Salsa Verde

Without further ado, my assignment for the Secret Recipe Club this month was:

What's Brewing in the Kitchen

Amy has many tempting recipes, including the Puffy Apple Pancake (quite similar to my Baked Pancake, but with apples!), Baked Vanilla Doughnuts (doughnuts, again?!!), and Pollo al Chilindron.  In the end, I ran across this Salsa Verde recipe (link below), and I had to make it for several reasons:

• It is one of Rick's recipes.  
• I love salsa verde, but I have never made it.   
• Reading the recipe made me crave it, so I ran to the store for tomatillos and chips!  

I doubled it from the start, except I left out half of the water.  Below is the double batch recipe, follow the link for Amy's proportions. This recipe is easy to put together, and tastes fresh and delicious!  Enjoy some today!

Salsa Verde

makes about 2 cups

from FoodNetwork.com via What's Brewing in the Kitchen

1 pound (10 to 12 medium) tomatillos, husked and rinsed
2 jalapeno pepper, stemmed and seeded
10 or 12 sprigs fresh cilantro, roughly chopped 

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

1/4 cup water
coarse salt
 

Roughly chop the tomatillos and the chiles.
 
In a blender or food processor, combine the tomatillos, chiles, cilantro and water. Pulse briefly to a coarse puree; scrape down sides.  


Rinse the onion under cold water, then shake to remove excess moisture. Pulse a couple times into the salsa, then scrape into a serving dish.
 
Season with salt to taste.

Vegetable Quinoa Salad

This is a delicious salad that I've made several times now, most recently for a luncheon that I catered.  It paired well with this Watermelon and Citrus Salad with Mint, is perfect for a protein-packed light lunch or dinner, and is also quite good on top of hummus in a pita!

We love it.  I found this and other fabulous recipes compiled in Alisa's FREE eCookbook, Smart School Time Recipes. The recipe is by Marta of Yummy Veggies, and it is a keeper!  My changes are below, in italics.  Incidentally, I quadrupled (or perhaps quintupled??, I've forgotten now) this recipe, and I believe it would have served almost 50 people!  The original recipe says that it serves 4, but with all the vegetables I'd say it serves more.  You decide.  Anyway, the leftovers keep well, so it doesn't matter!

~~~Picture soon!~~~

Yummy Veggie Quinoa Salad

Salad:
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 cloves garlic, crushed (I mince)
1 cup dry quinoa
2 cups water (or vegetable broth and omit chicken-like seasoning)
1 tablespoon chicken-like seasoning (I found this weird, Vegan wet-sand-like bouillon called "Not Chick'n" and used 1 cube per 2 cups water)
1 cup edamame (soy beans, usually frozen, you'll need to shell them, but if you can find frozen mukimame they're already shelled!)
1 cup frozen corn
1 red onion (I omitted this)
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 cucumber, diced
2 to 3 carrots, diced

Dressing:
juice of 1 lime
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro (optional, but don't use dried)*I omit this
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley (optional, I prefer flat Italian parsley)
1 teaspoon sea salt

Add the 1 tablespoon of olive oil, garlic and dried quinoa to a nonstick skillet (that has a lid).  Allow to brown on medium-high heat for about 2 to 5 minutes.  Add water and chicken-like seasoning and turn to high.  Once it boils, turn heat down and cover.  Allow to cook about 15 minutes (this time keeps the quinoa a bit al dente).  You can add the shelled edamame and corn when you have about 7 minutes left.  Once the quinoa is cooked, remove from heat and remove lid, allowing it to cool.

*I'm not sure if it was the quantity of quinoa I was cooking, but I did need to add about 10 minutes to the cooking time, and even then there was a lot of liquid left...*

Meanwhile, chop up the fresh vegetables and set aside.  Marta likes the vegetables small, and I agree, maybe the size of a kernel of corn, but you can decide how you like it best.  Mix up the dressing (I use a jar with a lid) and set aside.  Once quinoa is cool, toss all together and serve.

*This keeps so well in the refrigerator that it can be prepared a day in advance.  To serve, I garnished with a few sprigs of Italian parsley.

Taste & Create: Carrot Hummus

Taste & Create is a monthly food blog event, created by my friend Nicole of For the Love of Food. Participants are randomly paired, and must choose and create a recipe from their partner's blog. It is FUN. If you'd like to sign up, check out How it Works or email me at cowgirlmin07[at]gmail[dot]com by the 8th of every month!

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My partner for this month was Melynda of Mom's Sunday Cafe. I really thought I knew what I was going to make. I had (still have) a bunch of plums in the drawer in my fridge, and I was going to make Melynda's plum jam with port wine. And I still will. But time has gotten so far away from me, I don't even know where to look for it. And then I kept going back to Mom's Sunday Cafe for one more look around...and after that, I couldn't decide!

Now here it is, past the deadline, but I just ran across a couple more intriguing recipes! Have you ever heard of Carrot Pie? I haven't, but I am totally going to make one. When my parents are in town in a couple weeks, because I think my dad will really like it. So that won't do for THIS month's Taste & Create. However, I also found this recipe: Carrot Hummus. I love hummus, my boys love carrots, it sounds perfect for us. Here we go.

I realized I didn't have tahini or toasted sesame oil, which Melynda uses. I substituted roasted walnut oil instead. I also bypassed the cumin seed garnish, not because I didn't like the sound of it, but because I caught a nasty head cold yesterday and today just didn't have the energy to get it done.

I used 1 large carrot and 2 small ones, I probably could have used a couple more if I had them. Who runs out of carrots, I ask you??

I like the bright orange color of this dip, and the flavor is good too. I had some toasted pita triangles that I made the other day. I'm sure it will taste even better when my taste buds are back to normal, when I will definitely be making this again!

Let me know what you think! And isn't my little carrot spreader the cutest thing you've ever seen?!


Carrot Hummus
Makes approximately 2 cups.

2 large or 3 small carrots, peeled sliced and cooked till tender, drained well.
1 15 oz can garbanzo beans, drained well
1 - 2 cloves garlic
1/4 t salt
2 T lemon juice
1 t toasted sesame oil (I used roasted walnut oil)
1/4 - 1/3 c olive oil

Combine all ingredients and process until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides of processor bowl as needed. Transfer to a serving/storing container. Garnish and enjoy.

Cumin seed & salt garnish: 1 - 2 t cumin seed and 1/4 t salt.

Pan toast until fragrant, crush lightly.

Drizzle a little more olive oil over the top, add the cumin seeds, store in the refrigerator.

Serve with assorted vegetable dippers and crackers.

Grow Your Own Sprouts!

2nd batch, Clover Sprouts

I've read about how easy it is to grow your own sprouts, and how delicious, but I'd never tried until now! (and now we are hooked!)

I was searching on amazon.com for plastic lids for canning jars for our sourdough because the one we had broke. I ran across this strainer lid for growing sprouts. (Although you don't really need a strainer lid if you have cheesecloth, which you can secure with the ring from a canning jar lid). I didn't have any cheesecloth, so I added the strainer lid to my order, along with a sampler pack of Organic Sprouting Seeds!

I did have a large canning jar around, so I was all set there. When the seeds arrived-- 2.5 pounds with 10 different varieties--I let the boys pick which kind they wanted to try first. H-Bomb promptly chose the 5 Part Salad Mix, which contains alfalfa, radish, mung bean, lentil and broccoli seeds. Yum!

I placed 2 tablespoons of the seed mix in my quart jar and covered with 8 tablespoons of warm (not hot) water, and let soak overnight.

The next morning, I drained the seeds, rinsed them and drained them again. I swirled the jar gently to help the seeds separate and coat the sides of the jar, laid the jar on its side and covered it with a towel on the counter.

The recommendations for rinsing vary wildly, so I just followed the instructions on the package, which says "Sprouts MUST be RINSED and DRAINED WELL 2 to 3 times per day during the growing period." They're pretty serious about it, the capitalization is right there like that on the package. Who am I to presume anything different?

I grew my sprouts in this manner for 3 days, keeping track on the calendar because this was the first batch. After that, there were sprouts! They needed to be exposed to light for 3 to 5 hours to develop the green color, then rinsed in a large bowl of cool water to remove the hulls. I covered the sprouts with cold water, then pressed the sprouts down while I removed the floating hulls with a spoon. After that, you can grab the sprouts out of the water, piling them in a colander to drain (and leaving any unsprouted seeds at the bottom of the bowl).

Store sprouts in an air tight container in the refrigerator and rinse 2-3 times per day to maintain freshness. And that's it!

We have already made the 5-part Salad Mix, a batch of Clover Sprouts, and are now on Green Lentil sprouts! It is so fun to see the seeds actually sprouting. As soon as one batch is ready to eat, we get another batch growing. So far we've only needed to grow one jar at a time, but I could see growing two jars of sprouts when the boys get older.

Peanut Sauce

I love peanuts. Peanut butter. Peanut butter cookies. Roasted peanuts. Spicy peanuts. There is something about the flavor of peanuts that is very appealing to me and I am so very grateful I do not suffer from peanut allergies.

That said, I don't eat many peanuts anymore because I mostly eat almonds. Almond butter, roasted almonds, etc. So, it is always a special treat when I decide to make peanut sauce for something like peanut noodles or Gado Gado, a traditional Indonesian vegetable salad covered in peanut sauce. Yum. That always brings me back to one of my favorite places on earth: Indonesia- the inspiration for this sauce.

So, here's your warning: This isn't really a quick sauce to prepare. You need to follow through with a few steps, but it is well worth the time and effort, I promise.

Step 1: Thinly slice 4 cloves of garlic and fry them with 3-5 dried Thai chilies (I always go with 5) in a couple tablespoons of peanut oil until the garlic is golden and toasted and the chilies are a little puffed.

Step 2: Remove these from the heat and oil to stop them from cooking. Let them cool on some paper towels while prepping the rest of the sauce.

In my kitchen, I have a step 3: Make peanut butter. I put 2 cups of peanuts in the Vita-Mix and make fresh peanut butter in about one minute's time. If you don't own a Vita-Mix yet, make sure you are using real peanut butter. Basically, that means please, please, please only use peanut butter if the the ingredients read: Peanuts. Or, Peanuts and Salt.

Step 4: In a bowl or large Pyrex measuring cup, add approximately 1 cup of peanut butter. Everything in this recipe is approximate, so you can play with the flavors and add more of something or less according to your tastes.

Next, add:

• 5 TB soy sauce
• 1/2 cup honey
• juice from 2 lemons
• juice from 1/2 lime
• 1/4 cup warm water (it is easier to mix with warm water rather than cold)

Mix this well.

Step 5: Grind your garlic and chilies in your mortar and pestle.

I have a special attachment to my mortar and pestle because I bought it in Indonesia.

Add the garlic and chilies to your sauce and mix well.

I made a big bowl of peanut noodles with this sauce. Too bad I didn't double the recipe and store some in the fridge for a week or so. Next time.

Lentil Soup

It's been soooo cold here, and snowy even, it just makes me want to curl up with a nice, warm bowl of soup. Today, the soup that was calling my name is Lentil.

For excellent soup recipes, especially for a classically vegetarian soup, I always count on Mollie. This recipe comes from her classic Moosewood Cookbook. (I have both the original version from the 1970's and the 15 year anniversary edition, the latter is where I found this recipe).

The only change I made to the recipe was stirring in a few chopped spinach leaves a few minutes before serving. The drizzle of red wine vinegar was a revelation, it really added that little something extra that we didn't even know we had been missing! Try it, and you'll see.


Lentil Soup
Preparation time: about 1 hour Yield: 6 to 8 servings This is a very easy fat-free lentil soup that just about cooks itself. Only one pot is needed, so cleanup is easy.

3 cups dry lentils
7 cups water
2 teaspoons salt
6 to 8 medium garlic cloves, crushed
2 cups chopped onion
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 medium carrots, sliced or diced
1/2 to 1 teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon oregano
lots of freshly ground black pepper
2 to 3 medium-sized ripe tomatoes (I used 1 can diced tomatoes, drained)
1/2 to 1 cup chopped fresh spinach (my addition; optional)
red wine vinegar, to drizzle on top

1) Place lentils, water and salt in a kettle. Bring to a boil, lower heat to lowest possible simmer, and cook quietly, partially covered, for 20 to 30 minutes.

2) Add vegetables (except tomatoes & spinach), herbs, and black pepper. I also added another 1 1/2 cups of water. Partially cover, and let simmer peacefully another 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3) Heat a medium saucepanful of water to boiling. Drop in the tomatoes for 10 seconds, then take them out peel off the skins, and squeeze out the seeds. Chop the remaining pulp and add to the soup. [or just throw in a can of tomatoes, who's going to know?]

Stir in about 1/2 to 1 cup chopped fresh spinach. Let the soup cook for at least 5 minutes more.

4) Serve hot, with a drizzle of vinegar on top of each steaming bowlful.

Swiss Chard With Butternut Squash

I'm not a big "greens" person... no matter how good they are for you. However, Swiss Chard has a completely different flavor than kale or other greens. I found out at the farm last weekend that it's not even in the same family! I actually like Chard... a lot. I made up this recipe although it is based on recipes people have verbally told me to try with kale... which I hated. Give it a try! I also think this would be fabulous spread all over a pizza dough and topped with goat cheese! mmmmmmmmm Maybe with the leftovers!

Here's what you'll need...

@ 1 1/2 lbs of Swiss Chard (stems removed and WASH THE HELL OUT OF IT!!!)

1/2 medium onion (diced)

1 clove garlic

2 cups of butternut squash (diced into cubes)

salt & pepper

Heat up some olive oil (about 2 Tbs) in a BIG saute pan until it "shimmers". Add the squash and onions and cook for about 3-4 minutes or until the onions gets translucent. Add the garlic and toss around.

Add the chard and some salt. Put a couple Tbs of water to help get some steam going and cover your pan. Cook the chard for about 4-5 minutes or until the chard is all wilted down and the squash is tender but not mushy.

Add ground black pepper and more salt if it needs it. You can also add a splash of balsamic vinegar if you like.

Yummy!

Maple Peanut-Butter Cookies

There always comes a time when you a need a vegan recipe for something. Vegan friends for dinner, folks who don't do dairy, you're out of eggs, food allergies, etc... Today was no exception. I'm out of eggs but really really wanted cookies! One of my all-time favorite cook books is Feeding the Healthy Vegetarian Family by Ken Haedrich. Great recipes that aren't ALL vegan but he always leaves tips on how to make something vegan if you need to.

I found an interesting recipe for these peanut butter cookies that uses no milk, eggs or refined sugar. Believe it or not, they taste yummy!

Here's what you'll need...

• 1 cup natural creamy peanut butter (I'm sure any peanut butter will do).
• 1 cup maple syrup
• 2 Tbs vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (I just used regular flour)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 and butter or lightly oil & dust with flour 2 large cookie sheets OR line them with parchment paper.

In a bowl, combine peanut butter, maple syrup, oil and vanilla with a mixer until smooth. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Make a well in your dry ingredients and blend in the peanut butter mixture until just blended. You may need to use your hands.

Make 1 1/2 inch balls and place them on the sheets, leaving 2 1/2 inches between them. Using a fork, flattening the balls until about 1/2 inch thick. Make the traditional crisscross pattern if you like.

Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes. Cookies should be lightly crusted over but still soft. Cool on sheets for 2 minutes, then move to a rack to cool completely before storing.

Gingered Carrot Soup

This soup is from the Moosewood Cookbook. It is savory, beautifully colored and delicious, and not too time-consuming. I decided to make it when I realized I had 10 pounds of carrots that I hadn't even opened yet. So you can expect more carrot dishes in the days (and weeks) to come.

Anyway, this is a good, healthy soup. You'll like it. We had ours as a side dish. It ended up serving five adults and a couple kids with no leftovers (because I took the pot around and pawned off the last few scoops!)

It wasn't a true puree because my blender was dirty and my food processor is dying. You hear that Cuisinart? Anyone? Need a product tester? I will need a new food processor very soon. Seriously. But it was kind of nice to have something to chew also, so I was happy with the texture. And everyone loved it too.


Gingered Carrot Soup
Preparation time: 20 to 30 minutes
Yield: 6 to 8 servings
A thick, creamy puree that can be made with no dairy products. This soup also keeps and freezes very well, and doesn't suffer from repeated reheatings. Serve this as a thick sauce over rice for a simple supper. It also goes well with Samosas and Raita.

2 pounds carrots
4 cups water
1 tablespoon butter or oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
2 medium cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon each: cumin, ground fennel (anise), cinnamon, allspice, dried mint (I couldn't find ground fennel, so I just put some anise seeds in my mortar and pestle. I used a bit of fresh chopped mint instead of dried)
3 to 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 cup lightly toasted cashews
Optional: buttermilk, to drizzle on top

1. Peel and trim carrots, and cut them into 1-inch chunks. Place in a medium-large saucepan with the water, cover, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, and simmer until very tender (about 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the size of the carrot pieces).

2. Meanwhile heat the butter or oil in a small skillet. Add onions, and saute over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, salt and spices. Turn heat to low, and continue to saute for another 8 to 10 minutes, or until everything is well mingled and the onions are very soft. Stir in lemon juice.

3. Use a food processor or blender to puree everything together (including the toasted cashews-do not drain carrots). You will need to do this in several batches. Transfer the puree to a small kettle, and heat gently just before serving. If desired, pass a small pitcher of buttermilk, for individual drizzlings. (we didn't use the buttermilk).

No-Bake Oatmeal Energy Bars with Cherries and Almonds

I found this recipe through fellow Bad Girl Miss Niss, on a blog she likes called Enlightened Cooking. (just for the record, Miss Niss may very well be the Baddest Bad Girl: she just finished her 2nd 1/2 marathon this year! Congrats! She has also run 272 miles so far this year. Yeah, well we just DROVE over 2,200 miles...take that...or something... ;-)

So anyway, I made these Energy Bars. They are quite easy. This time, I used almond butter (plus a little peanut butter to fill the cup), dried cherries and almonds. They are delicious! (next time, we will try blueberries and pecans or cashews!) I cut mine into about 21 servings.

No-Bake Oatmeal Energy Bars with Cherries and Almonds

These are also delicious with 1/2 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips in place of the nuts or fruit.

2 and 1/2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal, uncooked
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ (e.g. Kretchsmer’s)
1/2 cup dried nonfat milk powder
1/2 cup dried cherries, blueberries, or other dried fruit, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup lightly salted roasted almonds (or other roasted or toasted nuts or seeds) I chopped mine.
1 cup natural-style nut or seed butter (e.g., peanut, cashew, almond, or tahini)
3/4 cup honey
1/3 cup dark molasses (not blackstrap)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt

Line a 9x9-inch square metal baking pan foil; spray with nonstick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl mix the oatmeal, wheat germ, milk powder, dried fruit and nuts; set aside.

Place the nut butter, honey and molasses in a large heavy saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat until bubbly, melted and smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla, cinnamon and salt. Mix in the cereal mixture (mix until well blended and all of the oat mixture is coated).

Transfer mixture to prepared pan. Using a large square of wax paper or foil, very firmly press mixture down into pan to compact.

Cool completely. Remove bars using foil overhang and then cut into 16 bars or squares. Tightly wrap each bar in plastic wrap. Store the wrapped bars in a plastic zip-top bag in the refrigerator. Makes 16 servings.

VEGAN No-Bake Oatmeal Energy Bars with Cherries and Almonds:
Use brown rice syrup in place of the honey and soy powder in place of the milk powder.