Vegan Lentil Vegetable Soup

2 cups green or yellow split peas
8 cups of water
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
2 cups chopped onions
1 1/2 cup chopped carrots
1 1/2 cup chopped celery
2 cups diced potatoes
1/4 cup red miso
1/2 ounces dried mushrooms soaked in 1 cup hot water
salt and pepper to taste

Add everything to the pot except the miso (I have cooked the lentil a bit before adding the vegetables)
When mushrooms soft, strain liquid, chop mushrooms and put both mushrooms and liquid in pot

Cook until split peas are soft and creamy.  Add miso.  

Stir occasionally.

Black Lentil and Broccoli Salad

1/2 cup black lentils
1 bunch of broccoli broken into florets
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/2 red onion

Cook lentils in 1 cup of water until tender.
Cook broccoli.
Mix oil, vinegar, honey and mustard to make dressing

Toss lentils and broccoli with dressing.

Garnish with thin slices of red onion

Massaged Kale Salad

absolutely delicious

 

Massaged Kale Salad

2 heads kale, spines removed, chopped
1 head garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons Braggs liquid aminos (or tamari or soy sauce)
juice from 1/2 lemon
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar


Mix ingredients together in large bowl (except kale)
Add kale in thirds
Massage for several minutes until kale wilts and volume is significantly reduced.  
Top with pomegranate seeds or edible flowers

Curried Coconut Carrot Soup

 Curried Coconut Carrot Soup
serves 6 to 8

2 tablespoons coconut oil (I used olive oil)
1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped
6 cups carrots, unpeeled and roughly chopped (this required 8 medium-sized carrots for me)
3 1/2 cups vegetable stock (I like the flavor of 'No Chicken' stock by Imagine Foods)
One 15-ounce can full-fat coconut milk
1 1/2 tablespoons freshly chopped ginger root
1 tablespoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon chili flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
Heat the coconut oil in a large soup pot and add the onions. Sweat the onions on medium heat for about 7 minutes. Add the carrots and cook for another 5 minutes. Pour in the stock and coconut milk. Add the ginger, curry powder and chili flakes. Put a lid on the pot and cook until the carrots are softened, about 10 or 15 minutes.
When carrots are soft, carefully blend the soup in batches in a blender (use a towel to hold the lid down firmly) or use an immersion hand blender and puree until smooth. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with fresh herbs (I used cilantro) and more chili flakes, if desired.

Curried Chicken Coucous Salad

Curried Chicken Couscous Salad

Chicken:
3 T Unsalted butter
3 lbs. boneless chicken cut into 1/2 inch strips
1/2 red bell pepper julienned
1/2 red onion sliced thin
1 large carrot julienned
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 granny smith apple
2 T curry
1/2 C heavy cream

Saute chicken in butter until cooked.  Remove Chicken. Saute pepper, onion, carrot and garlic. Add raisins, apple, and curry.  Add chicken, cream, salt and pepper.  Simmer for 8-10 mins.  Let cool to room temperature.

Dressing:
Stir together:
1 C plain yogurt
2 T Honey
2 T fresh orange juice

Stir together and add to chicken just before serving

Couscous:
1 C chicken broth
1 C couscous
1 T unsalted butter
1/2 tsp tumeric

Boil broth, stir in couscous butter, and tumeric.  remove from heat.  Cover and let stand 5 min.  Fluff couscous with fork.  Let cool to room temp.
Arrange chicken on couscous
Use romaine lettuce as a bed for both.

Spice Crusted Salmon

1 pound salmon filet

1 Tbsp coriander seeds, crushed
1 TBSP cumin seeds
1/2 TBSP black peppercorns
1 tsp kosher salt

Heat small skillet over medium heat. Add coriander and cumin, toast, stirring constantly until aromatic (2 to 3 minutes). Let cook and transfer to mortar and pestle (I use the coffee bean griner), add peppercorns and crush. Stir in salt. Coat salmon with spice mixture.

Grill/broil salmon about 5 minutes on each side depending on thickness of filet.

I usually serve this with a fresh salsa from Whole Foods or (if feeling energetic) the following salsa.

Salsa
4 navel oranges
1 small red onion
1/4 cup lim juice
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 TSBP minced chipotle pepper
1 finely minced clove of garlic
salt and pepper

Use knife to peel orange. Do this over a bowl to catch all the juice. Cut segments from the membrane (cut segments into bite sized pieces) and mix with other ingredients.

All About the Turkey

The stuffing/dressing recipe is for a 10 to 12 pound turkey. Stuff the turkey loosely and put remaining stuffing in baking dish to bake later (I usually do for 1/2 hour at 350 degrees and moisten with a bit of turkey juice from roasting turkey) This is the basic recipe...we add more celery, onion and parsley and taste it until we like it. We use canned chicken broth to moisten - try to find unsalted or low salt. Read through everything before starting. When you are here, we can do a turkey together.

Old Fashioned Dressing

12 cups of bread crumbs (I buy white bread, cut it into smallish cubes and dry out completely in oven)
1/2 cup butter
1 cup finely chopped onion
3 cups finely chopped celery
3.4 cup finely chopped parsley
salt
poultry seasoning
sage
paprika (I only use it if I have some around)
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 egg, slightly beaten.

Melt butter. Saute onion and celery about five minutes. Mix with all the other ingredients. Moisten with chicken broth...don't want it too wet as you will baste the stuffing with the turkey juices as it is roasting, but it should be moist. Taste and add more onion, celery and parsley. We always add way more. And often add another egg, more butter, etc. Add seasonings until you like it. We make the dressing the night before and refrigerate overnight.

Turkey:

Take out giblet packet. Wash turkey with cold water. Pat dry inside and out with paper towels. Sprinkle inside cavity with a bit of salt and pepper. Spoon dressing into body and neck cavity. Don't stuff tightly...the dressing will expand a bit. Rub outside of turkey with melted butter. Wrap ends of drumsticks and wings with foil. Follow roasting instructions on turkey (you can get ones with the pop up thermometer). Baste, baste, baste. I usually put a tent of foil over the breast to keep from getting too brown. If you do that, take foil off for last 1/2 hour. Aim to have turkey come out of oven at least 20 minutes to 1/2 hour before serving. Put on platter. Cover with foil and then with towels to keep warm. The turkey will exude juices so keep an eye out for those and spoon into cup to use for gravy. (I once forgot and had turkey juice all over the table and floor).


Gravy:

Take the giblet and neck and hack into smallish pieces. I always discard the liver. In a pot, melt 2 tablespoons butter/2 tablespoons oil and saute the giblet and neck until brown. Toss in a can of chicken broth, a cup of white wine or white vermouth, a chunked up carrot, a couple stalks of celery and an onion quartered and let simmer all morning. Strain broth.

Take the pan that the turkey was roasted in (make sure this is one you can put on the stovetop). Spoon out most of the fat...you should have a good two tablespoons of fat left in the pan. Heat. Add a couple of tablespoons of flour. Stir and smush on low heat until the flour and fat are sort of incorporated. You want to cook this enough so the flour is "cooked" but don't want to really brown it too much. Stirring and scraping up browned bits, add the broth, any saved turkey juices to pan and whisk and whisk...bring to a boil...it will thicken somewhat...keep stirring so you don't have lumps....if you need to, you can add a bit of canned chicken broth to thin if too thick and you don't have enough juices. Just important to keep stirring. Off heat strain through strainer and you should have a tasty gravy.

Creamed Tuna on Toast

I learned this recipe from watching my mom make it. I remember having this dish after I came home from the hospital after having my tonsils out.

Melt some butter (about 2 to 3 tsps).
Add some flour (about a tablespoon or a bit more).
Cook over low heat, stirring for several minutes.
Add can of drained tuna. Break tuna apart.
Add a cup of milk.
Stir and cook over medium heat until the sauce is thickened. If too thick, add a bit more milk.

This is really a simple white sauce (bechamel) with tuna tossed in so any recipe book would have a more accurate recipe for the sauce.

Spanish Rice

Aunt Mary said that Grandma Lucich learned to make Spanish rice from a woman who ran the boarding house in Montana where Grandpa and Grandma first lived after they were married. I don't have an exact recipe, but you can't really go too wrong. We're not talking "haute cuisine."

Spanish Rice

Into a heavy skillet put 4 to 6 slices of bacon cut into squares. Cook over low heat and when the bason fat has rendered out, add a couple of large onions coarsely chopped and some rice (maybe a cup or bit more). Stir for 3 to 4 minutes. Then pour tomato juice into the pan and cook at low heat until rice in tender. Add more juice as necessary.

Monsieur Bon-Bon's Secret "Fooj"

When I was a kid, my Barnes cousins and I were always trying to make a successful batch of fudge. We used a recipe from a battered black cookbook or from the back of a Hershey's powdered cocoa box but not matter what we did (or didn't do) we always ended up with fudge that was either rock hard or ooey gooey and had to be eaten with a spoon. But now if I made fudge (very very rarely) I use a recipe that I found in the back of Ian Fleming's book, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Mr. Bon-Bon's recipe always turns out well and has a wonderful old fashioned taste (much preferable to fudge made with marshmallow whip and the like.

Fooj

1 pound granulated sugar
1/4 pound finest butter
1 tbsp water
4 tbsp unsweetened chocolate
1 small can of evaporated mild
1 tbps corn syrip

Put all the ingredients into a saucepan. Melt slowly on low gas until mixture thickens slightly and is absolutely smooth. Turn up gas and boil very quickly until it forms into a soft ball when a sample is dropped into cold water. Remove from heat and beat well with a wooden sppon. Pour the whole mixture into a flat, greased pan, mark in squares and leave to set. When cold, DEVOUR!

Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Soup

Make a day or two or even three days ahead...it tastes even better.

1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and diced
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1 medium to large butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
6 cups chicken or vegetable broth (Swanson's makes a good vegie broth)
1.2 cup heavy cream
salt and pepper to taste
small pinch of cayenne pepper
large pinch of nutmeg

Melt butter with the oil in a large heavy casserole over medium heat.
Add the onion and cook until soft but not brown.
Add the cumin and coriander and stir for 1 minute.
Add the squash, sweet potatoes and broth and bring to a boil.
Reduce head and simmer for half an hour or until the cubes are soft.
Process through blender or food processor in bathces.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Add cayenne and nutmeg to taste.
Stir in cream.
Makes 4 to 5 servings or more depending on size of serving.

Caesar Salad a la Roger

Caesar Salad

Roger developed this recipe after many, many visits to Gusti's restaurant in the 60's in Washington, D.C. We would order the salad, watch as it was made tableside and take notes. At that time, a raw egg yolk was used. Now Roger boils the egg until it is just soft boiled, eats the white (gross) and uses only the yolk. The family thinks his is the best!

The amount of most ingredients may be adjusted depending on amount of lettuce used. Also ingredients may be adjusted for personal taste. Obviously the amount of garlic and anchovies used is a matter of taste. Use caution in adding mustard as a little bit goes a long way. The salad dressing should have a moderately thick consistency but if it is too heavy or thick, there is no problem in adding a small amount of water to thin the dressing.

Ingredients:

1 head of romaine lettuce, washed, dried well and torn into bite-sized pieces
Parmesan cheese
Three or four slices of good quality white bread including heel of bread
Garlic
Anchovies
Olive Oil
Red wine vinegar
Dash of Worcestershire sauce
Lemon
English mustard (powdered)
1 egg
Pepper

Make Croutons:
Cut slices of white bread into cubes and toast (along with heel of bread) in 350* oven until dry and slightly golden.
Remove from oven and let cool.

Make Dressing:

Crush 4 to 6 cloves of garlic with 3 or 4 anchovy filets in a wooden bowl.
Add dried heel of bread (if needed you can use some croutons as well).
Add approximately 1/4 cup of olive oil and 1/8 cup vinegar and Worcestershire sauce.
Add the juice of 1/2 lemon.
Add the yolk of a soft boiled egg.
1/2 level teaspoon of dried English mustard.
1/2 teaspoon pepper - preferably freshly ground.

Crush and mix these ingredients with a wooden spoon until it reaches a medium consistency - sufficient to coat leaves without too much clumping. If the mixture is too thick, beat in a small amount of water.

Let stand for 1/2 hour to permit the flavors to suffuse.

Toss with romaine lettuce, croutons and two tablespoons of good quality parmesan cheese.

Remember when making this dressing you can always add ingredients but not subtract them (particularly the hot mustard as learned from experience) so adjust to your taste as you go along.

Apple Tart

I found this recipe at the end of a paperback collection of short stories - all murder mysteries and all the victims done in by apples in one way or another. This is one of the best apple tart recipes ever. Looks as if you've purchased it at a fancy French bakery and especially easy if you have a food processor.

APPLE TART

Cake:
1 cup sugar 1 tsp baking powder
1 cup unsifted flour 1 tsp vanilla
4 tbsp butter cut into pieces 1 large egg
4 Granny Smith apples (I have tried other varieties of apples...don't...they just don't work)

Topping:
3 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp melted butter
1 tsp cinnamon
1 large egg

Put all cake ingredients except apples into bowl of food processor and process until the mixture has the consistency of cornmeal. (You can do this by hand using two knives or forks) Spread the mixture evenly in the bottom of a well-buttered 9 -inch springform pan. Do NOT pat the mixture down...smooth without compacting it...

Core and peel apples and slice into thin slices.

Arrange apples in layers on top of the crumb mixture (make overlapping concentric circles). Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 45 minutes.

Just before the 45 minutes are up, mix together the topping ingredients. Spoon the mixture of the apples and then return to oven and bake for another 25 to 30 minutes until the top is firm and golden brown.

Chocolate Mousse Cake

A recipe clipped from an Atlanta newspaper years ago. Please use good quality chocolate (Hershey's baking chocolate is a no no). And you'll need a 9 x 3 inch springform pan (the kind you'd use for making a cheesecake).


Chocolate Mousse Cake

Ingedients:

7 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

1/4 pound butter

7 eggs, separated (for older recipes such as this, I buy only large eggs and pick out the smallest ones from

the box; have found that today's eggs are much bigger and there's more white which makes the mousse

less chocolately. I have, if the eggs seem to have lots of white, used only 6 whites)

1 cup sugar (divided into 3/4 cup and 1/4 cup)


1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar


Melt chocolate and butter.

Beat egg yolks with 3/4 cup sugar for 5 minutes

Stir in warm chocolate/butter mixture

Beat egg whites with 1/4 cup sugar and cream of tartar until stiff (I usually beat egg whites until
foamy and then add cream of tartar and gradually beat in sugar)

Stir a small spoonful of whipped egg whites into chocolate mixture then gently fold remainder of egg whites into chocolate/butter mixture

Pour 3/4 of this chocolate/eggwhite mixture into 9 inch springform pan. Cover the remaining 1/4 and refrigerate.

Bake at 325* for 35 minutes . Remove from oven and cool completely. Remove outside ring of springform pan. Top will be cracked and crumbly looking but not to worry.

Take the remaining mousse from fridge and gently spread over top of cake. Refrigerate while making frosting.

Whipped Cream Frosting:

1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup powdered or confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Whip cream until it begins to thicken. Add sugar and vanilla and beat until stiff. Don't overbeat or you'll have the beginnings of butter. Spread frosting over top of cake.


You can decorate cake with chocolate leaves. Wash and dry stiff leaves (holly, for example). Melt 1/4 cup chocolate chips with a teaspoon of butter and a teaspoon of honey. Spread warm mixture on leaves. Set on plate. Place in fridge until cool. Carefully peel leaf away from chocolate.

Coming Soon...Chocolate Mousse Cake

Chicken Breasts with Diced Aromatic Vegetables and Cream

Loved the movie, Julie and Julia and the book, My Life in France by Julia Child. and am hating the book written by the Croutons with Wonder Bread blogger who blogged about doing all of the recipes in Mastering the Art of French Cooking in one year.

This chicken recipe (involving, of course, butter and cream) was requested and straight from Julia Child...here is Supremes de Volaille a l'Ecossaise. Read entire recipe before beginning.

Dice neatly to make 2/3 to 3/4 cup:
1 medium carrot,
1 to 2 tender celery stalks
1 medium white onion

Cooked the diced vegetables slowly with 1/8 teaspoon salt and 5 tablespoons of butter for about 10 minutes in a covered casserole. Vegetables should be tender, but not browned. (heavy covered fireproof casserole that will hold four supremes)

4 supremes (boned chicken breasts trimmed of icky bits (that's me...not Julia))

Rub the supremes with drops of lemon juice and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
Roll each supreme in the butter and vegies then cover with a buttered parchment or waxed
paper that is buttered on one side (buttered side to touch the supremes)

Place in preheated 400 degree oven.

After 6 minutes, press top of supreme with finger. If still soft, return to oven for another minute. When meat is springy to touch, it is done.

Remove supremes from pan and put on warm platter and cover while making sauce.

Sauce:

In pan in which chicken and vegies cooked, pour

1/4 cup beef bouillon (I use Campbells...uh oh...maybe I shouldn't have been snippy about
Wonder Bread croutons)
1/4 cup port or dry white vermouth

Boil over high heat until liquid is syrupy.

Stir in

1 cup whipping cream (or creme fraiche if available)

Bring to boil again and boil until cream has thickened slightly.

Off heat, taste for seasoning. Add salt, pepper and a few drops of lemon juice if needed)

Pour sauce over supremes, sprinkle with parsley.

Serve with little steamed or boiled potatoes.


(You could make ahead and then very gently reheat).

Shepherd's Pie

Shepherd's Pie is a great way to use up leftover mashed potatoes. You don't really need a recipe. Just brown the ground beef (or use soy protein) and add in cooked vegies (carrots, onions, celery, peas, a bit of tomato), top with the mashed potatoes and bake in the oven. The following recipe comes from the website, epicurious.com

Shepherd's Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, peeled and chopped
• 1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
• 1 pound ground beef
  
• 1 cup beef or chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste (or a seeded, chopped tomato)
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup milk (any fat content)
• Pepper and salt to taste..and parsley if you'd like
  

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.

2. In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, heat the oil, then add the onion, carrot, and meat. Cook until browned, 8 to 10 minutes.

3. Drain the fat and add the broth, tomato paste, and salt and pepper. Simmer until the juices thicken, about 10 minutes, then add the peas.

4. Pour the mixture into a 1 1/2-quart baking dish; set aside.

5. Meanwhile, bring the potatoes to a boil in salted water. Cook until tender, about 20 minutes; drain.

6. Mash the potatoes with the butter, milk, and salt. (If using leftovers, make sure they are moistened with milk and some melted butter)

7. Spread them over the meat mixture, then crosshatch the top with a fork.

8. Bake until golden, 30 to 35 minutes.

Mediterranean Quinoa with Broccoli

From the Washington Post food section. Quick and easy to make, tasty and very healthy!

Mediterranean Quinoa With Broccoli

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups quinoa
1 1/2 lbs broccoli
1 to 2 medium lemons
1/2 cups oil packed sundried tomatoes
5 tablespoons olive oil (may use oil from the sundried tomatoes)
salt to taste

Directions:

Cook quinoa according to directions.

Break broccoli up into florets and cut the stalks (peel if necessary) into 3/4 inch pieces and cook.

While quinoa and broccoli are cooking, make dressing from lemon juice (I didn't use all the juice from 2 lemons), olive oil and salt.

Coarsely chop sundried tomatoes.

Drain quinoa and broccoli.

Put into bowl with dressing and sundried tomatoes and toss together

Add more salt or lemon juice to taste.

Can serve warm or at room temperature.

TEMPEH

Dried Red Chilies, Petra, Jordan

Tempeh

I think Susy learned this recipe at a cooking class at a Burmese restaurant. Very tasty served with rice and healthy...

3 tbs oil
1 garlic clove, chopped fine (I usually put in a bit more)
1 inch fresh ginger, chopped fine
½ cup slice onion (I put in a whole large onion)
¼ tsp tumeric (I usually add a bit more)
1 tsp hot red chili flakes
2 cups crumbled tempeh
1 tsp salt (not necessary)
2 tsp soy sauce (to taste)
½ cup roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
One small can of whole plum tomatoes. I cut the tomatoes in chunks and I add the juice as well.
1 -4 hot green chilies, cut in 4 pieces each (again, to taste...I usually use one chili or none)

Heat oil in skillet and fry the garlic, onion, ginger and tumeric over moderate heat until light brown.

Add chili flakes, tempeh, salt and soy sauce and fry three or four minutes stirring so all is well mixed.

Add peanuts and fry 2 minutes more.

Add tomato, fry 2 minutes.

Add fresh chilies, fry a moment more and serve.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Kings Crown near King Hill, Idaho

GARLIC MASHED POTATOES

Lots of butter and cream...but wonderful taste and texture...

4 pounds red-skinned potatoes, unpeeled, quartered (scrub well and cut out any eyes)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 cup finely chopped onion
3 tablespoons finely chopped garlic
1 cup whipping cream

Cook potatoes in large pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain. Return to pot.

Meanwhile, melt 1/4 cup butter in large skillet over medium heat.
Add onion and sauté until translucent, about 3 minutes.
Add garlic and sauté until tender, about 3 minutes.
Add onion-garlic mixture to potatoes.
Add cream and remaining 1/4 cup butter; mash coarsely. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve. Serves 6 to 8.