Pickled Daikon Radish with Onions

Like many Jewish New Yorkers, I grew up eating pickles. I only liked the sour ones and I would refuse any half-sour or (G-d forbid) raw cucumbers. As I put it, I only liked them when they were all grown up! And the only pickles I liked were pickled cucumbers. While my parents got excited about gourmet blends including dill tomatoes, I scoffed and picked out the pickled cucumbers (or "real pickles" as I haughtily called them).

Well, tastes change over time and now I eat cucumbers at all stages of their lives. I also got introduced to other pickled vegetables, first at Korean restaurants and then, as I explored Body Ecology Diet's recommendations of cultured vegetables. I discovered that lots of vegetables were delicious pickled -- greens, carrots and even beets. (I still think pickled tomatoes are a waste of good tomatoes, though.) And, as my tastes became more refined, I found that I liked a little kick in my pickles, be it from garlic, ginger or, as in this recipe, onions.

So when I stumbled across a recipe in Nourishing Traditions for pickled daikon radish, I was intrigued. Radishes often have a bite all their own (although daikon is much more mild). And, while I had never made pickles myself, this way I could control everything that went into them. And we all know how much I enjoy doing that! I ended up adapting this from a recipe from Vegetarian Times. The original called for jalapenos but, since I'm avoiding peppers, I used onions instead for my "kick". These are sweet and fairly mild -- a great addition to a salad or sandwich or, as I did for lunch today, served alongside some fish and fresh tomatoes. Bon appetit!

Pickled Daikon Radish with Onions

• 1 daikon, cubed
• 8 baby carrots, chopped
• 1/2 sweet onion, thinly sliced
• 1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1 cup cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup lucuma powder

Place daikon, carrots, onions and sea salt in a large bowl. Toss well and let sit 1 hour to draw out excess moisture. Drain well, then transfer to jar(s), packing down well. In a small saucepan over high heat, bring vinegar and lucuma to a boil. Whisk until lucuma is completely dissolved (it has a tendency to clump so whisk or stir to dissolve). Pour liquid over vegetable mixture in jar(s). Refrigerate at least 3 hours. You can store these in the refrigerator for quite a while. Enjoy!

Links:

• Pickled Radishes from David Lebovitz
• Vietnamese Daikon and Carrot Pickles from Simply Recipes
• Vietnamese Pickled Carrot and Daikon from Pham Fatale
• Vietnamese Pickled Carrots and Daikon Radish from Closet Cooking
• Korean Chicken Lettuce Wraps with Pickled Daikon Radish & Cellophane Noodles from Blue Apron

Potato and Celeriac Puree

Nutritionists often tell us to eat as many different colors as we can. And on a good day, I can probably get three or four onto my plate -- white, green, pink and red. But there are some colors that we almost never get such as my favorite, purple.

That all changed the other night with this delectable puree. Yes, it's another celeriac (white) recipe but this time I mixed the celeriac with purple potatoes. The celeriac blended right in with the potatoes and we wound up with this exquisite meal, served alongside baked eggplant (for the vegetarian) and chicken (for the omnivore). Leftovers we reheated in a 350F oven for 20 minutes and served under buffalo steak (for the omnivore) and portobello mushrooms (for the vegetarian). A great take on a more traditional (and less colorful) meal!

A note about dairy: as many of you know, I have been avoiding dairy (to the best of my cheese-addicted abilities) for almost a year. I recently re-introduced clarified butter (ghee) into my diet and I love it. It brought an especially rich quality to the puree and mixed perfectly with the rice milk. If you're avoiding dairy of all sorts, feel free to substitute coconut oil instead.

This puree ended up a little chunky (which I love -- anything too silky smooth bores me about halfway through). If, however, you prefer a smoother puree, mash the potatoes and celeriac in the food processor instead of by hand. Bon appetit!

Potato and Celeriac Puree

• 1.5 lbs purple potatoes, cubed
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 celeriac, peeled and cubed
• 1 cup rice milk
• 2-4 tablespoons clarified butter
• 1/2 teaspoon French sea salt

Put potatoes into a large pot and cover with cold water (make sure the pot is big enough to fit the celeriac too and that you put in enough water to cover both). Add kosher salt. Bring pot to a boil over high heat, covered, and cook 10 minutes. Add celeriac and boil another 10 minutes. Drain and return to pot.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, bring rice milk to a boil. Using a potato masher, mash potatoes and celeriac as smoothly as desired (you could also do this in a food processor). Add 1/4 cup milk and stir (and mash) vigorously until absorbed by the vegetables. Add 1/2-1 tablespoon butter and stir (and mash) until absorbed. Continue adding 1/4 cup milk and 1/2-1 tablespoon butter until puree is a cohesive texture and as rich and decadent as you desire. Sprinkle with sea salt and serve.

Links:

• Celery Root and Potato Mash from Bon Appetit
• Puree of Potato and Celeriac with Garlic from Delia Online
• Celeriac Mash from Epicurious.com
• Celeriac Mash from Allrecipes.com
• Celery Root and Potato Puree from For Love of the Table

Fennel, Celeriac, Parsley and Red Onion Salad

I'm spoiled. I live in New York City, surrounded by wonderful supermarkets (I have three to choose from everyday, not to mention the two that I choose not to frequent because there are better options) and one to two Greenmarkets within walking distance as well as countless others a short subway ride away. I can get fresh vegetables (in and out of season) and, while I try to eat seasonally to keep costs down and quality up, I don't fret about it too much if one of us has a hankering for eggplant or tomatoes in the middle of February.

As for how this affects my cooking, unless we're having company over, I try not to buy too many ingredients for any one meal (another side of keeping costs and waste down). So I take for granted that I'll have flavorful ingredients that don't need much to make them vibrant and tasty.

But this salad brought all these facts starkly into relief. A simple winter salad, it's a delightful mix of fennel, celeriac and parsley, all tied together with a simple olive oil and lemon juice dressing and sprinkled with toasted pumpkin seeds. Sounds perfect, no? Well, it was good but neither my celeriac nor my fennel was anywhere near as flavorful as it should have been. So, while it was tasty, it wasn't fantastic. As the vegetarian put it, "The flavors are all good but they're so quiet!"

So why, you might ask, am I even sharing this with you? Because it is good. And it's a winter salad (which is exceedingly rare. And, if you make it with exceptionally fresh ingredients (like from a garden if you're lucky enough to have one), it will be phenomenal.

I'm entering this in Raw Foods Thursday on Gluten-Free Cat. Join us!

Fennel, Celery Root, Parsley and Red Onion Salad
adapted from the Washington Post

• 2 tablespoons raw (preferably sprouted), unsalted pumpkin seeds
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 bulb celeriac, peeled and cut into long thin strips
• 1 bulb fennel, thinly sliced
• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
• leaves from 1 bunch Italian parsley, chopped
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper, freshly ground
• 1 avocado, cubed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Toss pumpkin seeds with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Roast 6 minutes. Set aside and let cool.

In a large bowl, toss together celeriac, fennel, onion and parsley. Add oil, lemon juice, sea salt and pepper and mix well. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.

Serve, sprinkling each portion with pumpkin seeds and avocado. Bon appetit!

Additions? If you want to add some protein, a can of tuna is a delicious addition. This also works nicely on a sandwich with some sliced turkey.

Drink? A glass of Riesling.

Links:

• Fennel, Celery Root, Parsley and Red Onion Salad from Washington Post
• Fennel, Celery Root, Parsley & Red Onion Salad from My Haus
• Fennel, Celeriac, Parsley and More from Delicious Dialogues
• Fennel, Celery Root, Parsley & Red Onion Salad with Lemon & Olive Oil from Svelte Gourmand
• Fennel, Celery Root, Parsley and Red Onion Salad from ZipList.com

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

Refried Beans Without the Refry

As I'm sure many of you do, I get e-mailed recipes. Lots of them; I just keep subscribing to various newsletters from recipe sites. Unfortunately, I never get around to reading most of them but every so often a recipe catches my eye and I bookmark it, saving it in a folder titled with the appropriate month in which to make it (I do so try to cook seasonally).

These pinto beans have been on the waiting list for quite a while. We cooked them last month (in the slow cooker -- my favorite way to make beans) and then they sat in that folder waiting for me to finally have time to write them up. Today is their lucky day!

Now, you may be confused by their name (and I admit that's why I clicked on this recipe in the first place when I saw it on Allrecipes.com) but, amazingly enough, this do taste a LOT like refried beans. However, since they have neither oil nor butter, they're exceedingly low in fat. They're also really versatile. They have a bit of a kick from the jalapeno and we used them mostly in Mexican preparations, but I'm sure you could use them in any preparation that calls for cooked beans. And, considering we still have a tupperware full of them in the freezer (they freeze beautifully), that's probably what we'll do!


Make these into a Bean Salsa, add them into Marco Polo Salad or Quinoa Pepper Jack Macaroni and Cheese, serve alongside Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting or turn them into Sour Cream Bean Enchiladas or Chili. Really, the possibilities are endless. Bon appetit!

Refried Beans Without the Refry
adapted from Allrecipes.com

• 3 cups dry pinto beans
• 1 7-inch piece kombu
• 1 yellow onion, peeled and cut in half
• 1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
• 15 cloves garlic, minced
• 5 teaspoons garlic parsley salt
• 1 3/4 teaspoons black pepper, freshly ground
• 1/8 teaspoon cumin, ground
• 9 cups water, plus additional for soaking beans

Place pinto beans and kombu in a pot full of fresh water. Let them soak 8 hours, or overnight.

Drain beans and place them, kombu, onion, jalapeno, garlic, salt, pepper and cumin in a slow cooker. Add 9 cups water and stir to combine. Cook on HIGH (yes, really) for 8 hours. 

Once beans are cooked, strain, reserving the cooking liquid (it makes a wonderful broth for soups or rice). Using a potato masher, mash beans (and onion and kombu if desired), adding in as much broth as you want. You can also leave the beans unmashed and mix them with the onion and kombu, first chopping the aromatics so they're easier to combine. Enjoy!

Links: 

• Refried Beans Without the Refry from Allrecipes.com

Winter Minestrone

Happy New Year! I hope you enjoyed some time off. We certainly did! We celebrated for two weeks with friends and family and even got some alone time in (a trip up to Poughkeepsie where we first met and where we discovered a fantastic 50's diner/juice bar). All in all, it was a great month!

The only thing wrong with it, in my opinion, was the weather. Brrr! I am not a fan of cold and so winter is always tough for me (as evidenced by all the braised beans I kept making). It's so hard to be inspired you're cold and there's no exciting produce at the greenmarket. This month, I'll definitely make an effort to bring greens back into our diet but, in the meantime, I want to share this fabulous minestrone with you.

A thick, warming bean soup, chock full of vegetables and even some quinoa pasta, this soup is a meal in itself. It's fantastic sprinkled with crispy pancetta but, if you're serving vegetarians or anyone else who doesn't eat pork, it's just as good without. Serve with garlic bruschetta and Cranberry and Vanilla Bean Mimosas. Bon appetit!

Winter Minestrone
adapted from Barefoot Contessa Foolproof: Recipes You Can Trust

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 ounces pancetta, diced (optional)
• 3 yellow onions
• 3 carrots, diced
• 3 stalks celery, diced
• 2 1/2 cups butternut squash, peeled and diced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 stalks fresh thyme, leaves only
• 1 26-ounce box, chopped tomatoes
• 6 cups chicken stock (can substitute mushroom stock)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper, freshly ground
• 1 15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 cups quinoa pasta (penne), cooked (1 cup dry)
• 8 ounces baby spinach
• 1/2 cup sparkling wine
• 2 tablespoons pesto
• 1 ounce Parmesan cheese, freshly grated

Heat olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add pancetta (if using), reduce heat to medium-low and cook 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until crispy. Remove and set aside. Add onions, carrots, celery, squash, garlic and thyme, raise heat to medium (if you lowered it for the pancetta) and cook 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent.

Add tomatoes, chicken stock, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Raise heat and bring to a boil then lower and simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes, until tomatoes are falling apart.

Remove bay leaf and discard. Add beans and pasta and simmer 2 minutes, until beans are heated through. Add spinach and simmer, stirring, another 2 minutes, until spinach has wilted. Stir in wine and pesto. Serve sprinkled with cheese and, if desired, reserved pancetta and additional extra-virgin olive oil. Enjoy!

Links:

• Winter Minestrone from Food Network
• Winter Minestrone Soup from Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free
• Sal Bizzarro's Winter Minestrone from The Colorado College Bulletin
• Slow Cooker Winter Minestrone from Once A Month Mom

Braised Pinto Beans & Shiitake Mushrooms

Back before Hurricane Sandy, I went to Tokyo for a week for work. Luckily, I was able to to have most afternoons (and several evenings) to myself when I could explore that exotic city -- definitely the most foreign place I've ever been to. Never having been somewhere where I couldn't at least read the street signs, it was a totally new experience for me and one I hope to be able to share with the vegetarian at some point in the future!

Of the culinary delights, I of course indulged in fantastic sashimi (it's so hard to eat it back in the States

now!), udon and lots of tea. Not being able to speak the language, I mostly ordered by pointing at various items on a menu so half the time I didn't really know what I was eating: not something that bothered me in the slightest!

My favorite afternoon in the city was spent in the company of Mom's best friend from high school, who happens to live in Tokyo. She took me around kappabashi, "kitchen town", where we wandered in and out of various kitchenware, restaurant depot and dried goods stores. Of the delicacies I brought home, the largest was a package of dried shiitake mushrooms. I could smell them even through the plastic and they sat on our hutch waiting to be used.

The opportunity presented itself last week as I scanned my brain for what to braise my newest batch of beans with. Mushrooms! I exclaimed. I soaked the shiitakes all day and then when it was time to make dinner, I was also rewarded with the soaking liquid which turns into a fantastic stock (I've since used it several times). Serve these over linguine. Leftovers? We had them over spaetzle one day and as part of a mixed green salad the next. I recommend a rioja alongside. Bon appetit!

Braised Pinto Beans & Mushrooms

• 2 tablespoons rapeseed oil with chili (you can substitute olive oil)
• 1 tablespoon butter, unsalted
• 10 yellow onions, finely diced
• 12 cloves garlic, crushed
• 6 ounces dried shiitake mushrooms
• 2 tablespoons tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons paprika
• 1 15-ounce can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons black pepper, freshly ground
• 1 cup chicken broth (can substitute vegetable broth)
• 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
• 2 teaspoons oregano, chopped

Soak mushrooms in a bowl of clean cold water for at least 1 hour, ideally 8 or overnight. Drain and slice thinly. Save soaking liquid and use as mushroom broth.

Heat oil and butter together in a pan over medium heat until butter is melted. Add onions, garlic and mushrooms and saute 8 minutes, until onions are soft. Reduce heat to medium-low and add tomato sauce, paprika, beans, salt, pepper, broth and fennel seeds. Cook another 15 minutes, until beans are warm and soft has thickened slightly. Garnish with oregano and serve warm.

Links:

• Braised Beef & Mushrooms from Eating Well
• Black Beans with Mushrooms from VegWeb.com
• Onion Rings & Green Bean Casserole from Jules Speaks Gluten Free Blog
• Grilled Portobello Mushroom Tacos with Mango Black Bean Salsa from Tasty Yummies
• Mushroom Burger from Vegetarian Food
• Slow-Cooker Black Bean-Mushroom Chili from Eating Well

Braised Black Beans with Potatoes

When we first moved in together (and it became clear that I was the more comfortable in the kitchen), the vegetarian assured me that he would never expect me to have dinner on the table waiting for him when he got home. And he's been wonderfully true to his word! In fact, some of our happiest memories have been cooking together.

But these days I've been getting home first most nights. And with the vegetarian leaving the house at sunrise five days a week, dinner gets pushed earlier and earlier. Not to mention the fact that winter braises take longer to cook than a quick summer salad! And so one night last week when I knew that I'd be home first, I pulled several ingredients out of our cupboards and refrigerator (along with some fresh potatoes) and made these black beans. I also made some cornbread so that, when the vegetarian came home, it smelled like baking. As Cher said in Clueless, "Whenever a boy comes, you should always have something baking." Serve with a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon. Bon appetit!

We shared this post with Gluten Free Fridays. Head on over and check out all the other great entries!

Braised Black Beans with Potatoes

• 1 can (2 cups) black beans, cooked
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 8 cremini mushrooms
• 2 bell peppers, chopped
• 1 cup Cabernet Sauvignon
• 1 cup chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
• 1 tablespoon Cajun spice mix
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 yellow onions, sliced
• 22 red-skinned potatoes, halved
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground

Rinse beans in a colander and drain well.

In a heavy pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add mushrooms and peppers and cook 5 minutes, until fragrant. Add beans, Cabernet, broth, Cajun spice mix and salt. Stir well, lower heat to medium-low, cover and cook 15 minutes, until beans are soft.

Add onions and potatoes. Replace cover and cook 15 minutes, until potatoes are tender. Partially remove lid and cook another 10 minutes until everything is soft. Season with pepper. Enjoy!

Links:

• Braised Beef with Potatoes from Southern Food and Recipes
• Green Beans with New Potatoes from Food Network
• Potato, Kale, and White Bean Hash from Beard and Bonnet
• Chicken Chili with White Beans, Sweet Potato and Lime from Gluten-Free Goddess
• Potato Veggie Burgers from Vegetarian Food
• Slow Cooker Green Beans, Ham and Potatoes from Allrecipes

(Re) Braised Pinto and Cannellini Beans and Onions

Even though it's still technically fall (and it's actually warmer than it was for most of November), the calendar says December and that puts me in mind of winter, particularly braised dishes. And so, this month, that's the majority of what I'll be cooking -- vegetarian (and gluten-free) braises. While beef (and other meats) are what first come to mind, braising doesn't have to mean "meat". It just means cooking foods in liquid over a low temperature for a nice amount of time. "Low and slow," as they say. And braised beans and vegetables are delicious. So while I do miss pot roasts and briskets, this month we'll be exploring what else we can braise.

My first thought when I picked this month's "theme" was: "But I just made braised beans!" And, wanting something easy, I decided to use that recipe as my starting point. But, being me, I tweaked it a bit the second time around.

First off, I still had plenty of cooked pinto beans so I wasn't about to make another batch. That would just be wasteful, you see! Also, the vegetarian and I have been trading a cold back and forth for the last few weeks so I wanted to inundate us with onions to try and finally blast it out of us.

So I devised a way to quickly braise the already-cooked beans. This works equally well with canned beans if you don't have any homemade on-hand. And if you don't like onions, feel free to reduce them. This makes a LOT of onions, so much so that they become a main component of the dish rather than just a seasoning. Serve over mashed steamed potatoes with Cabernet Sauvignon. If, like us, you have leftovers, make a stir-fry with bean threads. Bon appetit!

Braised Pinto and Cannellini Beans and Onions

• 1 3/4 cups chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
• 1/4 cup mushroom broth
• 7 yellow onions, thinly sliced
• 8 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 4 cups pinto beans, cooked or canned
• 2 cups cannellini beans, cooked or canned
• 2 teaspoons allspice, ground
• 2 tablespoons Italian parsley, finely chopped

Heat broths in a pan large enough to hold all the ingredients (I used a roasting pan over 2 burners) over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and saute 3 minutes. Raise heat to high and bring to a boil. Add beans and allspice, reduce heat and simmer 8 minutes (if you have a big enough lid you can cover your pan but it's not necessary). Garnish with parsley. Enjoy!

Links:

• Braised Beef and Onions from Epicurious.com
• Green Beans with Onion from Food Network
• Onion Rings and Green Bean Casserole from Jules Speaks Gluten Free Blog
• White Beans with Caramelized Onions and Kale from SparkRecipes.com
• Onion and White Bean Bake from TreeHugger
• Slow-Cooker White Bean Soup with Andouille and Collards from Real Simple

Braised Pinto Beans and Onions

I guess this was really my month to do all those foodie things I never do! I made pasta, two different tomato sauces and dried beans, all from scratch! For those of you thinking, dried beans? But I get really good canned ones; what's the big deal? Until I made a big batch of my own beans, I felt the same way you do. But, really, this was incredibly easy (not to mention cheap!) and these beans are far superior to even the best canned beans. Also, you can control how al dente they are (which is a big plus for me since the last time I used canned beans they were too soft), what seasonings you cook them with and what additives there are -- especially helpful for those of us with dietary restrictions.

And, because you have a "mess of beans" as I've been affectionately calling them, you can use them in anything! I'd recommend our Pinto Bean Picadillo -- they really elevate every dish we've put them in. I cooked these in the slow cooker, which means the hardest part was carrying the groceries home. If possible, soak the beans first (for anywhere from 1-8 hours) with a piece of kombu. This will make them easier to digest (and sneak some sea vegetables into your diet). And when we got in that night, the house smelled amazing (thanks to all those onions). So, really, make these. They freeze beautifully as well. You can use them in hundreds of ways but I must recommend having them over steamed potatoes, as we did the first night. Noodles would make a nice bed as well.

Braised Pinto Beans and Onions

• 2 pounds pinto beans, picked over
• 1 4-inch strip kombu
• 6-8 cups water (plus more if necessary)
• 2 teaspoons allspice, ground
• 7 yellow onions, thinly sliced lengthwise
• 8 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons Italian parsley, finely chopped

Soak beans and kombu overnight (or as long as possible) with enough water to cover them by 2 inches.

Drain beans and kombu, discarding soaking water. Chop kombu finely. Create a bed in slow cooker with onions. Place beans and kombu on top, followed by garlic. Add water to cover beans by 1/2-inch. Cook on low for 6 hours. Sprinkle with parsley. Bon appetit!

Links:

• Braised Beef and Onions from Epicurious.com
• Bacon Braised Green Beans from Food Network
• Braised Green Beans & Summer Vegetables from Eating Well
• Turkish-Style Braised Green Beans from Epicurious.com
• Braised Pork with White Beans and Pickled Red Onion from Logan's Kitchen

Cranberry Bean Meatballs with Garlic and Allspice

When I was stuck at the airport in Burbank, trying to get home to the vegetarian after Hurricane Sandy,  I stopped into a 24-hour bar to get some dinner before my red-eye. It was the only place still open at the airport and I figured I could get a salad. But once I looked at the menu, the one thing that kept jumping out at me was spaghetti with meatballs. It wasn't gluten-free and it was overly rich and not very good but it was comforting, warming and perfect.

Since then, I've been thinking about how I can recreate spaghetti and meatballs for our gluten-free and vegetarian kitchen. The spaghetti part is the easiest -- we've become big fans of quinoa spaghetti and I'm (almost) starting to prefer it to some "regular" spaghetti. But meatballs? Neither of us likes using fake meat (although the idea of crumbled veggie burgers is one we still may try) and, anyway, I wanted these to be just as good (or better) than their meat counterparts -- not merely a substitute.


I made these with 2 cans of cranberry beans that I drained well and ground in the food processor. Unfortunately, they were softer than I had hoped and the food processor reduced them to more of a puree than a crumble. So next time I would use a harder bean (perhaps cannellini). So, even though these didn't stay together as well as we would have liked, the flavors were delicious. Serve over pasta with the Nero d'Avola you used in the sauce. Enjoy!

Cranberry Bean Meatballs with Garlic and Allspice
inspired by MyRecipes.com

"Meatballs"

• 4 carrots, shredded
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 cup cornflake crumbs
• 1 rice cake, crushed
• 1 tablespoon Italian parsley, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon basil, finely chopped
• zest of 1 lemon, grated
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice, ground
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 2 14-oz cans cranberry beans, drained and ground in a food processor
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Sauce:

• 1 28-ounce can fire roasted whole tomatoes
• 3 yellow onions, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup Nero d'Avola
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 1 tablespoon basil, chopped
• 1 tablespoon Italian parsley, finely chopped

In a large bowl, mix together carrots, salt, cornflake crumbs, crushed rice cake, parsley, basil, lemon zest, allspice, chili powder, black pepper, cranberry beans and garlic. Using your hands, mix until very well combined. Shape into ping-pong sized "meatballs", packing them tightly together.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and heat until it moves like water in the pan. Add "meatballs" and cook 1-2 minutes each side, until browned.

Add tomatoes, onions and garlic and cook 2 minutes. Add carrot, celery, red pepper flakes, Nero d'Avola, kosher salt and black pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, 6 minutes. Remove from heat and serve, garnished with basil and Italian parsley. Bon appetit!

Links:

• Pork Meatballs with Garlic and Allspice from MyRecipes.com
• Garlic Meatballs with Red Potatoes & Yellow Wax Beans from The Realistic Nutritionist
• Black Bean "Meatball" Hoagie from Beard and Bonnet
• Quick Italian Sausage for Soups, Meatballs, and Sauces from Netplaces
• Two Bean Veggie "Meatballs" from Jinxy Knows Best
• Slow-Cooker Spaghetti and Meatballs from CooksRecipes.com

Roasted Allspice Potatoes

Happy almost-Thanksgiving! I'm sure you're all thinking about sweet potatoes. But what about the humble regular potato? I may be alone in this, but I actually prefer white potatoes to sweet. And since switching to a (modified) version of the body ecology diet, I'm happy to get my starches (and carbs) wherever I can. Not to mention that potatoes are very high on the list of the vegetarian's favorite foods.

All that said, I've been debating whether or not to even post this recipe. There are very few ingredients and it's terribly easy. Because I've declared November to be allspice month, that was my main flavor, and I adapted a recipe from The (modern) Busy Girls' Cookbook. But there are endless variations -- just toss the potatoes with whatever spices and flavorings you want, then roast them. It's so hard to go wrong with roast potatoes.

But that's exactly why I want you to have this recipe: partly to show you that we don't eat like kings every night and to remind us all that sometimes the simplest foods are the best. This would be a perfect vegetarian side dish for your Thanksgiving feast. How do you season your roast potatoes?

Roasted Allspice Potatoes
(adapted from The (modern) Busy Birls' Cookbook)

• 30 red-skinned potatoes, cleaned
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon allspice
• 1 teaspoon caraway seeds
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 cup Italian parsley, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Cut potatoes into quarters. In a bowl, combine potatoes, olive oil, allspice, caraway seeds and salt. Toss well until potatoes are completely covered in spice mixture. Spread out in 1 layer on aluminum foil-lined sheet pan. Roast 45 minutes. Remove pan from oven and shake well. (You can also flip potatoes with a spatula but I find this is easier.) Return to oven and cook an additional 15 minutes until browned and crispy.

Remove from oven, toss with parsley and serve hot. Enjoy!

Links:

• Roasted Allspice Potatoes from The (modern) Busy Girls' Cookbook
• Garlic Roasted Potatoes from Food Network
• Gluten Free Oven Roasted Potatoes from All Gluten Free Recipes
• Roasted Potato Salad with Avocado Dressing from Diet, Dessert and Dogs
• Roasted Rosemary Potatoes from Vegetarian Food
• Robyn's Crock Pot Herb Roasted Potatoes from Food.com