Black Bean, Corn, Tomato and Quinoa Salad

1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup water
2 ears of corn (leave husks on)
1 cup black beans (rinsed and drained)
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 green bell pepper (finely diced)
1 small onion (finely diced)
1/4 cup cilantro (chopped)
1-2 T olive oil
1-2 T white wine vinegar
1/2 lime
1 whole garlic clove
chili powder
cayenne pepper powder
salt and pepper

Salad:

Preheat oven to 350. Rinse corn with the husks on. Place directly on middle rack in the oven and cook for 30 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool, husk and cut kernels from the cob into a medium bowl.

While the corn is cooking, rinse and drain the quinoa in cold water a few times. Bring 1 cup of water to boil and add the quinoa. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until done.

Add to the corn the cooked quinoa, black benas, cherry tomatoes, green bell pepper, onion and cilantro.


Dressing:

In a small bowl use a garlic press to mash the garlic, or mince it. Add the olive oil, vinegar, lime salt and pepper, chili powder and cayanne pepper (a little goes a long way). Wisk together. I usually use a jar with a lid and then just shake it. Adjust spices for taste.

Add the dressing to the salad and stir to combine.

This is best when made ahead and chilled for an hour or so. It is also great the next day as leftovers. The dressing has a great flavor and the key to this dish is using fresh corn (although it won’t stop me from using frozen in the winter). I served this last night with cold leftover chicken and it was delicious! This is a new hit! Shout out to Kevin at Closet Cooking for this one I've been using his site more and more. I'm gonna have to say it's one of my favorites!

Black Beluga Lentil Soup

1 cup black beluga lentils, picked over and rinsed
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 14-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 cup water
2 cups of a big leafy green (chard, kale, etc), rinsed well, deveined, finely chopped
spices and vinegar to taste

Bring 3 cups of water to a boil in a large saucepan, add the lentils, and cook for about 20 minutes, or until tender. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a heavy soup pot over medium heat, then add the onion and salt and saute until tender, a couple minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, lentils, and water and continue cooking for a few more minutes, letting the soup come back up to a simmer. Stir in the chopped greens, and wait another minute. Taste and adjust the seasoning if need be. Ladle into bowls, and serve. I topped it with fresh chopped tomatoes.

Serves 3 to 4.

This recipe comes from 101 cookbooks here. That recipe calls for a saffron infused yogurt which I really want to try but didn't have saffron on hand. Next time I'll try it and update this post. This recipe is sort of a base soup recipe. It needs to have spice added to it to jazz it up. I added paprika, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper and my favorite: smoked salt. I also added a dash or two of vinegar. This is great with bread or a small sandwich.

Black Bean Cakes with Sweet Corn Vinaigrette over greens

Black Bean Cakes:

1 cup cooked black beans, rinsed and drained
1 eggs, beaten lightly
3-4 scallions, thinly sliced
1 small jalepeno, minced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil

Put black beans into a large bowl.

In a medium frying pan, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium heat. Cook scallions for 2 minutes, add garlic, jalepeno, and cumin; cook for 30 seconds until fragrent; remove from heat and transfer to a large bowl.

Pour the hot mixture over the black beans. Mash the beans with a potato masher. The beans should be a mixture of completely mashed beans with a couple whole and some half whole beans. Stir in the egg.

Slowly add bread crumbs until the gooeyness of the beans and eggs mixture dries up. Don't add too much. Leave the mix somewhat sticky.

Heat the oil in a skillet. Scoop out about 1/4 cup of the mixture and place it into the skillet. You can fry 2-3 of these at a time without much of a problem. Let cook on the one side until the bottom is showing some signs of browning and the patty holds together. Flip carefully and cook the other side until it is similarly done.

Set aside in a warm oven while you finish the rest of the cakes and prepare the sauce.


Sweet Corn Vinaigrette:
1/2 cup sweet corn
2 T white wine vinegar
1/4 (approx) olive oil
pinch red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

In a food processor, blend the corn until smoothish. Add vinegar, salt and pepper and red pepper flakes. Blend a few seconds more, scraping the sides down. While the food processor is blending, slowly add olive oil until the vinaigrette is emulsified and a nice texture.

Serve black bean cakes over fresh salad greens and top with vinaigrette.

Serves 2-3.

The sweet corn vinaigrette is perfect with black bean cakes. This is a nice, light supper that is satisfying but not to filling.

Cucumber and Tomato Salad

1 cup cherry tomatoes
1/2 cucumber
1 onion slice
2 t Vinegar
4 T Olive Oil
1 pinch Fresh or dried parsley
Salt and Pepper

In a bowl whisk together olive oil, vineagar, parsley, salt and pepper.

Chop the tomatoes in half. Peel the cucumber, slice in half and remove the seeds. Chop. Dice the onion.

Mix together and serve.

Serves 2.
























Thank you, Warren, for the delicious Olive Oil! It made this salad. So the key here is good olive oil. In this case, I used Columena. I didn't have a lemon nor did I add any sugar and I found that I didn't need it. If you have a standard olive oil, I'd suggest adding a little more zing to this salad. It's a refreshing salad for a hot day.

Stuffed 8-ball Zucchini Squash

2 8-ball zucchini squash
3-4 cloves garlic
3-4 green onions
1/2 cup cooked quinoa
1/2 cup cooked chicken
3-4 leaves of rainbow chard
sun-dried tomatoes
small handful of fresh basil
salt and pepper
red pepper flakes
italian seasoning
parmesan cheese
olive oil

Cut zucchini tops off about 3/4 inch from the top. Scoop out the insides, being careful to leave a wall about 1/4 inch thick on all sides. Steam zucchini "bowls" and tops upside down for about 8 minutes, until slightly softened. I used a dutch oven with a steamer tray in it but any large pot will work.

Preheat oven to 350.

Chop the sun-dried tomatoes and rehydrate them in hot water if you are not using the ones packed in oil (I used dry ones).

Chop the pulp you removed from the zucchini.

Mince or dice the garlic and chop the onions, chard and basil (leave some basil leaves whole for garnish if they are small).

Heat pan on low and add a bit of oil. Saute the onions for a few minutes. Add a small pinch of red pepper flakes and italian seasoning. Add the garlic and saute for minute or so more. Add the pulp and saute until it softens a bit and releases the juice. Add the chard and steam for a few minutes. Add the already cooked rice and chicken and saute for a few minutes to reheat.

Stuff the zucchini bowls with the mixture, layering mixture, cheese and basil leaves until it is full and mounded. Sprinkle with a bit more cheese, put the top on it and bake uncovered for 20 minutes.




















This is my first harvest of the summer! I've nibbled on some strawberries and lettuce but this is the first meal I've made from goods mostly from my garden. I used my zucchini, garlic, chard, onion and basil. This recipe is perfect for leftovers (hence the chicken and quinoa) and there are many things you can put into these loverly little bowls. I got this recipe here but tweaked it a little.

Easy Balsamic Vinaigrette

1/2 cup olive oil
2 T balsamic vinegar
1 T red wine vinegar
1 T Dijon mustard
1 t sugar
salt and pepper to taste

Add ingredients to a jar with a lid. Close lid tight and shake.

This is really easy to make. I usually don't use the proportions above but just add stuff until I like the taste. I usually store it in the fridge and let it warm up before shaking it up again. Sometimes I throw in some Italian Seasoning and or a press of garlic. No need to buy dressing anymore!

Chicken Andouille Sausage Jambalaya

1/2 lb andouille sausage
2 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup of rice
1 tomato diced
1 onion small diced
1 celery stalk medium diced
1 green pepper medium diced
2 jalapenos finely diced
3 cloves of garlic finely diced
3 bay leaves
Herbs de Provence
Cayenne pepper to taste
Kosher salt and pepper
High temperature oil

Cook andouille sausage over medium heat in a medium sized pot (a dutch oven works best). There is no need for oil as the sausage has plenty. Add onion, celery and bell pepper and saute for a few minutes until softened. Add garlic and saute for another minute or so. Add the rest, bring to boil and simmer until the rice is cooked.

I found this recipe over at culinary disaster and modified it. I love chicken andouille sausage but had made lentil soup a few times and was looking for something new. That and I was trying to use up ingredients I had on hand. I had no green bell pepper so I used carrot instead since I have so many on hand from the vegetable delivery. I also used the Salish smoked salt I have on hand. It really adds a lot to these dishes. For the record, I know this probably isn't real jambalaya because it doesn't have shrimp but I'm not a shrimp fan and it's delicious anyway!

Pico de Gallo

2 cups tomatoes (seeded and chopped)
1/4 cup onion (chopped)
1 jalapenos (seeded and chopped)
1 clove garlic (chopped)
1 lime (juice)
1 handful cilantro (chopped)
pinch cumin
salt and pepper to taste

Thanks to Kevin at Closet Cooking (one of my favorite cooking blogs) for the recipe!

Go easy on the cilantro. Too much can overpower the salsa. It doesn't get better than dipping that first chip into salsa you just chopped up!

Lentil and Sausage Soup

1 cup dried lentils
6 cups chicken broth (or half broth / half water)
1 cup chopped onion
1 1/2 cups chopped carrots
1 cup finely chopped celery
4 cloves garlic
1 bay leaf

8 oz smoked sausage
salt and pepper to taste
hot pepper sauce (optional)

Put everything but the sausage in a large pot or dutch oven. Cover and simmer over low heat for 45 minutes.
While that is simmering, slice in half lengthwise and chop into 1/2 inch pieces if sausage is pre-cooked. If sausage in uncooked, fry in separate pan over medium, breaking into small chunks while you cook.
After 45 minutes, add to soup and simmer another 10 minutes.


I can't believe it's March and still snowing in Seattle! This soup more than hit the spot. In fact, I think I've found a new favorite! I used chicken andouille sausage and crumbled it up while I cooked it so I'd get little morsels in every bite! At the end I used a tsp of smoked salt that I picked up a while back and that gave it just the right amount of smokey flavor. The sausage was spicy enough that I didn't have to add any hot sauce. The original recipe called for more water and to simmer uncovered but its already humid here so I covered it up and used less water/stock. Wow. This one's a keeper!

Adopted from "The Dutch Oven Cookbook" by Sharon Kramis and Julie Kramis Hearne

Frank's Buffalo Wings

2.5 lbs chicken wings (a bag)

1/2 cup Frank's RedHot Original Sauce

1/3 cup melted butter

Cayenne Pepper to taste (optional)

1. Bake wings 1 hour at 425 F or deep-fry 12 minutes at 400 F or broil 5-7 minutes until cooked through.

2. Combine Frank's and melted butter in a large bowl.

3. Dip wings in sauce to coat.

I found this recipe on the back of a Frank's RedHot Sauce bottle.  This recipe is most like the wings we get when we're in Buffalo.  I broiled the wings instead of frying and they came out just fine.  Once you combine the hot sauce with that much butter (which is way these are soooo good!), it brings the temp down quite a bit.  If you like them really hot, add a little ground cayenne pepper into the sauce.  A little goes a long way.

Huevos Rancheros for One!

1 scoop prepared black beans
1 tortilla shell
1 egg
pinch of grated cheese (cheddar, pepperjack, whatever you like!)
hot sauce (i used franks)
1 dallop guacamole
1 dallop salsa verde (or whatever salsa you like!)

Heat the black beans in a small saucepan over med-low heat.
Preheat oven to 350 and place tortilla shell on cookie sheet in oven
Fry egg over med-low heat. I did mine over-medium, just so the yolk is a little runny.
By the time the egg is done, the beans and tortilla should be hot.

Layer like this:
Beans, tortilla, egg, cheese, hot sauce, salsa and guacamole

This is a great leftover breakfast when you have these things on hand. Last night I made an entire meal from scratch. Fajitas with roasted veggies and chicken (recipe to come soon) with brown rice and black beans on the side. I made the salsa from the previous post and even made the corn tortillas by hand. I'll post those directions too over the next week. I think I have some practicing to do because I was in the kitchen for 3 hours! I'm still figuring out the black bean recipe. These turned out a little bland.

Salsa Verde

4-6 tomatillos
2 jalapeño peppers OR 2 serrano peppers, stemmed, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup cilantro leaves chopped
3-4 cloves garlic chopped
1/4 lime (juice and zest)
salt and pepper to taste


Remove the papery husks from the tomatillos and rinse well (they're kinda sticky).
Now, you can either roast them or boil them. Roasting gives more flavor and it's what I prefer.

Roasting method:
Cut them in half and lay them face down on a foil-lined baking sheet
Broil for 5-7 minutes or until the skins are slightly browned

Boiling method:
Place in a soucepan and cover with water
Boil for 5 minutes and then remove from water

The easy part:
Place everything in a food processor or blender and chop away until finely chopped and mixed. Put in fridge for an hour or so. It'll chill the salsa (still hot from roasting the tomatillos) and let the flavors blend.

































This recipe is super easy and so delicious! Hopefully, I'll be able to cut down on the amount of plastic tubs I consume by making it myself!! This stuff is even better the second day.

OK, I just tried this without roasting or boiling the tomatillos first. Even better!!

Quick Sundried Tomato Pesto

1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 cups grated parmesan cheese
basil - a large pinch or two
parsley - a large pinch or two
3 large cloves garlic
1 T fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
extra-virgin olive oil

If the sun-dried tomatoes were packed in oil, drain the oil. If they were dry, chop and soak in a little hot water to reconstitute. Because this is "quick" I used dried basil and parsley but fresh would definitely be better.

Using a food processor, chop the garlic. Add the rest of the ingredients and combine. While the food processor is still running, pour thin stream of oil in until you get a good texture.

Voila!

Sweet Potato Chili

2 tablespoons canola oil
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, thinly sliced
2 bell peppers (green, red, orange, whatever color you like), chopped
2-4 garlic cloves, minced
1.5 - 2 lbs orange fleshed sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks (4 cups)
1.5 cups unsalted roasted peanuts (or any other nuts)
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes in juice
1 6 oz can tomato paste
2 4 oz cans diced mild green chilies with liquid
4-6 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon sugar
salt and pepper to taste
red pepper flakes to taste

In a large heavy pot, heat oil over med. Saute onion, carrots and bell peppers around 8 minutes. add garlic and stir constantly for 30 seconds. Stir in potatoes, nuts, tomatoes and juice, tomato paste, chilies and liquid, and spices.

Bring to boil, reduce heat to low immediately and simmer 15-25 minutes, stirring occasionally until potatoes are tender.

This is a very satisfying vegan chili. I've always made it with peanuts in the past but now that they're on the no-no list, I'll probably try almonds or walnuts. They give it a nice crunch. This recipe makes a lot, I often halve it.

Out with the old... in with the new!

I've been cooking with my mom's old Club set for years now:






























These have been great over the years and have stood up to a lot of abuse. They also turn the water metallic in color when I scrub them with steel wool. Eh, maybe not so good. I'm guessing they are cast aluminum and I've read up quite a bit about using aluminum for cooking. Some are definitely against it (may cause dementia, especially when cooking with fluorinated water, like we have here) and some say aluminum is everywhere and it's no big deal.

So, better safe than sorry! Welcome my newest addition to the kitchen: my new set of All-Clad!!















I chose All-Clad because it seemed to be the only set made in America (besides the lids - made in china - grrrr). Plus, they rock. Stainless steel, aluminum core (doesn't touch food) and oooh, so shiny!

Now... if I only new how to cook with them :) (First time using non-nonstick)

Baked Chicken Stuffed with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto and Goat Cheese

I found this recipe over at Kalyn's Kitchen via Food Blog Search

If you haven't used Food Blog Search yet, go there immediate. Or, at least after dinner. I use that site to search for recipes instead of a straight google search. It's cuts down on the number of annoying sites with popups and ads.

My friend, Louie, was over while I was preparing and gave me a couple of ideas. The first is, when pounding the chicken, use the flat edge of the meat tenderizer instead of the pointed end. It flattens the chicken without breaking it up. Second, I added a "pinch" of red pepper flakes to the pesto-goat cheese mix and it gave it a subtle kick. This is an impressive dish for guests that is pretty easy to do. See Kayln's site for detailed description of rolling and dredging the chicken.


Baked Chicken Stuffed with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto, Basil, and Goat Cheese
(6 servings, recipe created by Kalyn)

6 boneless, skinless chicken breast
1/2 cup 100% whole wheat pastry flour
3 eggs, beaten well
2/3 cup 100% whole wheat bread crumbs
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
6 oz. goat cheese (log type, such as Chevre)
6 oz. Sun-dried tomato pesto
1/2 cup fresh basil, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350 F. Trim all visible fat and tendons from chicken breasts. Put chicken breasts, one at a time, inside a heavy plastic plastic freezer bag and pound with meat mallet or other heavy object until 1/4 inch thick. (This is where I used the flat side of the mallet)

Put pesto (I threw together a quick pesto in the food processor and left it there for this step), goat cheese, and chopped basil in food processor and buzz a few times until mixture is combined but not completely blended. (This is where I added a pinch of red pepper flakes) Spread 1/6 of pesto/basil/goat cheese mixture on each chicken breast. Roll up chicken, starting with smallest end, tucking in loose pieces and securing with two toothpicks. (I got away with not using the toothpicks)

Put flour, beaten egg, and bread crumbs combined with parmesan cheese into three separate flat dishes. Roll each chicken breast, first in flour, then in egg, then in bread crumb/parmesan mixture.

Oil the glass casserole dish and arrange chicken so pieces are not touching. Bake at 350 F for about 50-60 minutes, or until chicken is slightly browned and firm, but not hard to the touch. I recommend you start checking it after 40 minutes (for me, it was done in 40), and remove from oven as soon as the chicken feels firm and is slightly browned.