Garlic Leek Soup

Cold weather in November and too many hard frosts in a row made it necessary to pull out all the remaining leeks in our small garden. As it turned out, this was way too many leeks to use up fresh so I chopped and froze some for later. I did use a large number of them fresh, along with many heads of homegrown garlic to make this warming, healthy, easy soup. It freezes very well too, and for those who will eat croutons, that dresses things up indeed! We put chopped onion greens on top - or even a drizzle of olive oil if you eat that.

5-6 medium leeks, washed, chopped

4-5 heads of garlic (@25 cloves), peeled & smashed

1 zucchini- chopped

1-2 teaspoons summer savory

1-2tsp dry thyme

1tsp black pepper (add to taste)

1-2 tsp salt (can be added to taste)

3-4 creamy potatoes chopped - Yukon gold or chieftain or other variety 

6-8 cups water 

Prepare leeks - slicing lengthwise to rinse between the layers and get all the dirt out! Cut off the tough dark leaves and save for making some other broth. Chop the more tender white and pale green parts and toss in a large pot with all the peeled garlic, zucchini, potato, herbs, seasonings and water. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for about 20-35 minutes until all is cooked thoroughly. Blenderize or use a wand blender until all is puréed smooth. That's it!

Sorrell soup

I think of sorrell as a tart lemony early spring green so I am delighted to see our little patch of sorrell rejuvenated by recent cooler nights. There could easily come a time in the next couple when the hard frost will banish that bright green for the winter. I broke off a couple good handfulls of leaves and headed for the kitchen with sorrell soup on my mind.  If you search for recipes you will find the French version and the Eastern European version, but every one calls for butter and/or cream. So here's my no oil, no dairy invention that was the centerpiece of a lovely lunch today and could easily be the start to a gourmet dinner. We ate this as a leftover with a heaping tablespoon of brown rice in the center, which was delicious and a bit more substantive.



SORRELL SOUP (serves 4)


2 handfuls (about 3 cups sliced) sorrell leaves
3 small potatoes with skins
1 medium red onion (I used half a huge torpedo onion)
1 medium green zucchini
4-5 cups water
1/2 tsp salt
fresh ground pepper to taste
dill sprigs (decoration & to eat)

1) Slice the onion very thinly and then chop it into bits. Cut the zucchini into small pieces (1/2 inch) and put all of this into a soup pot with about 1 cup of water. Let this simmer quietly with a little of the salt.

2) Cut the potatoes into slices and then rectangles and then little squares. Throw the potato pieces into the pot and add the rest of the water, deciding if you need a little more water in order to cook the potatoes and still have some broth. Cook this for about 10-15 minutes until everything is soft.

3) Wash the sorrell and break off the stem parts up
to the leaf --you can leave the stem part attached to the leafy part. Pile this up on a cutting board with the leaves all going longwise. Cut across into little ribbons.

4) JUST BEFORE SERVING, stir the sorrell into the hot soup, mixing and stirring until the sorrell begins to change color. Remove from heat and using a hand blender, puree the whole thing.

5) Salt to taste, serve into bowls, grind a little fresh pepper on top with a sprig or 3 of fresh dill leaves. This looks beautiful and tastes great. The subtle balance of substance from the potato with tang from the sorrell is blended with the sweetness of the zucchini and given depth by the onion. The dill gives a counterbalance to the zing of the sorrell. What could be simpler or more yummy Spring or Fall?

Spicy Tempeh Quinoa & Apple Potato Salad

It is no longer as common as it once was that my little family gang has dinner together. It was our tradition the entire time the boys were in school, living with us, that we tried to settle at the table once a day for what has now become officially "Family Dinner." It was an important time to look each other in the eye, hear the tones of voice, check in with the states of mind and relationship. With the prospect of having a long day myself, my husband's first day back at school meetings, and my now 20-something sons assembling for dinner, I knew I had to figure things out before heading over to teach my evening class. This combination of garlicky quinoa with pieces of spicy tempeh really hit the mark for a main dish and was easy to put together ahead of time. I also made an apple-onion-potato salad in advance and put sliced fresh cukes in the fridge to absorb a tarragon-vinegar treatment. Dinner was completed by quickly chopping and assembling a room temperature tomato-peach-avocado-basil-balsamic vinegar salad and providing brilliant green on the table by quickly steaming garden fresh haricot verts and squeezing on fresh lemon juice with a splash ume plum vinegar.   Not surprisingly, there were no leftovers, though the spicy tempeh quinoa and the potato salad would have made a lovely lunch the next day.

Spicy Tempeh Quinoa

2 cups red quinoa
5-6 large garlic cloves
5-6 mushrooms (cremini, white, whatever)
1 slab of tempeh (I used flax tempeh but any will do)
1 cup frozen petite peas
3-4 tsp Bragg Liquid Amino
1-2 tsp Sriracha chili sauce

1. Cut the tempeh into 2 long halves, then into small rectangles. Put these in a shallow wide soup bowl and drizzle with 2 tsp Bragg's and the Sriracha.  Put in the fridge and let sit for at least an hour.
2. Meanwhile, dry roast the quinoa for about 5-10 minutes in a large flat pan, shifting the grains now and then to avoid any uneven heating. Add about 2 cups of water and chopped garlic. Cut the mushrooms into quarters and throw them into the quinoa as well. Cover the pan and let the quinoa cook for about 10-15 minutes, adding at least 1 tsp Bragg Liquid Amino to the quinoa.
3. As the quinoa is cooked, fluff it up, throw in the peas and add the spicy Tempeh. Stir this gently and serve!

Apple-Onion-Potato Salad

4-5 small potatoes (white and red)
half a Vidalia onion, or 1 medium sweet onion
1 large Honeycrisp apple (or whatever you like)
1/3 cup Tahini
1 Tblsp Tamari
3 Tblsp water
1 tsp agave syrup
1tsp finely grated carrot
1/4 tsp grated ginger
1-2 tsp Dijon mustard
1-2 tsp stone ground mustard
1-2 tsp cider vinegar
1/2 tsp salt

Cut the small potatoes into bite-sized pieces -- about 4-6 per potato -- and boil for about 10-15 minutes until just softening.  Pour out into a colander. Chop up about half a Vidalia or sweet onion into little pieces though not minced.  Peel, core and chop one large Honeycrisp apple into small pieces.  In a cup or bowl, pour 1/3 cup tahini, add 1 Tablespoon tamari, 3 Tablespoons water, 1 tsp agave syrup, 1 tsp finely grated carrot, 1/4 tsp grated ginger, 1-2 tsp Dijon mustard and 1-2 tsp stone ground mustard. You can also add 1-2 tsp cider vinegar and 1/2 tsp salt. Mix well and pour over the chopped vegetables and apple and mix gently. Chill and serve!

Fresh Veggie Tortilla Lasagne

The heat of summer, the zucchinis are coming in, fresh onions and tomatoes sit on the kitchen counter and there's a package of old corn tortillas, drying and cracking in the fridge. It's hard for me to throw away good food, so I decided to use those tortillas and their cracked qualities to make a fresh lasagne without pasta. The fresh basil, garlic and tempeh layer added a wonderful pesto flavor, and the chickpea flour sauce not only bound things together but added an important element of creaminess. This is a good dinner for two plus salad or greens, with great lunch leftovers (hot or cold!).





Fresh Veggie Tortilla Lasagne

1 medium large zucchini
1-2 medium sweet onions
1 large potato
3-5 mushrooms (any will do)
1-2 large ripe tomatoes
1 package tempeh
1 medium sweet potato
1/2-1 loose cup fresh basil
3-4 big juicy garlic cloves or use a whole head!
2-4 drying old corn tortillas (ok, you can also use fresh ones)
1/4 cup roasted sesame seeds
salt and pepper

The sauce to hold it all together:

1/2-2/3 cup chick pea flour
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp tumeric
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 tsp ground mustard
1/4 cup soy milk

1. Slice the zucchini, onions, potatoes, mushrooms, and tomatoes in thin rounds. Tear the corn torillas into strips.
2. Layer in a wide (lidded) cast iron enamel casserole pan as follows:
1st: zucchini & onion & sweet potato
2nd: layer of corn tortilla strips (use about half)
3rd:chopped basil and garlic with crumbled tempeh (think pesto...) dash of salt and pepper
4th: potato and mushroom
5th: tomato
6th layer of corn tortilla strips -- leave a little space to bring out a little of the underneath layer of tomato
top: sunflower seeds

3. Make sauce by adding all the dry ingredients to a bowl first, then stir in the soy milk. You can add more soy and/or more chick pea flour if you want more sauce.

4. Pour the sauce over the top of the whole thing -- drizzling it so that you get it over most of the surface.

5. Bake with the lid on at 350F for about 30 minutes.  You can stop at this point and save this to finish later or tomorrow ... but if you want it soon, turn up the heat to 450F take off the lid and crisp for 10 minutes.  Serve hot and marvelous. This is yummy hot or cold the next day.

Two Dish Curry Dinner

Garlic scapes have their own timing and when it is the moment to cut them in order to promote the growth of the garlic bulb, well, something has to be done with them. They are sweet and subtle, but definitely with a garlic tendency. So I thought I'd make something sweet and subtle. It ended up with tofu, scallions (that come at the same time as the scapes it turns out) and spinach as one curry, and potatoes with scapes and red and poblano peppers as the base of the other. Since we had no chutney, I cut up an amazingly ripe plum, which served exactly the same purpose! I'm going to let the pictures tell this story -- you can use whatever curry spices you like. I soaked the little cubes of tofu in  paprika, cumin, Bragg Liquid Amino and tumeric before adding it to the tender young spinach leaves with a little water. The scapes and potato chunks had to cook a little on their own, separately, and then came together in their respective dishes, scapes with tofu and spinach, and potatoes with the peppers, some dissolved miso and a little water with a dash of cumin and coriander.  It's best to use non stick pans, but the tofu dish can be in a regular pan so that if you only have one, use it for the potatoes. This is lovely with rice, or applesauce, or a crisp lettuce salad on the side.

  

cut scapes into 1" pieces

adding curried tofu to scapes

add spinach to tofu/scape pan

combine parboiled potato, both peppers, onion

ENJOY!

keep scraping and turning potatoes

B&B Patties - Black Beans & Beets

Looks good, but it ain't no burger! There was a bag of sweet little beets in the fridge and I was hankering after something different for lunch. The days of burgers are gone for my husband, and most frozen bean-based burgers seem like a replacement food, not something to crave. Added to the challenge is the question of how to make a patty without frying? Of course you can replace any of these ingredients, including using kidney beans rather than black beans, peppers instead of beets, etc.. You could definitely add hot sauce or pepper flakes, or cayenne if you are so inclined, So here's what I put in it this time.

B&B Patties (Black Beans & Beets) - It Ain't No Burger

2/3 c leftover smashed potato/carrot/parnsip (use any rice or sweet potato leftovers, or breadcrumbs)
3/4 c canned black beans (or homemade)
1/4 c frozen spinach (or leftovers)
1/4 c corn (frozen or leftover)
1 finely chopped shallot
2 finely chopped cremini (or other) mushrooms
1/4 c fine chopped beets (about 2 small beets)
2 Tblsp chick pea flour
2 Tblsp whole oats
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sage
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp sesame seeds


1. Cook a couple small beets (along with others to have cold tomorrow!).
2. Chop up 2 mushrooms, beets when they are cooked, and finely chop a shallot.

3. In a medium sized bowl, stir together, mashing black beans, leftover mashed potato mixture (or whatever rice, sweet potato or other starch),  frozen spinach, corn, mushrooms, shallots, oats and spices. Microwave for one minute or let sit out a while to soften frozen veggies.
4. Add in chickpea flour, beets and mash together.

5. Scoop  1/4 cup  at a time onto a tin foil covered baking sheet, or pan, and gently shape into even sized patties. Be sure the thickness is fairly consistent. Sprinkle 1/2 tsp on top or so sesame seeds on the tops.
6. Broil for 5-10 minutes, flipping with a spatula and sprinkling another 1/2 tsp sesame seeds on top so that both sides crisp. Eat with a slab of tomato, avocado, onion, lettuce or whatever you like! Treat with ketchup, hot sauce or mustard, or eat with sprigs of cilantro. This is especially nice if you don't treat it like a burger and eat two patties.

But it does look like a burger ...

B&B Patties (Black Beans & Beets) Nutrition Facts for one patty Serving Size: 1 Serving (90g) Amount Per Serving % Daily Value* Calories 104 5% Total Fat 1g 2% Saturated Fat 0g 1% Trans Fat Cholesterol 0% Sodium 333mg 14% Total Carbohydrate 20g 7% Dietary Fiber 4g 18% Sugars 2g 0% Protein 5g 10% Vitamin A 6% • Vitamin C 9% Calcium 3% • Iron 9% * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calories needs. courtesy of cronometer.com using my data.

Curried Potato Leek Chard Bundles

My husband is the researcher, the person who will shop for exactly the right container, or google until he finds out all about a new ingredient.  He likes to be informed about things. Luckily he shares what he learns with me. He was looking at  information on the web about the two doctors who figure the most prominently in the movie, "Forks Over Knives" and ran across a series of YouTube videos of former President Clinton speaking about working with one of them. He said the diet  "saved his life."  There was an article about a celebrity chef who took on the challenge of cooking vegan for the President, a celebrity chef who was not an expert in vegetarian cooking.  So, creatively the way chefs do, he said he just decided he would figure out how to make interesting foods within the parameters, and mentioned that he made curried potato leek chard bundles. 

That's what he said, "curried potato leek chard bundles."  When I heard that, I started imagining how delicious that would be.  I can imagine all manner of variations. My husband's comment after eating them leftover for lunch was that they bore a similarity to knishes, in all the right ways.  We had this for dinner with tarragon garlicked Le Puy lentils and a salad. Two bundles were plenty for each of us, so we had great leftovers.

Here's what happened:

Curried Chard Bundles
3 long whites of leeks
6 small Yukon gold potatoes (you could use sweet potato!)
8 white mushrooms 
2 parsnips

8 beautiful chard leaves 
about 4 tsp homemade curry spices 
(cumin, coriander, ginger, turmeric, cardamom, oregano, salt)
1/3 c almond milk. 

1.  Chop the leeks & mushrooms and "sauté" in 1/2 c water with 1/2 the spices. Save out 1/2 cup (for the topping), put the rest in a large bowl. 
2. Boil the rough chopped potatoes & parsnips. When soft, mash these with nearly all the rest of the spices, saving 1/2 tsp of spices out. 
3. Gently steam (covered) the pile of washed leaves in a broad pan with a little water, stems cut off at the base of the leaf.  You will want to lift and shuffle these leaves so that they cook evenly, the bottom ones don't get mushy, and the top ones get cooked. But most importantly, do not overlook chard! It needs to have some spunk left so you can wrap with it. 
4. Mix potato & leek mixtures. Add some almond milk (or any other milk you like) if its too thick. 
5. Put the rest of the almond milk (may add more) with remaining curry spices into the leeks you set aside, then purée this for sauce on top. 

6. ASSEMBLY: Take each leaf, rib side down, plop 4" of potato mixture along the spine. Fold top of leaf in, one side, bottom stem, last side. Roll it & serve rib side up with a blob of "sauce." 
7. Can be made ahead & reheated. 

curried potato leek chard bundles Nutrition Facts Serving Size: 1 Serving (460g) (2 chard bundles) Amount Per Serving % Daily Value* Calories 253 13% Total Fat 2g 2% Saturated Fat 0g 1% Trans Fat Cholesterol 0% Sodium 236mg 10% Total Carbohydrate 57g 19% Dietary Fiber 9g 34% Sugars 7g 0% Protein 8g 16% Vitamin A 22% • Vitamin C 102% Calcium 16% • Iron 25% * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calories needs. courtesy of cronometer.com based on my input