Winter Rainbow Gratin

I love this gratin recipe. Comforting creamy vegetables without the heaviness of a lot of butter and cream. And, as far as gratins go, it really couldn't be easier.

Instead of making a flour and butter roux, this gratin relies on slightly caramelized vegetables that bring both the comfort and the flavor to this recipe. While from start to finish, this does take a little over an hour to make, most of that time is baking or browning. Once you get the vegetables chopped up (which is the most labor-intensive part of this recipe), all you have to do is let them brown in a skillet for about 15 minutes and then place in the oven for 40 minutes. Amazingly, I was able to prep AND clean up in 35 minutes!

The original recipe in Heidi Swanson's Super Natural Cooking used purple potatoes and red-fleshed sweet potatoes, which contribute to the dish's rainbow effect. I had yukon gold potatoes and orange-fleshed sweet potatoes on hand so that's what I used. However, if you can find colorful vegetables use them! We need all the rainbows we can get this time of year!

I rarely buy bread crumbs. It seems silly to me since I always have bread on hand. For this recipe, I just dropped a couple pieces of bread (I like to use the ends of a loaf when possible) into my food processor. A couple pulses later and I have coarse bread crumbs. Because we are baking for a while, the bread crumbs didn't need to be dried out; the oven did that for me. It worked great.

I love the fact that I can use my cast iron skillet to brown the vegetables and then just slip it into the oven to bake. However, I didn't always have an oven-proof skillet. If you don't have one, don't worry. Brown the vegetables in your skillet, and then when you are ready to put it into the oven, transfer the mixture to a casserole dish. You will have the same effect; the only difference is that you'll have one more dish to wash.

Winter Rainbow Gratin
4 servings, 75 minutes (35 minute prep; 40 minute bake)

3 tablespoons clarified butter (or olive oil)
2 large yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
2 large shallots, sliced
4 green onions, chopped
1 apple (or pear), unpeeled, cored, and cut into bite-sized chunks
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup whole grain bread crumbs
2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Prepare the potatoes, sweet potato, carrots, shallots, and onions.
3. Heat the butter in a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add the prepared vegetables and toss to coat in the butter. Let the vegetables brown for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent burning. You will need a large pan for this or you can split the vegetables between two skillets.
4. Once the vegetables are brown but not mushy, remove from heat and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Add the apple and stir well to combine. (If needed, at this time transfer the vegetables to an oven-proof casserole dish if your skillet isn't oven-proof.)
5. Sprinkle the bread crumbs and half of the Parmesan cheese on the top of the vegetables. Don't stir.
6. Bake uncovered for 40 minutes, stirring once about halfway through.
7. Remove from heat, top with the remaining cheese and serve. 

Adapted from Super Natural Cooking by Heidi Swanson
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Huevos Rancheros

Huevos Rancheros... Where have you been all my life?

A few months ago I discovered Huevos Rancheros. I was eating lunch with a friend at Moose & Sadie's when on a whim I ordered their Huevos Rancheros. This is coming from the person who doesn't like runny eggs or melted cheese on my eggs. I also don't like salsa on my eggs. Come to think of it, I don't really like eggs. Yet, there I was: devouring my food like I hadn't eaten in years.

I had forgotten about that meal until last week when my cousins and I met up for lunch at Hell's Kitchen. I didn't order the Huevos Rancheros, but one of my cousins did. She graciously shared a bite of the dish, and I was transported to the land of happiness. Why had I forsaken the Huevos Rancheros for so long?!

The weird thing is that I have been on the biggest egg-kick ever. Remember when I said I didn't really like eggs. Well, over the last week, I've changed my mind. I love eggs. Especially runny eggs. I don't know what happened, but don't you dare try to offer me a hard cooked egg. I won't eat it. I had the Vegetable Benedict at Hell's Kitchen this past weekend and that solidified my love for runny eggs (he he!).

There is some amount of flexibility with this recipe. The most important ingredients to me in this recipe are the peppers, eggs, and tortillas: they have the biggest impact on the recipe's flavor.

For the peppers, I ended up using poblanos and jalapenos that I had roasted and froze this summer during the season of plethora peppers. I liked the roasted aspect of the peppers because they became meltingly soft in the sauce, just oozing their flavor over my huevos. However, you don't need to roast your peppers before adding them to the sauce if you'd like to save some time and effort.

The eggs should be runny. Really runny. This means you have to watch your eggs carefully, cook them slowly, and remove them from the heat a few moments before you think they are done. And finally, the whole wheat tortillas need to be fresh and have a nice nutty flavor.

Also, my Ranchero sauce turned out burn-my-lips spicy because of the cayenne pepper and the heat in my poblanos and jalapeno. It made me nervous. But the sour cream and eggs helped to lessen its heat, so the spice was fine. So, be daring and make the sauce just a tad spicier than you normally would. Your taste buds will thank you!

Huevos Rancheros
2 servings, 35 minutes

Ranchero Sauce
2 teaspoons canola oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 poblano peppers, seeded and chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 teaspoon cumin, ground
1/2 teaspoon salt (or less depending on your vegetable broth)
1/8-1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup vegetable broth
1 14 ounce can diced tomatoes
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, minced

Huevos
4 eggs
1 14 ounce can refried beans (vegetarian)
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons salsa
2 whole wheat tortillas
1 1/2 teaspoons clarified butter

1. First make the Ranchero sauce. (Note: This recipe makes 4-6 servings of sauce, which is good because then you can just whip up more Huevos and you have a meal in 15 minutes flat.) Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the diced onions and cook for 5-7 minutes or until soft and translucent. You want to avoid browning them.
2. Stir in the poblano peppers, jalapeno pepper, cumin, salt, and cayenne. Cook for a couple of minutes until fragrant.
3. Add the vegetable broth and diced tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium and simmer vigorously for about 15 minutes or until desired consistency. Before serving, stir in the cilantro. Taste and adjust the seasoning. 
4. Heat 1/2 teaspoon of the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Place one tortilla in the skillet and brown for a couple of minutes. Flip over and repeat on the second side. Do the same with the second tortilla. Place each crispy tortilla on a plate.
5. Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon of butter in the skillet. Be mindful of the temperature. It shouldn't be super hot. You may need to turn the heat down just below medium. Crack each of the eggs into the skillet slowly so that they set without running into each other.
6. Cook the eggs slowly over medium to medium-low heat until the clear part is white but not completely solid. Sprinkle the eggs with the shredded cheese and cover the pan to melt the cheese and finish cooking the eggs. Be careful not to overcook the eggs. The whole point is to have a deliciously runny mess.
7. While the eggs are cooking, warm up the refried beans and spread a couple tablespoons of the beans on each of the tortillas. 
8. When the eggs are done, place two eggs on each bean-covered tortilla. Top each serving with the Ranchero sauce, sour cream and salsa. Devour.

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Butternut Squash Zosui (Japanese Soup)

Seaweed has mystified me. Growing up, it was the gross slimy stuff that made me want to wear shoes while swimming in the lake. Now, I keep hearing about its fabulous nutritional profile, especially for vegetarians. Protein is rarely a concern for vegetarians. Iron and the B vitamins are notoriously more difficult to incorporate into a meatless diet. Seaweed is conveniently high in both. Additionally, it is high in magnesium, which is particularly important during these cold winter days. Magnesium supports a healthy nervous system and can help alleviate common symptoms of depression like anxiety and low energy. 

Yet, cooking with seaweed is uncharted territory for me. Some sea vegetables have a strong "fishy" scent and flavor that I just can't get past. But, my mother always says that we have to try a new food at least seven times before our taste buds get used to it. So, I'm experimenting with some sea vegetable recipes, and I'm happy to report that this Japanese soup is fantastic!

The recipe calls for kombu, which is a type of Japanese sea vegetable. I couldn't find it at my local co-op, so I used kelp instead since the package said "similar to Japanese kombu." I really have no idea. All I know is that the kelp worked and tasted great in the soup. 

Sea vegetables are usually sold dehydrated. The kelp I used needed to be rehydrated for 15-20 minutes, which worked out great. I added it to the soup while the squash was cooking, so it could season the soup and rehydrate at the same time. Perfect.

I made several adjustments to the original recipe simply because I used what I had on hand. So, don't worry about sticking to the recipe to the letter; like with most soups, it has room for creativity. This is a creamy, satisfying soup. However, I was hungry after only an hour or two, so it works best to use this soup as a light lunch or a first course. It warms up beautifully.

Butternut Squash Zosui
6 servings, 60 minutes

2 teaspoons peanut oil
2 leeks, thinly sliced
1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and diced
2 cups cooked brown rice
1 1/2 cups frozen edamame (I used corn)
1 3/4 cup vegetable broth
2 1/4 cup water
1 4-inch piece kombu (or use kelp)
3 tablespoons white miso
1 tablespoon sesame oil
3 tablespoon minced ginger (or 1/2 teaspoon ground; I also added 4 teaspoons minced garlic)
3-6 green onions, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon pepper

1. Heat the peanut oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the leeks and cook 2-3 minutes or until soft.
2. Stir in the squash, edamame (or corn), broth, water, and kelp. Bring to a boil and then lower the temperature to a steady simmer. Cook until the squash is tender, about 20 minutes depending on the size of the chunks.
3. Remove the kelp from the soup and chop it. At this point, I had about 1/3 cup chopped kelp. Stir it back into the soup. Stir in the rice.
4. Pour about 1 cup of the soup into a small bowl. Add the miso to the bowl and stir until dissolved. Pour this mixture back into the soup and heat gently. 
5. Make the relish: heat the sesame oil over medium-high heat in a small skillet. Add the ginger and green onions (and garlic, if desired) and cook for 1-2 minutes or until the onions are wilted and bright green and the ginger is fragrant. Remove from heat and stir in pepper.
6. To serve, ladle the soup into a bowl and top each serving with a dollop of the relish.

Adapted from Vegetarian Times, January/February 2011 edition.
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Fiesta Burrito Bake

First of all, I have a coupe of announcements regarding my blog.

All of my recipes can now be easily found via my Recipes page. You can still find past posts by looking through the archives, but hopefully now it will be easier to find the specific recipe you were looking for without having to remember when it was posted. I organized the recipes into simple meal-type categories, but if you want a different way of organizing them, let me know. 

Also, many of you have asked for print-friendly versions of my recipes. Fortunately that feature is now available, starting with this post. I plan to go back to my previous posts and create print-friendly versions, but that might take a while. However, from now on, you'll be able to print my recipes simply and clearly. Yay! :)

And now, onto the recipe. 

It's been cold in Minnesota lately. Really cold. Even for Minnesotans. When it gets this cold, all I want is comfort food. The other day I satisfied my comfort food craving by making Golden Peanut Miso Velvet, a deceptively nutritious version of gravy. I roasted some root vegetables, boiled up some barley and suddenly I had comfort food and healthy food all in one. It was perfect. 

Fiesta Burrito Bake is another one of my go-to comfort food recipes. It's fast, simple, and delicious. If you want to increase the nutritional profile of the recipe, use whole wheat flour tortillas. I found some the other day made by a local baker that were just as tender and moist as white flour tortillas. Their extra nutty flavor actually enhanced the recipe instead of detracting from it!

To make this recipe, all you have to do is stir together some refried beans, sour cream, and spices. Spread this mixture over tortillas and roll them up. Arrange them in a baking pan, top with tomato and cheese and bake for 25 minutes. Done. 

I love the recipe because I can easily have everything on hand for a fast weeknight meal. As a bonus, this recipe works great for entertaining since it dirties few dishes, is mostly hands-off, and looks impressive! 

Fiesta Burrito Bake
4 servings, 30 minutes

1 15 ounce can refried beans

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup water

1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

10 6-inch flour tortillas

1 medium tomato, chopped

1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Optional toppings: 

Lettuce, jalapenos, salsa, sour cream, guacamole 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly grease a 9 x 13 inch baking pan.
2. In a small bowl, combine the beans, sour cream, water, and pepper. Stir well. 
3. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the bean mixture onto a tortilla. Use the back of the spoon to spread it around the tortilla. I like to cover most of the tortilla with the beans. Roll the tortilla and place in the prepared baking pan. Repeat with the remaining tortillas and bean mixture. I've found it works best to arrange the tortillas so that their ends can touch the shorter width of the baking pan. That way, the tortillas are all facing the same way and look like a ladder in the baking pan.
4. Top the tortillas with tomato and shredded cheese.
5. Cover the pan. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for 10 more minutes. When finished, the cheese will be melted and the tortillas will be heated through. 
6. To serve, top the tortillas with lettuce, salsa, sour cream, guacamole, and/or jalapenos. 

Adapted from Favorite Brand Name Vegetarian Cooking.

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Deliciously Simple Bar Nuts

Sweet, salty, spicy. This recipe has it all! These spiced bar nuts can be served as a light appetizer or a fun party snack. I made a couple of batches during the holidays for stocking stuffers.

The recipe is simple. Basically, you are toasting nuts for about 20 minutes and halfway through the toasting cover the nuts with a spiced mixture. That's it!

The spiced mixture has some flexibility with it. I prefer the fresh rosemary; however, I've also made these with fresh marjoram. I've even used dried thyme and oregano. The herb brings a nice subtle flavor so use one you like. Rosemary can be overpowering, so I don't recommend adding more than the 2 tablespoons called for in the recipe. Feel free to scale back on the rosemary if you're not a big fan.

I also prefer these nuts a little on the spicy side. I scaled back on the cayenne for my family members, but if you like spice, add up to 1/8 teaspoon instead of just a pinch. As much as the aroma may tempt you, do be sure to let the nuts cool before eating; they are dangerously hot straight from the oven!

Bar Nuts
6-8 servings, 25 minutes

2 1/4 cup mixed unsalted nuts
2 tablespoons finely chopped rosemary, fresh
1 pinch cayenne pepper (or to taste)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons melted butter, divided

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread nuts on baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, add 1 tablespoon melted butter, rosemary, cayenne, brown sugar, maple syrup, and salt. Mix well.
3. Place toasted nuts into a medium bowl. Pour the other 1 tablespoon of melted butter over them and stir until well coated. Pour the spiced mixture over the nuts. Stir well, making sure all the nuts have some spices on them.
4. Spread the nuts onto the baking sheet again. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cool before eating (if you can!).

The Battle of the Ginger Cookies

I must apologize for my lack of posts as of late. I had brought my laptop with on our holiday travels with the intention of blogging while in the land of nothing. Not only did I not do any blogging, but we forgot the computer in the land of nothing! eek! It took two weeks and a dozen people to relay it back to us, safe and sound. I have so many things to share with you, so expect a flurry of posts in January! Also, as part of my goals for 2011, I plan to blog at least six times every month.

I had a few days off toward the end of 2010, so I decided what any lover of cooking would do: organize my spices!

I have a lot of spices and dried herbs that I like to keep on hand for inspiration: 47 spices to be exact. I used to keep them in several eclectic spice racks: a cute wooden cupboard-style rack, a pretty, modern rack, and the rest in a cupboard that required a chair to reach. So, when cooking a recipe with a myriad of spices, I was often found dashing from one end of my kitchen to the other to retrieve all the spices. It wasn't pretty and totally screwed up the zen-like flow I had established.

Thus, enter IKEA. :)

It only holds 36 spices, so I did eliminate spices that I don't use very often. I love being able to SEE my spices. All the other racks I had hid the actual jars so all I could see was the tops of the jar. Now, I have beautiful colors to look at when I wash the dishes! I know that the light will make the spices have a shorter shelf-life, but I don't care. It makes me smile every time I look at it! That is ultimately more important than having to use a little extra paprika to reach the right potency.

So, onto the main event: the cookie war!

I decided to make some ginger cookies for the plethora of holiday events I'm forced to attend every year. I had two recipes, one from each of my favorite blogs. I had made and liked both before. But, which one is better? Only a cookie war could find a winner.

Cookie #1: Wedded Bliss Soft Ginger Cookie

This deliciously soft ginger cookie makes everyone who tastes them say "oh yum!" Not kidding. It has a strong molasses flavor that is punctuated with ginger, cinnamon, and cloves. Oh, and did I mention that they freeze fabulously? 

Versus...

Cookie #2: Sparkling Ginger Chip Cookies

These are also soft cookies that have a wonderful crunch from the turbinado sugar coating. Made with whole wheat pastry flour, these have a slight nutritional advantage over the Wedded Bliss cookies. Plus, with both ground and fresh ginger, you tastebuds will thank you, especially when they run into one of the chocolate chunks...

The Analysis

Both cookies had similar preparation methods. Mix the fat with the sugar. Mix the wet into the sugar mixture. Mix the wet into the dry. 

While the preparation methods were similar, the Sparkling cookies took longer to put together because I needed to mince the fresh ginger and chop the chocolate. The total time (including baking) for the Sparkling cookies was 80 minutes; whereas, the total time for the Wedded Bliss cookies was 60 minutes. 

The Wedded Bliss cookie recipe is vegan (although I did use real butter), and the Sparkling cookie recipe could easily be adapted to vegan simply by substituting a flax egg (1 tsp ground flax + 4 tbsp almond milk) and using vegan butter. I prefer to use flax eggs in my cooking because then I can eat the dough without worries and save my eggs for omelets. 

Seriously, how could you not want to taste dough that looks like chocolate mousse?!

I liked the appearance of the Sparkling cookies better. I rolled them into balls and then rolled the balls in turbinado sugar before baking. For the Wedded Bliss cookies, I rolled them into balls, then flattened them slightly and sprinkled a little bit of sugar on the top. If I were to make the Wedded Bliss cookies again, I would simply not flatten them and add a little more sugar to the tops.

And the winner is....

Cookie #1: Wedded Bliss Soft Ginger Cookies!

Both cookies are delicious and unless you eat them side-by-side, you won't notice anything. However, I preferred the flavor of the Wedded Bliss cookies. I thought the chocolate in the Sparkling cookies actually detracted from the cookie; my tastebuds had too many things going on to focus on anything. One bite of a Wedded Bliss cookie and I was sold. The combination of spices enhanced the flavor and the texture was perfect. My husband also chose the Wedded Bliss cookies (even without knowing my choice!). 

But, try them out for yourself! 

Wedded Bliss Soft Ginger Cookie recipe (ohsheglows.com)

Sparkling Ginger Chip Cookie recipe (101cookbooks.com)