Vegetarian Cobb Salad

At the social service agency I work for, we have monthly all-staff potlucks.  It's an opportunity for the 100 or so of us who work together to come together for a meal and listen to some agency-wide announcements.  I'm on the committee that organizes the potlucks, and we've come to realize, (I think,) that the potlucks are better attended when there's some type of "theme."  We have had comfort food themes, chili cook-offs, and most recently, to usher in spring, a "salad" theme.  As interim chair of this committee, I penned a haiku, celebrating salads, that went something like this:

Veggies, fruit, pasta,

Beans, grains, Jell-O or Snickers,

Tossed in a bowl.  Yum!

(Yes, there is such a thing as "Snickers Salad."  I'm scared of it.  Has anyone ever tried this?  Is it a Midwestern thing?  A Minnesota thing?  I had never heard of this edible food-like substance until moving to Minnesota.)

Anyhow, I digress.  :)

Personally, I think of salads as something . . . healthier, produce-packed, downright nutritious!  However, my husband is very much an "eggs-n-cheese" vegetarian -- he prefers his food heavy, comfy, and filling.  What's a veggie-loving wife to do?

Enter: Vegetarian Cobb Salad

Ingredients for one salad:

Salad greens (mixed baby greens, romaine, leaf lettuces, whatever you prefer)

Hard-boiled egg

Avocado, cubed

Tomato, chopped

Blue cheese, crumbled

Vegetarian mock chicken patty, cooked and cubed

Coconut bacon

Red wine vinaigrette (I made my own and added plenty of chives, as most of the traditional Cobb salads call for them)

This salad achieves that perfect balance -- plenty of nutritious greens, healthy fats, and quality vegetarian protein, yet heavy, rich, and substantial enough for even the heartiest eaters.

What are your favorite "pleases everyone" meals?

400-calorie dinners (v)

I had the opportunity to travel to Seattle last week for training for work -- so much fun!  I had a chance to eat at Veggie Grill three times, (it was a block away from my hotel, and well, there were so many things on the menu I wanted to try!) at Chaco Canyon with Victoria and Brent, (isn't meeting fellow bloggers you've "known" for years so much fun!), and at Chutney's Bistro with my friend Christine!  Add on the hotel breakfast daily, and a "Snowball" from Trophy Cupcakes and well, it was a tasty trip.  :)

(Victoria, what was the name of the ice cream place we went to after dinner?)

Needless to say, I wasn't counting calories while I was away.  I rarely travel, so I figured I'd give myself a vacation from that, too!  I could see how hard it would be to eat healthfully for frequent travelers, though!

Now that I'm home, I'm back at it!  Three more 400-calorie dinners for you today . . .

MORE pizza:

Half whole-wheat Artisan Bread in 5 crust, topped with olive oil, minced garlic, an entire 10-oz package of frozen spinach, dried tomatoes from last summer's garden, part-skim mozzarella, and feta.   Popeye would be jealous, vampires would run screaming.  :)  216 calories per slice!

The classic soup-n-sandwich:

Creamy Tomato-Basil Bisque, with a half grilled-cheese on the side.  332 calories as-is, (sandwich made using one slice of whole-wheat bread and an ounce of sharp cheddar, cooked in cooking spray,) or you could increase your sandwich portion to a full-size if you were looking for a larger meal.

And, my new favorite meal:

Twice-Baked Sweet Potatoes with Leeks and Sausage.  I used two links of leftover homemade kielbasa instead of the suggested Italian pork sausage; super-delicious!  I had a feeling these stuffed sweets were going to be delicious, but I had no idea they would be quite so . . . incredible.  Creamy, sweet, savory, cheesy, hearty, and filling, but still a calorie bargain at 265 calories per potato half.  Add a huge side salad for a light supper, or enjoy two potato halves for a heartier supper.

~~~~~~~~~~

Do you try to eat healthfully when you travel, or do you indulge more?

400-calorie dinners (ii)

Two more all-star recipes to add to the 400-calorie dinner collection this week:

Falafel-Stuffed Eggplant:

I bookmarked this recipe ages ago . . . what took me so long to try this?  Light yet filling, with a welcome burst of summery flavors to brighten up the bitterest of cold winter days.  (I can imagine how much tastier this would be when everything was actually in season!)  I did modify the recipe slightly, adding the eggplant pulp to the filling, instead of "reserving for another use."  (Huh?  What on earth would anyone do with just around a cup of eggplant goo?  Hm.)  352 calories, loaded with fiber, protein, A, C, calcium, and impressively high in iron.  John claimed he wasn't all that hungry prior to dinner this evening, but managed to gobble up his portion just fine.  Must have been good!

Sauerkraut & Sausage Casserole:

This dish is as warm and cozy as the previous was bright and summery.  (Hey . . . I crave variety!)  After making my own vegetarian kielbasa, this dish was a snap to prepare, and I love the combination of tangy, salty kraut, (homegrown, home-cultured, and home-canned at our house!), savory faux sausage, sweet onions and apples, and tender-crispy potatoes.  A bargain dinner at 297 calories, packed with protein and loaded with vitamin C, there's definitely room for a chunk of dark rye with butter alongside this entree, or alternately . . .

Dessert!

German Honey Cookies:

If you enjoy simple yet surprising sweets, this is a cookie you MUST try.  There is enough honey in the dough to be clearly present in the baked cookie, yet the copious amount of vanilla and ground ginger sneak in and hang out in the background.  The cookies are sweet but not cloyingly so, buttery without being overly rich, and friendly to the healthy eating plan at 97 calories each.  I made a few modifications to the original recipe, following a more traditional method of creaming the butter and sugar together by hand, then stirring in the honey, egg, and vanilla, before finally adding the dry ingredients, and I also subbed in half whole-wheat pastry flour for some of the all-purpose.  This is only the second time I've made these, but I much prefer this batch -- my first attempt (years ago) was soft, pillowy, and almost cake-like using the technique in the recipe; this batch is soft, toothsomely chewy, and dense -- a perfect cookie texture, in my opinion.  (P.S. watch 'em like hawks, and pull them out of the oven JUST as they begin to brown and are completely set -- over-baking these beauties turns them tooth-breakingly crispy in a heartbeat.  Or, if you like crispy cookies, by all means, over-bake away!  I bet they would make great dunkers, in that case.)  Someday, I'll try these with fresh ginger in lieu of the ground, and likely achieve cookie nirvana.  :)

whatever looks good

At the tail end of my vacation last week, John and I decided to hit up the Farmer's Market on a whim -- we wanted garlic to plant, beeswax to turn into hand cream and lip balm, and whatever veggies looked good.  That's always the best policy when it comes to the Farmer's Market, don't you think?  Buy whatever looks good, and figure out a plan later.  :)

We came home and made brunch:

Poached eggs, sauteed kale, roasted potatoes, and sliced heirloom tomatoes.  All local, and all perfectly delicious!  I love that fresh produce needs so little to shine -- a little oil, a little salt, a little pepper, maybe a few herbs or a splash of vinegar or soy sauce . . . and that's it!  Yum.  If only I had the time this morning, I would make this breakfast again today!

Although I have been trying to cut back on desserts lately, I still feel the pull to bake delicious things.  Muffins to the rescue!

I made Buttermilk Granola Muffins from King Arthur Flour, and was delighted with the results!  Sweet, moist, tender, 100% whole-grain muffins for breakfasts and snacks this week have nodded to my sweet tooth without being too junky.  The granola topping seemed to scorch a little bit -- blame the tiny apartment oven?  Maybe it's time I finally invest in an oven thermometer.  :)

Do you have any favorite recipes that use cultured buttermilk?  I have been serially culturing buttermilk lately, (which, by the way, is crazy easy,) and have been looking for more uses for it.  Any suggestions?

goodbye, vacation!

My vacation is almost over!  I can't believe I've been away from work for an entire week, and it's already time to go back . . . I had a great week, though.  Saturday through Monday, John and I traveled to Wisconsin to visit my family, and we spent the rest of the week hanging out at his house.  (We even brought Oliver along -- and he did great!  He only hid in John's boxspring for the first day, and then spend the rest of the time trotting around, sniffing everything, and having "conversations" with John's roommate's cat through her closed bedroom door.  Ha!)  I did plenty of baking and cooking, we spent a day volunteering at the organic farm where John has been helping out this summer, spent plenty of time doing yard work, and made time for reading, watching movies, and relaxing.  :)

Of course, we did plenty of eating!  After a restaurant-marathon while visiting my family, we have been eating at home the rest of the week, trying to "recover."  Does anyone else feel just awful after eating out too many meals in a row?  I know I sure do.

We had lots of leftover beans, rice, and cheese, so ate plenty of Tex-Mex meals during the week:

After we ran out of tortillas, we finished almost everything up  in nacho form.  :)  Refried beans, cilantro rice, cheese, homemade tomatillo salsa, garden tomatoes, lettuce, sour cream, and homemade guacamole.  MMMMMM.  Kind of want this plate for breakfast right now!

We had a surplus of kale this week, which is definitely a good thing!  We left the farm on Tuesday with a huge bunch, and also had a nice-sized harvest waiting for us in the garden.  After more "Magic Kale Salad" with tempeh, I made soup!

Kale, vegetarian sausages, onions, garlic, white beans, tomatoes, olives, broth, and seasonings made for a spicy-delicious soup!  I ended up with the hugest pot of this stuff, so we are still eating leftovers, and they are still just as tasty!

One of my kitchen projects this week was my first foray into cheese-making:

The last time I made butter, I used the leftover liquid to make "buttermilk cheese."  This is seriously the simplest thing ever -- you let the true buttermilk sit out at room temperature for 24 hours, and then heat it slowly until it begins to curdle.  Strain for 4 hours, salt, and enjoy!  I would describe this cheese as a somewhat creamier, less tangy ricotta -- I think it would work nicely in a lasagna, or on top of a pizza, or pureed with herbs, pepper, and lemon juice to make a dip for crackers or veggies.  It was pretty tasty just on crackers!

No big plans for today, yet -- but we hope to have some fun on my last vacation day!

blog-worthy?

From the looks of this blog post, it would seem as though I didn't do much cooking over the weekend.  I promise we ate well, although not necessarily blog-worthy.  :)

Saturday night veggie burgers:

I really like the black bean burger recipe from Veganomicon, and we had 'em this weekend on toasted wholegrain buns with mayo, spinach, tomato, and some melted tilsit.  Roasted garden veggies (green beans, cherry tomatoes, and green onions,) and chips and guac on the side.

Sunday night soup:

I have been having good success focusing on one cookbook at a time when I do my meal planning, and this past weekend, it was Veganomicon.  The "Midsummer Corn Chowder" was a huge hit, with both John, myself, and his parents.  What's not to like, really -- it's basically a huge pot full of in-season produce!  Yum.

And a couple of baking projects . . .

First, I turned Pecan-Topped Pumpkin Bread into muffins:

I was really pleased with how this recipe turned out.  The only change I made to the original was subbing in half whole-wheat flour for some of the all-purpose, and I'd consider upping to even 3/4 whole-wheat next time, as well as reducing the amount of sugar called for.  However, these muffins are light and flavorful, without tasting too "healthy," you know?  They make great quick, portable snacks.

Second, I have been looking for more recipes lately that call for buttermilk, as I have been reculturing my own for a few weeks now.  Here's some Cinnamon Streusel Buttermilk Coffee Cake:

Not only is this recipe incredibly delicious, it's EASY.  You know how recipes that call for a streusel often require a lot of extra mixing and dirty bowls?  Not this recipe.  You make a base crumble with butter, flour, sugar, and some nutmeg, pull out a cup of it and add some nuts and cinnamon for the streusel, and add an egg, some buttermilk, and some leavening to the rest for the cake batter.  Easy!  I think I had this cake ready for the oven before it was preheated.  I might try baking it in a square pan next time, as I'm never a huge fan of springform pans.  (I just don't trust them not to leak.  Perhaps it's time to invest in a higher quality springform?  Eh.)

Busy week ahead . . . wish me luck!  Thankfully, I have plenty of leftovers.  :)

Belated pasta

I assume this happens to many, but I seem to be notorious for forgetting about food photos I've taken with my phone. Alas! Here was Wednesday's dinner - whole-wheat pasta with olive oil, garden veggies, and local Asiago cheese ... wholesome, healthy, and delicious!

beans and cheese

We've been eating lots of beans and cheese this week!  First meal involving two of my favorite ingredients:

"Tomato Tortilla Soup," from Moosewood Restaurant Simple Suppers, with quesadillas on the side.  I had never made tortilla soup before, and I was pleasantly surprised by this recipe -- the ground/pureed tortilla chips gave the soup an incredibly creamy, silky texture, and the simple recipe was a snap to whip together on a busy day.  The quesadillas were made with whole-wheat tortillas, homemade refried pinto beans, and shredded pepper jack, with jarred salsa and homemade guacamole for dipping.

Leftover beans and cheese were later incorporated into breakfast:

Huevos Rancheros!  More protein, please!  :)  Yum.

tortilla pizza

Here's an easy, cheap, calorie-conscious (if you measure your cheese) dinner for one -- a tortilla pizza!  Why haven't I ever thought of this before?  I topped a whole-wheat tortilla with parmesan, part-skim mozzarella, sliced tomato, kalamata olives, and oregano, and baked the whole thing at 400 until bubbly and crisp around the edges.  Dinner served, belly filled, and mouth only slightly burned by boiling hot tomato juices.  ;)

chop-chop!

Work has been hectic lately, and on more than one occasion in the past few weeks, I've found myself with little to no time to eat, collect, and/or heat up my lunch.  (The toddlers keep me busy!)  I'm aiming for something quick and simple this week, that doesn't require heating -- enter the Greek Chopped Salad!

Cucumber, yellow bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, chickpeas, olives, artichokes, and feta, dressed in a creamy vinaigrette made from red wine vinegar, olive oil, a little mayo, salt, pepper, and dried oregano.  I had a bowlful for dinner tonight as a "preview," and let's just say, I'm excited for lunch tomorrow!  I'll smear a wholegrain pita with some hummus in the morning, and be good to go.

Any other brilliant make-ahead, easy cold lunch ideas?  My other alternate for this week is egg salad on Dr. Kracker flatbreads.  (I can't STAND packed sandwiches, as they get soggy.  Is that weird?)  I should spend some time next weekend looking through Lunches, Picnics, and Appetizers for more ideas, too.  That's one of those cookbooks I forget I own, and then have an "oh, YEAH!" moment, and get excited for it all over again.  ;)

Meals in bowls

Lunch today was chili, with a side of homemade corn bread, and dinner was whole-wheat rigatoni with olive oil, garlic, dried tomatoes, kalamata olives, artichokes, spinach, and goat cheese. One-bowl meals are awesome!

cleaning out my cupboards

I have been on a mission recently -- a mission to clean out my freezer and cupboards. I'm not entirely certain as to why I'm on a roll in this department -- maybe I want to get stuff cleared out before the intense heat of summer, when things go bad faster and I don't cook much? I bet that's it. Anyhow, I emptied out my jar of wild rice earlier this week, and made headway towards clearing out my stash of green split peas tonight:

Smoky Split Pea Soup is, in my opinion, the ONLY thing to do with split peas. So, so delicious. But maybe I'm wrong? Any other stellar split pea recipes out there?

3-day weekends are made for cooking

Wouldn't you agree? I had a lovely weekend, busy and full of fun with friends, but left myself plenty of time to make some delicious meals!

Quite possibly, the best brunch ever:

Poached eggs, greens (kale, this time,) roasted potatoes, and sliced "Kellogg's Breakfast" heirlooms. MMMMMM! If only I had the time to make this meal again THIS morning!

Two pizzas, one including more heirlooms, fresh mozzarella, and fresh basil:


And one classic "mega-veggie style," including mozzarella and parmesan cheeses, and loads of veggies:

Red onion, green bell pepper, sliced tomato, sliced olive, broccoli, and mushrooms, to be precise!

Cherry crumble, with local vanilla ice cream from Pumphouse Creamery:

I discovered jarred sour cherries at Bill's Imported Foods on Saturday afternoon, and I practically jumped for joy! Next time I'm having a cherry pie craving, I'll have to go pick up a few jars. For now, the two jars I bought made me deliriously happy -- more than enough foodie excitement for one weekend, in my opinion. :)

What did you cook over the weekend?

mainlining produce

Let's just say it has NOT been a healthy day for me, at least intake-wise. I ate both breakfast and lunch at school with the kids, and I realized, on my way home from work, that I was: 1. profoundly thirsty (thank you, processed foods,) and 2. hadn't had a single fruit or vegetable ALL DAY. The horror.

I decided that as soon as I walked in the door, it was time to start mainlining the produce:

A giant tomato and cucumber salad (with feta and olives,) two slices of toasted multigrain bread topped with baba ganoush and sliced avocado, and some fresh figs.

I feel better now.

thank you, Dora.

Thanks to my friend Dora, who provided both some of the raw materials (heirloom tomatoes from her garden) and inspiration (telling me about her breakfast of tomatoes and poached eggs yesterday,) for this meal, a healthy, indulgent breakfast made its way out of my kitchen this morning:

Wholegrain toast with honey and butter, poached eggs, sliced heirlooms with salt, pepper, balsamic vinegar, and basil, fresh blackberries, and a second cup of coffee.

I'm fueled. :) Better start the cleaning and laundry!

an obvious choice

With all of the gorgeous, fresh, local veggies in season right now, and the cooler temperatures we have been enjoying in MN as of late, I needed to make a massive heap of roasted veggies, wouldn't you agree? I followed the "Roasted Ratatouille" recipe from Moosewood Restaurant Simple Suppers, adding 2 cups of cooked chickpeas for a little more protein/staying power. Now, what to do with those veggies, you ask?

Why, stuff them into crepes, of course -- isn't that the obvious answer?? ;) I haven't made crepes since Mardi Gras, and I was starting to feel like it was about time! My crepe recipe is so simple, (2 cups flour, 2 1/8 cups milk, 1 stick butter, melted, and 4 eggs,) and so delicious, (must be all that butter, plus then turning around and cooking them in more butter!), I felt like it was the obvious choice. :)

Thanks to French classes in high school, I have been making crepes for over half my life, so they feel like the easiest thing in the world. I also have a crepe pan . . . I know, I know. I don't make much room for unitaskers in my kitchen, but it's just so much easier to cook crepes in a crepe pan, as opposed to a nonstick frying pan. (No "tails" of batter shooting out of the edges when I use a crepe pan.) How 'bout you? Have you ever made crepes before?

stuffed!

I had bookmarked a recipe from Vegetarian Times awhile back for Walnut-Stuffed Eggplant . . . and waited patiently for eggplant to come in season.

Finally! I added the ingredients to my shopping lists last weekend, and was excited to try out something new. While I've stuffed squash and portobellos, I've actually never stuffed an eggplant -- can you believe it?

Upon closer examination of the recipe, I was starting to feel less excited about this project. Reading the recipe reviews, some folks said that the meal took them two hours to prepare, and others complained about the cinnamon in the filling. I talked with my friend Dora about this meal, since she has stuffed eggplant before, and she gave me some pointers on streamlining the preparation.

I tweaked the original recipe quite a bit; here's what I finally came up with!



Walnut-Stuffed Eggplant, FOOD SNOB Version

Ingredients:
2 medium eggplants (2 1/2 to 3 lbs total weight)
1 tbsp + 4 tsp olive oil, divided
3 cups diced onion
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
3 cups quartered cherry tomatoes
3/4 cup roughly-chopped walnuts
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 1/2 tsp oregano
zest of one lemon
salt to taste
3 1/2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup whole-wheat panko

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425. Halve the eggplant lengthwise, (leave the stem on for a more gorgeous presentation,) and place cut-side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake the eggplant about 30 minutes, or until fork-tender. Cool slightly. Scoop the eggplant flesh from the shells, and chop the flesh coarsely. Arrange the shells back on the baking sheet.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet, and add the onion and red pepper. Cook the onion until soft. Add the cherry tomatoes, walnuts, Italian seasoning, oregano, lemon zest, salt, and reserved eggplant flesh, and stir to combine. Cook, covered, about three minutes, or until the tomatoes begin to break down. Fold in the feta.
3. Heap the filling into the reserved shells. Toss the breadcrumbs with the remaining 4 tsp oil, and sprinkle over the filling.
4. Bake the stuffed eggplant for about 15 minutes, or until the filling sets and the crumbs brown. Allow the eggplants to cool for 10 minutes before serving!

Plated, with salad:

After my stuffed eggplant, salad, and dessert, my belly is also stuffed!

salad days

It's HOT in Minneapolis today -- temps in the mid/upper 90s with a sticky, nasty, thick and soupy dewpoint of 70. Sigh. It's this part of summer that I'm just not a huge fan of. (Who is? I swear, I don't know a soul who enjoys hot and humid weather.)

Salad days are here, at least for the rest of this week -- my appetite tends to wane with the heat, and I don't dare tun on the oven to cook anything! Here's tonight's salad:

Local mixed baby greens, topped with local grape tomatoes, local fresh mozzarella, local basil, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and homemade croutons made from locally-baked bread, olive oil, salt, and pepper. This might look like a lot of croutons, but, well, I had a lot of leftover baguette to use up! :)

dal on a rainy night

We're having kind of gross weather in the Twin Cities today -- grey, drizzly, rainy, and cool -- in the 40s. Don't get me wrong . . . I'm delighted that it's not SNOWING, but still, it's been kind of a blah day. I did force myself out and run some errands today, but have been home since about 3:00, twiddling my thumbs and wondering what to do to occupy myself! Now, I caught up on my reading for yoga class, did a load of laundry, talked to a friend on the phone . . . and then decided a medium-scale cooking project was in order. :)

I have mountains and mountains of "staples" on hand right now, and I'm trying very hard not to buy new stuff, and just use up what I have. (Produce and cold items like tofu, cheese, and eggs are still requirements, and coffee is always a must, but in general, I'm trying to avoid adding more rice, more lentils, more dry goods to my already packed cupboards!) My freezer is also pretty loaded, so anything I can pull out of there and incorporate into a meal is a bonus, too!

Looking around, my jar of red lentils caught my eye . . . and I remembered I had frozen samosas left! Dal on a rainy night it was:

Spinach and tomato dal, (I loosely follow the recipe in Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant, although I add WAY more spices than they call for,) over brown Basmati rice, with some samosas and mint chutney on the side. Mmmmmmmmm!

I really didn't NEED to buy brown Basmati rice, since I have the hugest sack of white Basmati rice in the closet, but I feel like I haven't been doing so well with the whole grains lately, so I picked some up today. Silly me. :)

eleven is my favorite number

Happy New Year! Eleven is indeed my favorite number, and I'm hoping 2011 is going to bring some much-needed change to my life. I can't go into great detail here, but things will be revealed as they transpire. I'm thinking I should do something fun on the blog for 11/11/11 -- maybe 11 days of giveaways? Thankfully, that's almost a whole year away, so I have plenty of time to plan. :)

Anyhow, focusing on New Year's festivities. Dan and I were invited to join friends for a small get-together, but because we're both introverts, tired-out from various stressors, and I'm still sick, (but definitely on the mend!), we decided to keep to ourselves last night. We went to the cheap theatre in Hopkins and saw "Fair Game," which we both enjoyed, before coming home to a LATE dinner. We made a couple of mocktails, set on a pot of Basmati rice, warmed the naan and samosas from the freezer, and heated the food I made earlier in the day. Ta-da! Indian feast for two!

I follow the dal recipe from Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant, adding more spices and chiles, tons of fresh spinach, and a can of diced tomatoes (drained,) which is our usual Indian fare; yesterday, I also made Matter Paneer Made Simple, a reader submission from an old issue of Vegetarian Times. The combination of simple stews, prepared earlier in the day, fragrant rice, and a few high-quality convenience items made for a super-fast, easy, and extremely delicious celebration!

Hope your celebration was happy!