Braised Kale with diced tomatoes

6-12 kale stalks

1 fresh tomato, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1-2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes

2-4 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

coarse salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Wash the kale thoroughly. There is no need to dry, just shake excess water off. Remove stalks and tear into bite size pieces. I hold the end of the stalk with one hand and run a knife down each side to remove the leaf. Works like a charm.

Heat a large pan on medium and add olive oil. Add red pepper flakes and let oil heat up. Add garlic and kale. Toss the kale to coat. Add the red wine vinegar(start with a small amount first) and then salt.

Turn heat down to low and put lid on pot. Braise gently for about 15-20 minutes, turning the kale gently now and then.

When the kale is tender, turn off the heat and add the diced tomatoes. Let sit for another 5 minutes.

I have now made this dish 3 times this week! I can't get enough of it. I've been using Red Bor Kale - it's purplish with really curly ends and so GOOD! This is such a nutritious side and pretty easy to make. Tonight I subbed lime juice for the red wine vinegar and put them in chicken and black bean burritos.

Recipe slightly altered but borrowed from: http://mzkitchen.blogspot.com/2007/04/healthy-braised-kale.html

Meatballs!

1 pound ground beef
½ pound ground italian pork sausage
2 egg yolks
½ cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
4 cloves of minced garlic (or chop 1/2 and mince 1/2)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons of dried parsley
salt and pepper to taste
3-4 slices Italian bread, crust removed
1 cup milk
olive oil

Break bread into chunks and put in a bowl and cover with milk. Let sit for 5 minutes as you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Put into a large bowl the following: beef, sausage, eggs, cheese, garlic and spices. Squeeze some of the milk out of the bread but leave fairly soaked. Add this to the bowl and mix everything together with your hands (the fun part). Shape into medium sized balls and set on a plate.

Cover the bottom of the skillet with oil and heat on medium. I used a 10" cast iron fry pan and it worked great! Once Put the meatballs in and brown on all sides. You can also bake them in an oven at 350 for 20 minutes or so or simmer them in marinara sauce for 40 minutes.

If you fry them, place on paper towels and pat to remove excess oil.

When Dave and I visit his parents in Buffalo, we usually have spaghetti and meatballs. Real, authentic Italian spaghetti and meatballs. I've never had anything like it but these come pretty close. At least, they'll do until my next trip east. I served these over spaghetti squash tonight with a really good pasta sauce I got at the store: Nana's. It's locally made by a family here in Shoreline.

Split Pea Soup

3 cups green split peas
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 large chopped onion
2 large chopped carrots
1 leek - rinsed well and chopped
1 small lemon
1 bay leaf
4 cloves garlic - minced
1 teaspoon paprika
salt and pepper to taste
4 cups water
2 cups Vegetable Stock

Rinse peas and sort out irregulars and stones. Cover with water to 2 inches above peas and set aside. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large pot. Saute garlic to release aroma. Add onion, carrot, leek, paprika and bay leaf; saute 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add water, stock, juice from lemon, salt and pepper to pan. Drain peas and add peas and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer at least 1 hour, stirring often. Discard bay leaf. Place half of soup in blender or food processor; process until smooth. Return to pot and stir.

Ladle into bowls and enjoy with crispy bread or cheese and crackers!

I lied earlier when I said the Tom Yum soup was the first I perfected. I forgot that this is actually the first soup I ever made and I made it before ever having tried split pea soup before. That's how I roll. When I made this last night, I added Alder-Smoked salt that I got at the market (the Greenwood Market). It is very strong smelling and adds a great smokey flavor to this soup in place of using ham hocks. This soup freezes really well so I make a lot and enjoy it for months (if it lasts that long).

Chocolate Zucchini Cupcake Recipe

1 1/2 cups (360 mL) brown sugar
1/4 cup (60 mL) melted butter
3/4 cup (180 mL) vegetable oil (hs note: I used unrefined, scented, all-natural coconut oil)
3 eggs
1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla
1/2 cup (120 mL) buttermilk
2 cups (480 mL) grated zucchini
1 cup (240 mL) chocolate chip
2 cups (480 mL) unbleached flour
1 cup (240 mL) cocoa, sifted
1/2 tsp (2.5 mL) salt
2 tsp (10 mL) baking soda
1 tsp (5 mL) allspice
1 1/2 tsp (7.5 mL) cinnamon

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease large muffin pans and line with muffin cups.

In a medium bowl mix together the sugar, butter and oil. Beat in eggs, one at a time until well Incorporated. Stir in vanilla, buttermilk, zucchini and chocolate chips.

In a separate bowl mix together all of the dry ingredients. Add the liquid ingredients and mix until well combined. Spoon batter into large muffin pans. Bake in the center of the oven for about 20-25 minutes. Cool on a wire rack, while preparing the icing (hs note: I made these without the icing, also - don't overcook them or you will lose all the moist goodness - you want them to look almost done in the oven - they will continue to cook for a few minutes after you pull them from the oven from the residual heat).

Yields 9 large cupcakes or 20 standard cupcakes.

from Rebar: Modern Food Cookbook by Audrey Alsterburg & Wanda Urbanowicz (Big Ideas Publishing, 2001)


These turned out DELICIOUS! So moist and rich. I made 18 normal size and 24 mini size and I think the mini size is perfect. It's so rich and just a little bite of heaven! I didn't cook them as long as the original recipe called. They were done way before so check on them. A great way to get rid of that HUGE zucchini that got away from me in my garden.

Tom Yum Hot and Sour Chicken Soup with Rice Noodles

2 cups water (for soup)
1 cup chicken or vegetable stock
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
2 stalks lemon grass
1 small onion - diced
2-3 garlic cloves - minced
2 tsp vegetable oil
3-4 tsp fish sauce
1 tbsp roasted red chili paste
1 tbsp unrefined cane sugar
1/2 lb chicken tenders already cooked (or quorn brand meat substitute)
Red pepper flakes to taste
4-6 cups water (to cook noodles)
1/2 package rice noodles - thin, not wide

Pull off and discard course outer layers from lemon grass and trim off and discard stem ends. Cut each stalk into about 3-inch lengths. Lightly crush with the flat side of a knife. (I often skip this step and use a few pinches of dried lemon grass sealed in a teabag.)

In small saucepan, heat oil and saute garlic and onion. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 10-15 minutes.

While soup is simmering, bring large pot of water to a rolling boil. Remove from heat and add the noodles. Let sit for 8 minutes (or according to package directions). Drain water and scoop noodles into serving bowls. A slotted spaghetti server works best.

Remove lemongrass from soup and discard (compost!). Ladle the soup over the noodles and enjoy.

I love to make this Thai version of chicken noodle soup. This is one of the first recipes I perfected. It's ideal for a cold day and/or when you're feeling not-so-hot during the cold/flu season.

Garlic Scape Pesto

8-12 garlic scapes (tops removed)
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 of a freshly squeezed lemon
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt to taste
almonds and/or pine nuts

In a food processor, finely chop the garlic scapes. Slowly add oil and mix until a paste.

Chop the garlic scapes into 3 inch lengths. Process in a food processor until pureed. Add the parmesan and nuts and process until smooth. Slowly add the olive oil as the food processor runs and continue until all the oil is combined into the garlic. Store in an air-tight jar in the refrigerator with a little olive oil floating on top of the pesto to preserve it.



I made this out of my very first harvest of garlic! So exciting! It turned out really good and I've been using it on sandwiches ever since. I froze some of it by putting it ice cube trays to make convenient little portions but I've already used the jar I kept in the fridge plus a quarter of the cubes and it's only mid-August!

Oatmeal Pancakes

1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup reduced fat buttermilk
1/4 cup skim milk
2 egg whites
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
opt:
raspberries
strawberries
bananas
blueberries
etc...

Heat griddle to 375.
Beat all ingredients or whisk until smooth.
Cook on one side until almost done. Bubbles will form on top and bottom will be golden brown.

I made these with my mom and sisters at my mom's lake house in Minnesota. So yummy!

Basic Brown Rice

Rice to Water ratios:
1/2 cups - 3/4 cups
1 -1/4 cups - 2 cups
2-1/3 cups - 4 cups
3-1/2 cups - 6 cups
2 tbsp Vegetable Oil

Rinse the uncooked rice and drain. Boil water in a separate pot. While waiting for the water to come to a boil, heat two tablespoons of oil in the bottom of a heavy, tight-lidded sauce pan, and sauté the rice on med - med high. Stir constantly to avoid burning. After a few minutes, it'll begin to smell nutty.

When the water in the other pot has come to a boil, pour it over the rice in the sauce pan. Bring it to a boil, put the lid on and simmer, covered, for 45 minutes. Don't peek. After 45 minutes, turn off heat and let sit for 10-15 minutes. Fluff and serve.

This is the best way I've found to cook brown rice. It's easy, almost fool-proof and roasting it prior to cooking gives it a nutty, robust flavor.