Asparagus Pesto

I followed this recipe somewhat loosely, mostly because I was under a little bit of a time crunch. I will definitely make this again, and will likely follow the recipe a little closer, but this is what I did tonight:


1 bunch baby asparagus spears (about 2.5 inches in diameter), ends broken off
1 & 1/3 oz (2 2/3oz packages) fresh basil leaves
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 4.25oz package pine nuts
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for topping
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
8oz Barilla Plus angel hair pasta


In a food processor, add basil, pine nuts, garlic, cheese and olive oil, pulse until blended but not too much.

Bring a pot of water to a boil, add asparagus and cook for 2-3 minutes.

You could drain it, but I chose to take the asparagus out of the water with tongs and rinse them with cold water in a colander, immediately adding the pasta to the water so you don't have to wait for more water to boil.

While pasta is cooking (approx 6 minutes), cut heads off asparagus and save for garnish. Add asparagus to basil mixture and pulse until big pieces are blended.

Drain and rinse pasta with cold water, toss with pesto, garnish with asparagus heads and serve.

The original recipe called for lemon juice and I think I would add that next time.

Tortilla Soup

This is my adaptation of a recipe I found when I googled "tortilla soup".


6 (6-inch) corn tortillas
1/4 cup garlic-infused grapeseed oil (we bought a bottle from Chateu St. Jean in Napa last summer)
1/2 large white onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 large poblano chile, seeded, veins removed, chopped
2 4oz cand Ortega Fire Roasted diced green chiles
2 14.5oz cans Swanson vegetable broth
1 cube Not-Chick'n broth seasoning
1 14.5oz can Hunts Fire Roasted diced tomatoes with garlic
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Garnishes:
Sour Cream (light)
Shredded cheese (cheddar, jack, whatever you like)
Avocado
Fresh Cilantro, finely chopped


If you are starting with somewhat old, dried out tortillas, great. If not and you are starting with relatively fresh tortillas, put them on a baking sheet and put them in the oven at 200°F for 10-15 minutes to dry them out a bit. It is best to start with tortillas that don't have a lot of moisture in them.


Cut tortillas in half; cut halves into 1/4-inch strips. In 3-quart saucepan, heat oil over medium-high heat. Fry strips in oil, 1/3 at a time, until light brown and crisp. Remove from pan; drain on paper towels.


Add onion to oil, cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add garlic and chile; cook 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently, until vegetables are crisp-tender. Stir in broth, tomatoes, broth cube and salt. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 15 minutes. .


Divide half of tortilla strips among 4 individual serving bowls; ladle in soup. Top with cheese; garnish with remaining tortilla strips and cilantro. Add a dollop of sour cream and/or avocado.

How to Fake a Meat Loaf

This is a recipe I came up with a few years ago and posted on my blog... since we have a food blog now, I decided to share it here.


I am a vegetarian. By choice and because I was raised as one.

Meatloaf has always sounded good to me so tonight I googled "Morning Star crumbles vegetarian meatloaf" and came up with a few recipes. I printed them out, read them, and then did my own thing.

Keep in mind that measurements are all approximate, I didn't actually measure anything.

1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 large white onion, diced
celery salt
garlic powder
1 & 1/2 packages of Morning Star Farms burger crumbles
1/4 cup dried parsley flakes
1 teaspoon basil flakes
1 cup bread crumbs (I didn't have quite a cup so I added about 1/4 cup of crushed cheese crackers)
2 eggs
1 cup fresh button mushrooms, sliced
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup ketchup

Set oven to 350 Bake.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine olive oil and onion. Sprinkle with celery salt. Saute for about a minute and add fresh mushrooms.

In a separate bowl, combine bread crumbs, basil flakes and parsley flakes.

As mushrooms begin to soften, add burger crumbles and keep stirring to thaw crumbles. Once crumbles are thaw and mixture is fully mixed, remove from heat and add bread crumb mixture. Add eggs one at a time and stir in. Add ketchup and Worcestershire sauce. Sprinkle with garlic powder (about a 1/2 teaspoon).

Spray a 9x9 baking pan and press mixture into it. Bake for about an hour.

MORE Soup!

I have a potato obsession. Okay, perhaps it's a carbohydrate obsession, seeing as I love potatoes and bread equally... but my love for potatoes is strong and passionate.

About 10 years ago I was in the habit of hosting a weekly "Dinner Night" at my apartment and would try to make things that were relatively simple, easy to adapt for large groups, and TASTY. This recipe has always been a hit with everyone I've ever served it to.

What could be better than potatoes and cheese? I did some googling of potato-cheese soup and came across this interesting recipe for Ecuadorian Potato Cheese Soup with Avocado. Not all of my friends love avocado as much as I do, so I usually just serve it as a garnish instead of including it in the bowl to begin with.

Ecuadorian Potato-Cheese Soup (with or without avocado...)




2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 teaspoon Hungarian sweet paprika
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
4 cups cold water
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
4 large Yukon Gold potatoes (about 2 pounds) or other boiling potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
2 cups light cream
2 cups corn kernels
1 cup crumbled queso blanco, crumbled farmer's cheese or grated Muenster cheese (about 1/4 pound)
2 medium-size ripe avocados
Snipped fresh chives or fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish



In a large saucepan, heat butter over medium heat. Add the onion, paprika and turmeric and sauté until onion is softened, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the water, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Add the potatoes. Lower heat and simmer, covered, until potatoes are tender, about 25 minutes.





Break up potatoes into smaller pieces with a fork or wooden spoon. Stir in the cream and corn and cook until heated through and corn is tender, about 4 minutes. Stir in the cheese and heat until melted, about 1 minute.

Halve, peel and pit the avocados. Slice crosswise. Place avocado pieces in soup bowls, ladle soup over the avocado slices, garnish with snipped fresh chives or cilantro leaves, and serve.

*I often find that the soup needs more salt, but add to your own taste.

Makes 8 servings.

Variation: For a meat version, stir in 1 pound of shredded, cooked chicken



When I made this tonight I sliced a whole avocado into my bowl of soup - FANTASTIC.

Souuup!

One of my favorite restaurants in Portland, Oregon is Old Wives' Tales. I'm sure that part of my love for the place has to do with the wide variety of vegetarian options, but everything I've ever had there has always been delicious.

My VERY favorite thing on the menu is Hungarian Mushroom Soup. Growing up I was not much of a soup-eater, but this was the one exception and I've loved it ever since.

I don't know the origins of this particular recipe, and don't know how accurate it is in comparison to that made at Old Wives' Tales, but it works for me!


Hungarian Mushroom Soup
3/4 lbs fresh button mushrooms, sliced
1 large onion, chopped
1 tablespoon dill weed (I use fresh when I can)
1 tablespoon paprika
2 tablespoons tamari (I used light soy sauce tonight)
4 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons white flour
1 cup milk
2 cups water or vegetable stock
1/2 cup sour cream

In medium pot or large sauce-pan, saute mushrooms and onion in 2 tbs butter until onions start to turn clear and mushrooms are starting to soften.

Add water (or stock), dill, paprika & tamari. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

Microwave milk in separate container for about a minute.

In a small pot, melt remaining butter and stir in flour. Cook over medium heat to slightly browned, whisk in milk, then add mixture to mushroom mixture.

Stir in sour cream just before serving.


I ate most of the pot by myself.

Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Ingredients

• Kosher salt
• 1 10-ounce bag baby spinach
• 1 cup packed fresh basil
• 3/4 cup canned cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 6 ounces Neufchatel cream cheese
• 1 clove garlic, smashed
• 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 14-ounce can artichoke hearts, drained, squeezed dry and finely chopped
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 3/4 cup shredded low-fat mozzarella cheese
• 1 tbs SparkPlug 
• 2 or 3 dashes Worcestershire sauce
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Cooking spray
• Baked chips, for serving

Notes before we start: I used more Parmesan cheese than it called for, and I added a thicker layer of Pepper jack and mozzarella on top. I also substituted hot sauce for the cayenne pepper. Also... I saved a lot of time and trouble by just using frozen spinach. I served with "pita chips"... which I think would translate better than regular tortilla chips.  Enjoy this recipe... its unbelievable.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and prepare a bowl of ice water. Stir the spinach and basil into the boiling water and cook until bright green, about 30 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon and immediately plunge in the ice water. Drain and squeeze dry, then roughly chop.

Puree the beans, cream cheese, garlic and chicken broth in a food processor until smooth, scraping the sides as needed. Transfer to a medium bowl and fold in the spinach and basil, artichokes, parmesan and 1/2 cup mozzarella. Add the cayenne, Worcestershire sauce, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and black pepper to taste.

Mist a deep 1-quart casserole dish with cooking spray. Spread the dip mixture in the dish and top with the remaining 1/4 cup mozzarella. Bake until golden and bubbly, 20 to 25 minutes. Serve warm with baked chips.

Per serving (1/4 cup): Calories 100; Fat 5 g (Saturated 3 g); Cholesterol 19 mg; Sodium 338 mg; Carbohydrate 7 g; Fiber 2 g; Protein 6 g

Thanksgiving 2010

My Mom and Step-Dad-Equivalent came to visit for Thanksgiving, but airline prices being what they are, flew out ON Thanksgiving instead of Friday since it was more than $100 cheaper to do so. They live a vegan lifestyle most of the time so our menu was catered to them to a small extent.

Menu:
Quadruple Bypass Mashed Potatoes
Mushroom Wine Gravy
Tofu Croquettes
Sweet Potatoes with Onions and Peppers
Fresh Spinach and Cherry Tomatoes
Mixed Greek Olives
Jellied Cranberry Sauce & Whole Cranberry Sauce (Ocean Spray)
Green Bean Casserole
California Seedless Grapes

There is also a home-made pumpkin cheesecake, and key lime pie from the Boll Weevil restaurant, in addition to left over "Perfect Chocolate Cake" from Boll Weevil as well.

I modified a Pumpkin Cheesecake recipe I found online as I couldn't find the one I usually use, I used pre-made crusts and didn't make the topping. We'll be serving it with Whipped cream instead. (Although I may make the topping later if I make another one on Friday).