sauteed red cabbage with caraway seeds

Cabbage is the poor woman's vegetable. It's insanely cheap, versatile and oh so easy to prepare. Let me tell you some fun facts about cabbage: it's super super high in vitamin c and has anti-inflammatory properties and is a rich source of calcium. Cabbage gets a bad rap because it tends to give off a strong odor when cooked. But guess what? That's only when you cook it for awhile, like, longer than 10 minutes. And you boil it. Well, that's gross. The idea of boiled cabbage just sounds so unappetizing. There's a much better and simpler way to go about cookin up some cruciferous goodness. Saute it! Really, all you need to do is thinly slice the cabbage head. Heat up a pan with olive oil, throw in some caraway seeds (which have a lovely almost licorice sweet flavor to them) and add the cabbage with a pinch of salt. Saute for maybe 2 to 3 minutes. That's it! So simple! So fast! I placed the sauteed cabbage in a tortilla with my obligatory mayonnaise. Cause that's how I roll. Cabbage burritos are awe-some! 

paprika spiced adzuki beans with spinach and lemon zest

So, I'm still on this cheapskate spree. I have this jar of dried aduki  beans that has been sitting on a shelf for well over six months. Dried beans do last awhile though. But the problem with them is that you really have to plan ahead. Most recipes call for letting beans soak for eight hours. I think that idea is bogus. A faster/sorta spontaneous way is to add beans to a pot, cover with a couple inches of water and bring to a boil. Then let the beans sit for two hours on the stovetop with the heat off. Then cook. That sound a little better, right?

Aduki or adzuki or whatever the hell you wanna call them beans are truly awesome. They hail from North-East Asia and are mostly present in sweet dishes, like red bean cakes. (I just read that Pepsi created a aduki bean flavored pepsi drink. Now that sounds gross!) They're commonly boiled with sugar and made into a paste. Well, I thought that idea sounded none too interesting and I'm trying to consume less sugar anyway. So I decided to make a spiced bean concoction that would go nicely in a tortilla, giving it a bit of a mexican-asian theme. I think it works nicely. The touch of sweetness from the beans is complemented by the smokiness of the paprika and a bit of lemon juice and spinach is added to perk up the nutritional value. 

Many recipes call for a pound of beans, which is equal to two cups dried beans. Which, when cooked, makes about six cups of beans. On average, dried beans only cost about a $1.20 a pound. That's super cheap! Much cheaper than canned. But if you're gonna do canned, then one 15 oz can is equal to 1 1/2 cups cooked beans. So the measurements get a bit confusing. But the basic idea is that dried beans are tastier and cheaper (but more time consuming!) Since this recipe makes 6 cups of beans, you could easily freeze half the beans in its cooking liquid and they'll stay good for six months. In the fridge, they'll last about a week. It's so convenient to have beans already cooked in the fridge! 

Recipe:

2 cups dried aduki beans 

1 onion (chopped into small dice)

3 cloves of garlic (minced)

4 cups baby spinach

1 tablespoon paprika

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

sea salt

olive oil

tortillas

sesame seeds

freshly ground black pepper

zest of one lemon

After soaking the beans for two hours on the stovetop, turn the heat back on and cook for about 40 minutes. Times vary according to the bean. So it's best to check every 10 minutes to see if they're done. If they are getting a bit cooked through, but not quite, add a pinch of salt to help bring them to doneness. (I added the salt about 20 minutes in) When done, drain beans (but remember to keep the cooking liquid!) I used about 2 cups worth of cooked beans and froze the rest. 

Warm a saute pan with olive oil. When hot, add onion, garlic, salt and spices. Cook until onions are translucent. Add cooked beans (without cooking liquid) to the pan. Saute for about 10 minutes and then add spinach. Cook until spinach is wilted. Remove from heat. 

I like to toast tortillas directly on the stove top for about 10 seconds on each side. Then, place tortilla on plate ( I added a dollop of mayonnaise) and add spiced aduki bean filling. Top with sesame seeds, zest/juice of a lemon and freshly ground black pepper. 

banana coconut and pecan vegan pancakes with sweet accoutrements

Lazy sunday mornings are the best. I'm on this poor lady rampage where my goal is to only consume food from my fridge that desperately needs to get eaten or has just been in my pantry for awhile. I figured pancakes were a good way to go. I always have all purpose unbleached flour in my cupboard. I also have this random package of unsweetened coconut flakes, a half bag of pecans and three small bananas that were just too spotty for me to eat whole. Well, there ya go: Banana, coconut and pecan pancakes. The recipe is super easy and vegan! (I adapted the recipe from the Vegan with a Vengeance cookbook) By adding vinegar to the soymilk, you get a buttermilk-like consistency that helps the pancakes rise well and give it a great fluffy texture. I added a teaspoon of almond extract mainly because I just love almonds. 

Recipe: 

1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 1/2 cups soymilk + 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar (let sit for 5 minutes)

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon almond extract

3 small bananas, well-mashed with a fork

1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1/2 cup pecans

In a medium sized bowl, sift together the first five ingredients. In a separate small bowl, mix bananas and other wet ingredients. Do not overmix. Fold in the coconut and pecans. 

Heat a large non-stick pan, coat with canola oil. Working in batches of three, scoop about 1/4 of a cup of batter into pan. Cook until sides start to bubble. Check to see if golden brown, and then flip 'em.  Cook for another couple of minutes. Transfer to a large plate and loosely cover with foil. Coat pan with more canola oil in between batches. 

The pancakes aren't very sweet, therefore, my roommate and I had many sweet accoutrements on hand: 

From left: crunchy peanut butter, a nutella-like spread from Holland, a orange peel and elderflower marmalade from Ikea, a blueberry syrup, maple syrup and sorghum syrup from the Loveless Cafe in Nashville. 

Finished Product: 

(oh, and you can see the hagel slag* in the background)

*Puur Chocolade Hagel Slag literally translates to 'chocolate hail storm.' These dutch chocolate confectionaries are simply way better than any ordinary chocolate sprinkle. They taste awesome topped on pancakes.

braised white turnips with spiced peanut sauce and the beauty of leftovers

I'm really trying to be good and stay on budget. I have so many random ingredients in the fridge that I just let sit there and rot. It's simply no good. I cannot afford to do that. So, my goal this month has been to use up as much as I creatively can.

My friend Ellen had made this lovely African peanut soup for a little get-together we had a couple of weeks ago. She kindly gave me a tupperware of it to take home. And let me say, I've never been a fan of leftovers. I hate eating the same thing two days in a row. I don't know what it is. I get bored easily. Food or otherwise. Well, the next day I had a soup potluck to go to and I decided I should regift the soup that was given to me. Problem was, I didn't have enough of it to generously give to anyone. Then I remembered I had this random plastic container of pureed peanuts that I had made using my juicer. The consistency didn't come out exactly like peanut butter, therefore, I let it just sit in my fridge hangin out. Well, it looked find. No mold to be seen. I sauteed it with some paprika and cayenne and then added some veggie broth and the rest of Ellen's leftovers. Well, now I had too much. So I took most of it to the potluck and kept the rest for myself. 

Long story, kinda short. A coupe days later, this thick re-adjusted soup is still sitting in my fridge. I was sick of soup at this point and had a couple of white turnips in my fridge that looked so bland, but I knew they needed to get eaten. I hate wasting food. So, I thinly sliced the turnips. Added them to a heated pan with olive oil, sprinkled with paprika, cumin and hot pepper flakes. Sauteed for a couple of minutes. And added the peanut soup. I let it reduce in volume, till is resembled a thick creamy peanut sauce. Topped it with a bit of crushed black pepper and I had myself a great leftover of a leftover. 

chickpea stir fry with spinach and garam masala

Chickpeas are fantastic little legumes that are super high in protein and have more calcium than yogurt. Amazing. And they're so cheap. Of course it's preferable to buy your own dried chickpeas, soak them overnite and then cook for one to two hours, but really, canned is just so much faster/easier. I made a simple stir-fry with them. Just adding spinach and a garam masala mixture that the family I work for brought back from India recently. Garam masala is a combination of black/white peppercorns, nutmeg, cloves, bay leaf, star anise and coriander seeds. I'm not sure of this exact mixture, but it's pretty potent. Not spicy, but just full of strong strong spice. So lovely.

chickpea stir fry with spinach and garam masala

1 can of chickpeas

about two cups of spinach

1 teaspoon garam masala

2 tablespoons olive oil

sea salt

Heat up saute pan over medium heat. Add olive oil. Then chickpeas and garam masala. Saute for about five minutes or until chickpeas look a bit brown. Throw in spinach and let wilt just a little (you really only want it to get coated in some olive oil and spice). Done. Serve it up with a side of rice or whatever grain you wanna mix it with. I just had it by itself. It would also be super good stuffed in a pita. Like a healthier variation of a falafel.

homemade bouillon

In my last post, I went off about the labor-intensive practices of making your own stock or broth. And then I found this post on Heidi Swanson's blog about making your own bouillon:

http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/homemade-bouillon-recipe.html

She adapted this from another cookbook and it simply seems like an awesome idea. The problem I have with making stock, is I hate straining all the vegetables, therefore loosing all the fiber and having to throw away all the nutrient depleted components. It seems like such a waste. This technique uses a food processor to simply chop up all the veggies until they're basically a paste. You can add cilantro, parsley, dried herbs and spices. Once again, the variations are endless. And you can freeze it!  I love this idea. I'm definitely going to try this out real soon.

mushroom tofu soup

Here's another nourishing soup I had made for my mom when I was home for the holidays. This one consisted of crimini mushrooms, tofu, pinto beans, vegetable stock, onions and chopped chives. That's it. So simple. Many food writers talk about the blandness of store bought broth or stock. Or that it tastes a bit musty. I've never noticed that before. I think I add enough other components that that's never an issue. I usually buy the Trader Joe's organic broth and it tastes pretty good to me. Sure, homemade stock is way more nutritionally valuable and flavorful, but many people are not going to chop onions, carrots and celery and simmer for an hour and then strain the liquid through a cheesecloth. Please. People are lazy and want food fast. That's why I really have no problem with ready made stock or broth. If you can just get people to eat a little healthier, that's a big step. Of course, I wouldn't buy the ones that have MSG in them, high fructose corn syrup or even the ones in cans. Your best bet are the organic ones. The bouillon cubes are pretty good, too. Rapunzel is a good brand for that.

Anyway, back to my soup making technique. All I did was chop some onions and add the different components until the soup was thick and flavorful. There are endless variations on this. Any bean, vegetable, spice or herb you have on hand will totally make this soup awesome. Mushrooms are great because they're really easy to prepare. It's best not to wash them because they soak up water like a sponge. Simply remove the stem and wipe any excess dirt from the caps. And really, what's a little dirt anyway? By the way, never eat raw mushrooms. They're not going to kill you, but they're hard for your body to digest. Cooking them breaks down the fungal cell walls and releases more readily acceptable nutrients anyways. Mushrooms have more potassium than bananas, contain selenium, niacin and riboflavin. All awesome nutrients that help boost your immune system, deter cancer cells and fight infection.

Mushroom Tofu Soup

4 cups mushrooms (any will do, I used crimini)

1 block of tofu (drained of water and pressed dry with tea towel)

1 onion (chopped)

1 can pinto beans (drained)

1 12 oz container of veggie broth or stock

2 Tablespoons chopped chives

1/4 cup olive oil

sea salt

Saute chopped onions in a large stock pot over medium heat with a pinch of salt. Cook until onions are soft and translucent. Add mushrooms and cook for about 10 minutes or until the mushrooms have sweated out most of their moisture. Add veggie broth or stock and simmer on low heat for about 20 minutes. Taste test and see if you need to add more salt. Finally, add can of beans and cook just until beans are warm. Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with chopped chives.

Serves 4 to 6

cranberry crumble

My mom made this amazing cranberry crumble when I was home for the holidays. The recipe called for both fresh cranberries and apples. But we just had frozen cranberries. It turned out pretty tart, but with a little bit of vanilla ice cream and whipped cream, it tasted super.

Cranberry Crumble

One package of cranberries, chopped  (12 oz)

2 cups sugar

2 tablespoon ground cinnamon

sea salt

2 sticks cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces (a bit more for greasing the pan)

2 cups all purpose flour

2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick cooking)

1 cup packed brown sugar

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Toss chopped cranberries into a large bowl with sugar, cinnamon, and a pinch or two of sea salt until evenly coated.

Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. Mix flour, oats, brown sugar and a pinch of salt until evenly combined. Work into butter with hands until topping is crumbly.

Spread apple mixture into prepared dish. Sprinkle with brown sugar topping. Bake until filling is bubbling and topping is golden brown. About 25-30 minutes.

Cool before serving.

Christmas Tempeh Coconut Curry with Quinoa

This is the dish I made on Christmas day. So festive, right? Okay, so not the most traditional of christmas  fare, but way more interesting than a ham and potatoes dinner. It's a really simple quick dish to make.

It required no fresh vegetables to wash. My mom is a big supporter of frozen vegetables (which are super convenient and definitely better than canned, yet not as tasty or nutritional as fresh) But for this dish the coconut and tempeh help to offset the slight mushy-ness of frozen broccoli, cauliflower and peas. Obviously fresh is better, but if you're in a hurry, just plain lazy or you live in a tiny town where all the fresh vegetables are overpriced and in bad shape( like where my mom lives), then frozen does a decent job. Quinoa is a great addition because it's super high in protein and faster and easier to cook than rice. And coconut milk is an awesome sweet and rich sauce that brings the dish together nicely.

Tempeh Coconut Curry with Quinoa and Veggies

One large white onion (sliced)

Three cloves of garlic (minced)

One  lb bag frozen vegetables (any variation will do)

One cup dry quinoa

One can of coconut milk

One package of tempeh

olive oil

1/4 teaspoon paprika, cayenne, cumin or any variation on curry spices

chives (for garnish)

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Cut tempeh into one inch strips and place on oiled baking sheet. Drench with olive oil and salt. (Tempeh really absorbs the olive oil and we all know that the more oil, the tastier food becomes...well, usually). Bake for about 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.

Heat a saute pan on medium heat. Add about 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add onion and saute til they're a bit caramelized and translucent. Add spices and garlic. Saute until the spices are super fragrant, about five minutes.

Meanwhile, add one cup of dry quinoa to a pot. Add 2 cups of water and a pinch of salt and let simmer until all the water has been absorbed. About 20 minutes.

Back to the veggies. Add the frozen bag of various cruciferous items to the garlic/onion/spice mixture. Saute until vegetables are warmed up (but not too much, because frozen tend to get mushy pretty fast!) Add can of coconut milk and cook for about 5 minutes more. Finally, add tempeh slices and quinoa and you got a well balanced one dish meal. Garnish with chopped chives for an extra green kick.

sugar and the immune system

After I found out about my mom's cancer, I realized that I really want to crack down on eating and cooking healthier. I mean, I know I already eat pretty healthy and most of the recipes I've posted thus far, are heavily plant-based and super nutritious. But I want to take it a step further. I definitely eat too many sweets and I've learned that cancer cells feed on sugar. That's right. Too much sugar and you're really fucking up your system. Sugar raises the bodies insulin level, which in turn messes with the pancreas to release more insulin to level out the blood sugar levels. Stressing out your pancreas is not good. This lowers your bodies ability to ward off diseases. And simple sugars also raise the release of growth-promoting hormones. Research shows that high levels of these hormones can increase the growth of cancer cells. Therefore it's important to eat complex carbohydrates that provide nutrients, unlike simple sugars that are just crappy empty calories that give you a rush of energy and then a major crash. No good.

I used to think I wanted to open a bakery. An endless supply of sweets and confections. Cakes covered in simple sugar fondants, tarts glazed with refined cane sugar and cookies loaded with corn syrup chocolate chips. Not healthy. However, having a bakery that serves nutrient rich treats flavored with natural sugars like unrefined can sugar, maple syrup, agave nectar or fruit juices is more my style now. I don't know if I'll ever actually open a bakery, but I can at least start perfecting my more health conscious desserts and keeping them in moderation. Damn, moderation. What a difficult concept!