Category: Main Dishes

Vindaloo Vegetables

It was Sunday, and I needed to cook lunches for the week. I wanted something vegetable heavy, and a little spicy. I have 2 people to thank for this recipe, Robin Robertson who published the original recipe in Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker, and Fat Free Vegan for adapting it and publishing it on her website. I adapted it further, removing the step which calls for cooking the onion and carrot in a frying pan before adding the vegetables to the crockpot. Really, I am just too lazy to take out another pan! I also increased the ginger and cut back on the cayenne.

But this dish was incredibly easy to put together. Within a half hour, the crockpot was going, and I was studying. (Or tweeting, or looking for more recipes…) And then 6 hours later it was done, and the smell was incredible. I cooked some brown rice, and then put together lunch containers for the week.

1 T minced garlic
2″ cube fresh ginger, peeled and diced
1 mini (0.5 oz.) box raisins
1 t coriander
1/2 t cumin
1/8 t cayenne pepper
1 T apple cider vinegar
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1/2 c. cold water
3 carrots, peeled and diced
3-4 c. cauliflower florets
2 zucchini, diced
1 (15 oz.) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
1 c. hot water
1/2 c. frozen peas, thawed

Place garlic through water in food processor, and pulse until well blended. Pour in the bottom on a large crockpot. Add carrots, cauliflower, zucchini, and beans. Mix tomato paste and hot water, and pour over vegetables. Toss ingredients to ensure all vegetables are coated, and cook on low for 6 hours. Add frozen peas in the last half hour of cooking.

Crockpot Rice and Beans

Rice and beans – a warm Latin American meal that’s easy and inexpensive. This recipe in the crockpot makes it even easier. It’s like crockpot express, because in just 3 hours I had perfectly cooked rice and beans. I used brown rice to make this a whole grain dish, and added a teaspoon each of cumin and chili powder in place of the Italian seasoning and onion flakes. The seasoning was just right, but you could make it spicier if you wish. Oh, by the way, it’s also great nutrition, with protein and whole grain.

This is a recipe I know I’ll make over and over again. The ingredients are common pantry staples, and I can set this up on a weekend afternoon and have a warm healthy dinner that night.

Pasta with Creamy Mushroom Sauce

I’ve been in the mood for mushrooms lately, and then I saw this recipe for a mushroom sauce. That sounded perfect, but I increased the mushroom to pasta ratio to make sure I got my fix. The original recipe also called for mascarpone, and I used ricotta. I am not suggesting that these two cheeses are interchangeable, but ricotta is a more common ingredient and I thought it worked well here. Overall, I tried to make this a simpler dish, one which was less fussy and could be made on a weeknight.

The meal was really good, but next time I would use even more mushrooms, because you really can’t ever have too many. Please forgive the monochromatic picture – some fresh herbs would really brighten this up.

12 oz. whole wheat pasta, cooked and drained
1 T olive oil
1 shallot, peeled and sliced
1 T minced garlic
2 (10 oz.) packages sliced mushrooms
1/2 c. white wine
1 c. ricotta cheese
1 T Italian seasoning
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese

Heat olive oil in a large frying pan. Add shallot and garlic, and saute for 2 minutes. Add mushrooms, and cook for 10 minutes, or until tender. Add white wine, and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in ricotta cheese and Italian seasoning. Spoon sauce over pasta, and serve with Parmesan.

Acorn Squash, Swiss Chard, and Gorgonzola Pizza

I don’t want to scare you or anything, but I read on Twitter that there are only 7 Saturdays left between now and Christmas. I didn’t believe it at first so I got out my calendar and counted. Those tweeters were right. I am not nearly through my fall recipes, never mind any holiday ones. How did this happen?

But here is a fall recipe that you need to make before you start talking about turkeys. This is not a traditional pizza at all, and there’s a lot going on here – but it’s all good. I adapted this recipe from Smitten Kitchen, based on some reader comments. It starts out like a pizza, and then gets loaded up with vegetables to create a hearty ‘fork and knife’ meal.
It was a little bit of extra work to cook the squash, Swiss chard, and pizza base separately, but it was worth it in the end. Plus, you could cook extra amounts of the vegetables to be used later in the week for other meals.

1 acorn squash, cut into 1″ slices
2 T maple syrup
2 T olive oil, divided
1/2 t chili powder
1/8 t cayenne pepper
1 large bunch Swiss chard, stems chopped and leaves torn
1 lb. pizza dough
1 c. reduced fat mozzarella cheese
1/2 c. Gorgonzola cheese

Place the squash slices in a large bowl. Drizzle with syrup and 1 T oil, and add chili powder and cayenne pepper. Toss with a spoon to ensure the slices are well coated. Place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray, and bake at 375F for 30-35 minutes or until soft. Cool, and remove skin from slices before chopping into cubes.

Add remaining 1 T oil to a large frying pan on medium heat. Add Swiss chard stems, and cook for 10 minutes or until softened. Add the torn leaves and cover the pan. Cook for 5-10 minutes, or until wilted, stirring occasionally.

Divide dough into 4 equal portions, and spread into thin circles. Top with mozzarella and Gorgonzola cheeses, and bake at 375F for 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Add squash cubes and Swiss chard to the top of the pizza, and enjoy!

Coq Au Riesling

In the beginning of the year, I made some great dishes in my Le Creuset-like pot, such as Mushroom Bourguignon and No Knead Bread. But then summer arrived and I cooked lighter fare. On Saturday, I brought the pan back out again to make Coq Au Riesling, which turned out to be a fantastic French meal.

I used 4 oz. of prosciutto and a drizzle of olive oil in place of the bacon lardons, and regular white mushrooms in place of fancier ones, but otherwise followed the recipe as written. It’s a good recipe for a dinner party, because you do a small amount of work up front and then let it simmer on the stove. (You know, so you can race around your kitchen making it presentable for guests!) The minute you lift the lid on the pot, you can smell just how good it’s going to be. The ham, chicken, leeks, and wine all blend together perfectly.

Although the recipe suggested serving the chicken over noodles, mashed potatoes seemed more appropriate to me, so I whipped up a quick batch by steaming the potatoes in the microwave. I thought it might be a cheap shortcut, but it wasn’t – the potatoes came out really well, and I didn’t have to put another pan on the stove.
When the chicken is served, bits of prosciutto and leek are clinging to the thigh, and the wine broth floods your plate. So make sure you have a piece of French bread on hand to soak it all up because you don’t want to miss a bite.

Pesto Mushroom Pasta

Back when the days were a little longer and the basil plant was thriving, a big batch of pesto was made. The pesto was promptly frozen in the sections of an ice cube tray, to be used at a later time. I didn’t write down the proportions of ingredients, and I can’t find any photos from the event, but I remember a lot of chopped basil, some olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and Parmesan cheese thrown into the food processor. I was excited this week when I stumbled upon the cubes in my freezer and decided to defrost one for a pasta dish.

When the pesto was defrosted, it was still fairly thick, so I added a drizzle of olive oil and lemon juice. Unfortunately the pesto flavor got a little lost here, because the mushrooms were so dominant. While it was good, next time I want to make sure I choose a recipe where the pesto will shine – I am thinking about a pizza!

1 10 oz. package mushrooms
1 10 oz. package frozen chopped spinach, cooked and drained
1/2 c. orzo, cooked according to directions and drained
1 cube pesto
Olive oil
Lemon juice

Cook mushrooms in a large frying pan, until they are soft and release liquid. Add spinach, pasta, and pesto cube and stir until heated through. Add more olive oil and lemon juice if needed. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Cauliflower Chana Masala

There are a lot of things that I can make without a recipe, but this is the first time ever that I attempted to cook Indian food on the fly. It all started with a totally different cauliflower recipe that turned out so badly, I won’t even share it. Then I had half a head of cauliflower left, and decided I was in the mood for Indian food. But most Indian recipes seemed to pair cauliflower with potatoes, and I didn’t have any of those around. Long story short, that’s how this recipe was born. I followed the spice pattern of chana masala, but without the jalapeno heat. I can’t say this is authentic, but it made for a good meal served over brown rice.

1 T oil
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 t minced garlic
1/2 head cauliflower, chopped
2/3 c. water, divided
1 T coriander
2 t paprika
2 t cumin
1 t garam masala
1/4 t cayenne pepper
1/4 t salt
1 (14 oz.) can diced tomatoes in juice
1 (15 oz.) can chick peas, rinsed and drained
1 T tomato paste

Heat oil in a large frying pan. Add onion and garlic, and cook for 10 minutes, or until softened. Add cauliflower and 1/3 c. water, cover pan, and cook for 5-7 minutes or until cauliflower is tender. Add spices, and stir to mix. Add tomatoes, chick peas, tomato paste, and remaining 1/3 c. water and simmer uncovered until heated through.

Spaghetti Squash with Mushroom Cream Sauce

Now that fall is really here, and I had to take the outer shell of my winter coat out of the closet, I am craving more warm comfort foods. This mushroom cream sauce, served over spaghetti squash, fit the bill perfectly. Of course, I paired it with a slice of whole wheat bread to soak up any sauce left in the dish!

This recipe is vegan, so there is no ‘cream’ at all. It calls for almond milk and good old fashioned cornstarch to thicken it up. I followed the recipe fairly closely, although I cooked the shallots along with the mushrooms, and left out the non-dairy creamer. You could make the mushroom sauce alone and serve it over pasta, but spaghetti squash is a nice alternative and makes this a vegetable packed meal. Plus, baking the spaghetti squash in the oven warms the house just a little bit before it’s time to turn the heat on!

Feta and Spinach Orzo

So I already mentioned I spent much of Sunday at the Patriot’s game, right? But I still needed to prepare some lunches for the week, so when I got home, I headed to the kitchen. Less than an hour later, the kitchen was cleaned up and I had 4 plastic containers filled with an orzo dish inspired by this recipe.

The end result was another meal that could be enjoyed hot or cold. When it was hot, the feta really stood out. And when it was cold, I tasted more of the spinach and lemon. But either way, it was really good. It is worth taking the time to grate the lemon rind, trust me.

1 c. orzo
1 T olive oil
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
1 shallot, peeled and chopped
2 T flour
1 1/2 c. vegetable broth
1 lemon
1 10 oz. package frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1 c. fat free feta

Cook orzo according to package directions and drain.

In the meantime, heat the olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion and shallot, and saute for 10 minutes, or until soft. Stir in the flour, and gently pour in the vegetable broth, whisking until blended. Grate the rind of the lemon and add it to the pan, along with the juice from half of the lemon. Simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until thickened.
Add spinach and cooked orzo to the pan, and stir to combine. Cook until heated throughout.

Zucchini with Cashew Sauce

The recipe that inspired this one is both vegan and raw, and could be considered a zucchini alfredo. Gena’s recipes are fantastic, but I altered this one to fit my craving for a warm meal and the ingredients I had on hand. The final product was neither vegan nor raw, but you could easily leave the cheese out to make it vegan. For me, the addition of the Parmesan and Italian seasoning really made the dish stand out.

This was perfect for a light dinner with a piece of Italian bread, but would also make a nice first course for a larger meal. It’s a modern twist on classic Italian. Oh, and you can find raw cashews in the bulk bin of Whole Foods and other stores.

1 c. raw cashews, soaked in water for 2 hours and drained
1/3 c. lemon juice
1/3 c. water
1 T Parmesan cheese
1 t sea salt
1 t Italian seasoning
2 large zucchini, sliced thinly and steamed lightly

Place cashews, lemon juice, water, Parmesan cheese, salt, and Italian seasoning in a food processor. Blend until smooth. Spoon sauce over zucchini, and add freshly ground black pepper if desired.