One-Pot Chickpeas and Rice

My sister sent me this recipe years ago, and I finally made it last night. It is easy and delicious, so of course my toddler won't touch it.

1/2 yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can chopped tomatoes, or 6oz fresh tomatoes, chopped
1 can chickpeas, drained
1 1/2 cups white basmati or jasmine rice
1 Tbsp yellow curry powder
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
lots of black pepper
1 1/4 cup water

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan (with a lid!) over medium-high heat. Sauté onion and garlic for 5 minutes. Add curry powder and cook a few minutes more.
Add water, tomatoes with juice, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil.
Add drained chickpeas and rice. Cover and simmer on low heat for 20 minutes.
Taste test. If the rice is not done, add another 1/4 cup of water and re-cover to simmer 5 more minutes.

Antipasto Dip

Here's a dip recipe from my Aunt Robin. I don't think I've ever had it, but it sounds interesting and she loves it. Apparently I was talking about having leftover canned artichokes at some point (probably after the Easter Soup Disaster of '09) and this is a good use for them.

14oz can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
7oz can sliced mushrooms, drained and chopped
7oz jar roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
1 c pimento-stuffed olives, drained and chopped
1/2 c chopped green pepper
1/2 c chopped celery
1/2 c finely chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 c olive or vegetable oil
2/3 c white vinegar
2 1/2 t Italian seasoning
1 t seasoned salt
1 t sugar
1/2 t freshly ground pepper

Try to chop all the vegetables to about the same size. Combine artichoke hearts, mushrooms, red peppers, olives, green peppers, and celery in a large bowl and set aside. Sauté garlic and onion in oil about 3 minutes until onion is tender. Add vinegar and spices. Bring to a boil, then remove from heat and pour over the vegetables. Cover and chill for 8 hours. Use a slotted spoon to transfer to serving dish. Serve with crackers or with toasted bread as bruschetta.

Zucchini Crab Cakes

I have two versions of this, one is Bettie's and one is my mom's. Both are basically zucchini shaped into a platform for transporting Old Bay to your mouth. Here are the ingredient lists exactly as written.

Grandma's ingredients:
2 eggs
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 T mayo
2 tsp Old Bay seasoning
flour
vegetable oil

Mom's ingredients:
2 1/2 cups zucchini (grated, salted & squeezed)
1 egg
2 T melted butter
1 1/8 c dry bread crumbs
1/4 c minced onion
2 tsp Old Bay seasoning
flour
vegetable oil

Combine everything except flour and oil. Form into 6 patties. Coat with flour and fry in oil.
Formed patties can be frozen before cooking.

Fruited Grain Salad

This is a neat salad from Moosewood, originally introduced to us by one of the Liberal Luncheon crew.

1 c raw wheat berries
1 c pearl barley
1 c short grain brown rice
3 T balsamic vinegar
1 T lemon juice
3 T light oil
1/2 t salt
1 1/2 c golden raisins
3/4 c minced chives or scallions
6-7 large mint leaves, minced
4-5 ripe plums, sliced (or grapes, peaches, etc.)
1-2 tart apples, diced

Soak wheat berries about 30 minutes. Wash barley several times, then cook with rice and 4 1/4 c water (boil, cover, simmer 35 minutes). Drain wheat berries, then cook with 2 1/2 c water (boil, cover, simmer 1 hour - 1:15). Combine warm grains. Add everything except fruit. Cover and chill. Add fruit just before serving.

Pasta Salad

10 oz tri-color pasta twists
1 bottle Italian salad dressing
1 small bottle McCormick's Salad Supreme Seasoning
1 tomato, chopped
1 cucumber, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 can sliced black olives
1 can sliced mushrooms

Cook pasta according to directions. Drain, rinse in cold water to cool. Combine everything. Chill overnight, stirring occasionally.

Spoon Bread

This recipe came from my aunt, Helen. Not too long to prep, but always seems to bake for-freaking-ever.

img via: thrifty fun

1 c sour cream
3 T butter, melted
1 egg
1/2 c chopped onion
15 oz can kernel corn, undrained
15 oz can creamed corn
8.5 oz package Jiffy corn muffin mix

Whisk together sour cream, butter, and egg. Add onion, corn, and muffin mix. Combine well. Bake in a greased pan at 350F for 1 hour.

Cauliflower & Cheese Bake

This is one of my grandma's recipes. Not the grandma who liked to bake, but the one who doesn't eat spicy foods. It's kinda interesting, I think you could experiment with different cheeses.

img via: veggie venture

1 medium cauliflower head
2 T dry breadcrumbs
1/2 - 3/4 c grated Gruyere or Swiss cheese
1/4 c butter, melted

Trim cauliflower, but keep whole. Cook in boiling and salted water until "tender, but firm." Drain, put cauliflower head in baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese, breadcrumbs, and butter. Bake at 475F for 5 minutes, until cheese is melted and slightly browned.

Mexican Beans

My mom created this recipe. It's awesome with rice or Cornbread, and we use it as the base for tacos and taco salad. For some reason, the version that I have written down is for a massive batch, and calls for a gigantic can of beans, the one as big as your head. Scale away.

img via: off the (meat) hook

6lb 12oz canned kidney beans (3-pound coffee size)
1 t garlic powder
1 1/2 t oregano
3 t cumin

Combine over medium heat. Stir/mash occasionally to prevent sticking. It can stay over low heat for a while and will continue to thicken.

Sweet Potato Casserole

We made this recipe off the back of the can of Dunbar Yams for years, until one day... there was a new recipe. We ended up calling the 1-800 number on the can, and waited while the lady on the other end rummaged around the office and found it for us. I have to admit that I prefer the pecan topping to the marshmallows some people put on their sweet potatoes, because marshmallows kind of freak me out.

Casserole:
40-oz. can sweet potatoes, drained and mashed
1/2 t salt
1/4 cup butter
1 t vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
4 egg whites
1/2 cup evaporated milk

Topping:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup flour
1/4 cup butter

Combine all the casserole ingredients in a bowl and pour into a shallow baking dish. We usually use a square 9" pan about 2" deep. Combine the topping ingredients - I like to melt the butter so it mixes better - and crumble/spread over the casserole. Bake 45 minutes at 350 degrees.

Birthday Party Stuffed Mushrooms

There's a very good reason "Wings of Life" is at the top of our cookbook list. Another time-intensive-but-totally-worth-it hippie food.

img via: a farm girl's dabbles

2 pounds large white mushrooms
3-4 cloves garlic
1 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley, scallions or cilantro
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
olive oil
salt and pepper
paprika

Gently wash the mushrooms, then pull the stems out of the caps. Put the caps upsidedown into a greased baking pan, packed close together so they can't roll around, and set them aside for now.

Chop the stems and fry them in olive oil. Add garlic and fry a little more. Remove from heat and add everything else: bread crumbs, parsley, eggs, and cheeses. Add a bit of salt and fresh black pepper. Mix together well and fill each mushroom cap with the mixture. (My father, being the practical man that he is, has determined that this is easiest to do with a pastry bag, aka a ziplock bag with one corner cut off.)

Sprinkle with paprika and more parmesan cheese. Bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Spinach Salad

This recipe is from our friend Lee Erikson. She's part of our group who gets together every month or so for the "Liberal Vegan Luncheon." Anyway, good simple salad, don't add the dressing til you're ready to serve it or the spinach shrivels and the apricots reinflate and it's just not the same..

2 10-oz. bags baby spinach leaves
1/2 cup cashews
1/4 cup chopped dried apricots
2 apples

Rinse the spinach, chop up the apples, throw everything in a bowl. Ta-da, there's your salad!

3 T sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup garlic salt
1/4 cup celery salt

Mix everything together til the sugar and salts dissolve. Ta-da, there's your dressing!

Black Bean Salad

This is a bean salad recipe that my mom developed when trying to replicate a salad she had at a restaurant. The amounts are pretty flexible, so play around with what you like.

15 oz. can black beans
1/2 t pressed garlic
1/4 cup minced onion
1/4 cup minced green pepper
1 tomato
1/8 t cumin
1/2 t dry cilantro
1 T balsamic vinegar
salt and peper

Drain and rinse the black beans. Chop the tomato. Mix everything together in a bowl and let sit at least an hour before serving.

Hummus

We love this stuff, it's from Julie Jordan's first cookbook, Wings of Life. Eat hummus with pita bread, carrots, celery, cucumbers, crackers, whatever makes you happy!

15 oz. can chick peas (drain, but reserve liquid)
2 cloves garlic (or more)
1/2 t salt
1 T tahini
juice of 1 lemon (or more)
2-6 T chick pea canning liquid
optional: chopped parsley, shredded carrot

Put everything in the food processor and grind until smooth. Add more canning liquid if necessary to unthicken and anything else to taste. Let sit to blend flavors before serving.

Serves 4. Aprox 121 calories, 3.5 grams fat per serving.

Cornbread

This is my mother's recipe, developed through some trial and error. She wanted a denser, less sweet bread with more corn and whole grain than most commercial breads or mixes. It can hold its own with Idaho Chili or Mexican Beans without any trouble.

img via: the fresh loaf

1 1/2 cups cornmeal
3/4 cup white flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
1 t salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups nonfat buttermilk (or combine 1 1/2 cups skim milk and 1 t vinegar)
3 T melted butter or oil
1 whole egg
2 egg whites

Combine dry ingredients. Combine wet ingredients. Add wet to dry. Bake in sprayed pan 30-45 minutes.

Serves 9. Aprox 220 calories, 6 grams fat per serving.

Gazpacho

An easy summer soup. Served cold, it's great for parties or picnics! (Vegan note - contains honey.)

4 cups V8 juice
1 small onion, chopped
2 cups diced tomatoes
1 cup minced green pepper
1 t honey
1 clove garlic
1 diced cucumber
2 chopped scallions
juice of 1/2 lemon
juice of 1 lime
2 T wine vinegar
1 T olive oil
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 t tarragon
1 t basil
salt and pepper
dash tabasco

Combine all. Blend half of bulk and recombine. Chill.

Serves 8. Aprox 100 calories, 2 grams fat per serving.