Last night, after many Thanksgiving leftovers, and feeling a need for some comfort food, I decided what we all needed was a pot of pasta e fagioli and loaf of garlic herb bread (in the bread machine, so that part was easy). Pasta e fagioli (or, yes, pastafazoo, or pastafazool, as some might say here in the U.S.) is fairly simple, too. the words simply mean "pasta and beans," and that makes it, in my opinion, the ultimate comfort food. It's made in basically the same way, as far as I can tell, with slight variations, but it seems like everyone has opinions about what's right and what's wrong. I won't claim my version is "authentic." Am I Italian? Well, sure. I mean, my mom's a Gambino ~ the family on her father's side came from Fontanarosa, in Campagnia. So, I'm Italian-American (and Irish-American, and English, etc...) This recipe? Eh...I've picked up bits of it here and there. It's probably not exactly the way my mom makes it. It's not exactly like what I've had elsewhere. I've learned some things about how pasta e fagioli is made, and I've taken what I like, and worked out what we like best. This is a variation we like. Read it through, give it a shot, and see what you think.
Pasta e fagioli
Warm soup pot over med-low heat for a couple of minutes.
Add 1-2 TBS. olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan, reduce heat to low, and warm for another minute or two.
Add : 2 stalks celery, diced
2 medium carrots, diced
3-5 cloves garlic, minced
Cook, stirring often, for just 5-6 minutes. Try not to let the garlic brown.
Add ½ lb cannelini (white kidney beans), well rinsed and sorted. 8 cups water or broth
Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes, then turn off and cover for 1 hour*
Turn on heat again, bring to a boil, and add: 1 14-15 oz can diced tomatoes (or you can use fresh tomatoes here, but peel, core & seed them).
Add your herbs ~ I usually add about: ½- 1 tsp total of dried oregano, thyme and/or rosemary (not each, total).
I do this by feel, so the measurement is kind of a guess. You can always add a little more at the end, when you taste it.
Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, covered, stirring often ~ you might have to reduce heat to low, depending on your stove. You want to cook gently, so your beans don’t break up too much ~ until beans are almost done. If it starts to get too thick at this point, you can add a little more water, but it shouldn’t be too watery at the end (mine was a little bit in the picture here). You want enough water to cook your pasta, but, by the very end, you want it to have thickened up a bit.
When the beans are almost done (this should take 1-1.5 hours), add your pasta. I usually add about: 4-6 big handfuls of small pasta ~ ditalini is traditional, but small seashells or elbows are good, too, and I will often use whatever we have on hand.
Bring back up to a boil, stir, and reduce to a low boil. Cook, stirring often, until pasta is just al dente.
At the very end, stir in as much chopped, fresh escarole (or other dark green ~ chard, kale, or spinach all work well, too) as you like. Add salt and black pepper to taste. Taste, and adjust seasonings.
Serve with Romano or Parmesan (or other good, grated cheese), and crushed red pepper for topping, and good, crusty bread.
*This is the “quick soak method for preparing beans. Alternately, if you are better at planning ahead than I am, you can soak your beans over night in cold water in a pan on your counter (or for at least 5-6 hours during the day, I hear). When you are ready to cook, drain, replace the soaking water w/ fresh water, and proceed as above.
This is often made w/ pancetta diced & cooked w/ the garlic, but, since we are vegetarian, I don’t use it. I don’t remember having it with meat growing up, either. Some people skip the greens ~ and the carrot & celery ~ altogether. I like them. It’s up to you to decide how you like it best. (If mine comes out a bit thin, I like to break up my bread into little bits and stir it in, or, put it in my bowl first, and pour my pasta e fagioli on top ~ problem solved.)
Sunday, September 15, 2019
Gluten-Free Dutch Apple Pie
It's September, the kids (who aren't all "kids" at all) are all in back in school ~ high school and college, now, but school, nonetheless ~ and so, it is staring to feel like Fall...in my mind. But only in my mind. In the rest of SoCal it feels like the inside of an oven. Nevertheless, the stores are hawking Halloween decorations, and pumpkin-spice-flavoured everything, and I am buying it all ~ hook, line and sinker. I mean, not LITERALLY buying it. Just, like, I'm buying it...ya know? At any rate, I was feeling like baking pies, and so I settled on one pumpkin and one apple. It occurred to me that Justice is not eating gluten, but she does love pie, so if I was going to make two pies, I was going to have to make some adjustments. The pumpkin was easy enough, as the only gluten occurred in the crust; but since my favourite apple pie recipe not only has a filling thickened with flour, but is topped with a crumb topping, making it gluten-free was going to be a bit of a challenge. I decided to give it a shot. We all thought it was quite good ~ Shane didn't even know it was gluten-free when he commented on how much he liked it ~ so I thought I would share the recipe.
Gluten-Free Dutch Apple Pie
Ingredients:
1 gluten-free pie crust*
FILLING:
6 large, firm apples, peeled, cored & sliced (see notes)
½ cup granulated sugar
3 TBS cornstarch
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
1 TBS lemon juice
dash of salt
TOPPING:
½ cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
½ cup Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1to1 Baking Flour
½ cup almond flour (see notes)
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
¼ tsp cinnamon (optional)
dash of salt
1 TBS granulated sugar
*If you have a recipe you love for gluten-free piecrust, and
you want to make it, that’s fantastic.
Mine have been tragic failures, so I bought a package of two at Whole
foods. They contain butter, which
isn’t my best friend (dairy allergy), but I can tolerate a little bit, and I am
putting it in this pie, anyway, so, what the heck. Everyone else will definitely appreciate a piecrust that is
not a tragic failure. (Also, if
you could share that piecrust recipe, I would be much obliged.)
NOTES:
1) Historically, Granny Smith have been the preferred “baking
apple,” because of their tartness, and texture. However, I have cooked all kinds of apples, and the results
have usually been fine. Arguably,
some apples might be better for cooking than others, but, if I have apples
lying around that are going to be baked, or thrown in the garbage (because we
can’t eat that many in a day, not because they’re rotten or anything), I’ll
probably bake them.
2) I used a mixture of Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1to1 Baking Flour and almond flour in my pie, because we all like the flavour of almond meal, we happened to have these ingredients on hand, and no one here is allergic to them. If you are baking for someone with a nut allergy, a simple fix would be to sub gluten-free flour for the almond flour. Alternately, you could try subbing gluten-free oats. I haven’t tried that, and you might have to add a little bit of flour (or more oats, I’m not sure), but I think it should work, and would taste good.
2) I used a mixture of Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1to1 Baking Flour and almond flour in my pie, because we all like the flavour of almond meal, we happened to have these ingredients on hand, and no one here is allergic to them. If you are baking for someone with a nut allergy, a simple fix would be to sub gluten-free flour for the almond flour. Alternately, you could try subbing gluten-free oats. I haven’t tried that, and you might have to add a little bit of flour (or more oats, I’m not sure), but I think it should work, and would taste good.
3) On the optional cinnamon in the topping: Some people
prefer to put cinnamon only in the filling, and leave the topping more of plain
sugar crumb. I love cinnamon, so
maybe I overdo it. You do what you
prefer (of course).
4) It is very common for the filling to bubble over the
edges of the pan, so it is highly recommended that you place your pie on a
cookie sheet for baking, in order to catch the dripping sugar. This will save you a lot of trouble
later, when it’s time to clean.
~ lastly, I will drop a note here that, if you cannot use
cornstarch, your could sub any gluten-free thickener that works similarly, as
the cornstarch was originally a sub for flour. I’ve heard rice flour might work in instances like this
(?). If others have
suggestions/experience with recipes like this, I’d love to hear from you.
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400°F.
If piecrust is frozen, remove it from freezer, and allow to
thaw while you work.
In a large bowl, lightly toss apple slices, sugar,
cornstarch, cinnamon, lemon juice & salt, until all ingredients are thoroughly mixed ~ the slices should be evenly coated with sugary-cinnamony
goodness. Pour apple mixture
into piecrust, pouring any extra “syrup” from the bottom of the bowl evenly
over the apples.
In a medium bowl, mix flour, almond flour, brown sugar,
cinnamon (if using) and salt. Add
the pieces of cold butter, and cut in using two knives or a pastry cutter ~ or
just mix it all together with very clean fingers ~ until the mixture forms a
nice medium-large crumb. Sprinkle
the crumb mixture over the apples in your piecrust, mounding a little higher
toward the center. Sprinkle the
1TBS granulated sugar evenly over the crumb mixture.
Thursday, July 27, 2017
Roasted Rutabaga & Carrots
Today, I tried another new vegetable, courtesy of Imperfect Produce: The rutabaga.
Surprisingly, given that the rutabaga is, apparently, a cross between cabbage and a turnip, and I avoid turnips as 'though they are THE PLAGUE, I rather liked the rutabagas I cooked tonight, so I thought I would share the recipe here. Because I had only two rutabagas, and 5 ~ or, let's be honest, 4 ~ people to feed ~ I cubed and roasted them with some organic rainbow carrots (which are really cool, and will make your dinner beautiful). I got mine at Trader Joe's.
This is a very simple dish, and you could probably make it with any root vegetable. I am sure parsnips, which we also recently discovered, would work well here, and potatoes would have been a nice addition, too. Play around with it, and see what you think.
You will need: 2 rutabagas 6-8 carrots any other root vegetables you want to add salt & pepper to taste
1-2 TBS olive oil 1/2-1 TBS dried parsley flakes (more if using fresh (always better) 1/2-1tsp balsamic or apple cider vinegar
Here's what you do:
Preheat oven to 425℉
Peel and cube your rutabaga. I cut mine about 3/4", I think. Here is one method I find it easy to do a kind of variation of this, in which I slice off the root end first, instead of slicing through it.
Scrub your carrots. I used 3 of the red/purplish ones, 2 yellow and 2 orange carrots. You can peel them if you prefer. I did not. Cut each carrot in to about 3-4 pieces, then cut each of those pieces lengthwise. You can cut them any way you like, really. I just thought they looked nice this way. You want them to be fairly substantial in size, so they don't cook too quickly. Toss all vegetables with the olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt & pepper, then transfer to a shallow baking dish and cover with foil. Cook for 30-40 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Remove from oven, remove foil and let stand for a minute or two, then sprinkle with parsley, drizzle with vinegar, toss lightly and serve immediately. Yum.
Surprisingly, given that the rutabaga is, apparently, a cross between cabbage and a turnip, and I avoid turnips as 'though they are THE PLAGUE, I rather liked the rutabagas I cooked tonight, so I thought I would share the recipe here. Because I had only two rutabagas, and 5 ~ or, let's be honest, 4 ~ people to feed ~ I cubed and roasted them with some organic rainbow carrots (which are really cool, and will make your dinner beautiful). I got mine at Trader Joe's.
This is a very simple dish, and you could probably make it with any root vegetable. I am sure parsnips, which we also recently discovered, would work well here, and potatoes would have been a nice addition, too. Play around with it, and see what you think.
You will need: 2 rutabagas 6-8 carrots any other root vegetables you want to add salt & pepper to taste
1-2 TBS olive oil 1/2-1 TBS dried parsley flakes (more if using fresh (always better) 1/2-1tsp balsamic or apple cider vinegar
Here's what you do:
Preheat oven to 425℉
Peel and cube your rutabaga. I cut mine about 3/4", I think. Here is one method I find it easy to do a kind of variation of this, in which I slice off the root end first, instead of slicing through it.
Scrub your carrots. I used 3 of the red/purplish ones, 2 yellow and 2 orange carrots. You can peel them if you prefer. I did not. Cut each carrot in to about 3-4 pieces, then cut each of those pieces lengthwise. You can cut them any way you like, really. I just thought they looked nice this way. You want them to be fairly substantial in size, so they don't cook too quickly. Toss all vegetables with the olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt & pepper, then transfer to a shallow baking dish and cover with foil. Cook for 30-40 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Remove from oven, remove foil and let stand for a minute or two, then sprinkle with parsley, drizzle with vinegar, toss lightly and serve immediately. Yum.
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Stuffed Mushrooms
Today, Kaia had her physical, with our very favourite pediatrician ever. So happy to have health insurance again. She did need to have a blood test, which was not fun, so we stopped for a treat on the way home, and then I made sure to make something she would especially enjoy for dinner: baked ziti, made the way my mom taught me ~ Nana's is STILL the best, but mine's really good :)
Well, that was great for the kids, but it is really full of cheese (to which I am allergic), and it is definitely not a low-fat, low-carb, healthy option for Shane, who is sort of watching what he eats these days; so I decided to make something to go along with that would take the emphasis off the pasta for him, and actually provide me something I could eat for dinner. First, I decided to add salad to the menu. We happened to have a bag of salad greens and a container "Healthy 8" from Trader Joe's (it's basically a chopped salad), so that was simple enough. I wanted something a little more exciting than salad, however, and I didn't have a lot of stuff to make a really great, interesting salad, so I decided to add one more dish to the menu. I had picked up some small portobello mushrooms last time I was at the grocery store, with intentions of stuffing them. Tonight seemed like as good a time as any.
Now, I have made variations of stuffed mushrooms before, and most of them have contained eggs, cheese and/or sausage. They're really good, but I can't have cheese, and I wanted to avoid soy, since I just had a veggie burger yesterday, so I decided to try something a little different. I figured, if I was going to leave out the cheese, I might as well try to make them vegan. The recipe I use for sliders, which is a favourite around here, relies on walnuts for it's hearty, "meaty" texture, and I thought they might work here, too. I decided to give it a shot, and I am so glad I did. They are positively delicious, so I thought I would write down the recipe while I am thinking about it, so I don;t forget.
Stuffed Mushrooms
1 TBS olive oil
6 small portobello mushrooms
1/3 cup walnut pieces, finely chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, crushed
1-2 TBS parsley
1/2 tsp oregano
2 TBS white wine
salt & pepper to taste
1/4-1/3 cup panko, or other dry breadcrumbs
about 1/2 cup water
Clean mushrooms and remove stems. Place 5 caps top side down in a baking dish. Dice stems and 1 remaining cap. In a medium-sized skillet, heat olive oil over low-medium heat. Add mushrooms, garlic and finely chopped walnuts (use food processor if you don't want any larger chunks). Sauté for a few moments, until mushrooms begin to soften. Add parsley, oregano and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Continue to cook, tossing gently to evenly cook. Stir in white wine, reduce heat and cook until wine evaporates. Add about 1/4 cup water, and continue cooking until water evaporates. Remove from heat, and gently stir in breadcrumbs. The mixture should sort of hold together and be moist, but not soupy. (If it is too wet, cook longer, or add a few more breadcrumbs. If it is too dry, add a little more water.) Taste, and adjust seasonings. Carefully spoon mixture into mushroom caps, pressing the mixture firmly in to the caps. They should be slightly overfull. pour about 1/4 cup of water in to the bottom of the baking dish, cover the dish with foil and bake for 30-40 minutes in a 350ºF oven. If desired, remove foil and increase heat to 425ºF for the last 5-10 minutes of cooking, to lightly brown the tops of the mushrooms. Let stand 2 minutes before serving.
These were delicious. I will definitely make them again. I think they could easily be made using smaller mushrooms to serve as a nice appetizer or party fare. I thought they were simple and delicious, but you might play around with the seasonings a bit to see what suits your taste. I think they would be great with the addition of a little finely diced scallion or onion, and served with brown gravy. Thyme might be a nice touch, too, but I didn't happen to have any this evening.
Unfortunately, I was so excited about eating them that I forgot to take a picture of them when they came out of the oven, but I did take this picture, right before they went in:
Well, that was great for the kids, but it is really full of cheese (to which I am allergic), and it is definitely not a low-fat, low-carb, healthy option for Shane, who is sort of watching what he eats these days; so I decided to make something to go along with that would take the emphasis off the pasta for him, and actually provide me something I could eat for dinner. First, I decided to add salad to the menu. We happened to have a bag of salad greens and a container "Healthy 8" from Trader Joe's (it's basically a chopped salad), so that was simple enough. I wanted something a little more exciting than salad, however, and I didn't have a lot of stuff to make a really great, interesting salad, so I decided to add one more dish to the menu. I had picked up some small portobello mushrooms last time I was at the grocery store, with intentions of stuffing them. Tonight seemed like as good a time as any.
Now, I have made variations of stuffed mushrooms before, and most of them have contained eggs, cheese and/or sausage. They're really good, but I can't have cheese, and I wanted to avoid soy, since I just had a veggie burger yesterday, so I decided to try something a little different. I figured, if I was going to leave out the cheese, I might as well try to make them vegan. The recipe I use for sliders, which is a favourite around here, relies on walnuts for it's hearty, "meaty" texture, and I thought they might work here, too. I decided to give it a shot, and I am so glad I did. They are positively delicious, so I thought I would write down the recipe while I am thinking about it, so I don;t forget.
Stuffed Mushrooms
1 TBS olive oil
6 small portobello mushrooms
1/3 cup walnut pieces, finely chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, crushed
1-2 TBS parsley
1/2 tsp oregano
2 TBS white wine
salt & pepper to taste
1/4-1/3 cup panko, or other dry breadcrumbs
about 1/2 cup water
Clean mushrooms and remove stems. Place 5 caps top side down in a baking dish. Dice stems and 1 remaining cap. In a medium-sized skillet, heat olive oil over low-medium heat. Add mushrooms, garlic and finely chopped walnuts (use food processor if you don't want any larger chunks). Sauté for a few moments, until mushrooms begin to soften. Add parsley, oregano and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Continue to cook, tossing gently to evenly cook. Stir in white wine, reduce heat and cook until wine evaporates. Add about 1/4 cup water, and continue cooking until water evaporates. Remove from heat, and gently stir in breadcrumbs. The mixture should sort of hold together and be moist, but not soupy. (If it is too wet, cook longer, or add a few more breadcrumbs. If it is too dry, add a little more water.) Taste, and adjust seasonings. Carefully spoon mixture into mushroom caps, pressing the mixture firmly in to the caps. They should be slightly overfull. pour about 1/4 cup of water in to the bottom of the baking dish, cover the dish with foil and bake for 30-40 minutes in a 350ºF oven. If desired, remove foil and increase heat to 425ºF for the last 5-10 minutes of cooking, to lightly brown the tops of the mushrooms. Let stand 2 minutes before serving.
These were delicious. I will definitely make them again. I think they could easily be made using smaller mushrooms to serve as a nice appetizer or party fare. I thought they were simple and delicious, but you might play around with the seasonings a bit to see what suits your taste. I think they would be great with the addition of a little finely diced scallion or onion, and served with brown gravy. Thyme might be a nice touch, too, but I didn't happen to have any this evening.
Unfortunately, I was so excited about eating them that I forgot to take a picture of them when they came out of the oven, but I did take this picture, right before they went in:
I hope, if you give these a shot, you enjoy them as much as we did.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Vegetable Skillet
I am sure I published something like this long ago, but tonight I had one of my very favourite dishes in the whole wide world, and I happened to comment, while eating it, that I could eat some variation of this every single day and be happy. It's true. The trick here is that there are infinite variations on this dish, so it would never have to be the same. I would never ever get bored. Really.
So, what is this wonderful dish?
I have no idea. Seriously, no clue what to call this, because it is not really one thing, so much as just an idea, a way of cooking. I have decided to call it a "Vegetable Skillet," because it is made of vegetables, and cooked in a skillet. To work this out perfectly, in my opinion, you will need a large cast iron skillet. If you don't have one, another type of skillet (or maybe a wok) should work, but I highly recommend cast iron. I like the way it heats up, and it brown the veggies nicely.
Here's what you do:
First, assemble your vegetables.
It's a good idea to chop everything into roughly the same size chunks, then group them according to how dense they are (or how quickly they will cook).
So, what do you put in this thing? That's up to you. I know, I know, it's not really a recipe! But I will give you an example or two to get you started.
Tonight, I used: 1 large green pepper, 4 carrots (one orange, one yellow and two purple, believe it or not), 2 zucchini, about 1 1/2 cups of broccoli florets, 1/2 head cauliflower, 3 cloves of garlic and 1 can of chick peas.
One of my favourites has: onions, red peppers, garlic, potatoes, broccoli, corn and canned black beans.
Another great combo is: onions, garlic, peppers, zucchini, mushrooms, tomatoes and white beans.
Or how about: cabbage, potatoes, carrots, peas & scallions?
Don't limit yourself. Include lots of yummy veggies ~ halved brussels sprouts, asparagus, lima beans, artichoke hearts, sweet potatoes, squash, celery, green beans...the possibilities are endless.
Here's what you do with all this good stuff:
Heat your skillet over medium heat.
Add 1-2 TBS olive oil, coconut oil, or whatever other oil you prefer.
Now, start adding your veggies. If I am using onions, peppers and/or mushrooms, I like to start them first (sprinkled with just a tiny bit of salt), so they get nice and brown, and the onions caramelize. After that (or, in lieu of that, as the case may be), I add the veggies that take the longest to cook first, cook and stir/toss for a few minutes, then add the ones that take a little less time, etc, until I get to the ones that take very little time to cook (like canned beans, that just need to heat, really).
As you add veggies, you'll want to add in some seasonings. You can tailor the seasonings to suit your taste, whim, or the other ingredients you are using. If you are using stuff like onions, garlic & peppers, you might just need a little salt and pepper. Sometimes I add classic Italian seasonings, like basil, oregano, crushed red pepper, thyme and parsley. Another great combo is cumin, smoked paprika, chili powder and cilantro. Steak seasoning is a nice quick flavourful choice, as is curry powder, or, another favourite Old Bay Seasoning. (Tonight, I used freshly ground mixed peppercorns, a touch of seasoning salt, Old Bay Seasoning, dill weed and a touch of mustard.)
So, you just keep cooking and stirring until the vegetables are all evenly seasoned, and then, if you want them to brown a bit, turn up the heat and let them cook without stirring for a few minutes. then, gently stir (or toss, or use a cake turner, whatever works, and let the veggies brown a little bit more. Just keep doing this until it is the way your like it. If adding canned beans, I toss them in for just the last couple of minutes. If adding nuts or seeds, I just toss them in after I turn off the skillet.
When it is cooked to your liking, turn off the skillet, remove from heat, and serve.
To make this simple meal complete, I usually include beans and/or nuts (or sometimes I toss in cooked vegetarian sausage, chicken strips, beef strips or something like that), and serve with rice, bread, quinoa or pasta.
So, that's my favourite food. And, see, I could eat it every single day, and it would never have to be the same. Sorry I don't have a picture this time; I was too busy eating. In fact, I might be going back for seconds.
So, what is this wonderful dish?
I have no idea. Seriously, no clue what to call this, because it is not really one thing, so much as just an idea, a way of cooking. I have decided to call it a "Vegetable Skillet," because it is made of vegetables, and cooked in a skillet. To work this out perfectly, in my opinion, you will need a large cast iron skillet. If you don't have one, another type of skillet (or maybe a wok) should work, but I highly recommend cast iron. I like the way it heats up, and it brown the veggies nicely.
Here's what you do:
First, assemble your vegetables.
It's a good idea to chop everything into roughly the same size chunks, then group them according to how dense they are (or how quickly they will cook).
So, what do you put in this thing? That's up to you. I know, I know, it's not really a recipe! But I will give you an example or two to get you started.
Tonight, I used: 1 large green pepper, 4 carrots (one orange, one yellow and two purple, believe it or not), 2 zucchini, about 1 1/2 cups of broccoli florets, 1/2 head cauliflower, 3 cloves of garlic and 1 can of chick peas.
One of my favourites has: onions, red peppers, garlic, potatoes, broccoli, corn and canned black beans.
Another great combo is: onions, garlic, peppers, zucchini, mushrooms, tomatoes and white beans.
Or how about: cabbage, potatoes, carrots, peas & scallions?
Don't limit yourself. Include lots of yummy veggies ~ halved brussels sprouts, asparagus, lima beans, artichoke hearts, sweet potatoes, squash, celery, green beans...the possibilities are endless.
Here's what you do with all this good stuff:
Heat your skillet over medium heat.
Add 1-2 TBS olive oil, coconut oil, or whatever other oil you prefer.
Now, start adding your veggies. If I am using onions, peppers and/or mushrooms, I like to start them first (sprinkled with just a tiny bit of salt), so they get nice and brown, and the onions caramelize. After that (or, in lieu of that, as the case may be), I add the veggies that take the longest to cook first, cook and stir/toss for a few minutes, then add the ones that take a little less time, etc, until I get to the ones that take very little time to cook (like canned beans, that just need to heat, really).
As you add veggies, you'll want to add in some seasonings. You can tailor the seasonings to suit your taste, whim, or the other ingredients you are using. If you are using stuff like onions, garlic & peppers, you might just need a little salt and pepper. Sometimes I add classic Italian seasonings, like basil, oregano, crushed red pepper, thyme and parsley. Another great combo is cumin, smoked paprika, chili powder and cilantro. Steak seasoning is a nice quick flavourful choice, as is curry powder, or, another favourite Old Bay Seasoning. (Tonight, I used freshly ground mixed peppercorns, a touch of seasoning salt, Old Bay Seasoning, dill weed and a touch of mustard.)
So, you just keep cooking and stirring until the vegetables are all evenly seasoned, and then, if you want them to brown a bit, turn up the heat and let them cook without stirring for a few minutes. then, gently stir (or toss, or use a cake turner, whatever works, and let the veggies brown a little bit more. Just keep doing this until it is the way your like it. If adding canned beans, I toss them in for just the last couple of minutes. If adding nuts or seeds, I just toss them in after I turn off the skillet.
When it is cooked to your liking, turn off the skillet, remove from heat, and serve.
To make this simple meal complete, I usually include beans and/or nuts (or sometimes I toss in cooked vegetarian sausage, chicken strips, beef strips or something like that), and serve with rice, bread, quinoa or pasta.
So, that's my favourite food. And, see, I could eat it every single day, and it would never have to be the same. Sorry I don't have a picture this time; I was too busy eating. In fact, I might be going back for seconds.
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Simple Jelly from Bottled Juice
I keep forgetting to share recipes here, then link to them on The Low Life!
So, I failed on that one. Instead, this one time, I will redirect you to our family blog, The Low Life, for a truly simple apple jelly recipe that is just divine.
This evening, I am making some beer bread (one loaf for us, and one for our friends, and I plan to enjoy mine with a big glob of apple jelly. I might even make some honey butter, too, but I am still too in love with jelly to eat anything else.
Yum, yum!
Jammin ~ by Sam, at The Low Life
So, I failed on that one. Instead, this one time, I will redirect you to our family blog, The Low Life, for a truly simple apple jelly recipe that is just divine.
This evening, I am making some beer bread (one loaf for us, and one for our friends, and I plan to enjoy mine with a big glob of apple jelly. I might even make some honey butter, too, but I am still too in love with jelly to eat anything else.
Yum, yum!
Jammin ~ by Sam, at The Low Life
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
New Year's Blackeyed Peas
Nationwide, many, many people observe the tradition of eating blackeyed peas and greens on New Year's Day. This practice, rooted in the South is said to bring good luck in the coming year. The peas, which are not peas at all, but, rather beans related to the cowpea, can be prepared in a variety of ways ~ from Hoppin' John and Texas caviar to more modern salads. Often, they are served with greens and cornbread to round out the meal. The peas are said to represent coins, the greens, bills, and the cornbread, gold. Some people say that each bean consumed ensures one day of good luck in the new year. According to that logic, to ensure good luck every single day, one should eat 365 blackeyed peas on New Year's Day. Ha. Well, I can't manage that, but I'll take all the luck I can get. Besides which, I like blackeyed peas. They're yummy.
I have to admit, they are especially yummy when cooked with bacon, and, try as I might, I have never managed to make them taste quite as delicious without all that fatty, flavourful meat. Of course, I don't want to eat that, so I have just muddled through with my "eh...okay" blackeyed peas. This year, however, I decided to step it up. I really wanted to get it right, and, this year, I think I finally did. Shane and the kids agree. Since it turned out so well, I decided to jot down what I did, so I will remember how to do it again. and, I figured, as long as I am writing it down, I might as well post it here. So, here goes.
You will need:
1/2 lb dry blackeyed peas
water
1-2 TBS safflower oil
4 strips vegetarian bacon, chopped fine
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 TBS dried parsley
salt, pepper & crushed red pepper to taste
1/2 TBS. red wine vinegar
2 cups greens*, cleaned & sliced into thin ribbons
Onions powder, or a couple of thinly sliced green onions
1 cup vegetable broth (I used chicken-style)
Rinse and sort 1/2 lb. dry blackeyed peas and place them in a medium sized pot. Add cold water to about 2 inches above the top of the peas. Bring to a boil. Boil 2 minutes, then turn off and let stand for 1 hour. Drain, return peas to pot and add cold water again to about 2-3 inches above peas. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally for about 1/2 hour, or until tender, but not mushy. Drain peas and set aside.
In the same pot in which you cooked your beans, heat oil (use the higher amount if you like the mouthfeel that you get with bacon, less if you want to watch your fat intake) over low-medium heat heat. Add bacon and cook until it starts to crisp up. Reduce heat to low. Add garlic, parsley, salt, pepper and crushed red pepper and cook, stirring, until the garlic is soft, but not browned. Be careful to keep the heat low and stir constantly, to prevent browning, which will make the dish bitter. Add red wine vinegar, and cook until the liquid evaporates.
Return peas to pot. Top with greens, then sprinkle with onion powder or green onions. Pour broth overall. Cover and cook over low-medium heat until greens and peas are done and most liquid is gone. Stir very gently, to avoid breaking up the peas. Taste, and adjust seasonings.
That's it. It was so good. What I especially love about this dish is that it looks as good as it tastes.
* The greens I used were from our garden, a variety or early-harvest broccoli that claims to combine qualities of broccoli and turnip greens, as I recall. I wish I could remember the name of the plant. It has grown quite vigorously, but produces far more leaves that florets. Good thing we can eat them all :)
I have to admit, they are especially yummy when cooked with bacon, and, try as I might, I have never managed to make them taste quite as delicious without all that fatty, flavourful meat. Of course, I don't want to eat that, so I have just muddled through with my "eh...okay" blackeyed peas. This year, however, I decided to step it up. I really wanted to get it right, and, this year, I think I finally did. Shane and the kids agree. Since it turned out so well, I decided to jot down what I did, so I will remember how to do it again. and, I figured, as long as I am writing it down, I might as well post it here. So, here goes.
You will need:
1/2 lb dry blackeyed peas
water
1-2 TBS safflower oil
4 strips vegetarian bacon, chopped fine
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 TBS dried parsley
salt, pepper & crushed red pepper to taste
1/2 TBS. red wine vinegar
2 cups greens*, cleaned & sliced into thin ribbons
Onions powder, or a couple of thinly sliced green onions
1 cup vegetable broth (I used chicken-style)
Rinse and sort 1/2 lb. dry blackeyed peas and place them in a medium sized pot. Add cold water to about 2 inches above the top of the peas. Bring to a boil. Boil 2 minutes, then turn off and let stand for 1 hour. Drain, return peas to pot and add cold water again to about 2-3 inches above peas. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally for about 1/2 hour, or until tender, but not mushy. Drain peas and set aside.
In the same pot in which you cooked your beans, heat oil (use the higher amount if you like the mouthfeel that you get with bacon, less if you want to watch your fat intake) over low-medium heat heat. Add bacon and cook until it starts to crisp up. Reduce heat to low. Add garlic, parsley, salt, pepper and crushed red pepper and cook, stirring, until the garlic is soft, but not browned. Be careful to keep the heat low and stir constantly, to prevent browning, which will make the dish bitter. Add red wine vinegar, and cook until the liquid evaporates.
Return peas to pot. Top with greens, then sprinkle with onion powder or green onions. Pour broth overall. Cover and cook over low-medium heat until greens and peas are done and most liquid is gone. Stir very gently, to avoid breaking up the peas. Taste, and adjust seasonings.
* The greens I used were from our garden, a variety or early-harvest broccoli that claims to combine qualities of broccoli and turnip greens, as I recall. I wish I could remember the name of the plant. It has grown quite vigorously, but produces far more leaves that florets. Good thing we can eat them all :)
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