Tuna with black bean sauce

This recipe is adapted from Mark Bittman's Roasted Thick Fish Fillets. 

This dish smells marvelous when it's cooking. It's rich and filling for a Monday night dinner. Although it appears to take much longer to prepare, I made the fish, a brown rice pilaf, some flash-fried potatoes, and some steamed cabbage - in under an hour. Honestly, I did. I even put a bottle of wine into the freezer. 

I used frozen thick cut tuna steaks, and lots of freezer items. The premise of this dish is to pan-sear the tuna over medium-high heat for a few minutes on each side, and then finish the cooking in the oven. You add a liquid and some herbs and it creates a rich sauce. I chose a white-wine base with lots of Asian herbs (Thai basil, cilantro), ginger, fermented black bean sauce, and sun-dried tomatoes. My freezer is stocked with frozen herbs, and my pantry is stocked with useful ingredients. The freezer items included frozen fresh ginger, frozen cabbage from my fall CSA-box, Thai basil, and frozen cilantro. Frozen herbs aren't as good as fresh, but they seem more flavorful than dried. I store them whole in zip top bags, or I store them in ice cube trays. Place freshly chopped herbs and water in an ice-cube tray and freeze until frozen. Ginger root stores well in the freezer. When you want to use it just grate it frozen over a microplane, or run under water until just softened and chop. Jalapeños store well in the freezer.

The tuna was served with the sauce alongside a brown rice pilaf and steamed cabbage. Top the tuna with the fried potatoes and serve immediately. I paired this meal with a Sauvignon blanc. 

Tuna with a white wine fermented black bean sauce and Thai-basil

This recipe is adapted from Mark Bittman's Roasted Thick Fish Fillets

Yield: Serves 2 to 4

Ingredients:

3 tbsp olive oil 

1 medium potato, peeled and cut into a small dice (1/2" by 1/2")

1 or 2, 6 oz tuna steaks

salt and pepper

3/4 cup white wine plus 1/4 cup water (can also use vegetable broth instead of wine)

1 tbsp fermented black bean sauce (such as Lee Kum Kee)

1/2 cup mixed Thai basil and cilantro 

1 tbsp sun-dried tomatoes, chopped

Fresh ginger, shredded 

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 450º F (230º C).

2. In an oven-proof skillet, heat up 3 tbsp of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add in the small diced potatoes and cook until golden brown (6 minutes). Once golden, spoon off the potatoes with some of the remaining olive oil and place on a non-stick baking pan in the oven to finish cooking. Set a timer for 8 minutes to avoid overcooking. You should have about 2 tbsp of olive oil leftover. 

3. Dredge the tuna in a bit of salt and pepper. I used Trader Joe's chili sea salt. Place the tuna in the skillet, and sear on each side for about 2-3 minutes. Meanwhile, combine wine, water, and the fermented black bean sauce and pour into the skillet. The skillet will make an impressive sizzling sound. Lift the pan and swirl around the liquid, and then place in the oven. Set the timer for 10 minutes. 

4. Combine the herbs, sun dried tomatoes, and slivered, or shredded, ginger in a small bowl and set aside. 

5. Once the 10-minute timer goes off, flip the tuna over, add the bowl of herbs from step 4, and set the timer for another 5-6 minutes. If the tuna is thicker, it may require additional cooking time. Alternatively, if you like your tuna on the medium side, cook for less time. The fish is done when it flakes easily. Serve immediately and garnish with potatoes. 

Peanutty noodles

I was trying to make pad thai tonight when I realized I was completely out of tamarind paste. Since my only options for obtaining this crucial ingredient are the ethnic stores in town (which all are closed after 6 pm) I came up with this erroneous pad-thai inspired noodle dish. S and K, this recipe is largely from you guys, since you shared a similar recipe with me a few years back.

Sauteed tofu and these distelzwam mushrooms lend a meaty bite; this dish is 75% veggies and 25% noodles. Distelzwam are king trumpet mushrooms found in the oyster family of mushrooms. They are the largest types of oyster mushrooms. I bought them from the Mushroom Guy at the Heverlee market. This dish tastes like stir fried veggies in a peanut-sauce all mixed up with noodles, and served piping hot. While not authentic, it certainly made it on our list of faves.

Press the tofu first. Then cut up all the veggies, it should take you about 20-30 minutes depending on how fast you can cut up everything. Have all the veggies cut up before you get started. This pairs excellently with a cold spicy saison (such as St. Feuillien Saison).

Peanutty noodles
Ingredients: listed in order of use
Serves: 4
1 package tofu, drained and pressed
liberal amounts of peanut oil (I probably used about ¼ cup total).
3 distelzwam mushrooms quartered, or 1 cup whole button mushrooms, quartered
1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
1 cup sugar snaps or snow peas, kept whole
1 cup vegetable broth
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 tbsp fresh ginger, chopped
½ cup peanut butter, natural style - don't use sweetened pb!
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp or more rice wine vinegar
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
red chili flakes to taste (1 tsp for spicy; 1/2 tsp for medium; 1/4 tsp for mild)
½ cup red onion, sliced fine
3 cups shredded napa or savoy cabbage, chopped fine
1 large bunch of green onions chopped (enough for about ½ cup, be liberal they melt into the dish)
8 oz rice noodles, cooked according to package directions.
cilantro for garnish

Directions:
Have all the stir-fry ingredients ready. I managed to use 4 burners, with my main saute pan ready for the veggies, a (new!) cast iron pan for the tofu, a large pot for the rice noodles, and a medium saucepan for the sauce. Stir-fry ingredients: red bell peppers, sugar snap peas, red onion slices, mushrooms, cabbage, green onions, and tofu.
Sauce ingredients: garlic, ginger, vegetable broth, peanut butter, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, toasted sesame seeds, red chili flakes, and liberal amounts of fresh green onions (to taste).

1. Heat up 2 tbsp of peanut oil in the cast iron over medium-high heat. Once hot add in tofu making sure to not crowd the pan. Don’t touch them for at least 5 minutes. They will start to become golden on the bottom. Even then, don’t touch. Just pick up the pan, give it a whirl to move the oil around, and set down to allow the tofu to cook.
2. In your saute pan (medium high heat) or wok (high heat). Add in about 1 to 2 tsps of peanut oil, once hot add in the mushroom and stir fry until they look seared and golden. Remove.
3. Add in peppers and stir fry until they look seared and golden. Add in sugar snaps. The sugar snaps will brighten, once they brighten remove everything. Remove them from the pan and shut the heat off.
4. Check the tofu, begin to flip them over when golden brown and crisp on the bottom; remove cooked pieces, replacing them with new ones. The cast iron should ensure that the tofu pieces don’t stick. Having a really nice quality pressed tofu is the key. My Belgian friends always complain about tofu because the commercially available tofu sucks (Alpro I’m calling you out). It’s too wet and spongey. The Thai/Korean markets have excellent pressed tofu, slightly tangy, and so perfectly pressed it looks like paneer. Remove the tofu to a plate once all the pieces are golden-brown. If there is any oil left in the pan, carefully pour it into the saute pan.
5. Start heating up the water for the rice noodles.
6. In the medium saucepan, add the veggie broth, ginger, garlic, peanut butter, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, red chili flakes, toasted sesame seeds, and chives. Cook over medium heat stirring occasionally until the sauce thickens (should take 10-12 minutes).
7. Add rice noodles to the large pot of boiling water. Boil for about 2 minutes and shut the heat off. Add a tsp of oil to the water and let the noodles soften up; the oil should keep them from sticking.
8. Add oil to the saute pan or wok, if needed and turn the heat back on. Once hot, add the red onions and stir them around until they begin to wilt and look cooked, add in green onions and cabbage. Stir everything together for about 4-5 minutes. Add in the red bell peppers, snow peas, and mushrooms (to heat them back up).
9. Drain the rice noodles into a colander, and add them into the saute pan along with the sauce. Mix together carefully by folding the sauce through the noodles (this will also reduce the amount of splatters on your arms).
10. Garnish with cilantro and serve immediately.

Vegetable Potsticker Dumplings 3 Ways

I'll admit it. I was jealous. You would be to if you looked at these fantastic delicious dumplings and pot stickers. I was jealous, but inspired. A few weekends back, I made batches of these and put them in the freezer. Below are 3 recipes for preparing vegetarian potsticker dumplings with ready-prepared wonton wrappers (square or circular). Although I use the word dumpling often, these are probably closer to potstickers, since they are first lightly pan fried in a skillet, and then steamed, hence potsticker dumplings.

Prepare the ingredients, and then lay out the fillings in bowls. Set out the wonton wrappers, a small bowl of water, and a freezer-safe tray or dish. Fill each wrapper with 1 tsp of stuffing, wet the borders on one side of the wrapper, and fold together. You can make nice pleats if you want; avoid over-stuffing as it'll make it difficult to stay closed. Freeze dumplings before transferring them to freezer safe storage bags. Don't forget to label them if you make multiple recipes.

When ready to cook (frozen or fresh) heat up 1 tbsp of peanut oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add in dumplings in a single layer, and cook 1-2 minutes (fresh), and 2-4 minutes (frozen) or until bottoms are golden. Add in ¼ cup of water, and steam the dumplings until the water evaporates, about 2 minutes. Carefully, remove the dumplings (or pot stickers) and serve immediately with some dipping sauce. I like to mix together 3 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar, 1 tsp sesame oil, and 1 tbsp green onions. Four to five dumplings make a nice appetizer.

Recipe 1: Chinese 5-spice potsticker dumplings

1 block of tempeh, steamed and crumbled

1 tbsp peanut oil

1 clove garlic, chopped fine

1 medium carrot, grated

1 cup napa cabbage, shredded

1, 1/2-inch piece of ginger, chopped fine

2 green onions, chopped fine

2 tbsp cilantro, chopped fine

½ tsp Chinese 5-spice powder

30 wonton wrappers

1. Bring a small pot of water to boil. Once boiling, add in tempeh and turn heat down to medium. Steam/boil for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool. Crumble into a fine texture once cool enough to handle.
2. In a large bowl combine carrot, cabbage, ginger, green onions, and cilantro. Stir to combine.
3. Heat the peanut oil over high heat in a wide skillet, add in garlic and tempeh and stir-fry 5 minutes. Once golden, add in carrot through cilantro mixture. Continue to cook 2 minutes and stir in Chinese 5-spice powder. Remove to a bowl to cool.

Recipe 2: Chinese dumplings with cabbage, mushrooms and leeks

Recipe adapted from Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone. The recipe calls for 24 wonton wrappers, but when I made this it made closer to 50.

1 pound napa cabbage or 4 generous cups, shredded, or sliced very fine

salt

½ cup whole shiitake or oyster mushrooms, finely chopped (*see note below)

2 tbsp leeks or green onions, chopped

1 clove garlic, chopped fine

1, ½-piece ginger, chopped fine

1 tsp rice-wine vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

50 wonton wrappers

*Note: you can also use ¼ cup dried black Chinese mushrooms, and ¼ cup dried tree ear mushrooms, rehydrated, and chopped. If using these, omit shiitake, and use fresh mushrooms instead.

1. Set the cabbage in a colander over the sink. Salt the cabbage generously and let sit for about an hour. Squeeze excess water from cabbage. Rinse the cabbage lightly to get rid of the salt. Taste to make sure it isn't too salty.
2. Combine cabbage, mushrooms, leeks or green onions, garlic, ginger, and rice-wine vinegar. Season with salt and pepper.
3. When ready to cook, add in ½ cup of water instead of ¼ cup of water and steam them for 7 minutes. Since the stuffing is raw, it'll cook the veggies down a bit.

Recipe 3: Spicy edamame potsticker dumplings

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light magazine. I have made these several times, and they are the simplest dumplings to prepare.

1 cup edamame, shelled (if frozen, cooked according to package directions)

1 tsp fresh lemon juice

¼ tsp red chili flakes

½ tsp cumin

1 tsp sesame oil

salt and pepper to taste

20 wonton wrappers

1. Combine edamame, lemon juice, red chili flakes, and cumin in a food processor; process until smooth, do not over process. Stir in sesame oil, and taste. Adjust with salt and pepper. To make without a food processor, smash the beans when they are hot with potato masher, and then add in rest of ingredients and continue to smash.

Dipping sauce: Soy-rice-sesame dipping sauce

3 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce

1 tbsp water

1 tbsp rice wine vinegar

1 tsp toasted sesame oil or dark sesame oil

Optional: 1 tbsp green onions or 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds

1. Combine all ingredients together and stir in green onions or sesame seeds if using. Serve immediately. You can alter the proportions of any ingredient, or omit them. To make a spicier dipping sauce, add in ¼ tsp red chili flakes and 1 clove minced fresh garlic.

I Love Tofu

Have you ever visited the Foodgawker website?  It is a serious collection of food photography from many talented food bloggers.  I spend hours searching through the images and coming up with lists of foods I want to prepare, and it has introduced me to many creative bloggers.  This recipe and blog post from Beyond Kimchee, invited me to fall in love with tofu again.  Such a simple, perfect, delicious recipe.  Karl and I have made this at least five times.  We always eat so quickly, briefly pausing between our next bite, to remark how perfect the tofu tastes, and how delicious and fresh the sauce tastes.  It’s made of soy sauce, garlic, red chili, sesame oil, chives, and sesame seeds, but it makes you feel like you are eating so much more.

This is perfect to serve as a starting appetizer, or to be served over rice as the blog author suggests, or really however you wish. We cook up some Chinese-style noodles, then saute red bell peppers, mushroom, snow peas or Napa cabbage, and add the golden pan-fried tofu on top and spoon the sauce over all of it.

First we were ga-ga over Mainly Veggie's spinach veggie burgers, now it’s all about Korean-style pan-fried tofu.  Click the links to take you to the author’s sites. I will write what I did with the recipe here, but the pictures should be pretty obvious, eh?

Pan-fried tofu served with some sauteed vegetables on top of noodles. 

Tofu waiting to be golden. 

Golden pan-fried tofu

Chinese-style noodles
Ingredients:
1 block extra-firm tofu
3 tbsp soy sauce (I used 2 tbsp plus 1 tbsp water)
1 green onion, chopped
1 tsp sesame seeds, toasted
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp red chili flakes
½ tsp shrimp powder (I used ½ tsp Thai panang curry paste)
2 tbsp peanut oil to fry up tofu

Prepare these ingredients with directions from Beyond Kimchee’s blogpost. Her pictures are really wonderful.  

I followed her directions exactly, but I served them with a vegetable stir-fry over noodles. 

More ingredients:
1 tbsp peanut oil
1 cup mushrooms, wiped clean and cut up however you want
1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
1 cup snow peas, or 2 cups Napa cabbage chopped (or include both)
12 oz uncooked pasta (such as Chinese noodles, or linguine), or prepare rice instead of pasta.
water for pasta

Directions:

1. First, you can toast the sesame seeds in a non-stick pan without any oil over medium heat. Watch them closely so they won’t burn.  While you are cooking the sesame seeds, prep the tofu (drain, cut it up, then salt it lightly).
2. Bring a large pot of water to boil.  Add the noodles to the boiling water once you start cooking the tofu. The veggies will take about 15 minutes or less, and the tofu will also take about 15 minutes or less.  This way you’ll have hot noodles.
3. Remove the seeds and add them to the sauce.  Turn heat up heat to medium-high, and add 1 tbsp of peanut oil to the pan. Once hot, add in mushrooms and saute 5-7 minutes.  Jerk the pan in small controlled horizontal movements to toss the mushrooms around. Continue doing this when you add a new ingredient to the pan. You can also stir them around, but it looks more sexy doing it this way (especially if you are wearing an apron).
4. Next, add in bell pepper strips, and continue to saute for another 3-5 minutes. Add in cabbage and snow peas and continue cooking another 3-4 minutes. Then remove to a plate, and prepare the same pan to cook up the tofu.  You can start heating up 2 tbsp of peanut oil while you go get the tofu, and start pan-frying it up.
5. Once you have cooked the tofu, you can add the sauteed veggies to the pan to heat them back up. Remove all of this to a plate. Meanwhile, drain the pasta, reserve ½ cup of boiling water.  If the noodles stick, add about a teaspoon of oil to the noodles along with the water. Divide them up between 4 plates and add about 1 cup of veggies plus 4 pieces of tofu on top. Pass the sauce at the table.

This is a super fast weeknight meal and I’m sure it will be among your favorites.

Tofu Smothered in Onion and Mustard

Earlier this year my friend, Holly, sent me a package that contained several cooking magazines. I always forget to mention to her how much I have enjoyed the cooking magazines.  Especially this next recipe.

This recipe comes out of Food and Wine magazine; since it came out of this magazine, we paired it with a sweet German Gewurztraminer. The original recipe calls for a pork tenderloin that is smothered in onion and mustard.  We used tofu instead, so I have adapted the recipe to include this version. You can use whatever you like.  Both versions are included below:

Serves: 4

Ingredients: 

1 block extra-firm tofu, patted dry, and cut into rectangles, (or two 12-ounce pork tenderloins, cut into 2-inch lengths and pounded 1 inch thick)
salt and fresh pepper to taste
2 tsp all-purpose flour, divided
1 tbsp butter (increase to 2 tbsp if cooking pork)
1 tbsp olive oil (increase to 2 tbsp if cooking pork)
1 large onion, very thinly sliced
1 tbsp grainy mustard
1 cup vegetable broth
1 tbsp dill

Directions:

1. Season the tofu with salt and pepper and dust with flour.
2. Melt the butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the tofu and cook over medium heat (cook over high heat if using pork). Turning until lightly browned, about 15-20 minutes (for pork, 3-5 minutes). Transfer the tofu to a plate.
3. In the same skillet, add the onion and cook over medium heat, until softened. After 10 minutes, stir in the mustard and 1 tsp of flour and cook for 1 minute longer.
4. Add in the vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Nestle the tofu in the onion sauce.
5. Cover and simmer over medium heat for a 2 minutes (since the pork will not have been cooked, continue cooking for another 8-10 minutes.
6. Stir the dill into the onion-mustard sauce, and serve the tofu over buttered noodles. Serve with braised cabbage wedges with dill. Adjust for salt and pepper.

Notes: If using tofu, you will pan-fry the tofu until golden brown (cook it over medium-high heat, and then flip after 4-5 minutes per side).  This tastes good served along buttered noodles and braised cabbage wedges with dill.

Cabbage Lentil Soup and Truffled Parmesan Polenta

I picked up some quick-cooking polenta recently, and am happy to present this recipe. I would recommend slowly whisking in the polenta to the boiling water, and then keeping the add-in ingredients very close by. I was running around the kitchen looking for a lid, while polenta was bubbling like volcanic ash onto my arms, and onto the floor.  You can serve the polenta right away, or you can let it cool into a mold (such as a shallow narrow pan like a small bread loaf pan, or a bowl) to slice later. Allow an hour more if you mold the polenta. Otherwise this can come together in 40 minutes.

Back in Chapel Hill my friend Melissa made a truffle-mushroom-polenta dish. I think she was trying to pan-fry the polenta but it just melted into the oil, and so she just stirred in her truffled mushrooms.  Then as if that couldn’t get any better, she served it up with some bourbon bread pudding. Melissa, one day, I want both of these recipes, and to finally have my very own bottle of Bulleit Bourbon.  

This came together pretty quickly between 30-45 minutes. If you want fancy polenta slices, allow up to an hour, but most of it is idle time, or could be prepared in advance.

Cabbage Lentil Soup
1 tbsp and 1 tsp butter or oil
3 cloves garlic, minced fine
1 cup red onion, chopped (about 2 small red onions)
1 medium carrot, chopped
2-3 tbsp tomato paste plus 2 tbsp water
3/4 cup French green dried lentils
1 vegetarian bouillon cube
1-2 liters water
1 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp red chili powder
1/2 tsp dried garlic powder
1 tsp dried onion flakes
1 tsp oregano
4-5 cups cabbage, cut into wide ribbons.
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 tsp salt
4 tbsp parsley chopped, for garnish (set aside 2 tbsp for the polenta)

Directions:
1. Heat up the butter over medium-high heat in a large soup stockpot.
2. Add in the minced garlic and after 1 minute, add in onions and carrots. Stir for 3 minutes.
3. Stir in tomato paste, and 2 tbsp water, stir to combine.
4. Add in water, lentils, bouillon cubes and the cumin, red chili powder, onion flakes, dried garlic powder, and oregano. Stir to combine. Add in more water if the level looks low. You want enough water so it looks like a soupy and so the lentils can cook. Cook partially covered for 20 minutes. Stir the soup often.
5. Stir in the cabbage and salt and continue cooking for 10 minutes.
6. Garnish the soup with parsley and serve alongside the polenta.

Truffled-Parmesan Polenta:
5 cups water
1 cup ready-cook polenta
1/3 cup parmesan-reggiano, shredded
2 tbsp truffle oil
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
salt to taste cooking spray if using a mold

Directions:
1. Bring 5 cups of water to boil in a medium saucepan and set aside 1 cup of ready-cook polenta.
2. If you have pot holders, put them on for this next step, and turn down the heat to medium-high. For 2 minutes, whisk in the polenta quickly making sure to get rid of any lumps. Quickly, add in parmesan, truffle oil and parsley.  As the polenta thickens the boiling turns into spurts, and you can get burned.  It’s worth it, the polenta is very good. Turn the heat off and continue to stir another 2 minutes.
3. Serve immediately, or follow directions below to make a mold so you can slice the polenta.

Polenta slices:
Put the cooked polenta into an oiled medium mixing bowl, or an oiled medium bread loaf pan.  Set in the fridge (1 hour) or freezer (30 minutes) for rapid cooling.  It can take up to an hour.  
Once cool, slide the polenta onto a cutting board and cut into desired thickness. You can place the polenta in a grill pan (the non-stick ones) used for making grill marks, or put it into a regular skillet and brown with some cooking spray - or you could use a baking sheet and place lightly brushed polenta slices on top and broil on high for a minute or two.

Tempeh Wings, Things, and Stumps

TEMPEH WINGS!

I like tempeh and I like wing sauce. After much searching, and trial and error, I have found the best combination of recipes for tempeh wings (or things, or stumps, or fingers, or whatever you want to call them). These are simply marvelous, fantastic, and finger-licking good.

To make the tempeh wings, I followed this recipe and post of The Ordinary Vegetarian's Tempeh Hot Wings.  I think the recipe has gone viral, as I have found it on many vegan blogs, but Sarah's directions are really easy to follow, and I kept getting distracted by all the other delicious recipes she has posted (which I hope to add to a future week of meals).

To make these really crunchy, put the steamed tempeh in the soy milk/rice milk, dredge in flour, re-dip in the soy milk/rice milk, and then dredge in the breadcrumbs. I used Panko breadcrumbs, soy milk instead of rice milk, and smoked paprika.  Honestly, I will put smoked paprika into anything. I had to increase the baking time by about 20 minutes, but I think you can put them in and take them out when browned enough.  Toss in wing sauce once they come out of the oven.

I liked the simplicity of Vegan Dad's wing sauce: half margarine and half wing sauce.  His post on making your own vegan wings was pretty impressive.  I utilized butter and Thai sriracha sauce with a splash of Tabasco to very appetizing results.  I have 3 kinds of hot sauce in the pantry, and I just couldn't justify buying another one.  I can't wait to try the BBQ sauce, and the number of other appetizing recipes.

I served up my tempeh "things" with some coleslaw:


This coleslaw utilizes the seasonings of a ranch-based dressing, in yogurt thinned with water.

Ranch-Yogurt Coleslaw:
Serves 4
1/2 of a medium head of green cabbage, shredded or sliced thin. I prefer slicing, because the shredding just destroys the cabbage
2 carrots, shredded
1 red bell pepper, chopped

For coleslaw dressing:
1/2 cup or more plain yogurt (the European yogurt I buy is runnier than US yogurts, so I think I used 3/4 cup of yogurt thinned with 3 T of water).
1/2 tsp dried dill
1/2 tsp dried garlic powder
1/4 tsp dried mint
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried onion flakes
1/2 tsp salt
fresh black pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Mix together cabbage, carrots and bell pepper in a large bowl.
2. In a smaller bowl, combine yogurt through black pepper. Taste and adjust seasonings.
3. Thin the yogurt with approx. 3 T of water. If the dressing is too thick, thin with more water.
4. Stir into cabbage mixture and adjust seasonings if needed. 

Cabbage Gratin

I had a huge cabbage sitting in the fridge that was leftover from my cabbage kofta, and so I went searching for a recipe to get rid of the rest.  This is a wonderful vegetarian main dish. It's from my fave cookbook, presumably you may have picked up which one that is.

I served with a spicy mustard sauce and some truffle salt toast. Basically I drizzled whole-grain bread with olive oil and sprinkled truffle salt on top (like the flatbread from Columbia Winery =) and the sauce is basically yogurt with enough mustard in it to taste tangy and mustard-y. Truffle salt has to be one of the best purchases I have ever made. Delish.

Ingredients:
1-2 T butter
1/2 cup shredded parmesan
1 large to medium green cabbage, cut in 1" to 2" squares
1/3 cup flour
1 cup milk (I subbed in soymilk - it was fine)
1/4 cup creme fraiche
2 T tomato paste
3 eggs
3 T parsley or dill
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Put on a large pot of water, and bring to a boil.
2. Next butter a casserole dish and coat the sides with the parmesan cheese.

3. When water is boiling, add the cabbage and cook for 5-7 minutes.
4. Combine the flour, milk, eggs, cream, tomato paste, eggs and herbs.
5. Season with salt and pepper. Drain the cabbage through a colander, and squeeze out extra water with the back of a ladle. Combine the cabbage with the flour/milk mixture, and stir to combine.
6. Place this mixture in a casserole dish and bake in the oven for 1 hour, or until browned on top.

Verjaardag!

For the hubbies birthday I tried my hand at some very yummy Indian dishes: cabbage kofta, mushroom and peas curry and some fresh naan. The naan is remarkably easy to make as long as you give it enough time to rise. Links for recipes are below photos (they include video instructions too).

Cabbage Kofta from Vah Chef (above)

Mushroom and Peas Curry from Manjula's Kitchen

Naan from Manjula's Kitchen

Creamy Feta Quinoa

Creamy Feta Quinoa

This is one of those lazy cooking recipes that is suited for spring or summer days, even though you could readily make this anytime of the year. Quinoa is quick-cooking grain and is packed full of good nutrients including calcium, protein, iron and fiber. The rest of the salad ingredients kick up the nutrition in this dish. Use whichever salad vegetables you have around that need to get used up.

For salad
1 cup quinoa, uncooked
1-2 cups water
1/2 cucumber, quartered
1-2 cups mixed salad greens (spinach, mesclun, & arugula)
1 cup green or red cabbage, finely chopped to give consistency of shredded cabbage
1 tomato, diced.
1/2 cup black beans, drained
1/2 cup feta cheese
2 T parmesan cheese or other hard grated salty cheese

For dressing:
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, or 1 large clove, minced fine
1 spring onion (green onion), chopped fine or shallot if you have that instead
1 tsp oregano, or any dried or fresh herbs (if fresh 1 T)
1-2 tsp dijon mustard
pinch cayenne
salt and pepper to taste

1. Place quinoa in a bowl and cover with water to remove the saponins and then make the dressing so it has time to marinade while you prep the other items. The saponins are found on the outside of the quinoa and can be removed by rinsing. They aren't particularly harmful although the quinoa (I've never noticed) may taste bitter if you skip this step.
2. In a small mixing bowl, place lemon juice through salt and pepper, and mix well. Set aside.
3. Drain quinoa and place in a saucepan and cover with 1.5 cups water. Cook over medium heat and add more water if needed. The quinoa should take between 10-15 minutes to cook.
4. Prep and cut up vegetables. Place cabbage, mixed greens, cucumbers, tomatoes, black beans and cheeses in a bowl. Check on quinoa. If it looks light and fluffy, it is done. Set aside the cooked quinoa and turn out into a bowl to cool. It doesn't have to be cold, just not steaming.
5. Gently, mix in the quinoa with the rest of the ingredients. The warmth of the fresh-cooked quinoa will melt the feta and parmesan cheese into a creamy coating.
6. Mix up the salad dressing before pouring into the feta-quinoa-salad mixture. Gently toss and mix everything together and turn out into salad bowls or plates to serve.

Stores nicely in the fridge (good weekday meals) although I think it tastes best when just mixed and served.