Lentil Soup #1: A “One-Pot-Wonder”

This is another one of those soups that can definitely be served as a main course.  I LOVE lentil soup and the million variations that can be done with it.  This version is “classic” and is a one-pot-wonder because you get all of your food categories in one pot!  Perfect if you have kids in your house!

1.  Saute a whole chopped onion in two tablespoons of vegetable oil (in a large soup pot)

2.  Add in 5 cloves of chopped garlic.

3.  Add 2 bay leaves, a few pinches of fresh or dried rosemary, and a teaspoon or two of dried oregano.  Stir, stir, stir so it doesn’t burn to the bottom of the pot.  If it starts to get too brown, add a splash of water.

4.  Add two chopped carrots, two stalks of chopped celery, a can of diced tomatoes, and four small chopped potatoes.

5.  Oh, almost forgot!  Add 1-1.5 cups of dried green lentils!

6.  Now add 6-8 cups of water, a dash of salt and a splash of ground black pepper.

7.  Cover and simmer until everything is cooked through (about an hour).

8.  Add a cup or so of chopped spinach (I usually remove the bay leaves before I add the spinach, since my two-year-old might not notice the difference between an edible and inedible leaf).

Serve with grated parmesan, a side salad, and the super-easy bread recipe bread!

Tip:  I make a huge batch and then freeze a bunch of two-year-old-serving-sized portions and keep them on hand because this soup makes a perfect one-bowl lunch and is so much better than canned soup!

 

Chicken Posole

Technically a soup, this is a really, really quick dinner that is absolutely delicious!  Serve it with chips and salsa and/or limey-smokey-slaw on the side.

1.  Grill a couple of chicken breasts, or buy a rotisserie chicken.  Shred.  Set aside.

2.  Heat one tablespoon of vegetable oil in a pot.

3.  Pour in one jar of green salsa, let sizzle a few minutes.

4.  Add 2-3 jars of water to the pot and stir.  Heat until hot.

5.  Add a big can of hominy (white or yellow) to the pot.

6.  Dump the chicken into the pot.  Turn off the heat, and serve in bowls with a nice big lime wedge (squeezed!).

7.  Top with one or more of the following:

• Chopped cilantro
• Cubed avocado
• Chopped green onion
• Shredded cabbage
• Tortilla chips
• Sliced raddish

8.  Don’t forget the cerveza!

Bagel Brunch

Here’s a little idea for a “schmear” that will make hosting friends on a Sunday morning a snap!  I credit my mother-in-law for this one:

1.  Chop up a small package of smoked salmon (4oz?).
2. Thinly slice two whole green onions (greens and whites)
3. Mike the lox and scallions into a small container of whippped cream cheese.
4.  Serve on toasted bagels with sliced tomatoes and cucumbers (from your garden or the farmers’ market) and capers if you have them handy.

Whip up some eggs scrambled with salsa and a salad made from fresh berries and other seasonal fruit (melons, stone fruits, mmm) with some chopped mint thrown in, and ta-da!  Brunch!

Yum Veggies with Tofu Over Rice

We probably all have our favorite stir-fry recipes.  Here’s a quick dinner that packs a lot of flavor.  And, crazy enough, doesn’t involve any garlic!

1.  Cook up some rice (this takes a while, so get it going before you start in on the other stuff).

2.  Cube a package of extra firm tofu.

3.  Put 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil into a pan and fry the tofu until it is browned on all sides.

4.  To the browned tofu, add a mixture of 1/8 cup soy sauce, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, and about a teaspoon of ground black pepper.  Cook another minute until all of the liquid is absorbed.  Remove from pan into a bowl.

5.  Thinly slice a medium onion, one green pepper, and any other veggies you have on hand (cabbage, broccoli, greens).  The main two are the onion and pepper, as these are going to give this particular stir-fry its unique flavor – the other veggies are all just icing on the cake.

6.  Stir-fry the onion in two tablespoons of vegetable oil until they start to caramelize.  Add the green pepper and stir-fry until soft.  Add the other veggies in order of how long they take to cook (harder ones first).  When all the veggies are cooked to your liking, sprinkle the mixture with a dash of salt and a dash of WHITE pepper (this is a key ingredient – do not use any other type of pepper!) to taste.

7.  Add the tofu back into the veggies to heat it all through and serve over the rice.

This goes great with the cucumber salad found on this blog.

 

Super Easy Bread Recipe – Guest Blog Submission

Today’s recipe is a “guest post” from my friend Marianka.  She actually found the recipe in the New York Times a while back.  I made this bread yesterday and the consistency was unbelievable – chewy on the inside, crusty on the outside – I am trying not to consume the entire loaf as I write this.  Oh, and it’s SUPER easy to make!  Try it!

1.  Combine in a large bowl:

• 3 C flour (all-purpose or bread flour: I used 1 cup whole wheat, two cups white)
• 1/4 tsp instant yeast (active dry yeast works fine)
• 1 1/4 tsp salt

2.  Dump in and mix:

• 1 1/2 C tepid water

3.  Now you have a sticky, sloppy dough in the bowl. Cover it with plastic wrap or a plate, and set it somewhere warmish. Like the top of the refrigerator. Let it be for 12-20 hours. It will spread out and get very loose and a bit bubbly.

4.  About 2 hours before you want to bake the bread, lay out a floured/cornmeal dusted dishtowel or just a piece of parchment paper. Flour your hands well and gather up the messy dough into a blob. Give it a bit of shape by folding it under itself a few times. Then lay it on the towel/paper to rise for about 1-2 hours. It is ready when the dough is slow to return after you poke it (gently!) with a finger.

5.  Preheat oven to 450 F, and slip a covered dutch oven in to preheat as well. It needs to be piping hot.

6.  Take the pot out and uncover it. Transfer the dough to the pot, however neatly or messily it goes. You might have to peel it off and dump it in. Don’t worry, just aim for the middle of the pot. Cover with the lid and put it in the oven.

7.  Bake with the lid on for 30 minutes. Remove lid and bake for 15 minutes more until nicely browned, or until the bread sounds hollow when you knock on it.

8.  Done! Let it cool, if you can wait!

Here is a link to the NY Times article video, for those of you who are so inclined:  http://video.nytimes.com/video/2011/01/26/dining/1248069588694/no-knead-bread.html

p.s. Marianka saw a tip somewhere for those who do not have a dutch oven (which is the key for the crunchy crust). Essentially, if you have a pizza stone in the oven, just place your dough on the stone and cover with a metal bowl. This traps the moisture in much the same way as a dutch oven.

My “Famous” Lasagna

I get asked for this recipe a lot.  It takes about 5 minutes to assemble, and an hour to bake.  It goes great with garlic bread (wow, I really DO have a garlic thing, don’t I?), so I’ve included the recipe for that below as well.

1.  Coat the bottom of a largish pyrex baking dish with about 1/4 cup tomato sauce mixed with a few tablespoons of water.

2.  Lay down a layer unboiled lasagna noodles.  You can use any kind of lasagna noodles, they don’t have to be labeled “no boil.”

3.  Cover the noodles with a thin layer of shredded mozzarella cheese.

4.  In a bowl, mix up:

• one package of frozen spinach, de-thawed
• one can of diced tomatoes (including the juice)
• at least two cups of ricotta cheese, more if you want more (you can substitute cottage cheese too, if that’s all you’ve got in your fridge)
• one tablespoon of italian seasonings (dried basic, oregano, etc.)

5.  Spread half of the mixture from the bowl on top of the shredded mozzarella.

6.  Add another layer of noodles.

7.  Add a thick layer of sauce (about 1/2 of a the jar).

8.  Add the rest of the ricotta mixture and another layer of mozzarella.

9.  Top it off with a layer of noodles.

10.  Finish it off with the rest of the sauce mixed with 1/4 cup of water, and a last layer of mozzarella.

11.  Cover with tin foil and bake in a 350 degree oven for about an hour.

For the Garlic Bread:

1.  Slice a baguette longways so you have a “top” and a “bottom”.  I also usually slice the baguette in half, as they are too long to fit in my oven!

2.  Melt half a stick of unsalted butter, 4 cloves of pressed garlic, a dash of salt, and a tablespoon of italian seasonings in the microwave until just liquid (don’t overdo it or the mixture will burn).

3.  Spread the mixture onto the baguette halves.  Close up the tops and bottoms, wrap in tin foil, and toast until warm.

4.  Remove from the oven and slice into 1 inch pieces.

Serve this with a side salad (see balsamic dressing recipe), and you’ve got a real feast!

Balsamic Vinaigrette

I’d be severely remiss if I didn’t give you this recipe because it goes wonderfully drizzled on pretty much anything that comes out of your garden.

Idea #1:  Roast up your garden veggies in the oven or grill and drizzle it on.

Idea #2:  Toss chopped up tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil and drizzle it on.

Idea #3:  Make a salad, and – you guessed it – drizzle it on!

Idea #4:  You can actually also use this as a marinade for steak!

1.  Combine 4 cloves of pressed garlic, 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar, a teaspoon of dry mustard, and a dash of salt and pepper in a jar.  Shake, shake, shake.

2.  Add a 1/4 cup of oil and shake again.

3.  Serve.

Trust me, you will be licking the plate clean.

Browned Zucchini with Pasta

OK, so you still have MORE zucchini to eat?  Well, not to fear!  I’m not done with the garden bounty recipes yet!  Here’s another really quick pasta dish that is light enough to serve on a 90 degree evening and doesn’t require heating up the kitchen with a ton of stove time.

1.  Slice a zucchini or two into the thinnest rounds you can manage

2.  Put some oil into a frying pan and let it heat up

3.  Add the zucchini and fry until it starts to turn brown.  Stir often so it doesn’t burn.

4.  Add two or three cloves of pressed garlic and a very small dash of salt and pepper.  Cook a few more minutes.  If you want a little heat, add a shake or two of red pepper flakes.

5.  Serve over pasta with freshly grated parmesan cheese and a glass of white wine.

Quick Cucumber Salad

I’m still stuck on the garden bounty theme here.  Please bare with me.

I make this one ALL of the time.  It is so fast and light and refreshing… and a perfect way to use those crispy, sweet summer cukes.

1.  Slice a cucumber or two into thin rounds

2.  Drizzle with a tiny dash of soy sauce and a dash of toasted sesame oil.  Toss to coat.

3.  Throw in some toasted sesame seeds or chopped green onion or a dash of pepper if you want, but only if you’re feeling fancy-pants

Crunch, crunch away!

Shortcut Zucchini or Eggplant Parmesan

If, like my dear friend mentioned in my previous post, you are feeling like you are drowning in zucchini and/or eggplant, here’s a very quick dinner recipe that is de-lish!

1.  Slice 2-3 zucchinis or 1-2 eggplants into 1/4 inch thick rounds

2. Open a jar of tomato sauce (feel free to add more diced tomatoes if your garden is overflowing)

3.  Pour a cup of tomato sauce onto the bottom of a pyrex or other type of easy-clean baking dish

4. Now add a layer of zucchini or eggplant

5.  Sprinkle the top of the veggie layer with another 1/4 of pasta sauce and then 1/2 a cup of grated mozzarella cheese

6.  Time for another veggie layer

7.  More sauce and cheese please!

8.  Keep going until you’ve reached the top of the baking dish, finishing with a cheese layer, and a sprinkle of, yep, parmesan cheese!!!!

9.  Cover with tinfoil and bake at 350 degrees until the veggies are cooked to your liking and the whole thing is hot and bubbly.  This is a good time to make yourself a glass of lemonade and watch the sunset.

10.  Serve over your favorite pasta or with a toasted butter-and-garlic smeared baguette

Happy summer!