Salad Nicoise

                                                                              Jenn's Salad Nicoise

I found a variety of organic fingerling potatoes at Whole Foods and couldn't resist.  As I crave salads year round, this was a satisfying meal on a chilly fall evening.  You can add any vegetables that you desire, green beans are commonly in the traditional Salad Nicoise, as is tuna.  The thyme compliments the mustard dressing and potatoes, bringing the dish together.  

Colors in your food is one of the easiest way to ensure well-rounded health. 

                               Salad Nicoise 

Salad Nicoise

Serves 2

• 3 cups salad greens
• 1/2 small red onion sliced in rings
• 1/4 kalamata olives, pitted and halved
• 6 cooked artichoke hearts, quartered (canned)
• 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1/2 avocado, cubed
• 1 pound fingerling potatoes, or 2 medium red / yukon gold potatoes
• Mustard
• Olive oil
• Dried or fresh thyme
• Salt and pepper

-Place potatoes in a medium pot and fill with cold water, turn on high heat until just boiling
-Reduce heat to medium and cook until the potatoes are just tender throughout
-Remove potatoes from heat and drain, cut potatoes in half and put in a bowl to the side
-Mix 3 Tbsp of mustard with 1 - 1 1/2 tsps of dried thyme and a pinch of salt and pepper
-Add olive oil to the mustard mixture and whisk until preferred consistency and taste, add more salt and pepper if needed
-Pour half of the mustard dressing over the potatoes and stir until coated
-Divide greens, onion slices, olives, artichoke hearts, tomatoes and avocado between two large salad bowls.
-Add potatoes evenly between the two bowls and mix.  Add dressing until the vegetables are lightly coated.

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Cooking and baking ebb and flow in my life.  I am often struck with the urge to cook on a 95 degree day and have  a salad on the coldest winter evening.  Usually my body listens to the weather, but I enjoy the surprise whims.

Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies

Baking has fallen to the back burner as of late and filled with cooking.  I used to make these cookies for my best friend almost weekly, which fell to the wayside with work and life.  I agreed to make him a  batch this weekend.  

The recipe is from Isa Chandra Moskowitz, brilliant vegan chef and baker.  I increased the molasses and chocolate chips, along with a handful of walnuts.  Walnuts are extremely high in omega-3 fatty acids.  They contain anti-inflammatory properties and are traditionally thought of as brain food due to their similar shape.

                                                                                            Vegan Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies
Heat oven to 350
Original Recipe: Vegan with a Vengeance by Isa Chandra Moskowitz
Makes 18-24 cookies

• 1/2 cup vegan non-hydrogenated margarine (or organic butter)
• 1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp sugar
• 3/4 Tbsp blackstrap molasses
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup unsweetened plain soy milk (more if needed)
• 1 1/4 cup white wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup chocolate chips
• 1/2 cups chopped walnuts

-Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.

-Cream together margarine and sugar with an electric beater in a large bowl.

-Add molasses, soy milk and vanilla extract to the large bowl and mix together.

-By hand, mix dry ingredients with wet until just combined, add more soy milk if needed.

-Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts.

-Spoon dough (approximately 2 Tbsp per cookie) on the sheet 1-2 inches apart

-Bake in batches for 8-12 minutes until golden brown.

Vietnamese Hot and Sour Soup

Before moving to Massachusetts, I lived in Idaho for nearly a decade.  I had the best Vietnamese Hot and Sour Soup at Can Tho restaurant, now closed from what I can tell.  It was a small Korean/Vietnamese restaurant run out of an old train car.  When I wanted a delicious and reparative meal, this was my favorite.  Tomato and pineapple wedges float with celery and prawns throughout the sweet, sour and spicy broth.  Topped with cilantro and bean sprouts, it is complete.     

                                                                        

                    Hot and Sour Soup

       

           












Cooking with tamarind has been a goal of mine, this soup was the perfect first meal.  It did not disappoint, I just need to tweak a few measurements before I share this recipe.  With the season for comforting soups upon us, this will be a staple.

                                                                                                Vietnamese Hot and Sour Soup

This is truly a lovely dish.  I serve it over sweet brown rice for a complete meal.

Vietnamese Hot and Sour Soup

Serves 4

• 5 cups good quality vegetable stock
• 3 Tbsp Tamarind paste
• 1/2 lb or more prawns, shelled and de-veined (or tofu cubes)
• 1 1/2 Tbsp chili paste
• 12 cherry tomatoes halved
• Bean Sprouts
• 1 cup pineapple chunks, or fresh pineapple cubed
• 1 large shallot, finely diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• 3 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce (or fish sauce)
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 1 celery stalk, sliced

-Pour 1/2 cup of boiling water over tamarind paste, let sit for 30 minutes.  Strain water and tamarind through a finely meshed sieve into a bowl.

-Saute shallot and garlic in a large pot until softened.  Add chili paste and cook for 1 minute.

-Add vegetable broth, prepared tamarind liquid, soy sauce, and celery to the shallot and garlic saute.

-Bring to a low boil.

-Add tomatoes, pineapple chunks and 1/2 of cilantro

-Cook over medium-high heat until tomatoes soften, about 5 minutes.

-Add prawns (or tofu) and cook until just done.

-Serve with bean sprouts and remaining cilantro

*I like to add some of the pineapple juice if using canned pineapple.  It adds another level of sweet.

If you like heat, to add a bit more of the chili paste at the end, or serve with a bit of of sliced habanero.

*Also, for a stronger pineapple taste, add pineapple with the prawns.

Vegetable Pot Pie

Whole wheat pie dough and filling

Amy's  frozen Vegetable Pot Pie is one of my favorite frozen treats.  I thought I would give the homemade version a try with lovely results.  You can add any vegetable that you think would be tasty, just take into account the cooking time.

                            Vegetable Pot Pie

Nutritional yeast, a member of the mushroom family, adds richness to the sauce.  It is full of B vitamins, and most importantly for vegans, B-12.  Thyme is a warming herb with antimicrobial and antioxidant properties.  It is generally used to treat colds and chest congestion, along with other respiratory problems.

                                                                         Freshly baked vegetable tofu pot pie

Vegetable Pot Pie
Serves 6-8
400 degrees F

• 2 cups cubed extra firm tofu
• Olive oil
• 2 large minced shallots
• 2 large carrots, diced
• 1 large red potato
• 10 oz diced mushrooms
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 3/4 tsp dried oregano
• 2 1/2 Tbsp flour
• 3 Tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1 cup vegetable broth (heated with 1 bay leaf)
• 1 cup unsweetened plain soy milk
• Salt and pepper
• 9 inch whole wheat pie crust or phyllo dough

Success in even cooking relies on the uniform size in the cut vegetables and tofu

-Sautee the tofu until brown and crisp, set to the side

-Add more olive oil to the pan and cook shallots and carrots until the shallots translucent 

-Toss in potato and mushrooms, cook until the mushrooms released juices, 6 minutes

-Sprinkle thyme and oregano, allow herbs to heat

-Stir in flour and nutritional yeast, cook for 2 minutes

-Pour in vegetable broth and soy milk, stir

-Add peas

-Salt and pepper to taste, stir together

-Pour in pie dish

-Cover with pie crust, slit in the center to allow steam to release

-Place on pan in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes

Roasted Carrot Ginger Soup

 Carrot Ginger Soup

Roasted Carrot Ginger Soup
Serves 4

• 7-8 large carrots, scrubbed clean, cut into 1 inch lengths
• 1 large knob of ginger, peeled and diced
• 1 large shallot chopped finely
• 1/2 white onion diced
• 1/2 cup cashews soaked for 1 hour
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 5 cups low sodium vegetable stock or bouillon
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

-Preheat oven to 400

-Toss carrots with 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil and 1/2 tsp salt in a baking dish

-Roast for 30 minutes until soft and lightly brown, turning once

-Saute shallot, onion, ginger and thyme in a little olive oil on stove top until the onion softens

-Blend cashews with 1/8-1/4 cup of water until smooth and creamy, put to the side

-Add carrots, shallot, onion, ginger and thyme with 4 cups of broth to a blender

-Puree until smooth, adding more broth if you would like a thinner soup

-Salt and pepper to taste

-Add 1/2 of cashew cream to the soup and mix

-Serve with a drizzling of cashew cream

I have always preferred carrots in soups and this is a rich and  refreshing version.  

Apple Crisp

                                 Autumn dessert

Apples are at the top of my list of autumn delights.  Our farmers' market has one stall known for their apples, you have to get there early.  I wasn't able to make it until late afternoon one day and bought a few that proved to be too hard for eating.  I considered a pie, opted for an easier first time apple crisp.

Apple Crisp with vanilla soy ice cream

Apples, a member of the rose family, are full of antioxidant and fiber-filled goodness.  Pectin is the water-soluble fiber attributed, with an apple's high antioxidant level, to increased cardiovascular health. They reduce thirst and fever and ease dry coughs and help cleanse the liver and the gallbladder.  An apple each day is the actual recommended amount, the benefits are plentiful, especially with the skin.  Try to get organic, they are on the "Dirty Dozen" list of pesticide carriers.

Apple Crisp

Oven at 350

Filling

• 4-5 organic if possible, hard  apples; peeled, cored and thinly sliced in half moons
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Topping

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 6 Tbsp organic butter or vegan margarine

-Mix apples, lemon juice, sugar and pumpkin pie spice in a bowl

-Arrange the apple slices in a circle, layering until near the top of the pie pan

-Mix oats, flour, brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice in another bowl

-Cut butter/margarine into small cubes and mix into oat mixture with your hands or a masher

-When the butter is incorporated in small pea-size bits, spread the topping evenly on the apples

-Bake covered for 25 minutes

-Remove cover and bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown

Sage buttercup squash pasta

Halved buttercup squash

This sauce exceeded my expectations.  I often forget the creaminess and warmth of winter squash.  Sage, a member of the evergreen family, cuts the richness of the sauce with a flavor resembling eucalyptus.

I can now give winter squash much credit and know that the effort is worthwhile.  It is full of carotenoids such as beta-carotene, alpha-carotene, and lutein.  It helps to regulate blood sugar in diabetics and potentially stave off Type 2 Diabetes.  It is full of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties which help ward off cancer and other debilitating illnesses.

The seeds are a delicious treat when lightly salted and roasted.

                   Tossed with sage and olive oil

Sage is beneficial to brain function, enhancing concentration and memory.  It is anti-inflammatory and particularly beneficial for those with rheumatoid arthritis and bronchial asthma.  Antimicrobial properties are useful in fighting colds and the flu, while the relaxant effect benefits cardiovascular health and nervous disorders.

Topped with mushrooms and crisp fried sage leaves   

Buttercup Squash Pasta

Serves 6-8

• 1 Buttercup squash, seeds removed, peeled & cut into 1 inch cubes
• Fresh sage
• 1 1/2 large or 3 small shallots minced
• 2 cups soy milk
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• Olive oil
• Baby portabella mushrooms (optional)
• Salt and pepper

-Preheat the oven to 375

-Prepare the buttercup squash as the oven heats

-Mix the squash in a baking dish with 2 Tbsp of olive oil, 2 Tbsp of finely chopped sage, 1 tsp salt

-Bake for 45 minutes

-Saute shallots in olive oil with 1 sage leaf cut into fine ribbons (chiffonade), until soft.  Move to food processor

-(optional) Saute mushrooms in olive oil with 1 tsp chiffonade sage leaves and salt until a rich brown.  Leave in pan to reheat quickly before serving

-Start the pasta water when the squash is finished cooking and prepare al dente

-Add squash, soy milk, and vegetable broth to the shallots in the food processor (this may need to be done in 2 batches).  Blend until smooth.  Salt and pepper to taste.

-Reheat the mushrooms, toss with pasta and squash sauce.

-Serve with fried sage leaves