Vegetable Stew

I hadn't made this recipe in probably ten years and then suddenly woke up one morning with a craving for it. I don't know what vital nutrient I'm lacking that would account for such an atypically healthy craving. I just labeled it a happy anomaly and went with it. I have to stay, it was a nice change of pace not to feel guilty for indulging myself. And after a walk to the farmer's market (where I was delighted to find every vegetable on my list), I came home and whipped up a batch of this hearty stew that totally hit the spot. Really, I swear (again, I can't explain it).

VEGETABLE STEW

Yield: 6 large servings

6 tablespoons unsalted butter (or 5 tablespoons olive oil)

2 medium onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 medium potatoes, cut into small chunks

1 eggplant, diced
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 stalks celery, sliced
1 stalk broccoli, cut into tiny florets

3 carrots, sliced
3/4 cup burgundy (or other red wine)
2 medium-small zucchini, cut into chunks
2 large (or 3 medium) ripe tomatoes, diced
¼ lb. sliced white or cremini mushrooms
6 oz. tomato paste
¼ cup molasses (unsulfured)
1 teaspoon dried dill weed

sour cream (optional)

freshly chopped parsley (optional)

1.      Melt the butter or oil in a large stew pot.  Add the onions, garlic, potatoes and eggplant and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Sauté until potatoes begin to get tender.

2.      Stir in the celery, broccoli, carrots and wine. Cover the pot and steam until all vegetables begin to get tender, stirring occasionally.

3.      Add zucchini, tomatoes, mushrooms, tomato paste, molasses and dill. Cover and simmer over low heat for about 20 minutes, or until all vegetables are tender (stirring occasionally). Season with salt and pepper to taste.

4.      Serve hot, topped with sour cream and freshly chopped parsley.

slightly adapted from Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen

onions, garlic, potatoes and eggplant in pot

starting to get tender

adding celery, carrots, broccoli and wine

added vegetables getting tender

adding zucchini, tomatoes, mushrooms,
tomato paste, molasses and dill

mixed

about 25 minutes later...vegetable stew

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Carrot Chips

I wasn't going to bother posting this because it's kind of a non-recipe (fry carrots, sprinkle with salt and you're done). But then I kept thinking about how much everyone loved these and thought it would be a real shame if I forgot they exist and never made them again. I fried them on Thanksgiving, before the turkey even went in to our fryer, and left them out in a bowl for my guests to nibble on. They were pretty much devoured by kids and adults alike. Big, big hit. I think I fried 8 or 9 large carrots (which filled a large bowl with a lot of ribbons and seemed like plenty). Next year, I'm buying the extra large bag.

CARROT CHIPS

large carrots

canola oil or other no-taste oil (I used coconut)

salt to taste

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1.      Slice carrots lengthwise into thin ribbons using either a peeler or mandolin. Pat dry with paper towels.

2.      Pour enough oil into a large, deep pot or deep fryer to reach a depth of a few inches (the oil will bubble and splutter a little, so be careful). Heat oil to 375° F.

3.      Fry the carrot ribbons until crispy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Fry in batches if necessary (do not crowd the pot/fryer). Drain on paper towels.

4.      Sprinkle with salt while still hot. Let cool slightly before serving.

I didn't trust myself to use the mandolin
for this job (slicing carrots lengthwise is just too
close for my comfort). So I used a peeler and pressed
down hard to get the thickest possible ribbons.

The first ribbon is usually very thin,
but as you go, they get thicker.

carrot ribbon

You should blot these a little with paper towels, so
they're as dry as possible when you fry them (water
and hot oil don't mix). I didn't get an actual photo of
these in my turkey fryer because I didn't intend to post
this (I just ribboned the carrot above 5 minutes ago to
show you what it looks like). But trust me, they went in
to the fryer and then came out again a few minutes later.

fried and sprinkled with salt
(they shrink)

Obviously I did take a photo of the fried carrots
(but if I'd planned to post this, I would have
taken a better close up for you). Oh well.

crunchy, delightful carrot chips
(a little sweet and a little salty)

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Fall Harvest Red Lentil Soup

I figure if it's going to start snowing in October in New Jersey, then it's game on for soup season and I'd better step it up a little. What I love about this soup, aside from its deliciousness, is how there is some nice protein slipped in from the red lentils. You can't really tell because the other flavors are more prominent, but it's nice to know you're getting a well balanced meal. In your face early winter.

FALL HARVEST RED LENTIL SOUP

Yield: 6-8 servings

4 tablespoons unsalted butter (or olive oil)

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped

3 large carrots, peeled and chopped

1 apple, peeled, cored and chopped

1 onion, chopped

1/2 cup red lentils

1/2 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon paprika

4 cups vegetable broth or chicken broth

plain yogurt

1.      Melt the butter in a large, heavy bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add the sweet potatoes, carrots, apple and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are translucent, about 10 minutes.

2.      Stir in the lentils, ginger, salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, paprika, and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the lentils and vegetables are soft, about 30 minutes.

3.      Using an immersion blender, puree soup until smooth (or puree in blender in batches).

4.      Bring soup back to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook for about 10 minutes. Add water as needed to thin to your preferred consistency. Serve garnished with yogurt.

from allrecipes.com by zhidaoma

apple and vegetables

I used a honeycrisp apple, because that's my favorite.

chopped carrot

chopped sweet potato

apple and vegetables in the pot

adding spices and red lentils

If you want to increase the protein content more, you
can add more lentils (just increase the broth a little).

broth added

cooked and ready to blend

You can skip the blending (or blend only halfway) if you like it chunky.

This is a very thick soup - if you like yours thinner, just add more broth.

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Carrot-Ginger Quinoa Pepperjacks

I was definitely in the Halloween spirit this week, but not feeling terribly original I guess. First I made a snakewich (concept stolen from Better Homes and Gardens) and now I've gone and robbed pepperjacks from a blogger named spabettie. But can you blame me? Really, they're just so cute. I couldn't help myself. And the quinoa cooked in the carrot-ginger juice tastes really fresh and delicious. Plus it's good for you (that was just a happy accident).

CARROT-GINGER QUINOA PEPPER JACKS

Yield: 2

1/2 cup dry black quinoa

1 cup carrot-ginger juice (5 carrots + 1-inch piece ginger, juiced)

1 cup cooked black beans

2 orange bell peppers

sea salt

spinach salad for serving (optional)

1.      Combine quinoa and carrot-ginger juice in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 20 minutes.

2.      Preheat oven to 350º F.

3.      Hollow out and carve the peppers to resemble jack-o-lanterns.

4.      Combine cooked quinoa with black beans and salt to taste.

5.      Fill peppers and bake for 30 minutes.

6.      Serve over spinach salad if desired.

from spabettie

carrots and ginger

juicing carrots and ginger

If you don't have a juicer, see if you can find carrot or
carrot-ginger juice in the refrigerated section at your
store. If you can find plain carrot juice, you can always
grate some ginger and squeeze the juice in yourself.

carrot-ginger juice

black quinoa

I think this would also taste/look good with black forbidden rice.

quinoa and carrot-ginger juice in pan

cooked quinoa with black beans mixed in

cutting my pepper jack

I went a little overboard with my cutouts.
They should be much more dainty, especially the
mouth (unless you're actually trying to make it look
like your pepper jack is throwing up quinoa).

filling a pepper

filled pepper jacks, before baking

baked

See what I mean, the one on the left looks like
he just ate expired clams from a gas station.

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