Chard Polenta Bake

This is one of the rare things I pictured in my head and then made according to what was in my head.

The French lentil recipe is modified from someone else's, though it's a lot like my mother's tomato sauce just with some extra broth and lentils in it. 

PART 1

1 TABLESPOON OLIVE OIL

• 1 CUP DICED YELLOW ONIONS
• 1 CUP DICED CARROTS
• 1 CUP DICED CELERY (optional)
• 4 GARLIC CLOVES, MINCED
• ONE 28-OUNCE CAN DICED TOMATOES
• ONE 4-OUNCE CAN TOMATO PASTE
• 1 1∕4 CUP FRENCH GREEN LENTILS
• 2 CUPS VEGETABLE BROTH
• 1 BAY LEAF
• 1 1∕2 TEASPOONS MINCED FRESH ROSEMARY (Important)
• 2 TEASPOONS FRESH THYME LEAVES
• 2 TEASPOONS KOSHER SALT
• 1∕2 TEASPOON FRESHLY GROUND BLACK PEPPER

In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, heat the olive oil. Add the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic. Sauté until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and paste with their juices, the lentils, broth, bay leaf, rosemary, thyme, salt, and pepper. Bring to a low boil, then lower to a simmer. Cover and simmer about 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Watch to make sure it doesn’t burn. Cook uncovered for an additional 10 minutes.

PART 2:

Separately, make this polenta:

Ingredients

6 cups water

2 teaspoons salt

1 3/4 cups yellow cornmeal

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Directions

Bring 6 cups of water to a boil in a heavy large saucepan. Add 2 teaspoons of salt. Gradually whisk in the cornmeal. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the mixture thickens and the cornmeal is tender, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Turn off the heat. Add the butter, and stir until melted.

It’s that Giada lady’s.

Part 3:

Then, clean chard and cut it into strips.

Get a big pan. Put half the lentils in the bottom, then the raw chard leaves (2-3 leaves thick), then half the polenta, then the rest of the lentils, then the rest of the chard, then rest of polenta on top with a little fresh grated Parmesan or what have you. Bake it at 350 until the polenta looks crispy and golden. Mmmm.

La Phet

At Rangoon in Philadelphia they make an out of this world green tea-leaf salad. I've been on a budget lately so I've been thinking about how to make this at home. This recipe works great. I left out the shrimp and the soy crunchies.

This recipe is also really good looking: just take the best from this one and the one above. It has a lot of seeds (Livvy!) You don't need vinegar to make a great tasting LaPhet.

Hollyhock Dressing

I think someone saw this served at J's and called it Hippie Sauce. It's an oldie but goodie I had at the Insight Meditation Society in MA with sprouts, olives, carrots, lettuce and feta. Just leave the feta off obv for a vegan treat.

Once in January I was so down. So I made the above salad and then made hot OreIda potato french fries and put them on top. I'm not really wanting to eat that kind of stuff regularly so I made hot roasted fennel and potato and put the dressing on over arugula and it was great. Then in the summer I once made a salad of hot potatoes, fennel and chicken sausage then put it over a bed of arugula, avocado and tomato with cumin lime vinaigrette. Holy Moly. For such a vinaigrette, just put olive oil and lime juice, salt, peppper and cumin in a little bowl and whisk until it emulsifies. Same proportions as a lemon vinaigrette I bet.

Click here for Hollyhock Dressing recipe.

Chickpea Pancakes

Chickpea Crepes-from Shanna Compton, etc.

(adapted to be gluten/grain free from a recipe in Isa Chandra Moskowitz's Vegan Brunch)
1-1/2 cups almond milk (or your fave nondairy milk, unsweetened) 
1/4 cup water
1 cup chickpea flour
1 tbs tapioca flour, cornstarch or arrowroot
1/2 tsp salt
cooking spray/oil

Blend all the ingredients in a food processor or blender. The batter will be thin. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat a crepe pan or nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. The pan is ready when a few drops of water flicked on to it sizzle. Lightly spray or wipe the pan with oil.

Ladle 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup (depending on the size of your pan, and smaller is a bit easier). You may need to tilt the pan to help it spread evenly (but I did not find that necessary).

Cook until the top of the crepe is dry, the tiny bubbles have popped, and the edges are lightly brown and pulling away from the sides. 1-1/2-2 minutes, depending on the heat. Gently run a spatula around and under the sides of the crepe to loosen it, then carefully flip and cook the other side, 30 seconds or more. (Mine were thicker than hers and took a bit longer.) Slide onto a dinner plate and repeat.

These are good with fresh herbs blended in, or any other flavorings you like. But I kinda like to make them plain in case I want them with fruit and peanut butter, for breakfast! (That is so yum. Stack a few, spread peanut butter, reheat in microwave while you warm berries in a sauce pan. Drizzle berries over top of stack, cut into quarters. OMG.)

Tatziki Sauce and Felafels

The traditional sauce for gyros is tzatziki (Greek name), or cacik (pronounced jajik) in Turkey. I've lived in both countries and the recipe is the same. This is a traditional recipe.

First, pick up a large container of plain yogurt, full fat, low fat, or fat free. They all work. Line a collander with plain white paper towels, dump the yogurt into the middle, top with a paper towel. Set the collander over a bowl to catch the whey and set it in the refrigerator to drain. The longer it drains, the thicker it will be. If you let it go long enough, you'll have yogurt-tart cream cheese!

Peel a cucumber, cut it in half, stem to blossom end. Scoop out the seeds with a teaspoon and discard. Grate cucumber, place it in a paper towel and squeeze out as much moisture as possible. Place drained yogurt in a bowl, add the cucumber and two or three cloves of chopped/mashed garlic. I simply use a garlic press. Add a scant teaspoon of salt and 2 tablespoons of good olive oil. Stir to blend and refrigerate for a couple of hours while the flavors merge. That's it! No mayonnaise, and for pity's sake, do NOT use sour cream! A local Greek restaurant does, and it's a travesty! Tzatziki will keep in the fridge for four days or so, but mine is always gone a lot quicker than that!

Oh, and fresh garlic has a nice bite. Garlic powder does not. I prefer the fresh. It's not unheard of to add a bit of dill weed or even spearmint. Or both. Fresh dill is better than dried. But the basic recipe is pretty close to universal in both Greece and Turkey. It's delicious!

(This is from a message board in which someone asked what the white sauce on a gyro was).

• 1 3/4 cups , or 1 15.5 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed Cooked Dried Chickpeas
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 small yellow onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 2 tablespoons chopped mint
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 3 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
• 1/2 cup safflower or canola oil
• For serving: pita bread, sliced tomatoes, thinly sliced red onion, romaine lettuce leaves, and store-bought tahini sauce.

DIRECTIONS

1. STEP 1

   Place half of chickpeas in food processor and pulse a few times until chopped, transfer to a large bowl.

2. STEP 2

   Place remaining chickpeas in food processor with garlic, onion, herbs, spices, baking soda, salt, and lemon juice. Pulse to a thick, chunky paste, about 30 seconds. Transfer to bowl with chopped chickpeas.

3. STEP 3

   Add egg and sesame seeds to bowl and stir to combine. Cover and chill batter in fridge 30 minutes.

4. STEP 4

   Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When oil shimmers, drop heaping tablespoons of batter into skillet and gently press batter into 2-inch-round patties. Cook, turning once, until deep golden brown on both sides, about 4 minutes total. Transfer to paper towel-lined plate to drain.

5. STEP 5

   Serve falafel with pita bread, sliced tomatoes and red onion, romaine leaves, and store-bought tahini dressing.
   
   
   ALso, green felafels made with collards look good through I am unconvinced that it tastes like a true green felafel. http://minimalistbaker.com/better-than-restaurant-falafel-vegan-gluten-free/

Slow Cooker Recipes from Cooks Illustrated Make-Ahead book, which is wonderful

Slow Cooker Black Bean Soup

2T oil
3 medium onions minced
3 ribs celery chopped med
2 medium carrots, chopped med
6 med garlic cloves, minced
5 t cumin
.5 t red pepper flakes
salt
3 cups water
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 pound dried black beans (2 1/4 cups), picked over and rinsed
2 medium smoked ham hocks
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
Ground black pepper

Brown veggies with spices 10-15 min.

Put these in slow cooker with water, broth, beans, ham, bay leaves. Cook 8-10 hours on low.

Remove hocks and leaves. Puree 2 cups of coup in blender, then stir back in. Remove meat from hocks and return to pot. Stir in cilantro, season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.


Slow Cooker Tuscan White Bean Soup

2 T oil
6oz pancetta minced
3 med onions minced
8 med garlice cloves minced
3 C water
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 lb dried cannellini (2.25 cups) picked over, rinsed, socked overnight, and drained
1 Parmesan rind (optional)
2 bay leaves
1/2 t red pepper flakes
1 spring fresh rosemary
pepper
parmesan

Brown pancetta 10 min. Add onions garlic and salt until all is soft. (1/4 t salt)

Transfer the pancetta and onion mixture to the slow cooker insert and stire in the water, broth, beans, Parmesan ring (if using), bay leaves, and pepper flakes until evenly combined. Cover and cook on low until the beans are tender, 10 to 12 hours.

Add the rosemary sprig, cover, and continue until lightly fragrant, about 15 min longer. Remove bay leaves, rosemary and Parmesan rind. Salt and pepper.

Lentil and Chard Stew

2 T oil
3 onions minced
1 lb Swiss Chard, stems off, 1/4 inch pieces
6 med cloves garlic, minced
6 C veggie broth
1 lb carrots
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
12 oz portobello mushroom caps
7 oz brown or green lentils (1 cup) rinsed and picked over
2 bay leaves
1 T minced fresh thyme leaves.
1/2 oz dried porcini mushrooms, rinsed and minced
1T balsamic (optional! Aahhh!)
salt, pepper, olive oil

Heat oil in 12 inch non-stick pan until shimmering. Add onions, chard stems, garlic and 1/3 teaspoon salt and cook until veggies are soft and lightly browned 10-12 minutes

Transfer the onion mixture to slow cooker, add broth, carrots, tomato sauce, mushrooms, lentils, bay leaves, thyme and porcini mushrooms until evenly combined. Cover and cook on low until the soup is thickened and the lentils are tender, 8-10 hours.

Remove and discard bay leaves. Puree 2 C of soup in a blender until smooth, then stir back into slow cooker insert. Stir in the chard leaves, cover, and continue to cook until the leaves are wilted and tender 10-15 minutes longer. Stir in the vinegar (if you don't hate balsamic like I do).

Greek Turkey Burgers and Casino Egg Salad

Last night, I made some turkey burgers for my mom with steamed potatoes and carrots. She made us a lot of hamburgers back in the day, and since I had gotten nice turkey from the co-op that had thawed, this was a very quick way to make something with it. Sometimes crumbled ground turkey doesn't have the greatest texture.

1lb ground turkey

2T chopped onion

1 egg

2T chopped parsley

salt and pepper

.5 t cumin

.25 t cinnamon

handful of oats

Mix all the ingredients above together.

Heat pan and add olive oil. Form the patties in the pan with your fingers. Flip after two or three minutes. Cover and let cook through for 10 minutes.

*

And I just saw this from The Splendid Table and it looks wonderful:

This egg salad supposedly originated with a chef who cooked for European royalty before a stint at the National Casino in Budapest, Hungary. Odds are you won't find this delicious dish on any Las Vegas or Atlantic City menu, but it is a sure bet for lunch or at the dinner hour. Butter and sour cream lend a rich foundation, but it's still lighter than a typical mayonnaise-based egg salad. And the anchovies add a hint of salt and briny depth. This is terrific served with lettuce and fresh vegetables as a salad, or with lettuce and tomato on toast as a sandwich.

• 6 hard-boiled eggs, halved
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
• 3 tablespoons sour cream
• 2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3 anchovy fillets packed in oil, drained and minced
• 1 tablespoon chopped capers
• 1 tablespoon snipped fresh chives
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped red onion or shallot

Scoop the yolks from the halved eggs and put them in a medium bowl. Add the butter, sour cream, vinegar, and pepper. Whisk together until a creamy, smooth paste forms.

Coarsely chop the egg whites and add them to the egg yolk mixture, along with the anchovies, capers, chives and red onion. Gently fold the ingredients until fully mixed.

Serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. The egg salad can be made up to 3 days in advance.

I also want to try this.