Harissa Spaghetti with Kale & White Beans

I love browsing the recipes on Heidi Swanson's blog, 101 Cookbooks. Her food is all healthy and pretty vegan friendly. I came across her recipe for Harissa Spaghettini and immeadiately got a craving to make something with harissa. Suprisingly I had a hard time finding harissa paste....I have the spice blend at home already but I wanted to use the actual paste. I managed to find some at Sofra on Saturay and was all set Sunday night to make my own version of Swanson's recipe.




Ingredients:
3 medium cloves garlic, peeled and minced
a big pinch of fine grain sea salt
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons harissa (paste)
8 ounces (1/2 pound) whole wheat spaghetti
1 bag of pre-cut, pre-washed kale
1 can of white beans (garbanzo beans would also be great here!)
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
1 tablepsoon of lemon juice

Directions:

Bring a big pot of water to a boil.
In a small bowl whisk together the garlic paste, harissa, and olive oil. Set aside.

Generously salt the boiling water, add the pasta, and cook per package instructions. Just before the pasta is done add the kale to the pasta water for two minutes, drain and set aside.

Heat half of the harissa dressing in the now empty pasta pot. Add the pasta and kale, white beans, pine nuts, and lemon juice. Stir over the heat for a minute or so, then turn everything out onto a platter and drizzle with the remaining harissa olive oil. Serve with a good french bread.

Vegetarian Paella

Last month I was in Barcelona and I took a cooking class with my mom. In our class we made a seafood paella with fresh ingredients we bought at La Bouqeria. I was not a good vegan and I definetly enjoyed the paella we made - squid, clams, shrimp and all. We used a monster paella pan over a gas burner to make enough for the entire class to enjoy.

I came home with a brand new (and much smaller) paella pan but have been hesitant to try it out. I was afraid that a vegan paella would pale in comparison to the one I had in Barcelona. I finally found a recipe that I was willing to give a shot in Gwyneth Paltrow's cookbook, Notes from my Kitchen Table.

Definetly not an easy recipe but I was impressed by its outcome. I halved the garlic called for and doubled the vegetable broth. I also used a few generous splashes of white wine as needed to ensure the rice was fully cooked.

Ingredients
1 litre Vegetable Stock
2 dried shiitake or porcini mushrooms
10 cloves garlic, 4 crushed and 6 finely chopped
Large pinch saffron
1/2 teaspoon sweet pimenton (paprika)
Coarse salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 large eggplant cut into 3 inch thick slices, ends discarded
1/2 cup olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
1 large tomato
2 red peppers, seeds and stem removed, cut into 1 inch pieces
1.5 cups of white risotto rice
8 small artichokes, trimmed and steamed for 20 minutes, cut in half and chokes discarded (I actually skipped this and added a bag of frozen artichokes from trader joes)
1 cup frozen peas
3 lemons, 2 cut into wedges


Directions:
Combine the stock with the mushrooms and the 4 cloves of crushed garlic in a large saucepan and boil over high heat for 10 minutes.

Lower the heat, add the saffron and pimenton and simmer for an additional 10 minutes to thoroughly combine the flavours.

The secret to this recipe is a well-seasoned broth, so season to taste with salt and pepper and more saffron and/or pimenton if necessary.Keep warm over a low heat.
Meanwhile, prepare the aubergine. Sprinkle both sides of the aubergine slices with a bit of salt and lay them between sheets of kitchen paper for at least 15 minutes.
Cut the aubergine into 1 inch pieces.

Heat half the olive oil in a large sauté pan set over medium heat and cook 2 cloves of the chopped garlic until fragrant, about a minute.

Add the pieces of aubergine to the pan and cook for 12–15 minutes, stirring now and then, until browned and softened. Set aside.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining olive oil in a 40–45cm paella pan over high heat until just beginning to smoke.

Turn the heat down to medium, add the onion and the 4 remaining cloves of chopped garlic, and cook, stirring, until just beginning to soften, about 5 minutes.

Coarsely grate in the tomato, discarding the skin. Stir together and cook for another 2 minutes.

Add the peppers and continue to cook the vegetables together until softened, another 10 minutes.

Stir in the cooked eggplant. When you're ready to roll, place the paella pan with the vegetables over high heat and pour the rice into the pan in an even cross.
Add the stock and stir to combine everything. Bring to the boil and then lower the heat to a simmer.

Arrange the artichokes and peas on top and simmer until the rice is cooked through, about 35 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat source, cover with a large piece of foil and let it sit undisturbed for 15 minutes.

Squeeze the juice of the lemon over the paella.



Note: I learned during my cooking class that you are not supposed to stir paella after the rice has been added and it is cooking. Instead you should lightly push the rice away from the bottom of the pan with a wooden flat spoon, just to make sure it is not sticking. Do this every couple of minutes.

Soft Ginger Cookies

My mother is visitng this weekend which gives me a fabulous excuse to bake. I have been looking forward to trying Kim Barnouin's recipe for Soft Ginger Cookies in my beloved "Skinny Bitch Ultimate Everyday Cookbook". Since my mother is an avid fan of anything containing ginger it seemed like a good time to give them a shot. Unfortunately I did not read the recipe all the way through last night before I got busy baking so I did not see that the dough had to chill for an hour. I might have budgeted my time last night a little differently had I seen that...but otherwise they were very simple and turned out quite delicious. The only tweak I made was I added some maple sugar to the top of the cookies before baking to add some extra sweetness. Best part? Only 90 calories a cookie!

Ingredients:
2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup evaporated cane sugar
½ cup Earth Balance, at room temperature
½ cup applesauce
2 tablespoons molasses
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger, or 1 tablespoon small pieces crystallized ginger (I used fresh ginger and actually added about 1.5 teaspoons)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Lightly grease a cookie sheet.
In a medium bowl, sift the flour. Add the baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
In a separate large bowl, beat the sugar and the Earth Balance with an electric mixer until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the applesauce, molasses, ground and fresh ginger, and the vanilla. Beat for 1 minute. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and slowly stir together, being careful to avoid overmixing. Place in the refrigerator to chill for 1 hour and then roll in the dough into small balls and place on the prepared cookie sheet. Lightly press on the dough with your fingers to flatten a little, but make sure they aren’t too thin. Bake about 8 minutes. Let the cookies cool on baking sheet 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Orzo Greek Salad

I love orzo and I love panzanella salads...this recipe is a kind of combination of the two. Perfect for a light lunch!

Orzo Greek Salad

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked orzo
1 large cucumber, peeled, seeded, and diced
3 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 red pepper, diced
20 pitted kalamata olives, cut into quarters
1/4 to 1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 large lemon, halved
1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
In a  large mixing bowl, add orzo, cucumber, tomatoes, peppers, olives, and parsley. Stir to combine.
Pour olive oil into orzo mixture. Juice the entire lemon into the same bowl. Add salt and grind pepper to taste. Stir gently to combine. Serve cold or at room temperature.

Spicy Vegetarian Chili & Vegan Cornbread

This is going to be a busy week so I wanted to make something I can eat for a few days for dinner. The chili recipe below is from a Whole Foods recipe that I found online - super simple, totally vegan, and quite delicious! I found the cornbread recipe in Vegonomicon - aka the Vegan Bible. The cornbread came out a bit mushy, but I also did not use the recommended iron skillet for cooking it.

Spicy Vegan Chili

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive or canola oil
1 mium yellow onion, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
1 medium red bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 to 3 tablespoons finely chopped chipotles in adobo 1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes, with their liquid
3 cups cooked red kidney beans, drained
1 1/2 cups cooked black beans, drained
Directions:
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onions, carrots, celery, peppers and garlic and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, until vegetables are softened but not browned. Add chipotles, oregano, cumin, chili powder and salt. Stir to blend. Add tomatoes and 4 cups water. Gently simmer over low heat, uncovered, for 45 minutes. Add beans and simmer an additional 30 minutes.

Vegan Cornbread
Ingredients:

2 cups soy milk
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 cups cornmeal
1 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup oil
1 cup frozen corn
3 jalapenos

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350. Lightly grease pan.
Saute corn and jalapenos in 1 teaspon of olive oil until corn is browned (about 5 mintues) and set aside. 
Combine the soy milk and vinegar and set aside to curdle. Sift together dry ingredients. Create a well in the center and add the wet ingredients. Mix together until just combined, fold in corn and jalapenos. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 30 minutes, until a toothpick or knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven, let cool a bit before serving.

Garden Risotto

This risotto is a vegan take on Ellie Krieger's garden risotto....I skipped the cheese but for non-vegans I am sure it would make this recipe even better.


Ingredients
• 6 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1/2 pound asparagus, steamed and cut into 3/4-inch pieces
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan (OPTIONAL)

Directions

Bring the broth to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan over moderately low heat and cook the onion, stirring occasionally, until soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the rice and cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Add wine and simmer, stirring constantly, until absorbed, about 1 minute. Add 3/4 cup of the hot broth, the salt and a few grinds of fresh pepper and simmer, stirring constantly, until broth is absorbed. Continue simmering and adding hot broth, about 3/4 cup at a time, stirring constantly and allowing the broth to be absorbed before adding more, until rice is almost tender and creamy-looking, about 18 minutes.

Add the peas and cook until they are heated through. Add the asparagus and cook just until the vegetables are hot. If using, stir in the Parmesan and more broth if the risotto seems too thick. Serve in soup plates.

Curried Lentil, Potato and Cauliflower Soup

It’s freezing out. And while the weather makes the 1.4 mile walk to/from work almost painful, it is perfect weather for a lentil stew. I had most of the ingredients on hand for this recipe – while all the chopping takes a bit of time the soup itself is very easy to make and pretty versatile. It would be easy to sub out the cauliflower and spinach with other vegetables you have on hand…frozen vegetables would work just fine.


Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 to 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 stalks celery, trimmed & diced
• 1 cup brown or green lentils, rinsed
• 6 cups water (I used 3 cups of vegetable broth, 3 cups of water)
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 large potatoes, scrubbed and diced
• One 16-ounce can salt-free diced tomatoes, undrained
• 2 tsp good quality curry powder, or to taste
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• Pinch of nutmeg (I used about ½ tsp)
• 2 1/2 cups finely chopped cauliflower pieces
• 2 cups finely chopped fresh spinach leaves OR 1 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed
• 2 Tbsp minced fresh cilantro
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a soup pot. Add the onion, celery and garlic. Sauté over medium-low heat until translucent.

2. Stir in turmeric, curry powder and nutmeg, and sauté for 1 minute.

3. Add the lentils and bay leaves. Cover with 6 cups water

4. Bring to a rapid simmer, then lower the heat. Cover and simmer gently for 10 minutes

5. Add the potatoes and tomatoes, and simmer until the potatoes are about half done, about 10 to 15 minutes

6. Add the cauliflower and simmer until the lentils and vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes longer

7. Stir in the spinach, cilantro, and lemon juice. Adjust the consistency with more water as needed, then season with salt and pepper

8. Simmer over very low heat for another 5 minutes

9. Serve at once or let stand for an hour before serving, then heat through as needed

Sweet Potato Leek Casserole

Yesterday, my first day off the BPC cleanse, was spent eating salads and fruit…until dinner when I splurged a bit. But we won’t talk about that. I woke up feeling good this morning and ready to start cooking some vegan dishes!

This recipe is from the Skinny Bitch cookbook…the casserole does not sound all that appealing to me but the very short ingredient list won me over. I am babysitting for my sister tonight so it is an easy dish to prepare at home in advance and then pop in the oven over at her house.

Sweet Potato Leek Casserole
(Serves 4)

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp grapeseed oil

3 medium leeks

1 garlic clove - crushed

3 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary

Salt and petter to taste

2 medium red skinned sweet potatoes - peeled and sliced 1/8inch (3mm) thick

1/2 cup (60g) breadcrumbs

1/3 cup (75ml) vegetable broth

Method

Preheat oven to 200C/400F

Coat a medium casserole dish with the olive oil. Heat a skillet with the grapeseed oil over medium heat. Cut the dark green tops off the leeks and discard. Halve the leeks lengthwise. Make sure to thoroughly wash any dirt residue off the leeks. Chop the leeks and sauté with the garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper until soft. Arrange one-third of the sweet potatoes across the bottom of the casserole dish. It is fine if they overlap and do not fit perfectly in the dish. Spread one half of the leek mixture on top of the sweet potatoes. Then arrange another third of the sweet potatoes across the leeks. Repeat, ending with a layer of potatoes. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over the top. Pour the vegetable broth over the casserole. Cover and bake 30 minutes.

Blue Print Cleanse - Day 3

Most reviews that I read from people on the BPC said that the first day was hard, the second was the hardest, but the third was a breeze. Definitely not what I am feeling. I have been hungry since I woke up this morning…and unlike the past two days my stomach has actually been growling. Audibly. The sound of my co-worker crunching away on pretzels in the cubicle next to me is driving me nuts. I am not feeling the “euphoric sense of enlightenment” that others report feeling by the third day of juicing. I do feel lighter (and, side note, weigh less, although this is of course all water weight) but I wouldn’t say I have increased energy right now.

On the bright side, all of the juices, including the green juices, are going down just fine. I am actually finding myself looking forward to the green juice – not because I enjoy the taste but in hopes of it filling me up more than the fruit based ones.

BluePrint claims the main point of this cleanse is to “rid your body of impurities, regain an alkaline balance and normalize digestion and metabolism.” I hope this is/has happened….but who knows? The easier measurement for success is to see if the cleanse motivates and helps me reset healthy eating habits. To that end, I am planning my approach to coming off the cleanse tomorrow. BPC recommends a raw vegan diet to help you ease your way back into solid food after a juice cleanse. This is the “sample menu” they provide:

Day 1 – A few pieces of fruit spread out through the day, or some fresh squeezed non-pasteurized juice (green/citrus/or fruit). If you wish to drink some freshly squeezed juice, be sure to dilute it with some water.
Day 2 - Raw or lightly steamed vegetables, e.g. spinach, broccoli; try and avoid the more starchy veggies like carrots, beets, squash etc. You may also have a raw green leafy salad with some vegetables.
Day 3 – Green salads should be your staple at this point. If you’re craving some more sustenance, you may choose plain brown rice (a small portion), or a yam or sweet potato.

http://blueprintcleanse.com/breaking-the-cleanse.html

Wait, what? Coming off of three days of juicing I think I want to treat myself to a little bit more to eat than just fruit tomorrow. Of course I do not want to undo all of the "progress" I have made but I can’t imagine fruit is going to satisfy me…nor does that sound all that healthy.

I am planning on enjoying fruit for breakfast, a salad for lunch, and a vegetable based soup + a salad for dinner. All healthy and vegan, of course, but nowhere near as drastic as BPC recommends.

To continue a healthier lifestyle moving forward, my goal is to continue eating vegan as much as possible. A few slip ups where cheese is concerned is inevitable, a fact I have come to accept. I am also going to try to replace at least one meal a day with a soup or salad. The hope is that this will help me continue a healthy diet while giving me energy to start on a running schedule.

Blue Print Cleanse - Day 2

So if I stay busy, I keep forgetting that I am even on a juice cleanse. I guess that is a good sign – no growling stomach, no hunger cramps, and no overwhelming desire to gnaw off my officemate’s arm.


My subconscious, however, has not forgotten about my lack of food intake. I had various dreams last night regarding food – food which I remember eating and then feeling guilty about afterwards. But I am happy to report, no actual cheating has occurred. Still 100% on track.

To pick up where I left off:

Juice #5 yesterday was my last green juice of the day. I held my nose and sipped it down as quickly as possible through a straw. Still unpleasant. I headed off to a great Forrest Yoga class and got home around 7.45pm. After a quick shower I sat down to enjoy Juice #6.

Juice #6 is “Cashew Milk” – a blend of water, cashews, vanilla, cinnamon, agave nectar. Most reviews of this juice were quite positive – it was even called “delicious” by many BPC reviewers…a term not applied to many of the other juices. I quite enjoyed the juice – it was a creamy, sweet, and filling end to the day. My sister, on the other hand, did not have a positive reaction to the juice. We think it may be due to the juice’s unique texture. There is a grittiness to the drink, presumably from the cashews, that is a bit unusual. For me, however, it is the best drink of the six and something to look forward to tonight!

I woke up this morning feeling relieved that I was still on track and convinced that I would not let my dreams become reality – no cheating. I was not extremely hungry when I woke up. I was hoping to notice some difference in how I felt in terms of energy level but it was a pretty normal morning.

I opened my first green juice when I arrived at work, around 8.15AM. Yesterday I approached most juices via a cup and straw. Today I decided to (for lack of a more refined word) chug the green juice straight from the bottle. I figured the quicker I got it down the better, as I was feeling a bit of dread based on my memories of yesterday.

The green juice was much easier to get down in this fashion; however I did feel the need for two cups of herbal tea to “cleanse” my palette afterwards. But after that I was well on my way to getting through the morning.

Juice #2, PAM (pineapple, apple, mint) was a breeze. Still not my favorite, but I think this is due to the fact I am not a big fan of mint. I approached green juice #3 with the same mindset as this morning….chugging straight from the bottle. Not too difficult to get through, although still not a “pleasant” experience.

I was able to enjoy Juice #4 a bit more today – I like the spiciness of the lemonade, although it is by no means overpowering.

I am taking my last green juice of the day with me to my last meeting of the day. I am still trying to decide how to hide the green color (all of the cups in my office are clear plastic) so as not to disturb any of my coworkers. Wish me luck, and let’s hope this meeting does not run over and I can make it to yoga tonight – I definitely think it helps to stay active in the evening.

Blue Print Cleanse - Day 1

I woke up this morning, threw my juices in a bag, and went to work. The basic rule is that there are six juices to drink each day, at least an hour apart and the last one no later than 2 hours before bedtime.

I enjoyed my first juice of the day around 8.15AM at the office – a “Green Juice”. The ingredient list is: Romaine, Celery, Cucumber, Apple, Spinach, Kale, Parsley, and Lemon. Exactly what I want first thing in the morning!

I had already had a call from my sister telling me “it isn’t THAT bad." This was really based on the fact that we had read some reviews saying the green juice was barely tolerable if not downright disgusting. Turns out she is more tolerant than me…I had to struggle quite a bit to get it down. I think it was the “parsley” that threw me….or maybe the celery…. A cup of green tea afterwards helped wash down the taste, and perhaps gave me a bit of a caffeine boost. Despite having already suffered through caffeine withdrawal over the weekend for this, I really miss my morning coffee.

Anyhow, I got it down and surprisingly felt OK throughout the morning. Not too hungry, although I did drink a lot of water and herbal tea (both of which are allowed on the diet). Since I knew lunch time would be a weak spot for me, I spaced my next two drinks around it, one at 11AM and one at 1PM.

Juice #2 consisted of Pineapple, Apple, and Mint. Not at all offensive but not really what I would call great.

I had to get out of the office around noon when the smell of sandwiches, soups, and bread started drifting past my cubicle. I went for a stroll (OK, a stroll around Marshalls which is just far too close to my office building) and got back to the office a bit after one. My third juice was another green juice and I was not looking forward to it at this point.

Juice #3, my second green juice of the day, was worse than #1. I got it down and then had waves of nausea for the next thirty minutes or so. Not sure if it was from the juice, the lack of eating, or just mental. Luckily the nausea passed without any unpleasant incident in the office.

Juice #4 was “Spicy Lemonade” – a mix of lemons, water, agave nector, and cayenne pepper. I thought I would really enjoy this one…but I have to say, all the juices are kind of blending together right now and tasting the same. I could really use a breath mint too…Note to self to bring my toothbrush into the office tomorrow. 

On the bright side, I am not too hungry...in fact, no more hungry than I usually am at 4pm on a work day when I eat normally. Suprising.

I have two more juices to go today. I plan on taking a yoga class after work to keep my mind off eating tonight. This cleanse is supposed to provide energy, not drain it, so working out is actually encouraged. Not sure I feel like running right now but I think yoga should be pretty doable. More on how the rest of my night goes in my next post.

BluePrint Cleanse - Pre-Cleanse Weekend

Why, hello. I guess it has been a while. Oops. Between work travel, summer vacation, and then the holidays I, err, went a bit off the vegan path.


And by a bit I mean COMPELTELY. But that’s OK. I’m back, at least for a little while.

As usual, January brings with it a time for reflection and re-evaluation. Did I really need to eat all that beef brisket over Christmas? Was being in Spain for vacation really an excuse to have cava with every meal? (To which the answer is still yes, but you get the point)

I also start feeling the pressure to train for my annual 10mile race at the end of March. Due to a sprained ankle last fall I took some time off running….and now I have my work cut out for me getting back in shape.

So to kick-start my healthy new year I signed up for the BluePrint Cleanse. Outrageously expensive and with mixed reviews from other bloggers and friends, the BluePrint Cleanse is a pre-packaged, easy-to-follow vegan juice diet. My sister and I both signed up for the three day cleanse. We picked different levels, she went for the Renovation Level and I for the Foundation level. The only real difference between the two is one juice swap – while I get three “green” juices each day she gets two “greens” and a beet/carrot/apple juice. More on the juices later though….

The cleanse recommends a “pre-cleanse” diet for the days leading up to your juice cleanse consisting of raw vegetables and fruit. Basically a raw vegan diet for three days pre-cleanse….which is a cleanse in itself to me. Pretty intense. My pre-cleanse phase started last Friday. I stuck to vegan choices on Friday and Saturday but I still ate my fair share of cooked vegetables, grains, tofu, and even a glass of (gasp) wine on Friday night with dinner. Sunday I did eat more strictly according to the BPC guidelines – I had fruit for breakfast, raw veggies and hummus for lunch (I doubt the hummus was allowed…but good enough for me), and then raw veggies on a salad for dinner. My sister and I chose the option to pick up our juices rather than have them delivered, as the timing worked out better for us. We got the juices together Sunday afternoon, loading them into my sister’s car since they were too heavy to walk home. “There is 450$ worth of juice in the trunk right now”…. a comment you don’t hear that often.

Anyhow, I did miss my Sunday night tradition of cooking a large meal…but my salad was pretty satisfying. I ended my night with a cup of herbal tea and a very early bedtime. And I woke up this morning starving…but ready to start the BPC.