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Posts Tagged ‘tomatoes’

Our “Go-To” Kale Salad

Posted in Avocado, lemon, Quick, Salad, Tomatoes, Vegan, Vegetables, tagged , , , , , , , , , on July 31, 2013| Leave a Comment »

No official name here, not even a *real* recipe, just a framework for you.

We fell in love with kale salads a few years ago. And I was actually surprised that my husband went for it the first time I made one!

I almost always have a bag of Trader Joe’s curly kale in the frig – it lasts quite a while and is pre-prepped (torn and washed) so this salad is easily thrown together. I also always have a ripe avocado – they’re either ripening on the counter or there are ripe ones *on hold* in the frig. This salad frequently accompanies our other “go-to” meal item, our homemade frozen tamales, as the flavors are complementary.

"Go-To" Kale Salad

“Go-To” Kale Salad

Kale, washed and torn from stems

Olive oil

Salt

Garlic powder

Cherry tomatoes, halved

Avocado, diced

Lemon (or lime) juice, just a squeeze, to taste (a few drops of bottled works in a pinch too!)

Sriracha Sauce (aka Rooster Sauce), to taste, if desired

Roasted Sunflower Seeds

Place your kale in a bowl and drizzle with a bit of olive oil and a dash of salt. Massage kale with your hands until the leaves are coated. Sprinkle with garlic powder and let it rest while you make the other parts of your meal; the leaves will soften. Top kale with remaining ingredients and serve.

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Three Bean Chipotle Butternut Chili

Posted in Beans, Soup, Tomatoes, Vegan, tagged , , , , , , , , on December 4, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Still feeling like you indulged too much over the recent holiday? Here’s a healthy, hearty chili to offset some of those feelings of guilt.

Chili with Smoked Gouda-Squash Pupusas

Three Bean Chipotle Butternut Chili

Olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp chili powder

1 Tbsp cumin

2 tsp dried oregano

1 cab diced tomatoes

8 oz can tomato sauce

2 cups (or more) vegetable broth

12 oz butternut squash, peeled, seeded and chopped into chunks, pre-cooked slightly *

3 cans of beans, drained and rinsed well *

1-1/2 Tbsp chipotle pepper in adobo puree, add more or less as desired, check ingredients *

1/2 – 1 tsp salt

Heat 1 Tbsp or so of olive oil in a large soup pot. When hot, add onion and saute for about 3 minutes. Add bell pepper and saute until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes.  Add garlic and saute for one additional minute. Stir in chili powder, cumin and oregano and cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently so that spices do not burn.

Stir in diced tomatoes and sauce. Add broth and squash. Simmer for 10-15 minutes or until squash is tender (when pierced easily with a fork). Stir in beans and chipotle puree. Add more broth if needed, to get to desired consistency. Simmer for 10 minutes more or until beans are heated through. Stir in salt to taste. Serve topped with chopped avocado, cheese, green onions or sour cream.

Notes:

* This time I used pre-cut butternut squash from Trader Joe’s and I pre-cooked it for a few minutes in the microwave.

* Use any variety of beans. I used black beans, pinto beans and kidney beans.

* Be sure to check the label of your chipotle peppers in adobo, not all brands are gluten free. When I open a new can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, I throw the contents of the whole can in the blender and blend it into a puree. I store the remainder in the  freezer to use later.

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Variations on a Theme

Posted in Beans, Chickpeas, Pasta, Quick, Vegetables, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on September 14, 2011| 2 Comments »

Over the past month, I’ve been making a lot of dishes using the produce coming out of our garden and what I’ve found at the farmer’s markets. One of my favorite summer meals is pasta with a bunch of fresh vegetables. Below I present you with two variations on a theme, both of which are deliciously simple.

I intended on getting this post up for Go Ahead Honey, It’s Gluten Free since the theme was “Dishes so Simple, No Recipe Required” but alas, I procrastinated and didn’t get it up. Regardless, go over to GF Easily and check out the other un-recipes.

Balsamic Vegetable Pasta

Quick Summer Pasta

Original by Renee

No measurements here, just go with what feels and tastes(!) right.

Gluten Free Pasta, my favorite brand is Tinkyada (which is also sold cheaper as Trader Joe’s house brand of brown rice pasta).

Chopped heirloom tomatoes (Yay for Green Zebras – the birds don’t try to eat them since they’re green, and leave half-eaten, beautiful red toms hanging on the vine)

Chickpeas, cooked/canned, drained and rinsed

Feta cheese, crumbled – I had picked up some lovely marinated goat feta from Sweetwoods Dairy at the farmer’s market

A drizzle of olive oil

Fresh basil – lots of it!

Sea Salt and Fresh Pepper

Cook pasta and drain. Toss with remaining ingredients.

Balsamic Vegetable Pasta

Original by Renee

Again, no measurements but I wanted more vegetables than pasta in this one.

Gluten Free Pasta – see above

Onion, halved and thinly sliced, either red or white will work

Balsamic vinegar

Chickpeas, canned/cooked, rinsed and drained

Heirloom tomatoes, chopped – lots of them!

Feta or goat cheese, crumbled

Olive oil

Basil – lots of it!

Sea Salt and Fresh Pepper

Cook pasta (gluten free pasta needs a lot of water to move around in!). Drain and rinse.

In a large skillet, heat a bit of olive oil. Add in the sliced onion and cook over medium heat. Turn down and let the onions start to carmelize a bit and then drizzle some balsamic vinegar over them. Add in the chickpeas and let them heat through, stirring occasionally, and adding a bit more balsamic if you want.

Toss onions and chickpeas into a  large bowl. Add in the tomatoes, basil and feta, toss gently. Add in pasta (I wanted more veggies, less pasta in this version). Drizzle with a bit of olive oil and add salt and pepper (and/or more vinegar) to taste.

Notes:

* Sometimes I also saute a red sweet bell pepper with the onions.

* Kalamata olives and/or toasted pine nuts are a nice addition.

* Parmesan cheese instead of feta or goat cheese works too. So many variations!

* Mix it up to fit your taste buds!

What’s your favorite quick summer pasta combination?

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End of Summer Gazpacho

Posted in Beans, Soup, Tomatoes, Vegan, Vegetables, tagged , , , , , , , , on September 12, 2011| 2 Comments »

I realized the other day that we hadn’t had one of our favorite summer favorites yet – gazpacho! I realized this when I saw the growing pile of tomatoes on the counter and a couple of cucumbers in the crisper drawer, waiting to be used. We also had the last of the shishito peppers from last week’s visit to the farmer’s market to eat up.

This recipe is based upon one that my mom made growing up so I am not sure where her recipe originally came from. I have changed it up a little to fit our tastes and needs but it is still very simple and tasty. Add and subtract as you desire.

A few items to note – when dining out, gazpacho is usually not gluten free as it often contains breadcrumbs. Some recipes call for tarragon vinegar too, which is often made with malt vinegar – a no-no for celiacs. Check your labels. Also, chop all of your vegetables into similar sizes; we prefer a 1/4-1/2″ dice. And one last thing – this tastes better the next day, so make it ahead so that it can chill and the flavors meld.

This week we served it up with some shishito peppers and quick cheese quesadillas which were just corn tortillas with some shredded cheddar between and fried in a little oil on the stove.

Gazpacho

Recipe by Renee, inspired by my mom

46 oz bottle of vegetable juice such as V-8 Low Sodium or Spicy Hot version

1 cup celery, chopped

1 cup cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped

1 cup green bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 cup sweet onion, like Vidalia, chopped

2 cups tomatoes chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/4 cup light-tasting olive oil

1 tsp worcestershire sauce or soy sauce *

1/4 cup red wine vinegar (or white wine vinegar, or maybe even sherry vinegar)

1-1/2 tsp salt, to taste

1/2 tsp fresh pepper

1 Tbsp fresh chives, chopped

1 – 15 oz can white beans, drained and rinsed (optional)*

Pour vegetable juice into a large bowl. Add remaining ingredients. Stir well. Chill for 4 hours and serve soup chilled.

Notes:

* Lea and Perrins worcestershire sauce is gluten free but not vegetarian, as it contains anchovies. The Wizards makes a vegan, gluten free worcestershire sauce, or you could make your own. Otherwise, substitute with gluten free soy sauce and adjust your salt as the soy sauce is probably saltier than the worcestershire.

*If we are eating this as a meal, I will often add a can of white beans for protein. We have also added fresh sliced-off-the-cob corn.

Sauteed Shishito Peppers

If you can find them at your market, be sure to grab them while they’re still around. They run about $8 per pound at the Santa Fe Farmer’s Market, but a full pound is enough for the two of us for three or four meals as an appetizer. Here is our favorite way to serve them up, from Deborah Madison, cookbook author. I use canola oil instead of olive oil as she suggests.

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Meal Plan Monday, September 12, 2011

Posted in Meal Plan, tagged , , , , , , on September 11, 2011| Leave a Comment »

This week’s host for the Gluten Free Menu Swap is My Gluten Free Home. Her theme is apples, and she recently posted an apple dip recipe. While the apples are just starting to come in at the farmer’s markets around here, I still have end of summer vegetables on my mind,  like tomatoes and sweet corn. For once, I am being overrun with tomatillos and now that the nights are getting cooler, grape tomatoes. And my kale is going gang-busters with the cooler weather again.

And as a nod to the apple theme, I might make some baked oatmeal bars and freeze them. We each eat an apple a day for lunch and the bunch of apples in the crisper drawer were suddenly tasting very perfumy last week. Too perfumy to eat, yuck. I couldn’t figure out what had happened all of last week. Until I discovered that one of the lemons and one of the limes in the same drawer were half rotten. Gah. That’s where the smell came from, but it had already permeated all of the apples. So I am hoping that by baking the apples, the citrus smell will be diminished so I don’t feel like they are going to waste. (Although not much goes to waste around here since the chickens would eat them and “recycle” them into eggs anyway!)

This week’s plan:

Creamy Pesto Pasta with Chunky Tomato Salsa – one of our hands-down favorite meals. And we have plenty of tomatoes still.

Kale with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Garbanzo Beans over Polenta – to try and make a dent in the kale.

Stir Fried Tofu with Miso Sauce and rice

Red Beans and Rice – a pantry basics recipe with limited produce, good for the end of the week. I’ll probably serve it up with a massaged kale salad with cherry tomatoes (two birds with one stone!).

Make You Own Pizza – hubby will probably eat a gluten-full pizza and I will use a frozen Udi’s crust.

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Greek Salad

Posted in Quick, Salad, Vegetables, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 26, 2011| 4 Comments »

I had a craving the other day. Yes, I know it’s January and I should be eating soup all the time. But no, we get cravings for fresh vegetables around here, and especially for a great big salad. Plus I had a couple of artichoke hearts hanging out in the refrigerator, leftover from making the Quinoa Salad. And apparently the same mix of flavors was calling out to me.

So, I whipped up one of my mom’s recipes that I have made my own over the years. It hit the spot.

Greek Salad

Recipe by Renee, inspired by her mom!

Dressing:

3 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

1 tsp oregano

2 oz feta cheese, crumbled

Mix all ingredients, yes, including the feta, in a large measuring cup. Squish up the feta with a fork until it is all mixed well.

Salad:

Mixed salad greens (romaine, spinach, butter lettuce, etc.)

4 artichoke hearts, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved

1/2 red onion, sliced

1/2 of a large English cucumber, seeds removed, chopped

12 Kalamata olives, chopped

fresh black pepper

Toss salad ingredients together. Pour dressing over and toss again.

Best if eaten the same day. Or keep the dressing and salad separate like I did for lunch today and mix together when ready to eat.

Also, add whatever other vegetables you have on hand. Or herbs, I like to add dill weed. To make it a main dish, add some chickpeas or white beans. Or gluten free croutons, if you so desire.

This post is linked to Real Food Weekly at The WHOLE Gang. Go check it out for more inspiring recipes!

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Quinoa Salad with Artichoke Hearts

Posted in quinoa, Salad, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 22, 2011| 8 Comments »

I love quinoa and I am always looking for new ways to make it. The other night I had some leftover quinoa and decided to make up a quick dinner for myself that included enough leftovers for my road trip to the hinterlands the next day. (In rural Arizona there aren’t many options for good gluten free food, as well, I knew I would be short on time.)

This is a sort of “un-recipe” in that I didn’t really measure ingredients out but just tossed it together until it felt right. Here’s an approximation, but do what feels right for you.

Quinoa Salad with Artichoke Hearts

Recipe by Renee

2-3 cups of cooked quinoa, cooled

1-2 Tbsp olive oil

4 artichoke hearts, from a can, chopped (preferably packed in water)

1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

1 roasted red pepper, chopped (or fresh red bell pepper)

8 kalamata olives, chopped

a couple of tablespoons parsley, chopped

1-2 Tbsp red wine vinegar and/or lemon juice

salt & pepper to taste

Throw it all in a bowl and mix it up.

Tastes great the next day too! You could add some crumbled feta if you want, but I didn’t because it wasn’t going to be refrigerated the next day on my travels, just packed with an ice pack in my lunch bag. You could also add some finely diced red onion and top with a balsamic vinaigrette.

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Spinach and White Bean Enchilada Casserole

Posted in Beans, Mexican, Spinach, tagged , , , , , , , , on January 9, 2011| 7 Comments »

I have had a hankering for enchiladas. Especially after finding a huge jar of 505 Diced Roasted Green Chile at Costco. And after spotting some Kroger brand, jarred, gluten free enchilada sauces. I also had some Sandwich Petals languishing in the freezer that desperately need to be eaten.

Originally these were supposed to be rolled enchiladas. But, unfortunately, after defrosting the Sandwich Petals and warming them slightly in the microwave, they didn’t want to roll up very easily, and instead cracked, so I immediately came up with plan b, a warm and cheesy, gooey, enchilada casserole. Serve it up with a green salad and some gluten free cerveza (or Crispin hard cider, like I did!)

So… I don’t have a photo yet because we were too anxious to dig into this tonight and thus it was a little runny since we didn’t let it set up at all, which didn’t make for a good photo. Maybe later this week I will add one…?

Spinach and White Bean Enchilada Casserole

Recipe by Renee

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

2-3 cloves of garlic, minced

1-1/2 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp chipotle chili powder

2 cans white beans, drained and rinsed

1 can petite diced tomatoes

12 oz fresh spinach

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp sweet rice flour

2 cups milk, divided

4 oz cream cheese

12 corn tortillas, depending on size you may need more or less (or Sandwich Petals)

2 cups monterey jack cheese, shredded

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Heat oil in large saute pan. Add onions and saute until they are beginning to soften. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds more. Add cumin and chipotle chili powder. Cook 1-2 minutes more. Mash up 1/4 of the white beans and add all beans to pan along with tomatoes. Stir well, add spinach and salt and cover pan. Cook until spinach is wilted. Then remove the lid and let it simmer while you prepare the white sauce. Simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated.

In a small saucepan, melt butter. Add flour and stir well. Slowly whisk in milk, a small amount at a time. Add cream cheese and cook until thickened, stirring frequently. (Thanks to Book of Yum for this aspect of the recipe.)

Spread a small amount of the white sauce into the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish. Arrange corn tortillas so that the bottom of the dish is covered (you may have to cut some in two to make it work). Spoon part of the bean mixture over tortillas, then a bit of the white sauce, then some of the monterey jack cheese. Repeat layers and top with a thicker layer of cheese on the very top. Bake until bubbly and cheese is beginning to brown, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to set up for about 10 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

And I just may have another enchilada recipe up my sleeve this week since I still have that giant jar of green chile in the cabinet!

This post is linked to Seasonal Sundays at Real Sustenance. As well, it is linked to Real Food Weekly at The WHOLE Gang. Click on over for more delicious recipes.

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Meal Plan Monday, August 9, 2010

Posted in Meal Plan, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 9, 2010| 26 Comments »

Last week’s meal plan got derailed by a trip to the Farmer’s Market as well as time to finally make something we’d been wanting to make for a while now – tamales!!! About a year ago we bought the book, Tamales 101 by Alice Guadalupe Tapp. We have both read through it multiple times and drooled over the recipes. Last Christmas, we thought we might make them but I don’t have a stand mixer and the mixing of the masa by hand was a bit intimidating. But I knew that other people make them without, it was just an excuse for a mixer! But still I refrained from buying one and so we didn’t make them. Finally, when my in-laws were here a couple of weeks back we thought we might make them then since four pairs of hands seemed better than two. But we ran out of time.

So this weekend, my husband was determined. We made two kinds, Green Chile and Cheese (vegetarian) tamales and a dessert tamale, Raspberry Chocolate pecan. They were both wonderful!!! Both recipes were from Tamales 101. It’s a great book. And it isn’t really very hard, once you get the hang of it. My handy-dandy hand mixer also managed the challenge just fine. Here are some photos for your drooling pleasure.

A giant bowl of masa.

The mess of assembly.

Green Chile and Cheese tamales steaming in the pot.

Green Chile and Cheese on the left and the Raspberry Chocolate Pecan on the right.

Between that and  trying to take care of the things in the frig that needed to be eaten or ‘dealt’ with and impulse-buying at the farmer’s market, I really don’t need to buy much at the grocery tomorrow.

Also, this week, the Gluten Free Menu Swap is being hosted by Celiac Family and the theme is tomatoes! Who isn’t eating tomatoes right now? It’s prime time. Last week I made white bean gazpacho with some of my tomatoes. I wish I had more tomatoes coming on than I do but we have been struggling with pests this year and both of my big, beautiful San Marzano paste tomato plants are slowly dying. But our Black Russian and Stupice varieties are beginning to come on. So we’re still hoping for more tomatoes, I just wish it was the San Marzanos.

At the farmer’s market I picked up some more beets, some okra, oyster mushrooms, leeks, tomatillos, three different kinds of fingerling potatoes and some cute little Japanese shishito peppers.

So, for the meal plan:

Mushroom and Leek Pasta with Salad – we made this tonight and it was delicious. I used the oyster mushrooms and leeks I picked up at the farmer’s market. Thanks for a wonderful recipe, Jenn!

Cucumber and Avocado Soup, Sauteed Fingerling Potatoes, Oven Roasted Okra – the soup never got made last week as my avocados were not ripe. But I still have plenty of cucumbers! And thanks to Amy at Simply Sugar and Gluten Free for the idea of roasting the okra.

Our very own tamales with shishito peppers and tomatillo salsa – I will fry the peppers in very hot oil and sprinkle with salt. And we will roast the tomatillos with some garlic and onions and make a salsa out of them. Great for dipping the tamales in!

Sesame Maple Roasted Tofu with roasted beets and stir-fried sugar snap peas

And lots of leftovers!

As for desert this week, we still have homemade vanilla frozen yogurt, David Lebovitz’s cherries in red wine sauce, Shirley’s honey cinnamon ice cream and of course, the raspberry chocolate pecan tamales. So there is probably no need for additional ice cream this week.

If you are looking for any more meal ideas, be sure to check out OrgJunkie and all the ideas over there (most are not gluten free or vegetarian).

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Mattar Paneer

Posted in Cheese, Indian, Rice, tagged , , , , , , , , on July 13, 2010| 6 Comments »

Mattar paneer, muttar paneer, mutter paneer, matar paneer…however you spell it, it is wonderful! Paneer is a fresh, ‘homemade’ cheese typically used in Indian cuisine. Cook it up with some tomatoes, spices and green peas and you have heaven.

Last month we took a trip to the international market and I bought a pound of frozen paneer. Then the search was on for just the right recipe in which to use it. When I came to the Matar Paneer recipe in one of our favorite cookbooks, Indian Vegetarian Cooking From An American Kitchen, I knew I had to make it. It was really quite a simple recipe. With absolutely delicious results!! My husband said this meal was ‘restaurant quality’ and that the flavor was right on. And then he asked where I found the recipe and when I told him, he asked “Why did we wait so long to make this?” We have had this cookbook for years but I had just never searched out the paneer. But now we know.

I also had a box of Dosa mix that I had picked up at a local Indian restaurant and so we served it with these. Dosas are essentially crepes made from rice and dal (lentils and beans). I like the flavor of dosas but this particular mix was heavy on the spice (I think it was fenugreek) and it was overpowering in contrast to the flavors of the paneer. Next time I would try a more neutral flavored bread like naan (if it was gluten free) or some idlis. Or if I made my own dosas (haha!) I could spice them however I desire. But I won’t. Fermenting the rice and dal seems like more work than I want to engage in. So the box mixes work for me.

Do you have a favorite vegetarian Indian meal? Please share!

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