Red Quinoa, Roasted Celery, Brussels Sprouts, Cippolini Onions and Dulse Salad with Pumpkin Seeds and Lemon Juice

Most kids, when asked for their least favorite food, immediately say "Brussels sprouts"! When I talk to adults about Brussels sprouts, however, they usually tell me how pleasantly surprised they were to find like Brussels sprouts because of their bad rep (although spinach was always one of my favorite foods and Mom would have to make an extra batch of it just for me because I had no desire to share). I don't really remember them being a regular feature on our dinner table though, if they were ever served, I'm share I ate them because I ate everything. Except sun-dried tomatoes. But more on that another time.

One thing I know is that they're actually quite tasty! For me, I think I assumed that I didn't particularly

The first time I really remember getting into Brussels sprouts was where I got into most foods and cooking in general -- while I was living in Paris. I wish I could say that I fell in love with Brussels sprouts because of some incredible French chef at a little bistro that I stopped into but, really, I first had them because I saw a big bin of them at my local produce store and they were by far the cheapest green vegetable available for sale on that cold winter day. I had gone to the store with a French friend who said "Choux de Bruxelles? Vraiment?? But I thought Americans hate them!"

"I'm a good cook and they're cheap," I replied. "How bad could they be?" He responded that I was finally a vraie parisienne.

I don't really remember how I made them that night, but they were probably simply cooked with butter and lardons and really what could be bad with those two additions? After that night, however, they became a regular addition to my table, to the relief of both my stomach and my wallet.

Because not everyone (including the vegetarian) is such a fan of Brussels sprouts, for this recipe I shredded them and mixed them with quinoa, onions and other goodies. Bon appetit!


Red Quinoa, Roasted Celery, Brussels Sprouts, Cippolini Onions and Dulse Salad with Pumpkin Seeds and Lemon Juice
inspired by Eat to Live Cookbook

• 2/3 cup quinoa
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup cippolini onions, peeled and halved
• 1 1/2 cups celery, diced
• 1 1/2 cups Brussels sprouts, shredded
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• dash gourmet pepper
• 1 pinch dulse
• 1/2 cup goji berries
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
• 3/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons black pepper, freshly ground
• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
• 2 tablespoons Italian parsley, chopped

Rinse quinoa to remove bitter coating. Drain. In a medium saucepan, combine quinoa and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 15 minutes. When cooked, remove from heat (it will have absorbed the water) and let sit until you've finished the vegetables.

Heat a large saute pan over high heat. When very hot, reduce to medium and add onions. Sear for no more than 5 minutes and remove to a bowl.

Add celery and Brussels sprouts and saute 5 minutes. Add garlic, pepper, dulse, goji berries and pumpkin seeds and saute 1 more minute. Add onions back into the pan along with lemon juice. Saute, scraping up any browned bits that are sticking to the bottom of the pan. Add black pepper, reduce heat to medium-low and cover, cooking another 5 minutes or until vegetables are as tender as you like them.

Add thyme, parsley and quinoa and toss together until herbs are evenly distributed and quinoa is warmed. Excellent served either warm or at room temperature. Enjoy!

Links:

• 118 Guacamole from The Daniel Plan
• Greek Wowie Salad from Mystery Lovers' Kitchen
• Roasted Halloumi, Bacon and Tomato Salad from The Bacon Show
• Pininyahang Manok -- Pineapple Chicken from Deaghaidh Recipes
• Hunter's-Style Chicken from Last Night's Dinner

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls with Tomato Cranberry Sauce

From the 1930's through the 1960's, the Upper East Side (where we live now) was known as "Germantown". In fact, East 86th Street was called the "German Broadway". The expression "to 86", used in restaurants to signify to stop serving something (or someone), possibly came out of anti-German sentiment during World War II. (Now, I have to admit, this was a story I always grew up hearing but could find no proof of it after an etymological search on the internet. Do any linguists care to enlighten me?)

In any event, we decided to celebrate our new neighborhood's former roots at our last dinner party by serving Stuffed Cabbage and Apple Streusel Egg Muffins. Always on the search for cookbooks that will support my diet rather than remind me of all the wonderful foods I'm now denying myself, I picked up a copy of Practical Paleo. Putting aside the health claims of going back to how cavemen ate (and, I'd venture to guess, none of these recipes bare any resemblance to cavemen's diets), the Paleo diet focuses on eating eggs, fruits, meat, nuts, seafood and vegetables and eliminates dairy, grains and sweeteners. Sounds familiar, no? (I haven't completely eliminated all grains but I do try to limit my intake of them so this seemed like an excellent jumping-off point.)

The biggest problem, in my mind, with a Paleo diet is that, realistically, it's not vegetarian-friendly. Sure, you can have lots of vegetables, but without legumes, grains or dairy, there's nothing there to really "bulk up" your foods and make them filling. There's also a heavy reliance on animal protein. That said, "vegetarianizing" recipes is now old-hat. So, it wasn't too hard to adapt the Stuffed Cabbage Rolls with Tomato Cranberry Sauce to both our tastes. I'm including the recipe for both the omnivore and vegetarian versions. Guten appetit!


*Vegetarian's Note:  Normally I handle the photographic elements of this blog, but this was one of the more enjoyable meals we've had the pleasure to serve.  As you can see from the picture here, this dish was a HUGE hit with our guests :)





Stuffed Cabbage Rolls with Tomato Cranberry Sauce

• 15 ounces fresh (or frozen and defrosted) cranberries
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon apricot juice
• 1 head savoy cabbage, leaves separated carefully (you'll need about 15 cabbage leaves)
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil
• 1 cup cauliflower, grated (do this in the food processor -- much easier)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper, ground
• 1 pound ground lamb (for omnivores)
• 1 pound beluga lentils, cooked (for vegetarians)
• 4 cloves garlic, grated (as long as you've already broken out the food processor ...)
• 1/2 yellow onion, diced
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes (roasted red peppers would be a delicious addition as well!)

First make the cranberry sauce: Cook cranberries and water together in a saucepan for 15 minutes, until all cranberries have popped. Stir in apricot juice. Remove from heat and let come to room temperature.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Fill a large pot with a few inches of water. If you have a steamer basket, place it in the pot, filled with cabbage leaves. Bring water to a boil and steam cabbage leaves until soft and pliable, about 5 minutes. Let cool.

Meanwhile, melt coconut oil in a large skillet. Add cauliflower and saute, stirring, 3-5 minutes. Add 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper.

In a large mixing bowl, combine lamb (or lentils), cauliflower, garlic, onion, thyme and 1/2 teaspoon each, salt and pepper. (If you don't mind getting your hands dirty, that's the best way to ensure that everything's well mixed together.)

Fill the bottom of 1 cabbage leaf with 1/4 cup filling and roll, first the bottom, then the sides, finally tucking the ends underneath. repeat with remaining leaves. As you fill them, nestle cabbage leaves tucked side down, in a dutch oven.

Meanwhile, combine tomatoes and cranberry sauce together in a skillet over medium heat. Cook 5 minutes, until the flavors are blended together. Pour sauce over cabbage rolls.

Place dish in oven and cover with foil or a lid. Bake 45 minutes. Enjoy

Links:

• Stuffed Cabbage Rolls with Tomato Cranberry Sauce from Practical Paleo
• Cranberry Rolls with Tomato Cranberry Sauce from Ruby Reduction
• Alex's Mom's Stuffed Cabbage from smitten kitchen
• Stuffed Cabbage Leaves from The Shiksa Blog
• Floosh's Stuffed Cabbage from Hungry Girl