Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Mushroom, Wild Rice, and Brown Rice Soup

We had a busy weekend this past weekend with Stanford Homecoming and several guests in town. While we had a blast, we were pretty exhausted by the end and wanted a healthy but comforting and relatively easy dinner on Sunday night. I often make bean soups but we didn't feel like it this time so I played off of one of my other favorite kinds of soup - mushroom and wild rice - to come up with this recipe. Many mushroom wild rice soups are cream-based, but this uses vegetable broth. As the mushrooms simmer into the vegetable broth they also impart a nice earthy mushroomy flavor to the broth. This soup only calls for a few ingredients, which is great when you don't have much in the fridge. Carrots, celery, and onion are aromatics, and they are often used in soup to develop a base of flavor. They are also known as "mirepoix" in French cooking. I also used a combination of wild and brown rice in this soup - I like the two textures together. Both of these whole grains are good for you, and wild rice actually has more protein than brown rice.

This would also be a great soup for if you feel like you're coming down with a cold - it is so warming.


Mushroom Wild Rice Soup
Serves 6

Extra virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, large diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch celery, large diced
4 large carrots, large diced
6 c. low-sodium vegetable broth
1/2 c. wild rice, rinsed
1/2 c. brown basmati or jasmine rice, rinsed
16-20 oz. cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 bay leaves
Kosher salt
Black pepper

Heat 1 T. of the olive oil over medium heat in a large dutch oven or stockpot. Add the onion and garlic and saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Add to carrots and celery to the pot and saute for an additional 3-4 minutes. Add the vegetable broth and bay leaves and bring to a low boil. Add the wild rice, brown rice, 1 t. kosher salt, and 1/2 t. pepper, cover and reduce heat to a simmer for 30 minutes. Add the mushroooms, re-cover and simmer for an additional 30 minutes, stirring occassionally. Taste for seasoning - I found that I needed an additional 1 t. salt and 1/4 t. black pepper. Discard the bay leaves and serve.

This soup was also great for leftovers. Reheat with some additional vegetable stock or water - the rice will absorb more of the liquid as it keeps.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Garnet Yam, Black Bean, and Rainbow Chard Enchiladas

I was having my good friend Sara over last night and wanted to make her something especially wonderful for dinner. She loves fall flavors like yams and sweet potatoes but also loves Mexican food. I have developed a great vegetarian enchiladas recipe that I make in the summer with corn and summer squash, and thought, why not make the fall version? The combination of yams, chard, black beans, and queso fresco in the filling is so good, we had no problem polishing off 2 enchiladas each. This recipe does take a little time because you have to roast the yams first and then assemble the enchiladas, but you could always roast the yams a day ahead of time and keep them in the fridge until you're ready to make the dish, or make the entire thing a day ahead of time and just pop it in the oven when you're ready to serve it.



















Garnet Yam, Black Bean, and Rainbow Chard Enchiladas
Serves 4-6

Extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 T. flour
2 c. low-sodium vegetable stock
15 oz. can fire-roasted tomatoes with chiles (you could also use canned fire-roasted or plain diced tomatoes and add a small can of green chiles)
1 T. ancho chili powder
1 ½ t. ground cumin
4 oz. queso fresco (Mexican cheese)
15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 lb. garnet yams (about 3 medium or 2 large yams), peeled and cut into ¾’’ pieces
1 bunch rainbow or swiss chard, leaves only, rinsed and roughly chopped (save the stems for another use - coming soon!)
8 whole wheat tortillas
4 oz. pepper jack cheese, grated
Light sour cream, for topping (optional)
Kosher salt


Preheat the oven to 425°F. Toss the cut yams in a large bowl with 2 t. olive oil and season with ½ t. salt. Transfer the yams to a baking sheet and spread in an even layer. Roast the yams until tender, approximately 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the enchilada sauce. Heat 2 T. olive oil in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, approximately 30 seconds. Add 3 T. of flour to the pan and whisk together with the garlic and olive oil. Continue whisking and cook for about another 30 seconds or a minute more to allow the mixture to cook a little. Gradually add in the 2 cups of vegetable stock, whisking constantly to ensure a smooth consistency. Bring to a low boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and stir in the diced tomatoes and their juices, chili powder, and cumin. If using low-sodium stock, add 1 t. of kosher salt. Allow to simmer for 10-15 minutes to thicken a little, stirring occasionally.

Heat 1 t. olive oil in a large sauté pan or stockpot over medium heat. Add the chard, cover, and cook for approximately 5 minutes or until chard is wilted, stirring occasionally. Season with 1/4 t. kosher salt and set aside in the bowl you used for the yams.

When the yams are done, pull them out, and decrease the temperature of the oven to 375°F. In the large bowl containing the chard, add the black beans (drained), cooked yams, and queso fresco cheese, crumbling as you add it. Stir together to combine. This is the filling for the enchiladas.

Put the stack of tortillas in between two sheets of dampened paper towel on a plate and microwave for approximately 1-2 minutes or until warm. This will make it easier to assemble the enchiladas. Grate the pepper jack cheese if you have not already done so.

Grease a large rectangular baking dish (I used a 4.5 qt Pyrex, one size larger than a 13x9x2 but use whatever you have that you think you can fit 8 enchiladas into). Get all of the components in one area for easy assembly (the baking pan, the filling mixture, the tortillas, the saucepan with the sauce, and a plate). To begin, spread approximately ½ cup of the sauce on the bottom of the baking dish to lightly coat it. Begin filling the tortillas one at a time. I do this by placing one tortilla on a plate, then scooping out 1 cup of the filling mixture and putting it along the middle of the tortilla. Then, roll up the tortilla as tightly as you can (no need to fold in the edges) and put it in the baking dish, starting with one edge, and repeating this process until all 8 tortillas are packed tightly together in the pan.

Top the tortillas with the remaining sauce, spreading the sauce around to cover the tortillas as well as possible. Top with the pepper jack cheese.

Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes, until the dish is bubbly and cheese is melted. Serve with a dollop of sour cream, if you’d like.

If you made this recipe ahead of time and had it in the fridge, take it out of the fridge while the oven is preheating and cook for approximately 50 minutes.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Hearty Vegetable Bean Soup

It was a rainy day on Sunday in the Bay Area, which made it a perfect day for soup. I decided to try using dried beans, which turned out to be much easier than I expected. You can find much more variety in dried beans than canned, and they have this wonderful sort of al dente bite to them when cooked, versus canned beans which can be a little mushy. Having said this, I have shown how to modify the recipe below if you are in a rush and want to use canned. All it took to use the dried beans was to throw them in a pot with some water in the morning and let them sit until I made the soup that evening. Then, you just simmer the soup for longer than you would with canned beans, which is usually fine with me on Sunday evening as I'm usually at home preparing for work for the week. Another great thing about this soup is that it makes a big pot and tastes arguably even better over the next few days as leftovers.



















Hearty Vegetable Bean Soup
Serves 6-8

16 oz. flageolet beans or other dried bean of your choice
(alternatively use two 15 oz. cans cannellini beans)
Extra virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
2-3 leeks, white and light green parts, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3-4 carrots, cut into 1/2'' pieces
28 oz. can San Marzano plum tomatoes
4 c. low-sodium vegetable broth
1 small bunch or about 10 springs fresh thyme
(really try to use fresh thyme - it's important to the flavor of the soup)
2 bay leaves
2 t. kosher salt
1 t. pepper
1 bunch kale or swiss chard (I used lacinato kale)

If using dried beans, soak for at least 4 hours or overnight (I just soaked them starting in the late morning and cooked the soup the same evening). When ready to make the soup, drain and rinse the beans.

In a large dutch oven or pot, heat 1 T. olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, leeks, garlic, and a pinch of salt. Saute until tender but not browned, about 5 minutes.

Add the carrots and the can of tomatoes (plus their juices) and stir to combine. Add the dried beans or canned if using. Add the vegetable stock and the whole thyme sprigs and bay leaves (the thyme leaves will just dissolve off of the branches as the soup cooks). Add 1 t. kosher salt and 1/2 t. of the pepper. Bring the soup to a low boil, then cover and simmer for 2 hours if using dried beans or 30 minutes to 1 hour if using canned beans, stirring occasionally (the more time the better!).  About 30 minutes before the soup is done (1 1/2 hours into the simmering process for dried beans, anywhere from right away to 30 minutes later for canned beans, depending on how long you're planning to simmer it), add the kale or swiss chard and stir well into the soup to combine. Recover and simmer for the remaining time. Taste for seasoning - I found that since I used low-sodium broth and it was a large pot of soup, I needed an additional 1 t. kosher salt and 1/2 t. pepper.

We liked this soup on its own but it was especially delicious with some grated or shaved parmesan cheese on the top!

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Coconut Carrot Bread

With the weather cooling off this weekend, I felt like baking and wanted to create a quick bread to have as an afternoon snack or in the morning with coffee. I love carrot cake, and this incorporates some of the flavors of carrot cake but in a much healthier version. It's very easy to make and the walnuts and coconut flakes give it a nice texture, but if you're not a nut person you can always omit those. I like this best served warm with a little butter.



















Coconut Carrot Bread
1/4 c. olive oil
1/4 c. unsweetened applesauce
1/2 c. honey
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1 1/2 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. nutmeg
1 1/2 c. carrots (about 3 medium), grated
1/2 c. unsweetened coconut flakes (plus a little extra for the top)
1/2 c. walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Farenheit. Put the walnuts in a small skillet and toast over low heat.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk the olive oil and honey together, then add the applesauce, whisking to combine. Add the eggs and vanilla and whisk until well incorporated.

In a medium-sized bowl, add the dry ingredients - whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg - and whisk with another whisk or a fork until well combined.

Chop the walnuts into small pieces when they are done toasting. Add the grated carrots and cocunut flakes to the wet ingredients and stir with a spoon. Add the dry ingredients and stir just until incorporated. Fold in the walnuts.

Pour the batter into a greased 9'' loaf pan and top with some more of the coconut flakes. Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out relatively clean.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Pumpkin, Feta, Walnut, and Sage Pasta


Pumpkin is one of my favorite flavors that really represents the coming of fall. I have actually never cooked fresh pumpkin before, and was pleasantly rewarded when I put together this dish! My inspiration came from this gorgeous sugar pumpkin at the farmer's market this weekend - however, I have also seen sugar pumpkins at our local supermarket, so you don't have to go to the farmer's market to make this dish. Sugar pumpkins are in between the size of smaller decorative pumpkins (which are inedible) and the larger pumpkins that you use to make jack-o-lanterns. The combination of the flavors of pumpkin, feta, walnuts, and sage is fantastic. It's also a pretty easy recipe - the hardest part is probably peeling the pumpkin, which isn't that difficult. You could use a vegetable peeler but I found just peeling it with a knife was easiest.



Pumpkin, Feta, Walnut, and Sage Pasta
Serves 4

Extra virgin olive oil
1 sugar pumpkin, peeled and cut into 1'' pieces
1 T. + 1 t. chopped fresh sage leaves
1 cup walnuts
4 oz. feta cheese
12 oz. short whole wheat pasta, such as shells
Kosher salt
Pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Peel and cut the pumpkin and toss in a large bowl with 1 T. of the chopped sage leaves, 1 T. of extra virgin olive oil, and 1/2 t. salt. Roast for 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, toast the walnuts in a small skillet over low heat. I always used to roast nuts over high heat to get them done quicker, but after about 10 batches of burnt nuts, learned that it's better to do it over slow heat for slightly longer. It doesn't take too long - about 10 minutes. Still, keep an eye on them and stir occasionally. Once they are fragrant and lightly browned, remove from the pan, set aside, and roughly chop the nuts. 

Once the pumpkin is getting closer to being done, prepare the pasta. I like using shell shapes here because it holds onto the pumpkin, feta, and walnuts nicely. 

When the pasta is almost done, heat 2 T. of extra virgin olive oil in a pan over medium heat, and add the remaining 1 t. sage. Let this warm together for a minute or so and turn off the heat. 

Remove the pumpkin from the oven. Drain the pasta, reserving 1/4 c. pasta water first. 

In a large bowl, combine the roasted pumpkin, pasta, and walnuts, and crumble the feta over the top. Pour the reserved pasta water and sage-infused olive oil over the mixture, add 1/2 t. salt and 1/4 t. pepper, and stir to blend well. To serve, crumble a little more feta over each dish, if desired.

This is one of my favorite things I've made, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Happy Fall!


Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Chickpea Curry















As I've been trying to cook more vegetarian dishes, I've found myself branching out towards making more curry dishes and experimenting with spices, which can really add dimension to dishes that don't have meat. Whatever I make also has to be guy-friendly and satisfying enough to appease my husband, Adam. This is one of our favorite curry dishes, made with chickpeas (garbanzo beans), potatoes, tomatoes, and lots of spices. We serve it over brown basmati or jasmine rice for a more filling meal and I top it with a quick yogurt-cucumber sauce, which creates a nice creamy texture when stirred into the curry, while the cucumber adds freshness.

Chickpea Curry
Serves 4

Extra virgin olive oil
1 15-oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 15-oz can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 c. vegetable broth/stock
3/4 lb. Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1/2'' dice
1 yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T. ginger, minced (you could substitute ~1 t. of ground ginger but fresh is so much better)
1 t. cumin
1 t. ground coriander
1 t. dried red chili flakes
1/2 t. turmeric
1/2 t. cayenne pepper
1 t. salt
1/2 t. ground black pepper

1 c. brown jasmine or basmati rice, uncooked

1 c. plain non-fat yogurt
1/4 c. diced cucumber
pinch of salt and pepper

Bring 2 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan and add the rice. Reduce heat to simmer and cook until water is absorbed, approximately 35 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat 1 T. olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and a pinch of salt cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger, cumin, coriander, chile flakes, tumeric, and cayenne pepper, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the chickpeas and potatoes, and stir to coat with the spices. Add the diced tomatoes and vegetable broth and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover, and let simmer vigorously for approximately 20 minutes, or until potatoes are fork-tender. Season with the salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, combine the yogurt, cucumber, salt and pepper in a small bowl. When the curry and rice are done, spoon a little of the rice into a bowl or plate and top with the curry and a dollop of the yogurt-cucumber mixture.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Green Ginger Iced Tea

It's supposed to be 94 degrees today in the Peninsula today as this early fall heat wave is continuing. Iced tea is one of my favorite drinks and a great refresher when it's sweltering outside. However, I haven't found many iced teas that I like from the grocery store and recently have been experimenting with making my own, which I have found is both easy and much more economical. Here's one of my favorites, which combines green tea, delivering a great source of antioxidants, and ginger tea, which helps encourage a healthy digestive system. This also would be comforting served warm in the winter.

Green Ginger Iced Tea
2 tea bags green tea
2 tea bags ginger tea (such as Yogi Tea, which can be found at Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, and most grocery storess)
8 cups water
3 T. honey

Fill a tea pot or regular saucepan filled with 4 cups water. Bring the water up until it's steaming but not boiling (boiling water can make green tea taste bitter). Put the 2 green tea and 2 ginger tea bags in a pitcher (I like kinds that have a lid so that I can easily store it in the fridge for longer periods of time). Pour the steaming water over the tea bags and let steep for approximately 10 minutes. Remove the tea bags with tongs and stir in approximately 3 T. honey (you can add more or less depending on how sweet you want it - I just like a little). Pour another 4 cups cold water into the pitcher and either serve immediately over ice or place in the fridge to cool completely.

Stay cool!

Monday, October 11, 2010

Whole Wheat Pasta with Kale, Carmelized Onions & Parsnips

While we are having a warm early October in the Bay Area (it was in the mid-80s this weekend), I can't help getting into the mood for fall. Squash, pumpkins, autumn greens, and root vegetables are starting to pop up at our local farmer's market in Menlo Park. I wanted to make something for dinner that was a little lighter given the warm weather while incorporating some fall ingredients.

I ended up adapting this recipe from one I found by Jeanne Kelley, substituting whole wheat pasta to amp up the protein and adding chanterelle mushrooms, which is optional, but were available at the farmer's market for a very reasonable price. I used baby parsnips that were available at the market, but you can find regular parsnips at the grocery store, and I used lacinato kale, which I think has the best texture for this recipe, but any variety of kale would be fine.




Pasta with Kale, Carmelized Onions, and Parsnips
Serves approx. 4 people

Extra virgin olive oil
Approx. 1 lb. parsnips, peeled and cut diagonally into 1/3'' slices
1 large red onion (or 2 small), thinly sliced
1 T. chopped fresh thyme or 1 t. dried thyme
4 garlic cloves, roughly minced
1/2 c. dry white wine (I used Chardonnay)
1 large bunch kale, chopped (discard ends of stems)
1/2 c. vegetable broth (or if you don't have any on hand, use an additional 1/4 c. wine and 1/4 c. water)
8 to 12 oz. whole wheat penne (depending on how big of eaters you are - I used approx. 3 cups of dried penne which was enough for a hearty dinner and leftovers the next day)
3/4 c. Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (freshly grated or shaved)
1 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
2 c. chanterelle mushrooms, roughly chopped (optional)

Heat 1 T. of the olive oil in a medium-sized skillet over medium heat. Add parsnips to pan and cook approximately 10 minutes or until tender and browned, stirring occassionally, and season with a pinch of salt. Place in a large bowl (which you'll use to mix all of the ingredients together later) and keep warm.

Meanwhile, heat another 1 T. olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and a pinch of salt (which helps the onions cook down) and cook for approximately 20 minutes or until tender and golden brown.

Start the water for the pasta and salt the pasta water generously. Cook pasta according to directions.

Meanwhile, Stir in the thyme and garlic to the pan with the onions and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occassionally. Add white wine to pan and cook for another 2-3 minutes until liquid is almost all absorbed. Stir in the kale and broth (or wine/water) and cook, covered, for 5 minutes or until kale is tender, stirring once or twice. Uncover and reduce heat to low, cooking another 4 minutes or so until kale is very tender, stirring occassionally. Season with salt and pepper.

If using chanterelle mushrooms, in the pan used for the parsnips, melt 1 t. butter over medium heat. Saute the mushrooms for approximately 3-4 minutes or until tender and season with salt and pepper.

Reserve 3/4 c. of the pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta. The cooking water will help bind all of the ingredients together and create a sauce. Add the pasta to the large bowl with the parsnips and add the kale and onion mixture as well as the mushrooms, if using. Add 1/2 c. of the cheese, 1 t. salt, and 1/2 t. pepper, and pour the pasta water over the mixtures, stirring well to combine. Serve with additional Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

Enjoy!