Ja cię kocham…

Since I’ve started this blog, I have completely neglected my cookbooks.   They have remained in the cabinet above my oven for weeks – if not months – without a single disturbance.  It’s been so long that there are cookbooks in there that I swear I have never seen before.  I’m sorry, cookbooks!  How could I neglect you for so long?!

Even though my non-meat eating ways are quite new, I have always taken interest in vegetarian cuisine.  Mind you, I’m not a vegetarian.  I still have it in me to eat fish.  I can’t give up my salmon or shrimp… that’s just NOT going to happen.  I also consume dairy and eggs so I think the proper term is “pescatarian”.  My friend Becca introduced me to that term.   I feel a little strange using “pescatarian”.  I don’t know… am I really going to give up meat forever?   We shall see )

So anyway, I climbed up to my cookbook cabinet (I’m slightly over 5 feet tall and the cabinet is about as high as you can get in my kitchen) and went through my vegetarian cookbooks.  My fruit and veggie drawers were becoming quite bare so I had to find a recipe that was flexible in terms of what foods went into it.  Yep – it’s time to throw what I have in a meal again!

That’s when I came across Vegetable and Coconut Curry in  The Vegetarian Cookbook.  I have vegetables, I have spices, and I randomly have coconut milk in my kitchen.  Awesome!

This recipe pretty much tells you to unleash your veggie drawer into the dish.  It’s a great way to get rid of the nearly sprouting potatoes and frozen green beans that have been in the freezer for too long.  It also calls for tumeric, coriander, and cumin, which make curry.  If you have curry already in your spice cabinet, then by all means go for it.  I had it, but I didn’t want to use it all up so I stuck with the recipe on this one.

As I was preparing it I was reminded of a Moroccan Platter I made so I threw in chickpeas for amusement.  I need protein, right?

I served the vegetables on top of brown rice but cous cous would be great, too!

Vegetable and Coconut Curry

(Serves 4)

Ingredients:

1 onion, coarsely chopped
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1-inch piece of fresh gingerroot, thinly sliced
2 fresh green chilies, seeded and finely chopped
1 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 tsp. ground tumeric
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. ground cumin
2 lb mixed vegetables (such as broccoli, potatoes, green beans, cauliflour, carrots, zucchini), cut into bite sized chinks
1 c. coconut milk or cream
sea salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbs. fresh cilantro, chopped, for garnish
1 Tbs. shredded coconut, for garnish (optional)
freshly cooked rice or cous cous, to serve

Directions:

(If you have frozen vegetables that will be thawed and cooked already, please take note that your meals will take a lot less cooking time.)

Put the onion, garlic, ginger, and chilies in a food processor and process until almost smooth.

Heat the oil in a large, heavy-bottom pan over medium-low heat, add the onion mixture, and cook, stirring constantly for 5 minutes.

Add the tumeric, coriander, and cumin (or just curry powder), stirring frequently, for 3-4 minutes.

Add vegetables and stir to coat.

Add the coconut milk or cream to the vegetables, cover, and let simmer for 30-40 minutes until the vegetables are tender.   If your vegetables are already cooked then it will only take about 10 minutes.

Season to taste wtih salt and pepper, garnish wtih cilantro and coconut.  Serve with rice.

I have officially found my absolute favorite spice.

For years I have favored the all-purpose spice due to its versatility and taste.  But that’s boring.  Of course it’s versatile – it’s ALL-PURPOSE.

My husband loves any food that is  “chipotle-esque” so I when I came across Chipotle Chile Pepper in the grocery store I figured it was a worth-while purchase.  Little did I know that it would become MY number one.  It’s not too spicy – in fact, I would go as far to say it’s not spicy at all.  If you have a very senstive palette then you may feel a little heat, but you can still consume it and taste your meal afterward ;o)   It has a nice smoky kick to it, which is why I enjoy it so much.  McCormick, one of the spice powerhouses in the baking aisle, makes it so it’s easy to find.

I tend to throw whatever I have in the fridge into my meals, and this dish was no different.  I am often inspired by recipes and then tweak them so I don’t have to travel alllll the way to the store to retrieve the ingredients.  (I live out in the country so the nearest grocery store is 20 minutes.)

I was quite pleased with the results.  One can never be too sure how dinner will taste when it’s an improvisation.  This one is a keeper!

Chipotle Chile and Bubbly Swiss Casserole
Source: 101 Cookbooks

(Serves

Ingredients:

Extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 pound short, whole wheat pasta
sea salt
1 large sweet onion, chopped
1/2 – 1 c. bell pepper (any color), chopped  (Yep, I’m still trying to use up my big bag of peppers!)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 cups well-chopped fresh spinach
1 1/2 cups sliced almonds, lightly toasted
zest of 2 lemons
1-1/2 tsp. chipotle chile pepper
8 ounces swiss, shredded (more wouldn’t hurt if you are a cheese fanatic like me)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter/oil a large casserole dish or baking pan – something roughly equivalent to 13×9-inch pan.

Boil the pasta in salted water per package instructions. Drain pasta, toss with a glug of olive oil. Set aside.

In the meantime, heat a bit of olive oil in a skillet over medium-high. Saute the onions and peppers with a couple pinches of salt for a few minutes (or if you want a bit more depth of flavor until caramelized).  Stir in garlic. Stir in spinach. Cook for just about 20 seconds, until the spinach collapses a bit.

Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup of the almonds and 1/2 of the zest. Add to pasta, add the chile pepper and stir and stir – mixing extremely well, a minute or so.

Now sprinkle the bottom of baking dish with the rest of the zest. Add a layer of the pasta to the bottom of the baking pan, now sprinkle with some of the cheese, add more pasta, then more cheese. Finish with a layer of cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes or until cheese on top is bubbly and melty. Serve sprinkled with the remaining almonds.

It’s confession time.

Ever since I saw a certain show on the Travel Channel, I have been unable to eat meat.  Don’t get me wrong, I am not necessarily against eating meat, but I just can’t bring myself to do it.  I thought it was just a faze that would pass but it’s been a month, and I can’t bring myself to be carnivorous.  Believe me, I crave steaks and burgers but I cannot follow through with eating it.  I just can’t.

Meat is a tough subject.  Many animals are injected with hormones so they grow much faster than what nature has intended.  They are fed foods that they don’t normally eat, which leads them to falling ill, which leads to antibiotic injections.  And yes, if it’s in the animal, we are eating it.   Some people aren’t bothered by this.  I, on the other hand, would rather not fill my body with hormones and antibiotics unless I have a prescription.

My suggestion with meat is go organic.   You’re not ingesting hormones and antibiotics that are not intended for your body.  It’s more natural.  More healthy.

As a wife of a very carnivorous man, I have a challenge when it comes to planning meals.  He eats meat.  I don’t.  What is a woman to do??

Lucky for me I have a really awesome husband that is willing to try anything.  This means he can park his manhood for a bit and try foods that I like – without meat and with tofu.

Yes ladies you read this correctly.  Jay ate tofu.  And he liked it.  A lot.

Told you I’m lucky )

Of course I also made him chicken to go with this dish, but I was able to eat the stir-fry as my main course.  And it was to die for.   The recipe called for kale and since I’ve been using it for the past few days I say, why not!?  Kale has tons of fiber and iron, which is especially important for me and my herbivore ways.  An added bonus is the chickpeas and tofu that also provide me with fiber and iron.

I didn’t have the summer squash that the recipe called for but since I bought a HUGE bag of peppers from Wegmans I figured it wouldn’t hurt to throw them in for some gorgeous color.

This meal was a hit for carnivores and herbivores alike.  I highly recommend it.

Lemon Chickpea Stir-Fry

Source: 101 Cookbooks

Yields 2 (as Main Dish); 4 (as Side Dish)

Ingredients:

2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
fine grain sea salt
1 small onion or a couple shallots, sliced
1 c. cooked chickpeas (canned is fine)
8 ounces extra-firm tofu, diced
1 c. of chopped kale
1 c. red, orange, and/or yellow bell pepper, chopped
zest and juice of 1/2 a lemon

Directions:

Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and stir in a big pinch of salt, the onion, and chickpeas.

Saute until the chickpeas are deeply golden and crusty. Stir in the tofu and cook just until the tofu is heated through, about a minute.

Stir in the kale and cook for one minute more.

Remove everything from the skillet onto a large plate and set aside. In the same skillet heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil, add the peppers and saute until it starts to take on a bit of color, two or three minutes.

Add the chickpea mixture back to the skillet, and remove from heat. Stir in the lemon juice and zest, taste, and season with a bit more salt if needed.