Best Day Ever + Bok Choy Salad

Today was basically a perfect day.  I just started a 4-day weekend.  I woke up early with the itch to start gardening before breakfast.  Why not?  I can always take a nap later!  (And I did).

I spent about 6 hours in the yard: digging up weeds, planting new plants, spreading straw mulch and transplanting some stubborn columbine and ferns that keep sprouting up in our stone walkway.  I called and got estimates (all in one day!) from 2 tree services to remove the scrubby mugo pine that is dying in our front yard and a maple being destroyed by chestnut borer.  I took breaks to watch Jeopardy, take a nap and lounge on the deck.

Lunch was a crunchy, fresh bok choy-peanut salad and dinner was scrambled tofu on toast.   Even though it's technically work, I enjoyed reading a couple chapters of Diet for a Hot Planet by Anna Lappe while I ate.   What a fantastic day!  Sure, I did a lot of hard work.  But it was all relaxing and fun. I even got my new issue of Bon Appetit in the mail! The best part?  I have 3 more days like this coming right up.

Here's the recipe for this really easy bok choy salad.  We made this on Tuesday night and the kids loved it! I made it again today with a bit of leftover bok choy.

Bok Choy Peanut Salad
You could do a lot to fancy this dish up or give it more color.  But I love how easy it can be!  This makes enough for 4-6 people.

1 package thin rice noodles (I like the maifun brown rice variety by Annie Chun)
1/2 cup peanut butter
3-4 Tbsp. tamari or Bragg's aminos
1 cup hot water (reserved from cooking noodles)
1 head bok choy, thinly sliced
(if this is a giant head, use about 1/2)
1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
1 carrot, grated
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

Cook rice noodles according to package instructions.  Usually this involves simply soaking the noodles in boiling hot water for about 2 minutes.  Reserve 1 cup of the hot water.  Rinse noodles in cold water.

In a pint jar, combine peanut butter, tamari and 1/2 cup of the hot water.  I like to use an itty bitty wire whisk for this task.  At first it'll look like it won't dissolve, but the hot water will melt the peanut butter and this will become a thin, salty, creamy sauce.  Add more hot water if needed. Don't worry if it seems too salty, you're mixing this with a lot of noodles and bok choy.

Combine cooled noodles, sauce, bok choy, onions, carrot and cilantro in a large salad bowl.  Use tongs to toss until everything is coated in the peanut sauce.  If you want to serve this later in the week, just refrigerate the salad and dressing separately and mix it up just before serving.

A Spring Roast

It might be spring somewhere, but it's still pretty chilly in Minnesota.  I think still being able to turn on the oven is the only advantage of the cool weather.  I indulged my gluten-loving self this past week by heating up the house with a seitan roast.  I try not to tempt Mike with too many glutinous foods in the house, but I was craving this! 

A "before" photo

I didn't use a recipe for this one, but there was lots of poultry seasoning, Bragg's aminos and nutritional yeast in here- I remember that much.  And, of course, the obligatory roasting veggies along with the seitan.  The onion melted into the most divine texture!

Aside from eating the seitan and veggies straight-up, cold out of the fridge, I've used it in some stir fries.  All it takes is a crazy hot cast iron skillet, a little oil and tons of vegetables to make a successful stir fry!

I was going to serve this one over quinoa or rice, but opted to just enjoy the veggies and seitan on their own.  This dish included broccoli, carrots, mushrooms, green onions, tons of ginger and seitan.  I finished the stir fry with a little sauce of lime juice and Bragg's aminos mixed with a bit of cornstarch so it thickened up to coat the veggies as soon as I added it.  I think I ate about 3 cups of vegetables in one sitting!

Spring/Summer Rolls

Spring rolls are one of my favorite summer meals.  Maybe that makes them summer rolls?

While it pained me to turn on the oven to bake some tofu, the rest of the spring roll preparation was simple and perfect for a humid evening.  Because of the crazy quantity of garden cucumbers in my fridge, each roll included a couple of generous hunks of cucumber along with shredded local carrots, local lettuce, mint and basil from the garden and thin rice noodles.  That's it!  So simple, but so good.  This is one of the kids' favorite meals.

Dipping sauce is important for spring rolls and I usually do some sort of rice vinegar/ tamari concoction.  But tonight I mixed up peanut butter, Bragg's aminos, umeboshi plum vinegar, lemon juice and some hot water to make a smooth peanut sauce.  I was a big fan- It's going to be my salad dressing for the leftover rice noodles and veggies!

For the first time ever, we had leftover spring rolls.  This has literally never happened.  I made enough for us each to have 4.  But when I make enough for us to each have 3, it's never enough.  Oh, well!  More for my lunchbox!

Thai-Inspired Popcorn

I have a popcorn hangover today.  Last night I went to a popcorn party, which is exactly what it sounds like: A party where there's lots of popcorn.  This idea deserves to be stolen!

There was air popped and stove popped corn.  Popcorn in paper bags, in bowls, in soup pots.  Popcorn with butter, popcorn with margarine, popcorn with coconut oil, popcorn with sesame oil, popcorn with lemongrass-infused olive oil.  Popcorn balls and candied popcorn shaped like cupcakes.  And there was plenty of nutritional yeast, garlic, cayenne, and every other popcorn topping you can think of!  I'm feeling a bit dehydrated today.

Apologies for the dark, little picture.  

My contribution was a Thai-inspired popcorn.  Here's how you can make it...Approximately.  I didn't measure, so I won't pretend like I did.  I'll give you some proportions, though.

Thai-Inspired Popcorn
Popped corn (Try popping in coconut oil!)
Olive oil (I had some lemongrass-infused olive oil, which was very nice.  You can infuse some oil and make this popcorn much later when it's done or just do it with regular olive oil now).
Lime juice
Garlic-chile sauce (Rooster sauce would work)
Sea salt
Dried powdered ginger
Dried galangal (optional)

 Put your popped corn in a big bowl with room to toss it around.  In a little cup, whisk together equal parts of olive oil and lime juice.  Add in a generous splash of chile sauce, depending on your tastes.  I only had about 1/3 of a cup of this total mixture for about 1.5 gallons of popped corn.  Don't overdo it!  Whisk again and drizzle over popcorn, tossing frequently to evenly distribute.  With a mortar and pestle, grind together equal parts of ginger and sea salt.  Add about 1/2 as much galangal and grind again.  You want the salt to be very fine so that it will stick to the corn well.  Sprinkle over the popcorn and toss until distributed evenly.  Enjoy!

Veggies!

We've been eating some serious vegetables around here lately.  Maybe it's penance for baking a double batch of brownies and cowboy cookies in the past 2 weeks, but it sure is delicious.  

The local carrots are still rockin' my world and my favorite way to eat them is with ranch dressing.

Last night's dinner was veggie central.  I prepped shredded carrots, thin slices of cucumber, minced cilantro, minced mint, avocado slices and chopped green onions this weekend so dinner took only as long as rolling the spring rolls.  I also included some baked tofu that marinated in OJ and ginger overnight and thin rice noodles doused in the leftover marinade.

I made a whole big pile of them!

We ate every last one of these while watching curling.  I used a dipping sauce made of lime juice, Bragg's aminos, lemongrass-infused oil, and ginger.

Yum!  Next veggie fest will be the cauliflower and broccoli curry that's going in the crockpot in the morning.

Burgers and Broccoli

When I get a craving, I just go with it.  This week I was craving a big burger like nothing else.  Actually...I should say that I was craving pickles, ketchup and raw onion.  In my opinion, it's usually the condiments that make or break a burger.  

So I picked up some Rudi's Organic burger buns and some Amy's "All American" burgers after work in preparation for my burger.  Anyone else love using a toaster oven to make a cheeseburger?  I was cooking for one, so I just popped a patty with cheeze into the little broiler and it was perfect!  I had some home-canned pickles on the side and ketchup from the recipe in How it All Vegan (yum!).  Veganaise brought it all together into the most satisfying burger!

After repeating the exact same burger for lunch the next day, I realized that in 24 hours the only vegetables I'd had were the little lettuce leaves, raw onion and pickles on the burgers.  And ketchup, if you count that sort of thing.  Uh oh.  Time for some veggies!!!

So for dinner the next night, I decided to go broccoli crazy and have a stir-fry without the rice.

I cooked up TWO heads of broccoli, a portabello mushroom, a handful of cremini mushrooms (really just baby portabellos, anyways) and green onions.  The sauce included Golden Nugget Tangerine/Mandarin juice and zest, tamari, a crushed Thai chile, tons of ginger and garlic and cornstarch to thicken it all up.  I ate nearly the entire thing!  I felt much better about my vegetable consumption after this meal!

Ten Years

Well, I officially have been in Minnesota for 10 years. Technically, it's about 10 years and a month, but who's counting?

I just got home from my 10 year high school reunion in Garland, TX.

My best friends from high school- April, Brandon, (me), Jennifer

It was a fast-paced trip because I tried to pack seeing my mom, dad and brother at their respective houses, grandparents, and friends. I did make sure to visit my favorite restaurants, though. I ate chips, salsa and guacamole at least once per day for each of the 5 days.

I always eat out way too much on these trips and feel like I need a detox when I get home. My stepmom did make a super delicious meal of brown rice, white beans cooked with sage, and rosemary roasted vegetables that made up for some of the lost nutrition in the chip-laden meals, though!

The best meal of the trip by far was the homemade Thai that my friends Ashlie and John made.

Eggless Egg Rolls! Super crisp and filled with mushrooms and cabbage!

Probably the best Pad Thai I've ever had. Includes fried tofu, homegrown mung bean sprouts, and hand-pureed tamarind paste!

Potato and Sweet Potato Massaman Curry. We're talking homemade curry paste here, folks.

Fish balls. A little scary because they're so fishy, but pretty amazing! They need a better name, though!

The recipes are from Real Vegetarian Thai by Nanci McDermott. My next stop is to the library to see if they have it!

Pho!

The lemongrass broth I made last night was so freaking good that I decided to make pho with it.  Now I've never had authentic Vietnamese pho, but I'm seen enough pho porn and read enough recipes to give it a whirl.

I used thin rice noodles because that's what I had on hand.  Toppings included shredded basil, cilantro, lime wedges, green onions, mung bean sprouts, and chiles.  No additional chiles were needed, though!  I put about 5 tabasco chiles into the broth, so it had some serious kick!

Even Mike, notorious soup hater that he is, ate two bowls of this stuff.  Good thing I like it since I have about a gallon of broth!

Lemongrass Madness!

Today was the long-put-off day of harvesting herbs for drying and freezing.  I hate admitting that winter is coming.

So I cut down the sage, parsley, curry, lavender, lemon verbena, and lemongrass.  

Most of these herbs will dry nicely hanging from my living room ceiling...

But the lemongrass is special.  Lemongrass is one of my top 5 aromatics of all time.  I always keep some dried lemongrass on hand, but growing it in my garden this year has been really rewarding.  The tart smell fills the air the second you cut the stalk.  I'm trying to figure out the best way to preserve this pungent flavor and all those great oils.  My first thought was freezing.

So I chopped up the most tender part of the stalks in the food processor and then packed it into ice cube trays.  I poured water over the lemony bits and froze them.  I'm hoping this will make a great addition to soups, sauces, and such.

But I still had LOTS of lemongrass left, so I decided to experiment.  Next came lemongrass-scented olive oil (center).  I think after a few days of steeping I'll strain the oil and keep it in the fridge to use in super awesome salad dressing or as a finishing oil.

Then I figured I'd better try vinegar, too (right).  So I added more lemongrass puree to 1/2 cider vinegar and 1/2 rice vinegar.  I'll strain this off eventually, too.  

Last I made 2 big batches of spicy lemongrass broth in the pressure cooker.  I used onions, cilantro, galangal, lemongrass, garlic, chiles, and salt.  Mike's on his way home with the lime juice to add to the broth.  This stuff is amazing!

This might satiate my lemongrass cravings for a little while.

Fried Rice

Somehow this stirfry and rice ended up taking a whole hour to cook.  I cooked some white basmati rice and added fresh grated ginger to the water.  Then I mixed up my usual tofu scramble but fried up the tofu in sesame oil along with the rice for something like fried rice.  

We had a ton of garden veggies and veggies from the Co-op, so I mixed up purple green beans, carrots, celery, broccoli, onions, and garlic and coated them with a orange-ginger glaze.  

All in all, a pretty tasty dinner.  No one thought the rice tasted like "real" fried rice, though.  Darn.

A Great Day for a Massage

I wish I had gotten a massage today, but instead I gave one.  To my kale.

Kale is probably my favorite green veggie.  The texture is so versatile- It can stand up to long cooking in a soup or can be eaten raw.  [Not to brag, but...] The kale we grow in the garden is the sweetest I've ever tasted.  So we grow a lot.  Enough to fill out chest freezer with kale to use from November through March.  

There are plenty of different kinds of kale, but these are the ones I see most often: Green curly, Red Russian, and Lacinato or dinosaur kale.  We like to grow all of these in our garden, but the lacinato and curly varieties are my favorite.

Kale doesn't need much added to it to be delicious.  Usually I just add it to a hot pan with a little olive oil and garlic, then sprinkle a bit of tamari over top.  Sometimes I add other ingredients, but this is the simplest recipe I know for amazing greens.  

When it comes to eating kale raw, it's nice to have young tender kale.  I like to chop it very finely and drizzle a little ranch or goddess dressing over it.  Yum!  

If your kale is a bit older, you can just let the raw, chopped kale marinate with the dressing for a few minutes or a few hours to help tenderize it.  Sandor Elix Katz, author of Wild Fermentation and The Revolution Will Not Be Microwaved, recommends "massaging" chopped kale to help break it down.  While the idea of massaging kale might not be an appealing one, it really does tenderize it.  It turns a bright green and gets a similar texture to very lightly cooked kale as the cells are broken down.  

Oh, and kale is super good for you, too.  It has plenty of iron, calcium, fiber, vitamin K, beta carotene, and all that good stuff.  You don't need me to tell you that, though.  Start eating kale and you'll feel how healthy it is for you.  Your body knows.

Kale is in season right now and only gets sweeter as the weather turns cooler.  It will grow right into the frosty season, so keep eating it all winter long!

Sesame Almond Kale Salad

6 leaves of kale (about 1 bunch)

1/4 cup sliced almonds

1-2 Tbsp. grated ginger

3 Tbsp. toasted sesame oil

3 Tbsp. tamari

3 Tbsp. rice vinegar

Remove the thick center stems from the kale and chop into fairly small pieces.  Using your (clean) hands, massage and rub the kale together.  There's no need to be gentle- give it a good deep rub.  When kale is bright green and wilted slightly, set the kale aside in your salad bowl.  

In a small dry skillet, heat the sliced almonds over medium heat.  You want them to slightly toast, but NOT burn.  When lightly toasted, add the grated ginger, sesame oil, tamari, and vinegar.  Stir to combine and heat through.  

Pour hot dressing over the kale and toss to coat.  You can let this salad sit at room temperature to further tenderize the kale, but it'd delicious while the dressing is still warm!

If you like some heat, add red pepper flakes to the salad for additional flavor.

Oh my, Oh mi. I love Banh Mi!

I had my first Banh Mi sandwich only a few weeks ago.  How I've lived my whole life without this amazing Vietnamese sandwich topped with pickled daikon, carrot, cilantro, jalapeno, & mayo is beyond me.

Traditional Banh Mi sandwiches are filled with anything from pork to liver pate to tofu.  And with all those amazing toppings, I'm not too picky about the protein...as long as it's vegan.

My first Banh Mi was at The Hard Times.  It was filled greasy fried seitan- in true Hard Times style.  The cilantro-jalapeno mayo was so good I wished for more to dip my tortilla chips in!

The first Banh Mi I ate today was at work.  Our juice bar has monthly specials on panini sandwiches and this month's vegetarian sandwich is a vegan Banh Mi!  The tofu is slathered in peanut sauce and topped with shredded carrot and cilantro.  The whole sandwich is smashed in the panini grill until the bread is hot and crusty.  I was super impressed at how spicy the sandwich was- we usually err on the side of mild.  My only complaint about the sandwich is that it was missing the mayo/Veganaise that I so enjoy.

So after a crazy busy day at work filled with point of sale system failures, inventory report difficulties, and new-month-updates that had to get done...I needed ANOTHER Banh Mi.  This time, though, I wanted to make one myself.  

I couldn't decide if I wanted to use seitan or portobello mushrooms in my sandwich, so I used both!  

First step: Marinate the "meat" of the sandwich

2 portobello mushrooms, sliced 1/4 inch thick

OR 1 lb. seitan, sliced 1/4 inch thick

2 Tbsp. tamari

2 Tbsp. rice vinegar

1 jalapeno, minced

Second Step: Prepare the veggies

1 carrot, julienned

1 daikon radish (carrot-sized), julienned

1/4 cup very thinly sliced cabbage

1 cup cilantro, roughly chopped

1 jalapeno, minced

2-3 green onions, sliced

4-5 mint leaves, minced

3-4 Tbsp. rice vinegar 

Third Step: Prepare the mayo

1/4 cup Veganaise

1/2 jalapeno, minced

2 Tbsp. cilantro, minced

Fourth Step: Cook 

Heat about 2-3 Tbsp canola oil in a skillet.  Strain off the marinade and add the seitan or portabellos to the pan and fry until browned.  

Fifth Step: Assemble

Slice a 1/2 of a baguette lengthwise

Toast baguette

Slather the inside of the baguette with mayo

Top with seitan or mushrooms

Top with veggies

Smash the sandwich together

Wrap in waxed paper so it doesn't spill all over you while you eat

Seitan Banh Mi

Portabello Banh Mi

While both the seitan and mushroom versions were great, I thought the portabellos held the marinade flavor better.  Next time I'll increase the spice a bit and rig up a panini press with some bricks.  

Need a gluten-free option?  

Just skip the bread and make a Portabello Banh Mi Salad!  

Thinly slice 1 cup of cabbage along with the veggies described above.  Serve veggies and fried portabellos over the cabbage.  Thin the Cilantro-Jalapeno Mayo with a bit of wheat-free tamari marinade left over from the portabellos.  This is your dressing.  

While the sandwich version is really awesome, this is a super way to get a lot of antioxidant rich raw cabbage in your diet.  So even if you're not gluten-free, you might want to give it a go!

As Local as Thai Gets in MN

I've been on a mission the last few days to get some really flavorful, awesome Thai food.  My seemingly simple goal was thwarted on Friday when Mango, the delicious-smelling Thai place on Selby Ave. didn't have any dishes without fish sauce (except a curry and that didn't fit the craving).  I suppose it's for the best, as I would eat there every day for lunch if it was really good.

Then last night I took myself out to dinner at Supatra, a great Thai place on W. 7th street.  I was thrilled when they said the hot & sour soup was vegan, but disappointed when I was served a bowl of plain vegetable broth with mixed vegetables in it.  Not hot.  Not sour.  I had this item removed from my tab.

Luckily, the Spicy Noodles with Thai Basil (without the egg) were delicious, rich, and plenty filling- although not spicy.  I left only partially satisfied.  

So tonight I'm trying to quench the craving myself.  I have lemongrass, jalapenos, and tomato from my garden, plus tons of onion, broccoli, and yams from local farms.  Surely I can pull this off... You can't expect anyone else to please you if you can't please yourself, right?!

Thai Tofu & Yams

First, get the tofu and sauce ready:

2-3 stalks of lemongrass, minced

1 jalapeno or other hot pepper, minced

1 large red onion, thickly sliced

4 Tbsp. lime juice

4 kaffir lime leaves

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. salt

1 large tomato, peeled and seeded, diced

1 12 oz. pack of extra firm tofu, drained and cubed

Combine all ingredients in a sealable container and mix thoroughly.  Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.  It'll look like this:

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 F and prepare the yams:

2 large yams, cubed

1-2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 Tbsp. lime juice

2 Tbsp. maple syrup

1 tsp. ancho chile powder (or other chile powder for more spice)

1 tsp. dried lemongrass

1 tsp. kosher salt

Half of the onions picked out of the marinade

Toss all ingredients in a glass baking dish.  Bake for 30-40 minutes or until yams are tender and lightly browned.

Pick out the tofu cubes from the marinade and place them on a greased or parchment lined baking sheet.  It's okay it bits of tomato, garlic, peppers, etc. stick to the tofu.  Bake for 20 minutes, then stir and bake for 10-20 more minutes, or until browned.

While this is baking, steam up some broccoli or something else that's green and good for you.

Then prepare the sauce:

Remaining marinade

2 Tbsp. jam (I used peach)

1 Tbsp. cornstarch, mixed with 3 Tbsp. cold water

salt to taste

crushed red chilies to taste

Put the remaining marinade in a small saucepan and add the jam.  Bring the sauce to a boil and simmer until remaining onions are tender.  Then add the cornstarch and water mixture and stir until the sauce has thickened.  Carefully taste the sauce and adjust salt and spiciness to taste.

Serve the yams, broccoli, and tofu mixed together or separately, but be sure to drizzle the sauce over everything.  Garnish with minced fresh Thai basil.

While this is clearly not a traditional Thai recipe, it has the lemongrass, chilies, and lime that I crave from Thai food.  I'll give it an 8 out of 10 on satisfying my Thai craving.  

By the way, if Thai style yams freak you out, just make the tofu and sauce.  It's good all on its own or over rice.

Where the heck do I put all these jars?

I have a serious problem.  My pantry is full, but I can't stop canning! 

 I've started just leaving my canned goods on the kitchen table, thinking I'll find a place to put them soon enough.  But they're still here.

Last night I canned 2 quarts of peach pie filling, 4 half-pints of peach chutney, and 10.5 pints of peach jam.  But I already had 10 half-pints of cherries and 4 pints of spiced apples sitting on the table.  Oh, and three 16 oz bottles of tabasco vinegar.  So it's time to find a place for this stuff.  

I could keep it in the basement and just pull some shelves out of a dumpster somewhere...but things in the basement tend to get forgotten.  Like wet laundry. And the exercise machine.  

I'm hoping to somehow transform the useless space in the stairway to the basement into shelving, but really want my partner to help since he knows how to operate the saws and such.

On another subject- 

I found some pictures from meals in the last week or so that I meant to post and forgot about.

This was a rockin' good stirfry made with all local veggies!  What a difference a few months makes in the local harvest- I had garden broccoli, farmer's market carrots, WI onions, MN garlic, and a glaze made with some (not local) orange juice, sesame oil, tamari, and cornstarch.  On top is some tofu marinated in the glaze ingredients and baked at about 450 for 20 minutes.  Super crispy and amazing!

This looks really boring, but it was bursting with flavor.  I coated some little local potatoes with olive oil and covered them in smoked paprika, garlic, cayenne pepper, cumin, and salt.  Then I roasted them until they were tender. They turned out nice and spicy, so it helped to have some cool coleslaw nearby!
This was from Friday.  Doesn't it just look like a perfect day off of work?

I finished reading "Pickled, Potted & Canned: How the art and science of food preserving changed the world" by Sue Shepard.  If you are at all interested in food preserving, you should read this book.  It is fascinating!

The soup has a spice/aromatic base of crushed coriander (from the garden), cumin seed, fennel seed, salt, jalapeno, onion, and garlic.  I lightly browned the onions and spices in a bit of olive oil and then added about 2 cups of chopped butternut squash, 1 huge peeled, seeded, and chopped heirloom tomato, and enough water to cover.  I let this simmer until the squash was tender (15 min?) and then pureed it.  Even Mike liked it and he hates squash.

Today I need to preserve the pile of tomatillos from the garden, the grocery bag full of apples "rescued" from an abandoned house, and bake some bread.  But I have a co-op local foods picnic to prepare for (including making coleslaw)...so we'll see how far I get (and where the heck I put it all!)

Local Recipe Redux

Today I was craving Sweet and Sour Tofu. But we're not growing any citrus, ginger root, rice or sugar in these parts so I almost dismissed my craving. But I'm not one to give up easily- especially when it comes to a craving.



Here's how my brain was working:
Sour = rhubarb and sorrel
Sweet = maple syrup
Aromatic = fresh basil and green onion
Salty = miso
Rice = wild rice

This is my Minnesota in early Summer version of local Sweet and Sour Tofu with Rice. Here's the recipe with my notations for where it was grown!

2 cups wild rice (MN)
4 cups water
5 stalks rhubarb, finely chopped (about 2 cups) (Backyard)
1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp. maple syrup (MN)
1/4 cup water
2 Tbsp. miso (MN grown soy, homemade)
1/4 cup olive oil (CA & Argentina)
1 package firm tofu, cubed (IA soybeans, but shipped all around)
1 bunch beet greens, roughly chopped (WI or MN)
1 handful sorrel, roughly chopped (WI or MN)
1/4 cup basil, minced (MN)
4-5 green onions, minced (? ran out of local ramps & green garlic)

Preheat the oven to 425F. Combine wild rice with 4 cups water in a medium saucepan and heat until boiling over medium high heat. Then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until rice is tender (about 45 minutes).

Meanwhile, combine 1 Tbsp. miso, 1 Tbsp. maple syrup, and 1/4 cup olive oil in a bowl. Whisk until combined. Add the cubed tofu and toss to coat. Transfer tofu to a baking sheet, reserving the oily marinade. Bake for 15 minutes, then stir a bit and bake another 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the rhubarb, 1/4 cup maple syrup, 1/4 cup water, reserved marinade and 1 Tbsp. miso in a small saucepan over medium heat. Simmer for about 20 minutes or until the rhubarb is the consistency of applesauce. Smash it around a bit to help it become a sauce. Then add the chopped beet greens and sorrel, put a lid on, and cook until greens are just wilted. Last, add the baked/fried tofu and stir to coat the tofu in the sweet and sour sauce/greens.

When everything is done, serve a generous scoop of the wild rice with the tofu/greens/sauce on top. Then garnish with green onions and fresh basil. We thought a splash of tamari was a great addition at the table.

Quick Dinner

Here's a quick posting of our dinner-It received rave reviews from the kids and Mike (and me). But best of all, it was really quick and easy to make and contained tons of veggies.First I started some 100% buckwheat soba noodles cooking (I like the Eden Organic brand). I tossed some cubed tofu with tamarind puree, sesame oil, lime juice, ginger syrup (made by The Ginger People- It's just cane sugar and ginger), and salt. I set the oven to about 450, but didn't preheat it- I just baked the tofu for 20 minutes or so- eventually it made it up to 450.

When the pasta had about 2 minutes left to cook, I threw in about 2 bunches of asparagus (we got some free from the co-op that was wilty on the ends). After 2 minutes, I rinsed the pasta and asparagus in cold water to stop the cooking. Then I heated up our biggest pan and threw in 1/2 a nappa cabbage sliced thinly, 2 grated carrots, the asparagus, the pasta, the tofu, tamari, peanut butter, lime juice, tamarind puree, and ginger syrup. I really just needed to melt the peanut butter and heat the pasta back up after rinsing...so you could just skip this step and make it a cold dish with raw cabbage and carrot.

Yum! I just wish there had been leftovers.

updated: Mike just informed me that there WERE leftovers (I had to rush off to work after dinner). My wish has been granted!!!

Mmmmm...Lunch

Ever since I was a little girl I remember starting the day by thinking of at least one thing to look forward to that day. If we weren't getting back our math tests that day or if it wasn't jump rope day in gym, I'd usually end up looking forward to my lunch. Of course, lunch was usually chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes & gravy, and chocolate milk in those days...


Tomorrow I will be looking forward to a repeat of today's lunch: A nappa cabbage, broccoli, and carrot salad (and lots of almonds, too) with a spicy sesame-flax dressing. For dessert: a gluten free version of the Mexican Hot Chocolate cupcakes from VCTOtW. The salad is super easy to pull together the night before or in the morning before work. I just thinly slice the cabbage and chop up the carrots and broccoli. In a separate container I splash in flax oil, hot sesame oil, tamari, and rice vinegar for an easy dressing.

The cupcakes are a big hit around here- I don't think the boys even noticed the cayenne pepper in them (and I tend to be heavy handed with the spice in Mexican Chocolate). To make them gluten-free I just subbed rice flour for the wheat flour, corn flour for the almond meal (I didn't have any), and added 1 tsp. of xanthan gum. They turned out great! Oh, yeah. I also added a sprinkle of chocolate chips on top because it sounded awesome- and was.

I love Spring!

Today I worked on 3 recipes for a Spring cooking class that's coming up.


Lemon-Butter Pasta with Fiddlehead Ferns

1/4 lb. Fiddlehead ferns, cleaned and trimmed
6 ramps, chopped (green leaves and all)
12 oz. package pasta
2 Tbsp. Earth Balance
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp agave nectar
1/4 cup pinenuts

Start a pot of water boiling- this will be your water for blanching the fiddleheads and also cooking the pasta. When boiling, drop in your prepped fiddleheads and cook for 2 minutes. Then fish out your ferns and run cold water over them to stop the cooking. Return water to a boil and cook your pasta according to package directions. When pasta is done and drained, heat Earth Balance in a large skillet. Add the ramps and cook for about 2 minutes. Then add lemon juice, salt, agave nectar, and ferns. Taste sauce and adjust to your liking- it should taste stronger than you'd want. Add the pasta and toss to coat, removing pan from heat. In a separate dry skillet, toast the pinenuts until lightly brown. Sprinkle over the pasta and serve! This one is also good cold.

Creamy Sun-dried Tomato and Ramp Spread

4 sun-dried tomatoes (not packed in oil)
1/2 cup very hot or boiling water
5 ramps
1/2 cup vegan cream cheese
1/4 cup veganaise

Put the tomatoes in a bowl and cover with the hot water. Soak for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, chop the white portion of the ramps and reserve the leaves. Combine white parts of ramps, tomatoes (reserve the soaking liquid), cream cheese, and veganaise in a small food processor and whiz around until mostly smooth. If texture is too thick, just add a bit of the tomato soaking water and process again. Transfer spread to a serving bowl. Slice about 6 of the ramp leaves very thinly and stir these into the spread. This is great on a baguette, but would also be good thinned out and used as a veggie dip. Want a stronger ramp flavor? Let this spread sit in the fridge for a few hours and you'll be impressed.




Last I made a Spring Sushi. I'm not going to type up a recipe for this one because I'm feeling tired and any old sushi rice recipe will work. These are filled with asparagus, ramps, and red pepper. Some are smeared with wasabi mayo inside, too. Next time I'll add thinly sliced radishes, too. We're all getting these packed in our lunches tomorrow!

After this cooking extravaganza, I worked in the garden for about 3 hours. I did a lot of seed planting, transplanting, and clearing out of old plants. Then I ran soaker hoses throughout the whole garden so that I'll never have to stand there with a hose to water the garden. It works beautifully! I used 3-50 ft. hoses connected together and was able to reach each garden bed and the berry patch out back. I'll post pictures later.

And what does a girl do after cooking all afternoon and gardening all evening? She spends $45 ordering Pizza Luce for the family. How is it that 2 eight-year-olds can eat an entire 16" pizza themselves? And what am I going to do when they are teenagers?

Break-Fast

I started breaking my fast today with miso soup and mango. I felt super good yesterday and today and have tons of energy...But it was time to eat some food.

The miso soup was really simple and really good, and a bit like congee. Here's what was in it:

1/2 cup cooked rice
1 inch ginger, grated
1 small carrot, finely chopped
4 cups water
2-3 Tbsp. miso (I used 1/2 red pepper miso and 1/2 homemade miso)

Simmer together everything except the miso for about 15 minutes, until the rice is falling apart. Then remove from heat and stir in the miso. You could add in anything to this and it would be great (green onion, tofu, broccoli, asparagus, etc.).

The ginger was great for stimulating my digestion and the rice made it more filling than just a broth.

Later I enjoyed a mango- We only have 4 left in our case!

I couldn't resist doing some baking today, even if I'm not eating cookies yet!
Here's Trouble with some "You got PB in my Chocolate" cookies from ED&BV.

And here's my first try at the Really Good Sandwich Bread from Gluten Free [Cooking School]. Mary Frances always has the best gluten-free recipes and this one is no different. Mike was amazed and thoroughly enjoyed his peanut butter sandwich!

Soup and Pasta

Just when I thought Spring had come, we got a cold front. And now we are expecting a foot of snow tonight. So my diet will continue with wintery warming foods a bit longer. This soup is perfect for a cold rainy/snowy day.


Black Eyed Pea-Nut Stew

1 cup dry black eyed peas
4 cups water
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. oil
1 Tbsp. grated ginger
Juice of 1 lime
2 Tbsp. tamari
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 cup hot water
1 medium yam, cubed
1 carrot, roughly chopped
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 jalapeño, seeded and minced (optional)
salt to taste

Combine peas, water, salt, and oil in a pressure cooker. Bring up to pressure and cook for 5 minutes. Allow to cool slowly until pressure is released. (You could also cook these in a regular pot). In a bowl, whisk together the ginger, lime juice, peanut butter, tamari, and hot water until smooth.

Add the peanut butter mixture, yam, and carrot (and jalapeño, if using) to the cooked black eyed peas and bring to a boil. Simmer for about 10 minutes or until yams and carrots are tender. Add salt to taste. Garnish with cilantro and serve with corn chips for dipping.

This week I received my Teese! True to their promise, this cheeze tastes like real mozzarella and melts well. I mixed up a casserole full of Cashew Ricotta, gluten free penne, broccoli and marinara sauce. Then I topped it with the Teese and baked it until it melted.
As you can see, we dug in right away!

Tonight I really wanted pasta and cheese, but I also needed to use up a free eggplant that was about to go bad. So I simmered the eggplant with olive oil, cumin seeds, salt, red pepper, coriander, and canned tomatoes. For the pasta, I used Eden Organic's kamut pasta. How can you resist pasta that gives 10 grams of protein, 15% of your iron, and 6 grams of fiber in 1/2 cup of pasta?!

And since it is distantly related to wheat, I get to eat it all myself! Sorry Mike!