Curried Potatoes, Cauliflower and Green Squash

Summer is (unofficially) over and it is getting cool enough again to use the oven.  After a trip filled with all sorts of meat, I was excited to enjoy a warm vegan delight...but don't let the word "vegan" scare you.  I constructed this dish based on what looked good at the local veggie stand and to not be too hot because it is not that cold out yet.  It is a mild curry taste that is savory and filling.

Here was the method to my madness...
Turn on the oven to 300 degrees and in a large pot with a cover (you can see the pot I used below) that can be put go in the oven, mix:

• 1 can of light coconut milk (or regular)
• 1 cup of vegetable stock (low salt preferred, you could also do chicken stock)
• 1 tsp of sea salt
• 2 keffir lime leaves (optional)
• 2 tbs of a good curry powder
• 1/2 tbs of garram masala powder
• 1/2 tbs of paprika
• 1/2 tbs of black pepper
• 1 tbs of rice vinegar
• 1/2 tbs of sage powder (or fresh sage)
• 2 tsp of cinnamon

Watermelon Arugula Salad

Who doesn't love a light summery salad this time of year?  The combination will sound gross but it blends beautifully!  It is really easy to make and adjust to your own tastes.  I prefer the salad to not be too overloaded with greens but many may want more arugula (or even watercress). I love this when it is a bit of everything in every bite with nothing over powering another.

In a large bowl, mix together:

• 3 cups of arugula
• 15 leaves of mint (chiffonade)
• 3 shallot cloves (chopped)
• 5 leaves of fresh basil (chiffonade)

Perfect Memorial Weekend Chick Pea Salad!

Near us in Astoria, there is this great restaurant called Il Bambino that has a bunch of little salads you can order.  My favorite is their chick pea panzanella which they make for me without the bread. I've played around with variations on this funky little salad.  The key is to keep all parts equal and the same size so it all balances well.

In a big bowl, toss in all of the following...

• 1 can of chick peas, drained and thoroughly rinsed
• 1 can of corn (preferably not with salt), drained and rinsed
• 1.5 cups of soy beans, shelled
• 1.5 cups of spring onions, scallions or red onion, diced to be the size of the chick peas
• 3 roma tomatoes (gutted), diced to the size of the chick peas
• 1/2 large green (or red, yellow, orange) bell pepper, diced to the size of the chick peas (see a theme yet?)
• 1.5 cups of cucumber, diced to the size of the chick peas
• 1.5 cups of good feta, diced to the size of the chick peas.  You need the feta to be salty and tart.  A sweet feta will not cut through the other sweet ingredients.  

Toss this all together and then season to taste with:

Vegetable Arepa- Spring Edition

Another post about arepas but I can't help myself. All you do is sautee up some stuff and put it on a delicious corn cake and you are set!

This time I really focused on having a lighter more veggie taste to the arepas.

In a large non-stick sautee pan, combine the following on med-high heat...

• 2 tbs of extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup of water
• 1/4 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tbs of vinegar (or lime juice)
• 1 red pepper, chopped

Curried Vegetables over Noodles

I've been away from cooking due to a crazy schedule and travelling but I happy to be back.

Back with a well-intentioned but not so great meal.  I will give you the recipe as I made it but include in brackets where something should change in the future to make it delicious.  I learned a lot from this meal...mainly that brussel sprouts do not like to be curried.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Mexi-repa!

I'm currently addicted to arepas.  They are a corn cake like a thick tortilla pancake.  Many of them are gluten free and they contain almost no fat and low calories.  They are just corn, water, salt and lime.  I decided to make a veggie topping to put on the arepas.

I took a large pan, put on the medium-high burner and filled it with...

• 2 tbs of olive oil
• 2 tbs of chipotle sauce 
• 1 can of chopped fire roasted tomatoes (or normal tomatoes) with juice (do not drain)
• 1 can of corn
• 1/2 a yellow onion, diced
• 1 large red pepper, diced
• 4 medium tomatillos, diced
• cilantro to taste
• 1 container of extra firm tofu, diced
• 1 can of black beans
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup of water

Let all of the above hang out in the pan for 30-45 minutes until it the peppers are soft and everything is happily stewed.  Pre-heat the oven to 400degrees.  

Pull a cookie sheet that can fit 4-6 arepas on it.  I like using a crisper pan that has holes in it that helps keep the arepas, well, crisp.  

On each arepa, smear some refried beans, heap on some of the mixture from then, top with some cotijo cheese, pepper jack cheese, and then pop into the oven for about 10-15 minutes.   When they are a little toasted brown, take them out.  Sprinkle on some cilantro and some avocado slices.   If you want, maybe even some sour cream.  

It is a light and delicious meal that can be great with chicken or anything else you want to toss on the arepa!  Bueno!  

Yellow Stew

Okay...so it doesn't have the best name but I can't think of anything better.  It started out being a white meatless chili but then I did not have enough peppers and the slow cooker was too full for enough beans to be considered chili.  So it is Yellow Stew and despite its Sesame Street-esque name, it is delicous!

I opted for the slow cooker for this one on high the entire time.  From the moment I started tossing things in until I served it, it took a total of about 4 hours of stewing.

Step 1:  Turn on Slow Cooker on High and add 3 tbs of olive oil.
Step 2: Nuke 3 cups of Potato Leek Soup.  Why nuke it?  Because then it will be hot when it goes in the crock pot.  Getting the slow cooker hot is 1/2 the battle and if you are putting in a lot of ingredients from the fridge, it will take forever.
Step 3:  Add all of the following in whatever order your heart desires:

• 1 whole yellow onion, chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 3 russet potatoes, chopped small with the skin on
• 3 stalks of celery, chopped
• 1 cup of vegetable stock
• 2 yellow bell peppers, chopped
• 3 parsnips, chopped
• 1 bunch of scallion tops (I had them leftover from a salad that used the white parts)
• 1 head of cauliflower, chopped (no stalks)
• 1/2 pound of mushrooms, chopped small
• 2 tbs of salt 
• 2 tbs of peppers
• 1 tbs of garlic powder
• 2 tbs of each rosemary, thyme, sage
• 3 cups of boiling hot water
• 6 dashes of tabasco sauce for some heat
• 1/2 tbs of red pepper flakes