Kale and White Bean Soup with Meatless Nutballs

These vegetarian meatballs were so good. I ate three of them when they came out of the oven, while still making the soup. Then I inhaled this dish after I took the photo. They were so delicious with the tomatoey broth. If you want something meaty, but are avoiding eating meat for whatever reason, you'll like these Nutty Vegballs. That is what he said.

I was on my way to the store and asked my Man what he had a taste for. He said "meatball soup". I was like, "Yum! turkey meatballs?" And he said "or just get a bag of veggie meatballs from the freezer". Hmmm, those things are awful. I decided to make my own. I wanted vegetarian meatballs with umami flavor and meaty texture that wouldn't fall apart in the soup. I looked up vegetarian meatball recipes. Some of them had nuts, so I decided to add nuts to see if they'd add meatiness. It worked, the nuts give these veggie meatballs a delicious texture and savoriness. I used sunflower seeds, almonds and a few sesame seeds. Along with eggs and garbanzo beans, they held together and had a great bite. The cheese and worcestershire add to the umami flavor. 

Heat oven to 350. Butter a cookie sheet.

In a food processor, process 1/2 cup sunflower nutmeats and 2 tblsp almonds until they become tiny bits, but not powder. Add to a bowl. Process 1 can garbanzo beans until crumbly, add those to the bowl. Stir in 1/2 cup bread crumbs, 1 small minced onion, 1 minced shallot, 3 smashed and chopped cloves garlic, 2 tblsp olive oil, a sprinkle of garlic powder, dash each of worcestershire & soy sauce, 1 tblsp sesame seed, salt, pepper, celery salt, 2 tsp dried basil, 2 tblsp leftover pesto if you have any, 2 eggs, 1/4 cup grated cheddar, 1/4 cup grated parmesan. Mix well to combine & don't over mix.

Roll the balls smaller than a golf ball. Place on the cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes until hot and cooked through. 

For the Kale and Cabbage Soup: Sauté one diced parsnip, 2 chopped carrots, 2 chopped celery stalks, 1 small minced onion, 3 cloves garlic and 1 shallot in a little olive oil until fragrant. Add one large can diced tomatoes, 2 cups veggie broth, 1 can rinsed and drained organic white beans, 1 cup chopped cabbage, celery salt, pepper, pinch of dried basil, large pinch of dried parsley, 1/2 tsp sugar. Simmer about 10 or 15 minutes until desired doneness. Add 1/2 cup chopped kale. Serve over the Veggieballs, garnish with a squeeze of fresh lemon and parmesan shavings. Yum!

Dr.'d Up Confetti Pizza

This isn't a recipe so much as it is a method. This is easy and delicious if you need something fast, fresh tasting and vitamin rich. Oregano is a healthy ingredient. I've read that it has anti bacterial and disease fighting qualities. 

Buy a frozen cheese pizza, the frozen disk of dough is the perfect base to stand up to a bunch of diced veggies without turning soggy or breaking apart.

Using the tip of a butter knife, remove as much of the cheese as possible, letting it fall onto a large plate . (This cheese goes back on top, so don't worry)

Dice as many vegetables as you like. I usually use red or yellow bell peppers, zucchini, mushrooms, crushed garlic, fresh chopped basil, and any kind of tomatoes, cherry tomatoes cut in half work great for this. Drizzle the veggies with a little olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Add a big pinch of oregano and a pinch of basil. Toss and put it all on top of the pizza, piled high. 

Put the cheese back on, along with any extra cheese you might want, like Parmesano Reggiano. 

Bake according to package, but since there are so many extra ingredients, lower the oven temp by 20 degrees, so the crust doesn't burn before the veggies cook.  And maybe cook for an extra 5-10 minutes or so, keep an eye on it.

Be careful not to burn the roof of your mouth (like I did yesterday) when you take the first bite.

Yum!

I'm posting this because people don't talk about it enough. Grilled cheese with a big slice of tomato in the middle. The tomato gets extra juicy and hot while the cheese melts. It's easy and delicious. Spread the word. 

I hope you can see this, I accidentally had my camera on a setting that made my sandwich look all sexy and mysterious. 

Six Way Chili

This is the best! I love home made chili. I make it slightly Cincinnati style with the addition of cinnamon. You can leave the cinnamon out if you like.

The title "6 way" is a Cincinnatti thing as well.  It refers to serving 1) chili 2) over spaghetti, 3) with cheese, 4) additional kidney beans ( I add mine into the chili itself) 5) chopped onions garnish and 6) sour cream.

Here's how to make 6 way chili:

Heat olive oil in heavy bottomed large pot over medium-high heat. Sear ground beef or ground turkey,  until browned. Season with salt and pepper. Drain off the fat. (Substitute morningstar crumbles or just skip this step for vegetarian chili.)

Set the cooked meat aside and add 1 chopped onion to the pot along with 2 chopped carrots, 3 stalks chopped celery and 1 chopped red bell pepper. Cook the veggies until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add chopped 1 minced jalapeño and 4 smashed garlic cloves. Stir for a minute.  Add the cooked beef back to the pot, along with 1 tsp (or more to taste) chili powder, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon, salt and pepper and 1 tsp smoked or sweet paprika.

You can also add a little bit of cayenne or hot sauce if you like your chili very spicy. I keep the whole pot somewhat neutral for parties and then let everybody spice it up individually with hot sauce or cayenne.

Mix in 1 can chopped tomatoes with juices, 1 large can of tomato sauce or blended whole peeled tomatoes, 1 can kidney beans rinsed and drained, 1 can black beans rinsed and drained, and 1 bottle of beer (optional) Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about 45 minutes.  

 Serve over cooked spaghetti with grated cheese, chopped sweet onions, chopped jalapeño, fresh chopped cilantro and sour cream or plain yogurt. Yummy!

Crunchy Fennel Salad

With crispy, organic oven-fried chicken and buttermilk dressing. Yummy! You start by making the oven fried chicken. It's a bit time consuming, but worth every minute if you want crunchy deliciousness. If you use a whole, cut up chicken, and only 1 or 2 people are eating dinner, you'll have enough left over for this salad. I made this chicken last night. We had it with roasted sweet potatoes, sauteed spinach, and baked beans. It was awesome! And now the leftovers are awesome with fennel salad. 

For the crispy chicken:

In a large bowl, place organic cut up chicken pieces in enough buttermilk to cover, (make sure to save at least 1/2 cup in the fridge for the dressing). Season with salt and pepper, a tiny bit of paprika, a dash of cayenne, fresh chopped parsley and 1/4 tsp garlic powder. Let this marinate in the fridge for a few hours so the buttermilk can tenderize the meat.  If you’ve never had buttermilk chicken, you’ll be amazed at how delicious it comes out.

While the chicken marinates, in a food processor combine 2 cups corn flakes, 1 cup bread crumbs (or 3 pieces of stale bread that you dry out in a low oven), 1/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, big pinch of dried basil, 1/4 tsp paprika, and some salt and pepper. Pulse until it looks like bread crumbs. This should be enough for 5-6 pieces of chicken.

Scramble 2 eggs in a bowl and dip the buttermilk coated chicken in the scrambled eggs, and then coat with the corn flake mixture. Discard the remaining chicken marinade. Try to use separate hands for the egg mixture and the crumbs or you end up with crumby coated hands. Place all the pieces on a buttered cookie sheet and drizzle with melted butter.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until crisp and cooked through. 

For the salad: thinly chop 1 fennel bulb, being careful to remove the hard triangular core at the center bottom, 1 carrot, 2 cups Napa cabbage, 1/2 cup purple cabbage, and a few stalks of broccoli. 

For the dressing, Mix 1/2 cup buttermilk, 3 tablespoons mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1 small minced shallot ( about 1 tblsp), 1 tablespoon sugar, 1/2 tsp dry dill, a pinch of cayenne if you like it spicy. Season with celery salt and pepper.

Garnish with some of the pretty fennel tops.

Yum!!

Moo Shu Style Chinese Crepes

I grew the Swiss Chard in this dish! Yay to my little veggie garden.

I've seen this kind of simple Chinese crepe on cooking shows, and the chef always makes it look so quick and easy. It really is. 

For appx 3 crepes: Mix 3 or 4 tblsp rice flour with 2 tblsp water and then beat in 2 eggs. Pour a thin layer (about 1/4 cup or less of the batter) in a hot skillet, sprayed with vegetable spray. (One of mine came out mangled when it stuck to the pan, so make sure to spritz a bit of veg oil between each one.) Let the crepe set, then flip once. Done.

That's the basic recipe, you can double triple or quadruple it depending on how many people you're cooking crepes for. I love the rice flour cause it's so nice and light. (And it's gluten free.)

The ones I made in the photo are filled with mixed veggies and shredded chicken. You can use any type of veggie or meat filling you like. Pork would be great, so would shrimp and some bean sprouts.  For a great Chinese flavor don't leave out the ginger, garlic, soy sauce and cilantro.

 Here's how I made the mixed veggies: In a medium /hot skillet (or wok), add 1 tblsp canola, veggie oil or coconut oil, 2 crushed garlic cloves and about an inch of fresh grated ginger.  Let those cook for a few seconds and then add some chopped shitake mushrooms, chopped swiss chard stalks and thinly sliced zuchini, or any veggies you like. Once those are cooked a bit,  add the chopped leaves of the Swiss chard and some shredded cooked chicken. Season with fresh ground black pepper, 1 tblsp light soy sauce and some fresh chopped cilantro.

  The dipping sauce is 1 tblsp apricot preserves, 1/2 tblsp sambal oelek (or more depending on how hot you like it), 1/2 tsp sesame oil, and 1 tblsp hoisin sauce. Place the cooked veggies on one end of the crepe, roll it up and serve with the sweet hot sauce.

yum !

Ahi Tuna & Pistachio Pesto Sandwich

Yes, this was as yummy as it looks.

Here's how I did it:

Get the best (Sushi grade) Ahi Tuna steaks you can find.  Heat a cast iron pan to high heat, spread a little olive oil on both sides of the tuna steak, salt and pepper, and then sear on both sides for about 2 minutes per side. It's best is you leave it a little bit pink in the middle. If you don't like it that way, you can cook it a bit longer, but don't overcook it or it will become a brick.

For the pistachio pesto dressing:

In a food processor, combine 1/2 cup lightly toasted pistachios, cooled, with 3/4 cups grated parmesan cheese. Pulse till crumbly. Now add 1 large clove garlic, crushed, 2 tablespoons butter, cut into little squares, fresh ground black pepper, a shake of salt & 2 cups fresh basil, washed and stemmed. Pulse to combine.

It should be a bit crumbly at this point or start to form a dough ball. Scrape down the sides and turn on the food processor on again. As the machine runs, drizzle in about 1/4 cup olive oil, add more oil depending on the consistency you like.

Spread a little bit of the pesto on some crusty brad and broil till the bread is toasted and the pesto melts a little.

Slice the tuna steak and serve on the crusty bread with some shredded lettuce and toasted black sesame seeds for garnish.

YUM!