Oh, my quiche

5 eggs (yolks and whites separated)

½ cup yogurt

1 tblspns raw white sugar

2 small yellow beets shredded finely

3 large leaves and stem of rainbow chard chopped

3 large shallots diced finely

1 tblspn olive oil

1 1/2 tblspns salted butter

¼-1/2 cup flour

about 1 cup of mixed cheeses

lil salt

Preheat oven to 350.

Sautee beets, shallots, and chard stem in the olive oil for about 5 minutes. Add chard leaves for another 3 minutes. Add ½ tblspn butter. When it melts, add the flour and cook on med. heat for a few minutes stirring often. Remove from heat.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg whites for 1 minute. Add the sugar and beat for a few more minutes or until whites are stiff. In a separate bowl, combine all sautéed ingredients, egg yolks, yogurt, the rest of the butter(cold or room temperature and beaten into mixture), cheese, and salt. Slowly fold the egg whites into the mixture. Don’t over mix. Pour into a cake, pie, or pudding pan.

Cook for about 30-45 minutes or when a toothpick comes out clean in the poke test.

Tequila roasted corn biscuits

4 fresh corn cobs pan roasted off the cob

¼ cup flour

1 ½ tblspn salted, cold butter

tspn salt

1/8 cup yogurt

1 shot tequila

(optional 1/8 tspn dried herbs)

Preheat oven to 350.  Heat a large pan on med-high.  Cut all the corn off the cob and transfer it to the hot pan. Meanwhile, into a large mixing bowl, cream the corncobs by scraping your knife down all the sides gathering all the corn juice. 

Dry pan roast the corn stirring often until it starts to brown, about 10-15 minutes. (You can also add a pinch of dried herbs while roasting if you want).  Add the tequila to the corn and scrape the bottom of the pan to collect all of the caramelized brown bits.

Add the roasted corn to the mixing bowl along with the yogurt, salt, and butter.

Blend these ingredients in a food processor or blender until smooth.  Transfer back to the bowl and mix in the flour.  Don’t mix too long. Add some water if it seems too thick.  It should be like wet cookie dough.

Place big spoonfuls of the mixture onto a baking sheet and bake until tops start to brown, about 15 minutes or so.  

 

 

Fall White Bean and Sweet Potato Stew with Chicken Sausage and Red Chard

1 16oz can cannelloni or other white beans - rinse and drained
2 sausages (I used a really good, sun-dried tomato/basil/chicken sausage from whole foods)
1 large onion - sliced or chopped
3 cloves garlic - chopped
about 1 cup carrots - chopped
3/4 bunch red chard (or swiss or rainbow) - stems slices into 1' pieces and leaves chopped
1 16oz can fire roasted tomatoes - dice
about 9 oz. chicken broth
1 large sweet potato

Slice sweet potato in half longways and roast in the oven on 375 degrees about 25 minutes or until soft with a little salt. Remover skin and cut into a large dice. Set aside. Meanwhile, heat up a large stew pot on med-high heat with a tblspn olive oil. When hot, squeeze out the sausage from the casing in small pieces (as big or little as you want) and brown on all sides. Remove and set aside. Add a little more oil if necessary and saute onions, carrots, and garlic for 5 minutes on med. heat. Add chard and continue sauteing for 2 more minutes. Add tomatoes with juices scrapping bottom of the pot. Then, add sausage, beans, and sweet potato. Add broth until it rises to the top over everything. Add a pinch more salt. Cover, lower heat and simmer until about 45 minutes.

 

Simple Plantains with Avocado

1 yellow Hawaiin Plantain (or South American plantain)
1/2 ripe avocado, thickly sliced
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
1 tblspn olive oil
1 tblspn sour cream
1 lime
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350. Put one long slit in the plantain and roast about 25 minutes or until skin is totally brown. Remove the skin and slice in half long ways once. Slice thick slices across (about 7-8 cuts). Sautee garlic in the olive oil in a large frying pan with medium heat for a couple minutes or until they just start to darken in color. Add the plantain slices making sure all the larger surfaces are flat on the pan. Sautee for 1-2 minutes then flip plantain slices and sautee another couple minutes. Add all of the cilantro, 1/2 cup water, and teaspoon salt. Put the lid on the pan and lower heat slightly. Steam for a few minutes or until the water is gone. Add a bit more water and the sour cream. Toss and steam (with lid) for 1 more minute. Sprinkle black pepper and more salt if you want. Put it all on a plate and arrange avocado slices on and/or around the plantains. Squeeze a generous amount of fresh lime juice over everything.

 

M’s Pasta Fagiole

½ pound dried beans (barlotti, roman, pinto, canallini, or mixture)
1 large onion (finely diced)
½ cup chopped celery
½ cup chopped carrots
2 tblspns olive oil
1 small can good quality tomato paste
2 cups broth (veggie, chicken, or other)
2-3 garlic cloves (sliced)
½ -1 teaspoon red chilli flakes
small pasta (ditallini, elbows, small rigatoni, etc.)
OPTIONAL 2 fresh dices tomatoes (only if in season)
salt and pepper
grated parmesan cheese


Rinse beans. Add to a large pot and cover with “2 fingers” of water about the beans. Boil for 5 minutes. Cover and turn off heat. Let sit for 20 minutes. Drain and rinse. Refill with fresh water 2 fingers about the beans. Bring to a boil and reduce heat. Cook until tender. Set aside with water.

Meanwhile, saute onions, celery, and carrots, garlic, and chilli flakes in a large pan with olive oil. When soft and slightly browned, add the small can of tomato paste. Turn up heat and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring and browning. Lower heat and add 1-2 cups bean water, 1 cup broth, all of the beans, and optional fresh tomatoes. Add half of mixture to food processor and return to pan or simple mash a lot of it in the pan. Add broth for desired sauce consistency. Serve over pasta. Drizzle with a little more olive oil and add parmesan cheese. Season with salt and pepper.

 

Japanese Spagetti and Meatballs

1 lb ground beef (and/or pork)
1 egg
1 tblsp miso paste
1 bunch green onions, finely diced
2 cloves garlic
about 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, finely diced
about 1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
about 2 tblspns sesame oil
3 little bundles soba (buckweat noodles)

Combine meat, egg, miso, 1/2 of the green onions, 1/2 of the garlic, ginger, and a little sesame oil. Form into small-medium sized balls. Heat a skillet to med-high and brown meatballs on all sides. Meanwhile, combine the other half of the green onions, garlic, soy sauce, rice vinegar and sesame oil. Add a pinch of sugar if you like. Set aside. Boil a pot of salted water and add the soba noodles. Cook until almost done. Add them to the pan with the meatballs (don't drain or rinse). Add the sauce and cook on low heat until noodles and meatballs are done (another 2-3 minutes). Add some of the pasta water if necessary.




Lotus Root and Watercress Salad with Miso-Tahini-Lime Dressing


2 segments Lotus root (about 5-6 inches each), peeled and sliced into half circles
1 bunch watercress, chopped
2 tblspns miso paste
juice of 1 lime
3-4 tblspns tahini paste
1/2 seedless cumumber, diced

Boil the lotus root for about 10 mintes and rinse in cold water. Meanwhile, add a tspn of cold water to the miso paste. Combine miso with the lime juice and tahini. Add that to the lotus root, watercress, and cucumber. Chill and serve.

 

Grilled Summer Squash and Fennel with Chipotle-Cinnamon Butter

small yellow summer squash
small zuccini
fennel bulb
melted butter
olive oil
canned chipotle pepper
fresh ground cinnamon
fresh lime or lemon juice

This is very simple and flexible. For the sauce, combing butter and olive oil 50/50. Use however much you think you'll need depending on how many vegetables you are making. Add desired amount of the chipotle pepper with some of the sauce from the can. You don't need much at all. It's pretty hot. Combine the butter, oil, and chipotle with a sprinkle of cinnamon and lemon juice in a food processor, blender, or by hand. Make a big batch for all kinds of other things.

Remove the ends and cut squash and zuccini in half long ways. Meanwhile, remove the tops of the fennel bulb and cut into quarters keeping each 1/4 intact. Boil the fennel in water for about 5-7 minutes. This will the cooking time down to the squash's level. Let fennel cool and put in a large owl with the squash and pour a small amout of the sauce just until it coats the veggies. Let marinade for atleast 30 minutes. Grill on medium coals. When done (slightly charred) put back into the bowl with more sauce and serve.

Quinoa Tabouli

about 1 1/2 cups quinoa
1 bunch flat leaf parsley finely chopped
1/4-1/2 bunch of fresh mint chopped
2 ripe tomatoes small dice
1 half cucumber (preferably seedless) small dice
juice of about 1 lemon
1-2 tblspns olive oil
a little salt


Tabouli is traditionally made with bulgar wheat.
Cook quinoa in a rice steamer or on the stove with twice as much water (about 20 minutes, or like you would cook rice. Meanwhile, combine all the other ingredients in a large bowl a let. Let the cooked quinoa fully cool. When cool, add to all the other ingredients in the bowl stir. Add more lemon juice, salt, or oil to balance the flavors. Let sit for about 30 minutes. Serve at room temperature.


Roasted Beet-Red Pepper-Mango Salad with Lime and Ginger

2 medium sized beets
1 ripe, but not too ripe, mango, large dice
1 large red bell pepper
1" piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely diced
1 clove garlic, diced
juice of 1-2 limes
2 tblspns olive oil

Cut beets in half and wrap in a foil pouch with the ginger, garlic, olive oil, and lime juice with a little salt. Make sure the pouch is fairly seeled and roast in a 375 degree oven for about 25 minutes or until beets are fork tender. Meanwhile, roast the bell pepper whole until almost black, the skin, stem and seeds. Dice. When beets are done remove the skins, dice, and add to a bowl with all it's juice and ginger, the pepper, and the mango. Refrigerate for atleast 30 minutes before serving.

 

Yogurt Dip with Fresh Chillies, Mint, and Lavender

1 small package greek style yogurt
2 small, fresh, hot chillies (seranos are good)
handfull of finely chopped, fresh mint
1 tspn freshly ground lavender
pinch of salt
1 tspn fresh lemon juice

Roast chillies in the oven or in a skillet for about 10 minutes. Remove the stem and seeds and combine with the yogurt, mint, lavender, salt, and lemon juice. This is really good with grilled or smoked fish, veggies, pita bread, and meat.

 

Mexican Pizza

1/2 can garbanzo beans
about 1 cup corn masa
water
pumpkin seed oil (or olive oil)
1 4" piece of good quality mexican chorizo
1 small-medium spanish onion sliced into very thin rings
2 mushrooms sliced very thin
1/8 yellow or red bell pepper sliced thin
Mexican chihuaua cheese (or other melting cheese)
aged mexican crumbling cheese (or parmesan)
1 small can spanish tomato sauce
1 small can chipotle sauce or chipotles in adobo sauce
1/2 teaspoon coriander seed crushed or grinded
1/2 teaspoon cumin seed crushed or grinded
1 9" pie pan
fresh cilantro for garnish
toasted pumpkin seeds


For the crust, crush garbanzo beans into a flour by hand or in food processor. Add to corn masa with a little salt. Add enough water to work bean/corn flour into a slightly wet dough. Coat the bottom and sides of pie dish with pumpkin (or olive) oil. Spread dough on bottom of the pie dish making a crust up the side of the dish about 1/2-1 inch. Brush the top of dough with more oil Bake in a 350 Degree oven for about 20-25 minutes until slightly browned and slightly crispy. Meanwhile, in a skillet, cook coriander seed, cumin seed, onion, mushrooms, and bell peppers in a little olive oil with a pinch of salt on low heat for about 30 minutes or until fairly caramelized. Also, in a seperate small skillet, squeeze chorizo from it's casing and cook until browned and crispy. For the sauce add chipotle sauce to the tomato sauce until it's as spicy as you like. When crust is done take out of oven and let cool for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spread a thin layer of the chipotle/tomato sauce on crust. Sprinkle with parmesan. Add the chorizo, then the chihuaua cheese. Finally, add the caramelized onion, mushroom, bell pepper mixture and sprinkle with a bit more parmesan. Put pizza in oven (still in the pie dish) and bake until cheese starts to bubble. Take out and sprinkle with cilantro and small handfull of toasted pumkin seeds. Serve with fresh mango, avocado, and lime.

 

Curried beef w/ okra and potatoes ( a little Thai, a little Indian)

For 2:

curry

2 cups thinly sliced beef
about 10 whole okra (woody ends cut off - don't expose the inside)
2 medium potatoes peeled, 1" dice, steamed for 5 minutes, rinsed
2 ripe tomatoes sliced or coarsly diced
1/2 medium onion sliced
Paste of: 2 garlic cloves, 1" piece of fresh ginger, 2 small shallots or green onions, 1 tblspn
coriander seed, 1 tspn veg. oil (make in food processor, blender, or mortar and pestel)
2 tblspns fish sauce and soy sauce
1 tblspn lime juice and sugar
2 tblspns curry powder
1/4-1/2 can coconut milk
some water?

Simmer the beef in the coconut milk in a pot on very low with the lid on. Meanwhile, coat the whole okra and dice potatoes in some oil, pinch of salt, and curry powder and roast in the oven for about 40 minutes (stir a couple times). Remove the beef from the coconut milk and reserve for later. Add the prepared paste and cook for 5 minutes. Add fish sauce, soy sauce, lime juice, and sugar. Cook for 3 minutes. Add the onion, tomato, and some water if necessary. Cook for 3 more minutes, covered. Dice the roasted okra and add to the pot with the reserved beef and roasted potatoes. Season with salt if necessary. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes.


Serve with
Roasted corn waffles instead of rice.

1 cup corn masa flour
1 fresh corn cob
1 egg
water
1/2 tspn baking powder
1/2 tspn salt
1 tblsp garam masala
1-2 tblspns veg. oil or ghee

Combine masa, baking powder, egg yolk, salt, garam masala, and oil with enough water to make a batter consistency (about 1-2 cups). Cut the corn off the cob and roast in a dry skillet over medium-high heat until done (about 8 minutes) stirring or tossing occassionally. Add a little water to lift all the caramelized brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Beat the egg white and fold it into the batter along with the roasted corn. Let batter sit for a few minutes in the refrigerator. Make in a waffle iron. If you don't have one, make pancakes :)

Chicken and dumplins

4 chicken thighs with skin and bone
3/4 cup diced onion
3/4 cup diced carrot
1/2 cup diced celery
2 or 3 bay leaves
about 2 cups flour
about 1/2 stick cold butter
1/2 tspn baking powder
about 1/2 cup buttermilk
salt and black pepper

In a medium sized pot, brown chicken thighs 1 or 2 at a time (depending on the pot size) on both sides on high heat. Remove them as they brown and set aside. Sautee the onion, carrots, and celery in the chicken juices until soft (about 10 minutes). Remove the skin from the chicken and add it back to the pot. Add enough water to cover. Stir, scrapping the bottom of the pot. Add some salt and pepper and bay leaves. Simmer for about an hour. Meanwhile, make the dumplins by combining the flour and butter and mix thoroughly in a bowl by hand until it becomes a mealy texture. a the baking powder and a little salt and pepper. Mix. Add buttermilk slowly and mix until it works into a semi wet dough. Form into 1" balls and flated them slightly. Lay on a plate and cover. Let them sit in the refrigerator until chicken is done (again, about 1hour). Remove the chicken from the pot and take out all of the bones. (Should be very easy). Return chicken to the pot and place the raw dumplins on top. Place a lid on the pot and steam the dumplins until they are done (about 7 minutes). Serve with more black pepper.

 

chicken w/ white bbq sauce

1 whole chicken cut in half, rinsed, and dried.
Charcoal grill
large foil roasting pan
4-5 handfulls of hickory chips (soaked in water for atleast 30 minutes)
spanish smoked paprika
salt and pepper
1 cup good quality, real mayonaise
1 cup cider vinegar
1 tblspn cayenne pepper

Place foil roasting pan in the center of the grill. Spread charcoal (preferably wood charcoal) around

the foil pan. Fill the pan half full with water. The the coals. Meanwhile, rub chicken halves all

over with paprika, salt, and pepper. When coals are white, spread the hickory chips on the coals

and place the grill surface onto the grill making sure it is scraped clean. Place the chicken halves

on the grill surface over the foil pan making sure that it is not in direct heat of the coals. Put the

lid on the grill keeping the air holes on top and bottom all the way open. You may have to leave a

little crack between the lid and the grill to make sure it gets enough oxygen. Smoke the check

about 1-1and 1/2 hours turning after 45 minutes. For the white bbq sauce (Alabama style) combine

mayonaise, cider vinegar, cayenne, and some salt and pepper to taste. Take the chicken off the

grill and drizzle bbq sauce over the top.



Palm trees and beans salad w/ roasted corn

1 can hearts of palm cut into bite size pieces
1 can roman beans (or pinto?)
2 fresh ears of corn
1/4 cup fresh parsley coarsly chopped
juice of 2 limes or lemons
2-3 tblspns olive oil
salt and pepper

Thoroughly rinse and dry the beans and palm hearts and combine in a salad bowl with the parsley.

Add the citrus juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Cut the corn off the cob and roast in a dry skillet.

(Scrape the cob with your knife into the salad bowl to get all the "cream" of the corn) Add a little

water to the pan after about 8 minutes to lift up the caramelized brown bits. Add the corn to the

bowl and stir carefully not to break up the beans too much. Add salt and pepper.



Chipotle tortilla omelet

2-3 eggs lightly whipped
1 or 2 fresh corn tortillas sliced
2 tblspns chipotle sauce (you can buy this in little cans in Mexican groceries for 50 cents)
small pad of butter
melty mexican cheese

Heat chipotle sauce with the butter in a frying pan. Sautee the sliced tortillas in the sauce for a

couple minutes. Add the eggs and cook on medium-high heat for a couple minutes lifting the

edges of the omelet letting the uncooked egg liquid touch the pan. Add the cheese and fold the

omelet in high. Lower heat and cook until the cheese is melted. Sprinkle with a bit more cheese.

 

BEET SALAD

 

• 5-6 beets
• 1-2 fresh garlic cloves crushed
• olive and/or pumpkin seed oil
• white wine or champagne vinegar
• sea salt

Boil a medium pot of water with some salt. Cut off the ends of the beets and wash. Boil beets until fork tender. Let cool. Remove skins (this should be very easy by hand). Slice as thin or thick as you like. Add crush garlic, oil, vinigar, and sea salt. Mix and marinade atleast an hour to overnight.

 

GARBANZO GINGER/CHILI SOUP

• 1 pound bag of uncooked garbanzo beans (chick peas)
• 1/4 cup finely diced fresh ginger
• 3 garlic cloves
• 2 tblspns chili powder (mixed chili powder is good)
• 2 carrots chopped
• 6-7 very small sweet potatoes or regualar potatoes
• 1 veggie boullion
• salt and pepper
• olive oil
  

Soak beans in water in a large pot overnight. Drain and rinse. Cover about 1 1/2 inches with fresh water. Bring to a boil for 10 minutes. Skim the top. Add ginger, garlic, and chili powder (add also fresh jalepeno for spicier soup). Turn heat down a bit. Add carrots, potatoes, and boullion. Simmer until beans are fully cooked and tender. Blend 2/3s of mixture with some olive oil until smooth. Add back to pot. This is ready but even better the next day.

 

CHIPOTLE CORN

• 1 bag of frozen white corn (thawed)
• 1 diced chipotle chili (from a can of chipotles in adobo sauce)
• 1/4 cup or less pine nuts
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 2-3 shallots
• 1 clove diced garlic
  
• butter
• 2 teaspoons fresh or dried thyme (or mixed herbs)
• salt and pepper

Melt some butter in a large sauce pan. Sautee shallots and garlic until soft, about 5 minutes. Add pine nuts for 1 minute. Add the chipotle, raisins, and thyme. Cook for a few minutes. Add corn and cook until it starts to brown. Add salt and pepper to taste.

PAN SEARED ENDIVE

• 6 endive heads cut in half length wise
• olive oil
• balsamic vinegar
• roughly shredded hard cheese (parmesan, zamarano, etc.)
• salt and pepper
  

Heat pan to med-high with a tiny bit of olive oil. Add endive halves flat side (inside) down. Cook until lightly browned. Flip over to the rounded side down. Add cheese, salt, and pepper. Add a little water and cover to steam until cheese is melted into the endive. Uncover and drizzle with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Serve immediately.

 

FENNEL, MUSHROOMS, and CHARD with YOGURT

 

• 1 bunch rainbow or swiss chard rinsed and chopped
• 2 handfuls of fresh mushrooms quartered or roughly chopped (crimini, baby bellas, a mix, or whatever)
  
• 1-2 fennel bulbs depending on size roughly chopped
• fennel seeds
• cumin seeds
• garam masala
• salt
  
• 1/4 cup plain yogurt or plain kefir

Heat 2 tblspns of canola oil on medium heat. Cook fennel seeds and cumin seeds for a couple minutes. Add mushrooms and cook until they start giving back their juices. Add chard, fennel bulbs, and garam masala. Cook until tender. Turn heat to very low and add yogurt to coat veggies. Warm through and add salt to taste. Serve with rice.

 

LAMB SQUASH STEW with POBLANOS

 

• about 1 and a half pounds lamb (or beef) cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 medium butternut or buttercup squash
• 1 or 2 poblano chilis depending on taste
• 1 large onion (any color) chopped
• 3 cloves garlic chopped
• 2 celery stalks chopped to make about 1/4 cup
• 2 medium carrots chopped
• 1 small can tomato paste
  
• 1 1/2 cups red wine
• 1 can real beef broth
  
• salt and pepper
• bay leaf (optional)
  

 

Cut squash into quarters, remove seeds, and steam until fork tender. Remove the skin. Chop into about 1 inch cubes and set aside.

Roast one or two whole poblanos in a hot over for 40 minutes. Let cool. Remove skin. Cut into strips and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat a large pot with a little olive oil on high heat. Add lamb without stirring to much or crowding the pan. (Do this in stages in necessary). Brown all sides quickly and hot. Transfer meat to a seperate for for later.

Add a little more oil to the pot with the onion, garlic, celery, carrots, and a little salt. Cook until veggies and tender. Stir often and down burn the bottom of the pot, though, it should be browning. When veggies are all soft, add the little can of tomato paste and cook on med-high until it just starts to carmelize stirring often. Add the red wine and scrap all brown bits of the bottom of the pot for a few minutes on high. Add one half to the whole can of beef broth depending on how much liquid you want. Add bay leaf. Turn heat to low and add the meat and all it's juices back to the stew. Cook very slowly until meat starts to fall apart. (about 1 and 1/2 hours or more. Whatever you want). At the very end, stir in the steamed, cubed squash and the roasted, sliced poblano/s to the stew for about 5 minutes. Some of the squash may break apart a bit. This is good. Add enough salt and pepper to taste. Serve over egg noodles or rice.

 

Let me know what you think.

MORE SOON..............................