Green Beans with Heirloom Tomatoes, Shallots and Olives

Hello, Upper East Side! Believe it or not, the vegetarian and I have moved again -- this time to the Upper East Side. This is my first time living on the Upper East Side and, trepidatious as I first was, I'm now settling into my routines here and really enjoying myself. For the vegetarian, this is a homecoming of sorts -- his first apartment in NYC was only four blocks away from our current home. While a lot in the neighborhood has changed, much is also still the same and we've been having lots of fun discovering new places and rediscovering old ones.

My favorite new discovery thus far (surprise, surprise) has been the 82nd Street Greenmarket. Having grown up with the Union Square Greenmarket (and then spent time getting to know the various markets in Paris when I lived there), it's always been comforting for me to be able to walk to a market, talk to farmers and base my purchases on what's actually fresh and tasty and seasonal rather than whatever the supermarket managers decided to put on sale that week.

This Greenmarket is one of the best I've been to. It's mostly in a church courtyard but also spills out onto the surrounding sidewalk. Nowhere near as big as Union Square, I actually find it more manageable. There's fruit, vegetables, fish, goat (I got some goat merguez), baked goods (including some that are sugar-free and gluten-free!) and eggs. I went with a list and came home with two bulging bags -- including lots of surprises I wasn't planning on getting. Two things I was thrilled to get were green beans and heirloom tomatoes. This time of year, I can have tomatoes three times a day (and I often do) and they went wonderfully with the green beans. Alongside Mustard Greens with (Anchovy)-Garlic Dressing they were the stars of our Housewarming party. Bon appetit!

Green Beans with Heirloom Tomatoes, Shallots and Olives
adapted from Vegetable Literacy

• 3/4 pound green beans
• 1 shallot, sliced crosswise
• 4 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
• 10 dried black olives
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 heirloom slicing tomato
• 1 tablespoon + 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper, freshly ground
• 1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• handful basil leaves, torn into strips

Fill a large pot with water and bring it to a boil. While the water's boiling, prep your other ingredients: trim the tails (and tips, if necessary) from the beans. Stir the shallot together with the vinegar in a small bowl. Chop the olives and garlic together. Chop the tomato into small chunks.

Once the water comes to a boil, add 1 tablespoon salt along with the beans. Cook for 5 minutes. Drain and dry in a dish towel.

Put the beans into a large bowl and toss with olives and garlic. Add salt and pepper to taste. Drain shallots from vinegar, reserving both separately. Whisk olive oil into vinegar and pour over beans. Strew shallots on top, along with tomatoes and basil. Gently toss everything together. Serve room temperature. Enjoy!

Links:

• Green Beans with Onions and Heirloom Tomatoes from My Chic Life
• Sauteed Green Beans with Heirloom Tomato Marinara Sauce from With Food + Love
• Green Bean and Cherry Tomato Salad from smitten kitchen
• Sauteed String Beans with Heirloom Tomato Marinara Sauce from Groundworks Farm
• Heirloom Tomato and Green Beans with Ginger Vinaigrette from Parade

Rosemary Chicken with Sweet Potatoes

Sometimes, the best-laid plans just don't work out quite as well as you had hoped. Take today's recipe, for example. The original recipe featured flavorful chicken cooked in the slow cooker on a bed of onions and Yukon Gold potatoes. Sounds delicious, no? I figured I would eat the chicken and the vegetarian and I would split the onions and potatoes.

Fast forward several months, however, and I'm now avoiding white potatoes. But no problem; I can still have sweet potatoes. That won't change things too much; the vegetarian and I love sweet potatoes! So I loaded up the slow cooker and set it to cook for 6 hours.

Then life got in the way and I decided to give everything another two hours. But we still weren't ready to eat (we were rehearsing at home that day) so the slow cooker flipped over into its "warm" mode. Several hours later, I finally dished everything up, along with some Rice Salad with Cucumber and Dill Dressing, and, starving, we sat down to eat.

So how was it? Truth be told, it wasn't very good. The chicken was certainly tender but everything was SO greasy! And the sweet potatoes and onions had melted together (along with the chicken juice, which normally doesn't bother the vegetarian but this time, well, it just wasn't very good) into a sweet and gooey mess. Yuck!

So what did we do? I salvaged what I could. The chicken (drained and stored without its greasy liquid) ended up making many meals for the next week. Reheated (or cut up cold to form salads), it provided a delightful protein addition. And the vegetables? I kept planning to make them into a soup of some sort but, truthfully, I never had the heart to so I eventually threw them out.

Now, you may be wondering why I'm even including this recipe? Well, first of all, the flavors were really very good! I would definitely try this again, but with a few adjustments:

• 6 hours of cooking time on low and no "warming time"
• Defatting the chicken before placing it in the slow cooker
• Leaving the sweet potatoes whole (or, if you eat them, using Yukon Golds)

What else would you do differently? Do you ever have a great recipe idea, only to have it not come out exactly (or at all) as planned? Let us know in the comments!

Rosemary Chicken with Sweet Potatoes
adapted from Recipe.com

• 12 bone-in, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 pound sweet potatoes, cut in half (2-3 sweet potatoes)
• 1 red onion, cut into thin wedges
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup pomegranate juice
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons potato starch
• 1 tablespoon rosemary, coarsely chopped
• 1 teaspoon juniper berries
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground

Rinse chicken, defat as best you can, and pat dry. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat olive oil. Add chicken (you may need to do this in batches, depending on the size of your skillet) and brown, 1-2 minutes per side.

Place sweet potatoes, onion and garlic in the bottom of your slow cooker. Top with chicken. In a small bowl, whisk together pomegranate juice, lemon juice potato starch, rosemary, juniper berries and black pepper. When well combined, pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours. Enjoy!

Links;

• Rosemary Chicken and Sweet Potatoes from Food.com
• Rosemary Chicken & Sweet Potatoes from Healthy Choice
• Chicken and Sweet Potatoes with Shallots from Real Simple
• Sweet Potato Chicken Rosemary Recipes from Yummly
• Rosemary-Roasted Chicken Legs with Sweet Potatoes from BrokeAss Gourmet

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Peppery Breakfast Wrap

I get bored easily. This doesn't mean that I can't watch long plays or movies or read long books -- quite the opposite, actually, if the piece is enthralling enough. No -- it's the repetition I can't take. I don't like doing the same thing every day. Nor do I like eating the same thing every day. (The vegetarian, on the other hand, pretty much subsisted on the same 3-5 meals his entire life until we moved in together.) Even as a child, I was never content with having a bowl of cereal every day for breakfast. That might work 1-2 days a week but, after that, I would just pick at it until my indulgent mother got the hint and provided me with something else.

Now that I've made the commitment to my health to have breakfast every day (and now that cereal is off the table for me), I've had to rack my brains to come up with interesting breakfasts that I can make in the mornings that will be protein-rich, healthy and not too time-consuming. When in doubt, I just fry an egg since that takes almost no time and I can pretty much do it in my sleep.

When I get bored, I've found the best thing is to add some vegetables. This also helps in the neverending quest to eat all the produce I buy with the very best of intentions but which always seems to be just a little bit too much for two people to eat. So now I base my breakfasts around whatever vegetable is "on its way out".

This wrap, however, is one of those wonderful egg dishes that can also qualify as "breakfast for dinner". In fact, I made it for our last Monthly Cooking Adventure and everyone devoured them! It was also very easy for entertaining -- I set everything up like a buffet so that guests could make their own wraps, perfectly suiting them to their tastes. We also made rice and chickpeas and some sauteed yellow squash (see what I mean about buying too many vegetables?). The recipe below is for one person; just multiply it by however many people you're serving breakfast to. Bon appetit!

Peppery Breakfast Wrap
adapted from The Skinny Rules

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 cup arugula, chopped
• 2-3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 1 brown rice flour tortilla, warmed

Over medium heat, heat olive oil in a skillet big enough to hold all your eggs. Add arugula and cook 2 minutes, until wilted. Meanwhile, scramble eggs in a bowl. Season well with plenty of black pepper.

Add eggs to pan, lower heat and scramble (I recommend a plastic whisk so you won't scratch your pan) until they're to your taste. Remove from heat and spoon into tortilla. Roll up and eat!

Links:

• Spinach and Egg Breakfast Wrap with Avocado and Pepper Jack Cheese from MyRecipes.com
• Spinach and Egg Breakfast Wrap with Avocado and Pepper Jack Cheese from Health.com
• Potato Pepper and Egg Breakfast Wraps from Finding Joy in My Kitchen
• California Avocado Breakfast Burrito from Hass Avocado

Garlic Jelly

One of the most exciting (and frustrating!) parts of going sugar-free is adapting tried-and-true recipes and techniques that have always relied on sugar but, instead, finding new ways of making them without. Case in point: jelly. Always looking for new ways to go "back to basics" with my cooking, this month I picked up a used copy of Blue Ribbon Preserves which is chock-full of recipes for jams, jellies, marmalades and even some sauces, pickles and vinegars!

Of course, being the contrary person I am, the first recipe from the book I decided to tackle was a garlic jelly, made with lots of sugar and white wine. Why didn't I find this recipe back when I was eating everything? I asked myself and the vegetarian. He shrugged, wondering instead what exactly we would do with garlic jelly. I decided to focus first on making it and worry later about how to use it.

The easy substitution came first: InnergyBiotic instead of the white wine. InnergyBiotic is a fermented probiotic drink made by Body Ecology that has a slightly sour taste straight but, when cooked, I've found it to be an excellent wine substitute.

Now came the hard part, however: substituting the sugar. Sugar, I found out from my research, is what makes pectin solidify. You can make all-fruit jellies without it but garlic doesn't have enough natural sugar to act the same way. I ended up using a no-sugar needed pectin, which, true to its name, means it doesn't require sugar to gel. This also meant that I could keep my jelly savory rather than sweet. We did use a mix of apple and passion fruit juices to bring in some sweetness and help the jelly gel.

And how did we use it? Lots of ways! We omnivores had it with lamb loin chops. We also swirled it into sun-dried tomato risotto and have now made two salad dressings with it. We even spread it on toast! Bon appetit.



Garlic Jelly
adapted from Blue Ribbon Preserves

• 3 cups white wine vinegar
• 1 cup garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 cups InnergyBiotic
• 1/2 teaspoon white calcium powder
• 1 1/2 cups apple juice
• 1/2 cup passion fruit juice
• 2 teaspoons no-sugar needed pectin

Heat vinegar and garlic in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, cover and cook 15 minutes. Remove from heat. When cool enough to handle, pour into a clean glass jar and let rest, covered, at room temperature for 24 hours.

Place a fine-meshed sieve over a bowl. Pour in garlic vinegar. Throw out any solids in the sieve (like the garlic slices). Rinse sieve and line with 2 layers clean, damp cheesecloth 2 times, rinsing the cheesecloth out each time. Now line the sieve with 2 layers of paper coffee filters and strain vinegar again. Pour into a clean glass jar and let stand, covered, 3 hours.

Ladle vinegar into a bowl. Discard any sediment left at the bottom. Clean your sieve and place it over a clean bowl. Line it with 2 layers of clean paper coffee filters and strain the vinegar one last time. Be patient; the vinegar might take some time to travel through all the layers. Let it take its time. We had about 2 cups of vinegar at this point. 

In a fairly large pan, over medium heat, combine vinegar, InnergyBiotic and calcium powder. Stir until powder has dissolved, then bring to a boil. Add apple juice, passion fruit juice and pectin. Stir until pectin is dissolved, then bring mixture back to a boil. Stir for 1 minute. Remove pan from heat.

Skim off any foam from the top of the pot. Now you have a choice -- if you're going to can (I chickened out), do so while the jelly is still hot. If not, allow it to cool down a little, then ladle into a clean glass jar (I used a big, thick mason jar) and allow to come to room temperature before either using or storing in the refrigerator where it will keep for at least 1 week. As it cools, the pectin will solidify so don't worry if it's not the perfect consistency when you first spoon it out of the pot. Enjoy!

Links:

• Garlic Jelly from Allrecipes.com
• Garlic Jelly from Food.com
• Roasted Garlic Jelly from Love and Olive Oil
• Garlic Jelly from Garlic Festival Foods
• Garlic Jelly from Cooking for My Peace of Mind
  
  
  
  
  
  

Quick Sauteed Wild Mushrooms

Not surprisingly, the most difficult thing to get used to when adapting to eating animal proteins at every meal is how to still make a satisfying meal for the vegetarian without too many extra dishes and too much extra work. When we're both home early enough, the vegetarian helps, often making an extra starch for himself and/or baking a few veggie burgers alongside my protein of choice.

But many nights I'm alone in the kitchen, which I find surprisingly relaxing. Those nights, my movements are more fluid and I follow my recipes less closely. I cook more based on taste and smell and excitedly await when the vegetarian comes home and (hopefully) remarks on how delicious the house smells.

I'm sure not everyone would agree with this, but I think sauteed mushrooms (especially with lots of garlic and shallots) are a delicious smell. And they have enough substance to be a perfect meat substitute. Over quinoa linguine, they became the vegetarian's main dish. And a smaller portion alongside deviled eggs with anchovies was a perfect dinner for me. You could also up the protein by adding some crushed almonds on top of the mushrooms or (if you're cooking only for omnivores) mixing in some anchovies. Bon appetit!

Quick Sauteed Wild Mushrooms
(adapted from Whole Foods and Macrobiotic Cooking and Healing)

• 4 ounces shiitake mushrooms
• 4 ounces cremini mushrooms
• 8 ounces portobello mushrooms
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 shallots, thinly sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup Innergy Biotic
• 2 teaspoons thyme, chopped
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 1/2 cup Italian parsley, chopped

With a damp paper towel, clean mushroom caps. Remove woody stems from shiitakes and slice all the mushrooms thinly. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots and cook 1 minute. Add mushrooms, stir frequently, and cook 8 minutes, until they become fragrant and begin to brown.

Add garlic and Innergy Biotic, increase heat to high and cook 2 minutes, until liquid all-but evaporates, stirring occasionally so as to ensure that nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan. Turn off heat, add thyme, salt and pepper and stir well. Serve, sprinkled with parsley. Enjoy!

Links:

• Sauteed Wild Mushrooms from Food Network
• Sauteed Wild Mushrooms from Food Network
• Quick Sauteed Wild Mushrooms from Whole Foods Cooking
• Wild Mushroom Saute from Epicurious.com
• Wild Mushrooms Sauteed in Butter, Sherry and Lemon from Closet Cooking

Go-To Tomato Sauce

Our first date, the vegetarian cooked me dinner. Of course, this was back in the days when I ate everything and he made a big batch of baked ziti, garlic bread and, because he wanted me to think the best of him, a green salad. Wanting him to think the best of me, I devoured everything (including the green salad). Truth be told, he's pretty famous for his baked ziti and it's the dish I miss the most in my current gluten-free and dairy-free diet.

It took me a month or two to return the favor and cook dinner for the vegetarian. In those days, I was a prolific meat-cooker and my signature dish was roast leg of lamb, closely followed by baked fish or rib-eye steaks -- none of which were suitable for the vegetarian, of course! Not to mention that, knowing what a notoriously picky eater he was, I didn't want to make anything too adventurous. I wanted to make something he (and I) knew he would like.

I thought about making my own version of baked ziti but that just seemed both obnoxious and cheating. So I thought back to our second date, when he took me to his favorite restaurant in Little Italy, Benito One. He had ordered spaghetti pomodoro and declared it hands-down his favorite meal. However, whenever he made spaghetti at home, I knew he always used canned tomato sauce. So I decided to make him a red sauce from scratch.

I don't remember the details (I believe I made an arrabiata). What I do know is that the vegetarian cleaned his plate, had seconds and the rest, as they say, is history. When I first went gluten-free, finding delicious gluten-free pasta was our first order of business. And whenever I have the energy, I make some variation of a red sauce to go with it (or at least doctor up a jar -- shh, don't tell).

May was very busy (and filled with Italian food) for us, with the vegetarian's birthday and both of us working on several projects. We returned to Benito One, where the vegetarian now orders Eggplant Parmesan with a side of Spaghetti Pomodoro, for his birthday. But we both missed having my homemade tomato sauce at home. So for our Monthly Cooking Adventure, I made Spaghetti and Meatballs, with quinoa spaghetti and chicken meatballs (on the side, of course). Our friends made a tiramisu and the vegetarian blew us all away with a new variation on his signature sangria.

Never one to rest on my laurels, I decided to adapt Gwyneth Paltrow's recipe for Tomato Sauce as I especially liked her addition of frying the basil along with the garlic. I also added in some dried basil along with the pepper to bring in that anise flavor I love. The vegetarian couldn't stop raving. Bon appetit!

Go-To Tomato Sauce
adapted from It's All Good

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 4 leaves basil
• 2 28-ounce cans whole peeled tomatoes and their juice
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over low heat. Add garlic and cook 5 minutes. Add 2 basil leaves and cook an additional minute. Add tomatoes (breaking them up with your hands) and their juice and remaining fresh basil. Turn the heat to high, bring the sauce to a boil, then lower the heat to a gentle simmer. Add dried basil, black pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, 45 minutes. Serve over spaghetti, meatballs -- whatever. Enjoy!

Links:

• Go-To Tomato Sauce from Courtney Miller Santo from The Secret Ingredient
• Go-To Tomato Sauce from Tammilee Tips
• Homemade Tomato Sauce from Allrecipes
• Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter from smitten kitchen
• Easy, Authentic, Homemade Tomato Sauce from Spinach Tiger
  
  

Mushroom & Leek Bread Pudding

I spent my junior year of college abroad in Paris, France. For the first time, I was in charge of my own meals, cooking dinner around 5 nights a week. Much to my surprise, I started coming up with some wonderful creations and, wanting to remember the recipes, I started blogging. My blog was the now-defunct Noshes, Thoughts & Reves.

When the vegetarian and I started this blog, it was for several reasons. One was to bring us closer together, to create a way in which we could become excited about food together. It was also a way for me to share my own triumphs and tribulations of cooking mostly vegetarian with a wider audience. In the back of my mind, I think I imagined myself eventually becoming an occasional meat-eater myself, with virtually all my cooking becoming sustainable and vegetarian.

When I adopted the Body Ecology Diet, my food needs changed again and I adapted our diets to become gluten-free and sugar-free. At first, I made a point of making meat or fish several times a week but I slowly got tired of putting so much effort into a meal that only the two of us were eating and, mixed with all the reading I do about why vegetarianism is better, our kitchen produced more and more vegetarian meals.

Sadly, a year after starting the Body Ecology Diet I still have a compromised immune system and tire easily. Last month, I took the inevitable next step and consulted a holistic doctor. He explained that I'm suffering from adrenal fatigue, so I've been focusing more on being good to my body and resting. I'm also taking homeopathic supplements. I am continuing to avoid sugar and gluten, although I can now have sprouted grains. I can't have dairy, potatoes, peppers or eggplant. And I have to eat animal protein at every meal.

So what has this meant for our home? I've started cooking fish and meat again. Not all kinds -- I'm avoiding pork, beef and processed meats -- but it's definitely been a change. We add veggie burgers for the vegetarian to many meals and share a vegetable dish. And I've been eating a lot of eggs. It's taken adjustments but so far it's fun. It means I have to plan meals farther in advance than I was wont to do. And I really miss cheese.

I made this bread pudding for our last dinner party. I adapted it from Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa Foolproof and I think it's a keeper. We served it with Accidental Turkey and Ratatouille with Penne. Bon appetit!

Mushroom & Leek Bread Pudding
inspired by Barefoot Contessa Foolproof

• 1 1/2 loaves sprouted French bread, diced into bread cubes
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 4 leeks, sliced (white and light green parts only)
• 1 1/2 pounds cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 tablespoon basil, chopped
• 1/4 cup CocoBiotic
• 1 tablespoon special pasta/ratatouille blend
• 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper, freshly ground
• 1/3 cup Italian parsley, minced
• 4 extra-large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups coconut milk
• 1 cup chicken stock

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spread bread cubes out on a baking pan and bake 15 minutes. It's ok if they get a little browned. Set aside.

Meanwhile, over medium heat, heat oils in a large skillet. Add leeks and cook 8 minutes. Stir in mushrooms, basil, Cocobiotic, spice blend and pepper. Cook 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and stir in parsley.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, coconut milk and chicken stock. Add bread cubes and mushrooms, stirring everything together. Push bread cubes down into liquid so they're as submerged as possible. Set aside for 30 minutes so bread can absorb the liquid. Pour into a 13 x 9 baking dish and bake 45 minutes until custard is set. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

Links:

• Mushroom & Leek Bread Pudding from Food Network
• Savory Prosciutto-Gruyere Bread Pudding from Discover Rias Baixas Wines
• Mushroom and Leek Bread Pudding from Noble Pig
• Mushroom and Leek Bread Pudding from Garnish with Lemon
• Mushroom, Leek and Parmesan Bread Pudding from Food & Wine Magazine