New Year's Day: Hoppin' John with Collard Greens

Happy 2011! Yesterday was New Year's Day, so what else could I possibly make other than collard greens and black eyed peas? Collards are kind of a neglected green in our house, compared to it's more popular relative, kale. We eat kale at least once if not more times every week. It's actually in the works for two dishes this week. I end up using collards much less frequently, but this dish is one of the several ways that we really enjoy them. This time of year is the best time for the dark leafy greens - they are in season and incredibly healthy. This preparation doesn't overcook the greens, leaving most of their delicious nutrients intact.

Usually, I start this dish earlier in the day or even the night before by preparing my rice and black eyed peas. Sometimes, if I'm making rice earlier in the week I'll just save out a couple of cups of it for use in this recipe later in the week. This really cuts down on prep time when you actually make this for dinner.

However you do it, start off with about 1 1/2 cups of cooked brown rice and 1 1/2 cups of cooked black eyed peas. You can buy them in the can, but I tend to think they are much too mushy that way. Trader Joe's sells them in the refrigerated section already steamed, and those are not bad. Most of the time I just cook them from dry beans, which takes a lot of time but tends to have the best results. This time, I didn't have much extra time and I found a great new item in the grocery store. These black eyed peas are by Melissa's brand (which I love) and are partially pre-cooked. Just put them in a pot of boiling water and boil for 10 minutes to cook them the rest of the way. The result is perfectly cooked, al-dente peas in a tiny fraction of the time. Nice.

Once you have your rice and peas ready, put a large pot

of salted water on to boil and assemble the rest of your ingredients:

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, divided

2 Tbsp. honey

2 tsp. olive oil, divided

1 1/2 tsp. chili powder, divided

1 tsp salt, divided

2-3 shakes liquid smoke

Hot sauce, to taste

2 large bunches of collard greens, washed and chopped

4 slices smart bacon

1 onion, chopped

3 ribs celery, chopped

2 cloves garlic, pressed

1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice

1 1/2 cups cooked black eyed peas

Whisk together 2 Tbsp. of the vinegar, honey, 1 tsp. olive oil, 1 tsp.chili powder, 1/2 tsp. salt, liquid smoke and hot sauce. I use Tapatio hot sauce for this because it's something I always have around, but you can use whatever kind you like best. Meanwhile, put the collards in the rapidly boiling salted water for 15 minutes. Drain, reserving about 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 tsp. of olive oil and saute the smart bacon, onion, celery, garlic and remaining 1/2 tsp. chili powder. Cook everything for 5-10 minutes until tender. Add the cooked collard greens, 1/4 cup reserved cooking liquid, 2 Tbsp. vinegar and remaining 1/2 tsp salt. Cover and cook about 10 minutes until greens are tender.

Heat a separate skillet and add the rice and peas, remaining 1/4 cup cooking liquid and the vinegar/honey/spice mixture. Cook until everything is heated through and the liquid is soaked into the rice. At this point, be sure to taste both the rice/peas mixture and the collards mixture. Adjust seasonings as desired. You can serve the collards over the rice or you can mix the entire thing together.

I can't think of a better way to start the year than a delicious and healthy meal of cooked greens and beans and rice. The flavor combination of spicy, tangy, smoky and sweet makes this dish a sure winner. Let's see...maybe one of my New Year's resolutions should be to eat more collards.

Nutrition Facts: 1 serving = 1/3 of the rice and beans mixture topped with 1/3 of the collards mixture. 415 calories; 8g fat; 1.9 g saturated fat; 0 mg cholesterol; 492 mg sodium; 68.9 g carbohydrate; 14.3 g dietary fiber; 25.7 g sugars; 20.2 g protein.

Shepherd's, No...Gardener's Pie

Shepherd's pie sounds weird to me. The idea of ground up sheep with mashed potatoes on top grossed me out a long time before I even became vegetarian. However, the concept of shepherd's pie intrigued me. The idea of hearty old Englishmen sitting down for their savory plate of piping hot shepherd's pie with a nicely browned crunchy top of mashed potatoes.When I came across a recipe for vegan shepherd's pie (courtesy of Susan Voisin), it not only looked like it would satisfy my interest in the original, but it looked like it was going to taste 20x better than the original!

If you try only ONE of my wintertime recipes this year, it should be this one. After serving it to my parents on a recent visit, my mom even makes this at home. It seriously is the most amazingly delicious way to eat insane amounts of vegetables all at once. In one small slice (although I can't imagine why you would only want to eat one small slice) you get a healthy serving of spinach, kidney beans, green beans, onions, mushrooms, carrots and celery. Can't beat that! BUT you get to eat them all smothered in a rich, yet surprisingly healthy gravy, and topped with a warm, creamy layer of potatoes, browned to perfection in the oven. Have I convinced you to make this yet? Okay, now gather your ingredients (altered slightly from the original of course):

2 lbs. Yukon gold potatoes

1/2 cup unsweetened soymilk

nutritional yeast, salt and pepper to taste

1 large onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 large carrots, diced

2 ribs celery, diced

8 oz. mushrooms, diced

2 cups vegetable broth

16 oz. can of kidney beans, rinsed

2 cups green beans, cut into 1 inch pieces

1 1/2 tsp thyme

2 tsp fresh rosemary (or 1 tsp dried)

1/4 tsp. dried sage

3 1/2 cups baby spinach leaves

2 1/2 Tbsp. cornstarch mixed with 2 Tbsp. soy sauce

crushed red pepper

vegan worcester sauce (about shakes)

Boil potatoes in cubes until tender, then mash with soymilk, nutritional yeast, salt and pepper. I like to keep mine a little chunky, but you can do it however you want. Set them aside and reserve one cup of the cooking water.

Saute the onions in a sprayed skillet until soft, then add garlic, carrots, celery and mushrooms and saute 3 more minutes. Add vegetable broth, kidney beans, green beans and herbs. Simmer uncovered on medium heat for 20 minutes until all vegetables are tender. Add salt and pepper to taste. If the pan becomes too dry at any point, add some of the potato water. Add the spinach and stir until wilted, then add the cornstarch/soy sauce mixture. Cook, stirring until thickened. Transfer everything to a large pie plate or baking dish and spoon the potatoes over the top. Sprinkle with rosemary and cook under the broiler for 7-10 minutes until nicely browned.

Let the pie sit for 5-10 minutes before you cut into it. This meal-in-one is a serious favorite for very cold days and/or very hungry days. It heats up very well, and individual slices also freeze very well. Despite the large number of ingredients, most are staples in our house and the actual preparation is very simple.

Mexican Pumpkin Soup

It's actually getting cold out there (I know, it's almost Christmas so I guess it's about time) and I'm in the mood for warm, creamy, hearty soup! This recipe is totally easy and the unexpected flavor combination makes it one of the best soups in my repertoire. It's also made nearly entirely out of pantry items, so it's a great think to make in a pinch.

The secret to making this soup thick and creamy without a lot of cream and butter is using the pureed pumpkin as a base. It adds a thick, rich feeling to the broth and a serious depth of flavor. Plus the sweet creaminess of the pumpkin mixed with the spice of the jalapeno, the tang of the lemon juice and the burst of freshness from the cilantro really make the flavor come alive. Lastly, the pinto beans and potatoes make this low fat, healthy dish, a hearty, filling meal.

First, gather up the ingredients:

1 large onion, chopped

4-5 cloves garlic, chopped

4 cups vegetable broth

1 15-oz can canned pumpkin

1 15-oz can pinto beans, rinsed

1 seeded, diced jalapeno

5 medium red potatoes, diced into 1/2 inch cubes

1 Tbsp. marjoram or oregano

pinch of cayenne pepper (to taste)

1 tsp. cumin

1/2 cup unsweetened soymilk

lemon juice

salt and pepper

cilantro

Heat a large soup pot, add 2-3 Tbsp. of broth and saute the onions until soft. Next add the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add the rest of the broth, pumpkin, pinto beans, jalapeno and potatoes; then stir in the marjoram, cayenne and cumin. Bring the whole pot to a boil then turn down to a simmer. Simmer about 30 minutes until the potatoes are fork-tender. Remove from the heat and cool soup for about 5 minutes. Stir in the soymilk and taste. Add a good squeeze of lemon juice and some salt and pepper and taste again. Adjust seasonings to suit your taste. Serve garnished with a healthy sprinkle of cilantro on top.

It really couldn't be easier, and it's great to have a soup like this that takes only 30 minutes to cook. I couldn't recommend this dish more highly...especially for those of you who live in really cold climates! Look in your pantry and you may only need 1-2 ingredients from the store!

It's Fall! Pumkin Risotto with Brussels Sprouts

It's Fall! And while in San Francisco, that means weather that most people think feels like summer and leaves that don't turn any colors at all, it still makes me want to eat Fall foods like pumpkin, squash, brussels sprouts and lasagna. Yummmmmm. My sister emailed me a recipe for simple pumpkin risotto a few weeks ago and I decided to give it a try. Learning from my past experience making Risotto with Radicchio and Portobello Mushrooms, I thought I would top this dense, creamy dish with bitter, crispy brussels sprouts. A Fall food match made in heaven!

First set up the brussels sprouts. Cut the bottom of the stem off each sprout and clean off the outer leaves. Slice each sprout into at least three slices. In a mixing bowl, toss the sprouts with a little olive oil, a splash of balsamic vinegar, and a few shakes of salt, pepper, hot pepper flakes and nutritional yeast. Place the sprouts on a large baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees for about 20-25 minutes. Now make the risotto.

The risotto recipe is pretty much the usual one, with a few additions:

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves, garlic

2 1/2 cups arborio rice

1/4 cup white wine

6 cups vegetable broth

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 can pumpkin

1/3 cup nutritional yeast

salt and pepper to taste

Heat all of the vegetable broth in a pot until hot, but not boiling. Meanwhile heat the oil in a large pan, then add onion and garlic and cook 2 minutes or so. Add the rice and cook an additional 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the wine and stir to scrape everything off the bottom of the pan. Add all of the broth, a little bit at a time, all the while stirring the rice. By the time all of the broth has been absorbed, the rice should be cooked and al dente. Always taste the rice several times during the process. If you need more liquid, that's fine. If you don't use all of it, that's fine too. Just stop when the rice tastes right. Lastly, mix in the lemon juice, pumpkin, yeast and salt and pepper.

Serve the pumpkin risotto topped with brussels sprouts and garnish with lightly toasted pumpkin seeds. This dish could not possibly get any better. This now beats out all other risotto recipes I've ever tasted. I know I've said this before, but I cannot say enough good things about the mixture of thick, rich, creamy risotto and something crisp and bitter. The brussels sprouts are THE perfect topping for this. So light a fire, bundle up, and make some pumpkin risotto! That is, unless you are in San Francisco. Then you should open all your windows, put on a tee shirt and make it anyway.

Smothered Cauliflower with Potatoes

I decided to try an entirely new recipe called Stuffed Cauliflower. I got this one from Vegetarian Times, and it sounded so crazy to me that I just had to try it. The result turned out to be something I would not actually call "stuffed" so I decided to call it Smothered Cauliflower. The flavors were fantastic, and it is a great new way to eat cauliflower as a new dish. Maybe I'll change the name to Smothered Cauliflower with Potatoes.

When I got started on this recipe, I truly had no idea what to expect. I didn't change a thing from the original recipe (except to use less oil...I can't help it, I'm my mother's daughter!) because I didn't feel that I understood the recipe well enough to stray from it. The result is a very unique and authentic Indian tasting dish that was completely satisfying while still being extremely healthy. Plus it looks hilarious!

First gather all of the ingredients:

1 medium-large head of cauliflower

1 medium onion, chopped

1/2 cup tomato sauce

1 jalapeno pepper, some seeds an

d ribs removed, chopped

1 1/2 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger

2 cloves garlic, pressed

1 tsp. whole cumin seeds

1 Tbsp. ground coriander

1/2 tsp. turmeric

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp. garam masala

1 tsp. lemon juice

1 Tbsp. canola oil

1 large yukon gold potato, peeled, boiled and grated

6 medium yukon gold potatoes, sliced

First clean the cauliflower of all of its leaves and the thick, tough part of the stem. Place the entire head in a steamer basket (I have a tiny one that fits all the way in the bottom or a stock pot) with a couple inches of water and steam for about 10 minutes. This gives the cauliflower a head start on the cooking process. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 degrees and boil your large potato in some water. I was a little confused by the instructions "peeled, boiled and grated" at first. This is one of those times when I wished I could have talked to the person who wrote the recipe to be sure I was doing it right. But I just went with my instinct and boiled the potato until fork-tender, then grated it on a large cheese grater. It fell apart a little bit, but it didn't seem to matter much.

Next combine the onion, tomato sauce, jalapeno, ginger, garlic and cumin seeds in a blender and blend until a thick paste forms. Heat a medium skillet, add the onion paste and cook for about 3-5 minutes. Stir in the coriander, turmeric, cayenne, garam masala and lemon juice and cook 2 minutes more. Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup water and the grated potato.

While you let the cauliflower and the tomato mixture cool a little bit, place the sliced potatoes in a bowl with hot water and let them sit for about 10 minutes. This removes some of the starch and allows the potatoes to cook up crispier. Drain the potatoes, pat dry and toss them with the remaining 1 Tbsp. canola oil.

Place the cauliflower in a large baking dish. This part gets a little messy, but I thought it was fun. Slowly take handfuls of the tomato mixture an smooth it all of the the outside of the cauliflower as if you were frosting a cake. It should stick fairly well and you should have enough to cover the entire head. I guess you could use a spoon to do this, but I found my hands worked quite well. When you are done, carefully add the potatoes around the edge of the pan and bake the whole thing for 25-30 minutes.

When it's done, this dish will smell incredible. Slice the cauliflower into thick "steaks" and serve with the potatoes. I don't quite know how to describe this dish, except to say that it tasted like authentic Indian food to me and it was a very nice change of pace. We loved it and will definitely make it again. I decided to serve the cauliflower and potatoes with a healthy serving of crispy kale chips, the (very simple) recipe for which you can find here.

Nutritional Facts: 1 serving = 1/3 cauliflower with 2 yukon gold potatoes. 415 calories; 9.8 g fat; 0.7 g saturated fat; 280 mg sodium; 81.3 g carbohydrate; 14.3 g dietary fiber; 15.2 g sugars; 14.3 g protein.

Don't Knock It 'Till You Try It! - In Defense of the Perfect Pea Soup

Split Pea Soup. Wah-wah. Not the most exciting meal, I know. But give it a try! Probably the only thing many people like about a traditional pea soup are the bits of ham or bacon, so that puts a vegan split pea soup even further behind. But stick with me please, because what follows is perhaps the easiest, healthiest, most delicious, most perfect meal ever. Pretty high praise, eh?

For some reason J has always loved split pea soup. The first time he mentioned this to me (probably about 5 years ago) I responded the way you are probably responding right now. "Pea soup? Um, I didn't know anyone not in a nursing home really ate that stuff. Is that made with actual peas? What is a so called 'split' pea? Don't you need a ham bone or something?" I was not impressed and decided to ignore his menu suggestion. Unfortunately for me, the pea soup idea did not end there.

New topic: When J and his brother get together, they have a tendency to remember parts of their childhood together by frequently quoting little bits of movies they used to enjoy in elementary school. They derive great pleasure from this activity. One such movie, The Rescuers Down Under, includes a brief segment about pea soup. Not only is this clip undeniably adorable, but J's impression of it is undeniably awesome. After a quick You Tube search, I was able to find a clip for you all to enjoy. Also enjoy the amazing quality of the videography.

Okay, so obviously I eventually (as in a few months ago) finally got around to making a split pea soup. I was bored and figured I should just give it a try. I, as usual, looked at as many recipes as I could find and put them all together to create a recipe that sounded good as well as vegan. The result is below:

2 cups dry split peas (As I quickly found out, a split pea is kind of like a lentil or bean)

7 cups low vegetable stock

1 yellow onion, diced

3 yukon gold potatoes, diced

2 carrots, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp basil

1/2 tsp parsley

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp liquid smoke

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Rinse the split peas and check for stones. (Apparently sometimes they like to include stones in with bags of split peas). Now comes the good part: place ALL ingredients in a soup pot and simmer loosely covered for about an hour and 15 minutes until peas are tender. I LOVE recipes that include the words "place all ingredients in a pot." Score. After simmering, blend the soup in a food processor. This may take two batches, or you can use an immersion blender. I like my soup thick and hearty...not too smooth, but not too chunky. You can decide how you like it.

To say I was blown away by this soup is an understatement. I could eat it all day and all night. It is the perfect lunch, the perfect dinner and even the perfect snack when you have the late night munchies. This soup is amazing. The morning after I made this soup for the first time, I emailed my entire immediate family and begged them to make it. I BEGGED them. I still don't think any of them have actually made it yet. Family members reading - please feel guilty now. You need to try this! I know you don't want to. You think pea soup is gross and looks like throw-up. The recipe does not sound exciting. I know! But try it anyway. Just try it. You will love it.

I loved it so much I forgot to take a picture of the finished product before we ate it. All of it.

Mushroom, Sun Dried Tomato and Spinach Calzones

When I asked J a few weeks ago to name a few dishes that he would like me to try to vegan-ize, I was surprised at the scope of different things he named. I wrote them all down and so far, I've managed to give most of them a try. This one was kind of random, but actually quite successful: Vegan Calzones. I haven't eaten a calzone in years and years. My family will remember a short time during my childhood when we were really into the calzones at a now defunct Lexington restaurant named Bel Canto and the mere mention of a calzone made me feel strangely sentimental. I've never made a calzone before, vegan or otherwise, but it seemed about the same as making a pizza. I actually found a recipe for a vegan calzone in the back of a book we own called No More Bull! to start with. The filling was extremely similar to the tofu filling I make for stuffed shells, lasagna and other Italian dishes. The main difference was that it also included a kind of "sauce" made from silken tofu and spinach. I thought this was a pretty clever idea as it creates an additional texture, similar to the combination of ricotta cheese and melted mozzarella cheese. I made a few adjustments to the suggested recipe and then jazzed it up a little with some items I think of as pizza toppings and voila! delicious calzone filling. Here are the ingredients for the filling:

1 cup cooked frozen chopped spinach, squeezed dry

4 ounces silken tofu

salt and pepper

3 cloves garlic, pressed

1/2-1 cup mushrooms, chopped

3 scallions or 1/3 of a red onion, chopped

1 16-oz package extra firm tofu, crumbled

2 tsp. dried basil

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped

3 Tbsp. nutritional yeast

First, blend the spinach, silken tofu and salt and pepper until smooth. Next heat and spray a skillet with oil. Add the garlic, mushrooms and scallions or onions. Cook for about 3 minutes until the mushrooms begin to soften, then add the crumbled firm tofu, basil, oregano, sun dried tomatoes and nutritional yeast. Cook while stirring until heated through and any liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat and stir in the spinach/silken tofu mixture. Set aside.

I have to admit that I just used store bought Trader Joe's pizza dough. You can certainly make your own, but this is just so easy and I like the way the TJ's kind tastes. Split the dough in half and roll each half into a large circle on a floured surface with a rolling pin. Fill the dough with half the filling, fold it over and seal the edges. Transfer the calzone to an oiled baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes. The crust should be golden brown by the time you are finished. Let the calzone cool for about 10 minutes before attempting to eat it (I know, it might be hard to wait...but in a family of brass players we are very protective not to burn our lips!)

I think I definitely rolled my dough out too much. This meant that some parts of the dough were too thin and other parts where I folded it over a second time, were too thick. This is an easy mistake to fix and I won't do it again.

I served each calzone with a generous ladle of marinara sauce. Whenever I use marinara sauce from a jar (which is often) I always like to add a few of my own touches. You would be surprised how much a few sauteed onions, garlic and mushrooms and a few shakes of basil, oregano and crushed red pepper will amp up the flavor of a store bought sauce.

I think this dish was a sure success. It doesn't look too glamorous and may not be something I serve to guests anytime soon, but we liked it a lot. The flavors are spot on and if you've never tried this sort of tofu filling for an Italian dish, you absolutely should. The resemblance to cheese is uncanny. I also liked the addition of the silken tofu sauce. I usually just add the chopped spinach right to the crumbled tofu mixture, but I really liked the variety of textures accomplished by this sauce. This is a simple, delicious and healthy weeknight meal, especially if you use store bought dough and sauce. There is no excuse not to try it out!