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Gypsy Soup

9 Apr

Gypsy Soup

Salty feta crumbles. Soft curls of Parmesan.

Barely wilted lacinato kale, forest green.

Tender chickpeas with rough cut veggies and just enough liquid to eat from a bowl.

Gypsy soup, a delightful vegetable soup that you can mix and match with whatever orange and green vegetables you desire. Will last you for daysss. Yay to getting those veggies into the diet.

My trick to a great soup is to finish with a tiny drizzle of balsamic. I add the vinegar, then top with tons of cheese, and I’m good to go.

Gypsy soup

Serves 8-10; you can cut the recipe in half if you think this will be too much, but I appreciate a batch of soup that will last me a while. You can also freeze the soup, just see below in the directions…
Ingredients
4 tablespoons olive oil
2-3 medium yellow onions, chopped coarsely
6 stalks celery, chopped
8 medium cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 jalapeno, seeds and membrane removed, diced
1 large sweet potato (or winter squash), peeled and chopped into 1-inch pieces
2 large carrots, sliced into thin coins or roughly chopped
2 small zucchini, chopped
28 ounces crushed tomatoes
2 cans chickpeas (the original recipe uses about 3 cans)
5 cups liquid (I used 4 cups water + 1 cup veg. broth)
3 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons turmeric
4 teaspoons mild paprika
1 bay leaf
Dash of cayenne
1 pound greens (I used a mixture of kale and mustard greens), trimmed and, if large, cut into 2-inch-wide pieces

Parmesan or Asiago cheese + crumbled feta, for topping (or any other yummy salty cheese)

Balsamic vinegar, for drizzling

Directions

In your biggest pot, heat the olive oil. Saute the onions, garlic, celery, and jalapeno until aromatic and beginning to soften, about 5-7 minutes. Add the sweet potato and carrots and continue to saute, stirring occasionally, for another 5 minutes or so. Add the zucchini, tomatoes, chickpeas, broth/water, salt, turmeric, paprika, bay leaf, and cayenne. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce to a rapid simmer, stirring occasionally until sweet potato and carrots are tender. Stir in the greens, allowing to wilt before removing the soup from the heat.

Serve with a good dusting of cheese and a small drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

To freeze the soup, allow to cool completely. Ladle into gallon-size freezer bags. Seal, smoothing out any air pockets, and lay flat in the freezer to store.

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Black Bean Sweet Potato Stew with tortilla crispies and avo chunks

19 Feb

Every Thursday I volunteer with a dietitian and listen to people talk about what they eat on a daily basis.

I gather that many people living in New York City go out to eat…a lot. And who is to blame? There are so many available and easy restaurants to eat at here.

Dietitians talk about making small dietary and lifestyle changes. Small changes may add up to big results later.

Even myself, working 5 nights a week as a pastry cook (nevermind that I am a dietitian-in-training and a pastry cook all at the same time…trust me, I am in a constant state of confusion…), I live for my one night a week that I actually get to cook dinner.

Cooking at home can cut your sodium/saturated fat intake by a great deal. And hopefully you will have leftovers to eat for lunch the next day or so. Oh, and it’s probably a lot cheaper.

Stews and “everything salads” are my go-to’s. I’m all over the tofu curries, the peanut stews, the grainy green soups, the classic bean and pasta minestrones.

This stew that I made from Sprouted Kitchen’s blog really hit the spot for me this week. I rarely cook with cabbage, and I enjoyed it very much in this stew. And I think that pureeing a bit of the soup just to thicken the broth a bit is key here. Plus the avocado + tortilla crispies are divine.

February is national Healthy Heart month. Do something good for your heart and make this stew. Your heart will thank you later.

Black Bean Sweet Potato Stew with tortilla crispies and avo chunks 

from Sprouted Kitchen, serves 4-6

1 T. coconut oil or extra virgin olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 a small head of cabbage, chopped

2 medium sweet potatoes (about 3 cups), peeled and cubed (you could also use a winter squash)

3 cups veggie broth

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. cocoa powder

pinch of chipotle powder, cayenne pepper, or chili flakes

2 cups cooked black beans (about 1 can drained and rinsed)

salt to taste

avocado cubes

cilantro

Tortilla Crispies

3 corn tortillas

scant 1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil

salt

In a heavy bottomed pot, warm the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and saute until just beginning to brown, about 6-8 minutes. Add the garlic, cabbage, squash and broth. Turn the heat down to a gentle simmer, cover the pot and cook for about 15-20 minutes for the vegetables to cook.

Add the spices and the beans and stir. Let everything continue to cook another ten minutes for the flavors to blend. Salt to taste. Pulse the soup a few times with an immersion blender to thicken up the broth a bit. This is optional, but makes it seem a bit thicker. You could alternatively, run just a bit of the soup through a blender or food processor, and add it back in to the pot. OR a sprinkle of cornmeal will help thicken it as well. (I put a bit of my soup in the blender and added it back to the pot)

For the tortilla crispies, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Stack them and slice into thin matchsticks. Spread on a baking sheet, drizzle with the oil, sprinkle the salt and toss gently to coat. Spread them in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake for about 10-15 minutes until they are light brown and crispy, giving the pan a shake halfway through.

Garnish each both with some diced avocado, a handful of chopped cilantro and some of the tortilla crispies!

G-nut Stew, Re-Done for the New Year

4 Jan

Happy New Year, everyone.

I thought I would bring you my updated version of this g-nut aka peanut stew. I have been making this stew for over 2 years now and it never fails to satisfy me and leave me with leftovers for the week.

I usually make this stew with garbanzo beans, but this time around I decided to use black-eyed peas. It is thought that on New Years Day if you eat black-eyed peas and greens then you will have prosperity and luck in the coming year. And who doesn’t want a little good fortune?

I am applying for an internship to eventually become a registered dietitian, and I need and want all the luck and prosperity I can get this year! Black eyed peas are just like most other beans and legumes, packed with protein, fiber, and iron and are great for reducing cholesterol.

With orange sweet potatoes and carrots, green peppers and chard, anti-inflammatory alliums onion/garlic, and our spicy friend ginger, this stew is packed with good-for-you veggies. The sauce for the stew is peanut butter and broth. Easy and simple.

I ran out of brown rice, so I made the stew and put it over white rice. Fine. Delish. Thank goodness for rice cookers. I have also made this stew with quinoa, or you could even pair it with cornbread.

I like to chop all of my ingredients up first before cooking, so that I can just dump the bowl into the pan quickly and have the stew ready in minutes. Because when I’m hungry, I want dinner FAST.

Let’s bring in this new year with lots of prosperity, luck, health, and delicious food!

African G-nut (aka Peanut) Stew

see my original post here

serves 4-6

2 Tablespoons vegetable or canola oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon of fresh ginger, grated (NOTE: I like to keep extra ginger in the freezer so I have it on-hand at a moments notice)

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons ground coriander

2 medium sweet potatoes, diced

1 carrot, diced

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 cups veggie broth

1 green bell pepper, diced

1 15-oz can of black-eyed peas

1/2 bunch of swiss chard, stems removed and roughly chopped or torn

1/2 cup peanut butter

optional: cilantro or parsley, for garnish

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the ground cumin and ground coriander and cook for 1 minute. Add the sweet potatoes and carrot and cook, stirring occasionally, for another 5 minutes.
2. Add the salt, vegetable broth, green pepper and garbanzo beans. Bring the stew to a boil, add the swiss chard, then cover and reduce to a simmer. Cook for 8-10 minutes, or until the sweet potato and carrot are soft and the chard has wilted slightly. Mix in the peanut butter and cook for a final 5 minutes. If you want a thinner or thicker stew, you can add more peanut butter or, alternatively, more broth.
3. Serve the stew hot, over rice/quinoa/couscous, with toasted peanuts and cilantro or parsley as a garnish.

Warm Winter Meals…my go-to’s

11 Dec

I AM FREEZING!

Let’s you and me warm up with some cozy winter meals. I am rounding up a few of my go-to warm recipes that I find myself craving again and again.

Chicken Marbella: This chicken never fails to please…makes the house smell so cozy!

African G-Nut Stew: Savory recipes that call for peanut butter make me swoon.

Green n’ Yellow Risotto: Nothing screams warmth like a piping hot bowl of creamy risotto.

Mushroom Etc. and Sausage Ragu over Polenta: Cheesy polenta + Savory Sausage + Quickly Sauteed Veg

Lasagna! Layered pasta filled with veggies, basil, and ricotta. With a touch of fresh nutmeg for good measure.

Minestrone Soup. Warm broth, hearty beans, crusty bread.

Quiche. The savory pie that can be eaten morning, noon, or night.

Get your ovens preheating and your stove-tops flaming because it is time to warm things up for the cold winter ahead of us.

Israeli Couscous Salad + NY Eating (Diner) + Sloppy Joes + Oven Mishaps/Over-Cheesing

23 Aug

Today I went on a lunch date with an old friend. We ate at a great restaurant right near the Williamsburg bridge in Brooklyn. Diner. We sat outside on the patio with a delightful sunny breeze drifting by. Our server was quite the charmer, he even sat down at our table as he described the menu items, which included rabbit terrine, fried green tomato and egg sandwich on brioche, fried chicken with a biscuit and homemade peach jam, and bratwurst. We ended up sharing the market salad (purslane, corn, tomatoes, buttermilk dressing) and the fried green tomato and egg sandwich. The sandwich came with crunchy-on-the-outside-soft-centered fries, specked with flaky salt chunks. It was a darling lunch. Diner even has a quarterly magazine that I cannot wait to delve into. I then proceeded to drag my old friend up and around Williamsburg, making a quick coffee stop at Bakeri and heading back to Manhattan via the 4$ East River Ferry.

Tonight as I was brainstorming dinner ideas, that market salad with purslane (which, I believe is an edible weed) was still in my thoughts. It was just so satisfying. And it definitely counter-acted those delicious salty fries that I was eating, and those AMAZING sloppy joes that I made for dinner last night (on a toasted English muffin, with tortilla chips and roasted broccoli).

Israeli couscous in a salad. My dinner (not to be confused with Diner). My family used to call Israeli couscous “octopus eggs.” I still don’t know why that never irked me. Add some nectarines and dried sour cherries. Feta cheese and garbanzo beans. With cubed hacked cucumbers, slivered radishes, and spinach leaves. A cool crunchy sweet and savory salad. While I appreciate a nice homemade dressing, I am too lazy in the comfort of my own home and almost always opt for a drizzle of balsamic and olive oil with flaky salt and course ground pepper. It never fails me.

Oooo, and I want to tell you about a few of the things that I have been making this last week or so:

Homemade Pizza. It was quite good, however I went a tad overboard with the fresh pulled mozz. And my dang oven likes to burn things very quickly and set off the smoke alarm. Needless to say, I still need to perfect my pizza making and my fix my old, has-a-mind-of-its-own oven before I give you a recipe. BUT, a tip from me to you is to always throw a dash of cornmeal on the pan before baking. Texture, baby, it’s all about texture.

I mentioned Sloppy Joe’s earlier. Go to Ree’s website. Make her sloppy joe’s. Read her book, “Black Heels to Tractor Wheels.”

I also mentioned my wacko oven earlier. I was trying to make these cookies from David Lebovitz. I only baked off 4 of them tonight. I caught them just before my oven was about to cinch them to burnt smithereens. They were chewy and crispy and chocolaty and perfect with milk. I still have dough in my fridge. I am going to figure this oven mishap out.

In the meantime, Couscous.

Israeli Couscous Salad

1 box of Israeli Couscous

1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

1 block of feta, cubed

1/2 cup dried sour cherries

1/4 of an English cucumber, cubed

1/2 a large nectarine, cubed

2 small radishes, quartered and thinly sliced

1-2 large handfuls of fresh spinach

salt, pepper, olive oil, balsamic vinegar

1. Make your couscous according to the directions on the box. (toast the couscous in a pot, pour boiling water over it, simmer until done).

2. Have all of your add-ins chopped and ready to go. Add the couscous and toss. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic and add salt and pepper.

**A poached or hard-boiled egg sounds delightful if you are looking to boost up the protein in this salad.

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