Kale, squash and sausage soup

Kale, Squash and Sausage Soup

Adapted from EatingWell:  September/October 2007

6 servings, about 1 2/3 cups each | Active Time: 40 minutes | Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 winter squash (I have used kaboucha and butternut), peeled, seeded and cubed
• 1 pound chicken sausage
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons paprika, preferably smoked
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper, or to taste (optional)
• 1 cup white wine
• 4 plum tomatoes, chopped
• 4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1 bunch kale, ribs removed, chopped (about 8 cups lightly packed)

Preparation

1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add squash and saute for 5 minutes.
2. Add onion to the pot and cook, stirring often, until just beginning to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Add garlic, paprika and crushed red pepper (if using) and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add wine and tomatoes, increase heat to high and stir to scrape up any browned bits. Add broth and bring to a boil.  Reduce to a simmer and cook until squash is tender, about 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, brown chicken sausage in a medium skillet. Set aside.
4. Add kale and stir just until it wilts. Reduce heat to maintain a lively simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the kale is just tender, about 4 minutes. Stir in the chicken sausage and serve.

 

 

Chia Seed Pudding

From Food and Wine, March 2012

I love Food and Wine magazine, mostly for the photos but I rarely end up making any of the recipes.  This month’s edition was health-food themed and I folded down the edge of nearly every page.  This pudding was super easy and delicious.  I will definitely be making it on a regular basis.  So excited to make more of this month’s recipes.

Chia Seed Pudding

Total time: 15 minutes, plus 4 hrs chilling

Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups almond milk

3 Tbsp agave nectar

1/2 cup chia seeds

1/2 tsp lemon zest

Directions:

In a 1 quart jar, combine almond milk and agave nectar.  Shake to combine.  Add chia seeds and lemon zest.  Close the jar and shake well.

Refrigerate until the mixture is very thick and pudding-like, stirring or shaking occasionally.

Serve the pudding in bowls with fresh fruit and/or nuts.

Sweet Potato Wedges

Sweet Potato Wedges

Ingredients:

2 pounds sweet potatoes

2 Tbsp olive oil

Dash of cayenne pepper

Dash of sea salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Cut sweet potatoes into wedges.  Toss in large bowl with oil and cayenne.  Spread out on lightly oiled baking pans.  Bake about 35 minutes, tossing several times in between and removing from potatoes get browned and crisp.  Sprinkle with sea salt.

Roasted Broccoli with Sriracha, Honey and Tamari

Adapted from rosemarried.com

Roasted Broccoli with Sriracha, Honey, and Tamari

Ingedients:

1 small crown of broccoli, cut into bite size florets
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon Sriracha
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

2 Tbsp sesame seeds
4 green onions, sliced thinly
Optional: Red chili flakes

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment.

In a small bowl, mix together tamari, sesame oil, honey, Sriacha and black pepper. Pour mixture over the raw broccoli and toss to coat.

Spread broccoli pieces in an even layer across the baking sheet. Roast for 8-10 minutes, until broccoli is tender (and the outer edges are beginning to turn dark brown).

Remove broccoli from the baking sheet to a bowl. Toss with sesame seeds and green onions. Taste and adjusting seasonings if necessary. Serve immediately.

Fettucine Alfredo

From EatingWell:  EatingWell Serves Two

The addition of zucchini boosts the nutritional profile. And when cut into thin strands, it can be twirled gracefully on a fork.

2 servings, 1 1/2 cups each | Active Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: 35 minutes

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup vegetable broth, or reduced-sodium chicken broth (see Tips for Two)
• 4 large cloves garlic, peeled
• 4 ounces whole-wheat fettuccine
• 1 small zucchini, pealed into ribbons with a vegetable peeler
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch, mixed with 1 tablespoon water
• 2 tablespoons reduced-fat sour cream
• Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, or to taste
• 3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Preparation

1. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Combine broth and garlic cloves in a small saucepan; bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the garlic cloves are soft, about 15 minutes.
2. After the garlic has simmered about 10 minutes, cook fettuccine in the boiling water, stirring often, for 8 minutes. Drop in zucchini and cook until the fettuccine is just tender, about 1 minute more.
3. Meanwhile, transfer the garlic and broth to a blender. Process until the mixture is smooth, about 1 minute. (Use caution when blending hot liquids; see Tip.) Return the mixture to the pot and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Add cornstarch mixture; whisk it until slightly thickened, about 15 seconds. Remove from the heat and whisk in sour cream, nutmeg and pepper. Return the pot to very low heat to keep the sauce warm. (Do not boil.)
4. Drain the pasta and place in a large bowl. Add the sauce and 1/2 cup Parmesan; toss to coat well. Sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately, passing the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan separately.

Nutrition

Per serving : 379 Calories; 11 g Fat; 6 g Sat; 3 g Mono; 33 mg Cholesterol; 52 g Carbohydrates; 21 g Protein; 8 g Fiber; 628 mg Sodium; 326 mg Potassium

Tips & Notes

• Tips for Two: Leftover canned broth keeps up to 5 days in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in your freezer. Leftover broth in aseptic packages keep for up to 1 week in the refrigerator. Add to soups, sauces, stews; use for cooking rice and grains; add a little when reheating leftovers to prevent them from drying out.
• Pureeing hot liquids: Hot liquids can splatter out of a blender when it’s turned on. To avoid this, remove the center piece of the lid. Loosely cover the hole with a folded kitchen towel and turn the blender on. Better airflow will keep the contents from spewing all over the kitchen—and yourself.

Dinosaur Dill Crunch Salad with lemon tahini dressing

From Ohsheglows.com

Dinosaur kale (also known as Lacinato or Tuscan kale) is the dainty and sweeter sister of traditional curly kale. It blends beautifully in this salad while letting the flavours of the dill shine. As a result of it’s soft texture and pleasant taste, you don’t have to marinate the dressing on the leaves for long. The healthy lemon dill tahini dressing is very low in oil and packs in a 1 & 1/2 cups of fresh dill to sneak in more greens. I topped the salad with my favourite crunchy salt and vinegar chickpeas. Their tangy and salty flavour compliments the dill dressing nicely while adding a bit of a crunch!

Ingredients (4 servings)

For the S & V chickpeas

• 1 (15-oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 2 cups white vinegar
• few pinches of kosher salt
• extra virgin olive oil, to lightly coat

For the dressing: (makes just over 1 cup)

• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup tahini
• 2 tbsp water
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1.5 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1.5 cups packed dill, stems removed and roughly chopped
• 1/2-3/4 tsp kosher salt, or to taste

For the salad

• 2 small bunches Dinosaur kale (also called Lacinato or Tuscan kale) OR 1 large bunch curly kale
• other greens if desired (I used a couple large, de-stemmed collard leaves)
• 1 English cucumber, chopped small
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 1 batch of Lemon Dill Tahini dressing (below)
• few tablespoons of sesame seeds, toasted if preferred
• 1/2 batch of Salt & Vinegar chickpeas

Instructions

1. Salt and vinegar chickpeas: Preheat oven to 425F and line baking sheet. In a pot, bring 2 cups white vinegar to a boil and add pinch of salt. Add in drained and rinsed chickpeas and bring to a boil for 1 minute (no longer). Turn off heat and let the chickpeas sit in the vinegar for 30 minutes. Drain the chickpeas, place into pot, and light coat with a tiny bit of oil (optional) and a few sprinkles of kosher salt. Place on pan and roast for 35-40 minutes at 425F, until golden and crispy. Halfway through baking, give the pan a shake to rotate the peas. Keep an eye on them to avoid burning. Leave on pan until ready to eat. They are best served fresh as they get soft when stored.

2. Dill dressing: In a mini chopper or food processor, mince the garlic. Now add in the rest of the ingredients, except for the dill, and process until smooth. Give the dill a rough chop and add into processor and process until smooth. Should keep in an air-tight container for 5-8 days in the fridge.

3. Salad: Prep all salad ingredients and add into a large bowl. Massage your desired amount of the dressing into the leaves and let it “marinate” until ready to serve. Add roasted chickpeas on top along with a drizzle of more dressing and sesame seeds.

*Note: If omitting the nutritional yeast, reduce the tahini by 1/2-1 tbsp as the yeast takes a bit of edge of the strong tahini flavour.

Chana Massala

I got a request this week for Indian food, which was very exciting because cooking this type of cuisine is pretty unfamiliar to me.  As I tend to do, I went over the top and made several dishes.  Along with this chana massala, I made a winter vegetable and tofu korma, Indian style green beans, brown basmati rice and a cucumber raita to top it all off.  I also bought some whole wheat naan to go with it all.

From smittenkitchen.com Adapted from a Madhur Jaffrey recipe.

The recipe calls for a tablespoon of amchoor powder, which I did not have. I looked it up and learned that it was dried unripe mango powder, which is clearly a sour flavor, so I upped the lemon juice i used instead. The dish had a nice sour snap at the end, so I will presume this is a good swap.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 medium onions, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 fresh, hot green chili pepper, minced
1 tablespoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper (I used a quarter of this because my cayenne is extremely hot)
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 teaspoons cumin seeds, toasted and ground
1 tablespoon amchoor powder (see note)
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon garam masala
2 cups tomatoes, chopped small or 1 15-ounce can of whole tomatoes with their juices, chopped small
2/3 cup water
4 cups cooked chickpeas or 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 lemon (juiced) (see note; I used a whole lemon to swap for the amchoor powder)

Directions:

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion, garlic, ginger and pepper and sauté over medium heat until browned, about 5 minutes. Turn heat down to medium-low and add the coriander, cumin, cayenne, turmeric, cumin seeds, amchoor (if using it), paprika and garam masala. Cook onion mixture with spiced for a minute or two, then add the tomatoes and any accumulated juices, scraping up any bits that have stuck to the pan. Add the water and chickpeas. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, then stir in salt and lemon juice.

Eat up or put a lid on it and reheat it when needed. Curries such as this reheat very well, later or or in the days that follow, should it last that long.

Cucumber Raita

From eatingwell.com

I love putting yogurt on top of everything but this worked especially well with the Indian dishes I made today.  They turned out quite spicy and this was just the perfect compliment to cool them down.

1 1/2 cups | Active Time: 10 minutes | Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
• 1 cup low-fat plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1 small clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Preparation

1. Combine cucumber, yogurt, mint, lime juice, garlic, cumin, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes to allow flavors to blend.

Nutrition

Per 1/4 cup serving : 32 Calories; 1 g Fat; 0 g Sat; 0 g Mono; 0 mg Cholesterol; 4 g Carbohydrates; 2 g Protein; 0 g Fiber; 129 mg Sodium; 146 mg Potassium

 

Green Beans-Indian Style

From Eatingwell.com

4 servings | Active Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 teaspoons canola oil
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1 pound green beans, trimmed, cut diagonally into 1” pieces
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Preparation

1. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add mustard seeds and sauté for 30 seconds, or until they start to pop. Stir in beans, carrots and onions and cook, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes. Stir in salt, coriander and ginger. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook, stirring often, for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the beans are tender-crisp. Stir in lemon juice and serve.

Nutrition

Per serving : 76 Calories; 2 g Fat; 0 g Sat; 1 g Mono; 0 mg Cholesterol; 14 g Carbohydrates; 3 g Protein; 5 g Fiber; 610 mg Sodium; 376 mg Potassium

Winter Vegetable and Tofu Korma

From 101 Cookbooks

Serves 6+

Prep time: 40 min – Cook time: 20 min

Ingredients:

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 3/4 teaspoons ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

2 tablespoons clarified butter, ghee, or sunflower oil

2 medium yellow onions, very finely chopped
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger, peeled first
4 medium cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

1 1/2 pounds waxy potatoes, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
12 ounces / 340 g cauliflower, cut into tiny trees
2/3 cup / 65g sliced almonds, toasted
3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more to taste
12 ounces / 340 g firm tofu, cut into 1/4-inch cubes or matchsticks

1/2 cup / 4.5 oz / 130 g greek yogurt
1/2 cup / 120 ml heavy cream
a small bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions:

Combine the cardamom, turmeric, red pepper flakes, cumin, coriander, and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.

Heat the butter/oil in a large, thick-bottomed soup pot over medium-high heat. Stir in the onions. Cook until they soften a bit, just a minute or two. Then add the ginger and then garlic. Stir in the spices and continue cooking for a couple minutes, or until the spices are very fragrant. Stir in the potatoes, cauliflower, and half the almonds. Add 3/4 teaspoon salt.

Now stir in 3 cups of water. Stir gently, cover with a lid leaving a tiny crack and simmer for 15-20 minutes, the potatoes should be just about cooked by then. Taste, and add more salt if needed. Stir in the tofu after about 15 minutes so it has time to heat through.

In the meantime, combine the yogurt and cream in a bowl with a couple pinches of salt.

Once the vegetables are cooked through, dial down the heat to low. Now, you can add the yogurt mixture all at once and bring the pot back just to the brink of a simmer. Or do what I do, serve the yogurt on the side, so people can make their bowl as rich as they like. Either way, taste, make sure to taste the broth, and add more salt if needed. If you haven’t added the yogurt to the big pot, serve each bowl with a generous dollop of the yogurt cream, and top with the remaining nuts and chopped cilantro.