Curried Sweet Potato & Lentil Soup

About a month back I picked up the newest cookbook, Dinner in One, from Melissa Clark. Unintentionally we end up cooking a lot of her recipes on the NYT Cooking site (here’s an easy crowd-pleaser,) and I was intrigued by the idea of only dirtying one pot/pan/dish while making dinner.

This is a fantastic, hearty vegetarian soup for fall or winter, with two important notes:

1. Do not skip the garam masala. Whole Foods didn’t have this spice, and as I was in a hurry to get home, we substituted with cumin and allspice. The first batch was both insipid and a little sweet. If you can’t find the garam masala, skip on this meal until you have some.
2. While you technically dirty another pan, we’d suggest browning the coconut chips on the stove top, rather than the pressure cooker.

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup unsweetened coconut flakes, for serving
• 3 tablespoons coconut oil
• 1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4 in cubes (about 3 cups)
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 3 fat garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
• 1 jalapeno, seeded if you, diced
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1 tablespoon garam masala
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 3 cups vegetable stock
• 1 (13.5-ounce) can unsweetened full-fat coconut milk
• 1 cup red lentils, rinsed
• 5 ounces (about 5 cups, or one grocery bag) spinach
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice (we use the juice of an entire lime, and it’s wonderful)
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems, for serving
• Flaky sea salt, for serving

Directions

• (Optional if you don’t use a separate pan.) In the pot of an electric pressure cooker, using the saute function, toast the coconut flakes, stirring often, until they are fragrant and pale golden at the edges, 1 to 3 minutes. Transfer to plate to cool.
• Add the oil to the pot and let it heat for a few seconds. Stir in the sweet potatoes and onion, and cook until golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Add the garlic, ginger, jalapeno, salt, garam masala, and turmeric to the pot and cook until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the stock, coconut milk, and lentils.
• Seal the pot and cook on high pressure for 6 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes, then release the remaining pressure manually (or you can just let the pressure release naturally if you’re not in a hurry.)
• Open the pot and stir in the spinach until just wilted, about 2 minutes. (If the soup has cooled down, you may have to turn the saute function on to heat it back up.) Stir in the lime juice and season with kosher salt to taste.
• To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle with cilantro, toasted coconut flakes and flaky sea salt to taste.

scratch pancakes.

No more box mixes, y’all. These are easy-peasy-lemon-squeezie, melt-in-your-mouth-deliciousness.

This recipe is a smushing together of some dears I’ve come to know (Ruth Reichl, Deb Perelman, and Martha Stewart). I don’t know if it’s an abomination to list all three of these amazing women in one sentence, but they often inspire my kitchen time. Ruth’s cookbook reads like a novel. And Deb is just hilarious. In my mind’s eye, we are long lost friends who will one day reunite for a fabulous and delicious cooking extravaganza…

The smushing of the recipes takes my favorite part from each to create, in my mind, the perfect pancake. Ruth uses a WHOLE stick of butter in her pancake recipe. It is divine. However, given the frequency of these little cakes in our house, I began to question that amount of butter multiple times per week. Deb uses buttermilk, which I don’t always have on hand (and, yes, you can totally make sour milk using lemon juice and milk), but her approach taught me how to keep them fluffy. And, Martha’s pancakes were closer to crêpes than the tall, doughy, fluffiness of my dreams. This recipe mirrors hers, but decreases the amount of milk, adds an egg, a touch more butter, and a bit more flour.

What I love about these pancakes is that they’re light, fluffy and made up of basic pantry ingredients. They are a regular in our house, now known as “mama’s pancakes”. Which, of course, delights and warms my heart all the same. Makes enough for 4-6 humans.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 + 1/2 C all-purpose flour*
• 3 TBSP sugar
• 1 TBSP baking powder
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 3 TBSP unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pan
• 2 eggs, gently beaten
• 3/4 C – 1 C milk
• TOPPINGS: butter, maple syrup, fruit, nut butters, yogurt, granola, chocolate chips, sprinkles, etc.

Melt butter in large cast iron skillet. Meanwhile, add dry ingredients to a large bowl and whisk to combine.

Gently beat eggs into milk and add to the dry ingredients, slowly folding to incorporate. Just before the final few folds, drizzle melted butter over mixture and fold in. You still want to see some lumps and bumps and a fairly thick batter (think: “loose cookie dough”). Add more milk if it’s too thick. Let batter sit for a minute or two while your butter pan reheats over medium heat.

Melt additional butter in pan, and add more as needed throughout cooking.

Using an ice cream or cookie scoop, scoop about 2 TBSP batter onto skillet (batter should more or less hold it’s shape…no major spreading here). Cook until edges are set and flip to finish cooking. Keep warm in oven, tortilla or pancake warmer. Serve with any or all the toppings.

You’re welcome.

*NOTE: Feel free to mix the types of flour(s) if your heart so desires. I’ve made these with all-purpose Einkorn and found them to be a delicious, nuttier-tasting version. I’ve also used Clark’s Cream and whole wheat pastry flour. Half whole/heirloom wheat, half A.P. flour is ideal…more than half on the heartier flours and you get closer to pancake bricks.

shiitake, miso + farro soup.

Healing. Delicious. Soul-soothing. It’s all I ask of a homemade soup and this one checks all the boxes. Twice.

• 

INGREDIENTS: (local + organic if possible)

• 1 oz. dried shiitake mushrooms
• 1 TBSP olive oil
• 2 cups thinly sliced leeks, including light green parts, well rinsed
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves
• 1/2 C dry white wine, vermouth or vegetable broth
• 6 cups vegetable broth
• 3 large carrots, chopped
• 1/2 C farro* (or pearl barley)
• 1/2 C hot water
• 3-4 TBSP white miso** (red is fine too, but has more robust flavor)
• salt to taste
• 3 TBSP minced parsley, for garnish

Carefully de-stem dried mushrooms with a small paring knife or fingers (they’re tough little fungi, so I go with a sharp knife). Coarsely chop mushrooms; rinse, drain and set aside.

In a large, heavy soup pot, heat oil over high heat. Sauté leeks and garlic in olive oil for 1 minute, stirring often so garlic doesn’t burn. Add thyme and white wine and cook until reduced by half. Add vegetable broth, shiitakes, carrots, and farro and bring to boil. Reduce to simmer, cover and cook until farro is tender, about 30 minutes. Remove from heat.

In a small bowl, mix 3 TBSP miso paste with 1/2 cup hot water (paste is sticky, so use a fork or whisk to incorporate it). Mix into hot soup and stir until well incorporated. Add more miso to taste (mixed with a little hot soup broth). Add salt to taste and garnish with chopped parsley.

Salud, amigas!

*NOTE: Original recipe called for pearled barley, but it’s an elusive ingredient. As such, I’ve only made the soup with farro and I find it delicious.

**NOTE: As a totally-good-for-you fermented ingredient, you’ll want to add miso at the end of the cooking so you receive all the good stuff. I’m no miso expert (just a lover), but I’ve been told that aggressively heating it takes away from the flavor and health benefits.

Recipe adapted from: From Our House to Yours: Comfort food to give and share (a must have for anyone!)

Roasted Potatoes and Green Beans with Mustard Drizzle

This is a simple recipe from The Blue Zones Kitchen cookbook that came out in 2019.  It’s a beautiful cookbook that consists of 100 recipes from 5 of the Blue Zones.  Take a look at https://www.bluezones.com if you’d like to learn more.

I love roasted vegetables and mustard – to me, this is perfection:

 

1/2 lb roasted fingerling potatoes, halved

3 garlic cloves, sliced

3 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley or other herbs (I used parsley and basil)

2-3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 cup cooked chickpeas (or 1/2 can rinsed and patted dry)

1/2 pound green beans, washed, trimmed, and dried

 

For the dressing:

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

2 teaspoons honey

salt and pepper to taste

 

Heat oven to 425 degrees.

In a large bowl, toss potatoes with olive oil.

Place a single layer in a roasting pan and roast for 20 minutes, stirring twice. When potatoes are starting to brown and tender, add the remaining ingredients (chickpeas, green beans, and herbs). Roast for another 10 minutes or until desired roasting in achieved.

While that roasts, in a small bowl whisk together the dressing ingredients. Season with salt and pepper.

Transfer roasted vegetables and beans to bowl, and toss with the dressing. Serve warm.

 

I made some slight adjustments of my own to the recipe and it can easily be doubled.

Enjoy!

Ali

 

burrata w. lentils + basil oil

I’ve been reading cookbooks like they were novels since I was 10. During such a read, I got no further than “burrata” before I started gathering ingredients.

I’ve never experienced a combination quite like this – warm lentils, basil oil, mustard, Gorgonzola and melty burrata – making this one of my favorite dishes any time of year. Depending on the season, I will serve on a bed of spicy arugula or spinach. And make no mistake: this can be your main dish. But if sides-as-mains is not your thing, set this up with juicy chicken or a really good cut of beef.

Just don’t be surprised if this “salad” steals the show.

adapted from Food & Wine’s Best of the Best, Russell Norman’s Polpo

For 6

• leaves from a bunch of basil (1 cup-ish)
• flaky sea salt + black pepper
• extra-virgin olive oil
• 14 oz (400 g) Puy (green) lentils…can sub brown or black lentils
• 2 large carrots, finely chopped
• 3 celery sticks, finely chopped
• 1 small onion or shallot, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 5 sprigs of thyme, leaves removed + chopped
• 1/2 C (100ml) extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 TBSP + 2 tsp (25ml) red wine vinegar
• 1 TBSP Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp sugar (superfine if you have it)
• 5 oz (150g) mature Gorgonzola, cut into very small chunks
• 6 burrata balls, room temperature

BASIL OIL.

(please don’t think you can skip this step because it requires a food processor…you will be so sad if you do)

To make basil oil, place most of basil leaves in food processor, reserving a few smaller ones for garnish. Add a little salt and enough olive oil to make a thin sauce. Whizz for a few seconds and set aside.

LENTILS.

Rinse, drain + place lentils in saucepan with enough cold water to cover by 2-3 inches. DON’T ADD SALT YET. Bring to boil and cook until al dente. Drain, rinse with cold water, drain again, and set aside.

SAUTE.

In a large, heavy-based pan, sweat the veggies in a few good glugs of olive oil with thyme leaves, a large pinch of salt and ground black pepper. When veggies are softened and translucent, add the cooked lentils and a splash of water (or white wine if you’ve already opened the bottle) to stop them from sticking.

DRESSING.

To make the mustard dressing, put the olive oil, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, a small pinch of salt, a couple grinds of pepper and sugar into a bowl and whisk. Add the small chunks of Gorgonzola and mix into dressing.

COMBINE.

To finish, add 4 TBSP of mustard dressing to lentils, season to taste, and spoon onto a large warm plate. Then tear open your burrata and place on top of the warm lentils. The heat from the lentils will melt the burrata making it even more creamy and soft.

Drizzle some basil oil over the top, scatter with basil garnish and devour.

Salud, amigas!

granola: several ways.

Pre-kids, my idea of a perfect Friday evening involved oats, Cat Stevens, and Sierra Nevada.  That reality no longer exists, but I come back to that serene-ness every time I’m in need of granola.  Which is often.  Grocery store granola will never be the same.

Inspiration comes from Ina Garten, Deb Perleman (a.k.a., smitten kitchen), and a cookbook gifted to me by a dear family friend.  Once you get your desired mixture of oats, oil and sweetener down, you really can make endless combos of your favorite textures and flavors.

And maybe with a little Cat Stevens in the background.

 

BASIC INGREDIENTS

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2-3 cups old fashioned oats

1/2 to 1 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut

1-2 cups unsalted nuts (cashews, pecans, walnuts, almonds, etc.)

1/2 cup maple syrup

2 TBSP to 1/4 cup canola or olive oil (or similar)

1/2 tsp (or to taste) coarse salt

1/4 tsp cinnamon (optional)

1 tsp. vanilla (optional)

zest of orange (optional)

AFTER BAKING, ADD IN…

dried fruit (cherries, cranberries, mangos, apricots, raisins, etc.)

cacao nibs

seeds, toasted, salted or not (pumpkin, sunflower, etc.)

 

Preheat oven to 300°F.  Combine oil, syrup, salt and other spices, if using. Add oats, coconut and nuts. Mix well. [SEE NOTE BELOW]

Spread on cookie sheet and bake 35-45 minutes depending on desired toasty-ness, stirring every 10 minutes or so.

Stir in additional add-ins to taste.  Let cool and store in air tight container for a week or so.  The batch is large, so I usually freeze half so it keeps longer…

Serve with yogurt, fruit, dulce de leche, or by the handful.  You’ll be so happy with yourself when you do.

NOTE: You can combine everything listed above and have a delicious granola on hand.  Or, depending on your mood, select from above.  The more oil you have, the “crispier”, almost fried, the oats will be.  You can also toast the nuts separately and add in after baking the oats…but if you’re like me, that feels like too many extra steps.  Plus, I like all of the flavors mixed into every bite.

Dulce de Leche.

 

If you don’t speak a lick of Spanish, this means “sweet milk”.  It is literally milk and sugar that you boil for hours and then eat it on ANY THING you can think up, hope, or dream.  It will forever make me think of Patagonia and the Argentines who stole my heart.

This traditional recipe is adapted from epicurious.

INGREDIENTS

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4 cups milk

1 1/4 cup sugar

1/4 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

pinch of sea salt

1 cinnamon stick (optional)

Stir together 4 cups milk, 1 1/4 cups sugar, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda and cinnamon stick, if using, in a 3- to 4-quart heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, until caramelized and thickened, about 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours. (After about an hour, stir more often as milk caramelizes, to avoid burning.) Stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla and salt to taste. Transfer to a bowl to cool. Makes about 1 1/2 cups.

Ravioli and Kale Winter Salad

Though the name might suggest that this a winter-only dish, it’s still light enough to be enjoyed year-round and keeps well for a chilled lunch the next day. We’ve been making it about once a week lately because the kale brings the light and healthy, and the ravioli brings a little more sustenance necessary to stave off hunger a couple hours after eating a kale salad.

After a few rounds of experimenting, we’ve settled on doubling the proportion of kale to ravioli to result in a salad that is perfectly focused on greens and complemented by the pasta. Our favorite ravioli so far is butternut squash (and lest you dare, we highly recommend against pumpkin – the clove doesn’t work.) The photo of this dish from 101 Cookbooks doesn’t do it justice!

Ingredients

• 1 lb. raviolis (see headnotes)
• 2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
• fine grain sea salt
• 2 small yellow onions, thinly sliced
• 2 cups of chopped lacinato kale, deveined (this is what we double)
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, and zest
• 2/3 cup hazelnuts, toasted and chopped
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated (optional)
• 1/4 cup chives, minced

Instructions

1. Into an extra-large pot of well-salted boiling water add the raviolis. After a few minutes, when the raviolis float and are cooked through, drain them and toss with one tablespoon of the olive oil. This prevents them from sticking together. Set aside.

2. To caramelize the onions, heat another tablespoon of the olive oil in a large thick-bottomed skillet with a pinch of salt. Cook over high heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions collapse and turn deep brown in color. You can do this ahead of time (or just before serving) – whatever you prefer. Remove from skillet and set aside.

3. Before serving, combine the kale and lemon juice with a pinch of salt in a large bowl (or on a large serving platter). Massage for 15 seconds or so. Add the raviolis and to the kale, along with most of the onions, and most of the hazelnuts. Fold gently to combine everything without breaking up the raviolis. Finish with cheese (optional but recommended), the chives, any remaining onions and hazelnuts, a finishing thread of olive oil, and the lemon zest. A wonderful dish to serve family-style.

Macro Bowls with Turmeric Tahini Sauce

I ate more turmeric in India than I had previously in my entire life – and loved it. If you have any sort of affinity for the spice, I’d suggest giving this filling, potent dish a try.

When we came across this recipe, we thought it looked healthy and delicious but looked for a few ways we could reduce prep time. For us, that meant ending the hunt for watermelon radishes (they’re beautiful but can easily be subbed with beets or, you know, just radishes) and replacing mung beans with chickpeas. For us, this is because we use chickpeas in a good number of dishes we make, so there’s none that go to waste with leftover portions. We love the combo we’ve achieved – I hope you’ll give it a try!

Serves: serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 watermelon radish (or plain ol’ radish or beet does the trick)
• squeeze of lemon
• 1 uncooked cup sprouted mung beans (or chickpeas)
• 6 small or 3 medium carrots, steamed
• 1 small head broccoli florets, steamed
• 8 kale leaves, chopped
• 2 cups cooked brown rice
• ¾ cup sauerkraut or other fermented veggie
• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds or hemp seeds
• microgreens, optional
• Sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Turmeric Tahini Sauce

• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons tahini
• 4 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1½ teaspoons dried turmeric
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt, more to taste
• Freshly cracked black peppe

Instructions

1. Make the Turmeric Tahini Sauce: In a small bowl, combine the olive oil, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, water, turmeric, sea salt and several grinds of pepper. Set aside.
2. Thinly slice the watermelon radish (this is best done on a mandolin), and toss the slices with a squeeze of lemon. Set aside.
3. [Only if you’re using mung beans instead of chickpeas. We use chickpeas and this step marinate the chickpeas in lemon and tahini] Cook the mung beans in boiling salted water according to package directions, or until tender. Drain.
4. In a steamer basket over a pot of simmering water, steam the carrots, covered, until just tender, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove and set aside. Next steam the broccoli until tender but still bright green, 4 to 5 minutes. Lastly, steam the kale until just tender, 30 seconds to 1 minute.
5. Assemble individual bowls with the brown rice, mung beans (chickpeas), carrots, broccoli, kale, sauerkraut, sesame seeds and microgreens, if using. Season with salt and pepper and serve with the Turmeric Tahini Sauce.

Easy Power Lunch Bowls

I suppose this is an easy lunch, but we eat this about once a week for an easy, lemony dinner. We have always substituted falafel for the kale and quinoa bites, and a regular, boring beet does the trick for the watermelon radish. We both find this incredibly hearty for such a good-for-you dish. Enjoy!

 

 

Ingredients

• 1 small sweet potato, cubed
• 8 Yves Kale & Quinoa Bites
• ¾ cup cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 1 lemon
• ¼ teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 8 to 10 lacinato kale leaves, chopped
• 6 paper-thin slices from 1 Chioggia beet or watermelon radish
• ½ avocado, diced (optional)
• 1 tablespoon hemp seeds (we use chia)
• Red pepper flakes (optional)
• 2 tablespoons runny tahini (thin with warm water if necessary)**
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

  

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss the sweet potatoes with a drizzle of olive oil and pinches of salt and pepper and roast for 25 minutes. Halfway through add the Yves Kale & Quinoa Bites to the baking sheet.
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the chickpeas, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, Dijon mustard and pinches of salt and pepper. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, massage the kale with a drizzle of olive oil, ½ tablespoon lemon juice and a pinch of salt and pepper. We’re seasoning every layer here to make sure all of the vegetables are flavorful.
4. Assemble two large individual serving bowls with the kale, chickpeas, sweet potatoes, Yves Kale & Quinoa Bites, beet or radish slices and avocado, if using. Sprinkle with the hemp seeds and red pepper flakes, if using. Drizzle with the tahini sauce and another big squeeze of lemon, if desired. Serve with lemon wedges.