Kale Pesto

A twist on an old favorite: Kale Pesto with Cherry Tomatoes & Olives.

It’s hard to believe that almost an entire calendar year has passed since my last blog post. A lot has changed since then -- for one thing, tin & I are back on American soil! We have a dog, and a car, and we’re no longer living and sleeping in the same room. But at least one thing has stayed the same -- we’re still enjoying fabulous, fresh vegan dinners every night. Last night, we celebrated our return by inviting our neighbors, Sarah & Dave, over for one of those dinners -- one of my (and tin’s) personal favorites: Kale Pesto.

I must give some credit where credit is due: to all of my loyal readers who’d wondered if I may have suddenly stopped eating, or if I simply couldn’t pay my internet bill anymore, it was Sarah who reminded me that I used to love updating this blog and hearing from all of you about your kitchen adventures! I’m new to the neighborhood, so I was meeting Sarah & Dave last night for the first time. Admitting to her own curiosity, Sarah announced that she had googled me and found my blog! Dave took a picture of our meal and I vowed to write about it.

In my opinion, there’s nothing worse than inviting guests over for an enjoyable evening, and instead spending the entire night in the kitchen. I wanted to make a low-fuss, delicious meal that I could prepare almost entirely ahead of time. I’m a huge fan of pasta, and I’m an even bigger fan of preparing pastas for dinner parties. I’m not talking about a boring plate of spaghetti -- I’m talking about recipes like my spaghetti with the tomato-carrot sauce, or my parsley pesto: subtle variations on classic themes that will make your guests think you’re pretty creative, without being too flashy, or requiring extensive cutting/spooning/napkin usage.

Tin & I have lots of favorite vegetables, but kale is definitely at the top of the list. We eat kale (almost) every week in tons of different ways -- we sauté it, we eat it raw on sandwiches, we make warm salads, we steam it, I’ve even made kale chips in the oven. But one of my greatest creations to-date is kale pesto. It’s a subtle variation on an old favorite that takes advantage of the sturdy, hearty leaves to keep your pasta from getting soggy and limp.

To prepare a kale pesto, I also get to put my favorite kitchen appliance to good use -- a gift from my mother, my Cuisinart food processor is my secret weapon. It can do everything -- which, in turn, makes it look as though I can do everything. I will readily admit that sometimes, I ask myself whether the ease of using the Cuisinart is worth having to clean it up afterward -- but honestly, it takes significantly less time to wash the Cuisinart than it would to chop all of the ingredients for a kale pesto by hand.

So I pulled out the food processor and put in the super-sharp chopping blade. I peeled three cloves of garlic, and added two tablespoons of olive oil, a teaspoon of freshly-ground black pepper, and ½ teaspoon of salt to the food processor and blended until the garlic was almost indiscernible in the oil. As though preparing a traditional pesto, I threw in a handful of fresh basil (about 1/8 cup chopped with a kitchen knife -- stems, flowers, leaves and all). Again, I blended all of the ingredients until they were super-smooth.

I washed a bunch of kale (to amount to about four cups chopped by hand) and stripped the leaves from the stems. I added the leaves slowly to the food processor and added olive oil -- a drizzle at a time -- to ensure that the leaves would blend down into a smooth paste. I blended all of the leaves, then added the stems, broken into 3-inch lengths, and blended again until smooth. When all was said and done, I’d used about ¼ cup of olive oil. Give it a taste -- and add salt & pepper to taste. My finished pesto was thick -- I spooned it out into a bowl, and allowed it to stand on my kitchen counter for about two hours before serving, which meant that all of the flavors had plenty of time to mix and mingle. I used as little oil as possible -- you’ll know you’ve done it right if your pesto sticks together in the bowl (without being a goopy clump, or leaving any big chunks of kale); you’ve added too much oil if it starts to separate -- the oil will starts to rise to the top, and the kale will sink to the bottom. If you didn’t get the ratio quite right, don’t worry -- a little extra olive oil won’t ruin your recipe.

I knew that I wanted to have leftovers, so I boiled two pounds of pasta. This ultimately made about twice as much as I would have needed for a party of four (after a rich appetizer of homemade tortilla chips with salsa & guacamole, and including freshly-baked chai tea cookies for dessert). I like to use spiral-shaped noodles when serving pesto, as pestos tend to be a little less “sticky” than other traditional sauces -- the tight curves keep all of the good stuff on the noodles rather than all over the plate. I prepared mine by adding a healthy pinch of salt and two bay leaves and a few drops of olive oil to the pot of boiling water, and cooking the pasta to an al dente finish -- stir occasionally to make sure that the noodles don’t stick (the olive oil will help). I drained the noodles, retaining just a few tablespoons of the water*, and returned it to the pot. I stirred in the pesto sauce, along with four cups of washed, whole cherry tomatoes and 1 cup of whole black olives.

*If your pesto was a little on the oily side, don’t fret -- but do eliminate the extra water. I like to add the starchy pasta water to most of my sauces, as it tends to help the sauce stick together, and makes it a bit creamier. Remember that you’ve added salt to the water, so don’t over salt the pesto. I always prefer to stay on the conservative side when adding salt to recipes for guests -- let your friends add their own at the table.

The finished product was visually striking and savory -- and best of all, simple. I was able to enjoy the appetizer course and a beer with my guests and still have dinner on the table without having to slave away in the kitchen. I served it at the table, family-style, in a huge bowl.

I’m dedicating this post to my guests, Sarah & Dave, and sending a special shout-out and thank-you to Sarah for reminding me to write again! We’re already looking forward to our next meal together.

Breakfast

No, it's not "Breakfast for Dinner" -- although I do find this one to be a satisfying meal at any hour of the day.

The Real Breakfast of Champions/Breakfast For Breakfast

I am, deep down, a creature of habit.

I like routine. Once in a while, I let my hair down and tell tin to “surprise me” when she asks if I’d rather have this or that -- but honestly, I only like those surprises because the outcome won’t actually take me by surprise. And so, true to the ritualized creature I am, I like to start every morning the same way: with a bowl of cereal.

If cereal for you means merely opening up a box, dumping its content into a bowl and pouring some milk over it, I pity you. If you think that cereal is soggy and tastes either too sugary or too bland, I’m also about to rock your world.

First off, breakfast for me is about starting my day with the energy I need to get through it (well, at least until lunch time). If you have found a way to derive all of your morning energy needs from one box, I applaud you. I haven’t.

When I make my morning cereal, I start by getting out three different types of grains. While I like to swap out two of them, depending upon my mood and what’s on sale at the grocery store that week – but no matter what, I pick up a bag of good quality oats. For the record, there was a time when I believed that raw oats were inedible. Fortunately, a fellow (vegan) cereal-lover was wiser than I, and I’ve been eating them raw ever since. Oats have been a staple in my diet since I became aware of their heart-healthy benefits: a good source of mono- and polyunsaturated fats and TONS of fiber, oats help to reduce cholesterol and lower blood pressure, and they keep your digestive system in good working order. Oats are high in minerals (calcium, iron, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium); they can also help to regulate blood sugar, and even protect against cancer.

To accompany my oats, I like to choose a flake and a granola. Both of those should be a different grain. Currently, I have a spelt granola, and something resembling a bran flake – bran flakes have a bad reputation for being tasteless, or worse, for tasting like cardboard, and for finding their way only into the bowls and bellies of the elderly. The fact that my box of bran flakes proudly proclaims them to be “Wellness Flakes” probably isn’t exactly helping to reverse the stereotype. But those old people are on to something: I like (wheat -- as opposed to oat)bran because it provides me with B vitamins, plenty of minerals, and even more fiber.

On a normal breakfast day, say, before going to work, I get out a 1.5 cup bowl. I add about two tablespoons of bran flakes, two tablespoons of granola, and three tablespoons of oats.

To fill the rest of the bowl, I turn to fresh fruit. At the moment, I’m topping off my bowl with a small apple from nearby Brandenburg. Other likely suspects include bananas, berries (strawberries & blueberries in summer), mango, grapes… Use your imagination. I like to leave my fruit unpeeled, but cut into small pieces so that I get a little bit of fruit in every bite. Don't forget dried fruit -- adding dried cranberries or raisins can round out a less-than-thrilling winter fruit selection (but watch out for added sugar!).

To top off my cereal, I add a couple tablespoons of natural soy yoghurt, two teaspoons of ground flaxseed, and rice milk.

I find that breakfast is best enjoyed with the radio, the newspaper, coffee, and my favorite person.

Sauerkraut Pizza

A Curious Kitchen Experiment, Which Only an American and a German Could Create (But All Can Certainly Love): Sauerkraut Pizza.

A while back, tin and I had wondered aloud whether sauerkraut might just make a good pizza topping. A food with a very distinctive, love-it-or-hate-it flavor, I admit that I had a hard time imagining it playing anything other than sidekick to a nice potato. I also recall finding it occasionally on buffets at hot dog barbecue parties, which is probably where most Americans would most readily recognize it.
I grew up eating (and for a long time, refusing to eat) sauerkraut -- I remember it being lovingly prepared by my mother, only upon very special occasions, and warmed all day in a slow-cooker with a large pork roast or sausages. The smell, which should not be understimated, would fill our kitchen and leave our mouths watering in impatient anticipation of the meal to come. The residual scent the next morning, however, was less welcome and, dare I say it, quite unpleasant.
My time spent working for a saurkraut-loving family during my first stay in Germany led me to an important discovery: come to find out, the lingering aroma was not the sauerkraut's alone -- although it is certainly pungently aromatic during the cooking process (and most likely for the rest of the evening), I discovered that by eliminating the meat from the equation (and most likely some of the cooking time), one can also successfully avoid the assaulting Morning After. I found an entirely new love for sauerkraut and eventually had to be gently reminded that it wasn't necessarily something that one wants to eat more than once a week.

Fair enough.

So this week, I am bringing you a recipe for sauerkraut -- a spin on what sauerkraut loves best, this one fully embraces the two nationalities represented in my two-person household: I got my pizza, and tin got her potatoes.

Stick with me on this one.

First and foremost, one should be aware that not all sauerkraut is created equal. If you're a first-timer, it's okay to Eeenie-Meenie-Miny-Mo it. Often sold in jars, it's nothing more than fermented cabbage, which sounds extremely simple and it is! But believe it or not, every brand tastes a little bit (or very) different, and if you really get into sauerkraut, I encourage you to try multiple brands to find the one you like best. tin and I found one that we particularly like, which just happens to come packaged in a bag. That's cool, too -- be flexible.

My particular specimen reqiures that I heat it with two cups of water for about forty-five minutes on medium-low heat. The goal here is to soften it up a bit. I had time to do this while tin prepared her special dough (as before: see the recipe "Pizza Night" for instructions).
Sauerkraut, as I said, has a very distinctive flavor which readily and eagerly overpowers everything that crosses its path. It does not play well with others -- so I chose to give it partners which needed a flavor boost. I very thinly sliced four small potatoes, two onions, and 200 g of tofu.

After forty-five minutes, I found myself looking at something that seemed a bit too water-logged to put on a pizza. Always wary of creating the dreaded soggy, mushy crust, tin and I carefully spooned most of the liquid out of our sauerkraut. As it turns out, we removed a bit too much and, in retrospect, would have left about two tablespoons after all. At any rate, we saved ours in a little jar and (spoiler alert) we plan to use it for rice later this week.

This week, we made our dough entirely from whole wheat flour, which resulted in a much dryer consistency -- thus, we decided not to pre-bake ours. If you've followed our regular recipe, pre-bake the dough for five minutes at 375 degrees.

We decided to put the sliced potatoes on the very bottom, such that any remaining liquid in the sauerkraut would cook into the potatoes before reaching the dough. About three cups of sauerkraut ended up in a thick layer over the potatoes, covered by the onions and finally, the sliced tofu on top. We loved our last "meat" pizza with the crunchy, chewy tofu so much that we wanted to repeat the experience. We topped the entire thing with fresh parsley leaves (about three tablespoons), a sprinkle of salt, and a generous amount of black pepper. Resist the urge to over-season -- the sourkraut won't like it (or you won't -- well, let's just say it'll be mutual).

With bated breath, we put it into our oven at 375 degrees for 20 minutes, until the tofu had curled up on the edges and had darkened into a pale salmon-pink color.

We ate our first slices precisely as we'd prepared them. Concluding that "something was missing," when we went back for seconds, we also busted out the tahini sauce. Drizzled lightly over the entire slice, it was definitely a messy and unsuspecting, but perfect flavor partner for the sauerkraut, bringing also a tiny bit of needed moisture to the final baked equation.

So to answer the original question: yes, indeed -- sauerkraut is good on pizza.

_______________________________________________________________________
The Nitty-Gritty:

Ingredients (for two, with leftovers for lunch:
pizza dough (see "Pizza Night" from February)

sauerkraut of your choosing

four small white potatoes
two medium-small white onions
200 grams extra-firm tofu
2 tablespoons fresh parsley leaves

salt & pepper
tahini sauce

Procedure:

1. Prepare the dough according to the instructions posted in "Pizza Night" from February.
2. Prepare the sauerkraut according to its individual preparation instructions (most should be heated on medium-low in water for about 45 minutes).
3. Slice potatoes, onions, and tofu in quarter-inch slices.
4. Pre-bake dough in 375 degree oven for five minutes.
5. On pre-baked dough, first spread potato slices evenly over the surface; cover with sauerkraut. Follow with sliced onions, and finally, the sliced tofu. Sprinkle with salt and parsley; add a generous amount of fresh black papper.
6. Bake for about 20 minutes at 375, until tofu starts to curl up on the edges and takes on a light salmon-pink color.

Rhubarb & Rutabaga Pasta

Rutabaga & Rhubarb Another Way: This time as a pasta.

Not long ago, I introduced my faithful readers to the idea of using rhubarb as a main course rather than regulating it to its standard place at the end of the buffet. I find cooked rhubarb to be a vegetable with distinctive flavor but with a texture that makes it truly versatile. When cooked, rhubarb breaks down immediately into a stringy pulp – if that sounds unappetizing, fear not: there are many ways to make this pulp your pal. I’ve already given you a soup, and a slaw – so with this recipe, I’m hoping to make it to third base.

With half of my rutabaga left over from the night before, I decided to try to take it in a completely new direction – while I’d first paired the sweet rutabaga with another sweet root and savory millet, on this evening, I was going to create a pasta with a “rhubarb sauce” – I love to pair rhubarb with roots, as its tart & tangy flavor responds well to a sugary partner (hence the classic rhubarb pie). I imagined the pulpy rhubarb wrapping around my fusilli pasta to create an irresistible tangle of something that would come to resemble a sauce.

So I began, predictably, by setting my fusilli noodles on the stove to boil – I dropped the raw pasta into a pot of boiling water along with a teaspoon of salt and boiled for about ten minutes to achieve an al dente finish.

In the meantime….

To support the rhubarb sauce, I decided to create first a base of minced ginger and dill. I combined a tablespoon of ginger and a tablespoon of dill in a skillet along with a lot of olive oil (well, relatively speaking: this time, a full two tablespoons). I allowed the oil to warm up and fully infuse with the ginger and dill – about two minutes.

I roughly chopped three cups of rhubarb and added it to the skillet, along with four medium-sized carrots cut into bite-sized pieces and likewise, the rutabaga (the remaining one cup from the previous evening). I turned the heat down to medium and put the lid on so that the steam would build up and soften the rhubarb, stirring every couple of minutes to further encourage the process. It should take no more than ten minutes for the vegetables to be fork-tender, and for the entire mixture to resemble something that would readily cling to the little twisted fusilli noodles.

I served ours in deep bowls – a generous scoop of pasta covered in an even more generous scoop of vegetables – and we added a drizzle of olive oil and salt & pepper to taste.

__________________________________________________________________________________

The Nitty-Gritty:

Ingredients (for two servings):

 

one tablespoon minced ginger

one tablespoon fresh dill

two tablespoons olive oil

fhree cups chopped rhubarb

four medium-sized carrots

one cup chopped rutabaga

fusilli pasta for two

salt & pepper, olive oil

Procedure:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil with a teaspoon of salt; add fusilli pasta for two and boil until al dente (about ten minutes).

2. Mince ginger and combine with dill and olive oil in a skillet. Heat on medium-high for two minutes, until fragrant.

3. Chop rhubarb, carrots, and rutabaga into bite-sized pieces. Add to skillet and cover, stirring frequently to encourage the rhubarb to form a pulp. Heat on medium for up to ten minutes, until pulpy texture has been achieved and vegetables are fork-tender.

4. Serve pasta and vegetables in bowls with olive oil, salt & pepper to taste.

Sautéed Parsnips & Rutabaga

Sautéed Parsnips & Rutabaga

And so it continues: in spite of a few recent less-than-successful attempts to make new vegetable friends, I picked up another unfamiliar specimen at the grocery store last week. Its German name was completely unknown to me, and to be honest, even if I’d had a translation dictionary along, I still would have had an “Aha! That’s what that thing looks like” moment. It was large and dense, hard, like a beet or a potato – with a peel that varied from a fleshy peach hue to light violet.

It was a rutabaga.

I had never seen a rutabaga, I’d never eaten one, so I was very excited to make its acquaintance.

After staring it down for a week, the time had come to turn it into a meal.

I peeled it and chopped it open in half to find that it contained a pit in the center (something like a squash) which I removed (as though coring an apple).

“What is that?”

To show my wife that I wasn’t afraid of foreign vegetables, despite my recent run-in with the puntarelle, I popped a raw piece into my mouth. Thankfully, I found it to be slightly sweet – much like a parsnip.

“It was called a Steckrübe,” I answered, sort of hoping she wouldn’t notice that I actually had no idea, either.

“I’m pretty sure those are only used for animal food.”

“Well, it was in the grocery store.”

I realized, in retrospect, that one can also find dog food at the grocery store. So in that moment, I decided to make a theme dinner – I was going to sauté this animal feed and serve it with millet (most commonly marketed in the U.S. as bird seed). We were going to eat what animals eat instead of eating animals.

I happened to also have one parsnip at my disposal, which worked out quite well, as I’d already determined from my taste test that rutabaga and parsnip would make a good couple. I cut into round slices. As for the rutabaga, I chopped it into bite-sized pieces.

I minced a clove of garlic and sliced one small white onion, which I combined in a skillet with a tablespoon of fresh chives and two teaspoons of fresh parsley and some black pepper. And then I decided to really take it up a notch and add a half cup of corn – I grew up watching my grandfather feed his flock, and I know good and well that sheep are fond of corn. Me too. I heated it on medium-high, stirring frequently. After everything had become fragrant (about two minutes) I added the rutabaga and parsnip. I wanted for everything to get a little dark and for the corn to char a bit, so I put the lid on and left it alone for a few minutes, until the corn kernels started to pop around in the skillet. I then removed the lid again, added a tablespoon of water, and steamed everything for another five minutes, until the vegetables were just fork tender, but not mushy. To finish it off, I added a cup of green beans and allowed them to heat through.

I served our vegetables with millet – an underappreciated grain that loves to absorb flavor. Although it closely resembles couscous, it is a larger grain and is pleasantly chewy. I like to cook mine in a 1:2 ratio of millet to vegetable broth. Millet should be brought with the liquid to a boil and cooked for fifteen minutes, then allowed to cool down and absorb any remaining liquid. It can then be fluffed with a fork and served.

tin and I found this meal to be particularly savory, and especially delightful when accompanied by a glass of wine. And as for the friendship verdict? -- I’ve officially added the rutabaga to my list of vegetables that will always be welcome in my kitchen.

_________________________________________________________________________________

The Nitty-Gritty:

Ingredients:

One clove of garlic

One small white onion

Two tablespoons of fresh chives

Two teaspoons of fresh parsley

Black pepper

One parsnip

Rutabaga (about two cups chopped)

One cup green beans

One-half cup corn

Millet (one cup dry for two servings)

Vegetable broth (two cups for two servings of millet)

Procedure.

1. Combine one cup of dry millet and two cups of vegetable broth in a small cooking pot. Bring to a boil, then cook on medium-low heat for fifteen minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the millet to absorb any remaining liquid.

2. Mince one clove of garlic and slice a small white onion. Combine in a skillet with chives, parsley, black pepper. Heat on medium-high until fragrant (about two minutes).

3. Chop rutabaga into bite-sized pieces; slice parsnip into quarter-inch rounds – add to the skillet along with a half cup of corn. Continue to heat on medium-high, covered, until corn begins to char and pop (about three minutes).

4. Add a tablespoon of water to the skillet and the green beans; cover, and steam for five minutes – until vegetables are fork-tender.

5. Fluff the cooked millet with a fork and serve in bowls with a scoop of vegetables, and salt & pepper to taste.

Baked Tofu Pizza with Peanut Sauce

It's Pizza Night Again!
Maybe it's because I was once a child (and a college student) in America, but for me, pizza night is a once-a-week affair. With one of the Wegel Family Creations already in your recipe box, I'm here with another one -- I wouldn't want to leave you high-and-dry on a Saturday night.
If our last pizza was a little bit too vegalicious for you, then this one might be up your alley -- for all of you "meat lovers" out there, I bring you: Baked Tofu Pizza with Peanut Sauce.

As before, tin made our wonderful, can't-get-that-goodness-anywhere-else pizza dough. You can find her recipe and instructions with the first pizza post ("Pizza Night").

The foundation of this pizza was going to be a peanut sauce. But the cornerstone was going to be an herby, garlic-y spice mix. I began by mincing two cloves of garlic and dicing a small white onion; I combined them in a nonstick pot with a tablespoon of olive oil and two tablespoons of finely-chopped fresh parsley. A pinch of salt and a healthy bit of black pepper went in for good measure, and I let everything cook on medium until the onions had caramelized.

Now you're ready to start making the sauce-y part of the sauce.
We found a prepackaged peanut sauce mix at our favorite Asian market and quickly grabbed it up, thinking it would make a killer curry (also true); ours was a dry mix* which I spooned directly into the caramelized onions and garlic, to which I added water -- slowly --, and simmered, stirring frequently. The instructions on the mix were indeed for preparing a curry-like sauce, which would have been far too thin for a pizza sauce. I added the water a few tablespoons at a time to make sure that it didn't get too soupy.
*Assuming that you, too, would like to purchase a similar dry mix, here are the ingredients in mine: peanuts (65%), paprika, salt, "herbs & spices," and sugar. The "herbs and spices" component was somewhat mysteriously unidentifiable, as are many things purchased at such markets, but the element of surprise is usually pleasant. It was in this case. And honestly, I think I probably largely obliterated any "herbs and spices" inherent to the mix itself by adding my own garlic, onion, parsley, salt and pepper. So the skinny is actually not so skinny: I presume that the other 35% of my mix was probably sugar. It's a little bit horrifying if you think about it, but... you're making one pizza. And you're going to share it with your friends, right? Live a little. It's Saturday Night Pizza Night.

With the sauce bubbling away, I got to work on the toppings.

For the obligatory vegetable component: I defrosted two cups of frozen spinach (to do this, I heated mine on low with two tablespoons of water) and mixed in another cup of fresh parsley leaves. If you're using fresh spinach, wash it up, and give it a rough chop. I then peeled and very finely sliced two small white turnips. I also had a random potato kicking around in one refrigerator drawer leftover from an evening with guests -- I cut it into slices as well. If you don't have a lingering pre-cooked potato, do feel free to eliminate this step. But take a critical look around your kitchen, because pizza night is indeed the perfect night for getting rid of strange leftovers. Another leftover -- about a half cup of corn -- would also be making an appearance on this pizza.

And now, for those of you who used to love a good meaty pizza... I submit for your approval: super-thinly sliced tofu. Baked in your oven, it's going to take on a familiar chewy texture that's crispy on the edges (think "Hawaiian Pizza"-style). For our pizza, I sliced 200g of tofu lengthwise, as thinly as I could.

We began by, again, pre-baking our dough in a 375 degree oven for about five minutes. We then removed it from the oven to put on the toppings. After evenly spreading the sauce over the pre-baked dough (leaving a half-inch perimeter), we thinly spread the spinach over the sauce; next came the corn kernels, followed by the sliced turnips. The tofu should go on the top -- bearing in mind that this tofu was unpressed (meaning that it is still "waterlogged," so to speak) you'll want to keep it fully exposed to the heat to prevent the entire pizza from turning into a soggy disaster. And from a purely textural standpoint: you're going to have a crispy dough with chewy crust, a chunky sauce, the smooth cooked spinach, soft turnips... I wanted to mirror the texture of the dough in the very top layer -- by allowing the tofu to dry out and bake until the corners start to curl up, the end product will be a little bit crispy, and a little bit chewy. -- I had enough tofu to cover the entire pizza. To top everything off, I sprinkled the entire surface with a little bit of salt and a lot of black pepper.

It went into our oven for another twenty minutes -- be patient. If you pull it out too soon, your tofu will lack the firm texture you're probably hoping for in a meat-lover's special.

Although I am usually an advocate for 100% homemade, natural ingredients, I admit that this pre-packaged peanut sauce was unbelievably good. It brought some sweetness to the earthy spinach (by all means, it certainly should have) and the little chunks of peanut made it feel authentically homemade even though it wasn't. It's flavor was so bold that I was glad I'd left the tofu au naturel.

Like last week, we had leftovers which were awesome to come home to after my work day. We popped the leftover slices into the oven at about 200 degrees for ten minutes to reheat.

This pizza is best accompanied by a cold beer, and your favorite person.


_________________________________________________________________________________
The Nitty-Gritty:

Ingredients:

For the dough:
homemade pizza dough (see February's "Pizza Night") -- or a vegan store-bought dough of your choice

For the sauce:
two cloves of garlic
one small white onion
one Tbsp. olive oil
two Tbsp. parsley
salt & pepper
peanut sauce mix (I used Asli Gado Gado Peanut Sauce mix)
water

For the vegetables:
two cups of cooked spinach (or raw equivalent)
one cup of fresh parsley leaves
two small white turnips
one-half cup of corn

"Meat"
200g firm tofu

salt & pepper


Preparation:

1. If working with a homemade dough, prepare according to the instructions in February's post "Pizza Night." You can also use a pre-purchased vegan dough of your choice. Pre-bake the dough for five minutes in a 375 degree oven.
2. Mince two cloves of garlic and dice one small white onion; combine in a nonstick pot with one tablespoon of olive oil and two tablespoons of finely chopped parsley. Add a small pinch of salt and black pepper. Heat on medium until the onions have taken on a light golden, caramelized hue.
3. Add peanut sauce mix -- a few tablespoons at a time, and accordingly, a few tablespoons of water at a time -- until you have about two cups of thick, chunky sauce. Simmer to allow ingredients to combine (about five minutes).
4. Cook spinach with one cup of parsley leaves in two tablespoons of water until the water has evaporated.
5. Very finely slice two white radishes and 200g of firm tofu.
6. Spread sauce evenly over the surface of the pre-baked dough, leaving a half-inch perimeter uncovered for the crust. Likewise, distribute the cooked greens evenly over the sauce. Top with corn. Cover with the sliced radishes, and top with the sliced tofu. Sprinkle the tofu with salt and pepper.
7. Bake at 375 degrees for about twenty minutes, until the corners of the tofu slices start to turn up and the crust is golden brown.

Warm Pasta Salad

At long last – an update to the blog. My apologies to readers who were relying upon me for their daily drool session, or maybe even for a weekly dinner menu. Last week, I officially rejoined the work force. I say “rejoined” but that might be a strong word, as my previous work experience includes only my on-campus job (with pretty flexible hours) and my summer job in a medical research lab (with completely unpredictable hours, but which I would generally describe as 24/7). This one is a regular 9-6, 5 days a week. It’s odd, how circadian it feels – getting up, going to work, squeezing in my run, and going to bed to do it all over again. But somewhere in there, I also manage to fit in three meals – indeed, believe it or not, even though I’ve not found the time to write about it, I’m still cooking up wonderful things in our kitchen every night – but now with a renewed commitment to speed & simplicity.

My gift to all of you 9-5(or 6 or 6:15 or whenever-you-get-out-of-there) workers:

Warm Pasta Salad.

This recipe is inspired by two things I was lacking: ingredients, and time. While I’d been slowly whittling away at a head of savoy cabbage for days, it was high time to finish it off. As my focus was speed, I decided to marry the cabbage with pasta – my plan was to have this meal completely finished by the time the pasta was cooked.

The race against the clock began when I dropped two servings worth of curly Chinese noodles into a pot of boiling water – they would need to cook for about ten minutes. It’s possible – have faith. But it’s going to require some quick handwork.

First things first: I sliced a clove of garlic and one medium white onion – I kept everything in fairly large pieces. Keep in mind that you’ll want to be able to easily pick up these pieces on your fork. I roughly chopped the savoy cabbage into bite-sized chunks (about two cups chopped).

Into a skillet with a tablespoon of olive oil, I added the garlic and onion along with 3 teaspoons of capers, fresh parsley (about 2 tablespoons), and a lot of black pepper. I allowed everything to sizzle until my kitchen smelled like the inside of an Italian restaurant (about two minutes).

I then added the cabbage and two teaspoons of water – I stirred in a pinch of salt, and covered the skillet to allow everything to steam for three minutes – I wanted the cabbage to be warm, but still crunchy.

After a shamelessly-large taste test, I concluded that my pasta had reached my desired al dente chew. – So at that point, time was up – KNIVES DOWN! HANDS UP! – I drained the pasta and mixed it directly into the skillet with the cabbage so that none of the yummy, flavorful olive oil would go to waste.

If you’re skeptical about the quality of any meal that can be prepared from start to finish in ten minutes flat, I can’t blame you – I would be, too. But this one certainly didn’t leave me disappointed. tin and I enjoyed the salty capers with the super-fresh and actually kind of juicy cabbage. -- This dish will probably make a repeat appearance in the weeks to come.

The Nitty-Gritty:

Ingredients:

2 servings of pasta (raw, uncooked)

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 small white onion

1 clove of garlic

2 Tbsp. fresh parsley

3 tsp. capers

2 cups savoy cabbage

salt & pepper

Procedure:

1. Cook the pasta in a pot of boiling water to an al dente finish (about 10 minutes).

2. Slice the onion and garlic; add into a deep skillet with olive oil, parsley, capers, and pepper; sauté on medium-high until aromatic (about two minutes).

3. Add cabbage to the skillet along with 2 Tbsp. of water – stir well to combine and cover; steam for 3 minutes.

4. Stir drained pasta directly into the skillet. Serve with salt & pepper to taste.