Molé Lentil, Barley and Pink Bean Stew with Swiss Chard

1 leek, cleaned and diced
1 large carrot, finely diced
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 bay leaf
1 cup green lentils
¼ cup pearled barley
1 quart chicken broth
1 can pink beans, drained
4 cups sliced/shredded Swiss Chard
2 Tbsp prepared Molé paste (such as Trader Joe’s)
¼ cup Chili Sauce (such as Heinz) or catsup
1 Tbsp soy sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
2-4 cups water – enough to thin to desired consistency

Sauté leek and carrot in a bit of olive oil in a soup pot. After about 6-8 minutes add the cumin and mustard seeds and sauté until fragrant, another 3-5 minutes. Add the bay leaf, lentils, barley and broth and bring to a boil. Stir, reduce heat to a simmer and cook covered for about half an hour, stirring every so often. Add the remaining ingredients, with just enough water to thin to the desired consistency as you cook stew for another 20-30 minutes, covered. Remove bay leaf.

Definitely serve with corn bread!

Father's Day Summer Solstice

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Barbque Rib Eye Steaks


Mac and Cheese

Farfalle with Tofu Eggplant and Mint

1 eggplant, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1 package extra firm tofu, drained and diced
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp onion powder
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. Farfalle pasta
1 Tbsp chives, minced
1 Tbsp fresh mint leaves (or 1 tsp dried), minced

Sauté eggplant in a non-stick skillet for about 2 minutes without any oil. Once sizzling hot, hit the eggplant with a bit of olive oil and continue sautéing until the eggplant is nicely browned on all sides. Heating up the eggplant before adding oil seems to keep the eggplant from absorbing too much oil and getting soggy and oily. Set eggplant aside.

Toss the tofu with the garlic and onion powders and some salt and pepper to taste. Sauté the tofu in the non-stick skillet in a bit of olive oil over very high heat. Brown all sides nicely, about 8-10 minutes. Set aside. In the same skillet, sauté the onion and pepper just until softened. Add the garlic and cook another minute or two. Return eggplant and tofu to the pan, mix gently, and keep warm.

Meanwhile bring a pot of salted water to boil and cook the pasta until al-dente. Drain pasta, reserving about ½ cup pasta cooking water, and tip pasta into a large serving bowl. Toss with vegetable mixture. Add a bit of cooking water to moisten if needed. Top with chives and mint.

Really Cool Dinner Salads

Grilled Salmon on Spinach & Avocado Salad with Buttermilk Dressing
Dressing:
1/3 cup buttermilk
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
¼ tsp. salt
freshly ground pepper

Salad:
4 cups baby spinach leaves (about one 7-oz. bag)
1 ripe avocado, sliced
¼ cup grated carrots
½ cup diced cucumber

4 salmon fillets, about 1-inch thick

Whisk together dressing. Spray salmon with oil and salt and pepper to taste. Heat a non-stick grill pan on high heat and cook salmon, skin-side up, for 5 minutes. Flip salmon and continue cooking another 3-4 minutes (depending on thickness). Meanwhile, toss spinach, cucumbers and carrots with dressing and lay out on a large platter. Arrange salmon and avocados on top of spinach and garnish with lemon wedges.


Lemon Grilled Chicken on Balsamic Blue Cheese Salad


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Eat Fish

No explanation necessary. Here are more simple great ways to eat fish.


Crabmeat-stuffed Sole with Shrimp
4 fillets of sole
1 can crabmeat, drained and checked for bones
12 whole shrimp, peeled
2 cups prepared herbed stuffing

Heat oven to 400F. Meanwhile, prepare stuffing according to package directions. Gently fold crabmeat into stuffing mix. Place ½ cup stuffing on top of each filet and roll and tuck filet to make a nice package. Butterfly each shrimp and sauté in an oven-going pan in a bit of butter and olive oil. Remove shrimp and place stuffed fillets in pan. Arrange shrimp on top of fillets and spoon butter/oil mix over fillets. Bake 15 minutes.

Cod and Pesto Wrapped in Prosciutto
This is based on Mark Bittman’s recipe which I think cannot be improved upon – it is Minimalist and pure down to its elements - as simple and pure as can be.

4 thick (‘Captain’s Cut’) fillets of Cod, about 1½ to 2 lbs. total
8 thin slices prosciutto ham
4 Tbsp. pesto

Slightly overlay two slices of prosciutto and spread 1 Tbsp. pesto on top. Lay 1 cod fillet on one end and roll up to wrap fillet. Sauté in a bit of butter and olive oil just until fish is cooked through, 8-10 minutes, turning as needed.

Cod with a Light Asian Vegetable Base
1 red pepper, finely diced
1 zucchini, finely diced
1 leek, washed and finely diced
2 cups cauliflower, broken into very small pieces
dash red pepper flakes
dash dill
dash basil
4 cloves garlic, sliced
1 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp rice wine vinegar
1½ lb Cod, filleted and skinned, 4 portions
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp olive oil

Sauté pepper, zucchini and leek in a bit of olive oil until beginning to soften. Add cauliflower, red pepper, dill, basil and garlic and continue cooking for another five minutes. Mix together the soy sauce, sesame oil and vinegar, and toss with the vegetables in the pan. Set aside.

Meanwhile, heat the butter and oil in a non-stick skillet until almost smoking, and lay in the fish fillets. Cook about 3-4 minutes. Carefully turn the fish and finish cooking another 3-5 minutes on the other side.

Serve the fish on a bed of the vegetables.

Lentils that go a long way

I always make a big batch of this delicious recipe for lentils, because they can be used for 2 more dinners afterwards. They are themselves creamy and delicious – serve them with rice, couscous, polenta or with cornbread. Then, when combined with rice and ground hazelnuts, they become a fantastic loaf when baked. Finally, the loaf can be sliced the next day and sautéed to achieve a crispy surface, and can be eaten as-is or as a burger. Lots of return for not much work!

Creamy French Lentils
1 cup Puy (small olive/black) lentils
2 medium carrots, finely diced
2 stalks celery, finely diced
½ onion, finely diced
1 tsp. cumin seeds (or ½ tsp. ground dried cumin)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. curry powder
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
3 cups chicken stock or water

Sauté carrot, celery and onion in a bit of olive oil for about 10 minutes, until they soften and melt down a bit. Add the garlic, cumin and basil and cook another 2 minutes, with stirring.

Add the lentils, curry powder and chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 30-45 minutes, until lentils are just soft. Stir occasionally. Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve over whole grain, with cornbread or beside grilled meat or fish.


Lentil Hazelnut Loaf
2 cups cooked lentils (see Creamy French Lentils, above)
2 cups cooked rice
½ cup hazelnuts, ground to a coarse meal
2 eggs, beaten
¼ cup Romano (or Parmesan) cheese, grated
¼ tsp. ground coriander
5 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, grated
2 Tbsp sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 375F. Mix together all ingredients, reserving about an ounce of the cheese and ½ tablespoon of sesame seeds. Pour into an oiled loaf pan. Top with the remaining cheese and sesame seeds. Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes. Slice and serve with your favorite sauce.

Can be sliced the next day and reheated with a bit of olive oil in a non-stick skillet until a bit browned. Eat as is or as a burger in a bun.

Paris - The City of Lights

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Beans and Rice – variations on a satisfying theme

Beans go together with rice so well that this combination is almost as old as time. The variations are endless – Asian, Latin American, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern – you’ll find variations in many, many cuisines. The amino acid content of rice and beans combine to produce complete protein; that’s why these dishes are so satisfying. Beans and rice are no wimpy vegetarian alternatives to meat – they pack power and have fueled generations with their energy, healthy fiber, low fat and firm toothy feel.

White Beans and Rice with Leek and Cauliflower
2 cups water
½ tsp salt
1 cup Jasmine rice plus 1 Tbsp bulgur
1 large or 2 small leek, cleaned and diced
2 carrots, peeled and finely diced
3 celery sticks, finely diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 can Navy beans, rinsed and drained
¼ cup chicken stock or broth
palmful of fresh parsley, minced

Bring water to boil in a small pot. Add salt rice and bulgur, return to boil, reduce to simmer and cover for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, sauté the carrot and celery in a bit of olive oil until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the leek and garlic and continue cooking another 5 minutes. Add cauliflower, beans and broth, and cook another 5 minutes. Fold vegetables together with the cooked rice and parsley.

Japanese Red Beans and Rice
1 cup white long grain rice
2 cups water
1 onion, diced
2 stalks celery, sliced on diagonal
1 Tbsp corn oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ inch piece fresh ginger, minced
1 can pink beans, rinsed and drained
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp sesame oil
3-4 dashes Tabasco sauce

Bring water to boil. Stir in rice, turn to low and cover for 20 minutes. Sauté onion and celery in oil until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and cook another few minutes, until very fragrant. Add beans, sesame oil, soy sauce and Tabasco to vegetables, and keep warm until rice is done, stirring beans occasionally. When rice is cooked, turn into large bowl and gently fold in with the beans.

Back Home to Buttermilk Pancakes

Each time our kids come home from school I hear the same request – “Pancakes, please!” These are really something to come home to.

Apple Buttermilk Pancakes
Dry ingredients:
1 cup white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 Tbsp brown sugar

Wet ingredients:
3 eggs
3 cups buttermilk
4 Tbsp melted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 apple, peeled, cored and finely diced

Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large bowl. In a separate bowl beat together the eggs and add the remaining wet ingredients. Preheat a large non-stick griddle or pan to low – give this time so that the whole griddle has become evenly hot. Pay attention to your griddle temperature – you want it hot enough to generate bubbles in the pancakes, but not too hot to over-brown the first side.

Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Ladle batter into oiled griddle. Cook only until you see the edges of the pancake become well defined and a few bubbles appear in the batter. Flip and cook another 30-60 seconds. Remove to a plate kept in a warm 125˚F oven while you finish the remaining pancakes – or serve them to a hungry crowd as fast as you can make them!

More fun: Sprinkle chocolate chips onto the batter of the pancake immediately after pouring onto the griddle for chocoholics at the table. Or blueberries. Or raspberries. Or whatever.

Apple Fruit Tart

3 Tbsp butter
4 small-medium apples
½ cup mixed frozen berries
2 Tbsp brown sugar

½ pie crust (store bought, or see Thanksgiving pie crust)

Preheat oven to 350F. Sauté the apples in the butter for about 5 minutes. Add the berries and sugar, and continue cooking until most of the liquid has evaporated – about another 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, roll out dough and press into a low spring-form tart pan. Trim remaining dough and reserve for decorative pieces on top of tart. When fruit is cooked, pour into dough in tart pan. Cover with decorative dough pieces. Bake for about 20-30 minutes, until top dough pieces are nicely browned.