Scalloped Cabbage

I don’t know why, but I’m always fascinated by cabbage. Maybe because we only ate it on St. Patrick’s day (occasionally) and in cole slaw, neither of which ever did it justice.

So, I keep trying to find my own way. My latest attempt was found on AllRecipes, an adaptation of Scalloped Cabbage. Here’s how I did it:

Ingredients

· 2 tablespoons butter

· 1 medium head cabbage, cored and sliced thin

· 1 large onion, chopped

· 1 1/2 cups milk

· ½ t. nutmeg

· 4 eggs, lightly beaten

· 1 cup crushed saltine crackers

· 1 teaspoon salt

· 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

· 2 T. parmesan cheese, grated

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x12 inch casserole dish.

2. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add cabbage and onion and cook for about 10 minutes, or until tender, stirring often. Add milk and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Gently pour in eggs, stirring constantly. Stir in 3/4 of the cracker crumbs, and the salt and pepper; mix well. Pour into casserole dish and top with remaining cracker crumbs and parmesan cheese. Dot with butter.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until golden brown and heated through.

Comments: I really enjoyed this. I was afraid of it being bland, but I didn't have that problem at all. I attempted to temper the eggs a bit, before mixing them in and also didn't have the scrambled egg problem. My only change next time is to try and make it a bit healthier--nonfat milk, less butter, and maybe using breadcrumbs instead of crackers.

Quick Pickle Cucumbers

After falling in love with the quickie pickle carrots, Alicia at VeganEpicurean posted about her Quick Cucumber Pickles, and that became next up on my list.

Ingredients:
4 small cucumbers, cut in half and thinly sliced
½ cup vinegar (any type of light colored vinegar, I used champagne)
½ cup water
Stevia, to taste (I used 6-1gram scoops)
Fresh cilantro, minced, to taste (I used about ¼ cup)
Directions:
Heat the water, vinegar and stevia until about body temperature. Place the cucumbers and pickling solution in a jar. You are heating the vinegar so the flavor will penetrate the vegetable more quickly. Refrigerate until needed. If the liquid doesn’t cover all the cucumbers turn the jar over periodically so all the cucumbers are submerged for part of the time. I made these about 30 minutes before dinner but sooner would not be a bad thing. When you are ready to serve drain the pickles and toss with cilantro.

Comments: Despite looking beautiful, these just didn’t do it for me. I replaced the stevia with sugar and used apple cider vinegar. I also had a giant cucumber which I know was part of the problem (too juicy!)…and no cilantro, although I don’t think that would have saved this in my books. I’m not sure if her tastes are just so different from mine, or my changes added up…but I’ll keep looking!

Eggplant Caviar

Well, the name alone has kept me away from many similar sounding recipes, but when it comes from Smitten Kitchen, I just can’t help myself!

And good thing, this was fabulous! (Although the garlic was a bit offensive to my dinner partner later that evening.)

Makes about 2 cups

1 eggplant, about 1 pound

Half a large tomato or one Roma

2 to 3 small garlic cloves

3/4 teaspoon salt

Few grinds of black pepper

3 tablespoons vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prick the eggplant all over with a fork, and roast on a foil-lined baking sheet for 30 to 45 minutes, until soft. Make a few slashes in the bottom of the eggplant, and drain it in a colander for about 20 minutes. Cool completely.

Cut eggplant open and scrape out flesh and seeds with a fork onto a cutting board, discarding the skin. With a large knife, chop the eggplant flesh into very small bits. (Unfortunately, the food processor, although speedier, only purees the eggplant, leaving little texture.) Scrape into a medium bowl.

In a food processor, puree the tomato with garlic. Pour puree into bowl with chopped eggplant, add the salt, black pepper, vinegar and vegetable oil. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Homemade Apple Sauce

I needed apple sauce for this recipe, and since it didn’t show up at my first two grocery stores, I decided to google it. Gold! This recipe, adapted from AllRecipes was perfect!

• 2 apples--cored and chopped
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 1/2 T. white sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

In a saucepan, combine apples, water, sugar, and cinnamon. Cover, and cook over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, or until apples are soft. Allow to cool, then process in a food processor.

Refried Beans

I adapted this recipe from Emeril Lagasse.

• 1 cup dried pinto beans, soaked overnight in a large bowl with water to cover by 2-inches, and drained
• 1 bay leaf
• 1-2 T. vegetable oil
• 1 cup chopped yellow onions
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon minced, seeded jalapeno
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Pinch cayenne
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 cup grated queso blanco

Directions

In a medium, heavy pot, combine the beans, bay leaf, and enough water to cover by 1 to 2 inches. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the beans are very tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours, adding more water as necessary to keep covered. When the beans are soft, mash in the pot with a potato masher or the back of heavy wooden spoon. Remove from the heat.

In a large, heavy skillet, heat the bacon fat over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring, until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic, jalapeno, chili powder, cumin, salt, and cayenne, and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 45 seconds to 1 minute. Add the beans and any cooking liquid from the pot, and the oregano, and stir to combine. Cook, stirring with a heavy wooden spoon, until the mixture forms a thick paste, 5 to 10 minutes, adding water 1 tablespoon at a time to keep from getting dry.

Comments: So, the jalapeno is ideal, I used pickled jalapeños, as fresh hot peppers are hard to find. The first time I made this, I threw in some gouda, however it didn’t make a huge difference, so I omitted it the second time, and didn’t miss it. I’m never happy with mashed refried beans, and since I got a new mini-food processor for Christmas, I whirled the cooked onion mixture with the beans for a bit, and found it great.

Mexican Rice

I still use my mom’s Mexican rice as my gold standard. Although not necessarily authentic, I enjoy it and it is similar to what restaurants usually serve. However, I’ve never learned exactly how she does it—she was supposed to show me last time I visited, but we got sidetracked.

Most recipes call for tomato sauce, which tends to leave the rice too wet for my taste, so I knew I wanted to use tomato paste. This website was a great resource in getting started. Here’s what I ended up doing:

Ingredients:

• 1 c. brown rice
• 1 T. oil
• 1 medium onion
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• 1 T. chili powder
• 1 t. cumin
• 1-2 T. tomato paste
• Salt to taste

Cook brown rice with bay leaf, according to package directions. Sautee onion and garlic. Add chili powder and cumin, cook one minute. Add tomato paste and mix, then add rice and incorporate mixture well. Add salt as needed.

Comments: I added the cumin and chili powder based on an old recipe I had, and thought the rice was a bit overpowering. The website I found (later) cautioned against using too many seasonings in rice for this reason. Next time, I would omit the chili powder and cumin It was still a bit wetter than I’d like, I remember my mom saying she made it more like a pilaf with tomato, so maybe I will try that next time. But so far, it’s the best I’ve made.

Simple Greek Style Green Beans

Green beans are very seasonal here. They show up for a couple months, the conventional ones are pricy (the broader style are more affordable), and then they’re gone until the next spring. I usually make them using this Sweet and Spicy Green Beans recipe, but decided to try something different, from Captious Vegetarian.

This is what I did:

In a skillet saute:

· 2 tsp. olive oil

· 1/2 onion, diced

· 1/4 tsp. dried chili flakes

· 3 garlic cloves, minced

When the onions are soft, add:

· 1 lb fresh green beans

· 1/2 tsp. dry oregano

Finally, while the green beans are cooking, add:

· 1/2 cup tomato sauce

· 10-20 kalamata olives, chopped

Stir and heat through, then serve.

Optional: sprinkle with a little crumbled feta.

Comments: Upon a closer look, this is essentially green beans in spaghetti sauce. And that’s basically what it tasted like. Not bad, but not very exciting either. (I didn’t use feta, as it’s hard to find/expensive. I thought about adding parmesan, but decided not to.)

Savory Bread Pudding

Apparently I’ve gotten over my cream anxiety. This is a Craigslist classic that I’ve had filed away for a while now. And for good reason, it’s as excellent as the fat count would lead you to believe. I halved the recipe, and it made about 4 servings. All measurements are approximate.

Ingredients:
6 cups of brioche or sweet baguette (crust removed) cut into 1 inch cubes. Make sure that the bread is either a couple of days old or dry it out in a 200 degree oven for 1 hour or so.
2 cups of heavy cream
1 cup of milk
2 eggs
1 1/2 cup of diced leeks (white and light green only)
1 1/2 lb of mushrooms (if you are in a fancy mood chanterelles are incredible, otherwise use a mix of oyster, crimini, shitake, etc)
1 cup of grated gruyere
1/2 cup of white wine
4 tbs of butter
1 tb thyme
2 tsp of salt or more or less to taste
3 tsp of black pepper or more to taste

Heat up a pan and add 3 tbs of the butter. Add the mushrooms and half the salt and let all water leach out and keep sauteeing until they brown a bit. Add the leaks and cook till they begin to soften. Add the white wine and reduce almost entirely. Let this mushroom leak base cool down to room temp.

Beat the eggs and mix in the milk and heavy cream. This is basically a custard base. Season this custard with thyme, salt and pepper.
Butter a casserole dish and place the cubed bread in it. Add the mushroom-leak base and the gruyere cheese and mix well. Pour the custard over it and make sure it is evenly distributed with the other ingredients. You may have to mix them around.

Bake in a 300 degree oven for about 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. The top and bottom should be a bit brown, but the center should be soft and somewhat creamy, like really good bread pudding.

Comments: It was fantastic, however I was forced to make some modifications—there were no mushrooms when I went to buy them! I subbed peeled eggplant cubes, and had great success. I also used an ordinary baguette and left the crust on, as it wasn’t very tough.

White Bean Balls

I've been wanting to make a meatball alternative for ages now, and recently begun stockpiling recipes, as at one point I was ready and couldn't find anything tasty-looking. However, this is the first time it's all come together. The recipe is a de-veganized version of this one.

ingredients:
1 small white onion, and finely chopped
5 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp sea salt
15 fresh basil leaves, well chopped, or 2 T dried basil
2 tbsp dried parsley
2 cups cooked white beans plus 1/4 cup cooking liquid
1-4 cup bread crumbs or 2 slices bread pulsed into crumbs in food processor
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 T. powdered milk, or 1/4 c. milk and eliminate the bean liquid

what'cha gotta do:
Heat a small amount of water in & saute the onions, garlic and seasonings until they're soft on medium heat (about 8-10 minutes). add the white beans, parsley, basil (if using fresh), to the skillet. cook for another 5 minutes then transfer the mix of yumminess to the food processor. pulse until the beans are well chopped (and no whole beans remain) then dump the pulsed bean mixture into the mixing bowl. add the bread crumbs to the mixing bowl, adding the non-dairy milk & nutritional yeast to it, too. mix everything until well combined, adjust seasonings to taste, and start making some balls (made 16). wipe out the skillet, spritz a little more of the olive oil cooking spray in it, and saute the bean balls on medium heat (turning often) until browned up a bit (you can also bake them on 350 for 10 minutes. remove from heat & eat 'em up!

Comments: These are tasty. They’ve got a little kick that makes me think they’d be great dipped in a yogurt sauce.

Pitas

So...I made a bunch of the best pizza dough ever, and then our oven broke. It was sitting in the freezer, when I got the itch to make pita bread. I compared the recipes, and ended up using my pizza dough for the pita!

3 cups plus a scant 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (16 oz./454 grams)
2 teaspoons salt (1/2 oz./13.2 grams)
2 teaspoons instant yeast (6.4 grams)
2 tablespoons olive oil (1 oz./27 grams)
1 1/4 cups water, at room temperature (10.4 oz./295 grams)

1. About 1 1/2 hours before shaping, or for best flavor development, 8 hours to 3 days ahead, mix the dough: In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients except for a scant 1/4 cup of the flour. With a wooden spoon or your hand, mix until all the flour is moistened. Knead the dough in the bowl until it comes together.

Sprinkle a little of the reserved flour onto the counter and scrape the dough onto it. Knead the dough for 5 minutes, adding as little of the reserved flour as possible. Use a bench scraper to scrape the dough and gather it together as you knead it. At this point it will be very sticky. Cover it with the inverted bowl and allow it to rest for 5 to 20 minutes. (This rest will make the dough less sticky and easier to work with.)

Knead the dough for another 5 to 10 minutes or until it is soft and smooth and just a little sticky to the touch. Add a little flour or water if necessary. (The dough will weigh about 27.75 oz./793 grams.)

2. Let the dough rise: Using an oiled spatula or dough scraper, scrape the dough into a 2-quart or larger dough-rising container or bowl, lightly greased with cooking spray or oil. Press the dough down and lightly spray or oil the top of it. Cover the container with a lid or plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough overnight (or up to 3 days), checking every hour for the first 4 hours and pressing it down if it starts to rise.

3. Shape the dough: Cut the dough into 8 or 12 pieces. Work with one piece at a time, keeping the rest covered with a damp cloth. On a lightly floured counter, with lightly floured hands, shape each piece into a ball and then flatten it into a disk. Cover the dough with oiled plastic and allow it to rest for 20 minutes at room temperature.

4. Roll each disk into a circle a little under 1/4 inch thick. Allow them to rest, uncovered, for 10 minutes before baking.

5. Bake the pita: Preheat a griddle or cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Lightly grease the surface and cook the pitas one at a time. Cook for about 20 seconds, then turn the dough and continue cooking for 1 minute or until big bubbles appear. Turn the dough again and cook until the dough balloons. If the dough begins to brown, lower the heat. The entire cooking process for each pita should be about 3 minutes.

The pita should be completely puffed but not beginning to brown. The dough will not puff well if it is not moist enough. See how the pita puffs, then, if necessary, spray and knead each remaining piece with water until the dough is soft and moist; allow to rest again and reroll as before.* (However, those that do not puff well are still delicious to eat.)

* After my first pita didn’t puff well, and I realized I was too lazy to spritz and reroll and rise each remaining pita, I instead spritzed each rolled-out pita with water two or three minutes before baking it. It worked magically — all of the remaining pitas puffed perfectly. Try this method first if yours don’t puff, if it doesn’t work to you, revert to Beranbaum’s suggestion of kneading the extra moisture in.

Proceed with the remaining dough, baking 3 or 4 pieces at a time if using a stone or baking sheet. using a pancake turner, transfer the pita breads to a clean towel, to stay soft and warm. Allow the oven to reheat for 5 minutes between batches. The pitas can be reheated for about 30 seconds in a hot oven before serving.

Whole wheat variation: For a whole wheat version, use half whole wheat and half white flour. If using regular whole wheat flour, for best results, grind it very fine or process it in a food processor for 5 minutes to break the bran into smaller particles. Finely ground 100% whole wheat flour (atta), available in Middle Eastern food markets, is the finest grind available. Or, for a milder but wheatier flavor and golden color, try 100% white whole wheat flour. You will need to add 1/4 cup more water, for a total of 1 1/2 cups (12.4 oz./354 grams).

Comments: The pita turned out great once it was done. I think next time I'd divide the pizza dough ball in three to make sure the pitas are small enough for my pan. First pita was a little...well, it made great flat bread! Next up, some whole wheat adaptations!

Paneer

I saw how simple it was to make paneer (thanks Pranav!) and immediately had to give it a go. After consulting several recipes, I ultimately went with this one.

Homemade Paneer (FXcuisine.com)

· 1 liter milk

· 1+ t. lemon juice or vinegar

· A large pot

· A cheese cloth or clean towel or clean tee-shirt

1. Gently heat the milk just to boiling and turn off the heat. Pour a little lemon juice in it.

Not too much, all you want is for the milk to curdle. Gently mix with a and add more lemon juice (or vinegar) until the milk has split into a transparent liquid and little lumps of soft white matter. That's your cheese.

2. Take a clean towel and wrap it into a bowl or strainer, put everything in the sink and pour in the split milk.

3. Let the milk water (whey) drain.

4. ... then turn it and squeeze the cheese.

5. Put it in a plate or form. Add a plate and some weight on top and leave in the fridge for a couple hours. Some more water will come out, just discard it.

6. You can cut it in pieces and pan-fry it for 3-4 minutes in a little oil or ghee for longer preservation or use within a few days.

Comments: This is great and mild as is. I might try adding a bit of lemon juice and salt in the future and using it in place of feta. Or just salt to give it more flavor on its own. I mixed it in a sitr fry with lemon dressing, mustard, and sriracha, and was a happy camper, eating it with my new pita recipe.

Black Bean Hummus

I had black beans, and wanted to make a bean spread, so this seemed like the perfect answer. Except I didn't have tahini or a food processor, and wasn't about to wait to buy the food processor. Tahini was already priced out of my league in local stores.

And one reviewer spoke of a great substitution of sesame oil. Well...sesame seeds are right, although the flavors don't seem that similar. But hummus usually has oil, and this one didn't, so maybe...

Ingredients

1 clove garlic

2 cups cooked black beans

2 T lemon juice

1T toasted sesame seed oil

3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions

Mince garlic in the bowl of a food processor. Add black beans, 2 tablespoons reserved liquid, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, oil, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper; process until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed. Add additional seasoning and liquid to taste.

Disaster! The cumin and chili did not go with the sesame seed oil at all! I'm not sure this recipe would be tasty anyway (although the reviews certainly seem to point to it)...but I was only able to dilute my mess over rice (it was quite ugly, hand-mashed)...and feel like I was not being wasteful and getting some solid protein. Ugh...

Drop Biscuits

I had to try Trader Joe's drop biscuits because the recipe looked to simple to be true. They turned out great!

2 ½ Cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
1 Tbsp Sugar
1 Tsp Salt
2 Cups heavy cream


Pre-heat oven to 350°. Mix all-purpose flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Add heavy cream and stir until the mixture starts to get dough-y. Scoop out a golf-ball size of the dough and squeeze into a “drop of biscuit” – drop “drops” onto an ungreased baking sheet. Repeat (be sure to give each drop sufficient space). Bake for about 15 minutes (time may vary depending on oven calibrations) until the
bottom and crests of the biscuit are golden brown. Cool (if you can) for a few minutes.

Brighten Up The Biscuits: Serve them with raspberry fruit spread. Or... add shredded cheddar cheese or freshly chopped herbs to the dough prior to making the biscuit drops.

Golden-Crusted Brussels Sprouts Recipe

I made these brussels sprouts from 101 Cookbooks a couple times...they're rich with the cheese, but yummy.

Use brussels sprouts that are on the small size and tightly closed. You can finish these with many different types of cheese but I tend to go for Parmesan when the weather is good. I trade that in for heavier cheeses like gruyere or Gouda in colder weather. I finished them off with some toasted hazelnuts the other night - delicious!

24 small brussels sprouts
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for rubbing
fine-grain sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup grated cheese of your choice

Wash the brussels sprouts well. Trim the stem ends and remove any raggy outer leaves.

Cut in half from stem to top and gently rub each half with olive oil, keeping it intact (or if you are lazy just toss them in a bowl with a glug of olive oil).

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in your largest skillet over medium heat. Don't overheat the skillet, or the outsides of the brussels sprouts will cook too quickly. Place the brussels sprouts in the pan flat side down (single-layer), sprinkle with a couple pinches of salt, cover, and cook for roughly 5 minutes; the bottoms of the sprouts should only show a hint of browning. Cut into or taste one of the sprouts to gauge whether they're tender throughout. If not, cover and cook for a few more minutes.

Once just tender, uncover, turn up the heat, and cook until the flat sides are deep brown and caramelized. Use a metal spatula to toss them once or twice to get some browning on the rounded side. Season with more salt, a few grinds of pepper, and a dusting of grated cheese. While you might be able to get away with keeping a platter of these warm in the oven for a few minutes, they are exponentially tastier if popped in your mouth immediately.

Serves 4.

Oven Roasted Cauliflower with Garlic, Olive Oil and Lemon Juice

I just made this tasty dish but without the chives...definitely up for a repeat!

Ingredients

5 to 6 cups cauliflower florets, about 1 1/2 inches in diameter (from 1 medium cauliflower)

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon sliced garlic

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

Chopped chives, for garnish

Directions

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.

Place the cauliflower florets in a large saute pan or a roasting pan. Drizzle the olive oil over the cauliflower, and season with the garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Place the saute/roasting pan in the oven and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to ensure even roasting. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the Parmesan. Garnish with chopped chives and serve immediately while still warm.

ASIAN BROCCOLI

Adapted from A Veggie Venture

1 pound broccoli
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 clove minced garlic
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
Few turns of salt and pepper

Add 1/2 inch water to a pan with a cover. Add broccoli, cover and boil until broccoli is nearly cooked. While broccoli cooks, assemble remaining ingredients. Pour over the broccoli, cover and let rest for 5 minutes.

Kemp's Black Beans

I made this epicurious recipe for black beans.  I had the beans cooked, and couldn't find sherry at the downstairs grocery, so I subbed port.  I had to reduce the liquid, as my 3 cups water to one cup beans was too much.  Here's what I did...

• 1 cup dried black beans
• 3 cups water
  
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 cup port
• 1 to 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 to 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1. Soak the beans overnight.
2. Cook in soaking water for 45 minutes-1 hour.
3. Saute the onion in olive oil.  Add beans and salt when the onion is soft.  Add port, soy sauce, and balsamic vinegar, to taste.  Simmer, uncovered, about five minutes.

The beans were tastier the next day, as reviewers had noted.  They weren't spectacular, however they were nice, and a good healthy meal for myself.

Burrito Night! Rice and beans

On Saturday we had a burrito party at Jen’s, and I made black beans and rice for the event. Both turned out well, the black beans went like crazy (or perhaps a double recipe wasn’t enough for 15 people). I had to sub a crazy kick-ass southwestern blend of spices for the chili powder, but otherwise it was great. (I didn’t use the chiles, as they weren’t on-hand.) The rice also turned out well, adapted from a recipe on All Recipes. It was a bit wetter than I like the first day—next time I’ll use tomato paste, or reduce the broth a bit, however everything had absorbed by the time I got to the leftovers the next day, and it was good. Also could have benefited from the addition of chiles/picante.

Mexican-style Black Beans

• 1 T oil
• ½ onion (about 4 ounces), finely chopped (should yield about ½ cup)
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• ½ t. ground cumin
• ½ T chili powder
• ½ t. dried oregano
• 1 ½ cups cooked black beans
• ½ cup vegetable stock/water/bean cooking liquid/14.5 oz. can of chopped tomatoes
• salt and pepper (1/2 t and ¼ t)
• oz. can of chopped, green chiles (optional)

Heat 2 Tbs. vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, and cook, stirring often until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for one minute longer. Stir in the cumin and chili powder and cook for 1 minute. Add the beans, the liquid/tomatoes, and chiles, if using cover, and cook until the beans are very soft and the flavors have blended, about 5 minutes. Use a fork or potato masher to coarsely mash the beans. Season with salt and pepper. You should have about 4 cups.

Mexican Rice

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 cup uncooked long-grain rice
• 1 clove garlic
• ½ t. salt
• ½ t. ground cumin
• ¼ c. chopped onion
• ½ c. tomato sauce
• 2 c. broth

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and sauté onion and garlic. Add rice. Cook, stirring constantly, until puffed and golden. While rice is cooking, sprinkle with salt and cumin. Stir in tomato sauce and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

Swiss Chard Gratin

I made this, and here is the review I posted:

The recipe was good, however the chard tasted like chard. Given the cream and butter, I hoped for something with a bit more flavor. The topping was salty, I probably won't add salt if I make it again. It was also very labor-intensive. I have other recipes that come together a lot quicker and seem to be a lot healthier.

Lemon-Mustard Green Beans

Based on a recipe from the cookbook Modern Vegetarian Kitchen by Peter Berley.

In a large pot, bring 3 quarts water to a boil. Add 1 Tbs of salt. Place in a bowl:

* 1 small red onion, thinly sliced

Cover with 2 cups of the boiling water. Cover the bowl with a plate and set aside for 10 to 15 minutes. This will help mellow the onions. Drop into the remaining boiling water, and cook, for 4 to 6 minutes, until crisp-tender, or a tiny bit undercooked (remember they will keep cooking once they come out for a few minutes):

* 1.5 pounds green beans, trimmed

Drain the onions and toss them with

* 1/2 tsp salt (too much?)
* pinch freshly milled black pepper
* 1 Tbs apple cider vinegar

Make the vinaigrette. Whisk together in a large serving bowl until oil is emulsified and creamy:

* 1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
* 1/8 tsp cayenne
* 1 small garlic clove, crushed
* 1 Tbs Dijon-style mustard
* 1 tsp honey
* 2 Tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice
* 2 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil

Drain the onions once again, squeezing them dry. Add the onions and the green beans to the vinaigrette and toss well. Let marinate for 15 minutes at room temperature before serving.