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>Polenta Circles with Shrooms, Flowers n’ Beans

28 Apr

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Plating food on a square white plate makes me feel all fancy pants.

A drizzle of balsamic is my go-to for a finishing touch.

A sprig of something green (in this case, a snip of carrot top greens) makes all the colors pop.

Crisp browned edges are my weakness.

Hi dinner.


Polenta Circles with Shrooms, Flowers n’ Beans

vegetarian, gluten-free

serves 4

1 large head of cauliflower, chopped
8 oz of mushrooms, sliced
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1 tube of already made polenta, sliced into circles
1 can of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

olive oil
salt
pepper
balsamic

Heat the oven to 475 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Spread out your chopped cauliflower and drizzle with a touch of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Bake in the oven for about 20-25 minutes, until nice and browned around some of the edges.

Meanwhile, heat a (cast-iron, if you have it) skillet with some more olive oil. Add as many polenta circles as can comfortably fit in the pan and fry on each side until crisped looking with a little color. Repeat with remaining polenta circles.

While the polenta cooks, heat a clean pan without oil and add the mushrooms. Saute for a few minutes. Then add some oil and sliced red onion. Let cook until soft and colored.

Add the beans and roasted cauliflower to the pan with the mushrooms/onions. Drizzle in some balsamic.

Serve next to or atop polenta circles. Use a square white plate if you’re feelin’ fancy pants. Or add a “not-so-fancy-pants” sprig of green to appear fancy-pants.

WANT MORE POLENTA RECIPES?
–Basic polenta
–Polenta cake with olive oil and rosemary
–Mushroom etc. and sausage ragu over polenta

Give me an “M” Matzo Lasagna

21 Apr

Matzo lasagna and a shot-glass full of Manischewitz wine. Good dinner. Good dinner, indeed.

Hey it’s Passover, the Jewish holiday that remembers and celebrates the Jewish people’s exodus from slavery. Good stuff. Traditionally Jews celebrate by having a big dinner called a “Seder” (Hebrew for ‘order’) where the story of this exodus from slavery is re-told. Then for 8 days it is common to refrain from any bread products except for matzo, which is an unleavened sheet of crunchiness.

You can make loads of awesome goods with matzo: matzo brei (aka matzo n’ eggs), matzo pizza (aka melted cheese and sauce atop matzo), matzo granola, matzo toffee crunch, matzo spread with butter, matzo spread with cream cheese, matzo slathered with baba ganoush (eggplant dip), etc. etc.

Tonight I give you MATZO LASAGNA. It’s just like regular lasagna but instead of lasagna noodles, I used sheets of matzo that I ran under cold water.

And let me tell ya, this is goooood stuff, especially when you turn on the broiler for the last 5 minutes of baking. Browned cheesy delight.


I sauteed some onion and dino-kale to add between the layers of sauce and cheese. Feel free to use mushrooms, spinach, summer squash, whatever you want.


If you are in a Passover rut, or just like matzo, or just like lasagna, this is the business right here.


Oh, and don’t forget the Manischewitz wine. So sweet, so delish, so much needed.

Matzo Lasagna

I’ve have been making this recipe for over 2 years. I printed it online, possibly from “The Jew and the Carrot” although I have yet to find exactly where on the website.

makes a 13 x 9 inch pan’s-worth of goodness
(8-12 servings?)

Ingredients
1 cup part-skim ricotta
2 cups non-fat cottage cheese
4 cups tomato sauce
1 onion, chopped
1 large bunch kale
Enough matzo sheets to make four layers in a 13 x 9 inch baking dish, lightly softened with water (I just ran it under the tap water for a few seconds as needed)
Grated mozzarella cheese
Salt and Pepper

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a saute pan, brown onions and chopped kale in some olive oil and set aside.

3. In a bowl, mix ricotta, cottage cheese, and some salt and pepper.

4. Spoon 1 cup of the tomato sauce on the bottom of the baking dish. Cover with one layer of moistened matzo. Layer 1/3 of the cheese mixture, 1/3 of the vegetable mixture, and 2/3 cup of the sauce. Add some salt and pepper between each layer. Repeat twice. Cover with a final layer of moistened matzo, sauce, and mozzarella cheese.

5. Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes, uncover and bake another 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated and cheese is melted and beginning to brown (I turned the broiler on for the last few minutes of baking). Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Heaven in a mazto.

Pumpkin Chickpea Quinoa with Haricot Vert and Almonds

13 Apr


Oh hey, remember like half a year ago when I made my own pumpkin puree? And then I made mac n’ cheese with it? Yep. Me too.

Well I froze a few large yogurt containers-worth of puree. I let one thaw out in the fridge over night yesterday. And today I added a bunch to some quinoa, along with some sauteed onions and haricot vert, chickpeas, and slivered almonds (I also added about a tablespoon of nutritional yeast for some hidden protein).

Yum.

(I’m sort of sick of quinoa, though)

I promise that I will bake you something soon.

I promise that in addition to a tray of garlic-y rosemary roasted potatoes and cauliflower I will soon give you fresh-baked cookies.


I promise that I’ll stop posting about quinoa and find another grain to fall in love with (I have my eye on farro…).

Spare me, for now.


Pumpkin Chickpea Quinoa with Haricot Vert and Almonds

Serves 6

1 cup dry quinoa
2 cups water
1 small onion, sliced thin
large handful of haricot vert (green beans), cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup of pumpkin puree (or squash)
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon cumin
salt, pepper
1 can garbanzo beans
1/4 cup almonds, toasted and chopped
1/4 cup golden raisins
grated cheese (Pecornio or Parmesan)

1. Prepare the quinoa. Add 1 cup of dry quinoa and 2 cups water to a saucepan. Boil. Turn heat to low, simmer, cover, and leave it for about 15 minutes until done.

2. Saute the onion in olive oil until transluscent. Add the green beans and cook for about 4 more minutes. Add the pumpkin, nutritional yeast, cumin, salt, pepper. Add the cooked quinoa, garbanzo beans, almonds, and raisins. Grate cheese over the top.

Roasted Beets, Sautéed Chard, and Quinoa Salad with YUBA!!!

3 Apr

I’ve been trying to cook quick, healthy meals for myself. For me, and for you.

Well, ok, a balanced diet can allow a chocolate chip cookie with sea salt sometimes too, especially when I bought it at a HUGE bakesale with all of the proceeds going to Japan. Yum.

And ok, I believe that a balanced diet also allows a trip to Oakland’s newest mac n’ cheese hotspot, Homeroom. “Mac the Goat” (goat cheese and scallions) and Peanut Butter Pie. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity. It was phenomenal.

Alright alright, back to quick healthy meals. Today I took a walk to the farmer’s market. I sat in the sun, I started to read a book for fun, and I bought some colorful items to cook for dinner.

Chioggia Beets (google image them, so beautiful!) aka Candy-Stripe Beets:

Red-Stemmed Swiss Chard:


Yuba aka Tofu Skins:

I roasted the beets with a little water for about 45 minutes to an hour. I chopped my beets and added them to my sauteed chard. I mixed everything together with some quinoa and black beans and topped it all off with my spicy yuba.

I now have a happy tummy. I’ve been needing this.

But really, can you please come over for dinner? I need some company and I want to cook for you AND I will do your dishes. Please. It will be fun, I promise.

Roasted Beets, Sauteed Chard, and Quinoa Salad with YUBA!!!

I listed all of the ingredients in italics before each step

Serves 4-6 (or 1 + leftovers!)

Beets, about 1 pound
salt
water
red vinegar

1. Roast your beets. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Wash and trim your beets then place them in a baking pan, sprinkle the beets with salt, and fill the pan with about 1/8th of an inch of water. Cover and roast for about 30 minutes to an hour, until a knife can very easily pierce the beets through to the center. Cool, peel (I used a combo of a paring knife plus my hands; its messy, don’t sweat it), chop, and sprinkle with salt and some red vinegar.

1 onion, chopped
1 bunch chard
salt
vinegar
water or broth

2. Saute the chard. Slice an onion and set aside. Wash your chard. Pull the leaves from the ribs. Trim the ends from the ribs and then cut them into thin slices. Cut the leaves into wide ribbons. Heat a pan with about 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the onion and saute for about 5 minutes. Add the chard and cook until the leaves are tender. Add some salt. Add a little bit of water or stock if the pan gets dry and the onions begin to stick and brown.


1 cup dry quinoa
1 cup water
1 cup broth

3. Prepare your quinoa. I used 1 cup of quinoa (rinsed), 1 cup of vegetable broth (leftover from making my polenta earlier this week), and 1 cup of water. Combine everything in the pan, boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 15 mintues.

Everything in steps 1-3 + black beans + yuba

4. Assembly. Combine the beets and the chard. Dump the quinoa into the mix. I added black beans because I had some left over from earlier in the week. Salt, pepper, vinegar (I used red), and top with yuba, or cheese, or nuts, or whatever the heck you feel like.

>15 Minute Dinner. Melty Goodness in a Pinch.

29 Mar

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Roasted broccoli. Sliced cherry tomatoes with a pinch of flaky Maldon sea salt and a drizzle of balsamic. Creamy avocado and sprinkle of black beans. Melty cheese sandwiched between two corn tortillas all grilled up in my cast-iron skillet. 15 minutes. Ready, set, go.

Roasted Broccoli

1 head broccoli, chopped
Olive oil drizzle
Salt and pepper

1. Heat oven to 475 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment and place your cut up broccoli on the pan with a touch of olive oil, salt, and pepper. 15 minutes. Go.

Corn Tortilla Quesadilla

oil (I used olive oil)
2 corn tortillas, or enough for however many quesadillas you want to make
Cheeeeese! (I used mozzarella and Pecorino)
sprinkle of black beans
sliced cherry tomato
avocado
salt

1. Heat your cast iron skillet (or any skillet that you fancy). Add a touch of oil. Place one tortilla on the pan. Sprinkle your cheese mix and a few beans, 4 baby tomato halves, and 3 small avocado slices. Place the other tortilla on top. Cook, flip, you get it. Melty goodness. It’s hard to just have one.


Don’t forget to eat those fried cheesy bits leftover in the pan. To-die-for.

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