Monthly Archives: July 2010

Great Culinary Adventure

Some days are just meant for great culinary adventures. Today I started out at the Market. I spotted fresh Fava beans (which I am still trying to figure out), and thought, what would go good with these? There was good looking swiss chard. I like sexy food, and swiss chard is one of my favorites. I grabbed some staples, and what was on my list, then spotted the Hawaiian Papayas. Expensive, but I love these papayas. They are smaller then their cousins the Mexican papaya, and typically sweeter. I figured I was just going to eat it. Uh-uh.

I got home with the bounty and faced the task of what to cook. I knew I was starting with beans, black, dried fava for Fava Bean Cassoulet, and chickpeas (for Garlicky Hummus and Chana Masala). While those were cooking, I realized that I had jicama and apple. Hmmm. I made the Summer Citrus Coleslaw, and then faced the jicama, papaya, and apple again.

My Chef’s mind took a whirl. Sometimes you have to be brave and bold in cooking, otherwise the food at home gets boring, and they start eating out. With a little chili powder and fresh ginger, the Jicama salad took a wild and flavor-filled turn. I’m satisfied.

During this spree, I was also cooking quinoa. One of my favorite protein packed foods. I thought maybe a cold salad, but no, I already have two of those. I wanted to make it a hot entree for this evening’s dinner.

I sauteed off peppers, onions, jalapenos, and carrots. I added that to the quinoa. In went black beans, some crushed coriander, and toasted ground cumin. Better stop there I thought. I don’t like very complicated flavors. Bold, yes, tasty, yes, but too much and the rest of the food gets muddled. I added a splash of lemon juice.

I looked in the bowl. What haven’t I ever done with quinoa before? Because I have to keep my recipes at home gluten-free, I added some besan flour (chickpea flour, it goes by other names as well). That made the sticky mess glue together. I made a little cake, heated up a saute pan, added some safflower oil, and seared it. Brilliant I thought, what next? The Ginger-Lime Jicama slaw went right on top of the little cake, with a little cilantro garnish.

Oh my goodness. If I could share this with you, I would. It was incredible, the quinoa cake flavors with the slaw created a burst of delight in my mouth.
(She’s going to be so delighted with dinner tonight).

What about those fresh fava beans and swiss chard? After seeing all the food I created today, I’ll have to wait until later to make that for dinner. Maybe tomorrow night, and while the beans and chard are still fresh.

Tofu Chili Tacos

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Tofu Chili Tacos

These tacos make a great summer dinner!

Sometimes I need something quick and easy for dinner. Tofu tacos come under that category. I only have to cook one thing, tofu in chili sauce, and then chop up the rest of the ingredients, put them in bowls, set it on the table, and let the FOO at it. Serve with Spanish Rice and Beans, and you’ve got a great low fat, healthy version of Taco Dinner Night!

Tofu Chili Tacos

Ingredients

For the Tacos

1 pound firm tofu, cubed
2 cups New Mexico Red Chili Sauce

For the Garnishes

Shredded lettuce
Sliced olives
diced tomatoes
grated cheese or cheese alternative
Corn or flour 6? tortillas

Process

Cube tofu into small cubes. Cover in chili sauce and marinade overnight.

Cook the tofu in chili sauce for approximately 30-45 minutes. Don’t let the sauce dry out. Add a little water as needed.

Prepare the garnishes in individual serving dishes. Serve family style with warm corn or flour tortillas. They go great with Smashed Black Beans and Arroz.

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New Mexico Red Chili Sauce

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There is a mystique applied to sauces in general, and when it comes to chilis, even more so. Chili Sauce is as individual as the cook who makes it. I enjoy consistency in cooking, and have made this recipe a few hundred times with the same response: “yummy”.

You can find the red chili pods in grocery stores or a Latin/Mexican market. Make sure they are bright red. If you buy them from the bulk bin, make sure to rinse them off before cooking. They tend to get dusty.

I prefer New Mexico Red Chili pods, but if you can’t find them, dried red chilis will do. Medium or hot is your choice.

New Mexico Red Chili Sauce

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Yield: 2 cups

Ingredients

8-10 red chili pods with stems and seeds removed
8 cloves garlic whole
1 onion chopped
Water to cover
1-2 tbsp Lime juice
1 tsp Salt

Process

Place all ingredients in a stock pot and cook until the pods and onions are soft. (Approximately 1 hour)

Strain out the liquid and reserve. Pull out any stems or seed cores you find. Puree the chilis in a blender, adding the reserved liquid a little at a time. Add lime juice and salt. If you want, you can strain the sauce. The sauce turns a brilliant red when you do this.

This is the sauce I use for Tofu Chili Tacos.

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It Takes Guts

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Last week I made the deadline for the Food Network Star YouTube Challenge. The video was submitted on time, and I’m really excited. It takes guts, courage and just a little bit of talent, on and off camera, to make a cooking video.
There are only 230 entries, and they will narrow that field down to 15 contestants. Out of the 15, the winner will be chosen by popularity vote. The more votes for the video, the better.
So, vote for me, the Kitchen Shaman, if I make the cut. Here’s the link to the video. Enjoy.

Keep your fingers crossed that I make the cut. I am.

Fava Bean Cassoulet

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Fava Bean Cassoulet

Recently I fell in love with the Fava Bean. Fava beans are very high in protein and are the national dish of Egypt.

Cassoulets are beans that are slow cooked with meats and vegetables to produce a rich broth and tasty beans. Here I’ve reproduced that process, and added a few flavorful items to brighten up the dish, and removed the meat from the recipe.

Try it, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it as much as we do.

It might be a bit of a treasure hunt to find Fava Beans. It took me about a week looking in a fairly large market to find this delicious legume.

Here’s the recipe, and as always, open to interpretation.

Fava Bean Cassoulet

Ingredients

2 cups dried Fava beans soaked in 6 cups water overnight
6 cups vegetable broth, fresh or store bought
2 tbsp cumin
3-4 garlic* cloves rough chopped
1/8 cup lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil
1 ½ cups small diced white onion
1 ½ cups small diced carrot
1 ½ cups small diced zucchini
1 cup mushrooms of your choice
1 cup chopped spinach
A handful of herbs (thyme, oregano, sage)

Process

Cook the Fava beans in the vegetable broth, with cumin, garlic and lemon juice.

Heat oil in a sturdy stock pot. Add carrots and onions. Saute until tender. Add mushrooms, cook 3-4 more minutes, and then add the zucchini.

Stir in Fava beans and any other legumes you might have that are cooked (I added chickpeas). Add enough water/stock for a good broth. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer. Let cook for 2-3 hours. Add spinach and herbs near the end of the cooking.

Serve with crusty bread, or gluten-free tortillas.

*Substitute Ginger for the Garlic, makes for a great base in this dish.

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Potato Salad, the vegan way

Is it hot enough? Salsa!

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Here is the long awaited Roasted Salsa Recipe. Any time I make this people seriously fall in love with me.

Depending on where you get the jalapenos, and how hot you like your salsa, you can adjust the amount to your liking. I’ve found that using the same amount of jalapenos sometimes results in very hot salsa and other times it results in medium or even mild salsa. You can sometimes tell the heat of a chili by smelling it, but it is not a 100% proof method. Experimenting is recommended.
Enjoy.

Is it hot enough? Salsa!

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Remember when working with hot chilis, wear protective gloves. The active ingredient in the chilis can burn the skin.

Ingredients

8 Roma tomatoes
1 poblano chili (in some regions called a pasilla)
1 red pepper
1 gold pepper
1 green pepper
2-3 jalapenos
1 red onion
1 head of garlic
1/2 bunch of Cilantro, chopped
1 tbsp Lime juice
S & P

Process

Roast all the vegetables on the grill or in a broiler, until the skins start to blacken. Remove tomatoes when skin starts to split. This usually happens before the peppers and chilis are done.

Cool the vegetables. Fine chop the cilantro, and squeeze the lime juice while vegetables are cooling.

Peel the skin off the peppers and chilis, and remove the seed core. Clean the skin off the garlic and use 4-5 cloves, Save the rest for hummus or dressings.

Place all the roasted vegetables in a blender or food processor. Blend until large chunks are gone. Work in several batches if there is too much to fit in the work bowl.

Pour into mixing bowl and add cilantro, lime juice, and salt and pepper. Place in an airtight container and store in the fridge for approximately 2-3 weeks.

Serve with Chips, Burritos, Quesadillas, Rice & Beans, Roasted veggie wraps, and any thing else that might need a really great roasted salsa!

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