone says it.  I've never tasted a squash casserole as satisfying and delicious and addictive.

Here is my mom's recipe.  (Only difference is, I omitted the egg [I found it wasn't necessary to bind, as you can see from the picture], and used a couple non-dairy substitutes).  Now, this is one of those recipes where you can adjust to your taste, so use your judgement when measuring.

Perfect Squash Casserole:

6 cups squash, sliced and steamed
1 Vidalia onion, thinly sliced into half-moons, well salted, and caramelized in olive oil and margarine
1/4 cup Vegenaise
1/2 cup slivered almonds (yes! a must!)
1/2 cup Daiya shredded cheddar "cheese"
5 oz cheese nip type crackers, crushed (about 150 crackers) (no, not vegan. But a simple cost-benefit analysis tells me it's okay this time).
1-2 Tbsp margarine

Stir all ingredients together, reserving the margarine and some of the crushed crackers.  Put mixture in a baking dish of your choice.  Top with pats of margarine.  Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes, adding the remainder of the cracker crumbs to the top during the last 10 minutes of baking.

Here's a picture from last night, when it came out of the oven.  My pictures never look as good at night, but I want to show the whole dish.

Stuffed Poblano Peppers, Tomatoes, and Squash

Stuffed poblano peppers (chili relleno), tomatoes, and squash, with a side of black beans and rice.

The vegetables are coated in olive oil; stuffed with fresh sweet corn, homemade salsa (tomatoes, onion, garlic, habaneros, lime, cilantro), and tofu seasoned with taco seasoning mix; sprinkled with kosher salt; and baked at 350 for about an hour.

I added fresh tomatoes, tomato paste, cumin, and some other stuff I can't remember to canned black beans and cooked brown rice for a very flavorful dish.

Olé.

Fresh Tomato Spaghetti Sauce Recipe

This is my favorite tomato sauce recipe, period. I don't make it any other way.  Here's what sets it apart.

1. It begins with a base of onion, garlic, carrot, and celery.  You won't notice these veggies in the finished product, but by then they have worked their magic.
2. It simmers for an hour.  The flavors have time to meld and concentrate, for maximum impact.
3. You puree it.  Thus, you've got a thick, consistent, vibrant red sauce that coats whatever you put it on.

1 small onion
2 cloves garlic
1 carrot
1 stalk celery
5 tomatoes
bay leaf
fresh basil
S&P

Add chopped onion and garlic to hot olive oil in a large saucepan. Cook until translucent, 5-10 minutes, careful not to burn the garlic.  Add chopped carrots and celery.  (At this point, you can deglaze the pan with red wine if you like, or not). Add chopped tomatoes, bay leaf, any herbs or spices you like (like red pepper flakes, onion/garlic powder, oregano, thyme, etc), and some fresh basil leaves.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer uncovered for 1 hour.  Remove bay leaf.  Add more fresh basil, blend in food processor or blender until smooth, then return to the pan.  (You can add a tablespoon of butter, to round out the acidity, if you like).  Season with salt and pepper.