Winter Squash and Spinach Pasta Bake

 This is Smitten Kitchen's version of a recipe originally by Ottolenghi. We made it tonight and I really loved it. The down side is it take 1.5 hours to bake and then another half hour to rest, but other than that it's pretty easy and infinitely variable which I really like in a recipe so I definitely hope i make it again. I have varied it a little here.

Winter Squash and Spinach Pasta Bake

From Smitten Kitchen

 Ingredients:

• 1 large egg
• 1 cup (250 grams) ricotta
• 1 cup (100 grams) finely grated parmesan, divided
• 1 cup (85 grams) coarsely grated fontina cheese (I substituted cheddar for this and it was fine)
  
• 1 1/4 cups (300 grams) water
• 3 tablespoons (45 ml) olive oil, divided
• 2.5 teaspoons kosher salt (use less if you are using table salt)
• Freshly grated nutmeg
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, to taste (I omitted this for kids)
  
• 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 5 ounces (140 grams) baby spinach, roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons thinly-sliced sage leaves or 1 teaspoons chopped thyme leaves (optional) (I substituted 1/2 t. dried sage)
  
• 1 1/4-pound (560-grams) butternut or another sturdy winter squash, peeled, seeded, sliced thin or 1 pound (455 grams) in prepared chunks, sliced thin
• 8 ounces (225 grams) dried pasta (see Note), broken into pieces if large/long (I used penne and it was great)
• 3 Tablespoons pine nuts
  

Instructions:

Heat oven to 350°F (176°C). Line a 9-inch springform with 3-inch sides (see Note) with parchment paper, pressing it across the bottom and creasing the sides to get it to fit as best as possible. If the sides aren’t well covered, repeat with a second piece of parchment in the other direction.

Whisk egg and ricotta in a large bowl. Stir in half of the parmesan, fontina (or cheddar), water, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, salt, a few gratings of fresh nutmeg, lots of freshly ground black pepper, red pepper flakes (if using), and garlic. Stir in squash, spinach, pine nuts, and sage or thyme, if using. Add dried noodles and stir until everything is coated.

Pour into prepared pan and press gently so everything is in as even of a layer as possible. Sprinkle with second half of parmesan. Gently fold any parchment that extends over the rim of the pan into the center and cover the pan tightly with foil. Bake on a sheet (for extra security against drips) for 1 hour, then remove foil, reopen the parchment folded over the top, and drizzle the dish with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Return to the oven uncovered for 30 minutes. Pasta will be baked through and the top will be crisp. If it doesn’t have as much color as you’d like on top, you can finish it under the broiler for a minute or two.

Cool in pan on a rack for 30 minutes before removing the springform ring, sliding the pasta bake by its parchment onto a serving plate, and cut it into wedges.

Do ahead: This keeps in the fridge for up to 1 week. Rewarm uncovered in a 350-degree oven. I haven’t frozen it, but would expect it to freeze well, tightly wrapped.

Notes:
* Structural note: Like a lasagna, this is more wet and messy when it first comes out of the oven. I recommend a 30-minute rest at minimum (what you see here in the loose slices) but it will be cleaner to cut and more set the longer it hangs out. It reheats fantastically and keeps up to a week in the fridge. Last night, we reheated wedges from 6 days ago and they were (still) perfection.

* Pan size: I only tested this in a 9-inch springform but would expect it to also fit in a 11 to 12-inch ovenproof skillet and also, less glamorously, a 9×13-inch baking dish. No need to line with parchment if you’re serving it from the pan or not worried about leakage

Vegetable pot pie (vegetarian)

I had an idea to make a vegetarian pot pie with Cream of Mushroom soup. It came out pretty well! K ate many pieces but he loves pie crust so not sure how good the pie actually is. Makes one 9 inch pie. 

---

Vegetable Pot Pie

Ingredients:

For crust:

-- 1 cup butter (2 sticks) plus more for pie plate
-- 2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling out dough (I usually use 1 1/2 cups white and 1 cup whole wheat flour)

 For filling:

-- 1 small potato, peeled and cubed (maybe 1 cup)

-- 1 cup carrots, chopped (1 medium)
-- 2 T. butter
-- 1 small onion, chopped
-- 1 stalk celery, chopped (1/2 cup)

-- 1 cup peas, frozen
-- 1 can cream of mushroom soup

-- 1/2 can milk plus 3 T. to wash pie with
-- 1 teaspoon veggie bullion
-- 3 T. milk  (to wash pie)

Instructions:

First, make your pie crust.

1.   The trick with pie crusts is 1) keep everything cold and 2) try not to work the dough any more than you absolutely need to. Cut each stick of butter into 8 pieces, refrigerate until needed

2.   Place the flour, and salt in a large mixing bowl and mix to combine

3.   Add the chilled butter. Using a pastry blender, chop the butter into the flour mix - the mixture should resemble coarse meal with small pieces of butter, the size of peas, visible.

4.   Drizzle 1/4 cup ice water over flour-butter mix, blend, repeat with another 1/4 cup of ice water. Keep adding 1/4 cup of ice water until the dough mostly sticks together. Squeeze a little bit if you must but don't touch it too much with your hands at this point. The dough will get a bit stickier as it rests.

5.   Divide dough into 2 pieces, flatten into disks, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 hour.

 

Then, Make the filling

6.   Prep all your ingredients for the filling. 

7.   Preheat your oven to 350 F

8.   Boil a pot of water and add chopped potato and carrots and boil gently for about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside. 

9.   In a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter and cook onions and celery for about 15 minutes or until onion is translucent.

10. Stir in the cream of mushroom soup, 1/2 can of milk, bullion, and the potatoes, carrots, and peas.

11. Taste for seasonings, add salt and pepper if you like. 

12. Remove from heat and set aside.

 

Finally, Make your pie

13. Make the pie by rolling out one pie crust, putting in pie plate, adding the filling, adding top crust, sealing, and cutting vents. Brush top of pie with milk.

14. Bake in a preheated oven for 45 minutes or until crust is cooked through and brown on top.

15.  Remove your pie from the oven and allow it to cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Eggplant Balls

Whenever I make Spaghetti I always want to make some kind of an eggplant meatball to make it a bit healthier and add variety. The other recipe I have made for years no one likes, so I tried a new one this time -- and it was received much better. One of my favorite tricks for maximum yum in vegetarian food is to deveganize a vegan recipe, that is what I did here. 

Eggplant meatballs

From My Darling Vegan

Ingredients

• 1 large eggplant
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 1/2 cup bread crumbs (I used Panko)
  
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley (I didn't have this so didn't use)
• 2 tbsp fresh basil (I didn't have this so didn't use)
  
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
  
• 1 1/2 tbsp Italian Seasoning
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp salt
• pepper, to taste

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 375F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
• Chop the eggplant into 1" pieces. Heat olive oil over medium heat and add eggplant along with 1/4 cups water. Sauté for 10 minutes until eggplant is slightly brown and tender all throughout.
  
• While the eggplant is cooking, put garlic, herbs, spices, parmesan cheese, and egg into food processor and process until blended up and mixed well. When eggplant is cooked, add eggplant and breadcrumbs to the food processor and pulse until you have a uniform batter. Be careful not to overprocess or the meatballs will become gummy. Some texture is desirable. Taste and adjust seasonings.
• Roll the meatball mixture into balls 2 heaping tablespoons in size and place on the prepared parchment paper. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until meatballs are browned and crispy on the outside. This is good but alternatively you may want to try frying them in a pan with oil. 
• When the meatballs are done, add them to a saucepot with marinara sauce until the marinara sauce is heated all the way through. Toss with cooked spaghetti or zucchini noodles and serve with fresh parsley and extra parmesan.

Ratatouille

This is a very good recipe!! But greasy. And it took a long time to cook. It was the first time I made ratatouille, I have barely even eaten it in the past. But we saw the movie and I wanted to try making it. I served it on pasta and all the kids ate it and liked it OK. I saw many other recipes online that were healthier but I wanted to make sure and make one the kids will eat for the first time. Next time I will try and cut back on oil and see how that goes.

Ratatouille

From the New York Times

Ingredients

• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 medium white onions
• 3 medium zucchini
• 2 medium eggplant
• 3 sweet red peppers, such as bell peppers, red cubanelle or any other sweet variety
• 3 sprigs fresh rosemary (I used dried and fresh would have been better)
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 cup olive oil, more as needed
• 2 large heirloom or beefsteak tomatoes (I used a can of whole tomatoes and it worked fine)
• 2 small bay leaves, ripped in half
• 1 ½ teaspoons fine sea salt, more as needed
• Freshly ground black pepper 

Preparation

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Prepare the vegetables: Smash and peel 3 garlic cloves, reserving the 4th. Halve onions through their roots, and slice halves into 1/4-inch-thick pieces. Slice zucchini into 1/4-inch-thick rounds. Cut eggplant into 1-inch cubes or spears. Seed peppers, and cut them into 1/4-inch-thick strips.
3. Spread each vegetable on a separate rimmed baking sheet (use extra sheets as necessary). Add the 3 cloves of smashed garlic to the onion pan. Add 1 sprig rosemary and 2 sprigs thyme to each of the pepper, eggplant and zucchini pans. Sprinkle salt lightly over vegetables. Drizzle 3 tablespoons olive oil on each of the pans.
4. Place all the pans in the oven (or work in batches if they don’t fit at once). Cook until vegetables are very tender and lightly browned at the edges. This will take about 35 to 40 minutes for the peppers (their skins should shrivel), 40 to 45 minutes for the eggplant and zucchini (the eggplant should crisp slightly and the zucchini should be well cooked, so let them go 3 to 5 minutes longer than you normally might), and 60 to 65 minutes for the onions. Don’t worry about the vegetables being pretty; they will meld into the ratatouille. Shake or stir the pans every 15 to 20 minutes or so, especially the onions.
5. In the meantime, prepare the tomatoes: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add tomatoes and blanch until the skins split, about 10 seconds. Use a slotted spoon to quickly transfer the tomatoes to a bowl filled with ice water.
6. Using a paring knife, peel the cooled tomatoes (the skins should slip right off). Halve tomatoes across their equators. Set a sieve over a bowl. Working over the bowl, use your fingers to seed the tomatoes, letting the seeds catch in the sieve and the juice run into the bowl. Discard seeds but save juices. Dice tomatoes and add to the reserved juices in bowl.
7. Finely grate or mince remaining garlic clove. Add garlic to tomatoes along with bay leaves and a large pinch of salt. Set aside.
8. Once vegetables are done cooking, combine them on one baking sheet or a large shallow baking dish and add ingredients from tomato bowl. Toss well. Vegetables will be stacked, and that’s O.K. Cover generously with olive oil, using remaining ¼ cup oil or more, and sprinkle with salt. Everything should have a good coat of oil, but should not be drowning in it. Cook at least 1 hour, stirring every 15 to 20 minutes, until vegetables are very tender and imbued with juices and oil. Add salt and pepper to taste, then serve warm, or let cool.

Loaded sweet potatoes

BudgetBites is on a roll lately! I was very pleasantly surprised how easy, healthy, and kid-friendly the chili mac was, so I checked out their other recipes and found this one for loaded sweet potatoes. I gave it a shot tonight and it was surprise hit! Both kids really liked the sweet potatoes.

Loaded Sweet Potatoes with Lime Crema

Ingredients

• 2 sweet potatoes (about 1 lb. each) 
• 2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 15oz. can black beans, drained 
• 1/4 tsp cumin 
• 3/4 tsp salt, divided
• 1 lime, zested and juiced
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 avocado, chopped 
• 1 jalapeño (optional), sliced thin
• 1 green onion, sliced 

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 400ºF. To make the Lime crema, zest and juice the lime. Combine the sour cream with 1 Tbsp lime juice, about 1/2 tsp lime zest, and 1/4 tsp salt. Stir the ingredients together, then refrigerate until ready to use. (I didn't have sour cream so I substituted my other crema substitue, yogurt mixed with a little mayonnaise. I liked it but Kiran said he preferred plain yogurt)
• Wash then dry the sweet potatoes. Use a fork to prick the skins several times all over. Slice the sweet potatoes in half lengthwise, then use 1 Tbsp olive oil to coat the surface of all four pieces.
• Season the cut sides of the sweet potatoes with salt or seasoning salt. Coat the surface of a baking sheet with a thin layer of oil, then place the sweet potatoes cut side down. Bake the sweet potatoes for 30 minutes, or until they are soft, you can see the juices oozing out from underneath, and the skins look a little wrinkly.
• While the sweet potatoes are baking, Mince a clove of garlic, dice the red bell pepper, slice the jalapeño (if desired) and green onion.
• Add the minced garlic to a skillet with the remaining 1 Tbsp olive oil. Sauté over medium heat for one minute, then add the diced bell pepper. Sauté the pepper for 2-3 minutes, or just until it begins to soften, then add the black beans, cumin, salt, and green onion. Stir and cook until the beans are heated through. 
• When the sweet potatoes come out of the oven, use a spatula to flip them over. Mash the flesh of the sweet potatoes with a fork, then pile the bean and pepper mixture over top. Add the sliced jalapeño and a dollop (or drizzle) of the lime crema to each, top with avocado, then serve.

Vegetarian Calzones

Makes 3 calzones (enough for our family of 2 adults and 2 kids with some leftovers). We always use the same veggie toppings but you can change the toppings to whatever you like.

Ingredients

For dough:

-- 1 1/2 c. warm water
-- 1.5 t. instant yeast
-- 1.5 t. sugar
-- 3 cups all-purpose flour
-- 1.5 t. salt

Toppings:

-- 3/4 large green pepper, diced
-- 3/4 red onion, diced
-- 1 med tomato, diced
-- 1.5 small can pizza sauce
-- 1.5 package pizza cheese from the store (we maybe could get away with 1 package here as we don't use that much cheese)



Preparation:

1. Sometime in the afternoon before you are going to make calzones, make the dough. 
2. In a bowl, combine the water, yeast and sugar. Let stand until the mixture foams on top, about 5 minutes.
3. In another bowl, mix together flour and salt. Add water/yeast mixture to flour and stir into a dough.
4. Remove the dough from the bowl and knead for a few minutes on a floured surface to prevent sticking.
5. Place in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a clean cloth. Let the dough rise for about 30 minutes in warm and draft-free area. Cut the dough in thirds, each third will make 1 calzone
6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
7. Take the dough and roll it out with a rolling pin to be thin and roughly 12 inches to 18 inches in diameter. I try for the biggest circle I can fit in a sheet pan. 
8. Cover sheet pan with silpat (or oil) and transfer dough circle to sheet pan. 
9. Add one large handful of cheese onto half of the dough (or 2/3), leaving a clear edge all around so the dough will stick when you fold it over. 
10. Sprinkle 1/3 of veggies on the cheese
11. Sprinkle 1/3 of sauce on the veggies
12. Add on another 2 large handfuls of cheese on the top. If you cover the veggies so you can't see them it will be a LOT of cheese. 
13. Pull the uncovered dough over the toppings and push to seal all around the edges. Then, fold the edge up all around the seal to make a nice pattern and really seal it in. 
14. Brush top of calzone with milk or egg wash and cut a slit into the top. 
15. Bake in oven 30 - 35 minutes.

Cornbread with Black Beans and Cheddar Cheese

I have been struggling with things to send Kiran for lunch that are nutritious and that he will eat. This isn't perfect, but he really likes it, it's easy to make, and it will be easy to pack.

from Whole Foods

Cornbread with Black Beans and Cheddar Cheese

Ingredients: 

• 1 1/4 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk (I use approx. 1/2 cup plain yogurt and 1/2 cup milk for this)
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 3 green onions, sliced
• 1/2 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
• 1/2 cup cooked and drained black beans 
•  
• Ingredient Options:
• Cayenne pepper, sliced jalapeño pepper or chili powder. Feel free to substitute whole wheat pastry flour for the all-purpose flour.
   

  Method: 
  Preheat the oven to 450°F. Oil a 9x9-inch baking dish with canola or olive oil spray and set aside. In a large bowl, mix together cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and sea salt. In a separate bowl, whisk eggs with buttermilk, melted butter, cheese, green onions, corn and black beans. Stir in any optional ingredients desired. Add to dry ingredients, blending until just combined.
  
  Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool slightly before slicing.

   

   

   
  Nutritional Info: 

  Per Serving: Serving size: 82g-wt., 180 calories (80 from fat), 9g total fat, 5g saturated fat, 55mg cholesterol, 310mg sodium, 20g carbohydrates, (2 g dietary fiber, 3g sugar), 7g protein.

Vegetarian hand pies

I had the idea to make a savory hand pie for Kiran's lunches, I wanted to make one as close to classic chicken pot pie as I could, but without the chicken. This came out so good, both Kiran and Mahesh loved it. You can also use the same filling and crusts to make a full-size veggie pot pie. This would be great for a really nice vegetarian main dish at a celebration like Thanksgiving as well. I love chicken pot pie and I'd bet most meat eaters wouldn't even notice no meat chunks, especially if you make a really good crust.

Vegetarian Hand Pies

makes 22 hand pies

For crust:

-- 1 cup butter (2 sticks) plus more for pie plate
-- 2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling out dough (I usually use 1 1/2 cups white and 1 cup whole wheat flour)
-- 1/2 t. salt

For filling:

-- 1/2 potato, peeled and cubed (maybe 1/2 cup)
-- 1/2 cup peas, frozen
-- 2 T. butter
-- 1 cup carrots, chopped (1 medium)
-- 1 onion, chopped
-- 1/2 cup celery, chopped (1 rib)
-- 2 T. flour
-- 1/2 tsp. salt
-- 1/4 tsp. pepper
-- 1/4 tsp. celery seed
-- 2 cups milk
-- 1 heaping T veggie bullion

-- 3 T. milk or 1 egg, beaten with 1 t. water (to seal and wash pies)

Instructions

First, make your pie crust.

1.   The trick with pie crusts is 1) keep everything cold and 2) try not to work the dough any more than you absolutely need to. Cut each stick of butter into 8 pieces, refrigerate until needed

2.   Place the flour, and salt in a large mixing bowl and mix to combine

3.   Add the chilled butter. Using a pastry blender, chop the butter into the flour mix - the mixture should resemble coarse meal with small pieces of butter, the size of peas, visible.

4.   Drizzle 1/4 cup ice water over flour-butter mix, blend, repeat with another 1/4 cup of ice water. Keep adding 1/4 cup of ice water until the dough mostly sticks together. Squeeze a little bit if you must but don't touch it too much with your hands at this point. The dough will get a bit stickier as it rests.

5.   Divide dough into 2 pieces, flatten into disks, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 hour.

Make the filling

6.   Prep all your ingredients for the filling.

7.   Preheat your oven to 425 F (220 C).

8.   Boil a pot of water and add chopped potato and boil gently for about 15 minutes. When there are 2 minutes left on the timer, add frozen peas to the mix. Drain and set aside.

9.   In a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter and cook onions, celery, and carrots for about 15 minutes or until onion is translucent.

10. Stir in the flour, salt, pepper and celery seed and cook for at least 60 seconds to cook out the raw taste of the flour. 

11. Slowly whisk in milk and veggie bulllion. Whisk for about 5 minutes until thickened.

12. Stir in the potatoes and peas. Boil until it reaches the right consistency, you want it saucy but not to run all over the place. Some runniness is OK because it gets thicker as it cools. 

13. Remove from heat and set aside.

Make the pies

14. Take one pie crust out of fridge and roll out a bit thinner than regular pie crust. 

15. Cut 4.5 inch circles (I used a blue plastic bowl) and move the circles to a greased baking sheet (or one covered with a silpat).

16. Refrigerate circles until fully chilled. (the crust is easier to work with when cold)

17. To make a pie, wet the entire edge of the circle with milk or egg wash. Add about 2 heaping Tablespoons of filling, then fold dough in half, press around the edge, and crimp with a fork. Wash top with egg wash or milk, then poke with fork on top to let vent.

18. Bake the pies 17 minutes, or until brownish on top and the crust is baked through. 

19.  Remove your pie from the oven and allow it to cool for 10 minutes before serving. 

Javanese Roasted Tofu with Pepper Rainbow

I inherited the Whole Foods Market Cookbook from my cousin Debbie after she passed away 2 years ago. I think of her every time we open this book. We have made quite a few recipes from this cookbook but this one is our favorite. The sauce tastes a little bit like satay sauce. Even Kiran loves it. "I will eat brocolli with this sauce!" He once proclaimed. That is quite an endorsement. Here it is, with our changes.

Javanese Roasted Tofu with Pepper Rainbow

Ingredients

1 pound extra-firm tofu (or firm, or med firm) -- if you want lots of tofu, can use 2 pounds in this recipe, it will just be a little less saucy

1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup tamari or soy sauce
3 T. honey
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 cup canola oil
1 cup thinly sliced green pepper
1 cup thinly sliced red pepper
1 cup thinly sliced yellow pepper
1.5 cups thinly sliced additional vegetables, can be more peppers, or carrots, or brocolli

Instructions: 

-- Preheat oven to 350 F
-- Cut the tofu into 1 inch thick slices across the short side of the tofu block. You will have 6 slices. Place the slices in a baking dish (I use a 9x13 pan) and bake in the oven for 25 minutes. The tofu should not be crispy - you want it to simply dry up.
-- While the tofu is baking, in a medium bowl blend the peanut butter, tamari, honey, water, lemon juice, garlic, and salt.
-- Pour the peanut butter sauce over the cooked tofu, cover the pan with aluminum foil, and continue to bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the tofu from the oven, and place on a serving dish.
-- Just before the tofu is done, heat the canola oil in a large saute pan, and saute the red, green, and yellow peppers and additional vegetables for 5 minutes or until softened.
-- Top the tofu with the vegetable mixture and serve on rice.

Classic Chickpea Noodle Casserole

I saw this recipe for a chickpea casserole, and I immediately bookmarked it to try out. But then I started thinking about tuna noodle casserole, which I love, and wondering if I could make something more like that, but with chickpeas (garbanzo beans). So I made half Chickpea Casserole with Lemon, Herbs, and Shallots, and half classic Tuna Noodle Casserole (the kind with the cream of mushroom soup) with chickpeas substituted for the tuna in one 9x13 dish. I asked Mahesh and Kiran which casserole they preferred, and both preferred the classic casserole over the new version, which is good  So I will make it again, it was good but a little bland and needed a little salt, and might be good to try adding in some canned artichoke hearts for a little extra flavor next time. It's quite filling due to the high chickpea content, which is nice. Here is the recipe:

Classic Chickpea Noodle Casserole

Makes one 13x9 pan, can halve the recipe (with one can chickpeas) for an 8x8 pan.

Ingredients:

• 2 (10.75 ounce) cans Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup (I might try cream of celery soup next time)
• 1 cup milk
• 2 cups frozen peas
• 2 (15 ounce) cans garbanzo beans, drained
• 4 cups hot cooked medium egg noodles (8 ounces dry)
• Salt
• (might be good to try adding in canned artichokes next time)
• 3/4 cup dry bread crumbs 
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted

Directions

1. Stir soup, milk, peas, garbanzo beans, noodles, and artichoke hearts, if using, in 3-quart casserole (I used a 9x13 pan).
2. Bake at 400 degrees F for 30 minutes or until hot. Stir.
3. Mix bread crumbs with butter in bowl and sprinkle over garbanzo bean mixture. Bake for 5 minutes more.

Vegetarian Tamale Pie

This is a very good recipe. The ancho chili powder and green olives give it a meaty-strong taste which is rare to find in a vegetarian recipe.

From Serious Eats

Vegetarian Tamale Pie

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels (or fresh, if you have it)
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 poblano pepper, diced (I couldn't find this so used a small green pepper)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 medium cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 Serrano pepper, minced (I left this out)
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 3 tablespoons ancho chili powder
• 1 cup pitted green olives, sliced
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15-ounce) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, drained and coarsely crushed with your hand
• 4 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese (about 1 cup)
• 3 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves and fine stems, minced
• For the Brown Butter Cornbread Crust:
• 6 talespoons unsalted butter (I only used 2, and used a bit more buttermilk instead)
• 1 cup (about 5 ounces) fine yellow cornmeal
• 1 cup (about 5 ounces) all-purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 6 ounces (about 3/4 cup) sour cream
• 4 ounces (about 1/4 cup) cultured buttermilk
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions
• 1 red jalapeño pepper, finely minced (I left this out also)
• Sour cream, for serving

Directions

1. Adjust oven rack to center position and preheat oven to 425°F. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven, or saucepan over high heat until lightly smoking. Add corn and cook, stirring occasionally, until corn is well charred in spots, about 4 minutes. Add onion, bell pepper, and poblano pepper, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until softened but not browned, about 3 minutes.
   
   
2. Add garlic, Serrano pepper (if using), cumin, coriander, oregano, and chili powder and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add olives, soy sauce, tomatoes, black beans, and kidney beans. Bring to a simmer and adjust heat to maintain. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thick and fragrant, about 20 minutes. Stir in grated cheese, scallions, and cilantro and season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside. You can do up until this point the day ahead for a quick weeknight meal the next night.
    
3. For the Brown Butter Cornbread Crust: Heat butter in a 12-inch cast iron or stainless steel skillet over medium heat until melted. Continue to cook, swirling pan gently until butter is nutty-smelling and solids are a toasty brown. Transfer to a heatproof cup or bowl and let rest until slightly cooler, about five minutes. (I did this but because I used less butter I don't think it made much difference, next time could just use melted butter for speed)
    
4. Combine cornmeal, flour, sugar, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl. Combine eggs, sour cream, and buttermilk in a second bowl and whisk until homogenous. Whisking constantly, slowly drizzle in reserved browned butter. Whisk wet ingredients into dry ingredients until homogenous. Fold in scallions and jalapeño pepper. 
    
5. Transfer bean mixture to a large cast iron skillet (I had to use a dutch oven because my cast iron skillet is way too small). Using a large spoon, place small dollops of the cornbread batter mixture on top of the bean filling, then use the back of the spoon to spread it into an even layer. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake until pale golden brown and a skewer inserted into the cornbread comes out clean, about 20 minutes. 
    
6. Let cool 15 minutes, then serve with sour cream.

Healthy Cornbread

We have been eating a lot of pea soup around here, and I like a good cornbread with my pea soup. The problem is that most cornbread recipes include half or even an entire cup of butter! This is a healthier recipe that still tastes good. I make mine in a cast iron skillet.

from eatingwell.com

 

WHOLESOME CORNBREAD

 

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon butter, for the pan
• 1 1/4 cups yellow cornmeal
• 3/4 cup whole-wheat flour (or white flour)
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup frozen corn kernels (optional)
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 1/4 cups plain yogurt (or buttermilk)
• 2 tablespoons melted butter

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Put 1 tablespoon butter in cast iron skillet and put it in the oven to preheat.
2. Whisk cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, frozen corn and salt in a large bowl. Whisk egg, yogurt and melted butter in a separate bowl. Add to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. 
3. Using a potholder, take the cast iron pan out of the oven. The butter should be melted by now, use a spatula to move the butter around so it coats the bottom of the pan. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, spreading evenly.
4. Bake the cornbread until the top springs back when touched lightly, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for at least 5 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Tropizenne part one: no-knead Brioche

The other day we received an invite to a pot-luck dinner which was very interesting. "We're asking each person (family) to bring a dish that reminds them of some special place they've been to or lived in the world," it read.

I started wracking my brain to think of something we could bring that was interesting and vegetarian, as usually no one else brings a vegetarian main dish to these types of dinners and I wanted to make sure Mahesh had something to eat.

After a lot of thinking, the dish I wanted to make the most was a dessert called Tropizenne. It's a pastry we discovered in the south of france, basically pastry cream sandwiched inside of a brioche bun with sugar sprinkled on top. (Brioche bread is just a rich bread made with eggs, butter, and honey). So simple but really the most memorable sweet thing we ate on our last trip to France. I've never seen it in any restaurant or pastry shop here in Vancouver, so in order to ever eat it again, short of going to France I would have to learn how to make it. This sounded like the perfect opportunity.

When I told Mahesh I wanted to make it, brioche bread and all, and he thought I was crazy. But I found a no-knead Brioche recipe, and I decided to make a sample brioche just to see if I could. If I could do that, the rest will be easy.

I almost threw out the dough because the yeast granules didn't look like they dissolved and I was afraid the final bread wouldn't rise, but I decided that it would be just as easy to throw it out after I baked it. I am happy to report that the final brioche turned out great! I will share the recipe below, and next week try and make the whole pastry.

No-knead Brioche

From Weekend Bakery

makes 1 Brioche loaf

250 g French Type 55 flour / all purpose flour / plain flour
100 g fresh dairy butter, melted
70 g water at room temperature
2 organic eggs (medium, about 110 g)
50 g runny honey (flower /acacia)
5.5 g / 1 teaspoon salt
3 g / 1 teaspoon instant yeast

-- egg yolk for brushing

TO MAKE AUTHENTIC TROPIZENNE: 
-- 1 handful of pearl sugar (or sliced almonds) -- This is a special kind of "puffed" sugar used is French pastries. It looks like "rice crispies" and has about the same light texture and crunch. It's very difficult to find this type of sugar, but worth the effort to make your Tarte Tropézienne look authentic. The only luck I've had in San Francisco is buying some from a local French bakery.

Making the Brioche

1) If you use granulated yeast like I do, put the water in a small bowl and sprinkle the yeast on top and let sit for 5 minutes to dissolve a bit.

2) In a larger bowl, combine eggs, honey, salt and melted butter, yeast/water mixture and whisk, somewhat vigorously, for about 30 seconds. Sift the flour into the mixture. Again, with enthusiasm, whisk for 30 seconds until your dough looks smooth and homogeneous. Cover your bowl and let the dough rest for two hours at room temperature.

3) Take the dough out of the bowl and onto a floured work surface and do one or two stretch and folds (full fold ones, left over right, right over left, bottom over top, top over bottom; see Weekend Bakery's bread movies to observe this technique if you are not familiar with it). If your dough is very ‘elastic’ and cooperative, do a few, if it starts to resist you can just stop.

4) Return the dough to the bowl, cover it with clingfilm and take it to the fridge where it will stay for 24 to 48 hours.

5)  Take the dough out of the fridge. Now it is time to shape. You can choose any shape you want but for tropizenne you want EITHER 4 inch buns, or one large flat round loaf. I am doing one large flat round loaf, so I made a circle about 8" around and 1" high, on a silpat-covered baking sheet.

6) Cover and leave to proof for 2 to 3 hours, depending on the temperature of the dough and of the room.You are looking for it to double in volume. It is best to cover the brioche with something that does not stick to the dough or weighs it down.

7) When dough has risen, brush it with egg yolk and sprinkle the top with the crystallized sugar if using.

7) Preheat your oven at 190ºC / 375ºF. Brush the brioche with some egg wash before you put it in the oven. Bake at 190ºC / 375ºF for about 10 minutes, then turn down the thermostat to 160ºC / 320ºF and bake for another 15 minutes. If the top browns too quickly or gets too dark, cover it with some aluminum foil to protect it.

8) After taking it out of the oven, brush it, with some melted butter directly after baking. Then leave to cool completely before slicing it. The brioche keeps very well for a few days (in container or bag) and even after that it can be given some oomph by toasting it lightly.

I thought it was great, and I wasn't the only one. 

Gruyere, Leek, and Mushroom Quiche

I have made quiche a lot over the years, but I think today I finally got the crust and the filling right! So I want to remember what I did for the next time.The crust I got from this recipe, and the filling I adapted from this recipe. You can mix up the filling ingredients with any meat/veggie/cheese/herb combo you like. But this one is pretty good. 

GRUYERE, LEEK, AND MUSHROOM QUICHE

FOR THE CRUST:

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
• 1/2 cup (1 sticks or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, very-cold, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 to 4 Tbsp ice water

 FOR THE FILLING:

-- 2 leeks, trimmed so only the white and lightest green parts remain.
-- 1 lb crimini mushrooms
-- 2 T. butter
-- 2 T. olive oil
-- 1 1/2 cups Gruyere cheese, shredded (approx. 6 ounces)
-- 1/2 cup milk
-- 1/2 cup heavy cream
-- 3 eggs
-- pinch nutmeg
-- salt and pepper

METHOD:

First, start the crust:

1. Combine flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor; pulse to mix. Add butter and pulse 6 to 8 times, until mixture resembles coarse meal, with pea size pieces of butter. Add ice water 1 Tbsp at a time, pulsing until mixture just begins to clump together. If you pinch some of the crumbly dough and it holds together, it's ready. If the dough doesn't hold together, add a little more water and pulse again. Note that too much water will make the crust tough.

2. Remove dough from machine and place in a mound on a clean surface. Gently shape the dough mixture into a disk. Work the dough just enough to form the disk, do not over-knead. You should be able to see little bits of butter in the dough. These small chunks of butter are what will allow the resulting crust to be flaky. Sprinkle a little flour around the disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour, and up to 2 days.

Then get the quiche ingredients prepped:

3. Slice mushrooms. Melt 1 T. butter and 1 T. olive oil in a frying pan and fry mushrooms until browned on the outside, stirring occasionally. This will take a while, maybe 20 minutes. Put Mushrooms in bowl.

4. Slice leeks in half lengthwise and then thinly slice into half-moons. Soak the rings in water, mixing well to remove any hidden dirt. Then drain. If you are not sure you got all the dirt out wash them again. Then dry. After the mushrooms are removed from frying pan, add 1 T. butter and 1 T. olive oil in pan and fry the leeks on med heat until they are soft and beginning to caramelize and taste good. Add to the bowl with the cooked mushrooms, set aside.

Then, roll out the crust:

5. Remove crust disk from the refrigerator. Let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes in order to soften just enough to make rolling out a bit easier. Roll out with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface to a 12-inch circle; about 1/8 of an inch thick. As you roll out the dough, check if the dough is sticking to the surface below. If necessary, add a few sprinkles of flour under the dough to keep the dough from sticking. Carefully place onto a 9-inch pie plate. Gently press the pie dough down so that it lines the bottom and sides of the pie plate. Use a pair of kitchen scissors to trim the dough to within 1/2 inch of the edge of the pie dish.

6. Make a nice crust by fluting the edges with your fingers, then when perfectly formed, transfer crust to freezer to chill for 30 minutes or overnight.

7. Preheat oven to 350°. Line pastry with parchment paper, or aluminum foil, pressing into the corners and edges. Fill at least two-thirds with baking weights - dried beans, rice, or aluminum pie weights. Bake first for 15 minutes, remove from oven and let cool a few minutes. Carefully remove parchment paper and weights. Poke the bottom of the pie pan with the tines of a fork and return to oven and bake an additional 10 minutes or until lightly golden. (Fork holes are for any air to escape.) Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly. 

8. Mix milk, cream, eggs, nutmeg, and salt and pepper in a bowl. Add half your cheese to the crust, then sprinkle on the leeks and mushrooms, then add the other half of the cheese. Pour the egg/cream mixture on top. Transfer to oven, and bake until just set in the center, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for about 10-15 minutes before slicing.

Enjoy!!

Spicy Cornmeal Muffins take 2

I think this one is the winner. A mix of Indian spices, slightly sour creamy yogurt, vegetables, and smokiness makes this a very delicious muffin.

2 tsp oil
1 1/2 cups shredded cabbage
1/2 cup minced onion
1/4 cup minced red bell pepper
1/4 cup minced green bell pepper
salt and pepper
1 1/2 tsp. sambar powder (or any indian masala spice mix)

3/4 cup yellow cornmeal -- it is not a good idea to substitute polenta for this (I found that out the hard way)
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tsp canned chipotles and sauce
1 tsp cumin
2 tbsp minced cilantro
1 cup lowfat yogurt (or buttermilk)
1 large egg
1 tbsp butter, melted

-- Preheat oven to 350 Farenheit
-- spray oil or butter on 12 muffin tins, set aside
-- Saute cabbage, onion, and peppers with sambar powder in oil in a frying pan until cooked through. Add salt and pepper.
-- Measure out dry ingredients into bowl
-- Measure out wet ingredients into a smaller bowl, mix up so the egg is well incorporated
-- Add veggies and wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix up. Spoon into muffin tins. I got 12 muffins with this recipe. Bake for 35 minutes in the oven, or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

----

The taste of these was good, but the texture was a bit too wet. Maybe because of the additional vegetables. Next time I would try less wet ingredients, maybe only 3/4 cup yogurt?

Savory Southwest Cornmeal Muffins take 1

Ok, so I have been fooling around with trying to make a low-fat vegetable-laden version of cornmeal muffins for quite some time now. I tried a new recipe today based on this recipe with a bit of success in terms of base and vegetable content, but it still needs some fanangling to be perfect. I'm adjusting the recipe I post here to reflect what I want to try next so I can remember:

2 tsp oil
1 1/2 cups shredded cabbage
1/2 cup minced onion
1/4 cup minced red bell pepper
1/4 cup minced green bell pepper
salt and pepper

3/4 cup yellow cornmeal -- it is not a good idea to substitute polenta for this (I found that out the hard way)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tbsp bakign powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp canned chipotles and sauce
1 tsp cumin
2 tbsp minced cilantro
1 cup lowfat yogurt (or buttermilk)
1 large egg
1 tbsp butter

-- Preheat oven to 325 Farenheit
-- Saute cabbage, onion, and peppers in oil in a frying pan until cooked through. Add salt and pepper to taste.
-- Put veggies and all the other ingredients into a bowl and mix up. Spoon into muffin tins. I got 9 large muffins with this recipe. Bake for 35 minutes in the oven, or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

My recipe, which had double the baking powder and only 1 t. of chipotle as seasoning, was way too baking powder-y and blandish. It also had sugar in the recipe which was a mistake. I put in a two cup measure of veggies, it could easily have a total of 3 cups of veggies in it, cream corn would be a nice addition too, or maybe tomatoes cut into a small dice. The yogurt gives a sour-creamy taste which is good. The big thing missing was the seasoning, the chipotle dissapeared and it really needs a lot more, so I added some ideas above.