vegetarian « DinnerCakes

Lima Beans Aren't So Bad – Lima Bean and Tomato Soup

September 22nd, 2009

by Chef Edwin

The summer is dwindling away, no matter how hard I cling to it. Soon it will fade and Fall will take its place. There’s nothing wrong with Fall, really. I really like Fall. The only problem is its neighbor Winter; the season of bitter, bitter cold. There’s very little I like about Winter so I’ve been trying to squeeze as much enjoyment out of the warmth as I can which usually means trips. This past weekend I went to the New River Gorge and had a fabulous, but exhausting, time, so a complex meal was not on the agenda.

I always find myself coming back to soups, really. Healthy, delicious, varied and (often) low maintenance. I went with Lima Beans for this but really any white bean could work. Next time, I’ll probably add some leafy greens; perhaps spinach or arugula. The sweetness reminds of a morrocan style and I like it!

Navy Bean Soup with Cinammon

1 cup dried lima beans; cooked and drained
4 cups stock (or water)
1 onion; chopped
4 garlic cloves; minced
1 carrot; diced
2 teaspoons dried sage
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup red wine
1 tablespoon tamari
salt and pepper to taste

Sweat the onion, carrot and garlic in a large pot under medium heat until the onions turn translucent; approximately 6-8 minutes. Mix in the sage, oregano, cinnamon and cloves and cook for another few minutes. Add your remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. Cook for 20 minutes. Enjoy with salt and pepper to taste.

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Back to (Healthy) Basics – Making Vegetable Stock

September 14th, 2009

by Chef Edwin

Hello everyone! I’m back!

My road trip was friggin’ awesome and I had a stellar time driving through a handful of western states. I got to sample a lot of different food, see some beautiful parks and even gambled a bit in Vegas. The buffets in the casinos? Intense! Due to the fast paced nature of the trip I wasn’t able to write in as much as I would have liked, sadly, but now that I’m slowly getting back into my normal routine I’ll be sure to pass along some of the great cuisine I sampled.

One thing I will say is that I ate pretty lousy the entire time. Vegetarian was not the theme, so now that I’m back I no longer have an excuse and am returning to less guilt-inducing food. One of the things I realized I needed for future meals was some liquid gold: vegetable stock. We’ve talked about making your own turkey stock, a guide that can pretty easily be applied to its feathery cousin the chicken, but ironically the vegetable variation has never been mentioned.

Making vegetable stock is a pretty straight forward process and actually pretty similar to how you make any other stock: you simmer your “flavoring agents” (vegetables instead of bones) with whatever herbs and maybe spices that tickles your fancy. I like to start with a base of an onion, a couple carrots and several cloves of garlic. From there I’ll usually add something “meaty” like a turnip or potato. It’s really your masterpiece to craft. Beware adding too much of one ingredient, as it may overwhelm the others. Carrots, for example are pretty sweet and too many will give you a sweeter broth.

If you’ve got a little extra time, roasting your vegetables prior can really bring out the flavor.

Basic Vegetable Stock
Treat this a guideline, not a recipe. You can craft it for a specific recipe or all-purpose.

1 medium onion; quartered
3 carrots; chopped
3 celery stalks; chopped
1 small turnip; peeled and chopped
7 garlic cloves; smashed
1 shallot; chopped
6 cups of water
Several sprigs of parsley
Several sprigs of rosemary
1 bay leaf

Preheat the oven to 400, lightly oil your vegetables and place in a roasting pan. Roast for one hour. Scrape your vegetables, getting as much of the brown bits as possible, into a large stock pot with the water and herbs. Simmer for 45 to 60 minutes.

Remove from heat and strain into a bowl, pressing out as much of the juice from the vegetables as possible (I like to use a potato ricer). Dispose of the vegetables as you are done with them let the liquid cool. Freeze into any size portions you’d like for easy use at any time! Enjoy.

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A Different Kind of Asian Salad? – Baby Spinach Salad with Lychee Vinaigrette

August 25th, 2009

by Chef Edwin

As Heather mentioned, this weekend was my birthday and I had a blast. Some friends and I went out to Coopers Rock, West Virginia for some camping and climbing. I’m a firm believer that everyone should have a cake on their birthday, but after Saturday I may have to amend that to cakes and smores. Mmm…

I finally got a chance to make something with the lychee my sister gave me as a gift, and after a weekend of eating from bags (I swear, I eat worse camping than I do at home) I opted to go the healthy route with a salad. I posted a somewhat similar recipe not too long ago using apples and lemon as the dominant flavors, but went much more mild this time around. Lychee’s creamy flavor is soft and subtle so this won’t hit you like a punch, but still good for something different.

Baby Spinach Salad with Lychee Vinaigrette

4 ounces lychee; peeled and seeded
3 tablespoons white whine vinegar
3 tablespoons olive oil

8 ounces spinach; roughly chopped
8 ounces mandarin oranges
2 bartlet pears; chopped
1 carrot; grated

Blend the lychees and strain. Mix the juice, vinegar and olive oil to form your vinaigrette. This is pretty thin, so feel free to add more oil if you want it thicker. Toss your spinach and fruit together then add the vinaigrette. Enjoy.

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Cookin' Veggies Right – Spinach with White and Green Beans

August 17th, 2009

by Chef Edwin

As a kid I never had much of an issue with most vegetables. Asparagus: sure; broccoli: yum; spinach: uh, Popeye? I suppose when you have a German mother who enjoys delicacies such as red cabbage and sauerkraut, other things don’t seem so bad (if you’ve never experienced the process of cooking red cabbage, trust me on this one).

I wanted to make a green salad with white beans this weekend, but couldn’t come up with the right inspiration. Every where I looked for inspiration just took me down a different path for a latter potential recipe. I still haven’t come up with one but in the meantime I found this to tide me over. The ingredient list is short, the recipe is simple and mixes green with bean, technically.

Spinach with White and Green Beans
Feel free to try a different kind of white bean.

8 ounces cannellini beans; cooked and drained
4 ounces green beans; picked and cut in half
3 tablespoons oil
1 onion; shopped
2 celery stalks; chopped
1 garlic clove; minced
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 pound spinach
salt and pepper to taste

Boil the green beans in boiling salted water for 3 minutes then immediately drain and dump in ice-cold water. Drain and pat dry. Sweat the onions and celery in a large pan with the oil for a few minutes. Add the garlic and paprika, continuing to sweat until the onions are soft. Add the spinach, cover and cook until spinach wilts. Note: if you picked a pan that’s not quite large enough, be sure to stir the spinach occasionally.

Add the beans along with 1/2 cup of water and simmer for 20 minutes. Serve and enjoy.

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Remembering Those Nothing Times – Tempeh Pita Sandwich with Cucumber Sauce

August 13th, 2009

by Chef Edwin

If you were a student at Virginia Tech, chances are you spent some time at the Squires Student Center in the north eastern area of campus. It’s home to the University Unions & Student Activities (the organization in charge of all student organizations as well as many campus wide events), the music department and a good place to meet and hang out. Squires was also at the edge of campus, a short walk to downtown Blacksburg. One of the downtown places to catch a quick and tasty bite is Souvlaki. They have excellent pita wraps with cucumber sauce called Tzatziki. Mmmmm….

For some reason I was thinking back to my times at Tech recently and the regular, uneventful moments. The ones where it’s you and a few of your friends hanging, not really doing anything. Maybe watching TV, maybe having a drink, maybe grabbing a bite. Souvlaki’s was one of those placed I did that.

So in the interest of bringing back old memories I decided to have a go at making my own vegetarian version of their souvlaki pita. Now they have a vegetarian item on the menu, but back then I was more of a meat eater so I threw tempeh into the mix. The result? Pretty tasty but not Souvlaki. There’s no denying that meat is a great flavoring agent for the ingredients it’s added with. Give it a whirl, though. I enjoyed it.

Tempeh Pita Sandwich with Cucumber (Tzatziki) Sauce
Uses the larger hole sizes on your grater so the cucumber shavings don’t slip through the colander’s slots.

2 small pita pockets; cut in half
5 oz english cucumber; peeled and roughly grated
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup greek yogurt (or make your own)
Juice of half a lemon
1 garlic clove; minced
1 tablespoon fresh dill; chopped
1 tablespoon oil
1/2 onion; chopped
5 oz tempeh; crumbled

Toss the cucumber in a colander and hand mix in the salt. Press some of the liquid out and throw in a food processor. Add the yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, dill and process till smooth.

Saute the onions for a couple minutes then add the tempeh and continue to saute for a few more minutes, adding more oil if necessary. Remove to a bowl and add the cucumber sauce until you reach your desired consistency. Fill your pita with lettuce, tomatoes and anything else you like in your pita sandwich before adding the tempeh. Enjoy.

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Whole Wheat Goodness – Whole Wheat Pasta Salad with Tomato and Broccoli

August 11th, 2009

by Chef Edwin

Have you cooked with whole wheat pasta? I must admit, I’ve done very little with it. It got a pretty bad wrap when it first came out. I believe I heard the comparison to cardboard being thrown around more than once, which isn’t a great selling point. But whole wheat pasta has come a long way (or so I’ve heard) and sometimes there’s nothing simpler than boiling some noodles in a pot (what? I’ve been sick. leave me alone).

I remember having this really delicious whole wheat pasta salad a few years back at a park cleanup project I attended. Sadly, I don’t know how it was made but it is what I attribute the inspiration for today’s recipe to. This dish also introduces something I cook very rarely with: sun-dried tomatoes. It’s something nice to have in the pantry when you’re looking to add a little more tomato flair to your meal. I used sun-dried tomatoes without oil, but feel free to use the kind with. Just keep in mind the amount of additional oil you add.

Whole Wheat Pasta Salad with Tomato and Broccoli

1/4 extra virgin olive oil
3 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1 handful fresh basil; roughly torn
2 garlic cloves; minced
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes; chopped
4 oz mozzarella cheese; shredded
Juice of half a lemon
2 tomatoes; cored and scored with an X on top
3/4 lb whole wheat pasta (I used rigatoni but I suggest fusilli)
1/2 lb broccoli; large florets chopped in half
Grated parmesan (optional)

In a large pot of boiling water, blanch your tomatoes for 30-40 seconds and remove with a slotted spoon or tongs. Once cool enough to handle, peel and cut along the equator. Remove the seeds, roughly chop and set in a small serving bowl. Mix in the oil, red wine vinegar, basil, garlic, sun-dried tomatoes and lemon juice.

Bring the pot back to a boil and cook your pasta per the package’s instructions. When you have about 5 minutes left, add the broccoli. Strain when ready and place in a large bowl. Add the “dressing,” mozzarella and toss to coat. Add parmesan if you so desire, serve and enjoy.

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Quick & Easy Zucchini and White Bean Soup

July 23rd, 2009

by Heather (Ghost Baker)

The other day I was browsing Food Gawker for inspiration, and I came across a photo for zucchini soup. This is normally the type of thing that I would quickly skip over, but I remembered that I had a stray zucchini around the house that needed to be used, and not much time left to use it!

I talked over a few ideas with Edwin, who was of course thrilled at my newfound fascination with soup. I came up with a few changes to make the zucchini soup I found a little more my style. The biggest change was probably adding white beans. I really enjoy white beans; they always make a really malleable addition to meals. I also some celery, removed the onion and added less zucchini and chicken broth.

One thing to keep in mind is to be a little careful handling the zucchini. After chopping it my hands felt completely dried out, itchy, tight and raw. I was initially a little startled, but then I remembered an excellent comment left by a reader on Edwin’s Celery Root Bisque recipe from last year – handling squash can cause a condition called Contact Dermatitis, and zucchini is a squash. It shouldn’t cause any real damage, but if you’re susceptible like me then your hands might be a little uncomfortable right after working with it. Try touching it as little as possible or, if you’re really concerned, wear latex gloves when handling squash.

Dry hands aside, I have to admit that I really loved this soup. Zucchini doesn’t really have a very strong flavor, so there’s nothing overpowering about the soup – the white beans and pepper make it flavorful. It’s light, very tasty and quick and easy to make – definitely a DinnerCakes win and a great summer dinner!

Zucchini & White Bean Soup
adapted from Cooking with Michele

2 cans chicken broth (14 oz. each)
1 can cannellini beans (19 oz.), drained
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 zucchini, chopped
1/2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 tablespoon fresh thyme, minced
1/2 cup half and half, optional
salt and pepper, to taste

Heat large pot over medium heat and add oil when hot. Add garlic, zucchini and celery and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add stock, drained white beans and thyme to the pot, then cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook until zucchini and celery are softened, about 15 minutes.

Remove pot from heat and pour in batches of two or three into food processor (be careful not to overflow!) and pulse. When desired consistency is reached, pour final batch back into the pot and add half and half, followed by salt and generous amounts of pepper to taste (don’t skimp on the fresh ground pepper!).

Makes about 3 or 4 servings of soup.

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Spinach and Mozzarella Stuffed Mushrooms

July 21st, 2009

by Heather (Ghost Baker)

Edwin says he loves veggies, but I don’t think he cares for mushrooms very much. This is sort of crazy, right? What kind of flexitarian can’t appreciate some quality mushrooms?

It’s true, mushrooms are a fungus. They have no roots, leaves, flowers or seeds, and the thought of eating fungus is more than a little disturbing. But if you can put all that aside, they’re really a pretty neat food that can add great flavor to your meals.

You might have guessed, they’re good for you! They can also be a little dangerous, as they’re sometimes confused with young specimens of the deadly poisonous destroying angel mushroom (destroying angel – what an amazing name!).

They do have some special storage and prep concerns that you may want to consider to preserve their moisture without becoming soggy and keep them fresh for several days (brought to you by whfoods.com:

Store loose button mushrooms in the refrigerator either in a loosely closed paper bag, wrapped in a damp cloth or laid out in a glass dish covered with a moist cloth.

Store prepackaged mushrooms in the refrigerator for up to one week in their original container.

Clean them using minimal water – wipe them with a slightly damp paper towel or kitchen cloth, as mushrooms are very porous and may absorb water during cleaning and become soggy.

I made these for lunch recently one weekend for my husband Morgan and I, and we really enjoyed them. This is a fairly mild recipe – no strong, spotlight stealing spices or pungent cheeses. If you’d like more kick to yours, try sprinkling a little more cayenne over the top, or using a salty cheese like Pecorino Romano.

Enjoy!

Spinach and Mozzarella Stuffed Mushrooms

1 medium prepackaged container of baby bella mushrooms
1/2 square package frozen chopped spinach, cooked
1/3 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 clove garlic, minced
12 turns of black pepper, 4 turns of salt
2 tablespoons Italian seasoned bread crumbs
cayenne pepper
extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 350F. Wipe away any dirt on the mushrooms with a damp paper towel. Pop off the stems by hand (they come out much easier than if you try cutting) and dice stems.

Combine cooked spinach, diced mushroom stems, garlic and cheese (leaving out just a little bit of cheese) in a medium bowl. Using a small spoon, stuff mushrooms caps carefully so that they do not break.

Combine bread crumbs, salt, pepper, 2 or 3 taps of cayenne and a small glug of extra virgin olive oil in a small bowl. Bring together with a fork.

Sprinkle caps with remaining cheese and bread crumb mixture. Cook for 20 minutes; serve immediately.

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A Healthier Dal Makhani

June 25th, 2009

by Chef Edwin

When it comes to soups, I’m usually not a fan of cream-based broths. I don’t want a soup that rich and milky; zest, spice, hearty is what I go for! Of course, there are a few exceptions (borscht, wild rice roup), and today we’ve got another one. Dal Makhani is a delicious Punjabi soup with black lentils and cream that I’m quite fond of at local restaurants. The problem of course, as with many restaurant-made dishes, is that it tends to be rather unhealthy; as they add much more cream and butter than you or I would add in something made from our own kitchen (this is a pet peeve of mine). So what to do? Try to make a healthier version, of course!

This project was a bit problematic for several reasons. First, black lentils are a bit hard to find. I scoured the shelves of several grocery stores, specialty and general, to no avail. The best I was able to find was pre-cooked black lentils at Trader Joes. Second, Dal Makhani is traditionally cooked for a very long time under low heat. Who has the time for that? I plan to try with a slow cooker one day, but for this I just settled on a short duration. And finally, there’s the whole butter and cream thing. Let’s be honest. We all have restaurant dishes that we love, due in no small part to the bad-for-you stuff they add. Better to compete with subtle flavoring than overwhelming your taste buds. This dish won’t knock anyone’s socks off, but it’s a good simple meal.

Dal Makhani
2 tablespoons ghee or butter
1 onion; chopped
1 tablespoon ginger; minced
3 garlic cloves; minced
1 cup cooked black lentils
1/2 cup cooked kidney beans
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon tomato paste

Under medium-high heat, heat the ghee until hot then add the cumin and fennel seeds. Stir until they crackle and become fragrant. Add the onion, ginger, garlic, chili powder and tomato paste and saute for 5 minutes. Add the additional ingredients along with any water to get the thickness you prefer. Simmer for 30 minutes. Enjoy.

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A Vegetarian Twist on a Family Classic – Vegetarian Sloppy Joes with Tempeh

June 23rd, 2009

by Chef Edwin

My sister recently returned from a year in Marshall Islands working with World Teach. Before that she lived in Alaska for several yearss. With all this traveling, she hasn’t been in the area much, so it goes without saying that our mother was quite ecstatic about her arrival. But she’s not in town long. In a matter of days she’s off to Chicago to prepare for graduate school. Because of this and Father’s day, I decided to spend the weekend in Richmond seeing family and catching up.

I’ve been trying to spend more time experimenting with different varieties of vegetarian dinners; those outside my traditional niche of soup, salads and roasted vegetables. I’ve never done much with the faux meats (tofu, tempeh, seitan), but hey, gotta broaden those horizons. I wanted to start with something that reminded me of what I use to eat when as a kid (this is Edwin’s family post).

When I was growing up, there were certain meals we’d always have. Mondays were spaghetti night, Fridays were pizza night (and TGIF!) and not every week, but pretty often there’d be sloppy joes night. I loved sloppy joes night. We never had it with hamburger buns. We always ate it with regular sandwich bread and french fries on the side. So. Good.

So here’s my attempt at replicating that old classic with tempeh and NO can of manwich. Will it fool anyone into thinking it’s the real deal? No. Is it good? Definitely.

Vegetarian Sloppy Joes with Tempeh

1 onion; chopped
3 cloves of garlic; minced
1 red bell pepper; diced
1 celery stalk; diced

1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 can tomato sauce
1 can tomato paste
1 can diced tomatoes
8 ounces tempeh

Sweat the onions, garlic, red bell pepper and celery under medium low heat in a large pan for 15 minutes; stirring occasionally. Add the herbs, sugar and spices along with the three cans of tomato. Raise the temperature to medium and stir for a few minutes. Add the tempeh and continue to cook until everything is heated through. Serve and enjoy.

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