What What? I've never posted veggie hash?

Photo courtesy of Creativity+ Timothy K Hamilton's photos via Getty Images (Compfight.com)

I can't believe I've never posted this recipe! It's one of my favorites and when I made it the other night, I was thinking how I should post it, but then I was like, no, I already did that! This is one of our very favorite quick and healthy dinners. The vegetables are variable, but there's always some kind of potatoes, onions, and greens. Here's what I used the other night, but feel free to substitute to your heart's content and your family's tastes, too! It's a great way to introduce your family to greens.

Inez's Veggie Hash

2-3 medium potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1/2” cubes

1 carrot, scrubbed and sliced

1-2 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1/2 green, yellow or red bell pepper

4 veggie breakfast “sausage” links or 1/2 package of Gimme Lean veggie sausage (optional)

1/2 - 1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/2 - 1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/8 teaspoon or less cayenne pepper (if you like things a little less hot, use either white or black pepper)

1 teaspoon crushed oregano

1 large bunch  greens, washed and chopped

1 small tomato or a small handful of cherry tomatoes, chopped

1/2 cup shredded white sharp cheese

salt and black pepper to taste

Heat the oil over medium heat in a non-stick frying pan, add the potatoes and carrots. Cover and cook  until they are about halfway cooked through. You may have to add a little water to the pan to get them to steam through. Then add the onions, peppers and veggie sausage, if using, and continue cooking. When the onions are translucent, add the herbs/ spices and cook for another minute or two. Cover and cook until the potatoes are pretty much cooked through and then add the greens, the tomatoes, and about a tablespoon of water. Cover and cook until the greens are cooked. Salt and pepper to taste. Stir the mixture until everything is thoroughly combined, then add the cheese, put the lid back on the pan until the cheese melts. Serve. Serves 3-4 persons.

Almost any greens work in this dish. Good ones to start with are spinach, cabbage or dinosaur kale. Arugula, spicy Chinese greens, and harder varieties of kale are also good. have fun with this one. I'd love to hear the combinations that you have used!

Look what the UPS guy brought me today!

I'm so excited to get my new Blentec blender! That's right, I finally broke down and bought something powerful enough to actually blend smoothies, salad dressings, and all that good stuff. After almost a year of striving for a raw food diet and struggling with my old food processor - really asking waaaayyy too much of it (just look at that poor sad thing in the background!), I wanted to get just the right one, but the pros and cons of Vita-Mix vs. Blendtec had me in decision paralysis for the past few months.

But then I saw this. Ignore the creepy people and skip forward to 3 minutes and 30 seconds into the video and just watch for 30 seconds. My jaw dropped. This is the new Blendtec WildSide Total blender and it not only beats the pants off the older Blendtec model, but the Vita-Mix as well. Plus, it's easier to clean, lighter and shorter so it fits under my cabinets which means I can keep it on the counter and use it every day.

So what am I going to make first? I guess I'll try my super-duper deluxe breakfast smoothie first thing in the morning and hopefully I'll save some time by a) blending faster and b) not making a mess I have to clean up!

Super Duper Banana Smoothie

1 medium banana (peeled and frozen)
1-2 tsp. greens powder (I like the cocoa flavored stuff, of course!)
1-2 tsp. mesquite powder
1-2 tsp. protein powder
1-2 tsp. raw carob powder
2 c. cold water (I like mine a little more fluid than most smoothies)


Optional - one of the following:
1 Tbsp. peanut or almond butter
4 or 5 frozen cherries

Blend until smooth and enjoy!

Switch

Last week I started reading Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard by Chip and Dan Heath who also wrote another favorite of mine, Made to Stick. I originally got Switch to help me out with some major changes at work, but as soon as I started reading it, I realized I needed this book to help me make the necessary changes to my diet. the basic premise of the book is that we are all of two minds: the first, the rational/ thinking mind is like the guy driving an elephant from the top. The second, our irrational/ emotional mind is like the elephant. While the driver may know where he wants to go and may even make the elephant go that way for a while, that elephant is so big, it'll go where ever the heck it pleases. I can totally relate to that! Making the switch to raw food has been a limited success because my emotional mind keeps getting in the way. I don't WANT to have diabetes, I don't WANT to have to only eat raw food, and I don't WANT to not be able to eat candy, cakes, and other carbs! So in the next few weeks, I'll be reading and experimenting with my emotional mind to see if I can change the path of this elephant :-)

In the meantime, here's a great recipe, my daughter Kara sent me from her Vegetarian Times a few months ago. I made it tonight for tomorrow's lunch and OMG, I WANT it now!!! LOL!

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Vegetarian Times - Live Hot and Sour Soup

1/2 c. mung bean sprouts
3 Tbsp. nama shoyu or soy sauce

Mix these two together in a small bowl and set aside while you make the rest of the soup.

5 dried apricots, soaked in water until plump and drained
1-1/2 c. chopped tomatoes
1/4 c. sliced green onion ( I used a regular sweet onion)
2 Tbsp. organic raw apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp. peeled and minced fresh ginger
2 Tbsp. lime juice
1 Tbsp. raw agave nectar
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper, to taste
pinch of sea salt

1/2 c. diced zucchini or cucumber
1 jalapeno chili, seeded and minced (I skipped this and just added more cayenne)
2 Tbsp.. chopped cilantro

Put everything except the last three ingredients into the food processor and blend until smooth. (Oops! I just noticed I was supposed to put 3 cups of water with that! Maybe that's why mine tastes sooooo good. Skip the water if you like).

Transfer to a serving bowl and add the zucchini/ cucumber, cilantro and jalapeno. Top with the sprout mixture.

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Spring treasures

One of the many things I love about spring is the arrival of several fruits and vegetables that, while they may be available now that there's commercial shipping, are at their very best in the spring. Two of my favorites are strawberries and asparagus. I've been enjoying the abundance of these in the past few weeks so i thought I'd share a few recipes - one asparagus, one strawberry and one strawberry and asparagus!

Last week, I spotted a line at the local farmer's market and, not knowing what to expect, I got into it. It could have turned out to be some meaty adventure, but it was purple asparagus! The farmer was selling it out of the plastic shopping bags he used to collect it and I have no idea how much I paid per pound for it. I just looked so beautiful, I couldn't resist piling more and more into my bag. Tonight I made a soup and topped it with freshly-made croutons and shaved Parmesan. It would be wonderful with a crisp Pinot Gris or chardonnay.


Separate the tough asparagus stems from the tender ones by snapping it in half. It will naturally divide the stalk into a tough lower part and tender upper part. Use only the tender upper parts to finish this soup. The tough parts are used to make the stock.

Cream of asparagus soup with seasoned croutons

1 lb fresh asparagus, cleaned thoroughly and separated by snapping.
1 medium onion chopped
1 T. EV olive oil
1 tsp. whole thyme leaves
1/4 tsp. saffron threads
2 c. water
2 T. white flour
1 c. half and half
1 tsp. salt
fresh ground pepper to taste

In a large pot, saute the onion in the olive oil and add the thyme leaves, salt, pepper, and saffron threads. When the onion is translucent, add the water and asparagus bottoms. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer for 15-20 minutes. Strain out the stems and discard. Put the remaining stock in a blender or use a stick blender to make a smooth broth. Pour most of it into a measuring cup, but leave enough broth to cover the bottom of the pan about 1/2 inch deep. Add the upper parts of the asparagus cut into 1" pieces. Stem over medium heat until tender-crisp.

Once the asparagus tips are tender, stir in the flour and stir until it is incorporated. Then add the remaining broth and the half and half. Stir until the soup thickens somewhat. Leave on very low heat until ready to serve.

Seasoned croutons

4 slice whole wheat bread
2 T. EVOO or 1 T. olive oil and 1 T. butter
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
1/4 tsp. cayenne
salt and pepper to taste

Cut the bread into large cubes. Melt the oil or oil and butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook gently for 1 minute. Then add the bread cubes, paprika, and cayenne. Stir the bread cubes gently until they absorb all the oil and the garlic sticks to them. Salt and pepper as desired. Move the cubes around once in a while while they toast over medium to low heat. The point is to dry them without burning the bread or the garlic. When sufficiently dry, place them on some paper towels until they are cool.

Assembly

Ladle the soup into the bowls and pile the croutons in the middle of the bowl. Sprinkle with shaved Parmesan cheese. Yum!/

Raw Chocolate- Strawberry Pie

Crust
2 c. raw almonds, walnuts, pistachios (any combination)
1/2 c. Medjool dates, pitted
1 tsp. ground cinnamon or ginger

Chocolate layer
1/2 c. cocoa
1/4 c. raw agave syrup or honey
2 T. water

Strawberry layer
1 qt. fresh strawberries, washed and sliced

Assemble

In the food processor, combine the nuts, dates and spice until finely chopped and combined. The mixture will be moist and hold together when pressed. Press it into the bottom and sides of a 9" pie plate. Freeze 1 hour.

Mix the chocolate layer ingredients by hand until smooth. You may need to add more water to make it spreadable. Spread this on the pie crust once it comes out of the freezer.

Layer the strawberries on top of the chocolate and freeze for 1/2 hour or until set, but not frozen. try not to eat it all at one time!

Springtime salad

1 head romaine or red leaf lettuce, washed, dried and broken into bite-sized pieces
1/2 quart strawberries, washed, dried, and sliced
1/2 lb asparagus, washed, steamed until tender, cooled in cold water, then dried
1 c. walnuts, broken

Dressing

2 T. balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 tsp dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste
2 T. EV olive oil

Mix the first three dressing ingredients in a large bowl until combined. Add salt and pepper. Then add the olive oil while continuing to stir dressing until the oil is incorporated.

Add and mix the lettuce with the dressing. Add the asparagus, strawberries and walnuts. Gently toss once more. Adjust seasoning and enjoy.

You've tried the rest..

Last night, after a long and exhausting day at work, David and I headed out for dinner. Neither of us were very hungry and we ended up just kind of driving east on 6th Street looking for a place to eat. I suggested Grimaldi's Pizza at 6th and Campbell mostly so that we would have a short ride home. As we were seated and ordered, I started thinking about pizza - how's it's become such a part of the American culture and where it's going.

I remember my mother telling me that she had never even heard of pizza until she was 18 or 19 and was dating an Italian guy who wanted to take her out for some pizza. She was a little resistant because he described it as "tomato pie" and the only tomato pie she knew was the green tomato pie her grandmother made which she didn't like all that much. However, once she got a taste of pizza, she was hooked as I guess most of America became in the 50's. According to A Slice of Heaven: A History of Pizza in America, the period after WWII brought pizza from the big cities into the smaller American communities. So it's really been only about 50 years that pizza has become popular among those without Italian heritage.

Growing up on the east coast, we mostly ate the hand-thrown thin crust pizza common in the mid-Atlantic states. A few of the good ones: Brother Bruno's in Mount Penn and the old Marti's pizza from the 9th and Spruce area - oh that sauce! It had tiny bits of tomato plus some of the seeds. I'm not even sure there was anything in Marti's sauce except tomatoes. It's a fresh clean taste I can't ever re-create. One of my fondest childhood memories was when my father's co-worker whose name I can't recall now, except that his first name was Ed (and we were NOT allowed to call him Mr. Ed) would bring a pizza or 2 over to the house for us all. Sometimes he would even get there so late that my parents would get us up out of bed to eat pizza! Now that was a party for four little girls!

When I first got to Tucson, I was hard-pressed to find good pizza. The pizza in Tucson is good, but it lacks that fold-able crust and oh-so-slightly-sweet, but garlicly sauce. Maybe it's the dry air, but the crust here is a problem. A decent pizza can be found at Brooklyn Pizza on 4th Avenue which has the added bonus of using solar energy to run their very popular joint. I swear the longer I live here, the better it gets :-P  If you check out the Tucson Shopper, you can sometimes find coupons for Brooklyn for $8.88 for a large plain cheese. Sweet! There's also a full moon special which is a pie for $9 and change.

For those that aren't that budget-conscious (and who isn't these days?), Grimaldi's is a very good pizza. They have a wood fired oven and a comprehensive listing of toppings. Small plain start at $13 and large at $15. Most toppings are $2 each. Last night, we ate the more expensive white garlic pizza with 2 toppings (kalamata olives and fresh mushrooms), I had a glass of wine ($9) and David had ice tea for a whopping $35. Yikes!

If you're in the mood for a thicker crust, Rocco's Little Chicago is a good pick. I like this place because it has an authentic Chicago feel to it with red-checkered table cloths and $1.50 cans of Old Style" beer (just like you get in Dad's refrigerator). They also are cool about making vegan pizza, a favor with some of my friends. I recommend the Fungus Humongous with portabello and white mushrooms. Take a few friends though because this pizza is very filling! Wait times for the pizza can be long, so don;t go when you're in a hurry, but DO get the Spicy Hot Sticks while you're waiting. They're basically pizza dough coated in cayenne and tomato sauce, twirled, baked and served with ranch or blue cheese dressing. OMG sooo good!

So what's in store for pizza in the future? I can't say for sure, but perhaps something...Indian? Chutney, curry, samosas... mozzarella?

What's your favorite pizza place and why? What kind of toppings would make your ultimate pizza?

Amereno's Little Italy

Wanting to use another of our gonga Restaurant.com gift certificates, we headed out to a new (for us) place called, Amereno's Little Italy. Truthfully, David is no very fond of Italian food and tomatoes in particular so we don't eat at Italian places very much, but he was willing to give it a try.

When we arrived, we weren't even sure the place was open. So many good eating places haven't survived the economic downturn. It looked dark from the outside and there were only 3 cars on the entire parking lot. David checked the door and lo and behold, it was indeed open.

 We were immediately seated in a cute little booth and brought water. The setting was much nicer than the other Italian places we've been to in Tucson, including the place of 4th Avenue (Caruso's). The tables were set with white tablecloths and napkins. I kind of felt underdressed, but hey, this is Tucson, right?

First we got a few slices of some delicious homemade bread with a butter, chive (and sour cream?) spread that was addictive. They had a wonderful wine selection, including some nice "happy hour" specials. Unfortunately, they were out of the Chianti that I wanted, but our waiter made a wonderful alternative suggestion. Speaking of the wait staff, they were most friendly and attentive young men. Some of the nicest I've found here.

We ordered the pinzimonio antipasta ($9) which consisted of  roasted bell peppers, greek olives and imported sharp provolone cheese served cold on a bed of dressed lettuce with lightly toasted Italian bread. I added a light spread of the herbed butter to the toasts and was very happy with the taste of all of it! To my surprise, we finished it!

David ordered salsiccia sisca (fresh sausage with spinach and mushrooms sautéed in light olive oil and roasted garlic $18) for his entree. His first bite brought a big smile and a "pretty good" which is a great compliment from him. He loved the sausage.  Although his Chinese side tells him that noodles go with everything, but thinks he may prefer the potatoes next time.

I had asked the waiter for a preference between the lasagna and the eggplant parmigiana. I was inclined to go with teh lasagna until he told me that the eggplant was lighter and very thinly sliced.I then went with his recommendation and was very pleased that I did. The eggplant was tender and mild, the sauce was fresh and tomatoey and in just the right amount so as not to overpower the eggplant. I've not had such good eggplant in over a year and never in Tucson!

The final bill was a little pricier than we planned. I did have 2 glasses of wine and an 18% gratuity was added (I probably would have given more, but I get annoyed that they don't trust me to tip on the full bill and refuse to add more to the already charged tip), however, all in all it was well worth it! If you're int he mood for fine Italian dining in Tucson, forget the others and go to Amereno's. We will definitively be back!

El Coqui Restaurant

Finally! El Coqui restaurant is open in Tucson! We've been waiting and watching for the opening for well over 6 months now and just today we found out they opened on January 16th. We scrapped plans to find a Mexican all-you-can-eat Sunday lunch buffet in favor of testing out the tastes of Puerto Rico. The restaurant is located on the northwest corner of Craycroft and 22nd in a somewhat barren strip mall.

Driving past every few weeks, we were surprised at the location since there were very few cars at any of the other shops and most of the mall is closed up. However, today, there were at least twenty cars in the lot and lots of people inside the restaurant even though it was 2:30 in the afternoon.

We were seated right away and given pan ajo (garlic bread) as we pondered the menu. Quite frankly, there wasn't a tremendous amount of vegetarian food available, but there was more than one choice, so YIPEE, I can go back again! We ordered a Surullo de Maiz con queso (corn "fritter" with cheese) for me and an Alcapurria rellleno con carne (plaintain "fritter" filled with beef) for David. I use the word "fritter" loosely since the fritters of my childhood usually involve a looser batter. These were more rolled, but very delicious. Mine tasted like a lightly fried corn cake with melted cheese in the middle. You know me and cheese! YUM!

For our entrees, we both ordered mofongo, a savory mix of cooked plantains, garlic and olive oil that is shaped and either baked or fried. The plantains were roughly chopped which is different than the way David and I make them and the way I've had them in PR, but they were just as tasty. Mine came with lightly fried onions around the mofongo and David ordered his with chicharron de pollo (fried chicken pieces). His chicken pieces came al ajillo (with garlic sauce) which was sweet and tender.

While we were munching, one of the staff offered us a bottle of vinegar/pepper/ garlic sauce that he said his mother made every day. It was the perfect accompaniment for the mofongo. It had a pleasant taste of peppers, but not really any hotness that David or I could tell.

The atmosphere was quite nice, except that it's got that modern restaurant feel where everything is overwhelmingly loud because there's not one sound-absorbing thing in the place - no curtains, no rugs, nada. I suppose lots of noise makes a place chic. The staff were warm, welcoming and almost too attentive. Hector, our waiter, must have checked with us 8 times on how everything was, but I'd rather that than being ignored.

For dessert, we shared a Tembleque or coconut pudding. It was smooth, buttery and just a little bit sweet. And then David told me it's made almost completely of coconut fat. Doesn't matter... we finished it anyway :-)

In all, I give El Coqui a very high recommendation if you want good traditional PR food, attentive staff, and cute little coquis on your tableware.

And for those of you who aren't able to make it to Tucson, here's David's favorite bean recipe. Don't let the list of ingredients scare you off. Most of it is spices which can be adjusted to meet what you have in the pantry. Sofrito is a mix of chopped onions, sweet red peppers, garlic, and cilantro. You can substitute the ingredients chopped separately if you don't have sofrito handy.

1 lb beans, canned (pinto beans, pigeon peas, kidney beans, or even navy beans work well)
3 tbs sofrito
¼ cup annatto oil (can be replaced with olive oil)
½ roasted red pepper (not hot)
½ can tomato paste or crushed tomatoes
12-16 stuffed olives (green Spanish olives would be best, but kalamata are good, too)
½ cup chopped onion
3 cloves of garlic, crushed and chopped
1-½ cups vegetable broth (can be chicken if desired)
3 bay leaves
2Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

Spices:
2 tsp crushed dried oregano
2 tsp crushed rosemary
2 tsp Spanish paprika (sometimes sold as smoked paprika)
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground thyme
 

If using canned beans:
Clean and rinse the beans in a colander under running water until the water runs clear.

Put the oil in a 2 qt sauce pan and heat up on medium until a drop of sofrito sizzles in it, fry and stir in the sofrito, onions, red pepper, and olives; after 2 minutes add the tomato paste, the spices garlic and bay leaves, but NOT the fresh cilantro. Stir continuously for 1 minute. Add the drained beans and the vegetable broth to the pot. If the beans are not covered in liquid, you can put a little bit of water. bring everything to a boil, then turn down the heat and cook for 45 minutes to an hour. Stir and add a little water if it’s too dry (please be careful adding water as the beans are supposed to be a little dry, too much water will make them mushed). About 5  minutes before you serve them, add the additional cilantro. Take out the bay leaves and add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve over white rice and enjoy!

Raw breakfast ideas

I'm finding that breakfast is the hardest part of my raw food day. After years of eating eggs & cheese, butter beans & cheese, grilled cheese, macaroni & cheese...well, you get the picture, it was really hard to kick cheese out of my morning. I never realized how much cheese I ate in the morning. I mean, I knew I ate a lot of cheese, but at breakfast?

So now I'm kind of floundering around for something to eat. I've always been hungry right away in the morning, so starting out with a smoothie keeps me going for about half an hour before I'm hungry again. Late in the summer, I hit upon the idea of "nutmeal" which is a combination of nuts & seeds (almonds, sunflower, walnuts), fruits (think an apple or pear), some spice (cinnamon and/or ginger), and a little water ground up in the food processor until it has an oatmeal-like consistency. The more you whirl it, the more like cooked oatmeal it becomes. This is great stuff!It's lighter and fresher tasting than oatmeal and, even if my diabetes were cured tomorrow, I don't think I could go back to that thick heavy oatmeal taste again.

While the nutmeal is great, it does take time in the morning to prepare, especially when I started to want it warm. Plus, with the cold mornings, I find I just want to stay in bed longer. I was finding myself heading out the door with a baggie of nuts and dried fruit everyday. It took me forever to eat them, plus I missed my nutmeal, so I tried dehydrating it into "crackers." Last week, I made apple, almond, flax seed and cinnamon crackers. They tasted really yummy - light, fresh and really filling without having to chew and chew and chew.

Today I got more inventive with the recipes and created Carribean breakfast crackers. Here's what I used (note: it's not much of a recipe due to the variant nature of the liquid inside the young coconuts. You'll have to add more or less coconut water to get the right consistancy for spreading):

Carribean breakfast crackers
meat from 2 young coconuts
1 ripe banana
1 c. raw almoonds
2 t. ground or fresh ginger
juice of 1 key lime

Process in the food processor until it's very finely ground and mushy. Add a little coconut water if the mixture is too think to process properly.

Pour into a bowl and add enough ground flax seed meal to make it thick enough to spread (oatmeal consistency). Then add 1 c of goji berries (soaked) or raisins (soaked). Spread the mixture onto trays and make marks for 12-15 squares. Dehydrate at 145 degrees for 2-3 hours and then turn them over and turn the temp. down to 115 degrees until crisp.

I haven't tasted these yet, but they smell soooo good!

I used the rest of the coconut water to made the Chai Spice wafers from the Rainbow Green cookbook I got a while back. They've got almonds, sesame seeds, Chai spice, and vanilla in them as well. I'm thinking I can make a little walnut butter to spread on them this week. can wait for breakfast!

Hard winter tomatoes

Even though it's still 90 degrees every day here in Tucson, the signs of the rapidly receding fall are everywhere. The days are getting shorter, the nights colder and we've started to get more greens and squash from the CSA. Another sign is the diminishing quality of the tomatoes we're getting. A few months ago, the tomatoes were so awesome, I could hardly wait to get them home, toast some whole-wheat bread, slather it with butter, fat slices of tomato, salt and pepper.

Now the tomatoes are smaller, hard, and very green when we get them, and they don't ripen to much, so I've been looking for a way to use up the pile I've accumulated in the past several weeks. When I picked up some dried apricots at the store this weekend, I remembered this wonderful chutney adapted from my much beloved (and by now raggy) Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant cookbook. It's great for those yucky hard yellow-orange tomatoes that are available at this time of year. Use it on rice, beans, curries, and tofu.

Tomato-Apricot Chutney
1 T. garlic, minced
2 tsp. ground dry ginger
3/4 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. gram marsala
1 T. butter or ghee

In a heavy saucepan, saute the garlic and spices in the butter for 1 minute.

Add:
3 c. chopped, firm red or green tomatoes
1/2 c. chopped, dried apricots
1/2 c. raisins
1 T honey or agave syrup
2 T. apple cider vinegar
1/4 tsp. salt

Cook for 30 minutes until the fruit is soft and the chutney is thick. You may need to add a little more sweetener or vinegar depending on your taste. Will last for several weeks in a covered jar in the refrigerator.

More than just marinara - the spaghetti squash dilemma

Someone asked my this week about what to do with spaghetti squash, specifically what to do other than put spaghetti sauce on it. Hmmmm.... good question! It's winter squash season and we got our first spaghetti squash of the year at the CSA last week. I was checking out their website and found this great recipe for spaghetti squash salad flavored with orange juice and parsley. Sounds pretty good. I might substitute cilantro for the parsley seeing as I love cilantro.

You can also toss the cooked squash with half a cup of orange juice, the same amount of chopped parsley and a little salt or pepper for a warm salad or side dish. Any leftovers can be eaten cold the next day or reheated in the microwave. (Listed on the Spaghetti Squash Ideas page)

 So the other recipe on the CSA webpage is a spaghetti squash lasagna which got me to thinking about the Greek "lasagna" dish pastistio. I first had this dish while married to my first ex-husband. His mother (Ya-ya) made an excellent, if meaty, pastistio. For years, I've substituted veggie burgers for the traditional ground lamb or beef with pretty tasty results, but this weekend I set out to find whether I could recreate this dish using spaghetti squash instead of noodles. It worked! In fact, I think I prefer it with the tiny strands of squash instead of macaroni.

This recipe does take some work, but it's well worth it. We had enough for leftovers and it was even better re-heated! Here's the recipe:

Pastistio

The "noodle" part:
1 medium sized spaghetti squash, halved, seeded, cooked and cooled. Set aside.

The "hambuger" part:
2 cups of ground veggie meat (I used a mixture of Lightlife Gimme Lean sausage and Morningstar Farms Grillers) OR 2 cups cooked lentils OR 1/2 lb. ground meat (traditional is lamb or beef)
1 onion, chopped
2 T. olive oil
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (yes, cinnamon - you'd better put that in!)
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp white pepper
2 cloves garlic, chopped
salt to taste
3 T tomato paste
3 T water

Saute the onion and "meaty stuff" in the olive oil. when it's almost finished, add the oregano, garlic and spices. Cook for 1-2 minutes  more until the spices become aromatic. Then add the tomato paste and water. Mix well. Put aside.

The white sauce part:

1 T butter
1 T olive oil
1 T white flour
3 cups milk
1-1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese

Melt the butter and oil together in a heavy sauce pan. Add the flour and stir until the mixture becomes somewhat lighter in color. Add the milk all at once and stir with a wire whisk until it's creamy and hot. Add 1-1/4 c. of the Parmesan cheese and stir until it's once again creamy. Set aside.

To build it:
Pull the strands out of half the squash and put it i the bottom of a greased 9 x 9 casserole dish. press it down a little so it's flat against the bottom of the dish.

Add the meat mixture over the squash. Spread it evenly.

Pull out the strands from the second half of the squash and put those on top of the "meat" part. gently press everything down a bit with the back of a spoon.

Pour half the white sauce on top. use a table knife to make sure the sauce gets down into the dish. You should be able to add the rest of the white to the top. Sprinkle the top with the remaining Parmesan cheese, a little ground cinnamon, and some ground oregano.

Bake at 400 degrees for 35-45 minutes or utl the top is bubbly and browned. Cool after a half an hour before digging in!

Greater Guacamole!

One of my favorite things to do it to go home at lunch, put on my pj's and make guacamole. I like it because it's quick to throw together, fresh and fast to eat so I can get back to work. Plus it keeps me satisfied all afternoon. Earlier this week, I was hunting around for some lime and there was my Swiss Chard I had gotten from the CSA just looking at me! "Eat me! I'm green," it said so cheerily.  I thought, why not?  So I had my guac and my greens, too! Guess what? I couldn't even taste it! The lime and garlic did a great job of masking it while the chard gave the guac a wonderful vibrant green color. Here's my recipe in case you want to sneak some green stuff into your diet or that of a loved one:

Guacamole

2 avocados, pitted
1 onion
Juice of 1/2 lime
1 clove garlic
1/2 bunch fresh greens (Swiss chard, spinach, etc.)
cayenne pepper to taste
Sea salt to taste

Scoop the meat from the avocado skin.Put this and everything else into a food processor. You could do this all by hand, chopping it, but this is lunch time, right and we have to get back to work! Process it all until it's very smooth and the greens are completely gone.

Then add:

2 tomatoes
1/4 c. fresh cilantro

Pulse this a bit until the tomatoes and the cilantro are chopped to your liking. I do this b/c I don't like pulverized tomatoes or cilantro.

This recipe is great with some simple crackers or  chopped carrots, celery, broccoli, bell peppers or, if you must tortilla chips.

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Here's another great way to enjoy your greens, my own version Vegetable  Hash inspired by Deborah Madison's The Savory Way. I added some veggie sausage and more spices. You can use whatever vegetables are in your refrigerator: carrots, turnips, peas, etc. It's one of David's favorites!

Vegetable Hash

2 medium potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1/2” cubes
1-2 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 veggie breakfast “sausage” links (optional)
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/8 teaspoon or less cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground sage
1 large bunch winter greens, washed and chopped
1 small tomato or a small handful of cherry tomatoes, chopped
salt and black pepper to taste

Heat the oil over medium heat in a non-stick frying pan, add the potatoes and cover. Cook the potatoes until they are about halfway cooked through, then add the onions and links, if using, and continue cooking. When the onions are translucent, add the spices and cook for another minute or two. Cover and cook until the potatoes are pretty much cooked through and then add the greens, the tomatoes, and about a tablespoon of water. Cover and cook until the greens are cooked. Salt and pepper to taste. Stir the mixture until everything is thoroughly combined and serve. Serves 2-4 persons.

Food for the Wilderness

Last weekend, David and I went with some of our co-workers on a backpacking trip to Fossil Springs Wilderness Areanear Strawberry, Arizona. It was my first backpacking trip in over 3 years and David's first civilian trip ever. We had intended to keep the bags light, but, well, you know how that is. Even with essentials only, it's always heavier than you imagine it's going to be. We took the smallest, lightest tent, a one-burner backpack stove, 2 pans (could have just taken 1), 2 light weight sleeping bags and pads, some warm clothes, one deck of Munchkins, a few multi-purpose bandannas and food and water.

The food is always the heaviest stuff since I hate eating crappy food when I'm starving which is always when I'm in the fresh air and sunshine. Trying to keep my raw food diet as much as possible didn't help either! Here's what our menu looked like:

Day 1
Breakfast in the car: grapes & strawberries and later chips and guacamole (this stuff we ate so it wouldn't go bad in the refrig. - our goal was to eat it ALL before we got to the trailhead, which we did )

Lunch: sandwiches made at home with Provolone cheese, tomatoes, red pepper, onion, cucumber, sprouts, oregano, black olives, and thousand island dressing on long french rolls which we ate immediately upon getting to camp.

Dinner: Fettuccine w/ sun-dried tomatoes, dried onion, fresh garlic, oregano, smoked paprika, basil, pepitas, and Argentinian Parmesan cheese. For dessert, bananas with crushed walnuts, dates, and ginger baked in foil over the campfire.

Day 2
Breakfast: "nutmeal" (ground nuts mixed with dried fruits and some cinnamon and ginger) for me and oatmeal for David, Java Juice, and my Mexican hot chocolate (cocoa, dried milk, cinnamon, instant coffee and cayenne pepper).

Lunch: Pb&j on rolls, LÄRABARS

Dinner: Caribbean red beans and rice, Argentinian Parmesan cheese chunks, soy cerviche* and chips. For dessert: fresh apples with pistachios, dates, and cinnamon baked over the coals (see image above)

Day 3
Breakfast & lunch: same as Day 2 plus as many snacks as we could power down...to lose the weight so we didn't have to carry it the 4 miles up the canyon.


*Soy Ceviche
1/2 c. TVP (textured vegetable protein) - you can find this at most natural food and ethnic food stores
1/2 c. water or tomato juice
1 medium tomato, chopped (or 4 sun-dried tomatoes, chopped)
1 small onion, chopped (or 1 Tbsp. dried chopped onion)
1 clove garlic, minced (or 1 tsp. garlic powder, not garlic salt)
juice of 1/2 lime
1 Tbsp. fresh cilantro (or 1 tsp. dried)

Add the water (or tomato juice) to the tvp and let it sit until the fluid is soaked and the tvp is tender. I'm not exactly sure about the ratio of tvp to water as I usually eyeball it, but I'm erred on the side of less water so that if needed you can add a little more. Just get the tvp tender, but not soaked.

Then add the rest of the ingredients. It's best if you let it sit a little while, but you can also eat it right away with tortilla chips or veggies (celery, cucumber slices, or pepper strips are good).

Raw for Lunch

Some of you may know that I've started to incorporate more raw foods into my diet in an effort to a) lose some weight and b) control my blood sugar readings. This started with the Tree of Life website and led to various cookbooks, websites and videos that have brought not only a loss of 6 pounds in the last 6 weeks, but also a whole new menu of tasty food possibilities! I am so enjoying this so much more than I thought I would.

Today's lunch featured a new recipe that I thought I'd share with you. It's slightly adapted from the Creme Tomat recipe in Alive in 5: Raw Gourmet Meals in Five Minutes. It's especially nice right now since there were so many nice tomatoes at the Farmer's market last weekend. I used the basil we've been growing from the CSA seedling we got earlier this year and I made the almond milk by whirling 1 c. soaked raw almonds in 1 c. water and then straining it through cheese cloth. It took about 5 minutes total to make this lovely fresh, thick "milk."

Creamy Tomato Soup
1 c. fresh tomatoes
10 nice-sized leaves of fresh basil
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. curry powder
1 tsp. sea salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 c. fresh almond milk

Blend all the ingredients in the food processor until smooth and creamy. So easy to make!

At lunch I had the soup with the Everybody's Favorite Crackers I made this past weekend. Those are little work and are more hmmmm... shall we say "delicate" than the crackers I usually make, but they are nutty and satisfying to eat.

Simple Fare

After a hard or stressful day at work, it's nice to come home, put on your pj's and cook something simple and hearty, especially now that the weather is getting cooler. Beans and rice are one of those dishes we look to for peace, comfort and satisfaction. I have the good fortune of being able to go home for lunch and yesterday I threw a few pinto beans into the slow cooker with some water. This also works if you put them on in the morning - no soaking necessary. They cook beautifully!

Our bean dinners turn out slightly different every time depending on what type of beans, vegetables, and/or herbs/spices we use. Some things never change: a little oil, onions, some kind of peppers (sweet, hot or a mixture), garlic, sofrito*, and a few pieces of tomatoes.

Most times we use Annatto oil which is made by boiling annatto seeds in olive oil until it turns a beautiful red color, but last night we used olive oil (about a tablespoon) to saute the onions, peppers, sofrito, and garlic. Into this mixture, we add the spices. This is where it gets fun. David dives into our spice cabinet and starts sniffing everything. How he feels determines the spice for the evening. Last night there was Spanish (smoked) paprika, oregano, some Goya Sazon, a little ginger, fresh ground black pepper, and a bay leaf. After the spices began to heat up, we also added some Morningstar Farms organic breakfast sausage patties and a little bit of water to steam them apart. When the vegetables were tender and the soy patties were all broken up, we added the cooked beans, tomatoes, and some kalamata olives. We let the whole thing simmer while the rice cooked.

One word of advice about rice...brown rice and jasmine rice don't mix well in a rice cooker! We've been very successful combining long grain brown and white rice together though. Anyway, after 2 cooking cycles on the rice cooker, we had our rice and pinto beans with a very nice Beringer pinot noir while we watched Monday night's  episode of The Daily Show.


So, I did a lot of "we" talking above, but really David made those beans while I worked on another simple dish for today. It's based on a dish I had last weekend at Chef Alisha's European and Bosnian Cafe (Oracle and Rudasill-ish). They called it simply "Cabbage Salad" and I can't think of a better name for it. It was shredded cabbage, olive oil, a splash of vinegar, salt, pepper and dried parsley. My first version of this was just slightly improved by using fresh parsley instead of the dried stuff. Last night, I got a bit more creative and added some color to it.

I shredded a half head of green cabbage thinly with my Cutco carving knife (and yes, I was extra careful after last week's fiasco with the smaller, but similar slicer!) and I mean as very thin as I could get it. This is important for having a tender salad as compared to one you have to chew like a cow. Then I sprinkled the shreds liberally with salt and crushed the shreds up with my (impeccably clean) hands until the cabbage turned moist and bright green in color. Then I added a small red pepper, chopped, 1 stalk of celery, chopped, and about 2 tablespoons of fresh parsley. For the dressing I drizzled 1 tablespoon of olive oil, some fresh ground black pepper, and a few splashes of rice vinegar (or you could use apple cider vinegar) over the whole thing. Mix it up and yum!

*Sofrito is a blended mixture of onions, red sweet pepper, hot peppers (to taste), garlic, some salt and lots of cilantro. You can make it in large batches in the food processor and then split it up in smaller bags in the freezer. It lasts a long time!

More Than Just Food

I've been thinking about starting this blog for a while. It won't all be restaurant reviews as I'm trying new stuff at home all the time as well. I guess if it has to do with food, it'll go into this blog and there's always something new to try or taste, so here we go!

Barrio

Last night David and I ran our first Meet Me @ Maynard's event in downtown Tucson. We walk/ran the 3.4 mile course and planned simply to enjoy the refreshments afterward. However, once we were done, we figured we'd better make use of one of the restaurant discounts offered for MMM's participants. What a great idea from those area restaurateurs! Of course, we would eat out, we just burned all those calories, right?

One of my favorite activities is discovering new restaurants and so last night we checked out Barrio at 135 S. Sixth (at Broadway). As we entered I immediately felt undressed due to the decor and clientele, but the wait staff assured us our attire wasn't too casual (running shoes/ shorts and t-shirts) and went out of their way to make us feel at home.

We started with a "Little Plate" called Stuff Jalapeno. To say this was superb is an understatement! Your abuela's chili rellano, this is not! The lightly steamed bright green pepper was filled to brimming with black beans, goat cheese, and more. It was all laid bare on a roasted red pepper cream sauce with a hint of something tangy (lime?). We finished the pepper in no time and then sopped up the remaining sauce with some of the homemade bread.

Next I had a cup of the soup d'jour, creamy tomato and cilantro. Thick, creamy and very, very fresh tasting! I had to slap David's little paws away as he kept trying to dip his bread into it!

You'd think we'd be full by this time, but our entrees arrived just as we were finishing up the soup. David ordered the black pepper-encrusted roast duck with a honey sauce, basil-infused mashed potatoes, and roasted vegetables (carrots, yellow and green summer squash, and cherry tomatoes). After a bite or two, David realized he had never had duck not prepared in the Chinese manner and had a hard time when pressed deciding which he preferred. He finished everything on the plate, except (of course) the tomatoes.

I chose the fruit salad for my entree. Not an entree, I know, but the vegetarian entree was the typical pasta with vegetables that so many restaurants include in their menu. More on that later. Right now, I'm thinking about that wonderful creamy vanilla bean salad dressing that was unlike any other I've ever had. It was the perfect foil for the tart strawberries, black raspberries, mandarin orange, pineapple, and pistachio nuts with Gorgonzola cheese on a bed of young mixed greens. Personally, I thought there was just a tad too much of the cheese, but I'm not a huge Gorgonzola fan. It was easy enough to push most of it to the side though while I finished off the rest of it.

As I mentioned previously, the staff was courteous and kept the bread coming - one of the things that David looks for. Barrio had a pretty good business going for a Monday night and we were the only runners there for the discounted dinner. When I mentioned they needed more vegetarian dishes, the waiter immediately said they are in the process of redesigning their menu and that he would mention that to the chef. He seemed to understand my need for something more hearty than pasta and vegetables, so we'll see...

Overall, we both liked Barrio and will most likely return for more. So, if you're in the area and are in the mood for some really good southwest-inspired dishes, stop by and check them out! Just don't check out the website Google offers as it appears to be an ad for an Asian water filter. Huh?!