Black & Orange Cauldron Bubble

Happy Halloween!

Today's Splendid Table email newsletter was forwarded to me (shout out to the Moms & MJ), which included Robin Robertson's recipe for Pumpkin and Black Bean Chili. The recipe is excerpted from her book One-Dish Vegetarian Meals (I have had my eye on her Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker for a while), as well as Splendid Table Lynne's tips and ideas for buying, storing, cooking, and eating squash and pumpkins. It was a really nice email - not gimicky at all like most email newsletters - with lots of practical (okay, splendid) ideas. I think I'll subscribe.

The recipe was just right for today - tasty, quick, and festive (more and more, quick and easy is a prerequisite for my cooking, if you haven't noticed). For an ol' boring lady like me with exciting Halloween plans to catch the tail-end of the trick-or-treaters at home after class and hunker down with a big pile of homework . . . it worked great. Plus, I happened to have an excellent husband who had some free time this afternoon to hit up the grocery store and assist with some pumpkin-choppin' prep work. I was really impressed that he went so far as to carve up the pumpkin into chunks . . . back pain and all.

This was a really fantastic, savory chili - packed with flavor from the pumpkin, cider, and kale that we used. Although the added greens were one of Lynne's tips and not included in the original recipe, I highly recommend adding them. It brings a brightness to the chili, as well as a ton of nutrients that you don't come across every day. If you are not big on the flavor, don't add too much, but give it a shot.

Pumpkin & Black Bean Chili
adapted slightly from One-Dish Vegetarian Meals as presented by The Splendid Table

1 2-lb. pie pumpkin or butternut squash (we used a pumpkin & were quite pleased)
2 T. olive oil
1 large onion
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 minced jalapeno chile, or 1-2 minced chipotle chiles in adobo
1 32-oz. can diced tomatoes with juice
1 1/2 c. water
1 1/2 c. apple cider
4 T. chili powder (or chili powder blend - go light on this and add more if you are not a spice fan)
1 t. salt
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)
3 15-oz. cans rinsed and drained black beans
1 head kale or other hearty green, rinsed and chopped (optional)

Suggested toppings: toasted pepitas, soy sour cream, chives or green onion

Cut the pumpkin into 1/2-inch dice and set aside. Heat oil in large pot over medium heat, then add the onion, garlic, and jalapeno or chipotle. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add remaining ingredients except for beans and greens. Stir, bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to simmer, and let cook for about 30 minutes or until pumpkin has softened. Add beans and greens, and more water if necessary. Cover and cook for about 15 minutes until flavors have been incorporated. Serve with toppings, a small salad, and a slice of savory bread.

granola!

I ask you: WHY have I never made granola?

Reasons for asking why:
1. We go through copious amounts of granola/fancy organic no-HFCS cereal in my house.
2. It is expensive to buy boxed granola!
3. All of those boxes add up to a lot of waste, right? (although...all those bags you use to get stuff out of the bulk bins does, too...unless you save them like a good environmentalist would)
4. Making granola is SOOO easy!

A super-duper friend of mine gave me La Dolce Vegan! for my birthday this year, and I have been so happy and excited by all the new recipes at hand. I wanted to make something easy for this week's breakfasts...and then I came across a few tasty-sounding granola recipes. I've always thought about making granola, but I have just never done it..and now I suggest that you quickly whip up a batch. You can collect all the right amounts (or estimates of the right amounts) of the ingredients at the bulk bins - then go home and just dump all that shit into a bowl...and you are almost there! OK - enough with all of this granola praise...on to the recipe.

Cranberry Almond Pecan Granola
(altered from La Dolce Vegan!)

4 c. rolled oats
1 1/3 c. sliced almonds
1 1/3 c. unsweetened shredded coconut
1 1/3 c. pecans
1 scant c. unrefined sugar
2 1/2 t. ground cinnamon
1/4 t. ground cloves
1/2 t. ground nutmeg
2/3 c. cranberry juice
1/4 c. oil
1 1/2 c. dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 325. In a large bowl, combine the oats through the spices, then add the juice and oil, and mix until well combined. Spread granola in a single layer on two large baking pans. Bake for 20-25 minutes, stirring and rotating the pans after 10 minutes. Let granola cool, untouched (no stirring! you will get better clusters that way), then add cranberries when cool. Store in an airtight container and enjoy all week long with delectable soy milk.
p.s. don't the pictures look better? (granted, the ones from the last post are cell phone pics) I bought a new camera with my birthday money - yay!

I caught a good one.

It was my birthday this week, and it turned out to be one of the best ones in a while. Chris and I have been away from each other on my birthday for the past couple of years, and this was extra special just because he was there and being so great to me all day long. He woke me up with a cup of coffee under my nose (not really out of the ordinary) and lured me into the dining room, which was all aglow with this spread:I had been sleeping soundly, and he had been up for an hour in the dark, whipping up whole wheat blueberry pancakes and soysages and coffee and orange juice. This is extra special, you see, because he is not exactly an experienced pancake-maker. I was very proud of him. Also, he really hates wrapping presents - he told me that you can tell that he loves me because he wrapped ALL of those presents. I always kind of considered his family tradition of unwrapping presents in the morning with birthday breakfast (and not after dinner with birthday cake, which is my family tradition) to be cheating, but this whole fabulous experience kind of debunked that theory (especially since I was not even supposed to get presents this year). This bonus gift came at the end:Anyways, I told him after that fantastic breakfast it really didn't matter what happened during the rest of my busy day - he had set the tone right and that was all that mattered. I ended up having a really nice day, especially capped off with dinner and drinks at Malibu with some of our great friends.

Then, he upped the ante even more by cooking dinner for me the next night! He made another of our Giada favorites, Rigatoni with Red Pepper, Almonds, and Breadcrumbs. I don't have a picture, but you can look at the one with the recipe here. To sum it up: Boil a pound of penne or rigatoni. Place a 5 oz. bag of garlic-flavored croutons and 1/4 c. toasted slivered almonds in a food processor until like breadcrumbs. Toss pasta with crouton mix and 3/4 c. olive oil and/or pasta water. Top with a jar of roasted red peppers that have been julienned and a rinsed can of garbanzo beans (that is our own addition - it makes it really good). It's cheap, fast, easy, and really really good - the makings of a perfect weeknight dinner.

Moroccan Roasted Vegetables

So, this recipe is probably what I would consider my "signature" dish, only because every time I cook it, I get asked for the recipe. Then, those people seem to misplace the recipe (just as I would if I had originally requested it), and then they ask again. Then they pass it on to their loved ones and cook it for other people and get asked for the recipe themselves. It's a good recipe.

I was just asked for it by my friend Chez Megane, and I realized I have never posted it here before. Since it is one of those recipes that gets lost, I figured I would post it now to be used by all. Although I don't have photos of it to share, trust that it is a beautiful and humbly delectable dish.

Moroccan Roasted Vegetables
slightly adapted from Moosewood Restaurant New Classics

note: I generally add a good bit more spice than called for by mounding up the spices in the measuring spoons as I measure them - it makes it better.

1 medium onion, cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch thick semi-circles
1 small eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch cubes or semi-circles
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch thick cubes or semi-circles
1 large red bell pepper, cored and sliced into 1/4-inch strips
2 medium fresh tomatoes, chopped
15.5 oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
4 large garlic cloves, minced
2 T. olive oil
1 T. fresh lemon juice
1 T. ground cumin
1 1/2 t. turmeric
1 1/2 t. ground cinnamon
1 1/2 t. paprika
1/4 t. cayenne
2 t. salt

Optional, but HIGHLY recommended for toppings:
chopped toasted almonds
raisins
crumbled feta cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, thoroughly mix together ingredients.

Spread vegetables onto parchment-lined baking 11x17-inch baking tray. Bake for 20 minutes, remove from oven and stir well, then bake for another 20 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.

Serve warm over couscous, topped with suggested toppings.

Yay for Functioning iPhoto...and a trip down Pitchfork Lane...

For miz-onths my iPhoto has been completely f'ed, making it a super-frustrating and lengthy process to do anything with photos. Yes, I could have brought my computer in to the shop, or bought a new version of iPhoto, to possibly get the problem solved, but that seemed so complicated... There was a much easier solution in the forecast for us, and that was a new computer. :) Now that it is here, I couldn't be more happy - I love laptops, but there is something really nice about sitting down to a desktop - especially one that organizes all of your photos into events (sort of - I think there is a husband that did most of the legwork there)!

As I perused my newly organized photo library this evening, I came across photos from Pitchfork '07, which was a delightful quartet of days filled with great food, beer, music, more food, great friends, more beer, more food, and lots of fun. I immediately looked through the pictures hoping for ones of eating the out-of-this world jerk seiten wrap, or the grilled corn on the cob, or the soy ice cream cones, or the watermelon lemonade, or the tofu pad thai, or the pineapple salsa...but my search came up dry. It turns out that we scarfed down those bad boys all too fast. There is something so great about sitting in the hot hot sun on a nasty, nubby woolen blanket named Baby James, taking runs to the food area every hour or so just because your body needs fuel to ward off the elements. R.I.P. Baby James, R.I.P.The food pics I do have are from our great trip to Orange for brunch, so I will share those here.

First up is my pan-seared steel-cut oatmeal, cooked in apple cider and spices and served up with fruit compote (sooo good! my personal favorite):Next is C's crazy-ass Veggie Sandwich on toasted brioche with jalapeno mayo and spicy garlic yogurt (really good, but damn...that is a lot of veggies in the morning):The flashiest selection was E's pancake flight, with a summertime theme: smore's, watermelon-cucumber(?), one about a pool with basil and blue curacao, and a pork BBQ stack (which was supposedly the best):
Last but not least were A's French Toast Kebobs (really tasty, but poor A wasn't too crazy about the coconut-infusion going on) shown with the cucumber water, orange peel-infused coffee, and our very own freshly squeezed juice selections (I tried a tame and delicious watermelon-cantelope juice):I think we all really enjoyed our experience at Orange - it was fun and tasty, and I would definitely go back. But, if I had to pick, the food at Pitchfork was surprisingly better and less expensive (huge water bottles for $1!). It would be so nice to make a trip back to the midwest next summer for the festival again, just to sink my teeth into one of those jerk seiten wraps one more time.

Summer Faves

It is so very clear now that the summer days are coming to an end. I of course mean the official season of summer, since the actual feeling of summer is long gone. During the transitional period, I was having panic attacks about it - stressed about balancing school and multiple works and putting my house on the market, and upset about my lack of a summer vacay. But now that I am almost completely crossed over into the new school-year lifestyle, I know everything will be fine. I am actually really looking forward to the fall season...the leaves, the warm food, and the non-unbearable weather. We are already experiencing chilly mornings and a lil' bit of fall color :)

During the summer, I was lucky to reap the benefits of friends with gardens as well as the ever-bountiful WonderLab garden. We've had some really delicious eggplant, tomato, and squash, and I found some new favorite recipes that worked well with the season. Also, I realized I want to try to plant a vegetable garden at my next house. It's a hell of a lot of work, I know, but wouldn't it be so nice?
My #1 summer fave is this amazing broiled eggplant, onion, and hummus sandwich that I made after trying a super-bland eggplant and hummus sandwich at Bloomingfood's a while back. The BFood's sandwich was JUST eggplant and hummus on bread. blah. So, I decided it would be best to toast the bread, spread both sides with a layer of hummus, pile up thinly-sliced eggplant and red onion (both broiled with olive oil, salt & pepper) on one half, mixed greens on the other half, and top it off with black pepper and a touch of salt. Oh my goodness...this thing is da bomb. So it wins the gold prize for summer food love. The picture above was taken on a night when I packed a couple of these up with some Miller Lite tallboys and popcorn to take to the Starlite Drive-In. It was fun. Another summer fave is this summer corn salad that is delicious either warm or cold. This is an adaptation of a recipe from The Red Cat Cookbook, which I received as a gift last Christmas. I am especially fond of the added soybeans, which make it a delicious full meal, all on its own.

Summer Corn Salad

6 small Yukon Gold potatoes, diced

1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut crosswise into bite-size pieces

fresh kernels removed from from 6 ears of corn (don't use frozen)
5-6 roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 can soybeans, drained and rinsed
juice and zest from one lemon
approximately 1/4 c. olive oil
1 T. chopped thyme
1 T. chopped fresh basil
1 clamshell package of arugula

Boil potatoes in salted water for about 5 minutes, or until tender when pierced, drain (it is best to fish them out or use a pasta pot so you won't lose the hot water), and add to a very large mixing bowl. Return the water to a boil and add the asparagus, cooking for about 2 minutes or until bright green, but crisp. Remove asparagus from water and add to the large bowl.

Meanwhile, heat 2 T. olive oil in a wide, deep saute-pan over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add the corn and toast until beginning to brown, about 2-3 minutes. Add the tomatoes until heated through and beginning to break apart. Add soybeans to the pan and stir together until heated through.

Add corn mixture to the large mixing bowl and top with lemon juice, a sprinkle of lemon zest, and a hefty drizzle of olive oil. Season generously with salt and pepper, add thyme and basil, and mix to combine. (Note: if you are not eating all of the salad right away, reserve the basil to top the individual portions. It will turn brown if left overnight.) Serve salad on top of a bed of arugula when warm or refrigerate and serve cool.

Polenta & Phicken with Blackberry-Nectarine Salsa

I have shaved away all of my cooking magazine subscriptions except for one - Eating Well - which I love. It was a gift from my sister-in-law, and I am so glad that she introduced me to it. I notice that sometimes when I am thumbing through a cooking magazine, I gloss over the meat dishes without thinking about it, and that really eliminates so many tasty options. I have to remind myself sometimes to keep an open mind . . . it usually only takes an easy substitution or two to make things work.

This recipe jumped out on the page at me, and Chris, actually. We had both seen the photograph and had this discussion about how it made us both kinda want to eat it with chicken, which rarely happens. But of course, that was an option I didn't want to consider - I had to make this work, and there was a fantastically easy solution that I had almost forgotten about completely. My favorite veggie brand on the plant, Quorn, makes frozen naked cutlets that you can sub into almost any chicken dish. Unlike the Morningstar Farms pre-seasoned strips (yuck), these actually hold together, have a great firm texture, and are not already covered in weird dehydrated flavorings that don't match with the dish you are making.

The original Eating Well recipe can be found here, but I will let you know about my substitutions.
1. As I don't own a grill, I used my faithful broiler for this one (I know, not as fun - but it works).
2. Obviously, I replaced the chicken with Quorn Naked Cutlets (straight from the freezer).
3. I doubled the amount of spice rub mixture - it was tasty, so why not?!
4. As you can see from my photograph (which I am embarrassed to post alongside a link to the pretty pretty EW picture), the nectarines overcooked to a pulp - and quickly. Based on my experience using the broiler for this one, I would place the Quorn, polenta, and nectarines on one pan and place in the broiler at the same time - then remove the nectarines first - after 3 or 4 minutes, not 6 to 8 like the recipe suggests. Then, keep the polenta in the oven until the Quorn is done, so it gets a nice golden crust.

Let me just end this by saying that I was kind of amazed at how easy this was to throw together, in that you only need to use one pan for cooking, and you can make the salsa in the time it takes the Quorn and polenta to finish cooking...so you are really looking at only 15 or 20 minutes. Beyond that, the flavors and fresh and full and hearty (yum!), while the dish is still really light and good for you. You will probably want to bust into the leftovers, so I suggest eating this with a small salad so that you don't ruin your chances of having an equally scrumptious lunch the next day.