Yam and Peanut Stew with Kale

Around our house we've been feeling pretty uninspired to cook lately.  And there's one big culprit - we bought a house! So that means finding time or energy to think about or do anything has pretty much gone out the window.  Honestly even I get bored of how much we talk about house stuff but still we're super excited that we finally made this dream a reality.

When we have busted out with some cooking it's been for simple and healthy things to make up for all of the eating out we've been doing lately.  Up here in the PacNW we are also in between seasons weather wise so it can change daily what we're in the mood for.  We hit a cold and rainy spot earlier this week and that sent us hankering for some soup.  But healthy soup...and cheap soup...and quick soup.  So I found this recipe and it called my name immediately.

I really liked this soup but next time I'd pureed the whole thing and then add in the kale.  The texture was a little weird to have it a little of both.  Flavor wise this soup was top notch.  You may think, peanut butter in soup?  Are you sure?  And yes, I am sure - it's delicious!  Another thought is serving it with a nice lemon yogurt sauce on top to brighten it all.  Enjoy any which way you serve it.

Yam and Peanut Stew with Kale
found here

1 tablespoon Olive Oil
1 yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tablespoons ginger, minced
1 cup dried red lentils
2 lbs of yams, peeled and cubed
3 ripe vine tomatoes, diced
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons cumin
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
dash of cayenne
5 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 head of curly kale
salt and pepper to taste
chopped green onions and peanuts for garnish, optional but highly recommended

1. Heat olive oil in large soup pot over medium heat.  Add onion and sautee until translucent, about 3 minutes.  Add garlic and ginger and sautee until fragrant.  Add the lentils, yams, tomatoes and spices and stir to combine.
2.  Add stock and bring to a boil.  Reduce soup to simmer and cook until yams are tender, about 35-40 minutes.
3.  Add peanut butter and stir well.  Puree soup with an immersion blender.  Add kale and cook until wilted.
4.  Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper.  Serve and garnish with peanuts and green onions, if using.

Greens Galore Soup with Cayenne and Lemon

After a food-filled four days in California over the new year, I was ready for some greens. So I decided to make this soup I had recently saved which is basically just a ton of greens blended up with caramelized onions.  The result is a super fresh soup that I felt really good about eating!  

I liked this soup a lot more than I thought I would, and will probably end up freezing half of it because it made a lot of soup.  Another reminder to read a recipe carefully before you start to make it because I should have cut this in half based on the amount of liquids alone.  The small pinch of cayenne does not add a lot of heat, feel free to add more if you like spicy.

In any case, this soup is a wonderful kickstart to the new year and I hope you like it as much as we did!

Greens Galore Soup
Adapted slightly from Cookie and Kate
Serves at least 6

• 2 Tbsp olive oil, plus more for garnish
• 2 large yellow onions, chopped
• 1 tsp salt, divided
• 2 Tbsp plus 3 cups water, divided
• 1/4 cup arborio rice, rinsed
• 1 large bunch Italian kale (about 1 pound), thick ribs removed, leaves chopped coarsely.
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 10 ounces of gently packed spinach or baby cooking greens, such as chard (I used two 5 oz tubs of OrganicGirl's Super Greens which is a mix of spinach, chard, and other baby greens)
• 4 cups broth (I used chicken, but veggie would make this dish vegan!)
• 1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper (or more to taste)
• 1 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice (or more to taste)
• Serve with (optional): Cooked rice and a can of drained and rinsed chickpeas

First, start the onions caramelizing. Heat 2 Tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet.  Add the chopped onions and 1/4 tsp salt.  Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are starting to brown, about 5 to 10 minutes.  Reduce the heat to low, add 2 Tbsp water, and cover. Cook until the liquid is greatly reduced and the onions are a rich caramel color, this should take about 20 to 30 minutes. Stir occasionally, and each time replace the cover on the pan.

While the onions are cooking, combine 3 cups water, 3/4 tsp salt, and the arborio rice in a large soup pot or dutch oven.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover.  Cook for 15 minutes. 

(If you want to have this over Jasmine rice and with chickpeas like we did, start the rice now. 1 1/2 cup water and 1 cup jasmine rice with a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 18 minutes.  If you have a small strainer that fits inside your pan that you used to rinse the chickpeas, when the 18 minutes are up set that strainer on top of the hot rice pot and put the lid over it to warm up the chickpeas!)

Add to the soup pot the chopped kale and the minced garlic.  When the onions are caramelized, stir them into the soup pot along with the baby greens, broth, and cayenne pepper. 

Return the pot to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes until the greens are slightly wilted but still bright green.

Puree the soup with an immersion blender or in batches in a regular blender until smooth. Stir in the lemon juice.  Taste and add more salt, lemon, or pepper to taste. 

You can eat this as is for a super healthy green soup, or on top of rice and chickpeas for a heartier dinner.  Drizzle with olive oil and enjoy! This looks swampy, but me and my love agree, this soup tastes much better than it looks!

Fresh Corn Polenta - with a side of BBQ Chicken and Balsamic Pepper Flake Chard

Let's just get one thing straight right off the bat.  This post is all about the Fresh Corn Polenta.  When I stumbled across this recipe I thought - must try, immediately.  This recipe is the epitome of summer.  I'd say if it didn't require turning on the stove (for like 10 minutes, tops) it might be the king of the summer recipes.  But we can't all be perfect, can we?  Anyhow, please do give this recipe a go.  It requires little work, few ingredients, and a huge pay off.  Summer corn is one of life's simple pleasures and this, this my friends, is the way to highlight it.

As I grated the corn for the polenta I had one of those "no duh" moments with the realization that the starch that's hiding in the cob of the corn pockets is what naturally thickens this polenta right up.  I mean, where the heck did I think corn starch comes from? Tomatoes? Don't answer that.

I decided to top my polenta off with some super simple chicken marinated in BBQ sauce and a sautee of rainbow chard.  I dressed the chard with red pepper flakes and balsamic to give it some heat and acid to bounce off the super sweet corn polenta.  This meal was so good.  I give it two very enthusiastic thumbs up.

Fresh Corn Polenta
from here
Serves 3

• 5 ears of corn - I used sweet white but feel free to use the less sweet yellow
• 1 tablespoon of butter + 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and Pepper
• Parmesan, grated (optional)

Clean the corn, removing all husks and silk threads. Working over a bowl, grate the corn using the large grate side of a box grater.  You will end up with a pulpy wet mixture.  Melt the butter and olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat.  Add the grated corn, stir in some salt and pepper. Allow mixture to cook over medium low heat, stirring it often so it doesn't burn, until it becomes thick.  Serve immediately with some grated parmesan, if using.

To make a full meal of this, add whatever sauteed green suits your fancy and some protein.  Really you can't go wrong with whatever you decide to whip up and add on top.  Happy Summer!

Charred Cauliflower, Potato and Kale Soup with Gremolata Breadcrumbs

I know what you're thinking.  That this recipe sounds either too boring or exactly like something you've made before.  But hear me out because I happen to think this is one of the most perfect soups I've ever made.  That's a bold statement, yes, but it's true. 

When I think of my most perfect soup I have a lot of items that need checking off the list.  First, it must be fairly easy because let's be real here, soup should not be something that you slave for hours over. Which in and of itself might be why it's one of the more perfect dinners to make.  Then I want it to be healthy, lots of veggies and not too much fat.  But at the same time it needs to be rich and interesting and flavorful.  Then, and I know this makes me sound crazy, but I want the soup to be creamy and have some bite to it all at the same time.  I am one demanding soup eater.  But this recipe, well it has it all.  It even has just the right amount of spice to it as well.  Have I hooked you yet?  I hope so because I waited until the end of this post to tell you that this recipe is also vegan and gluten free.  Hook, line and sinker.

Below is the recipe as I made it but if you don't care about being vegan I think adding some ground sausage to the recipe would work marvelously.  Just brown the meat as the very first step, set it aside, and add back in at the very end.  You can use the fat rendered from the sausage in place of the oil to char the cauliflower in.  And also, I used gluten free bread for the gremolata because I had some left over but regular day old bread works just as well here.  Enjoy!

Smoky Charred Cauliflower, Kale and Potato Soup
adapted from here

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small head of cauliflower, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 chipotle chiles packed in adobo sauce, finely chopped
• 2 quarts veggie broth (or any other broth you like)
• 2 lbs of yukon gold potatoes, cut into 2 inch pieces
• 1/2 lb lacinato kale, thick stems removed and julienned
• 2 bay leaves
• salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in dutch oven over high heat.  Add cauliflower and cook, stirring often until charred on most sides, about 10 minutes.  Reduce heat if it starts to burn or smoke.  Reduce heat to medium low and add onions.  Cook until soft and translucent, about 2 minutes.  Add garlic and chipotles and cook 2 more minutes.  Add half of broth and bring to a boil.  Cook until cauliflower is soft, about 5 minutes.  Using a hand blender puree mixture completely until all chunks are gone.  Add remaining broth, potatoes, kale and bay leaves.  Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to a simmer and cook until potatoes can be easily smashed, about 30 minutes.  Remove bay leaves and smash potatoes with a spoon to your liking.  Serve with the gremolata below, and maybe some Parmesan cheese if you'd like.

Gremolata Breadcrumbs

• 1/2 loaf of stale crusty bread, cut into cubes
• 2 teaspoons of olive oil, or more as needed
•  1 large garlic clove
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 tablespoon minced parsley

Add bread to a food processor and process until it turns to breadcrumbs.  Add garlic, lemon zest and parsley.  Pulse until mixed in and chopped fine.  With the processor on slowly stream in olive oil until bread crumbs are coated but not drenched. 

Thai Curry Vegetable Pot Pie

I struggled with whether or not to make this recipe.  It sounded so good but the recipe was written a tad poorly and I wondered if it would end up soupy.  In the end I decided that it's the thought that counts and I made quite a few adjustments to make it my own masterpiece.  Not to mention that I'll take just about any chance to roll out a piece of pie dough.  It's so therapeutic and rewarding when it comes together and I always get a thrill when I get it right.  It's easy for this one to get her kicks these days, mmkay?

Also this is a great recipe to make in this weird in between spring time because it's lighter than your traditional pot pie but still is hearty enough to chase away the rainy blues.  I made some changes not only to the vegetables I put in to the mix but also I always opt to make my own crust even though I know it's so much easier to use store bought.  But if you're not feeling it and don't get your kicks the same way I get mine then use that pre-made pie dough! If you do, this recipe is easy as pie.....pot pie.

Also if you aren't into the tofu thing, which I know lots who aren't, chicken would be a perfect meat to substitute in place of that.  After all chicken and pot pie go together like birds of a feather.  Below is the recipe as I made it. 

Thai Curry Vegetable Pot Pie
adapted from here

2 sheets of pre-made whole wheat pie crust (or here is the homemade recipe I use)
12 oz. drained extra firm tofu
2 tbl olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
2 carrots, diced
1 bunch kale, center stems removed and chopped thin
1 small head broccoli, stem removed and chopped into small pieces
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 sweet potato, diced
1 cup fresh or frozen peas
2 tbl soy sauce 
1/2 cup broth of your choice
1/2 can lite coconut milk
2 tsp green curry paste
1 tsp flour
2 tsp fresh herbs of your choice (I used thyme and parsley)
salt and pepper to taste

1. First prepare your pie dough.  If you're making homemade get that prepared and chilling in the fridge.  If using premade there's usually a thaw period to abide by.
2. Drain tofu by sandwiching between two plates and put a weight on top for about 10-15 minutes or until most of the liquid has drained out.  Then cut into 1 inch pieces.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
4. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large wok or skillet. Throw in tofu and cook until golden brown on all sides.  Remove from pan into a large mixing bowl and set aside.
5. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in same skillet or wok.  Add onion and garlic and saute until translucent.  Add celery, broccoli, carrots and sweet potatoes.  Saute until potatoes are tender.
6. Add soy sauce and mix with veggies.  Remove veggies and put into the same mixing bowl with tofu.
7. In the same wok or skillet add green curry paste and allow to heat until aromatic.  Add coconut milk and broth.  Then add the flour and allow to thicken on low heat for about 5 minutes.  Turn off heat.
8. Prepare your baking pan with the pie dough.  If using pre-made use a 9" pie plate.  I used a larger casserole dish for mine as my homemade recipe made enough dough.
9. Line the bottom of the pie dough with chopped kale.  Pour the tofu and veggies on top of the kale.  Then add the curry sauce from the pan on top of the veggies.
10. Place the second pie dough over the top and seal the sides up as decoratively as you please.  Put a few vents by poking fork holes or something decorative as well.
11. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes.  Let sit 5 minutes before serving.  Goes great with a green salad!

Rigatoni with Vegetable Bolognese

I should have posted this last week before I went on vacation, but I was so excited and trying to get as much done at work as possible before I left that it sort of slipped my mind. Likewise, I forgot to take an actual photo of anything, because I was too anxious to eat, and all I have to show for this feast is a Vine video and the oohs and aahs of the friends who ate it.

This is one of my favorite pasta dishes to make because it is hearty and rich and feels like a special treat, but it has no meat and makes me feel a little better about myself when I eat seconds.  Next time I am going to toss in some kale or chard at the end to really amp up the veg factor. 

This recipe comes from Giada De Laurentiis, who I love, and her cookbook was the first I bought, a very long time ago when I barely had any interest in cooking. She makes things look so simple and delicious, she convinced me that I could do it!  This is definitely not the first recipe I have made from Giada, and it won't be the last, but so far, it is my favorite and the one I have made the most frequently.  You could just as easily have this sauce with polenta or some other type of noodle, or use it in a lasagna or any way you would use a regular meat bolognese! 

One note:  definitely do not skip the dried mushrooms, and get the best ones you can find. These mushrooms really amp up the flavor and add a richness to the sauce that is missing if you don't use the dried mushrooms plus their liquid.

Vegetable Bolognese
Slightly adapted from Giada De Laurentiis

1-ounce dried porcini mushrooms
1 1/2 cups hot water
3 carrots, peeled and diced 

1 onion, peeled and diced 

1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
4 garlic cloves
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano leaves 
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces assorted mushrooms (like shiitake, cremini, and brown), stemmed and chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 cup red wine
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
1 pound rigatoni pasta
1/4 cup Parmesan

Place the dried mushrooms in a small bowl and cover with 1 1/2 cups very hot water. Set aside and let the mushrooms soften.

Remove the thyme and oregano from their stems, chop them up a bit, and set them aside.

Dice the carrots, onion, bell pepper, and garlic to a fairly small consistency. You want them to be a little chunky but not a regular dice. I think of it as small dice.  Alternately, you can chop them up with a food processor. Pulse the vegetables until finely chopped but still chunky.

Place the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chopped vegetables, thyme, oregano, red pepper flakes (if using), salt, and pepper and cook until tender, about 6 - 10 minutes.

While the vegetables are cooking, destem and chop your mushrooms into small chunks. 

Strain the porcini mushrooms, reserving the porcini mushroom liquid. Chop the now softened porcini mushrooms to small chunks.

Add the porcini mushrooms, fresh diced mushrooms, and tomato paste to the pot and continue cooking, stirring to dissolve the tomato paste, until the mushrooms are softened, about 8 minutes.

Add the porcini mushroom liquid and red wine. Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and let the mixture simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, about 15 minutes.

While the mushrooms are cooking away, boil a pot of water for the pasta.  Cook the pasta until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid.

Once the liquid in the vegetable mixture has reduced by half and is looking and s melling extra delicious, add the mascarpone cheese and stir until the cheese is incorporated.  This adds a really amazing creaminess that makes this sauce feel so decadent!

If the sauce seems to thick, add a bit of the pasta liquid to thin it out a bit. I did not do this, as I like a thicker sauce.

Toss the pasta with the sauce, top with parmesan and serve!

Watch:

Roasted Mushroom, White Bean, and Kale Soup

This soup is deceptively amazing.  I know that it looks so normal and sounds boring, but somehow as if by by magic these totally normal ingredients combine to make a totally soul-warming soup, perfect for a cold winter day.  It is this type of magic that makes me love soup!

In addition, though this soup is creamy in appearance and texture, there is not a drop of cream or cheese in it, making it a healthy alternative to richer winter soups.  This soup could easily be adapted to be vegetarian or vegan without sacrificing anything, simply by leaving out the sausage and using vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.



Inspired by this post, I made a handful of changes that I think made this soup extra amazing.  I will be remaking this again and again.  Here is the recipe as I made it:

Roasted Mushroom, White Bean, and Kale Soup.

Ingredients:

• 16 oz. mushrooms, quartered (I used plain white mushrooms, but a variety would be great)
• 1 large sweet onion, quartered
• 1 regular yellow onion, quartered
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and slightly crushed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 10 fresh sage leaves
• 10 stems + 1 tablespoon leaves fresh thyme*, divided
• 3 garlic and herb chicken sausages, casings removed (leave out for a veg version)
• 4 cups chicken broth (vegetable broth can be substituted for a veg version)
• 2 cans (15 oz) white beans, drained but not rinsed (I used great northern but cannellini would also work)
• 1 bunch of kale, ribs removed, sliced thin (I had about 4 cups once chopped up)
• Additional salt and pepper for seasoning

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
2. Toss mushrooms, garlic and onion in olive oil, adding 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. (I separated the mushrooms from the onions and garlic before roasting because later you want them separate! You can separate them after roasted if that's easier for you.)
3. Spread on baking sheet. Add sage leaves and stems of thyme and toss them around slightly so they get a little bit coated with the oil. Roast in the oven for 10 minutes then toss everything around a bit and roast for an additional 15 minutes.
4. While vegetables are roasting, pour a glug of olive oil into a dutch oven and warm over medium heat.  Add the sausage and cook, breaking the sausage up into crumbles. 
5. Add 3 cups of the broth, 1 can of beans, a pinch of salt, a few grinds of pepper, and 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves to the pot and bring to a simmer.
6. When the vegetables are done roasting, let cool slightly. Separate mushrooms from other roasted vegetables (if not already separated).
7. Place into a blender the last cup of broth, the 2nd can of beans, along with the roasted onions, roasted garlic, and slightly crispy roasted sage (remove the stems of thyme).  Blend until smooth.
8. Add pureed bean mixture into the dutch oven, stirring in until smooth. Add roasted mushrooms and chopped kale to the pot. 
9. Let simmer for about 10 minutes to soften up the kale and let the flavors meld a bit.  Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.
10. Keep warm over low heat until ready to serve. 
11. Don't forget a delicious loaf of bread to soak up all the tasty herby broth!

 Note:  *Dried herbs may be substituted for fresh at the rate of one part dried herbs to three parts fresh.


Watch the magic!

Morrocan Lentil Soup

I was so excited to have friends visiting during cozy fall and thought what better way to spend an evening than sipping wine and making soup with some of my most favorite ladies. I hunted high and low for the perfect vegetarian friendly recipe that we all would devour and found this one!

Though the recipe called for red lentils, I only found generic 'lentils' at the store. I was pretty annoyed but I honestly have no idea if red ones taste different or if they are just red for show.

Everyone ate lots of this soup and it made way more than enough for us four girls and my mister. He and I continued to eat this soup all week!

We doubled most of the spices in the recipe linked above. You could blame the wine we were drinking, but we all agreed more spices could only mean more flavor and who doesn't want that?! I was so anxious to eat this that I forgot to add the frozen peas that the original recipe included, and I was cursing myself on that one. I love little snappy peas in thick stew-like dishes.

Without further ado, here is the Morrocan Lentil Soup as interpreted by Mostly Soup (and friends):

Ingredients:
-2 Tbsp Olive Oil
-3 small onions, chopped
-5 cloves of Garlic, minced
-2 Celery stalks, chopped
-1 Carrot
-3 tsp Turmeric
-3 tsp Cinnamon
-4 tsp ground Cumin
-1 tsp fresh Ginger grated or 1/2 tsp ground
-about 4 dashes of cayenne pepper
-salt and pepper to taste
-8 cups of vegetable stock
-12 ounce pack of lentils
-1 tablespoonp Tomato Paste
-3 potatoes peeled and cubed (you could also use sweet potatoes or squash!)
-1 can stewed Tomatoes (I got tomatoes stewed with sweet peppers and onions)
-Sour cream and fresh parsley for serving

1. In large soup pot heat oil over medium heat. Cook onions, carrot, garlic, and celery, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5-10 minutes.


2. Add salt, pepper, turmeric, cumin, cinnamon, ginger, and cayenne. Cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes.


3. Add veggie stock, lentils, tomato paste, potatoes and tomatoes (including juices), breaking up tomatoes with spoon. Bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 40 minutes or until lentils are cooked to desired consistency.


(3 1/2. This is where you would add in the frozen peas and let them cook for about 5 more minutes if you are using them!)

4. Once your lentils are perfect, taste the broth and add salt/pepper as needed. Ladel into bowls. Dollop each with sour cream and sprinkle with parsley. Serve with pita bread!


My favorite thing about this soup was the tomatoes. They were so tasty, bursting with all the flavors they were simmering in for what seemed like ages! I wish I would have frozen half of this to eat later!

Enjoy!