Moroccan Carrot Dip

My neighbor recently included me in an recipe chain-type email, where you email twenty people and in turn get thirty six recipes back.  So naturally, I was in heaven.  One criteria was to include a single recipe, one that we keep on the top of our head to quickly whip up for a party.

I contributed my tried and true recipe the Moroccan Carrot Dip, which I have evolved and adapted from a cookbook called Vegetarian Appetizers: simply delicious recipes for easy entertaining by Paulette Mitchell.  I have made this at least two dozen times for multiple occasions.  First of all, I usually have all of these ingredients on hand.  Second of all, it takes less than thirty minutes.  Third of all, this recipe is an open canvas.  You can add a cooked sweet potato, or coconut milk, or cinnamon or substitute cilantro for the parsley.

A side note:  when draining the boiled carrots, pour the water through a strainer and into a bowl so that you can save the carrot water for a vegetable broth.

Another great aspect about this recipe is that it can be used as a dip for pita bread, or a topping for chicken or tofu, or as a spread for a sandwich.  The options really are endless.  

Moroccan Carrot Dip

Adapted from Vegetarian Appetizers by Paulette Mitchell

Yields about 2 cups

1 lb. bag baby carrots

1 large clove garlic, minced

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/4 tsp salt

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

1/8 tsp paprika

3 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

1-2 Tbsp water, if needed

Boil carrots for 10-15 minutes or until they can easily be cut in half with a fork.  Drain carrots and let partially cool.  Add carrots and the remaining ingredients, except for the parsley and water to the food processor.  Blend well.  Intermittently scrape sides of bowl if necessary.  Add 1-2 Tbsp of water to make dip more creamy and smooth if needed.

Transfer to serving bowl and integrate the parsley and add a few pieces on top.  Serve with pita chips, as a sandwich spread or topping for grilled chicken. 



Dinner: Figs, dates, olives, blue cheese, toast with figs, arugula and blue cheese, and toast with Moroccan carrot dip.



Synergized Leftovers

Last night I got home from a lovely massage and trip to Whole Foods, and wanted to make something quick and easy, and with ingredients I already had.  So I took the leftover grain portion of the Enchanted Broccoli forest (see previous blog post), added sauteed Brussels Sprouts and garlic, and topped it with an egg.  Voila!  It was even better than if eaten separately!  And I polished off a bottle of Kambucha tea while eating dinner.  The best part about it was that this all took under 15 minutes to prepare.

Synergized Leftovers

6 Brussels sprouts, chopped into shredded form

2 cloves garlic, diced

Olive oil to saute

1 cup Enchanted Broccoli Forest grains (see previous blog entry)

1 egg, fried

Prep the Brussels sprouts.  Heat pan over medium heat.  Add oil and saute garlic for 1-2 minutes.  Add shredded Brussels sprouts.  Cook for a few minutes.  Add the grain mixture from Enchanted Broccoli Forest.  While this is cooking, cook an egg in another pan.  Cook Brussels Sprouts and grains until the cheese in the grains seems cooked through and melted.  Plate and add egg on top.  YUM!

Italian Dinner Party

My two girlfriends and I had a little dinner party for ourselves last Friday and were quite impressed with the outcome!  It was an Italian feast with sparkling, white and red wine.  Our menu was as follows:

• Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus
• Tomato, Cucumber and Avocado Salad dressed with fresh grown herbs from T's back yard
•  Herbed Chicken with Sauteed Polenta
• Wheat Pizza with Blue cheese, Parmesan, Tomato and Arugula

T's locally (except for the avocado) grown salad and dressing.

I left my camera's memory card at home, so M so nicely took pictures for me on her iPhone. 

M's prosciutto wrapped asparagus appetizer we snacked on while cooking.

The pizza dough is so easy to make.  I came home from work, mixed it all together, and let it sit for an hour while I got ready.  Then just carted it over to T's house, and was ready for it's brief second rising.  I am calling it wheat pizza dough, because I did one half whole wheat flour, and one half all purpose.  I have tried doing 100% whole wheat, which is definitely healthier and more fiberful, but it makes such dense dough, and it doesn't rise nearly as much.  But you can certainly use all whole wheat, and just make a denser crust.   I also spiked the dough with black pepper to pack a subtle spicy punch.

Dough during brief second rising.



The blue cheese I used was so great.  It came in thinly sliced sheets divided by parchment paper.  Perfect for sandwiches, bruschetta or pizza.



Every single bite of everything was so delicious.  A true mix of flavors, colors, textures and love.  It was a night of three of our favorite things: good conversation, great food, and wine.  And if you haven't noticed, our initials spell out ATM, which we pridefully call ourselves.

Wheat Pizza with Blue Cheese, Parmesan, Tomato and Arugula

1 packet (1/4 oz) active dry yeast

1/2 tsp sugar

1 cup lukewarm/warm water, and extra if needed (warm to the touch, about 100 degrees)

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup all purpose flour, extra for kneading

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp salt

2-3 tsp olive oil

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 clove garlic

Salt and pepper to taste

Parmesan cheese

Blue cheese

Sliced roma tomatoes

Arugula

In a measuring cup, combine the warm/lukewarm water, yeast and sugar.  Set aside for 5-10 minutes.  In a large mixing bowl, combine the two flours, pepper, salt and mix evenly.  Drizzle the 2-3 tsp olive oil over flour mixture.  (This ingredient can be left out, but it does add a little crispness to the dough).  Integrate the oil into the flour. 

Check on the yeast/water.  The yeast is ready and activated when the water is cloudy and the top is sort of bubbling.  Add to flour mixture.  Mix well with a large spoon.  Balance out the dough by adding more flour or water, so that it is a consistency that you can easily hold in your hands and knead on a board.

Coat a surface or cutting board with a healthy portion of flour.  Put the dough on board and begin kneading, folding in half, flattening, folding in half, etc.  Knead the dough until it becomes smooth and elastic, about 8-10 minutes.  If the dough is sticking to the board, keep adding flour little by little, to make the dough smooth.

Take a large clean mixing bowl and put a thin layer of olive oil, or spray oil all inside it.  Put dough in bowl, and roll it around so it gets coated with a little oil.  Cover with a damp cloth and set in a warm area of the house.  Let sit for 1 hour.

While it is rising, you can prep the rest of the ingredients.  Chop the roma tomatoes.  Mix the olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.  (Note: you can also substitute with a marinara sauce, pesto, or no sauce if you like.)  Also, feel free to add any other ingredient for topping.  I added corn and carmelized onions to mine in another recipe. 

After 1 hour, dough should have doubled in size.  Punch down with knuckles to release air bubbles.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper and roll out dough, into whatever shape you like.  You can make a crust, as above, or make it uniform in thickness.  Once in place, let the dough sit for about 10 minutes, for a brief second rising.

Drizzle olive oil mixture over dough, just enough to coat it.  (Or marinara, pesto, or your favorite sauce.)  Next sprinkle with parmesan and blue cheese, to whatever cheese amount you like.  I just did a thin layer, because the blue cheese adds a ton of flavor, without going overboard on amount.  Place sliced romas on top. 

Bake until cheese is melted and dough is thoroughly cooked, about 15-20 minutes.  Remove from oven and top with fresh arugula.  Also really good to drizzle a little balsamic vinegar on top too.  Enjoy enjoy enjoy!

The Enchanted Broccoli Forest

About five years ago, I decided to end my stint as a vegetarian, by getting a cheeseburger from Whole Foods.  I had been having dreams about bacon for months, and I'd wake up asking myself why I wasn't eating meat.  So finally, I broke the meat fast.  But during my nine years of no-meat eating, I collected quite a few vegetarian cookbooks, including the Enchanted Broccoli Forest by Mollie Katzen. 

During grad school, my three roommates and I would have a huge family dinner every Sunday night, and this dish was featured at one of them.  It is a great way to use up leftover cooked grains (any kind is fine, such as rice, quinoa, barley, etc.) and spices that generally are on the spice rack.   As usual, I have altered it from the original recipe, which you are welcome to do too.  In this particular version today, I added some leftover quinoa, celery and brown rice.

A mix of red and white quinoa.

When preparing the broccoli, you can mince the stalk into small pieces and saute it with the onion and garlic.  This is a great way to use as much of the broccoli as possible, which adds nutrients and fiber to the dish.

The Enchanted Broccoli Forest

Adapted from The Enchanted Broccoli Forest Cookbook

2 bunches fresh broccoli

1-2 Tbsp Earth Balance margarine (or olive oil or butter)

3/4 cup celery, diced

1/2 medium onion, diced

3/4 tsp salt

2 cloves garlic, diced

2 Tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed

2 cups cooked brown rice

2 cups cooked quinoa

Black pepper to taste

Cayenne to taste

2 tsp dried dill

1 1/2 tsp dried sage

1 cup parmesan cheese

Melted Earth Balance (or butter) to top broccoli

Trim the bottoms of the broccoli and mince the stalk as pictured above.  Cut the tops into long spears so you can place them in the grains like little trees.  Cook them in boiling water or steam for about 20 seconds, until they turn bright green.  Remove, put in strainer, and rinse under cold water, drain and set aside.

Preheat over to 325 degrees.  Grease an oven proof pan.

Melt the butter or olive oil in a Dutch oven or large skillet.  Add the onions, celery, broccoli stalks, pepper and salt.  Saute until onions soften, for about 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and lemon juice and saute for about 2 minutes.  Stir in the rice and quinoa, pepper, cayenne, herbs and cheese.  Correct flavorings if necessary and spread in the prepared pan.

Arrange the broccoli in the rice, like little trees.  Drizzle with melted Earth Balance or butter.  Cover with foil and bake until heated through (about 15-20 minutes).  Serve immediately!

Arrange the broccoli like little trees

Top with melted margarine or butter and salt and pepper



Cheddar Herb Biscuits

I bought a set of four different sized biscuit cutters about a year ago, actually to make ravioli.  But since then, I haven't used any of them.  And they are so cute with the grooved edges!  I also just recently bought some lowfat buttermilk to use in an Indian food dish, but ended up not using it.  And I had about 1/4 cup of frozen cheddar cheese that also needed to be used.  So the combination of these three components, and an invitation to a potluck materialized into these lovely biscuits. 

You can make the biscuits any size you like.   I used the smallest biscuit cutter size I had, which turned out to make miniature biscuits, about the size of a jumbo marshmallow.  They are delicious eaten alone, or broken in half, toasted and added on top of a broth-based soup, as a crouton.  I ate a few on top of a celery and wild rice soup, and the combination of spices and tastes took me right to a Thanksgiving-type meal.  Very warming!

I adapted this from a recipe on Allrecipes.com.  I switched out some of the spices and added the cheddar.  Besides cutting out about 50 small biscuits, it is a pretty quick and simple recipe!

Cheddar Herb Biscuits

adapted from Allrecipes.com recipe

2 cups all purpose flour, sifted*

1 Tbsp baking powder

1 pinch salt

1 1/2 tsp sugar

1 1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried summer savory

1 tsp dried sage

1 1/2 tsp dried basil

1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened at room temperature

1/4 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

3/4 cup lowfat buttermilk

*Quick note:  If you don't have a flour sifter (like me),  you can use a small mesh strainer to pour and shake the flour through into the mixing bowl.  It is a good alternative!

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.   In large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, thyme, summer savory, sage, and basil.  Ensure that every ingredient gets incorporated evenly.

Cut butter into small cubes and incorporate into flour mixture.  Use a pastry blender, or better yet, your hands, to fully mix the butter in, until the mixture has a course crumb texture, not larger than the size of peas.  Toss in the cheddar, and mix well.  Slowly pour the buttermilk over the mixture, and fluff with a fork, just until mixture is moistened. 

Turn the dough onto floured board and knead 4-5 times.  Form dough into large circle about 3/4 inch in thickness.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Cut biscuits to desired shape and size, and place on baking sheet.  When you get to the point of not having enough dough, because of all the cut-outs, re-roll dough into a whole shape, and begin cutting again, and repeat until you have used all the dough.  Bake until golden brown, about 10 minutes, depending on size of biscuit.   Pop in your mouth immediately!

 

Simple Shredded Brussels Sprouts

Hopefully this recipe will help anyone rethink not liking Brussels sprouts.  I used to have a strongly skeptical view on them...especially when they are cooked or boiled whole, without much in the flavoring department added to them.  I used to avoid them altogether at the grocery store, never knowing what in the world to do with them once I got home.  But within the last year, after having them in shredded form, at a tapas style restaurant while visiting my best friend in Utah, my mind was forever changed.

The best part about shredding the Brussels sprouts is that first of all, it reduces the cooking time significantly.  Secondly, it gives them much more surface area, and therefore have the ability to pick up more flavor of the spice or sauce.




First cut them in half lengthwise.



Then finely chop them into threads, to have a shredded form.

Another note here...I recently discovered tongs.  They have significantly improved my life!  They make sauteing large volumes of food, or pieces of chicken, so much easier.

Another great part of this dish is that you can serve as a side dish to a protein such as chicken or eggs.  Or you can eat it as one big cooked salad for dinner.  You can add almonds or pistachios or scrambled eggs to this to make it heartier too.  Add red pepper flakes for an extra kick.

Simple Shredded Brussels Sprouts

Serves 2-3 side dish sizes

14 Brussels sprouts

1-2 Tbsp olive oil for cooking

1 large (or two small) clove garlic (diced)

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 1/2 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce

Cut all the Brussels sprouts in half and finely chop into a shredded form.  Put into a colander and rinse thoroughly.  Set aside.  Prepare the garlic.

Heat a medium/large pan on medium and add olive oil.  Toss in the garlic.  Saute for just a minute.  Add Brussels sprouts, so they have a chance to soak up some of the raw garlic taste.  Toss with tongs or spatula.  Add pepper.  Cover for a few minutes, just until the Brussels sprouts start to soften and slightly change to a bright green.  (You want them to be a little undercooked right before adding soy sauce.)

Add soy sauce, cover and turn off heat.  Let sit for a few minutes to allow all the flavors to join.   Lift cover and assess.  Serve immediately as a starter side dish, or at a tapas party.   Add any extra flavoring such as hot sauce or red pepper flakes for more spice.

Mediterranean Carrot and Chickpea Salad

I have gotten a few requests for the carrot salad pictured in the Gnocchi Party posting.  As you will find out, I find myself making a lot of salads made out of carrots in some form or another.  I have a good shredded carrot and jicama salad, carrot dip, carrot and apple salad with coconut dressing...the list is endless!  Carrots are such a versatile vegetable and can be paired with sweet and salty.  And one of the best and most concentrated sources of Vitamin A!

I want to add that this is SUCH an open ended recipe, where you can add other veggies like red pepper, green onions, different herbs like basil or cilantro, and different proteins and dried fruit, depending on what you have at home. 

I adapted this recipe from a fellow blogger's recipe, and she called for olives and dried apricots.  I used currants because I have this endless box of currants I want to use up.  I just have one more recipe worth of currants now, so you may see them star in one more dish.  And then I will move on to a big bag of dried cherries.

Mediterranean Carrot and Chickpea Salad

adapted from recipe on FoodieFabulous blog

3 large carrots, peeled, washed and cut into coins

1 can chickpeas (garbanzo beans)

1/3 cup dried currants

1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Dressing

3-4 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

1 tsp white wine vinegar

1 tsp dijon mustard

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp paprika

3/4 tsp sugar

Black pepper to taste

Make the dressing first, so the flavors can marry while you prep the salad ingredients.  Ideally, use a small food processor to blend all dressing ingredients together, this makes it into a creamy emulsion.  If you don't have one, whisk really well, or put all ingredients in a plastic container that seals well (such as those nice screw top ones), and shake them together.

Chop the carrots.  Drain and rinse the chickpeas.  Toss carrots and chickpeas together with currants and parsley.  Add dressing and coat all ingredients evenly.  Can be covered and stored in fridge or served immediately!

Gnocchi Party!

Last night I hosted a gnocchi making party for three of my favorite people.  We've been planning this event for awhile, and September 13th turned out to be the magic number.  Two of the guests had previously had a hugely successful wonton making party, so now we moved onto Italian cuisine at my house.  The menu besides the gnocchi consisted of:

• Kale Chips
• Tomato and Balsamic Bruschetta
• Blue Cheese, Fig and Carmelized Onion Bruschetta
• Mediterranean Carrot and Chickpea Salad
• Fresh Tomato and Garlic Sauce
• Fresh Pesto (parsley and walnuts in addition to the basil)

An interesting aspect about making something as a group, is that each person can indulge their own creative urges.  And that we did...!

These were the famous dice shape or aka medium sized marshmallow variety.

I went with a basic cylinder/half moon shape with light fork markings.

These were grooved with a fork, and then artfully punctured as a final touch.

These were the most professional of them all...cut into diamonds, and then grooved.



The night also consisted of good wine, a variety of music, forgotten arugula and multiple fashion statements with the cloth napkins. 

Mediterranean Carrot and Chickpea Salad adapted from another lovely recipe

The final product

Potato Gnocchi

adapted from a Cook's Illustrated recipe

2 pounds russet potatoes, washed

1 1/4 cup all purpose flour + more for mixing dough

1 tsp salt

Preheat oven for 400 degrees.  Wash and dry potatoes.  Wrap each in foil and bake until fully cooked (at least 1 hour, depending on size of each potato).   Take out of oven and let cool for about 10 minutes so they are easier to handle.

Carefully unwrap potatoes and while holding with a towel, peel with a vegetable peeler or paring knife.  Cut peeled potatoes in half and gently push through a potato ricer.  A potato ricer is ideal for the occasion, and looks sort of like a huge garlic press with holes, and can be purchased for a pretty fair price at any kitchen or department-type store.  But if you are in a pinch, you could shred them with a grater, or a grater setting on a food processor, though you must be really careful to not turn them into mashed potatoes.  The main purpose is to give the potatoes as much surface area as possible, which the ricer does quite well.

Rice/grate all the potatoes into a large bowl.  Pour the 1 1/4 cup flour and salt over the potatoes and mix into a dough with your (clean) hands.  You will most likely need to add more flour, so the dough isn't sticky. 

Start a large pot of water bowling at this point, so that as you complete a set of gnocchi, you can start the cooking process as soon as possible.

Divide dough into quarters.  Roll each quarter into a long rope (as pictured above) onto a cutting board or large surface.  Cut off small 1/2-1" pieces.  Form them any way you like.  The traditional way is to shape into a long cylinder, and then take a fork's back side of the prongs, and form grooves.  It is sort of awkward at first, but as you keep going, you find your own personal system.  Keep them separated on a plate/cutting board as you finish. 

*Note: you may want to take 1-2 formed gnocchi, and boil them first to test that your flour/potato mixture is going to stay together as a dough.  If it falls apart in the boiling water, you need to add more flour to your dough!

 Take first set (the first 1/4 of dough) and add to boiling water.  They will immediately sink.  They rise to the top when done (about 3-5 minutes).  Take out with slotted spoon, or small mesh strainer if you don't have one.  Repeat with remaining gnocchi.

You can eat these as is, or do what we did, and saute them with olive oil, salt and pepper to cook in an added flavor.  Top with your favorite red sauce or pesto.  You can also space uncooked gnocchi on a baking sheet and put them in the freezer for an hour.  Remove from sheet and put in plastic bag or container in the freezer for a quick meal in the future!

Buon appetito!



Kale Chips

This seems to be such the rage these days.  Everytime I flip through a food magazine or website, kale chips are everywhere!  They are super simple to make, and sort of remind of the Pop Rocks we used to eat as kids, because when you bite into the kale, it is a thin little crispy treat.  And also a quick appetizer you can whip up right before your guests arrive for a dinner party.  Note that they do cook down quite a bit, so if you want to serve more than two people, you'll need several bunches of kale.

I have also done this recipe with broccoli, trying to re-create one of our favorite restaurant's dishes called Broccoli Blasted.  It sounds sort of strange, but the broccoli ends up charring and transforming into more of a grilled taste and soaks up so much flavor.  It is worth investigating!

Crispy Kale Chips

1 Bunch kale (any variety)

1-2 Tbsp Olive oil

1 garlic clove, minced

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Thoroughly rinse and dry the kale leaves.  Cut off the stems of the kale.  The stems can be pretty thick and fiberous, so you can either throw them out, or cut them into tiny coins and add them to the kale chips or save them for a stirfry or soup.  Next chop the kale into large pieces.  Put into bowl and toss with olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.  This is a basically flavored recipe.  Feel free to add your own flair to the flavorings...such as cumin and red pepper flakes, or truffle salt if you have it.

Top a baking sheet with parchment paper and place kale on sheet.  Try to make one layer, so all the kale gets cooked evenly.

Bake for about 10 minutes.  Open oven and toss the chips with tongs to distribute the heat and oil.  Bake for another 5-10 minutes, until the ends become browned and kale is crispy.

Let cool for a few minutes to finalize the crisp.  Serve as a festive appetizer or side dish. 

Moo Shu Tofu

I used to live up the street from a great Chinese restaurant that served the BEST Moo Shu tofu. I have been trying to recreate it ever since. This recipe is a little different, but still delicious.

First I did a quick marination of the tofu to give it a little flavor, by adding white wine vinegar, oil, salt, pepper and garlic, while I prepped the other ingredients. The original recipe called for pork (marinated in soy sauce), which you could substitute for the tofu, or any other meat for that matter.

It is a pretty simple recipe that can be altered any way you like. I used green cabbage, bamboo shoots and water chestnuts for the vegetables. Traditionally it calls for mushrooms, but I am still dancing around the idea of liking them, so I left them out.

One note: it makes recipes and cooking so much easier, especially this one, if you prep all the ingredients before cooking, so you can just toss them into the pan as you go!

Moo Shu Tofu Recipe
1 block tofu (extra firm), removed from packaging and rinsed
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
2 tsp olive oil
1 clove garlic
sprinkle of salt and pepper


1/2 medium yellow onion, cut into long thin pieces
1/2 head green cabbage, sliced into thin strips
1 small can bamboo shoots
1 small can water chestnuts


1/2 cup water
3 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp pepper



1 Tbsp fresh ginger, shredded
1 green onion, minced

1-2 Tbsp olive oil for cooking


Directions
Slice the tofu into thin slabs, as above, and put into medium sized bowl. (I got about 8 slices out of the block) Coat both sides with the white wine vinegar, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Set aside.


Slice the yellow onion into long thin pieces and set aside in a small bowl. Next, prep the cabbage by slicing into shreds. Set aside. Open the cans of bamboo shoots and water chestnuts, drain. These two can share the same bowl. Make the sauce next by combining the water, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, cornstarch, sugar and pepper. Mix well with a fork, to ensure the cornstarch gets fully incorporated. Shred the ginger on a fine shredder like the one pictured above. If you don't have one, you can mince the ginger into tiny cubes..and you will get the same taste result! Prep green onions and set aside.


Put a large pan or wok on medium heat and add oil. Add the tofu and cook for about 5 minutes, or until browned. Flip each piece over and cook on other side. You can leave the pieces this size, or cut into smaller pieces as you cook. Add the onions and cook until they soften and turn light brown (5-10 minutes). Add the cabbage, bamboo shoots and water chestnuts. Cook a few minutes until the cabbage cooks down. Do a quick whisk of the sauce to re-combine everything and add to the tofu and veggies. Make sure all the ingredients get fully coated. Cook 1-2 minutes. Add ginger and green onions and mix well. Remove from heat and put in serving bowl.

Serve immediately! Add red pepper flakes for an extra spicy kick. This can be served with rice, moo shu pancakes or tortillas. The leftovers are great reheated!