5 Salads in 5 Days: Sichuan Slaw

Fail. I guess I had to expect that it would come at some point this week. At first glance, when I was making my grocery list this week, this slaw looked like a sure thing. It resembles an asian slaw that I make frequently (with cabbage, carrots, red bell peppers, scallions, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil and hot red pepper flakes in case you want to make a good slaw) so I figured I should try this version to jazz up my old favorite a little.

Upon second look, I started to doubt this recipe. My first issue was that mung bean sprouts were the main element. I love bean in pad thai and scattered on salads, but to think of a dish based around them worried me. As my sister eloquently put it when I spoke to her on the phone the next day, "sometimes bean sprouts taste like dirty dish water." And that they did. My other concern was with the intense trio of herbs suggester: basil, cilantro and mint. It sounded like too much and it was.

As soon as I got to work on Thursday I started regretting my choice of lunch. You have to understand that this time of year at work is a difficult one. We are less than one month away from the biggest, most stressful, complicated day of the season and everything is beginning to add up at an alarming rate. The room I work in not only has no windows, but has no immediate access to the outside world. Lunch time is the one time when I come up for air and find out what the weather that day actually is. I try to get in my vitamin D for the day as quickly as possible and I treasure the opportunity to breathe fresh air. But in addition to being the busiest time of the year inside the office, it is the most miserable time of year outside the office. Unlike the rest of the northern hemisphere, San Francisco chooses July and August for its own personal winter. The jokes and rumors you hear are absolutely true. These days I not only wear long pants, boots, sweaters and coats every day but I have resorted to layering thermals under my clothes on especially bad days. No kidding. Therefore, my lunchtimes are forced to be depressing indoor affairs. No walks, no sitting in the park, no fun excursions in the sunshine. Instead I just sit at my desk with my other sun-deprived colleagues and eat the food I brought from home. Now you might be beginning to understand how important actually liking that food is. My one singular sensory joy between the hours of 9 and 6 on a regular work day is the food I eat for lunch. And this lunch sucked. Waah.

As I sat eating it with my friends, I literally was forced to stop for a minute and stifle the urge to say "whoa!" after every single bite. Too. Much. Flavor. This dish had waaay too much going on. That plus the bean sprouts made this dish a watery problem. I will post the recipe below because I do think it has some potential. If I make this again though, I will go with my instincts and replace the bean sprouts with cabbage and take out 2 of the herbs.

Sichuan Slaw (thanks for nothing New York Times)

1 1/2 cups mung bean sprouts

2 shredded carrots

2 shredded stalks of celery

1 minced red thai chili

1 Tbsp. minced basil

1 Tbsp. minced mint

1 Tbsp. minced cilantro

soy sauce, sesame oil and a dash of sugar to taste

Oh well, better luck tomorrow.

5 Salads in 5 Days: Watermelon and Tomato Salad

Ok, back to the New York Times article today! I took a leap of faith and finally tried a salad I've been meaning to make for many many years. Literally, I've always been intrigued by watermelon and tomato salads, but in the end always decided that I probably wouldn't like it too much based on two basic principles: I don't like tomatoes that much and I don't like to mix fruit with savory food. The first reason is just a sad fact of life, regardless of how much I love tomato sauce, tomato juice and bits of tomatoes in lots of little things (does guacamole count?) I rarely eat a tomato in a salad unless it's a little grape tomato. It's sad, but true. I've made little strides in recent years in my quest to like tomatoes, but a whole bowl full of them for lunch sounds daunting. The second reason is also a lame preference of mine. I don't like really like fruit in my dinner foods. No pineapple on my pizza, no mango in my fried rice, etc. etc. Now I know yesterday's salad had apple in it, but for some reason that was different to me. The whole Waldorf salad thing must be ingrained in me so that one gets a pass. Needless to say, a watermelon and tomato salad doesn't sound like something I would really enjoy, but for some reason I just always want to try it. Sure enough, there it was #1 on the New York Times list of 101 salad recipes. It must have gotten top billing for a reason, right?

I think so. I have to say that after making this salad, I really enjoyed it. I might have even furthered my enjoyment of tomatoes at the same time! This recipe, like all of them, is extremely simple:

2 cups cubed watermelon

1-2 medium tomatoes, cut into chunks

1-2 Tbsp. basil, julienned

1 Tbps. basic balsamic vinaigrette

black pepper to taste

Toss and serve. The combination of watermelon and tomato is famous because it really works. The tomatoes tasted like candy and the watermelon especially fresh and light in contrast. The basil and vinaigrette assure that this doesn't end up tasting like a fruit salad and the entire combination is delightful. I can't believe I waited so long to make this!

5 Salads in 5 Days: Broccoli and Apple Salad

Ok so I lied. I'm not going to do all 5 salads from the New York Times article. I will make more unusual salads this week from the Times article, I promise! But today it was really really cold and I wanted something a little more comforting than the slaw I was planning to make. I patterned this recipe after a salad I've loved for years. The way I used to make it (and they serve this at the Whole Foods salad bar as well) was with raw broccoli, red onions, raisins, bacon, mayonnaise and cashews. I decided to vegan-ize it and make it a little healthier. Welcome to 5 Salads in 5 Days Day 2! Broccoli and Apple Salad.

2-3 cups raw broccoli, cut into small florets

1 apple, cut into bite size pieces

2 Tbsp. raisins

1 Tbsp. red onion, diced

1-2 Tbsp. Veganaise or other vegan mayo

black pepper to taste

Mix everything together thoroughly and eat immediately. This was the perfect salad for today. It was creamy and filling and comforting. I didn't miss the bacon or the nuts at all, in fact I prefer it this way. Try it at home, you won't be disappointed.

5 Salads in 5 Days: Moroccan Carrot Salad

J is away on tour for the next couple of weeks, so I'm doing a lot of cooking for one. Sad face. But, I figured that now is the perfect opportunity to spend some extra time on me, to exercise every day and to eat lightly. It might be 55 degrees and cloudy outside (yes you read that correctly), but I'm going to act like I live in a city that gets a real summer.

My sister gave me an article about a year ago from the New York Times called "101 Simple Salads for the Season." I've been sitting on it all this time and now I'm finally going to try some of the unusual salads he suggests. So welcome to 5 Salads in 5 Days: Moroccan Carrot Salad. I'm going to bring a different salad to work every day this week and post the recipe. Enjoy!

This salad sounded unusual to me but the NY Times guys stated confidently that "there is no better use of raw carrots." The Times can't be wrong, can it? The recipe is extremely simple. I prepared the ingredients at home the night before and assembled the salad right at my desk.

3 medium carrots, shredded

1-2 Tbsp. raisins

1 1/2 tsp. toasted whole cumin seeds

1-2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro

olive oil to taste

lemon juice to taste

This tasted amazing.

The most unexpected element of this dish to me was the cumin seeds. I use ground cumin on a very regular basis, but I don't often use the whole seeds. I'd never actually toasted them before, but I took the same approach I use with sesame and other seeds and cooked them in a small pan over medium heat, tossing them nearly constantly. When they bubble up slightly and crunch in your mouth, they are ready. The sweet carrots with the fresh cilantro and the smoky cumin makes an incredible combination. Even my skeptical work friends really liked this salad - highly recommended!

Cuban Black Beans and Rice

Beans and rice are a pretty obvious vegan staple. They are delicious, healthy and full of protein yet fat free. Beans and rice are virtually the perfect dish, and I'm always trying new ways to prepare them. This recipe is one that I found online quite a while ago and never got around to trying until this week. The recipe simply didn't sound that interesting and I was never inspired enough to make it. This week, I was looking for a quick weeknight meal after staying late at work one day and I figured it was the perfect opportunity for this recipe. We were very surprised! Even though this dish has very few ingredients and is a breeze to make, it has a whole lot of flavor that adds a freshness and zip to the regular rice and beans combo.

First cook 2 cups of brown rice. This will give you more than you need for this meal, but I find that I can always find ways to use leftover rice. (A lot of people think it's strange but I even like it for breakfast.) Bring 2 cups of brown rice and 3 1/2 cups of water to a boil over medium heat. Lower the head and simmer the rice until the liquid has evaporated down to the same level as the rice in the pan. Put the lid on the pan and cook the rice over very low heat until cooked and fluffy. This whole process should take about 45 minutes, so a lot of times I put the rice on as soon as I walk in the door. That way it will be ready whenever I need it.

Next, assemble and prepare the remaining ingredients:

1 large red onion, chopped

1 medium anaheim pepper, seeded and chopped

3 garlic cloves, pressed

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. oregano

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

salt to taste

1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

2/3 cup cilantro, chopped

1 lime, cut into wedges

You can probably substitute another kind of pepper for the anaheim. I like this one because it is easily available in my grocery store and it's kind of half way between a sweet bell pepper and a spicier chile. Saute the onion, pepper and garlic in a lightly sprayed pan until tender. Add cumin, oregano and beans and cook until warmed through and the flavors have combined. Mix in the salt, vinegar and cilantro and remove from heat. Serve the bean mixture over rice with a squeeze of lime juice. We couldn't believe how much flavor was in this dish. J requested that I make it again next week and I think it's going to become a staple in our house. It's extremely easy and the only ingredients in the whole dish that aren't always in my pantry already are the pepper and cilantro. Hooray! I love it when easy things turn out well!

Homemade Pumpernickle Rye Bread

We love bread. I like it for a snack with a little Earth Balance or for lunch in a veggie, tofu salad or fake BLTA sandwich. J mostly likes it with almond butter and jam for breakfast or a snack. When you think about it, we end up eating quite a bit of bread each week. When my mom was out visiting us a few months ago, she realized how much bread we were going through and she decided that we needed a bread maker. She had recently gone through a phase experimenting with different models and recipes and she made a hard sell for the Cuisinart Convection Bread Maker. I have to admit that I was kind of indifferent to the idea at first. She offered to buy it for me as a gift, so I agreed despite thinking that I might not really use it that often. I was wrong.

I LOVE this bread maker! Now as a point of reference, I must mention that as a rule, I do not bake. It's not to say that I can't bake at all; I have been known to make pretty good pies and a fantastic vegan cornbread, but I don't really like to bake. Part of it is that I'm not a huge sweets person on a normal day, and part of it is that baking is so boring. You mix it all and then stick it in the oven and hope for the best. You can't taste it to see how it's doing or if you should adjust something like you can with cooking. I've logged many more baking failures than cooking failures and I'm happy to leave baking so someone else entirely. So I didn't think this bread maker thing would necessarily work out for me. Little did I know how easy and fool proof these things are. You can't possibly mess up if you just follow the recipe. After making a pretty darn good whole wheat bread recipe for about a month, my mom figured out the perfect recipe for J and me: Pumpernickle Rye. I never need to make anything else again.

I've always liked pumpernickle bread, but I never really had any idea what was in it or why it was brown. This recipe includes a number of unexpected ingredients, but for whatever reason, they all work together to make a flavorful, hearty, nutty bread.

1.5 lb Pumpernickle Rye Bread:

1 1/8 cup lukewarm water

1 3/4 cup bread flour

1 cup rye flour

1/4 cup wheat bran

2 Tbsp. unsweeteed cocoa powder

1 Tbsp. vital wheat gluten

1 1/2 Tbsp. dark molasses

2 tsp. whole caraway seeds

1 1/2 tsp.instant espresso powder

1 1/2 tsp. salt

2 Tbsp. Earth Balance

2 tsp. yeast

The beauty of the bread maker is that you just dump all the ingredients in and the bread makes itself. Add the warm water first. The water should be between 80 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Next add all of the ingredients through the salt. Next add the Earth balance in 4 little lumps near each corner of the pan. Lastly, press a little hole into the dry ingredients and put the yeast in this little hole. Set the bread maker to 1.5 lb. loaf and light crust and press start! In about 3 hours, the loaf will be ready! The outside will be crusty and the inside will be warm and fluffy. I usually try to cut each loaf into 12 slices, but the ends taste the best when it's still fresh and warm.

Rotini with Basil, Spinach and Sun Dried Tomatoes

It's a little bit hard to call this next one a recipe, even though it's one of our favorite dishes. I've never even attempted to write down what's in it, so this will be challenging. This dish is extremely simple to make, and I originally created it because many of the main ingredients are things that I have in the pantry or fridge pretty much every week. Whenever I need a quick dinner that I didn't plan for, I can make this dish. Or something sorta like it. The best thing is that as long as you have a couple of the key ingredients, you can add a few other things you have on hand and it will probably work. I actually went shopping with this in mind this week, so I'll write this post with the ideal set of ingredients in mind, but don't hesitate to make your own adaptations.

Start by boiling a bag of whole wheat rotini in a pot of salted boiling water. I'm sure that it would be fine to use regular white pasta instead, but I truly think whole wheat tastes better. I started eating whole wheat pasta a few years ago because everyone says that it's much healthier. I believe that of course and I'm sure it's true, but I honestly just think whole wheat tastes better. It's the difference between Wonder Bread and a good pumpernickel or the difference between white rice and brown rice. It's one of those magical times when the healthier thing actually tastes better than the less healthy item. Yay.

The next step is to assemble the rest of the dish. Gather up all of the ingredients:

3 Tbsp. olive oil or more to taste

1 large red onion, halved and sliced

5-6 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

crushed red pepper to taste

Mixed seasoning to taste

10 or so sundried tomato halves, chopped

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

2/3 bag baby spinach

1/2 cup or more fresh basil, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan. Add the onions and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the garlic and saute a few seconds more. Usually I'm obsessed with my garlic press, but this is one of those cases when I actually want the pieces of garlic to be pretty large. While the garlic is cooking add crushed red pepper. I like quite a bit, but it's up to you. I also like to add something called Bavarian Seasoning from Penzeys Spices. This particular mixture was a gift from my sister at some point. It says on the bottle that it should be used as a chicken or meat rub, so obviously I didn't really know what to do with it at first. Luckily, one time I was making this dish and had no fresh basil in the house (see above about making this dish regardless of how prepared you are) and I started shaking in all kinds of dried herbs. This one sounded pretty good (it includes crushed brown mustard, rosemary, thyme, bay leaves and sage) so I threw it in the mix. It turned out to be a pretty amazing blend, so now I'm addicted and use it all the time. If you can get over the heresy that is using Bavarian seasoning in an Italian dish, I promise you won't be disappointed.

Next throw in the sun dried tomatoes and stir the whole mixture. There

should still be a little olive oil in the pan, so if it's dried out, add a little more. The goal is for the oil to be infused with all the ingredients so far. When the sun dried tomatoes are tender, add the cherry tomatoes and a minute or so later add the spinach and most of the basil. Stir until spinach is wilted, then add the cooked pasta and mix well. You want the pasta to be very al dente, because you will saute it for a minute or so now, incorporating all of the intense flavors. Serve garnished with the remaining fresh basil. I promise this dish is simple but delicious. It's the one J probably asks for more often than anything else. It includes a little more oil than I tend to prefer, but I end up making it a lot because he asks for it so much.

The best part about it? You can exchange pretty much all of the ingredients. Don't have rotini? Use any other kind of pasta. No red onions? Use white. Don't have sun dried tomatoes and fresh? Use either or. No fresh basil? Load up on dried herbs. Sometimes I add a bunch of other veggies other than spinach. Try broccolini, red bell peppers or mushrooms. A few times I've added vegan Italian sausages cut into chunks and it worked very well too. Try your own substitutions and let me know how it goes.