Marinated Vegetable Salad

I'm forever in search of new ways of preparing vegetables.  New salads, fritters, breakfast options, you name it I try them all.  The find this week is a marinated vegetable salad from The Seasoned Mom.  Hmmmm, marinated vegetables sound interesting to me.  I like the idea of putting on a dressing (marinade), putting in the fridge and have it taste better after it sits for a while.  Sure beats soggy salads.

This variation looks like an old family recipe and when mom passes it down to daughter, there's something that makes it more interesting.  The best - it takes 10 minutes to put together and lasts a few days in the fridge.

Ingredients

3/4 cup slice mushrooms
3/4 cup halved cherry or grape tomatoes
3/4 cup sliced zucchini
3/4 cup peeled chopped carrots
1 small sweet bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup broccoli florets
1/2 cup cauliflower florets
1/2 tsp minced garlic (I used a little more)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp chopped fresh chives
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp olive oil

Instructions

1.  Place all vegetables in a large bowl
2.  Place all remaining ingredients in a jar with a lid and shake until completely combined.
3.  Pour dressing over vegetables
4.  Refridgerate salad at least 2 hours (or overnight)

Fresh, addictive and healthy

Polish Sorrel Soup

Saturday was market day and Toronto is definitely a great place to visit the markets.  One of my favourites is the Evergreen Brickworks Farmer's Market.  It's more than just a market - it's an experience and it's impossible to leave there without feeling enriched somehow.  The vendors are all first class, extremely friendly and great educators.  It's not possible to go to the market without struggling over which slow food vendor you want to satisfy your taste buds with.  This should only be my worst first world problem.  On the trip to the market my friends and I talked at great length about the amazing breakfast crepes and how long the lineups were but so worth the wait.  Frankly, there isn't a vendor there who isn't worth the wait - seriously

When we were in Poland it was always pretty easy to find unique soups with a bit of a sour twist to them.  I had no idea what the main ingredient was but found out it was sorrel.  I found a recipe for this interesting  Polish Sorrel Soup  from Barbara Rolek, Eastern European Food Expert.  Barbara is my "go to" person for all things Eastern European.  But, let me tell you - this is not a grocery store item one finds easily.  I had all but given up when, as I walked through the market....voila .... sorrel!!! I'm sure the vendor thought I had really lost it; who gets so crazy over finding sorrel.  For those who aren't familiar with this ingredient I looked it up on Wikepedia:

 "Sorrel soup is a soup made from water or broth, sorrel leaves, and salt.^[1][2] Varieties of the same soup include spinach, garden orache, chard, nettle, and occasionally dandelion, goutweed or ramsons, together with or instead of sorrel.^{[1][2][3][4][5]} It is known in Ashkenazi Jewish, Belarusian,^[4]Latvian,^[6] Lithuanian, Polish, Russian,^[1][2] and Ukrainian^[3][5] cuisines. Its other English names, spelled variously schavel, shchav, shav, or shtshav, are from the Proto-Slavic ščаvь for sorrel. Due to its commonness as a soup in Eastern European cuisines, it is often called green borscht, as a cousin of the standard, reddish-purple beetroot borscht.^[1][4][3][5] In Russia, where shchi (along with or rather than borscht) has been the staple soup, sorrel soup is also called green shchi.^[7][8] In some cookbooks it is called simply green soup.^[2]

Sorrel soup usually includes further ingredients such as egg yolks or whole eggs (hard boiled or scrambled), potatoes, carrots, parsley root, and rice.^[1][2][9] A variety of Ukrainian green borscht also includes beetroot.^[8] In Polish, Ukrainian, and Russian cuisines, sorrel soup may be prepared using any kind of broth instead of water.^[1][2] It is usually garnished with smetana (an Eastern European variety of sour cream).^[1][2] It can also be akosher food. It may be served either hot or chilled.

Sorrel soup is characterized by its sour taste due to oxalic acid (called "sorrel acid" in Slavic languages) present in sorrel. The "sorrel-sour" taste may disappear when sour cream is added, as the oxalic acid reacts with calcium and casein."

INGREDIENTS

• 1 large peeled and sliced carrot
• 1 bunch fresh parsley
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 peeled and cubed medium potatoes
• 1 chicken or vegetable boullion cube
• 1/2 pound fresh sorrel, washed, stemmed as for spinach and chopped
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Chopped fresh dill or parsley
• 2 hard-cooked eggs cut into quarters

• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 45 minutes

• Total Time: 65 minutes
• Yield: 6 servings Polish Sorrel Soup

PREPARATION

1. In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, place 6 cups cold water, carrots and parsley. Bring to a boil and add bay leaf, potatoes and boullion cube. Bring back to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are tender.
2. In a large skillet, melt butter and sauté sorrel for 10 minutes. Transfer to the soup and bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Remove bay leaf. Fork blend sour cream with flour and temper with a few ladles of hot soup. Transfer tempered sour cream to soup, stir well and simmer until thickened and just under the boiling point. Adjust seasonings.

1. Portion soup into heated bowls and garnish with chopped dill or parsley and egg quarters.

We finished all the shopping and it was time for our crepes - delicious as always and really quite filling.  I have a friend who is at the market every week.  He's an Italian from Venezuela who has this passion for all things Spanish.  If that didn't confuse you, he's now planning to go to Morocco and expand his offerings with Moroccan flavours.  Jose Arado who is the owner and main chef at Pimenton   is a total joy to be around and has a forever smile on his face and a big hug waiting for you when you come his way.  I hadn't seen him in a while and was very excited to treat me to one of his creations.  Don't forget, I'm full from the crepe but Jose's enthusiasm is spell binding and there's no way to say no.  He brought me this dish of organic greens with Spanish chorizo sausage topped with a soft cooked egg over the top and a home made hot sauce that was entirely "to die for".   Of course I ate it knowing full well I was going to be full beyond belief.

If you didn't click on Jose's site above make sure you do and watch the you tube video. You'll see an array of Jose's creations, his presence at the market and get infected by the amazing Spanish music and his love of food.  Enjoy!!

Lentil Kale Potato Soup

I think "R" is starting to influence my cooking.  I find myself looking for lentil recipes more often and, in fact, when I got an email from him with a picture and a link to Hummusapian's recipe for Lentil Kale Potato Soup, I was in the process of creating my own lentil dish.

Growing up in a European meat and potato focused home, a lentil would never have made it into the grocery bag.  To this day I'm sure my mother would shrug her shoulders if I asked her what a lentil is.
The superstar quality of this fibre and iron rich bean is worthy of paying attention to.  Spend a few minutes browsing through the Lentils Canada site.  So much information and great recipes too.

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 stalks of celery, diced
2 large carrots, diced
1 cup dry lentils (not red), rinsed and picked over
4 cups vegetale broth + 1/2 cup water
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp coriander
1 large potato, diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/2 bunch kale, ribs removed and chopped finely (or half a bag of thawed from frozen kale)
salt and pepper to taste

Instruction

1.  Heat olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat.  Add onion, celery and carrots and sauté until softened, about ten minutes.
2.  Add lentils, broth, water, salt, garlic, cumin and coriander.  Stir together and bring to a boil.  Once soup has reached  a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer covered for 20 minutes.
3.  Add chopped potatoes and simmer, covered for 15 more minutes or until potatoes are fork tender.
4.  Add kale and simmer covered for 5 more minutes or until kale is wilted.
5.  Remove from heat and stir in red wine vinegar.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

This is one of the better pictures "R" has taken of late.  The plate is actually centred in the photo.  I tried to salvage the clarity but we need to work on the photography skills.

Eggplant Caprese Stacks

Where has the time gone.  Seriously, I always have really good intentions about getting a post completed today.  Everyday is "today" and I guess you know the rest of the "good intention" story.  

We're in sunny California and so grateful to be out of the gripping cold that has this firm grip on the north east.  My brother arrived the other day and brought with him what he calls his "new favourite cookbook".  He's determined to cook every recipe in the book.  Maybe we'll see a "Wheat Belly, The Musical" opening on Broadway.  He's already  tried several of the recipes and suggested that we would absolutely love them.  We took the challenge and decided to try one for dinner.

We were pleasantly surprised.  My brother, who is affectionately known as the health nut of our family always has new natural remedies for everything that ails.  When he brought his new favourite we all admitted a little skepticism.  I take it back - this book is the bomb!  Who even knew that ground flax works as efficiently as bread crumbs.  Now I know!!  I would make this recipe again - it's wonderful and we're going to continue with the recipes in the book.

Makes 4 servings

1 eggplant cut into eight 1/2" slices
1/4 cup ground golden flaxseeds
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1/2 tsp Italian Seasoning Mix (see recipe below)
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 egg, beaten
4 Tbsp olive oil, divided
2 tomatoes, each cut into four 1/2" thick slices**
16 large fresh basil leaves
8 oz fresh mozzarella, cut into 4 equal slices

Lightly grease a baking sheet.

In a shallow bowl or dish, combine the flaxseeds, 1/4 cup of the Parmesan, the seasoning mix, and salt.  Place the egg in another shallow bowl or dish.  Dip a slice of the eggplant into the egg until both sides are moistened.  Dredge in the flaxseed mixture to coat.  Place the breaded eggplant on a plate.  Repeat until all the slices have been coated.

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat 2 Tbsp of the oil until hot.  Cook the eggplant, covered, for 8 minutes, turning once, or until browned on both sides and tender when pierced with a fork.  If needed, add 1 Tbsp of the remaining oil during cooking  Transfer to a plate lined with a paper towel.

Meanwhile, preheat the broiler.  Place the tomato slices in a single layer on the baking sheet.  Drizzle with the remaining 1 Tbsp oil and sprinkle each with 1/2 Tbsp of the remaining Parmesan.  Broil for 4 minutes, or until lightly browned.  Remove and set aside.

On 4 plates, place the 4 largest eggplant slices.  Top each slice with a broiled Parmesan tomato, 2 basil leaves, and a mozzarella slice.  Top with the remaining eggplant slices, a Parmesan tomato and 2 basil leaves.

Italian Seasoning Mix

2 Tbsp dried basil
2 Tbsp dried oregano
2 Tbsp dried rosemary, crushed
1 Tbsp dried marjoram
1 Tbsp dried garlic powder
1 Tbsp onion powder
1 tsp ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients and store in an air tight container

Lentil Moussaka

It would appear that I'm officially in the dog house.  Why you may ask?  Well favourite son in law has been cooking up a storm over the past while and I've become the designated blogger for his creations.  "R" has been "gently" reminding me that he's not seeing enough blogging happening.  He's right - we've been either busy for real or procrastinating.  At least Psychgrad has an excuse - between sleep deprivation, a toddler and a newborn, having a shower is a luxury.  

This time when "R" gave me one of his "gentle" reminders, the tone had changed somewhat.  He compared my not posting his cooking to continuously withdrawing from your bank account.  Eventually you're in the red.  Ugh!!!

With Christmas around the corner and Hanukkah in full swing, one might think that we'd be making lavish meals and incredible desserts.   Not so much.  Truth be told, I'd rather have a vegetarian moussaka than cheesecake anyway.   This dish is the full Canada Food Guide all in one dish.  Although a tad time consuming, the result is just so satisfying that it pays to take your time enjoying it.

*** Did I mention that "R" couldn't remember where he got the recipe from so if we've insulted anyone by not giving them credit for their recipe - my humble apologies,

3/4 cup whole green lentils

1 eggplant sliced

4-5 Tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 large carrot, diced

4 sticks celery, finely chopped

1-2 Tbsp dried mixed herbs

1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes

2 tsp soya sauce

freshly ground pepper to taste

2 medium potatoes, cooked and sliced

2 large tomatoes, sliced

Sauce

2 Tbsp vegetable margarine

1/2 cup brown rice flour

1 3/4 cups milk

1 egg, separated

1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

1 tsp nutmeg

fresh herb sprigs to garnish

• In a saucepan, cook the lentils until soft but not mushy.  Drain reserving the liquid in a separate bowl.
• Fry the eggplant until lightly browned, drain on a paper towel
• Saute the onion, garlic, carrot and celery with a little of the lentil liquid.
• Simmer with the lid on , stirring occasionally until the vegetables soften.
• Add lentils, herbs and diced tomatoes simmering for 4-5 minutes.  Add the soya sauce and ground pepper.
• Place a layer of the lentils in a large casserole dish and cover with half of the eggplant.
• Cover the eggplant with half the potato slices and all of the tomato slices,
• Repeat with the rest of the lentils and the other half of both eggplant and potatoes.

For the sauce:

• Melt margarine and add flour.  Lift the pan from the heat stirring vigorously to create a roux while making sure the flour is well incorporated.  Slowly add milk, stirring constantly to make sure you achieve a smooth consistency. Remove from heat and allow to cool enough to add the egg yolk and nutmeg.  If you don't cool the sauce, you'll have cooked egg - not pretty.
• Whisk the egg white until still and fold into the sauce.
• Pour the sauce over the moussaka covering the whole surface.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 40 minutes or until golden brown.   Garnish with herbs and serve.

Chef's notes:
Don't overcook the potatoes otherwise they'll just fall apart.
Use a large enough casserole that's reasonably deep to avoid spill overs

Potato and Spring Onion Soup

Life has been incredibly busy in so many good ways.  The only problem with being so involved in many things is that making meals sometimes just takes a back seat.

We spent this past Thanksgiving long weekend at the cottage.  This was our second annual effort at the cottage and it was incredible.  The leaves are in full colour and temperatures are changing  A 20 lb turkey had hardly any leftovers and the whole family togetherness was so meaningful.  We laughed alot this past weekend.  My sister makes her own wine so needless to say wine was in great supply.
My friends used to say to me that being a grandparent is the best club in the world to join.  Intellectually it's easy to understand so agreeing with my friends was pretty natural.  I just returned recently from visiting Psychgrad, "R" and the babies.  I would often sit, play with or watch the grand babies and think to myself "you know, it really IS the best club in the world".  Nothing makes me laugh as hard, worry as much or love as deeply as being able to be part of their lives.   It amazes me how much work being a parent of a toddler and an infant is.  I guess as time goes by we forget, especially so when it's a labour of love.

"R", with all his teasing is really an amazing husband and dad.  He's always looking for new and healthy combinations and loves his soups   He loves the hearty and thick soups that are a meal in a bowl.  R's new recipe came from Saveur ; Potato and Spring Onion Soup and it looks like a keeper.

A thick slice of fresh rye bread and this soup for dinner would for sure do it for me.  Tell me you wouldn't want a bowl?  The pureeing, although it makes a lot of soups look alike is a great way to pack the veggies in especially for a toddler who doesn't like vegetables AT ALL.

 

INGREDIENTS

2 bunches spring onions (scallions), trimmed
4 tbsp. sunflower or vegetable oil
1 medium yellow onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
3 russet potatoes, peeled and quartered
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

PREPARATION 

1. Cut scallions in half crosswise, dividing white and green parts. Coarsely chop white parts and set aside. Finely chop green parts and set aside separately.

2. Heat oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add onions and chopped white parts of scallions and cook, stirring often with a wooden spoon, until soft, 8–10 minutes. Add potatoes and stock and season to taste with salt and pepper. Increase heat to medium-high and bring just to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are soft, 30–35 minutes.

3. Allow vegetables and stock to cool slightly; then, working in batches, purée them together in the jar of a blender or the work bowl of a food processor until very smooth. Return purée to pot and cook over medium heat until hot. Adjust seasonings. Garnish soup with reserved scallion greens.

Quinoa Chickpea and Feta Salad

My favourite son in law "R" (he's also my only son in law) and I have this rather interesting relationship.  The banter between us (zinging is probably a better word) is pretty ongoing.  He loves to get to me and two of his favourite topics are usually around our well known mayor Rob Ford or how dedicated we are to posting on the blog.  He probably cares very little about each topic and when I give it right back to him, he'll turn to whoever happens to be in the room and say "you see what I have to put up with".

Occasionally I'll get an email from him asking if I have any good recipes.  He's always attracted to the healthier vegetarian recipes and he'll review what I send him and surprisingly will find something that interests him and he goes ahead and makes it.  Pretty impressive.

Recently he went on one of his rants saying he'll be doing a guest post and make sure he puts both Psychgrad and me to shame.  The rant goes something like this:

R:  I haven't seen you post anything lately.  What's going on???

Me:  I posted not long ago.

R:  I take pictures and nobody ever puts up what I make.

Me:  You want me to put up something you made?

R:  Well, don't you think you should be? .... you get the idea.

I recently sent him a blogpost for Quinoa Chickpea and Feta Salad and he made it.  I asked him where the picture was and he actually had taken a picture and sent it to me.  WOW!!  So "R" here's your post. Your salad looks pretty darned amazing.

1 cup quinoa (beige or red or black)

1 cup water

1 can chickpeas, rinsed, drained

1 1/2 chopped unpeeled cucumbers

1 pint cherry or baby heirloom tomatoes, halved

1 cup roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 cup sliced baby spinach leaves

1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese

1/4 cup red wine or balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon honey

1/3 cup olive oil

2 teaspoons smoked Spanish paprika

To taste Salt and pepper

Bring quinoa and water to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, simmer until tender, about 10-15 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine chickpeas, tomatoes, cucumber, parsley, spinach and about half of the feta.

Gently toss in the cooled quinoa; do not overmix or stir.

Whisk vinegar, salt, honey and smoked paprika in small bowl. Gradually whisk in oil. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Drizzle over the combined salad ingredients; toss gently. Add vinaigrette; avoid overdressing. Top with feta; serve immediately.

Portobello Mushroom Wellingtons

I know it's hard to believe but I've really reached my limited with two subjects.  The first is the ongoing debate around the longest winter in history and the second...well ... you know I live in Toronto, right?  What's the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Toronto?  Ya, ya, I know, we have the most colourful mayor internationally.  Even crossing the border into the U.S., the border patrol asked where I was from and when I told him Toronto he said ... "An how's Rob Ford?".  Ugh.  Today's news said Mayor Ford took a break from rehab to call his constituents.  Seriously?  And we're supposed to believe that?  Who gets a break from rehab to make phone calls?

In spite of it all, I felt like having a mini celebration and make something I've never done before.  I found these Portobello Mushroom Wellingtons.  I changed up some of the ingredients (ie mozarella for gruyere and didn't use the crushed red pepper) and the result was very special.  Would serve this for company anytime.

4 medium-sized portobello mushrooms, washed and gills scraped out
4 cups crimini mushrooms, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons butter
2 large cups tender baby spinach
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 shallots, minced and divided
4 garlic cloves, minced and divided
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup pine nuts
1 tablespoon Seasoned Bread Crumbs
1 cup freshly grated Gruyere Cheese
Pinch of Crushed Red Pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
1 sheet of Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry dough (or two, depending on how big your portobello mushrooms are)egg wash: 

1 egg whisked together with 1 tablespoon water

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees f.

Lightly brush the portobello mushrooms with olive oil and dust lightly with kosher salt.  Bake the portobello mushrooms for 15 minutes cap side up and 10 minutes cap side down.

Once done baking place mushrooms on a paper towel so all the extra moisture will be absorbed.  Set aside.

In a large skillet, saute 1 shallot and 2  minced cloves of garlic in olive oil until translucent.  Add the baby spinach leaves.  Stir to coat the spinach and lightly salt and pepper to taste, once the spinach looks like it is wilting, add the balsamic vinegar.  Once the leaves are wilted, remove from skillet and place contents into a bowl and set aside.  In the same skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of butter and saute 2 minced shallots and 2 minced garlic cloves.  After about 1 minute, add in the chopped mushrooms and lightly season with salt and pepper and a pinch of crushed red pepper.  Continue to saute the mushrooms on medium heat until all of the moisture is cooked out and the mushrooms are soft.  Remove from heat, add the mushrooms to the spinach mixture.  Mix together and let cool.

Once mixture is cooled toss in the bread crumbs, toasted pine nuts and Gruyere cheese.  Mix well.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out one sheet of the puff pastry.

I found a new variety of puff pastry that comes in one continuous roll and has twice the amount of pastry as you find in boxed packages.  The price comparison is interesting too - half the amount of pastry for $3.99 and this roll for $5.99.  The quality is very good and I would definitely use it again.  It's made in Montreal.

Cut into 4 equal pieces (if you have really large portobello mushrooms then you might need to use the extra sheet of puff pastry).  Equally fill each portobello mushroom cap with the spinach and mushroom mixture.  Place one piece of puff pastry over a filled portobello mushroom.  Gently turn the mushroom over so the puff pastry is now on your working surface and the mushroom is upside down.   Lightly brush the egg wash around the outer edges of the puff pastry.  Place the opposite corners of the puff pastry to wrap around the portobello and then bring the other two corners up.  Gently bring the sides up to completely cover the mushroom.

Once all is secure, place the seamed side down onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet.  Lightly brush the top of the wellington with a little bit of egg wash, lightly score the top and dust a little bit of salt and pepper on top. 

Bake the wellingtons for about 25-30 minutes or until the puff pastry is nice and golden brown.  Serve immediately.

Beautiful...no?

Braised Polish Red Cabbage

The health benefit of cabbage is not a new and trendy story.  A natural antioxidant and anti inflammatory, it's right up there on the "what to cook for baba" hit parade.  You can, if you're interest read more about the good stuff cabbage has to offer here.

East Europeans have always had cabbage, both green and red as a staple in their diet.  It's simple to prepare and with the right spices, the bitterness is gone and the flavour shines through.

1 medium head of red cabbage, shredded
1 onion, shredded
2-3 Tbls vegetable oil
1 cup water
3-4 Tbsp red wine vinegar
brown sugar to taste
salt and pepper to taste

1.  Wash cabbage and remove outer leaves that are usually dirty
2.  Cut cabbage in half and remove the center core.  Shred as thinly as you can.  Shred onion.
3.  Warm oil in dutch oven or good solid large pot, add cabbage and onion, reduce heat to medium.
4.  As the cabbage releases its moisture, the volume minimizes.  Add water and keep the cooking process at a slow pace until cabbage is soft.
5.  Add red wine vinegar, brown sugar (I used about 1/4 cup) and salt and pepper, mix well and allow to cook a few more minutes.

My mom loved the cabbage!  A hit!!
The condo building I live in has alot of Russian families who live here.  I've spoken to several of them about how they make their cabbage and many have told me to use "sour salt".  If you can find it - it took me a while but it gives it an added kick.  

Thai Curry Noodle Bowl

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I received a review copy of The Complete Leafy Greens Cookbook and was blown away by how much I didn't know about the varieties of leafy greens out there.  In part, I think I'm a product of using greens that are easily accessible in Canada.  This book makes me want to go on some scavenger hunts to find and cook with leafy greens like Chinese Celery,  La Lot Leaf and Purslane (to name a few).  

I like the way this cookbook is organized.  Separate sections are devoted to each green.  Each section starts off with some background information, the varieties, where to buy, how to store, how to prepare and how to consume the green.  Then, some recipes, often vegan-friendly, are provided.  

I'm a visual person, so I really like that simple colour pictures of the greens are provided throughout.  I also like how the information is laid out in separate text boxes.  It reminds me of when I used to study my textbooks in university.  There's something about separating out information into different boxes and colours that makes it more digestible (don't mind the pun).  I used to look through my textbook chapters and make visual milestones for myself (e.g., ok -- I am going to read from here to the text box three pages from now).  Pages that didn't have any visuals or text boxes were always challenging for me to get through.  Kind of like the month of January (long, cold and nothing to break it up).  Anyways - I am digressing.

Another thing that I like about this cookbook is that each recipe contains the usual suspects (ingredients, quantities, directions), but there is also a "Tips" section on the left sidebar of the page.  It never really occurred to me, but having this tip section made me realize how often I have to Google information to understand a recipe.  Whether it be an unfamiliar ingredient, technique or figuring out substitutes, there can be a fair amount of research that goes into not screwing up a recipe.  With the tip section, these questions were answered.

I still have a lot of reading to do before I can fully comment on the recipes.  But, in general, I like the diversity and quality of recipes. Many of these greens are mainly found in certain ethnic cuisines.  So, I like that these uses are reflected in the cookbook (e.g., African Sweet Potato Leaf Stew, Taiwan Lettuce Mei Fun, West Indies Pepper Pot Soup). Here's the recipe I decided to make:

Thai Curry Noodle Bowl

6 oz snow peas (3 cups, loosely packed), trimmed and halved (the snow peas at the store looked really sad, so I opted for snap peas)
12 oz dried chow mein noodles
2 tbsp oil
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp Thai red curry paste (I used more like 3 tbsp)
4 cups vegetable stock
1 can (14 oz) coconut milk
1 tbsp granulated sugar
4 oz baby spinach leaves (about 5 cups)
1/4 chopped fresh cilantro (we tend to never use this up, so I excluded this)
2 large green onions, slivered (not a fan of green onions, plus recipes has shallots, so I excluded)
kosher or coarse sea salt
1/4 cup crispy shallots (basically deep fried shallot rings -- I pan fried minced shallots)
1 red finger chilli (couldn't find, so I got Thai chilli peppers)
lime wedge

1. In a large saucepan of boiling salted water over medium heat, blanch snow peas for about 1 minute, until tender-crisp.  Using a mesh scoop, transfer to a colander (leave cooking water in a pan) and immediately rinse with cold water to stop the cooking.  Drain peas and set aside.
2. Return pan of cooking water to a boil over medium heat.  Add noodles and cook for about 10 minutes or according to package directions, until tender but firm.  Drain.
3. Meanwhile, in a saucepan over medium heat, heat oil until warm.  Stir in garlic and curry paste for 30 seconds.  Stir in stock, coconut milk and sugar until smooth.  When mixture comes to a simmer, reduce heat to low and add spinach, cilantro and green onions.  Cook for about 1 minutes, until heated through.

 4. Divide prepared noodles among 6 wide, shallow serving bowls.  Top with equal quantities of snow peas.  Ladle hot broth with spinach over noodles.  Pile crispy shallots in center of each bowl.  Scatter chilli slices over each serving.  Place a lime wedge at the edge of each bowl, to squeeze over the noodles.  Serve immediately.

Verdict: We both liked this dish.  Even E liked it.  I figured the sauce might be too spicy for her, but she was having a meltdown (didn't nap at daycare, don't want to sit in a highchair moment), so I had her sitting on my lap through dinner.  She pushed away her plain noodles and ate mine that had the broth on it.

My main beef with the dish is that I still cannot get my dishes to have the flavours I would get from a Thai restaurant.  I've tried to make my own curry paste before and that didn't work either.  I don't think this is the fault of the recipe because all it really says is to use a tablespoon of Thai red curry paste.  I think I need to take a trip to Thailand and take a cooking course.  OK - problem solved.

Portobello Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich

Happy New Year!   We have so many recipes to post!  It's just about carving out the time to do it.    Lately R has been on my case.  Turns out, he really relies on the blog for storing his recipes, but isn't willing to actually write the post himself.

A couple of years ago, R decided that his special sandwiches had to go.  Between the sodium levels in processed meat and the very fact that he was consuming meat daily, he felt that it just wasn't healthy and stopped, cold turkey.  Instead, he actively searches out new recipes, pretty much exclusively vegetarian, and often not at all appealing to me.  That's fine.  If I don't like it, he puts it into portion-sized containers and takes it for lunches.

Here' s a recipe that R found that is something we've had for dinner a couple of times.  Disclaimer : I've never had a real Philly cheese steak, so I didn't go into this with specific expectations about how it should taste.

Portobello "Philly Cheese Steak" Sandwich

INGREDIENTS

• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 4 large portobello mushrooms, stems and gills removed (see Tip), sliced
• 1 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh oregano, or 2 teaspoons dried
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup vegetable broth, or reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 3 ounces thinly sliced reduced-fat provolone cheese
• 4 whole-wheat buns, split and toasted

PREPARATION

1. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until soft and beginning to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Add mushrooms, bell pepper, oregano and pepper and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are wilted and soft, about 7 minutes.
2. Reduce heat to low; sprinkle the vegetables with flour and stir to coat. Stir in broth and soy sauce; bring to a simmer. Remove from the heat, lay cheese slices on top of the vegetables, cover and let stand until melted, 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Divide the mixture into 4 portions with a spatula, leaving the melted cheese layer on top. Scoop a portion onto each toasted bun and serve immediately.

TIPS & NOTES

• The dark gills found on the underside of a portobello are edible, but if you like you can scrape them off with a spoon.