Browsing Category

Vegetarian

Dinner, Pickles, Potato Salad, Recipes, Salad, Side Dishes, Vegetarian, Veggies

Dilly Potato Salad with Cucumber Pickles and Radishes

October 4, 2013

RadishesIt is thought that radishes originated from China thousands of years ago.  They belong to the mustard and cabbage family and are related to wasabi (horseradish).  Many people love to snack on raw radishes which is a good thing since they are nutritious, and 1 cup of radishes has just 20 calories.  In this recipe the radishes are thinly sliced and tossed into the potato salad along with homemade cucumber pickles.  Their color and zingy flavor are lovely in this salad.

Dilly Potaot Salad

sliced onionsThinly sliced Maui onion.  Use a sweet onion if Maui onions are not available.

Cucumbers

cukes and dill marinatingI can’t live without my “little Bennie” mandoline.  It makes perfectly thin slices of cucumbers, radishes and onions in no time at all.

Potato Salad Ingredients

Dill Potato Salad

Dilly Potato Salad with Cucumber Pickles & Radishes

Serves 6

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/3 inch slices

3/4 pound Japanese or English cucumber, very thinly sliced

4 – 6 radishes, very thinly sliced

1/2 cup Maui or sweet onion, very thinly sliced

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

5 tablespoons white vinegar

2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/2 cup mayonnaise, more or less (I use light mayonnaise)

Preparation

Combine vinegar and salt in a small bowl until salt dissolves.  Place cucumber slices and  1 1/2 tablespoons dill in Ziploc bag.  Add vinegar mixture, seal bag.  Turn several times to coat.  Refrigerate overnight, turning bag occasionally.

Pour cucumber mixture into a sieve set over a bowl.  Drain at least 1 hour.  Discard brine.

Cook the potatoes in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 6 – 7 minutes.  Drain and cool potatoes completely.  Place the potatoes in a large bowl and sprinkle generously with kosher salt and pepper. Add the drained cucumbers, onion, sliced radishes and remaining 1/2 tablespoon dill.  Toss to blend.  Stir in mayonnaise, then cover and refrigerate.  The salad is best served the day it is made however it can be made one day in advance.  Taste and adjust seasoning before serving.  Garnish with sprigs of dill and whole radishes before serving (optional).

 

Fish, Recipes, Sauces, Vegetarian

Green Tartar Sauce

September 21, 2013

Green Tartar SauceThere is “tartar sauce” and then there is green tartar sauce. It is much more lively in both color and flavor and goes especially well with a number of salmon dishes and grilled ahi burgers.  Full of fresh herbs, tangy cornichons and capers, it is a world apart from your ordinary tartar sauce.  I cannot remember where I found this recipe after an internet search.  In any case, it’s been a staple in our home for years.  Green Tartar Sauce HerbsAfter quickly chopping up the herbs, cornichons and shallot, everything goes into the food processor for a quick whirl.

Green Tartar Sauce #2

Green Tartar Sauce

Makes about 3/4 cup

Ingredients

1/4 cup chopped cornichons

2 1/2 tablespoons rinsed and chopped capers

1 small shallot, chopped

1/2 cup mayonnaise (I use low fat)

1 teaspoon Dijon

1 1/2 tablespoons chopped dill

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

2 tablespoons chopped chives

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

Preparation

Coarsely chop the cornichons, capers and shallot.  Place in a food processor (I use the small bowl of my KitchenAid) and pulse a few times just to combine.  Add mayonnaise, mustard, herbs, lemon juice, and pepper and process for about 6 seconds to blend well.  Scrape down the sides of the work bowl and pulse a few more times.  Open the pour spout and with the motor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil.  Transfer the tartar sauce to an air-tight container and refrigerate until ready to use.

***The recipe suggests making the tartar sauce 24 hours in advance to allow the flavors to develop.  I usually forget to do this and make it the same day I plan to use it and it still tastes great.

 

 

Dinner, Recipes, Side Dishes, Vegetarian

Potato & Leek Gratin

September 16, 2013

Potato Gratin sliceDeborah Madison is a renowned vegetarian chef, teacher and author of 9 cookbooks.  I bought Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone back in 1997 when it was first published and until this day it remains one of my favorite cookbooks.  Her recipes are accessible and most of the ingredients can be easily found at your local grocery store.

Potato in MilkThinly sliced potatoes are simmered in milk, along with herbs, garlic and leeks until they are barely tender.  A portion of the milk will be used in the gratin and the leftover milk, well flavored by the herbs, garlic and leeks and thickened with potato starch can be used as a soup base (I use the leftover milk in corn chowder).

Layered PotatoesPotatoes are layered and sprinkled with leeks, garlic, cheese, white pepper and nutmeg.  A cup or so of the milk used to simmer the potatoes is added back into the gratin.

potatoes with cheese

Potato & Leek Gratin

Potato & Leek Gratin

Adapted from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison

Serves 6

Updated 1/16/16 – Increased cheese from 1 1/2 – 2 cups

Ingredients

1 garlic clove and butter for the dish

2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and very thinly sliced (I use my Benriner and make 1/8 inch thick slices)

4 cups milk (I use half whole and half 2% milk and save any leftovers to make corn chowder)

1 bay leaf

3 fresh thyme sprigs or 2 pinches dried

3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 leeks, white parts only, thinly sliced

salt and freshly milled white pepper

nutmeg

2 cups grated cheese (The recipe calls for Gruyere and suggests variations such as Fontina or Cheddar)

2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Rub an 8 x 11 inch gratin dish with the garlic, then with butter, coating well.

Put the potatoes in a pot with the milk, bay leaf, thyme, sliced garlic, leeks and 2 teaspoons salt.  Slowly bring to a boil, then simmer until the potatoes are barely tender but not to the point of falling apart (about 6 – 7 minutes).  Discard the bay leaf and thyme.  Drain the milk into a separate bowl.

Make a single layer of potatoes, scatter some of the leeks and garlic over the potatoes and season lightly with freshly ground white pepper, a little nutmeg, and cover lightly with cheese.  Repeat until all the potatoes and cheese are used up, ending with a layer of cheese.  Add enough milk to come up to the last layer of potatoes, about 1 – 1 1/2 cups.  Dot with the butter then bake until a golden crust has formed on top, about 50 minutes.

 

 

 

Dinner, Recipes, Side Dishes, Soups, Vegetarian

Summer Roasted Tomato Soup

September 10, 2013

Tomato SoupOur “Big Beef” tomato plants aren’t producing large tomatoes anymore, just a few golf-ball sized orbs.   The plants are looking a bit ragged yet we are still collecting a few tomatoes here and there and they’re so much better than any supermarket tomatoes (in our area, that is).  I had 4 pounds of ripe tomatoes and the freezer was already well stocked with fresh tomato sauce and homemade pizza sauce and there was no way I was going to oven dry tomatoes for 6 hours in this heat!  So soup it was going to be. I adapted this recipe from David Lebovitz who adapted his recipe from The Bonne Femme Cookbook.

thymeThyme is a perfect match for the roasted tomatoes.  Martha Stewart uses marjoram which would certainly work just as well in this soup.

Roasted TomatoesRoasting the tomatoes helps to intensify their natural sweetness and imparts a more delicate flavor to the garlic and onions.

Tomato Soup up close

Summer Roasted Tomato Soup

Makes 2 quarts

Adapted from David Lebovitz blog

Ingredients

4 pounds ripe tomatoes

1/2 large onion, sliced

6 – 10 cloves garlic, peeled

1 tablespoon olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 1/2 cups liquid (I used half water and half chicken broth)

2 1/2  teaspoons minced thyme

1 tablespoon sugar

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Core the stem portion of the tomatoes.  Cut the tomatoes in half horizontally and squeeze out the seeds.  Toss the tomatoes with the olive oil and garlic on a rimmed baking sheet and season generously with salt and pepper.  Rub a little oil on the onion slices.  Turn the tomatoes so they are all cut side down and lay onion slices between the tomatoes and garlic.  Bake for 20 – 30 minutes, until the tomatoes are completely soft and beginning to char on the bottoms.  Slip off the tomato skins before proceeding to the next step.

Warm the water and stock in a large saucepan with the tomatoes, garlic, onions and any juices left in the pan.  Add the thyme.  Once warm, simmer for 10 minutes.  Remove from the heat and let cool.  Blend the tomato mixture with the sugar (My blender could not accommodate the entire recipe so I did this in two batches).

I noticed that blenderizing the tomato mixture meant aerating the ingredients which gave the soup a very light orange color.  If you slowly reheat the soup, the color changes into a vibrant and gorgeous color.  This turned out to be a wonderful soup and I will be adding  it to my collection of recipes.

***For vegetarian tomato soup replace the chicken broth with water.

Appetizers, Kimchi, Korean, Recipes, Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetarian, Veggies

Quick Cucumber Kimchi

September 4, 2013

Cucumber KimchiThere’s not many combinations better than spicy, garlicky, kimchi and a bowl of steaming hot rice.  When accompanied with either grilled chicken or tofu marinated in Granny’s Teriyaki sauce, or Korean Style Hamburger Patties, it’s a mouth-watering experience.

Japanese CucumberI do enjoy the more traditional Napa cabbage kimchi but there’s something special about crunchy cucumber kimchi.  Whole Spice Korean chili flakes add a beautiful color and mild sweetness without too much heat to the kimchi.

Kimchi Ingredients

Quick Cucumber Kimchi

Serves 2 as a side dish

Ingredients

1 pound Japanese cucumber, halved lengthwise and sliced crosswise into 1/3 inch thick slices.

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/4 cup thinly sliced Maui or sweet onion

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon minced ginger

1 tablespoon finely chopped green onion

2 teaspoons sesame oil

dash of fish sauce (optional)

3 teaspoons Korean chili flakes

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Preparation

Place sliced cucumbers in a large bowl and sprinkle with 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt.  Toss well.  Let stand for 20 minutes then rinse and drain well.  Rinse the bowl.

Place cucumbers back into the bowl and add the remaining ingredients.  Mix everything together and transfer to a smaller serving bowl.  Refrigerate until chilled.  Sprinkle additional green onions on the top before serving if desired.  The kimchi is best eaten the same day.  Any leftovers are a welcome addition to your bento lunch the following day.

 

Appetizers, Pressure Cooker, Recipes, Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetarian, Veggies

Pressure Cooker Artichokes

August 30, 2013

ArtichokesArtichokes are curious little veggies.  With thorny leaves and not much to eat, one wonders why so much time is spent fussing over them let alone the 45 minutes it typically takes to cook them.  But there’s something quite special about dipping those little leaves into a bowl of garlic infused melted butter or homemade mayonnaise.  And once picked bare, you’re rewarded with a delicious meaty artichoke heart.

Artichokes in pressure cookerI may have mentioned that I’m in love with the pressure cooker we recently purchased.  I find it absolutely delightful how quick you can cook food in it.  Perfectly cooked artichokes in 10 minutes?  Yes!

Artichokes with mayo

Pressure Cooker Artichokes

Serves 2 – 4 as an appetizer

Ingredients

2 large artichokes, washed and trimmed

1 tablespoons olive oil (optional)

1 teaspoon salt

Preparation

Wash the artichokes thoroughly under cold running water, rinsing between the leaves. Cut off the stem end of the artichokes close to the base.  With a sharp knife, slice off the top 1 1/2 – 2 inches of each artichoke.  Using a pair of kitchen scissors, cut off the sharp points of the leaves.  Place artichokes in pressure cooker and fill with water just below the maximum liquid limit.  Add olive oil if using and salt.  Secure lid on cooker and bring to full pressure over medium-high heat.  Once the pressure cooker comes up to pressure, lower the heat to a low burner setting so that it maintains pressure without exceeding it. Continue to cook for 10 minutes.  Quick release the pressure by pressing the button on the handle or by running cold water over the lid in the sink. Remove artichokes and drain upside down on a paper towel lined plate.  Serve warm with your favorite dipping sauce.  The artichokes can be made in advance, covered and refrigerated and heated before serving.

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox

Join other followers: