Many happy mediums

No, this post is not about mediums (i.e., psychics) or forms of media (tv, radio, etc.).  This is a recipe that can please a variety of cooks: those looking for vegan dishes, cooks with two left thumbs (or no thumbs), paleo dishes (which incorporates gluten-free cooking), and "good for a crowd" cooks. 

The mister and me participated in an interesting nutrition challenge from mid-September through mid-October. Short version of the story: the mister followed a paleo lifestyle while I embraced a gluten-free and sugar-free lifestyle.  Since I am the main cook at home, all dinners were prepared using paleo recipes. 

At the end of the challenge, we decided to embrace these choices at the end of the nutrition challenge.  That is...except for beer. 

It had been a bit of time since we had enjoyed an all-veggie dinner, and I saw this recipe while looking for a way to use butternut squash.  I really like butternut squash, but that's because someone else prepares it.  This one almost looked TOO easy, I had to try it.  So, here goes nothin'...

Ingredients:
- leeks or onions, about 1/4 cup diced
- carrots; three, peeled and chopped
- garlic; a couple of cloves smashed and chopped
- butternut squash; about 2 - 2.5 cups, peeled and cubed
- spices: cumin, ancho chili powder, cinnamon, curry powder, nutmeg; I suggest 1 teaspoon of each, with the exception of the nutmeg--just do 1/2 teaspoon
- 2.5 c. stock (veggie, chicken, beef, it makes no difference)
- 1 28 oz can of diced tomatoes
- 1 15 oz can full-fat coconut milk
- a generous amount of kale, cut into thin ribbons; I covered an entire dishtowel with kale. You can NEVER have too much kale! 

Steps:

1. Bring your burner to medium and coat a large dutch oven with olive oil and add the leeks/onions, carrots, and garlic and saute until soft (about 5 min)

2. Add butternut squash and coat with spices, saute for 3 minutes

3. Pour in stock and can of tomatoes, mix well and bring to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer for 20 minutes

4. Add can of coconut milk, and kale; simmer until kale is wilted (about 5 minutes)

5. EAT DINNER!

6. Enjoy leftovers the next day.

Notes: To make this dish with more "heft," you could add small meatballs (lamb or beef, or a combo) while the soup is simmering for 20 minutes.  Alternatively, if you wanted to add more veggie/vegan options add a can of garbanzo beans.  Like I said, this recipe pleases many and can be adapted for many different lifestyles. 

It was divine and fed us for several days.

I made dinner and the papparazzi forgot to show up.

As I posted earlier this week, the mister and me are participating a nutrition challenge for 30 days (September 16 - October 16).  Since we've moved away from gluten and legumes, many of our dinners have seen an increase in meats and greens.  It felt like I haven't made an all-vegetarian dinner for some time, so I did on this night.  I also had a smattering of foods that I half-prepped over the weekend and wanted to use:
- mushrooms from Oley Valley Mushrooms
- sweet potatoes from the LFFC CSA share
- chard from the raised beds
- beets from the raised beds (I harvested all of them on Sunday--see below and roasted them whole for later use)

So, this evening I decided to get creative. While sweet potatoes were wrapped in foil in the toaster oven and cooking, I began prepping the rest of dinner--scrubbing and cutting the mushrooms, removing the peels from the beets (it was super easy after roasting them the day before), and the mister helped me by chopping and rinsing the chard. 

I grabbed my two Le Creuset pans (the frying pan and the large sauté pan).  In both, I put about a teaspoon of ghee.  In essence, ghee is clarified butter; baked slow and low so that the milk solids are removed from the butter.  It is incredible to cook with and does not have the oxidization that occurs when heating EVOO to high temps.  

In the frying pan, I added the mushrooms and allowed them to cook on low until they were nice and browned.  It takes 10 minutes or so. 

In the large sauté pan, I added some sage to the melted ghee and let those flavors mix for a minute. Then, I added some chopped walnuts to toast them (let the walnuts get warm for about 2-3 minutes).  From there, I added 4 or 5 large beets (chopped into 1" pieces) and let them warm through.  At that point, I topped the pan with chard and put the lid on to wilt the greens.  After 5 minutes, I grabbed my silicone spatula and made sure to mix the beets and greens.  Once the greens were wilted, I was ready to put everything on our plates.  

We ate the mushrooms separately with just a touch of salt and pepper. They were divine!  I got more creative with the second half of the dinner -- and warned the mister that I was doing so.  I took the sweet potato out of the toaster oven, removed the skins, and mashed it in my bowl.  I then topped the sweet potatoes with the beet/chard/walnut mixture and added a dash of EVOO.  It was a terrific mixture of flavors and the mister followed suit and prepared his plate the same way.  

Problem is, I never took a picture of our dinner. The paparazzi were slacking this evening.  I will likely make this dinner again and promise to post a picture.  

Dinner was gluten-free and vegetarian. A quick swap of EVOO for the ghee would make this dinner vegan. 

Totally not local...but not every meal can be that way.

So, even though I call myself the Local Food Lady, we all know that I don't eat local 100% of the time!  The main crux of doing this blog and writing about my food choices is to strive for local foods. There are plenty of items that I haven't looked for locally (quinoa is a good example) or that I know definitively aren't grown locally (hello morning coffee!!). 

The mister and me are participating in a nutrition challenge at our gym.  He's following the Paleo diet and I have opted to eliminate sugar and gluten from my food sources. So, since I prepare most of the meals in the household, my dinners will be paleo, but my breakfast and lunches will not.

In essence, the difference between our two nutrition challenge choices is that I am continuing to eat: dairy, oatmeal, legumes, fruits (raw, cooked and dried) and gluten-free starches (like quinoa).  I'm also having a tiny, tiny bit of local, raw honey in limited dishes like my morning oatmeal. People who embrace the Paleo diet as a lifestyle choice will incorporate honey or maple syrup on a minimal basis, but the mister is attempting to avoid these sweeteners completely.

Also, anything that comes from a box or is packaged should have 5 grams or less of sugar per serving and should note "gluten free" on the label.

What's the reason behind this?  1) it's a challenge and 2) let's see what kind of impact these changes have on my body.  Over the last few months, I realized that I was relying on flour-based starches too often for dinners (hello pasta!) and if I saw a pizza on a menu, I was jumping to try it.  So, I began to scale back on the pasta and pizza dough, and have begun to remember that when dining out, a salad with lean proteins is a smarter option in lieu of a pulled pork sandwich doused in bbq sauce. 

What is the biggest challenge for me?  Beer!  I'm a big fan--beer geek, is a better term--of microbreweries (our local one, specifically) and the mister and me have an entire refrigerator in our basement dedicated to our love of beer.

I completely eliminated the 2 Splenda that I would put in my 20 ounce coffee and eliminated my secret stash of small chocolates. Instead, I'm drinking my coffee with half-n-half and opted for 85% dark chocolate that has 1g sugar per 1" square.  That said, I was in the mood to create a Paleo-friendly dessert that incorporated my favorite flavor--chocolate! 

I came upon a recipe for Paleo Chocolate Pudding. Hmmm...wondering how this would work out. As you know, I am inspired by recipes and rarely follow them to a T. This is what I used for my puddin':

- 4 very, very ripe avocados (it helped they were already chilled in the refrigerator)
- 1/4 cup of Hershey's Special Dark unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup buckwheat honey (it's dark like molasses)
- 3 tbs. creamy almond butter (unsweetened)
- 1 tsp. lemon juice
- 1 tsp. bourbon vanilla extract (you can use any extract you wish--almond, mocha, mint)
- spices: nutmeg, cinnamon

I tossed it all in the Cuisinart and and it came out looking just like pudding.  I tasted it and could not believe how AWESOME it was. It was the consistency of incredible fudge. I even went so far as to walk upstairs to the mister with a spoon and said, "ok, there's some honey in this, but you MUST try it!"  I think the Hershey's Special Dark was the slam dunk.

I packaged it up in individual servings for my lunch this week.  I cannot wait to make this again.  The only local ingredient on the list was the buckwheat honey. Even though we are 75 miles from Hershey, PA, I  don't think Hershey's cocoa powder counts.

Next time, I'll probably add some fresh mint from the garden (2nd local ingredient!) and give it a mint chocolate chip flavor. 

Not only is this Paleo-friendly, but it's vegetarian, dairy-free, gluten-free and the only product that is not vegan-friendly is the honey (I'm not opening that beehive here). 

Paleo-friendly puddin'

Snacks!?! Why not!

So, I had a plethora of kale in my garden this year. Yes, a ton of it. It's still growing and was one of my most successful crops from the raised beds. I even planted more for the cooler fall temps.  

My go-to kale dish usually involves garlic and EVOO and is sautéed . It's not too inventive, but I know what I like. 

This weekend, we had some more fall-like temps and my Instagram and Facebook feeds were filled with images of fall-inspired creations.  One I hadn't tried before were kale chips!  

So, on the first day of fall, I grabbed that excellent kale and got to work.  Here's what happened:

Preheat the oven to 300°. While the oven is warming, grab some cookie sheets and cover with parchment paper.  

I had a 1 gallon Ziploc bag stuffed with pre-washed and de-stemmed kale, so I was already ahead of the game.  I put about half the bag in a large bowl and drizzled with olive oil. From there, I added some garlic sea salt and make sure to get all of the leaves coated with the olive oil.   

With the other half of the kale, I dusted it with Chipotle Chili Powder.

Both sheets went into the oven for about 20 minutes.  They weren't quite done, so I let them cook for another 5 minutes and then swapped the locations of the cookie sheets in the ovens for another 5 minutes (total of 30 minutes in the oven). I removed the cookie sheets and then let the kale chips cool for a few minutes. 

The house smelled so good and I was looking forward to trying these chips as soon as they cooled. I was so looking forward to trying these that I ended up hovering over the stove as I "sampled" several chips...over and over again until there were just a few servings left for storing!  

Lessons learned: try turning up the heat to 325° to reduce cooking time; do NOT overcoat the kale, as it will take longer to cook (I think I used a little bit too much and will reduce my EVOO next time); get creative with the spices/herbs that you use! 

Every good soup starts the same way...

I have found that every single soup starts with the same base:

• carrots
• onions (or leeks)
• garlic
• celery (if available)
• spices (sage, thyme, bay leaves)

It's a great start to any soup. Get those chopped veggies into a large stockpot with a touch of oil. Warm until fragrant. Add about 8 - 10 cups veggie stock or chicken stock (water works just fine, too).   Bring to a boil, then allow to simmer for about 30 minutes.

This time, I found myself with lots of escarole. It's more of a bitter green, which is why it goes well in soups as opposed to eating it in a salad.

I chopped the escarole, added it to the pot, along with two cans of cannelini beans, and 3/4 cup pastini. I allowed that to simmer for a bit, and then cool on the stove top until ready for refrigeration.  I always give my soups at least a day before eating them. It allows the flavors to settle in and makes for a better tasting soup.

Here's a shot of my escarole soup. You could add small meatballs and eggs if you were going for a traditional "Italian Wedding Soup."  Otherwise, this recipe as posted is vegan.

Eggplan parm, but with the usual LFL twist!

Over the weekend, I was feeling adventurous and decided to make a dish that is uncommon in our house: eggplant parmesan with penne.  I know this is a staple at many an Italian restaurant. However, when we do dine out, the mister and I rarely order pasta dishes. Of course, even though I'm attempting a popular dish, I've gotta put my own local food lady spin on it. 

Ingredients:

• eggplant
• egg
• breadcrumbs (I just go for store bought with breadcrumbs--you can make your own; maybe I'll attempt it in a future food adventure)
• seasonal veggies - chopped (carrots, tomatoes, onions, peppers)
• basil
• pasta
• fresh mozzarella
• pecorino romano cheese

Slice eggplant about 1/2" thick (I don't remove the skins). Sprinkle some salt on the eggplant slices and set aside while you get your "dunking stations" set up. In one shallow bowl, have two eggs lightly scrambled. In the next, fill with breadcrumbs (about 1" deep). 

Get a large pan warmed up with olive oil. My Le Creuset is perfect for this...lots of space.  While the pan is warming up, shake off the moisture that has accumulated on the eggplant.  Once the oil moves freely about the pan, you are ready to start dunking. Put a slice of eggplant in the egg, submerge it, and then coat both sides in the breadcrumbs.  Add to the pan. Repeat. Careful, don't crowd the eggplant in the pan, you need room to flip.

Cook about 1 - 2 minutes, then flip. The eggplant should have a nice golden crust, but not too dark.  The breadcrumbs will soak up much of the oil. If need be, add a little more to the pot.  Once your eggplant is golden on both sides, transfer to a deep baking dish. 

Once all of the eggplant is cooked, keep that wide pan warm.  This is where my different "twist" comes in.  Rather than using red gravy/sauce (LFL doesn't choose sides in this hotly contested debate), I read that the eastern European version of this includes diced vegetables--like green onion, carrots, celery.  I improvised a bit and used the following: green peppers, red onion, yellow plum tomatoes, red heirloom tomatoes, summer carrots (they are shorter than regular carrots).  I allowed these veggies to warm through and then topped the eggplant with them.

I covered the eggplant/veggie mixture with foil and put into a 350 degree oven for approximately 30 minutes.  When there were ten minutes left, I began boiling a large pot of salted water.  Once the water came to a boil, I added my fresh kale/spinach penne from Vera Pasta. I'm telling you, this stuff is GREAT and because it is fresh pasta, it cooks up in 3 - 5 minutes.  I drained the penne, and began preparing the plates. 

I put down a layer of penne, topped it with a slice of fresh mozzarella, added the eggplant/veggie mixture on top and gave it a sprinkle of pecorino cheese along with chopped fresh basil.  You don't need to add any additional sauces to this dish, since the seasonal veggies offer so much flavor and moisture.  It was fabulous.  The eggplant was even better the next day, after the flavors had more time to hang out together. This is going to be another go-to dish for us. 

Summer veggie pasta--warm? cold? You choose!

We have thoroughly been enjoying our new summer CSA.  We are now members of Lancaster Farm Fresh Cooperative, where most of the products (about 98%) are sourced from more than 80 organic farms located less than 60 miles from us.  What I also enjoy about LFFC is that they bring fresh foods to under-served neighborhoods (see also: food deserts).

The variety of produce has been awesome this year and I hope will continue through the end of the CSA season.  Right now, we are in the midst of eggplant, zucchini, tomato, onion season.  It seems that 2012 has been a GREAT year for these crops. 

This year has also brought about new providers at our Farmer's Market.  One of my newest favorites is Vera Pasta. They bring a variety of fresh pasta products and sauces, but I'm especially fond of their penne and I often pickup a pound when I am at the market.

This week, I combined  many items from the CSA share and Vera's Pasta and made roasted vegetable pasta.  You can eat this warm, or cold, but it is a pretty simple dish.  I bought their balsamic tarragon penne at the market on Saturday and it was delicious. I'm going to try this with lemon penne in the future.

Ingredients:

• zuchinni
• eggplant
• red onion
• tomatoes (regular or cherry)
• pasta
• olive oil
• garlic
• basil

Dice the vegetables and combine in a large bowl. Toss with olive oil and garlic, and bake at 425 for approximately 15 minutes.  Remove and allow to cool.  In a large pot, bring salted water to a boil, add pasta until cooked.  Reserve one cup of the pasta water to use later. Drain pasta.  In a large pot or saute pan, heat up some olive oil. Add cooked veggies and toss with pasta.  Add pasta water and allow to cook off.  Top with fresh basil.

Enjoy warm or at room temp. This also stores well in the refrigerator and can be a healthy dish to bring to to a picnic or barbecue.

Gazpacho...tastes different every time

Here at Local Food Lady, you know that I rarely follow recipes. I merely "assemble" my food, and sometimes it turns out ok.  One of my favorite summer time dishes is gazpacho and it is so simple to make. The biggest challenge is waiting for the soup to chill and allow for the flavors to come together.

To make my gazpacho, I make sure I have the basics:

The makings of Gazpacho

• tomatoes
• cucumbers
• red onion
• feta cheese

And then I add on from there.  In this batch, I had the following quantities:

• 3 large tomatoes
• 3 cucumber (reserve 1 cucumber)
• 2 medium red onion (reserve 1 onion)
• 1 bell pepper
• garlic
• olive oil
• 2 cups watermelon, plus juice

Scrub and slice/chop all veggies, removing the seeds. I don't even attempt to do this with the tomatoes, since there are so many seeds.  Get out your blender, and add the chopped veggies and puree.  If you are having a hard time getting the veggies to "catch" on the blades, get a wooden spoon and push down some of the foods. Please do this when the blender is NOT running. Add your garlic and olive oil (just a few glugs).  Once the veggies are pureed, add the watermelon (plus juice) and blend more. If the gazpacho looks too pulpy, add a touch of water. 

Now, here's where it gets a little bit messy.  Get a large bowl and a mesh strainer.  Pour about 8 ounces of the blender mixture through the mesh strainer and push the liquid through the strainer with the back of a ladle.  Once the liquid has been squeezed through, discard the leftover pulp (I like to compost mine).  Repeat this process until the contents of the blender have been strained. 

Take the large bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until fully chilled.  Until then, dice up the remaining cucumber and red onion. When ready to serve the gazpacho, put some of the diced cucumbers and red onions in the bowl.  Cover with gazpacho, top with feta and olive oil. 

You may omit the feta to make this recipe vegan.  Also, I enjoy a dash of dill with my gazpacho.  Variations on gazpacho include substituting peaches for the watermelon, or omitting the watermelon completely. 

Time to Carb Load!

Local Food Lady, along with 34,012 of my closest friends, participated in the 2012 Broad Street Run.  I really enjoy this race, as it takes you from Olney in North Philadelphia, around City Hall, through the gates of the Navy Yard, with a finish next to the big ships. 

You may have heard about runners "carb loading" before big races, as there is a widely held belief that by eating carbs before a long-distance running event, you loading up your muscles with glycogen.  I regularly run, but I don't regularly carb load before a race. I just had to this past Saturday, especially after my recent buys at the Farmer's Market.

I decided to make one of my favorite pasta dishes--penne carbonara--the night before the race. It combines carbs, fats, savory flavors, and proteins.  Great dish and simple to make!

To make:

• 1 lb penne pasta (fresh, if possible)
• 2 eggs scrambled (I got mine from Jack's Farm)
• olive oil
• fresh basil
• pecorino romano cheese

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta to the water and cook for 3 - 4 minutes. I used all of the whole wheat penne I bought from Vera Pasta. While the pasta is cooking, crack and scramble your eggs, add some cheese to the scrambled egg mixture.  Drain the pasta well, and return to pot. Pour egg/cheese mixture over the pasta and turn the heat onto low. Slowly mix the pasta with the egg/cheese mixture, until egg begins to get more solid. Top with fresh basil and extra cheese.

From the NY Times: Is it ethical to eat meat?

Michael Pollan is one of my favorite authors and I follow him on Facebook. His writing is excellent, and when I watch him in interviews, I find his tone to be approachable and never condescending. His advice is simple and I believe his book, "In Defense of Food" radically changed my food choices.  

He is a regular contributor to the New York Times and today, posted the following on Facebook: 

Winner of NYTimes "ethics of meat-eating" essay contest announced. V. controversial. http://t.co/OOUIEzyj

The NY Times article discusses the more than 3,000 responses to a simple question they posed last week, "Is it ethical to eat meat?"  Very interesting and Pollan is correct, very controversial. 

Image from NY Times. Russell Bell.

I have friends who are vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian, omnivores, and carnivores. Most of my meals are vegetarian, and I never hesitate to accommodate the food choices of guests who come to my home. I believe that food choices are personal, and the reasons for these choices vary greatly.  

So, readers, what do you think of the NY Times question?  

Great flavors think alike!

In my house, I'm known for looking at the veggie drawer in the refrigerator and start pulling out random items and somehow, they combine to be an excellent dish.  As was the case with this recent dish.  I blended bitter, sweet, smokey, and pungent flavors for this awesome dinner. 

Assembly list:

• 2 slices of bacon
• several handfuls of kale
• 2 small sweet potatoes; peeled, diced
• 1 can of chickpeas, rinsed
• spices: cumin, curry, garlic
• honey
• 1/3 c feta cheese for each serving

In a small bowl, combine cumin, curry, and garlic, add some salt and pepper, a small drizzle of honey, and pour in about 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil.  Scramble up this, so that all of the spices are incorporated.  Peel and dice your sweet potatoes and set aside in a larger bowl.   Pour the olive oil spice mixture over the sweet potatoes and toss the bowl a few times so that they are coated. Put the potatoes on a small roasting dish, covered, at 375 - 400 degrees in a toaster oven.  Cook for approximately 45 minutes, or until done.

About 15 minutes before the potatoes are done, you can begin cooking the greens. Start off by chopping up your two pieces of bacon and letting them get warmed up in the pan.  Once the bacon begins cooking, add the kale and cook on low heat until wilted and they get nice and bright.  Add the chickpeas to the kale and cook until warmed through. 

To serve, put the sweet potatoes in the bowl first, top with the greens, then add the feta cheese on top. I found an extra drizzle of extra virgin olive oil was a nice addition. 

Post-Thanksgiving: The only thing left to make was...

We ate most of our Thanksgiving dishes this year (for the first time ever, I did not make too much of any one dish and sent leftovers home with family). So, with very little remnants of Thanksgiving left in the refrigerator, I decided to whip up some turkey soup. 

Super easy "assembling" of this dish:

• Several cups of veggie, turkey or chicken stock (I think I used 8 cups, maybe more)
• bay leaf
• 3 carrots (chopped)
• 3 celery ribs (chopped)
• onions, garlic, thyme (to taste)
• 1 cup (dry) of mini pastina, whole wheat
• a few handfuls of kale
• 2 cans of white beans, rinsed and drained
• leftover turkey meat

In the stockpot, I tossed in some oil, the onions, carrots, and the celery. Let those cook a bit on medium heat until the onions were translucent.  I added the bay leaf and the thyme and made sure they were incorporated in the veggie/oil mixture.

I then added my stock, brought it to a rapid boil for 5 minutes, stirring regularly, then brought it down to a simmer. Remove the bay leaf at this time.

I added the pastina, stirring to make sure none stuck to the bottom of the pot. Once the pastina was cooked (about 4-5 minutes), I added the white beans. I also added the leftover turkey meat at this time. From there, I tossed in the handfulls of kale until they wilted and turned bright green.

The best bet is to allow this soup to mellow for at least 24 hours.  Allow the soup to come to room temperature on the stovetop and then refrigerate until ready to enjoy at dinner the next day.  The starches have then broken down and will give the soup more heft. 

Top the soup with grated Parmesan cheese and enjoy with a crusty piece of bread (or leftover stuffing).

This soup can be made vegan f you stick with veggie stock and remove the turkey meat from the recipe. Either version is incredibly enjoyable.



Turkey version


Vegan version

Spaghetti Squash: what is it?

Spaghetti squash reminded me of a vegetable with an identity crisis. What is it? Squash? Spaghetti?  I had never prepared it, nor have I had it in my kitchen, as evidenced by this late August post. Well, I have been storing it for a few weeks in the kitchen (squash stores well for a long time) and decided with the recent cool snap, it would be a good time to prepare the spaghetti squash.

I found a simple recipe in Terry Waters' book, Clean Food.  One thing to realize, the skin of spaghetti squash is TOUGH. A chainsaw would have helped me cut into this sucker.  Once I was done fighting with the spaghetti squash, I then began my preparation:

• preheat oven to 400 degrees
• scoop out seeds and place each half face-down on a cookie sheet
• cook for 50 minutes (or when skin can be easily pierced with a knife)
• remove from oven, allow to cool
• scrape out flesh of squash into a bowl

Spaghetti Squash: the before and after

While I allowed the scooped spaghetti squash to cool in a bowl, I cooked up some green squash in my Le Creuset with garlic and fresh basil.  Once that was bright green, I added the spaghetti squash. I tossed in more basil, some good olive oil, and a touch of lemon juice.




When we sat down for dinner, I added some grated pecorino cheese and enjoyed. Things I learned from this dish: I should have added some chickpeas or cannelini beans for more "heft" to the meal. The mister and I were both hungry later. All in all, this first attempt at spaghetti squash was a success.

Supremely Veggie Pizza on homemade dough

Several posts ago, I talked about the love I have for my Cuisinart food processor.  This is one of the best kitchen products I own and I use it so very often to make a myriad of recipes.  One of my favorites is homemade pizza dough. The Cuisinart came with a handy-dandy recipe booklet with an excellent pizza dough recipe. Of course, I don't follow the recipe to a T--I add my own spices and herbs.

It takes some time (gotta let the dough rise), so I don't do it very frequently. However, when I DO make pizza, I absolutely love it!

This night, I decided to make a whole-wheat and cornmeal dough and top the pizza with a ton of veggies. My own version of veggie supreme.  Here's a look at the process.



Letting the dough come together on the pizza peel before allowing to rise.


The dough, just hanging out in an oiled bowl waiting to rise.

While I was waiting for the dough to rise, I grilled up some zucchini and eggplant.  I didn't want to over-cook the veggies, since I was going to be topping the pizza with them.





The dough has risen!!

Because I had more than enough dough, I decided to make two pizzas that night. The veggie supreme and a traditional Margherita pizza.


Veggie supreme pizza: grilled eggplant, zucchini, roasted cherry tomatoes, basil, mozzarella.


Margherita pizza, waiting patiently for its time in the oven. 

Because we have only one pizza stone (a secret to my success of pizza cooking), I cooked the veggie supreme first and then put the Margherita in the oven. 


Veggie supreme cooling on the pizza peel.


Even though this doesn't look pretty, it sure tasted good!

Okra? What the heck can I do with Okra?

Last year, we received a bag of an unfamiliar vegetable in our CSA share. When I first saw this green, tube-like veggie, I had no idea what it was. I even posted a picture to Facebook asking for answers from friends. Turns out, it was OKRA.  Fried okra was the only recipe/preparation style that I was familiar with. But, I had never tasted the veggie.

I have several cookbooks--some really great ones--and they help to give me a good starting point for food prep. Especially when I am using a new ingredient.  Unfortunately, okra does not have many entries in ANY of these cookbooks.  I was able to find one on the information superhighway that included curry powder and tomatoes. Some GREAT flavors in there.

One thing to keep in mind is that okra can get slimy. Yes, slimy...  So, if you buy some, be sure to use it very quickly.

After cleaning, I sliced the okra--I used it ALL up!  I began sauteing it in garlic and onions.



I then added a large can of crushed tomatoes. I bet you didn't think it was possible to find local canned tomatoes, but I managed to get some at the Fair Food Farm Stand at Reading Terminal Market. These tomatoes are grown and canned in Jersey.



I let the tomatoes and okra simmer for a long time on very low heat. From there, I added a can of rinsed chickpeas.



The okra/tomato mixture was then served over basmati rice. Success!

Local Food Lady's fast food lunch

I stopped by LOST Gourmet's stand at our end-of-August farmer's market.  LOST Gourmet has been there all summer, but this was their last weekend at since they are going to concentrate on their catering business.   So, I had to get one last taste of their excellent dishes. 

I opted for the kale and navy bean hummus. I had some earlier this summer and fell in love with it. I'm going to figure out a way to make this excellent dish. It is AWESOME. 

I used the hummus and a cucumber to make the Local Food Lady's version of a fast-food lunch.  I brought some of the hummus in a container, and a peeled and sliced cucumber for lunch.  Then, I just topped each of the cucumber slices with the hummus. It was awesome and a very refreshing lunch. 

Mexican inspired bean salad

I received tomatillos in our CSA share a few weeks ago. In the past, I had roasted them, and used the Cuisinart to make a salsa, but I wanted to try something different.  So...I made some bean salad with them.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups tomatillos, husks removed and washed
• large can of black beans, rinsed
• 1 cup of corn
• cherry tomatoes
• fresh parsley and/or cilantro
• Cholula Chipotle hot sauce to taste

The tomatillos have a paper-like husk on them.  Remove the husk (they easily peel off) and rinse well. Slice in half.  Rinse your can of black beans and slice the cherry tomatoes.  Combine the first four ingredients in a large dish.  Top with fresh parsley and/or cilantro (I prefer cilantro) and toss on some Choulula Chipotle for taste. To keep this dish vegan, omit any cheese, but you can also add goat cheese for more flavor.

Farmers Stew

There are plenty of stews out there...fisherman's stew, miner's stew, Irish stew, Texas stew.  I have crafted what I call Farmer's Stew.  This is what I would call an "empty the fridge recipe." 

There are several flavors, textures and temperatures in my farmer's stew.  It usually involves a leafy green or two, a legume, good herbs, an egg, and cheese.  I sometimes will even top with bacon...repeat after me, "because everything is better with bacon!"

Farmer's stew ingredients:

• plentiful amounts of leafy greens: spinach, kale, chard
• for this recipe, I added zucchini, cut in to half moons
• legume: it can be chickpeas (aka: garbanzo beans) or great northern beans (aka: cannellini beans)
• hard boiled egg (one for each plate)
• feta cheese to taste
• well-done slice of bacon (one slice, diced, for each plate)

In a large pot, I begin sauteing garlic in olive oil with a few sprigs of rosemary. The rosemary can be fresh or dried...I take my fresh rosemary and hang it upside down in our kitchen to dry out for future uses.  After a few minutes, add your zucchini. Saute for 3 minutes, moving around the pan. Be careful not to overcook. Then, add your greens on top and cover--this will allow the greens to get some of the steam and wilt. 

Zucchini and greens

Zucchini, greens, legumes

Be sure to rinse your legumes before adding them to the pot. Shake off the extra water and add to the pot.  If they get a little mashed, it's ok. Their starches will contribute nicely to the flavor of the dish.

Allow the legumes to cook through. I find that chickpeas can warm up more quickly than northern beans.  Turn the temp down so that the greens and zucchini will not overcook. 

Once the items in the pot are cooked through, you can move them to your serving dish.  Top each dish with a chilled, sliced hard-boiled egg.  We also like to top the dish with feta cheese and a slice of well done bacon.

Farmer's Stew!

"Did I hear a string of curses?"

Kale and zucchini in the pot

That's what the mister asked me the other night.  He was upstairs while I was preparing a meat-free dinner (I was inspired by this recipe posted on Food Inc.'s Facebook page).  We had the ingredients at home and I had the entire recipe all planned out, the greens were cut and washed and the garlic and spices were waiting in the pan.  Heck, I had even hard-boiled, cooled, peeled and sliced the eggs!

The zucchini was cooking and I was just about to add the kale...and then the cursing started.  $^#%@! *^&$#!

Many of the ingredients of this dish are Greek/Mediterranean/Middle Eastern-inspired.  Garlic, cumin, feta, lemon, olive oil...and most importantly, chickpeas (aka: garbanzo beans).  It wasn't until it was time to add the chickpeas did I realize that my cabinet was depleted of garbanzos.

Cannellini beans were a great substitute!

I have the problem of buying extra beans when I'm at the supermarket--I regularly stock up on black beans, kidney beans, chickpeas, and cannellini (known as a white navy bean or great northern bean).  I usually have 2 - 3 cans of each in the cabinet and then replenish when needed.  For some reason, I have neglected to buy garbanzos in some time and I was completely out. 

I started to think, "what substitute can I use?"  I have only a few items in the cabinet--clearly, I NEED to stock up this weekend--and they consist of pumpkin puree, tomato paste, rice, black beans (they are not a suitable substitute) and one small can of cannellini beans. 

Why not try the cannellini beans? They are not as "sturdy" as garbanzos and work better in soups or broth-based dishes because the cannellini break easily. However, this does have a positive side, as their starches can lend depth to the soups or stews. 

As it turns out, my mistake didn't ruin the dish. I was a bit more delicate in moving the cannellini around the pan, but it had a nice flavor.  I topped the dish with a hard boiled egg, feta cheese, and some lemon olive oil dressing. It was quite enjoyable!  Recipe is below.

Dinner is on the table!

Recipe:

• garlic, shallots, cumin, olive oil
• 1 medium zucchini, sliced, salted and rinsed
• 2 bunches kale, de-stemmed, washed, torn; handful of spinach (optional)
• cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (or chickpeas if you want to follow the original recipe)
• crumbled feta cheese
• hard boiled egg (one for each dish)
• dressing:  olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, honey, garlic (mix it to your own desired sweet or tart flavor); I keep my quantities very small and only make about 1/4 - 1/8 of a cup

In a large pan, warm up your garlic, shallots, cumin and olive oil.  Add the zucchini and cook for 3 - 4 minutes, add handfuls of kale--cover to cook, but checking regularly--until wilted and the greens get very bright.  Add the beans, cook covered for a few minutes so the beans get warmed through.  Plate your dinners and top each dish with a scoop of feta cheese and one hard boiled egg.  Top the dish with dressing to taste.

Question: Vegan burgers? Is that really possible? And tasty, too?

Answer: Hell yes!

I am a fan of veggie burgers and I have begun to keep a close eye on my soy consumption. Soy is one of those crops that has a high incidence on genetic modification (or commonly known as GMOs).  I'm no scientist, but from what I have read, GMO foods can have a negative impact on our bodies--and, it has been too short a period for medical professionals to know for sure the long term effects of GMO consumption.

Many of the veggie burgers sold in supermarkets have GMO soy in them.  The best way to avoid this is to make your own veggie burgers with only organic products. We have friends that are vegan, so I like to make a batch of these burgers without any egg. The easiest egg substitute is 1 tablespoon of ground flax seed combined with 3 tablespoons of water. It replicates an egg in any recipe.  The veggie burgers are best made using a Cuisinart mixer. 

As you can see, the ingredients are pretty simple:

• onion, small
• full bulb of garlic
• can of kidney beans, rinsed
• can of black beans, rinsed
• olive oil
• 1 cup uncooked oatmeal
• herbs and spices to your liking--cumin, garlic, curry powder
• 3 cups of shredded carrots

Combine the first four ingredients in the Cuisinart.  Pulse a few times until combined.  Give a few glugs of olive oil and pulse. Add the uncooked oatmeal in small amounts; pulse after each addition. Add the herbs and spices to your liking--I always add cumin, fresh parsley, and dill.

The mixture will have the consistency of plaster. Fold in the 3 cups of shredded carrots.  To form the veggie burgers, moisten your hands with cool water. Form the mixture into patties and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

Parchment paper is very helpful when making veggie burgers! You will freeze these veggie burgers for an hour or so before baking at 425 degrees for 15 minutes on each side. Keep the burgers on the parchment paper--it will prevent it from burning or sticking to the cookie sheet.

Once cooked, I will re-freeze for dinners at a later time.  To use for leftovers, remove from freezer and put the patties in a toaster oven at 425 degrees (do not defrost) for 15 minutes on each side. Broil for a nice finish.