Tag Archives: vegetarian cooking

Stuffed peppers

One for my foodie readers (I know it’s been a lot of bike stuff lately, but that’s life!).  Anyhow, I was beginning to despair of ever having peppers, and then, voila!  Grocery bags full of gorgeous sweet peppers!

We also had a few large green bell peppers, which Matthew suggested stuffing.  I made these based on [a vegetarian adaptation of] his grandmother’s recipe.*

In the interest of not reinventing the wheel, the recipe here is adapted from the stuffed zucchini recipe I shared earlier this summer.  To make this recipe similar to Matthew’s grandmother’s recipe, simply use tomatoes for most of the veggies to make a nice amount of tomato sauce.  Thicken the sauce with a couple tablespoons of flour, which you mix in with the sauteing onions and other veg before adding the tomatoes. IMG_5805

Stuffed Peppers

Recipe by Melissa
Serves 4-6

INGREDIENTS

4-6 large bell peppers, any color
1 onion
6 cloves garlic
1.5 c. uncooked grain (brown rice, quinoa, millet, farro)
1 c. cooked lentils or 1 8oz package of tempeh
4-8 c. vegetables of choice (tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, kale or spinach, fennel)
fresh or dried herbs (thyme, oregano, parsley)
4-6 oz. cheese, cut into small cubes (I used Havarti and Gruyere)
olive oil and/or butter
salt and pepper

Directions

1. Prep the peppers: cut off the tops, and scoop out the seeds.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Parboil the squash for 1-2 minutes (it doesn’t take long with these guys), until slightly tender.  Drain well.

2. Prep the grain.  To up the flavor, add a bit of salt, plus some onion powder and a pinch of tumeric to this step.  If you want to conserve water and energy, use some of the already-heated water from step 1 to cook the grain.

3. Prep the veggies: You want everything fairly tender and ready to eat.  Chop everything into bite-sized pieces.  Sauté onions, then add other veggies to sauté.  I used a mix of butter and olive oil, plus about 1/2 t. of salt.  If you’re using tomatoes, you can just throw the chopped, uncooked tomatoes into the filling, or cook them down into more of a sauce.

4. Prep the tempeh, if using: I basically followed the method I use to prep tempeh for vegetarian reubens, except I crumbled it up first, instead of leaving it in a slab.

5. Combine it all: In one large pan or bowl (one of the ones that’s already dirty is fine, if it’s big enough), combine everything from steps 1-4.  Toss in any herbs.  Taste for overall salt and flavor level, and adjust as needed.

6. Stuff it and bake it: Preheat [toaster oven] to 400F.  Arrange peppers, open side up, in a baking pan (for four peppers, a bread pan worked well, and allowed me to use the toaster oven).  Sprinkle halves with salt.  Add the stuffing.  Bake for 15-20 minutes — long enough for cheese to get melty and flavors to meld a bit.

*The original recipe uses ground beef in place of the cheese and tempeh.  My MIL’s veg adaptation uses all cheese.  This version lightens it up a bit by replacing some of the cheese with lentils or tempeh.  Matthew said it was good, but he still wants the cheesy version sometime.

Broiled: No-bake stuffed zucchini

I started this post almost a year ago, and it’s been languishing in my “Drafts” folder.  I recreated this dish a week ago for one of Gabriel’s birthday dinners, and my father-in-law requested the recipe.

I should note here that my FIL is a very good cook — we’re usually asking him for recipes, so it’s fun when the roles are reversed.  It’s also a bit easier when we ask him for recipes, since he actually, ahem, uses recipes, as opposed to just making stuff up.

Stuffed zucchini is a great use for somewhat overgrown zucchini and other summer squash, but most recipes call for a long baking time.  This recipe is not oven-free, as it requires a few minutes under the broiler, but it still probably uses less energy and heats the house up less than having the oven on for an hour.  If you’re making a small batch, and have a toaster oven, you can really be efficient!

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This is one of those “use what you have/what you like” recipes.  In the above photo, from last fall, I used quinoa as the grain, and we had tomatoes and peppers from the garden.  Last week, I used brown rice, along with some tempeh to up the protein and flavor (lentils are another good vegetarian protein addition).  We didn’t have tomatoes or peppers last week, so I used fennel, kale, and corn, plus some eggplant puree and fresh herbs, for the vegetables.

There is a decent bit of prep work, but a lot of it can be done ahead of time, so it works well when you’re having guests for dinner, or if you just have time earlier in the day, but not in those last frantic minutes right before dinner.

No-bake Stuffed Zucchini

Recipe by Melissa
Serves 4-6

INGREDIENTS

2-3 large zucchini or other summer squash (ideally at least 8-10″ long and ≥9″ diameter)
1 onion
6 cloves garlic
1.5 c. uncooked grain (brown rice, quinoa, millet, farro)
1 c. cooked lentils or 1 8oz package of tempeh (optional)
4-8 c. vegetables of choice (tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, kale or spinach, fennel)fresh or dried herbs (thyme, oregano, parsley)
1-2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
olive oil and/or butter
salt and pepper

Directions

1. Prep the squash: cut in half length-wise, and scoop out the seeds and goop in the middle.  Sprinkle salt on the insides, and drain in a colander for 30 minutes.  While the squash is draining, bring a large pot of water to a boil (large enough to fit the squash halves).  After 30 minutes, parboil the squash for 5-7 minutes, until slightly tender.  Drain well.  Reserve water for next step (optional).

2. Prep the grain.  To up the flavor, add a bit of salt, plus some onion powder and a pinch of tumeric to this step.  If you want to conserve water and energy, use some of the already-heated water from step 1 to cook the grain.

3. Prep the veggies: Since we’re not baking the stuffed zucc, you want everything fairly tender and ready to eat.  Chop everything into bite-sized pieces.  Sauté onions, then add other veggies to sauté.  I used a mix of butter and olive oil, plus about 1/2 t. of salt.  If you’re using tomatoes, you can just throw the chopped, uncooked tomatoes into the filling, or cook them down into more of a sauce.

4. Prep the tempeh, if using: I basically followed the method I use to prep tempeh for vegetarian reubens, except I crumbled it up first, instead of leaving it in a slab.

5. Combine it all: In one large pan or bowl (one of the ones that’s already dirty is fine, if it’s big enough), combine everything from steps 1-4.  Toss in any herbs.  Taste for overall salt and flavor level, and adjust as needed.

6. Stuff it and broil it: arrange squash halves on a broiler pan or in a large cast iron pan.  Sprinkle halves with salt and garlic powder.  Add the stuffing.  Preheat the broiler for a couple of minutes, then broil for 5 minutes.  Remove, add cheese, and broil for an additional 2-3 minutes.

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Notes

  • Don’t worry if you have extra stuffing.  Serve it on the side, or save it for leftovers.
  • If you don’t want to heat the house up at all, I imagine you could do the “broil” step on the grill to good effect.
  • While not required, adding something a little “saucy” can be nice.  For my most recent batch, the eggplant puree (frozen from last summer) filled that role.  Tomatoes or tomato sauce work similarly well.
  • To prep ahead, complete steps 1-5.  You could stuff the squash ahead of time, also, but it’s best done shortly before broiling.  If your filling and squash are starting at refrigerator temperature, either get them out of the fridge about 30 minutes before dinner, or microwave the filling to warm it before completing step 6.

 

Linguini with rhubarb and carmelized onions

I visited my family in Iowa over Memorial Day weekend, and, upon arrival, I discovered a treasure trove of magazines.  I’m a closet magazine junkie — I love reading books, but there’s just something about sitting and flipping through a magazine that feels fun and indulgent.

I don’t subscribe to any magazines myself, between the environmental and monetary costs.  I could get more magazines from the library, but I don’t.  Anyhow, I indulged in magazine fest while at home: Self, Health, Parents, and Better Homes and Gardens.  (My mom sent some back to StL with me, so the mag-fest continues!)

The May issue of BHG had a whole section of rhubarb recipes, including several savory dishes, and the rhubarb linguini caught my eye.  Once back in StL, I was on garden duty while my boys and MIL were in Florida, and, lo and behold, we had rhubarb to harvest.

I started out by more or less following the recipe as printed.  My garden harvest also included a ton of greens, so I made a side of sauteed spinach with carmelized onions to go with my pasta.  Turns out that was an good move, as the sweetness of the carmelized onions was just what this recipe needed to balance out the tart rhubarb!

It’s been for. ev. er. since I’ve posted a recipe.  Sorry about that, and here you go!

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LINGUINI WITH RHUBARB AND CARMELIZED ONIONS

Recipe by Melissa, adapted from BHG May 2014
Serves 6-8

Ingredients
12 oz. whole wheat linguini
2 c. thinly sliced onion
4 c. loosely packed spinach or kale
3 c. 1/4-inch thick slices rhubarb
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/3 cup olive oil
4-6 oz. freshly grated Parmesean cheese
1 T. dried parsley
chopped fresh parsley

Directions
Carmelize the onions.  While the onions cook, start working on the other steps.

Wash and chop the spinach.  If you haven’t already chopped the rhubarb, chop the rhubarb.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  While waiting for the water to boil, grate the cheese and chop the garlic.

Cook the pasta according to package directions for al dente noodles.  One minute before the pasta is finished, remove one cup of pasta cooking water and reserve.  Toss the chopped rhubarb in the pot with the pasta, cook one more minute, and drain.

Sauté the garlic in olive oil in the hot, now-empty pasta pan.  Add spinach and carmelized onions.  Add the pasta and rhubarb.

Lower the heat, and add the cheese, dried parsley, and reserved pasta water.  Mix until well combined.  Turn heat to medium, and cook, stirring constantly, for two minutes.

Garnish with fresh parsley and freshly ground black pepper to serve.

 ———–

This was tasty the first night, but I think it tasted better the second time around, after the rhubarb mellowed a bit and the flavors had a chance to mingle.

 

 

Kitchen craziness

It’s been a busy week of cooking, baking, and fermenting.  Three-and-a-half hours of oven time on Tuesday yielded nice results.

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Clockwise from top: roasted fennel, roasted potatoes (dug on Saturday), and a double batch of granola.

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I also baked six loaves of bread (Matthew made the dough before work), including one chocolate cherry loaf — so good!

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Two crocks of shredded cabbage, on their way to becoming sauerkraut.

After all that kitchen time, I didn’t really feel like making dinner, but I tossed together a zucchini salad to go with the roasted potatoes.

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This was an occasion where my internet recipe search [for “zucchini salad”] was spot on.  I used this recipe from the Post Punk Kitchen, complete with her suggested additions of chickpeas and avocado, which I wanted to work into the dish anyway — it was like the author read my mind!

In addition to the kitchen endeavors, I’ve been cleaning and decluttering the apartment, in preparation for hosting our vegetarian potluck group for the first time ever!

Our previous apartment was just too small, so we’ve enjoyed the hospitality of others for the three years we’ve been part of the group, in addition to “hosting” a dinner at the Botanical Garden for two years.  I’m really looking forward to having the gathering here.

Now back to the kitchen to figure out what I’m making for the potluck . . . .

Umami tsunami: Three ingredients to try today

Over the past several months, I’ve enjoyed playing with some umami-boosting ingredients in various dishes.  Umami is sometimes described as a savory or meaty taste or, more simply, something that makes food taste good.

Despite its association with meat, it is quite possible to build umami flavor in vegetarian dishes — mushrooms or soy sauce are a quick and easy route (the title for this post popped into my head while eating a dish containing both mushrooms and soy sauce) — but there are other ingredients and methods.

1. Dal
I first started experimenting with dal (daal) back in August, when  my food swap with Nupur started an Indian cooking kick.  Dal describes any of a variety of split peas or beans.  I began my explorations with two four pound bags of dal: toor dal (split yellow pigeon peas) and moong dal (split mung beans).

I discovered that well-cooked dal, simmered with bay leaf and seasoned with various spices, makes a rich, savory vegetable stock.  I use the stock for a variety of soups and stews, and the dal provides a nice flavor and texture boost.  I also made one of my best batches of chili ever with a dal base.

Depending on the size of your soup recipe, and assuming you aren’t trying to make lentil stew, start with 1/4 to 1/2 cup dry toor or moong dal (or a combination).  Early in the day, cover the dal with water to soak.  When ready to use, rinse in a mesh colander, add a bay leaf, and cover with water to cook.  When tender, liquify with an immersion or traditional blender and incorporate into your soup recipe.

2. Nutritional yeast
Nutritional yeast is a fairly common ingredient in vegetarian cooking, providing a nutty or cheesy flavor.  As its name indicates, it’s also rather nutritious, a great source of B vitamins in addition to being a complete protein.

I add nutritional yeast to a variety of one-dish meals (grain + beans + veggies) to boost flavor and nutrients.

Look for nutritional yeast in the bulk bins at natural grocers or WF.  The price per pound (~$7-$8) seems high, but the yeast flakes are very light — one pound of nutritional yeast can enhance many meals.

To use, add directly to dishes, or mix with a small amount of hot water to make a sauce.  It also functions as a nice component of salad dressings.

3. Miso paste
Like soy sauce (another fermented soy product), miso paste possesses real umami-boosting power.  Think beyond miso soup and use this flavorful ingredient as part of a rich sauce:

Whisk two to three tablespoons miso paste with one cup of water and a tablespoon (or more, depending on desired thickness) of almond or cashew butter.

Serve sauce on top of a cooked quinoa or millet with sauteed or steamed vegetables for an easy, healthy lunch or dinner.

Mix and match
Try sauces, salad dressings, and soups that include a combination of two or more of these ingredients to really kick up the umami flavor in your cooking.