Pop Quiz!

We were traveling much of last week and did not do any cooking. I challenged my chef-y friends to come up with something tasty using the ingredients on hand...here's what Heather made (and I can't wait to make it myself!):

Addendum: I made this for dinner tonight, and it was superb. My changes:
1) I used 1 cup sliced leeks instead of the green onions and shallot
2)I used dried dill in place of the marjoram
3)I threw a parmesan rind in just for fun
4)I drizzled balsamic vinegar over the soup just before serving
5) I served it over steamed kale






Lentil-Barley Soup
adapted from myrecipes.com

2 teaspoons canola oil
4 scallions, white and light green parts, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3 cups vegetable broth
1 cup water
3/4 cup beer (Midas Touch by Dogfishhead)
1 cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped parsnip
1 cup chopped celery
1 tsp dried marjoram
1/4 cup uncooked pearl barley
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup dried lentils
1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add garlic, green onion, and shallot to pan; sauté 2 minutes. Add broth, 1 cup water, and beer; bring to a boil.
2. Add chopped carrot and next 8 ingredients (through bay leaves); return to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes.
3. Stir in lentils; cover and cook 30 minutes. Discard bay leaves.
4. Place 1 1/2 cups broth mixture in a blender. Remove the center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Return pureed mixture to pan, and stir in salt.
5. Return mixture to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated, stirring occasionally.

I had intended to make the soup for lunch, but the day got away from me. So while it was simmering, I made this super steamed kale salad to tide me over.

Steamed Kale Salad



cooking spray
1/2 cup red onion, vertically sliced
1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
2-3 cups torn kale, rinsed
1/2 oz shaved parmesan cheese
1 tsp balsamic vinegar

1. Saute the onions, mushrooms, and garlic in the cooking spray until soft. Sprinkle the red pepper in and stir.
2. Put the kale in the pan and cover. Steam in the rinse water for 5 minutes until wilted.
3. Pile the kale/mushroom mixture on a plate, sprinkle the shaved parmesan over top, and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.

Veggie Nite

Tonight's dinner was entirely vegetarian and adapted from recipes in Annie Somerville's book, Fields of Greens. The hit of the evening was the marinated tofu, and thank goodness the marinade makes a bunch so we can throw some more tofu in to eat later in the week!

Nate roasted a huge spaghetti squash this afternoon, and we subbed squash for the noodles in the Chinese Noodle Salad. I find that most salads simply use the pasta as a vehicle for the dressing, anyway, so you might as well pack your veggies in while you're eating that dressing. We sub spaghetti squash for many pasta dishes with great success.

Menu:
Tofu with Sweet Ginger Marinade
Spicy Peanut Sauce
Grilled Kale
Chinese Noodle (Squash) Salad with Citrus and Spicy Peanuts


Tofu with Sweet Ginger Marinade
from Fields of Greens



This was excellent, and paired very nicely with the peanut sauce and kale. I am excited to try it again with some of the other suggested sauces. We grilled it, placing the slices over medium heat until grill marks appeared, then turning and grilling the other side. I might also try smoking it. IN THE SMOKER--I know what you were thinking...

1 package of firm tofu, about 1 pound
1/2 cup soy sauce or tamari
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup dry white wine or mirin
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup dark sesame oil (I used 2 T)
1/2 oz dried shiitake mushrooms
1 1/2 tsp dry mustard
2 T grated fresh ginger
4 garlic cloves, crushed with the side of a knife

1. Slice the tofu in half horizontally or cut into slabs 1" thick. Place in a colander and drain for 10-15 minutes.
2. Prepare the marinade: combine all the ingredients in a nonreactive saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
3. Arrange the tofu in a shallow pan and pour the marinade over, being sure to cover all the slices.
4. Cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours and up to 2 weeks.
5. Eat fresh or grilled.


Spicy Peanut Sauce
adapted from Fields of Greens



Unbeknownst to me, a little troll has been secretly eating from the jar of peanut butter that I had stocked away in my mental inventory on the "OK to assume we always have plenty without checking first" shelf. Lesson learned. I subbed sesame tahini paste for the PB here, because I had a big tub sitting there (the troll apparently hasn't yet discovered the tasty paste) and it was a fine replacement. This was great drizzled over the marinated tofu.

1 T coarsely chopped yellow onion
1 large garlic clove, coarsely chopped
1 or 2 jalapeno chiles, seeded
1 T peanut oil or light vegetable oil
2 1/2 T soy sauce
1 T plus 1 tsp lime juice
2 T light brown sugar
1 tsp molasses
1/2 c creamy peanut butter
1/4 c water
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1. Puree the onion, garlic, chiles, oil, soy sauce, and lime juice in a blender or food processor.
2. Transfer to a bowl and whisk in the remaining ingredients.


Grilled Kale

One of my favorite ways to eat kale. It doesn't work as well with other greens. I usually do it in a 400F oven for about 15 minutes, but we had BTUs to use up on the grill, so I plopped the leaves down after the tofu was done. I cut the kale into large-ish bite-sized pieces, which is how I do it in the oven; next time I will use whole leaves on the grill so I'm not racing to turn all those little morsels before they burn. Use flat-leaf kale if you have the choice.

1 bunch flat-leaf kale
cooking spray
salt
pepper

1. Heat the grill to medium.
2. Spray the kale leaves with cooking spray, sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper, and toss to coat.
3. Roast over direct heat until char marks just start to appear; turn the leaves and quickly remove from heat once they are lightly browned on both sides. If they get soggy after cooling, you can re-crisp the leaves for 5-10 minutes in a 400F oven.


Chinese Noodle (Squash) Salad with Citrus and Spicy Peanuts
adapted from Fields of Greens



I've written it as I made it, with spaghetti squash and a few other adjustments.

Marinade:
Zest of half a lime or orange
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
2 1/2 T fresh ground ginger
3 T rice vinegar
5 T soy sauce
3 T white wine vinegar
2 T dark sesame oil
1 T sugar
1 serrano chile, seeded

Combine all ingredients in a blender and puree.

Salad:
1 small spaghetti squash, roasted and seeded
1 medium carrot, sliced into matchsticks
1 cup sugar snap peas, diced
2 scallions, diced
1/2 cup daikon radish, sliced into matchsticks
3 T cilantro, minced
1/4 c Spicy Peanuts, chopped

Scoop the squash into a large bowl and toss with the remaining ingredients. Toss with the marinade and let sit for 30 minutes before serving.

Spicy Peanuts
from Fields of Greens

1 cup peanuts
1/2 tsp peanut oil
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
salt to taste

Toss all ingredients together, spread in a shallow pan, and roast for 12-15 minutes at 325F. Let cool and store in an airtight container.

The Miracle of Thanksgiving.

Oy. Has it really been a month? I ate enough in the past week to make it feel like a month, that's for sure...

Thanksgiving came and went, and of course we ate like kings. I'm sorry to say I did not record a single thing during the entire 5 day event. You'll just have to trust that food was prepared and eaten by the ton.

And now, leftovers!!! Huzzah!!!

And for some bizarre reason, Hanukkah falls directly after Thanksgiving. So, natch, we have a challenge: try to use the multitudes of turkey-day leftovers in traditional Macabee fare. I think we did pretty well, even if it wasn't exactly "traditional".



Menu:
Mashed Potato Latkes
Broccoli Slaw Latkes
Jalapeno Sour Cream
Applesauce
Kale Salad with Bread Stuffing Crumbs


Mashed Potato Latkes



makes 6 pancakes

These were tasty, as all things mashed-potato-derived should be. There's nothing that can truly replace shredded potato and onion latkes deep-fried in oil, but these were fine in a pinch and a great way to use up the bucket of leftover spuds.

2 c leftover mashed potatoes
1 egg
1 scallion, minced
cooking spray

1. Beat the egg well in a small bowl.
2. Stir in the potatoes and scallion and mix well.
3. Heat a frying pan to medium and coat with cooking spray.
4. Form the potatoes into flat patties and fry until each side is golden brown. Serve with applesauce and sour cream.


Broccoli Slaw Latkes



makes about 5 cakes

Basically a shredded veggie pancake. Super easy if you use bagged broccoli slaw, but it would be only minimally more work to shred carrots/broccoli/cauliflower/zucchini or whatever vegetable you want to incorporate.

1 egg
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp each salt and pepper
2 cups shredded broccoli slaw
1 scallion, minced
4 T matzoh meal (or bread crumbs)
cooking spray

1. Beat the egg well. Mix in the nutmeg, salt and pepper.
2. Mix the broccoli slaw and scallion with the egg until combined.
3. Stir in the matzoh meal.
4. Heat a frying pan to medium and coat with cooking spray.
5. Drop the slaw mixture onto the pan and flatten gently.
6. Cook on both sides until browned.




Kale Salad with Bread Stuffing Crumbs



Inspired by a salad served at True Food Restaurant in Phoenix. Mine was just as good and quite a bit cheaper. This was also a nice way to use leftover stuffing, and I will probably freeze the rest of the stuffing to have on hand just for the purpose of making bread crumbs.

Dressing:
1/4 c fresh lemon juice
1 T olive oil
pinch of sugar to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Crumbs:
1/4 c leftover bread stuffing or shredded bread
2 T shredded cheddar or Parmesan cheese

1 bunch flat-leaf kale, chopped

1. Whisk together the dressing ingredients and set aside.
2. Spread the stuffing on a toaster pan and toast until dried. Set aside to cool.
3. Toss the kale with the dressing and divide into desired number of servings.
4. Toss the cheese with the crumbs when cool and sprinkle over the kale.