Lots of Tasty Goodness

Wow, so there has been a lot going on around here lately. I won't bore you all with the details, but I will say it has been work-related - though not my being busy with work. Other than that, Brett and I have been doing just dandy. I have been cooking up a storm as I haven't been working so have had plenty of time to make more involved meals.

I have been having a lot of fun in the kitchen, though I admit, it looks like a disaster area much of the time. :-) It seems that just as I finish one pile of dishes, it is time to eat again. And, while cooking at home is certainly more nourishing and even cost-effective, and well, damn better tasting, it does mean that there will be yet more dishes. I think that dishes and aphids in my garden are going to be my lifelong "Newman" to use a Seinfeld colloquialism.

Anywho, enough of my complaining and onto the goods!


My mom bought us a juicer for Christmas a few years ago, and for whatever reason, we used it once or twice and then it was relegated to the top of the cabinet that I like to refer to as the "Land of Misfit Appliances". Well, I have been wanting to incorporate more raw fruit and veg into my diet, because, well, I like them, and I decided to bust it out again. It has been making up for lost time! We use it all the time now.

One of my favorite juices is nothing special and something I'm sure most of you are already familiar with: Carrot Apple Juice. It is so simple. I just juice 6 apples (my favorite to use are Pink Lady or Honeycrisp, they are tart but also still plenty sweet) and about 8-10 peeled carrots. Stir it up and you are set. Brett even likes these and I got to tell you, there is no way in hell I would get Brett to eat 8-10 raw carrots, but I learned he will drink them. :-)


Wanting something a little different, I came up with this lovely algae looking concoction. I made the Carrot Apple Juice as described above. I them transferred the juice to a blender where I added two bananas, 1 tbsp. spirulina powder, and about 12 ice cubes. Then I just whirred it up! It makes enough for three meal-sized glasses. I know it doesn't look that good, but it certainly doesn't taste how it looks.


There is a blog I really enjoy called Herbivoracious. The author provides mostly authentic Latin/Mexican recipes that have been "vegetarianized". I find that I go there and not only want to try some of his recipes, but I get ideas for my own. You should seriously check out his blog, it is really cool.


I saw a recipe on his blog awhile back for Bocoles. Bocoles are bean and corn masa patties that are then fried. They are a popular Latin street food and don't they look damn tasty? Well they are. I adapted his recipe a little bit using refried pinto beans instead of black and using carrots instead of sweet potatoes for the spicy topping.

I also made a nice spicy table chile sauce to go with it. It is really spicy so use sparingly.

de Arbol-New Mexico Table Sauce
6 de arbol chiles, wiped clean
4 New Mexico chiles, wiped clean
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/2 cup boiling water
1 tbsp lemon or lime juice
salt (to taste)

Heat up a dry skillet over medium-high heat. Toast the chiles on both sides being careful not to burn them. This should take less than 20-30 seconds on each side. You can often see the color being intensified and this is a good sign that they are ready to be flipped.

Once the chiles are toasted, let cool for a few minutes. Then remove stem, seeds and ribs. Transfer to a blender or bowl and pour the boiling water over the chiles and cover. Let the chiles reconstitute for about 15-20 minutes.

Then add the garlic, citrus juice, and salt and blend.

Now you have yourself a basic table chile sauce. You can use whatever dried chiles you want for this recipe. Making a basic table sauce is also a good way to get to know the different flavors and subtleties of each chile.


I had lots of refried beans left over from the Bocoles, so I decided to turn the remaining beans into a nice soup. And it sure was tasty!

Refried Bean Bisque
2-4 tbsp safflower oil
2 red potatoes, scrubbed and cubed
2 pimento sweet peppers, seeded and chopped
2 jalapenos, seeded and minced
1 large onion, chopped
6 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 cup refried pinto beans
4-6 cups water
salt to taste

In a large soup pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat, as though you were stir-frying veggies.

Add the potatoes, chiles, and onion, and fry for about 10 minutes until they start to get a little color. By caramelizing the veg, we will get a much deeper array of flavors than if you simply boiled them.

Add the garlic and fry for about 5 minutes, until the garlic begins to get fragrant.

Add the refried beans and water and simmer, covered, for about an hour or until all the veggies are nice and soft.

Remove the mixture from the heat and let cool for a few minutes.

Transfer to a food processor and blend until very smooth.

Using a wire mesh strainer, begin to strain the soup over the soup pot in batches.

Once done, heat thoroughly and add salt to taste.

Side Note: If you have a vermicomposting system as we do (a worm farm), the left over veggie pulp from both soup making and juice making is the perfect food for a hungry worm. This also means that there is absolutely no waste. That I dig. Pun intended. ;-)


I don't know how everyone else feels about this, but I think that soup on it's own is just not going to cut it. I needs bread to make it a complete and satisfying meal.

Now, I will be the first to admit that breadmaking is not my forte. I am more of a punk in the kitchen, I like to let things happen organically and with breadmaking, you can't really do that. Let's just say I have had a lot of messy failures in my attempts at breadmaking.

This was one of my more successful attempts and I even managed to "punk it up" a little.

I used this recipe for Whole Wheat Rolls, but instead of the herbs used in the recipe, I kneaded in ten jalapenos, ten cloves of minced garlic, 1 tbsp cumin, and 1 tbsp Mexican oregano. Instead of making small rolls, I made six large-ish loaves. After they were baked, I brushed the tops with butter and sliced them into breadsticks, which we dipped in that tasty soup.


And finally, though it doesn't look like much, this is the gem of this post. This is the best soup I have ever made/had. It was an idea I had when I wanted to be lazy, but still have something tasty and healthy and I never imagined it to be as amazing as it really is.

This is like the Mexican equivalent to Chicken Noodle Soup, except without the icky meat. It is comforting like you wouldn't believe and it has perhaps the most amazing smell I have ever had the pleasure of smelling. And it is EASY TO MAKE.

I am not one to toot my own horn but this really is an amazing soup. I encourage you all to try this and let me know what you think. Maybe I'm just crazy, but it seems like the perfect comfort food to me.

Black Bean-Tomatillo Soup
1 onion, chopped
4 jalapenos, seeded and minced
6 cloves of garlic, minced
1 can tomatillos, chopped
2 cups black beans, cooked
4-6 cups water
a couple dashes of cumin
salt to taste
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped fine

In a large soup pot, combine all the ingredients except the cilantro. Simmer, covered for 2-3 hours or until the veggies are soft.

Right before serving, stir in cilantro.

Serve with saltine crackers and enjoy!

That really is all you do. It is such a clear soup, it tastes and smells so clean. The cilantro added at the end gives it the crisp brightness and the tomatillos add an almost lime like flavor.

Brett and I were talking and thought that if you removed the beans, added cucumber, and pureed the whole mess that it would also make a nice cold soup for summer. Very refreshing.

Well, that's all for now.

'Til next time!

Citrus-Marinated Veggie Sandwiches

As a vegetarian, I tend to be at a loss for ideas for sandwiches. I don't like tofu or any meat substitutes and one can only eat so much egg salad. We also prefer Mexican food, and I just don't picture sandwiches when I imagine Mexican cuisine.

But you can improvise, no?

I decided to get a bit creative when I saw this gorgeous Sourdough French loaf at the DanJo Farms stand when I was picking up our CSA. Brett and I have fallen in love with the Herb Focaccia, so I decided we needed to try this.

I wanted something spicy, yummy, filling, and at least reminiscent of Mexican flavors, so this is what I came up with...


















The local booty legend (aka revealing my sources):
no asterisk = grocery store
+ = local produce from The Root Cellar
++ = The Peace Nook (will denote whether product is local or just from the Nook)
* = farmer's market
** = CSA
*** = Container or Community Garden
**** = the non-profit buying club, Blue Planet or Purcell Mountain Farms

Citrus-marinated Veggie Sandwiches

Citrus-marinated Onions and Mushrooms:
3 oranges, squeezed
1/2 cup lime juice
1/2 cup white vinegar
5 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 guajillo chiles, washed
1/4 cup cilantro *
a few dashes of cumin
1 large red onion, halved and sliced
1 pack button mushrooms, sliced

Combine and cover. Refrigerate and allow to marinate for at least a couple of hours to allow the flavors to meld.

Once onions and mushrooms are marinated, heat 2 tbsp safflower oil over medium-high heat. Remove the onions and mushrooms from the marinade and tranfer to hot oil.

Cook until caramelized and cook through, about 15 minutes.

Other Fixin's:
1/2 loaf of Sourdough French bread, sliced in half
1 avocado, smashed with a little lime juice and salt
mayo or Veganaise mixed with two chipotle chiles in adobo
pepper jack cheese or "cheese"
Preheat broiler.

Place bread halves on a pan, if using cheese, top one slice of each pair with cheese. Place under the broiler and remove when bread is golden brown and cheese is melted.

Spread chipotle mayo on the "dry" slice of bread and avocado mixture on the cheesy slice, layer on half the onion/mushroom mixture for each sandwich.

Enjoy!

*These could also be prepared to be eaten "open faced".

'Til next time!

Southwestern Lentil and Veggie Bisque

I've been on a soup kick for quite some time now, so nobody should be surprised that this is...yet another soup post.

I have been into trying out smooth soups lately, perfecting the arduous process of pressing everything through a wire mesh strainer feels like quite an accomplishment when you get a beautiful tasty soup in the end. And it is a good arm workout.

So without further fanfare...


















The local booty legend (aka revealing my sources):
no asterisk = grocery store
+ = local produce from The Root Cellar
++ = The Peace Nook (will denote whether product is local or just from the Nook)
* = farmer's market
** = CSA
*** = Container or Community Garden
**** = the non-profit buying club, Blue Planet or Purcell Mountain Farms

Southwestern Lentil and Veggie Bisque

1 cup green lentils, rinsed
water

2-3 tbsp safflower oil
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped *
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped *
4 New Mexico chiles, seeded and chopped (red if you can get 'em) *
1 red onion, sliced
1 yellow onion, sliced **
3 red potatoes, scrubbed and cubed *
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup sweet corn
1 tomato, cored and chopped **
5 cloves of garlic, peeled
1/2 cup veggie broth
1/4 cup cilantro *
cumin to taste
salt to taste
pepper to taste

Put lentils in a small sauce pan and fill with water.

Bring to a boil and simmer until done, about 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat oil over medium-high heat and saute peppers, onions, potatoes, carrot, and corn until they begin to soften, about 15-20 minutes.

Add the tomatoes and garlic and cook for an additional ten minutes.

Tranfer veggies to a blender or food processor and puree. Add the veggie broth and cilantro. Slowly add the lentils (with cooking liquid) in small batches and puree until smooth.

Over a large soup pot, smash the mixture through a wire mesh strainer.

The resulting soup should be very smooth.

Season to taste with cumin, salt, and pepper.

This was a really tasty soup and quite filling too!

I will be working on updating the recipe index this evening, as well as responding to the comments I have been neglecting (I suck sometimes).

I hope everyone is have a great weekend!

'Til next time.

J&B's Random Eats of Late

As you can probably imagine, while I was still cooking before the wedding, blogging about cooking or trying many new, complicated things wasn't really on my agenda. I did, however, photograph some of the food - just random things I threw together or things I am playing with for Selina and I's cookbook, so I thought I'd share 'em.


My take on Wasabi-Tempura Asparagus (and button mushrooms!) from Vegetarian Planet. I served it with a sweet and spicy peach-soy-chile sauce.


A radish salad inspired by a recipe from the awesome Callina.


Simple and tasty corn and tomato salad.


A new and improved recipe for Pico de Gallo.


A black bean and rice stuffed omelette with tomatoes, onions, garlic, chiles, and cilantro.


Brett's bowl of goodness (eaten with tortilla chips) - cilantro-lime rice, black beans, cheese, guacamole, radish salad, and corn salad.


Drunken beans Take 1!


This was really easy, and Brett simply adored it: sliced portobellow mushrooms, black olives, spinach, cumin, salt, pepper, a splash of lime and Mexican pepper cheese.

I got some pictures of the container garden today, and some market pictures from yesterday I will post at some point, after I post the CoMo honeymoon pictures. Whew!

There is a lot of stuff to post about!

'Til next time.

Local Kidney Bean and Veggie Burgers

I was going to post about a meal of local Walnut Pesto and pasta, but I decided against it for a number of reasons. First off, I forgot to take a picture of the meal. Secondly, I have posted about our Walnut Pesto before and since I had plans for another local meal in mind, I decided to make this post our weekly One Local Summer entry.

One of the many things I really love about summer is bean and veggie burgers. I don't know why I associate these foods with summer, but I seem to. I have so many created recipes and ideas for bean, grain, and veggie burgers that it is often hard to know where to start. I've noticed now that I've been regularly going to market for a few years now, that we go there and let the produce plan the meals. Based on what is available, what looks best, a menu begins to form in my head and we just roll with it.

With the weather being warm and summer-like and the local veggies abounding, I decided to make a local bean and veggie burger. These burgers were amazing and they have so much potential to be even better. I will share the initial recipe, but let me tell you - this, like most of my other recipes will be tweaked to our liking over time until we get it just right. You all get what I like to call the "rough draft" of the recipe. Sometimes when we are done modifying these recipes, they are nothing like their originals, but that is part of the fun of evolving recipes.


We served our burgers with local garlicky roasted asparagus. I sliced up about 4 baby garlics, tossed the asparagus with olive oil, salt, and the garlic, and roasted it on 375 for about 15 minutes. So, so good.


The local booty legend (aka revealing my sources):
no asterisk = grocery store
+ = local produce from The Root Cellar
++ = The Peace Nook (will denote whether product is local or just from the Nook)
* = farmer's market
** = CSA
*** = Container or Community Garden
**** = the non-profit buying club, Blue Planet or Purcell Mountain Farms

Local Kidney Bean and Veggie Burgers
Makes about six patties.

4 cups kidney beans, mashed with a fork +
1 habanero, seeded and minced * (frozen from last year)
2 hot Hungarian wax peppers, seeded and minced *** (frozen from last year)
1/2 green bell pepper, seeded and minced *** (frozen from last year)
1 cup oyster mushrooms, minced *
6 spring onions, minced *
4 baby garlics, minced *
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, minced *
1/2 cup garlic chives, minced *
4 tbsp regular rolled oats
6-8 tbsp whole wheat pastry flour +
1 egg *
squirt sriracha
chili powder
cumin
black pepper
salt

Combine all ingredients and seasonings except egg in a bowl using the seasonings to taste. Add the egg.

Form into patties and refrigerate for about an hour to allow patties to get a bit more firm.

Preheat oven to 375 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Bake burgers in oven for 15 minutes, flip patties and cook for an additional 15 minutes on the other side.

Remove from oven and let rest for about 10 minutes.

Serve on a bun with your favorite toppings, we used:
veganaise
organic ketchup
pickles +
sliced tomatoes *
leaf lettuce **

These were so good. I cannot wait to try out all the crazy combinations I have for burgers and patties in my head. I love summer!

There hasn't seemed to be too awful much interest in the It Seemed Like A Good Idea At the Time Writing Contest, but I'm not too upset by that. I am a fan of quality over quantity, so if just one person writes a good piece, I will think the contest has been a success.

A bit of house cleaning related to the Writing Contest - if you want to participate, but do not have a blog, just send your entry to jheartschilepeppers@live.com and I will post it on Veg*n Cooking as a guest post.

Also, while you can still vote for what you think the prize for the contest will be, the winner will ultimately get to decide between the choices given.

I hope you all consider writing a short (or not-so-short) piece for the contest, I know there are a lot of witty people out there with great minds, let's use 'em!

'Til next time.

Pinto Bean and Chard Quesadillas with Mexican Slaw and Guacamole

This meal was not only super tasty, it was a nice way to use up both the local ingredients we had on hand, as well as some of the non-locals that have been hanging around to help fill the void of fresh produce. I love trying new things, but for some reason - perhaps I have seasonal affective disorder :-) - I seemed to have lost my cooking mojo in the early part of the year. I am happy to say it is coming back and so far I've had pretty good luck with what I've tried.

I love using simple whole foods, tons of fresh ingredients, and pair them in simple ways that take them to another level. I don't think food has to be pretentious - in fact, that just isn't my style. It also doesn't have to be complicated - by technique, number of ingredients, or some nutritionist logic of combining specific nutrients for "utmost effectiveness". Food doesn't have to be challenging, difficult, or confusing - it should be simple, straight forward common sense, and a pleasing experience to be shared with others.

It is sad to see so many people who come to see food as an enemy, they see it as merely fuel, when food is not only the source of life, it has been, in history, an expression of culture. The problem in reality is that Americans seem to have the one cultural diet that doesn't work. The way we view food, our relationship to it, it's purpose, and the scientific lens we have put it under has caused a culture of obesity and degenerative diseases. Interesting that the more we think we know, the more we tinker with food, the worse our health gets, and the harder it becomes for us to figure out what it is that we should be eating.

That is why I am a proponent of the cultural diet. Humans can be healthy and thrive on an incredibly diverse number of different diets. These diets, passed down over generations, by necessity have been the healthiest diets for the people in the region. The cultural diets are expressions of the land, and the people's ability to coax, combine, and create combinations of food that are celebrations and also sound nutritionally. The American diet has never been this way and as we see it spread across the world, we see our health problems being outsourced right along with it.

The cultural diet we tend to live by is, obviously, Mexican, Latin, or Southwestern. The combinations of many fresh veggies, healthy proteins in the form of legumes, pulses, and nuts, healthy fiber in the form of the fresh veggies, whole grain rice, and grains like quinoa in concert provide a wonderful level of nutritional benefit. There is also much flavoring provided by sauces loaded with tomatoes, peppers, onions, and garlic - things we all know are good for us - but are much better in combination, better still in combination with beans and rice, though scientists don't really understand why. This is again part of the problem with reductionist science - these folks seem to think that there is one thing that can be isolated and added to something else that would provide the same level of nutrition and health as the whole foods in combination. It doesn't appear to work like that, and explanation or not, folks who subscribe to a cultural diet (and also don't fret over calories, antioxidants, cartenoids, and all the other buzz words in today's nutritional mine field), seem to be happier, healthier, and have a better relationship with food, community, and their land.

The point of all this - there are always so many fads going around as to the "keys to perfect health", it is always based on one nutrient, one compound, or more often still, something you should avoid. Whole foods are more than the sum of their nutrient parts, whether it can be explained by modern reductionist science or not, and that is a basic lesson that makes "what to eat" a lot easier to figure out.

Pick a type of food you like and see where it takes you. We like Mexican and have been subscribing to a vegetarian cultural Mexican, Southwestern, Latin (or inspired) diet for about three years and in that time I have lost about 30 pounds, become healthier, more active, my hair looks better, my skin looks better, Brett is more active, and I never worry about calories, fat, nutrients, etc. My eye sight has improved as my diet has improved. I truly don't understand it. I used to have to wear glasses when I read as my eyes would begin to have trouble focusing and everything would go blurry for a little while. A couple of years ago, a few months into our new way of eating, I noticed I didn't need the glasses anymore. I haven't needed them since. I still don't get it. We also enjoy our food far more - there are boundaries based on the typical flavor profiles we are choosing to use, but there is so much room for creativity, variation, and improvisation.

The moral of the story? Food should be fun, it should be enjoyed, and there are ways of simplifying the way we look at food that will not only make our food choices easier, but likely provide significant improvements to our health. Now this is just my opinion, I am no doctor or nutritionist, but I can say that I trust my own body and my common sense and this is what works for me.

I am getting off the soap box now and moving on to the recipe. :-)

















The local booty legend (aka revealing my sources):
no asterisk = grocery store
+ = local produce from The Root Cellar
++ = The Peace Nook (will denote whether product is local or just from the Nook)
* = farmer's market
** = CSA
*** = Container or Community Garden
**** = the non-profit buying club, Blue Planet or Purcell Mountain Farms

Mexican Slaw:
2 cups red cabbage, shredded fine
1 carrot, peeled and shredded
1/4 yellow onion, sliced thin
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped fine *
2 tbsp veganaise
1 tbsp lime juice
1 tsp cumin
salt
black pepper

Combine all the veggies in a small bowl.

Whisk together veganaise, lime juice, and seasonings to taste.

Pour dressing over veggies and combine well.

Refrigerate for at least an hour to allow flavors to meld.

Pinto Bean and Chard Quesadillas:
2 cups pinto beans, cooked ****
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tomatoes, chopped *
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped fine *
6 cups fresh chard, chopped *
1 tbsp canola oil
a squirt of sriracha
cumin
black pepper
salt
tortillas

Heat canola oil in a medium skillet. Add onions and garlic and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, cilantro, beans and seasonings and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Add the chard and stir frequently until chard is wilted.

Simmer on low for about a half an hour. The beans, veggies, and seasonings will create their own tasty sauce.

Once the bean mixture is finished, layer cheese (if desired) and the filling in a warmed tortilla. Fry and serve with Mexican Slaw and Simple Guacamole.

Well, Happy Friday everyone.

'Til next time.

Forget Lucy, I Love Laura!

Since I began my adventures in BlogLand, I have "met" a lot of really cool people - I am amazed at some of the relationships I've been able to cultivate. I've met someone who I think is likely to be my best friend for a long time to come, and some very cool folks who just so happen to live in my humble town of Columbia, Missouri. Talk about the hidden perks of blogging!

Anyway, not only have I "met" and actually met cool people, but we've been able to share the best of the place we live. This post is a case in point. The amazingly awesome Laura, of the blog Peace by Pastries, is not only a fellow CoMo dweller (I really owe you a cup of coffee or something!), but she is a chef at the lone vegetarian restaurant in town called Main Squeeze. Main Squeeze used to serve this amazing, I'm talking amazing Southwest Black Bean Burger. Brett and I would go there at least once a week just so I could have the burger. Then they stopped serving it. Sadly, they also stopped serving Brett's dish of choice and my "second option", so we haven't even been there in awhile.

But I never forgot about those burgers. When I first "met" Laura, I indicated that I wanted to weasel that recipe out of her somehow, but I didn't have to do that. She provided it herself. Oh. My. Spicy. Black Bean. Goodness. I love you Laura (and I can't believe we have still never met in person). My mouth and heart are very happy campers right now. I have missed these burgers so much, and now not only can I make them at home, but I was able to tweak the recipe based on what we had on hand and our tastes. We also didn't use canned beans or corn, so I had to adjust the ratios just a bit.

We had these for dinner last night, Brett and I liked them so much, we didn't bother to freeze the extra patties, we're having them for lunch!

















The local booty legend (aka revealing my sources):
no asterisk = grocery store
+ = local produce from The Root Cellar
++ = The Peace Nook (will denote whether product is local or just from the Nook)
* = farmer's market
** = CSA
*** = Container or Community Garden
**** = the non-profit buying club, Blue Planet or Purcell Mountain Farms

Our Take on L's Black Bean Burgers
2 1/2 cups black beans, cooked ****
1 1/2 cup frozen sweet corn
1 tbsp. canola oil
1 red onion, peeled +
8 cloves of garlic, peeled
3 jalapenos, stems removed *** (frozen from last year)
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour + (local MO flour!)
1/4 cup regular rolled oats
2 tbsp. ground flax seed mixed with 1/4 cup hot water
2 tbsp. lime juice
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. cumin
1 heaping tbsp. chili powder
1 tbsp. Spanish paprika
1 tbsp. dried cilantro flakes +
2 tbsp sriracha
2 tbsp. shoyu
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour mixed with 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper + (the flour is local)

Preheat oven to 375.

In a food processor, lightly blend beans, corn, and oil. Add the remaining ingredients (except the whole wheat pastry flour/cayenne mixture) and blend well.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Form batter into 1/2-2/3 cup balls and roll in flour mixture.

Press down on the ball to form desired shape and thickness.

Bake for 20 minutes. Flip about half way through the cooking time.

Let stand at room temperature for 20 minutes and serve with your choice of fixins'.

We had our burgers with veganaise, organic ketchup, and baby salad greens. These are so easy to make, and so good. I encourage everyone to check out Laura's blog and make these burgers SOON.

Well, I'm off to enjoy a beautiful Mid-Missouri Saturday. Brett and I now officially have a quarter veggie share CSA with Danjo Farms, and I am going to spend the rest of the day starting seed and doing a little apartment clean-up.

I also got the awesome news this morning that the place making Brett and I's wedding cake also makes vegan cake. Selina, that means you and I are getting our very own vegan chocolate layer. w00t!

'Til next time!

Two Bean-Pumpkin Chili

I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend. I am a bit beat from my weekend, but I had a lot of fun nonetheless. I am working on a baking project, whose purpose will be revealed at a later time, so my weekends have been filled with quite a bit of baking (and dishes too of course). This weekend my focus was cookies! I made a few different kinds and they all turned out wonderfully. I'm not sure if I will get to it due to Thanksgiving this week, but if I have time, I might schedule at least a couple of them to go up over the holiday. I have a very short week at work this week, and a lot of prep and planning to do for Brett and I's contribution to Thanksgiving, oh, and then there is the whole going out of town thing - so needless to say, I will probably be absent from commenting on everyone's blogs for the rest of the week. If I can, I will schedule some cookie posts, otherwise, you will get them next week in addition to pictures and recipes from our Thanksgiving meal.

In the meantime though, I hope you will not be disappointed with this week's Dark Day's 90% local meal, a two bean chili with pumpkin! I think I mentioned before, chili is one of the first things I learned how to cook, as a result, Brett and I ate far more chili than I care to mention, we were so burnt out on chili - poor Brett more than myself. Long story short, we are both, particularly Brett, very picky about chili now. Most of the time I make it, it gets an "eh" from both of us, and doesn't get blogged about. The last "hit" I had in the chili department was the Two Bean and Lentil Chili and then this.

This was my first attempt at using pumpkin in a savory dish and it is really good. This chili was really good. It was hearty, and had a deep, rich tomato flavor, was just spicy enough, it had hints of sweetness and creaminess from the pumpkin, and even a meaty quality from the oyster mushrooms. And with the two beans, you know it was filling.

The only thing I would do differently with this chili next time would be to chop the pumpkin up a little smaller. We like to eat our chili with tortilla chips and the chunks were hard to scoop up.















(Not pretty by any stretch of the imagination, but so, so tasty.)

The local booty legend (aka revealing my sources):
no asterisk = grocery store
+ = local produce from The Root Cellar
++ = The Peace Nook (will denote whether product is local or just from the Nook)
* = farmer's market
** = CSA
*** = Container or Community Garden
**** = the non-profit buying club, Blue Planet or Purcell Mountain Farms

Two Bean-Pumpkin Chili

4 cups black beans, cooked ****
2 cups pinto beans, cooked ****
4 medium to large tomatoes, chopped +
1 habanero, seeded and minced +
1 hot Hungarian wax pepper (ours was ripe and red!), seeded and minced ***
1 serrano (this one was ripe and red too!!), seeded and minced ***
1 green bell pepper, seeded and minced +
1 purple bell pepper, seeded and minced +
4 cloves of garlic, minced +
1 red onion, chopped +
3 cups fresh pumpkin, chopped +
8 oyster mushrooms, minced +
1/3 cup fresh cilantro, finely minced +
5 cups water
chili powder
cumin
Mexican oregano
salt

Combine all ingredients, except the beans, in a large soup pot and simmer for about 2 hours.

Add the beans, and more seasoning if desired, and simmer for an additional 30 minutes to an hour.

This makes a lot of chili. I froze the portion we didn't eat and we will thaw it for a quick meal when we get back from visiting my mom.

I hope everyone has a wonderful (and as local as possible) Thanksgiving!

'Til next time!

Black Bean and Cilantro Lime Rice Tacos

I don't think it had, but it seemed like it had been awhile since Brett and I had a taco night, and when looking through the cabinets to inventory anything that needed to be used up, I found some blue corn taco shells. With that discovery, a taco night was in order - this time, rather than creating something completely novel (at least to us), I decided to try (again) to recreate cilantro-lime rice.

I know Chipotle has cilantro-lime rice, but the first place I had it was at a Mexican restaurant when Brett and I visited Washington, D.C. a couple of years ago. Not long after our trip, I tried to recreate it, and it was horrible. Well since then, I've had cilantro-lime rice a couple more times, and decided to try again. This time the rice turned out great and our taco night was a huge hit.

I've been avoiding buying fresh limes unless they are grown within the US (and even then doing it sparingly). After some thinking, I decided that using bottled lime juice might be the best way to go in terms of food miles (not sure if this is faulty logic or not, but until it is pointed out that this is the case, I am going to roll with this logic). So we bought a bottle of organic lime juice awhile back and I finally decided to break into it. I decided to make this meal a really special treat, so we got an organic avocado (from California) and made guacamole to go with our tacos. Since we had so many tomatoes lying around, I decided to chop up one of the small ones and throw it in there as well.

Now that I know how to make cilantro-lime rice, my head is spinning with all sorts of complimentary burrito and taco salad fillings to pair with it. Don't you just love when you make something and then realize how versatile it is? I still feel that way about the Green Chile Taco Sauce - I think calling it a "taco sauce" was a bit of a misnomer, as the sauce can be used for much more than that.

Note: I had to buy the cilantro for this from the "regular" store. With the farmer's market season quickly coming to an end here in Mid-Missouri, the market last week was pretty short on vendors, including the one who normally has plenty of cilantro. So we bought some organic cilantro from the store that appears to have been grown in California. The COOL labels (country of origin labels) now required on most fresh produce in the US (and some other items) are not always the easiest things to comprehend.

A side note about the COOL labels: When Brett and I were at the "regular" grocery store the other day, we scoped out the first of the clementines we've seen for the year, to see if they were from California, and thus within our self-imposed winter eating local guidlines, and the package listed the USA and Canada as the country of origin. I doubt that clementines are grown in Canada, unless in a greenhouse, but because of the confusion, we decided to pass on the clementines until we could find some that were more clear about where they came from. Argh. Is it too much to ask to be able to know where our food comes from? It's hard to claim that this is a free country sometimes, especially when something so basic as where our food comes from is treated in such a secretive and "need to know" manner.

Anywho, rant over. On to the food!

















The local booty legend (aka revealing my sources):
no asterisk = grocery store
+ = The Root Cellar
++ = The Peace Nook
* = farmer's market
** = CSA
*** = Container or Community Garden
**** = the non-profit buying club, Blue Planet or Purcell Mountain Farms

Cilantro-Lime Rice:
1/2 cup raw long grain brown rice, rinsed ****
1 cup water
pinch of salt for water
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped finely
1 tbsp lime juice
more salt, to taste

Combine rice, water, and salt. Bring water to a boil.

Simmer on low for 40 minutes, or until all water is absorbed.

While rice is still warm stir in cilantro and lime. Taste. Add more salt if necessary.

Beans:
2 cups of black beans, cooked ****
1 small red bell pepper, seeded and minced *
1/2 red onion, minced +
2 cloves of garlic, minced +
adobo seasoning (we use Goya brand with cumin)

Heat a few tablespoons of water in a small skillet.

Add the pepper, onion, and garlic and cook for 10-15 minutes or until veggies are soft. Drain any excess water.

In a small bowl, combine veggies, beans, and adobo seasoning to taste.

"Fixin's":
blue corn taco shells
2 medium tomatoes, chopped ***
simple guacamole (with a small chopped tomato stirred in for an extra treat) (garlic in guacamole = +; tomato = ***)
local salsa (though not necessary) *

Layer rice and bean mixture in warmed taco shells. Serve with fresh tomatoes and guacamole.

Yum!

We ate these while we watched the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles game on Sunday Night Football. Wahoo and WAHOO. Sadly it looks like we got whipped in our fantasy football game this weekend.

'Til next time!

J's Spicy Mexican-ish Brunch Hash

I made this for brunch over the weekend. It was very easy and very tasty - an excellent way to enjoy the abundance at the farmer's market. We are really trying to relish in it while we can. We are going to attempt to eat as locally as possible over winter, but it will be more difficult. Tomorrow when I post a "mini round-up" of how folks are doing in the Unplug Yourself initiative, I will outline our goals for eating as locally and sustainably as possible over the winter. I am also pondering a "what's local on our table" either page or element on the sidebar for easy viewing of what we are eating locally each week. Would anyone be interested in this element or page?

Anyways, there are a lot of peppers in this, so it might seem like it was really spicy, but it wasn't too spicy for Brett to enjoy. He's lucky I didn't add that second habanero, I wanted to, but thought I was pushing my luck with the one.

As those of you who have been following this blog know, we gave up avocados back in June for Chile's Quit Now Challenge. Since then, the only time we have had avocados has been when we go to our favorite local Mexican restaurant El Rancho, or when my dad brought a bunch down with the (apparently dying) avocado tree. In doing the challenge, the idea wasn't to give up avocados completely but rather, to become less reliant on them, and I think we very much succeeded. I bought an avocado this weekend for the first time since before the challenge in June. I thought it would really round out the brunch hash and would also be a really nice treat. So this meal includes guacamole!

Just a reminder of the produce legend:
no asterisk = grocery store
* = farmer's market
** = CSA
*** = Container or Community Garden

Well, here it is!


J's Spicy Mexican-ish Brunch Hash
4 small new potatoes, cubed *
2 white mushrooms, minced
1/2 a zucchini, cubed ***
1/2 a yellow summer squash, cubed **
1 red bell pepper, seeded and minced *
1 poblano pepper, seeded and minced *
1 habanero, seeded and minced *
1/2 red onion, minced *
4 cloves of garlic, minced *
2 Roma tomatoes, chopped ***
2-3 tbsp fresh cilantro, minced (or 1 tsp dried) **
chili powder
cumin
Mexican oregano
black pepper
salt

guacamole
homemade salsa

Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add the potatoes and cook for about 6-8 minutes. Drain potatoes.

Meanwhile, heat a couple of tablespoons of safflower oil in a large skillet. Add all the veggies except the tomatoes and cilantro and cook for 10-15 minutes, adding the potatoes whenever they are done.

Once veggies begin to soften, season to taste and add the tomatoes. Cook for an additional 5-10 minutes.

Stir in the cilantro.

Garnish with guacamole and homemade salsa.

We also at a few tortilla chips with our meal.

I don't fuss over brunch very often, we generally eat veggie bagel sandwiches and fruit, but every once in awhile a nice cooked brunch sounds good.

'Til next time.

Mushroom and Asparagus Burritos with Roasted Salsa Verde

I was initially very wary of using veggies like asparagus in Mexican food as it didn't seem very 'authentic'. Well, I've quickly gotten over that because many ingredients, whether authentic or not, can be turned into yummy Mexican-inspired meals with the right flavor combination.

Wanting to enjoy the abundance of fresh, local, organic asparagus we've been getting from our CSA, I came up with these burritos. They were really good, and as my first Mexican meal without avocados or guacamole, I must say, this was fantastic!

I made a roasted salsa verde to go with the meal. The burritos and the salsa paired wonderfully. The salsa is spicy, flavorful, and very easy to make.

Roasted veggies out of the oven.

Everything in the food processor.

The finished product, so good!

Roasted Salsa Verde

Makes 1 1/2 to 2 cups of salsa.

1 lb tomatillos (about 10), husked and washed

4 serrano chiles

1/4 yellow onion

4 cloves of garlic, unpeeled

1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

juice of one lime

cumin

salt

1 1/2 cups veggie broth

Preheat broiler.

Layer tomatillos, serrano chiles, onion and garlic on a baking sheet. Drizzle with cocout oil and salt.

Roast in the oven for about 3-5 minutes on each side.

Once veggies are roasted, allow to cool for a few minutes, then remove the stem and peel the peppers. (Remove the seeds if you don't want a spicy salsa.)

Combine all ingredients in a food processor until very smooth.

Transfer salsa to a sauce pan. Add the veggie broth and simmer on low for about 2 hours or until the salsa is very thick.

This sauce will last about a week in the refrigerator and freezes well.

Mushroom and Asparagus Burritos

2 cups cooked black beans

1 bunch of asparagus, woody ends discarded, roasted, and cut into 1 inch pieces

1 red bell pepper, roasted and sliced

1 package white button mushrooms, minced

1 package baby portobello mushrooms, minced

2-3 hot peppers, seeded and minced

1/4 red onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

cumin

chili powder

paprika

ground coriander

cayenne pepper

salt

tortillas

Roasted Salsa Verde

Heat a few tablespoons of water in a small skillet. Add the mushrooms, peppers, onion, and garlic. Cook for 10-15 minutes of until veggies are soft. Drain any excess water.

Combine all filling ingredients in a bowl and season to taste.

Layer filling in warmed tortillas. Roll up and fry if desired.

Serve with Roasted Salsa Verde.

'Til next time.

Black Bean and Asparagus Enchiladas with Green Enchilada Sauce

This recipe is dedicated to the Vegan Cow Girl.

Her love for all things asparagus inspired me to try to come up with a way to use it in a Mexican inspired dish.

I have to be completely honest with you, both Brett and I were a little skeptical at first, but these turned out really good. I cleaned my plate and Brett ate so much he almost made himself sick.

And I must state for the record, roasted asparagus seriously rocks. Seriously. :-)

Green Enchilada Sauce

Makes enough for a large dish of enchiladas.

1 lb tomatillos, husked and cored

1 cup cold water

1/4 cup veggie broth

4 serrano peppers, seeded and minced

1 habanero, seeded and minced

1/2 yellow onion, minced

3 cloves of garlic, peeled

1 cup of cilantro, washed and shredded

juice of one lime

cinnamon

dash nutmeg

dash cocoa powder

cumin

paprika

dash white pepper

salt

1 tbsp good canola oil

Soak husked and cleaned tomatillos in cold water to 10-15 minutes.

While tomatillos are soaking, heat a few tablespoons of water in a small skillet. Add the peppers and onion and cook until soft, about 10 minutes.

Blend tomatillos and water in a food processor.

Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until very smooth.

Place sauce in a pan and simmer, covered for about 40 minutes.

Refrigerate for at least an hour to allow flavors to blend.

This sauce should last in the fridge about 2 weeks, it also freezes well.

The enchilada filling. So very good. I took the leftover filling into work the next day and ate it by itself for lunch! It was really good.

Black Bean and Asparagus Enchiladas

1 cup black beans, cooked

1 bunch of asparagus, woody ends discarded, roasted and sliced into bite sized pieces

2 small zucchini, roasted and sliced

1/2 bell pepper, roasted and sliced

1 poblano, roasted and sliced

1/4 onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 serrano peppers, seeded and minced

cumin

chipotle chili powder

Mexican oregano

paprika

salt

vegan jack (optional)

Green Enchilada Sauce

corn tortillas (we used white corn)

sliced black olives

guacamole

When veggies are done roasting, reduce oven heat to 350.

Heat a few tablespoons of water in a small skillet. Add the onion, garlic and serrano peppers. Cook for about 10 minutes or until soft. Combine all the filling ingredients in a bowl and season to taste.

Spread enchilada sauce in the bottom of a baking dish.

Layer filling and a little bit of vegan jack (if desired) in warmed corn tortillas. Roll up and place in the pan. Top with a little more enchilada sauce.

Bake, uncovered for 30-35 minutes or until everything is bubbly and tortillas are getting crisp.

Top with olives and bake for another 2-3 minutes.

Let cool for a few minutes before serving.

Serve with guacamole.

Yum!

So, a bit of sad garden news to end this post. I did some research, and it looks like we started our pepper seeds a bit late this year. This means we are going to start picking up starts over the course of this week to transplant into pots this weekend. We did, however, learn a lot, and will know to start them much sooner next year. We are going to keep the New Mexican Chile start going, as they seem to be taking off and I've never seen a start of this pepper. We're hoping to at least get one or two peppers off of it so we can save their seeds.

Anyways.... I'll leave you with a couple of cute kitty pictures.

We've created a monster. Brett thought it was cute that Nermal was getting interested in the sink one day not too long ago. She then discovered that she could drink the running water out of the sink. Now she will only drink the running water out of the sink. And she demands it, by loudly and constantly meowing when she's thirsty. I don't think she's drank out of her water bowl for a month. Let's just say it used to be cute and now we're stuck doing it! :-)

Gabby never misses an opportunity to get in a bag.

'Til next time!

Marinated Mushroom, Pepper and Corn Flautas with Smooth Roasted Tomatillo-Garlic Salsa

As anyone who reads my blog knows, I love Mexican food (and I also dig on their music, especially instrumental guitar). It truly borders on obsession, but that's fine by me (and Brett). :-) If you all could only see my flash drive and the literally dozens (perhaps bordering on 100) of Mexican sauce, entree and brunch recipes I've created (and yet to try), you'd either be scared or impressed. The only problem with my insane quantity of recipes is that I forget about some of them or don't know where to begin when I go to plan my meals out for the week. Well, I've come up with a new organizational method (separating recipes by type, such as 'burritos and burros', 'enchiladas', 'flautas', 'empanadas', 'fajitas', etc) so now they are more readily accessible and I'm not faced with a HUGE folder full of recipes to choose from.

A couple of nights ago, I pulled out this flauta recipe that I was really excited about when I created it, but soon forgot about.

These did not fail to please at all. And, they only took about 20 minutes to prepare (I made the salsa over the weekend so that the meal would be quick), and then baked for about the same amount of time. A perfect meal after a long day at work!

Enough of my yammering, onto the pictures and the recipes!















Roasted tomatillos and garlic fresh from the oven. They look very appetizing, I know, but trust me, roasted tomatillos are amazing.















Roasted Tomatillo and Garlic Salsa

Makes about 3 cups.

Note: This is a very mild salsa.

1lb tomatillos, husked
1 head of garlic, 1/4 inch of the top sliced off
4 serrano peppers, seeded and minced
3 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
1/4 red onion, minced
1 cup of cilantro, shredded
1/2 cup (or more) water
cumin
Mexican oregano
paprika
dash sugar
salt

Preheat the broiler.

Meanwhile, heat a few tablespoons of water in a small skillet. Add the peppers and onion and cook about 10 minutes.

Drizzle a little melted coconut oil and a pinch of salt over the tomatillos and garlic.

Roast for about 3-5 minutes, and turn. Roast another 3-5 minutes until tomatillos begin to blister.

The garlic should be removed as soon as it begins to brown and get fragrant.

Allow to cool for a few minutes before removing the skins from the garlic and transferring everything to a food processor.

Pulse all ingredients in a food processor until well blended.

Refrigerate for at least an hour to allow flavors to blend.

This sauce will keep for 1-2 weeks in the fridge and freezes well.

FOR: Tacos, Tostadas, Taco Salads, Burritos and Burros, Quesadillas, Enchiladas, Bowls, Tamales, Fajitas, Empanadas, Flautas, Taquitos

Marinated Mushrooms:
juice of one lime
1/3 cup water
1 tbsp canola oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp shoyu (or other soy sauce)
1 tbsp stone ground mustard
chili powder
cumin
ground coriander
cayenne pepper
salt

1 small pack of button mushrooms, diced

Combine all the marinade ingredients in a medium bowl. Add the mushrooms, stir, cover with plastic wrap and marinate for about 8 hours. (I made the marinade the night before and put the mushrooms in to marinate before I went to work in the morning.)

Marinated Mushroom, Pepper and Corn Flautas

1/2 cup long grain brown rice, cooked

1/2 cup corn, cooked

1/4 red onion, diced

4 cloves of garlic, minced

1 red bell pepper, sliced

4 serrano peppers, seeded and minced

1 habanero pepper, seeded and minced

1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

juice of half a lime

chipotle chili powder

ground coriander

cumin

Mexican oregano

paprika

salt

small flour tortillas

guacamole

Smooth Roasted Tomatillo and Garlic Salsa

Preheat oven to 400.

Heat a few tablespoons of water in a small skillet. Add the peppers, onion and garlic and cook for about 10 minutes or until veggies are soft. Drain any excess water and transfer to a bowl and combine with cooked rice, corn and spices.

Using the same skillet, add the marinated mushrooms and a bit of the marinade to the skillet. Cook for about 10-15 minutes or until mushrooms are soft. Drain any excess liquid and transfer to the bowl with the rest of the filling.

Layer filling in warmed tortillas and roll up, securing at each end with a tooth pick.

Bake, uncovered for about 15-20 minutes, or until tortillas are crisp. Remove the tooth picks and the flautas should stay together on their own.

Serve with guacamole and Roasted Tomatillo and Garlic Salsa.

Flautas have to be the ideal finger food. Both Brett and I thought these were awesome and I definitely see more flautas in our future, so long as I don't forget about the recipes, which my new organizational system should help with.

Anywho, that's all for now.

'Til next time!

Spicy Lentil Burritos with Chipotle Tomatillo-Serrano Sauce

These burritos were really good, and easy to make too. Brett, who wasn't sure he liked lentils, has now warmed up to at least the green variety. No longer does he cringe when he hears I want to try something with lentils.....

I don't have any pictures of the burrito itself. I didn't end up with a good picture of the filling, they all came out blurry. And then I forgot to take a picture of it once I had wrapped it up and slathered it with (big surprise) guacamole. But if you've seen one burrito, you've seen 'em all right? I'll make sure to get a decent picture of the filling next time I make this, but suffice to say, picture or not, this meal was filling, spicy, tasty, all sorts of good things.

I also think this might be my favorite sauce I've made so far. It's smoky, spicy but not overly so, and flavorful. And I did get a picture of the sauce!

Ole!















Chipotle Tomatillo-Serrano Sauce
Makes 3 cups.

1 lb tomatillos, husked and diced
6 serrano peppers, seeded and minced
1/4 red onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 chipotle chilies en adobo, chopped
juice of one lime
1 cup fresh cilantro, shredded
cumin
dash dried basil
salt
2 tbsp seasoned brown rice vinegar
1/2 cup water

Heat a few tablespoons of water in a small skillet. Add the peppers and onion and cook for 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 5 more minutes.

Transfer everything to a food processor and blend until very smooth, this is a thin sauce. Add the liquid in batches.

This sauce will last about a week in the fridge and it freezes well.

Spicy Lentil Burritos
1 cup green lentils, cooked
1 seasoned roasted yam
1 cup shiitake mushrooms, chopped fine
4 serrano peppers, seeded and minced
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
1 poblano pepper, seeded and minced
1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and minced
2 small yellow crookneck squash, cubed
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 red onion, minced
cumin
Mexican oregano
ground coriander
paprika
salt

tortillas
Chipotle Tomatillo-Serrano Sauce
Guacamole

Heat a few tablespoons of water in a medium sauce pan. Add the peppers, onion, garlic and squash and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for an additional 10 minutes or until veggies are soft, adding more water if necessary along the way. Once cooked, drain any additional water and transfer to a large bowl.

Combine lentils, veggies and spices in the bowl.

Layer lentil mixture, seasoned roasted yams and chipotle tomatillo-serrano sauce in a warmed tortillas. Roll up and fry if desired.

Top with guacamole.

Lentils are really good in Mexican, it's a nice change up from beans.

'Til next time.