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.

Gado Gado

This is a Moosewood recipe for a spicy peanut sauce, that I mostly remember eating over plain brown rice. It's something along the lines of the sauce that Noodles & Co. puts on the Indonesian Peanut Sauté dish, but a bit creamier and more ginger than heat.

1 c chopped onion
2 cloves garlic
1 bay leaf
1-2 t grated fresh ginger
1 c peanut butter
1 T honey
1/4 t cayenne pepper
juice of 1 lemon
1 T cider vinegar
3 c water
1/2 - 1 t salt
dash tamari

Cook onion, garlic, bay leaf, and ginger in sauce pan to soften onion. Add everything else. Simmer on low heat 30 minutes. Serve over grains, cooked veggies, tofu.

Note: A quick search for "Moosewood Gado Gado" comes up with a no-cook sauce that gets blended in the food processor. It uses 1 cup of peanut butter but only 1 1/2 cup of water, but it's hard to say which comes out thicker, since this one gets simmered down.

Cream of Carrot Soup

This actually came from Samantha's Cookbook, which I got in second grade or so, and used to make an entire four-course Victorian meal for my family, complete with hand-decorated menus and place cards. A quick look at the American Girl website shows that cookbooks are no longer a part of the "empowering girls through history" plan, but there are now a whopping twelve historical dolls available, only $95 each with the first book and basic outfit. Good greif.





Anyway, the soup. It's very good and just a little spicy. Or a lot spicy, if you're like me, and switch the salt and cayenne pepper measurements every dang time you make it.

 img via: i'm hungry on a budget

1 lb carrots
2 c vegetable broth
2 T butter
2 T flour
1/2 t salt
1/8 t cayenne pepper
1 c half & half

Peel carrots and cut into 1/2 inch slices. In a saucepan, bring carrots and broth to a boil. Then cook 20 minutes on medium-low heat, until the carrots are soft. Drain and SAVE the broth. Mash carrots.
In a large pot, melt butter, add flour and cook 1 minute on low heat. Add carrots, salt, and cayenne pepper. Slowly add broth and cook 10 minutes on medium-high heat.
Stirring constantly, add half & half. Bring soup back to hot, but do not allow to boil.
Serve with crackers.

Chana Pindi and Garam Masala

My dad decided to learn to cook Indian food a while back. It works because there are a lot of vegetarian recipes from some regions, and this is one of our favorites. It comes from the Bombay Palace Cookbook.

1 packet chana masala spice or 2 rounded T garam masala
1 t garam masala
1/2 t coriander
1/2 t cumin
1/2 t paprika
1/2 t tumeric
1/4 t cayenne
2c drained chickpeas
1 piece fresh ginger, minced
2 tomatoes, chopped, or 1 can tomatoes, drained
1/2 c water
1/4 c butter, melted
2 T chopped cilantro

Combine chickpeas, tomatoes, spices, and water in a skillet or wok. Save for later: butter, cilantro, half of the chana masala, and the tablespoon of garam masala.
Cover skillet and simmer 5-7 minutes to allow most of the water to evaporate.
Transfer chickpeas to serving dish. Pour melted butter over.
Sprinkle with cilantro, garam masala, and remaining chana masala.

McCormick sells a garam masala, but it's much sweeter than this blend. Bulk spices are shockingly cheap at my local Indian supermarkets, so check 'em out.
To make your own garam masala, grind together: 8 oz tumeric, 8 oz coriander, 8 oz cumin, 6 oz powdered sugar, 4 oz black peppercorns, 1 oz cardamom, 2 oz fennel seed, 2 oz mace, 1 oz whole cloves, 1 oz mustard seed, 1 oz poppy seed, 1 oz garlic powder, 1 oz fenugreek seed, and 1/2 oz cinnamon.
Store in an airtight container.