Warm Butternut and Chickpea Salad with Tahini Dressing

This recipe is shut-your-face- delicious. Seriously. Ms. Mosely joined C and I for an after-Thanksgiving-Thanksgiving-meal where this dish was the star. We made a last minute executive decision to modify the recipe a bit and carmelize the onions and cook the chickpeas and serve it all hot. That was the right decision! And it made yummy lunch leftovers too! I'm really excited to make this one again, and again, and again...

Warm Butternut and Chickpea Salad with Tahini Dressing
Recommended by the lovely Shannon, Found on Smitten Kitchen, Adapted from Orangette, who adapted it from Casa Moro (whew!)

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients for salad:

• 1 medium butternut squash (about 2 to 2 1/2 pounds), peeled, seeded, and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 medium garlic clove, minced or pressed
• 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt
• One 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (1 1/2 cups)
• 1/2 of a medium red onion, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro or parsley
• black pepper to taste

Ingredients for Tahini Dressing:

• 1 medium garlic clove, finely minced with a pinch of salt
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
• 3 tablespoons well-stirred tahini
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F.
2. In a large bowl, combine the butternut squash, garlic, allspice, olive oil, and a few pinches of salt. Toss the squash pieces until evenly coated. Roast them on a baking sheet for 25 minutes, or until soft. Remove from the oven and cool.
3. Meanwhile, make the tahini dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together the garlic and lemon juice and cayenne pepper. Add the tahini, and whisk to blend. Add the water and olive oil, whisk well, and taste for seasoning. The sauce should have plenty of nutty tahini flavor, but also a little kick of lemon. You might need to add more water to thin it out.
4. Carmelize the onions in olive oil, then add the chickpeas to the pan to cook.
5. To assemble the salad, combine the squash, chickpeas, onion, and cilantro or parsley in a mixing bowl. Either add the tahini dressing to taste, and toss carefully, or you could serve the salad with the dressing on the side. Serve immediately.

Note: Molly says this salad, lightly dressed, keeps beautifully in the fridge, that you should hold a little of the dressing on the side and that it can be reheated in the microwave. (I agree! We didn't keep any on the side, just dressed and tossed the whole thing, but it reheated wonderfully in the microwave).

¡Tortilla Soup!

I think the best Mexican Food in Chicago is actually in the close burb of Lincolnwood — Wholly Frijoles (I know, what kind of a name is that?!) But it's super delicious. And here's the kicker, with every entree you get a bowl of their tortilla soup. It's everything you ever wanted out of a soup and a meal and sometimes your day. Seriously. So, yesterday, Chris and I decided to try to recreate it. After looking at several blogs for their tortilla soup recipes, making a list, then leaving the list at home, and a quick market trip we were ready... The outcome was really close to Wholly Frijoles and also super delicious! (Please note that this was a season as you go recipe, so the amounts are estimates, season to taste...)

Tortilla Soup

Makes about 6-7 bowls

Ingredients

• 1 large spanish onion
• 7 cloves of garlic
• 3 limes
• 1 jalepeno (they seem to be very spicy right now, so one should bring enough heat)
• 2 mexican zucchini
• 1 14.5 oz. can of diced tomatos
• 3 14.5 oz can of vegetable broth
• 1 cup of cilantro
• 2 cups of crushed tortilla chips
• 1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 tsp. soy sauce
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1/2 tsp. chipotle chili powder
• 1/2 tsp. oregano
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. ground corriander
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 dried red chilis
• olive oil to saute

Directions

1. Saute onions and 4 cloves of garlic, chopped, in olive oil until soft
2. Add 1 jalepeno and 2 zucchini, diced. Add 1 tsp. soy sauce. Saute for another minute or two
3. Add cumin, chili powder, oregano, salt, pepper and ground corriander and the juice of 2 limes. Cook for another few minutes.
4. Add broth, tomatos, bay leaves, dried chilis, 2 more cloves of garlic, 1/2 cup of cilantro. Bring to a boil. Then turn down to low heat and let cook for an hour. (You could probably cut this time, but we wanted the flavors to blend well.)
5. Remove the bay leaves and dried chilis. Blend 3/4 of the soup with the tortilla chips, the juice of 1 more lime, 1/2 cup of cilantro and 1 more garlic clove
6. Return blended mixture to pot, add cheese and cinnamon and cook 10 more minutes on low heat to let flavors blend.
7. Serve with the toppings of your choice – tortilla chips, cheese, avocado, sour cream, etc...

Bananadoodles

I make Snickerdoodles probably twice a year (even though Chris wishes I would make them every week). I use the Martha Recipe from her Holiday Cookies 2006 magazine, which is different, for some reason, than the one on her website. Recently, I've started substituting one banana for the 2 eggs called for — And I think they are even better! The banana helps them stay really soft and you can definitely taste the banana flavor in the cookie, it's like it's been rolled in cinnamon and sugar... Yum! For those that don't like banana flavor, I'd stick to the eggs (or another egg substitute).

Bananadoodles (aka Snickerdoodles with Banana)

Makes about 24

Ingredients

• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups sugar, plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, plus more if needed
• 2 large eggs (I substituted 1 large banana finely choopped)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or if you are sans mixer, like me, just use a large bowl, a rubber spatula and your arm muscles), combine butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Mix on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in eggs, or banana. Reduce speed to low; gradually mix in flour mixture.
2. In a small bowl, stir together cinnamon and remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar. Shape dough into balls (about the size of a golf ball); roll in cinnamon sugar. Space 3 inches apart on baking sheet lined with parchment.
3. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges are golden and the center begins to crack (they will not brown), about 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer the sheets to a wire rack to coo. Store in an airtight container up to 1 week.

Pacific Rim Pasta Salad

At my favorite pasta place in the market, they give you a cute recipe with every purchase.

I was intrigued by this recipe but had to make a few changes. I used agave instead of honey, and tofu instead of chicken, and braggs liquid aminos instead of soy.  We ate this warm the first day and cold the next, right out of the bowl with the fridge door open.

Pacific Rim Pasta Salad

1/2 LB pasta

1 large block firm tofu cubed

1/4 cup diced green onions

2 large bell peppers, bite size pieces

1 bunch cilantro, chopped

1/2 cup raw peanuts

Sauce

1/4 cup olive oil (plus a little more for frying)

2 tbs white vinegar

1 tbs agave

3 tbs liquid aminos

1 tbs red chili flakes

1 tbs garlic minced

1 tbs ginger root, peeled and finely minced

1. combine sauce ingredients in a bowl, cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minns

2. cook pasta till al dente

3. fry tofu cubes in some oil till toasty brown on all sides

4. in a small pan, roast peanuts until fragrant, chop coarsely

5. in a large serving bowl add cooked/ or cooled pasta , tofu, green onions, peppers and sauce.

6. garnish with cilantro and peanuts

maca who?

I know that making macaroni salad vegan is a obvious thing, you use veganiase instead of mayo. 

Josh recently purchased some macaroni salad from our food co-op and i tried to recreate it. Much to our delight it is very simple in flavor and very yummy.

Macaroni Salad

-2 cups cooked elbow macaroni noodles (whole wheat is betta!)

-1/2 cup shredded carrots

-1/2 cup chopped red onion

-1/2 cup fresh parsley (reg or italian)

-1/2 cup veganaise

-2 tbs white rice vinegar 

-1 tbs garlic power

lots of salt and pepper!!!!!!!!!!!

toss together in a big bowl and eat!!!!!!!!!!

for best taste let sit in fridge over night! yum

bibimbap!

The Ladies had never eaten the protein-packed Korean dish BIBIMBAP, so it was my pleasure to make it. It is a healthy dish , with plenty of left overs!
Enjoy.

1. 1 pound spinach, large stems removed
2. bunch of broccolli
   
3. 5 medium carrot, cut into 2-by-1/2-inch strips
4. 1 medium cucumber
5. 4 scallions, cut into thin matchsticks
6. 1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
7. 5 cloves minced garlic
8. 1 cup shredded red-leaf cabbage
   
9. 4 scallions, cut into thin matchsticks
10. 5 large eggs (optional)
11. 1 large red pepper
12. 1/2 of box extra firm tofu
    
13. Steamed Rice - we used basamati
    
14. 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
15. Korean Chili Sauce
16. Salt
17. 2 tablespoons water
18. 2 tablespoons sugar

1. Steam the spinach until just wilted, about 2 minutes. Transfer the spinach to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Drain, squeeze dry and chop coarsely.
2. Put the spinach, carrot, cucumber, cabbage, red peppe and tofu in separate small bowls; toss each vegetable with 1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil and 1/2 teaspoon of minced garlic.
3. In a small skillet, stir-fry each vegetable separately (except the spinach) over moderate heat; the carrot, red pepper, cucumber, broccolli and tofu. Decoratively arrange the cooked vegetables, lettuce, and scallions in small bowls or in piles on a platter.
4. In a medium skillet, heat the remaining 1 teaspoon of sesame oil. Crack in the eggs and fry them, sunny side up. Meanwhile, reheat the rice if necessary.
5. Bring the rice to the table with the vegetables and the fried eggs. Toss the rice with the eggs first, to break them up, then add all of the vegetables and the toasted sesame seeds. Stir in about 2 tablespoons of Korean Chili Sauce and mix lightly but thoroughly. Season with salt and serve at once.

the musical fruit

here is yet another skinny bitch recipe..... i make it almost every monday and put it in my sweet peas lunch so he stays full and wont eat burger king.

i never follow a recipe exactly because i do not like to waste a whole can of something because a recipe calls for one cup. your never gonna eat the rest of the can of corn in the fridge so put the whole fucking thing in the salad!  waste not want not

1-can corn

1-half bag frozen shelled edamame

1-can red kidney beans drained rinsed

1-can chic peas drained rinsed

2- green onions sliced

1- red pepper sliced and diced

2-tbs parsley fresh italian or dried 

2-tbs basil

salt

pepper

place all ingredients in a large bowl (with a lid for later)

stir so that everything is well acquainted

in a smaller bowl, start your dressing

3-tbs red wine vinegar

1-big spoon full of dijon mustard

3-tbs olive oil

whisk together and then drizzled over salad.

stir and then let sit in fridge for at least one hour

better the next day!