Roasted Portobello Caprese Salad

From Martha Stewart Living
Makes 4 servings
We made this a while back and are making it again tonight. Super tasty vegetarian option. We really enjoyed it!

8 portobello mushroom caps
2 garlic cloves, halved
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons coarse salt
Freshly ground pepper
3 medium tomatoes, sliced 3/4 inch thick (8 slices total)
1 bunch fresh basil
8 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced 1/2 inch thick (4 slices total)
4 cups arugula
Toasted bread, for serving (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place mushrooms and garlic on a rimmed baking sheet; coat with oil and vinegar. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt, and season with pepper. Roast, shaking sheet occasionally, for 20 minutes. Flip mushrooms and garlic to recoat with oil. Add tomatoes; flip to coat in oil, sprinkle with remaining teaspoon salt, and season with pepper. Roast until mushrooms are tender and tomatoes are soft, 20 minutes more.

Rub softened garlic onto mushrooms. Place 1 mushroom on each of 4 plates, and top each with some basil. Stack another mushroom and 1 mozzarella slice onto each. Layer more basil, 1 tomato slice, more basil, then another tomato onto each. Divide arugula among plates, and drizzle with pan juices. Serve with bread if desired.

Mary Jane's Lentil Soup

Very healthy and yummy soup - and my kids will even eat it! This is my slightly modified version after making this many, many times.

1 cup dry lentils
3/4 cup chopped onion
3/4 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup chopped carrots
3 Tbs. fresh parsley chopped (or 1 Tbs. dried)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp. salt
pinch crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
2 cups chopped tomatoes with juices (fresh or canned)

Rinse lentils; drain and place in soup kettle. Add 4 cups of water. Simmer covered until tender but not mushy (about 30-45 minutes). Meanwhile, saute all vegetables (except tomatoes) and herbs in 1-2 TBS. olive oil until tender (appx. 20 minutes). Add sauted vegetables and tomatoes to the undrained lentils. Simmer covered about 30 minutes longer. Season to taste.

Ponzonella

Yummm...We are a part of a food co-op now and we got 3 pints of cherry tomatoes this past week. I thought, "great, nobody likes tomatoes except Nate and I. How are we going to eat all these?" I pulled out a recipe I had written down a while ago and VOILA! instant success! Jake, at first glance upon sitting at the table said, "Augh! What did you do to that wonderful baquette!" Within seconds of the first bite..."Mom! You have to add this to our favorites list!" Abby, "tomatoes, at first taste are yucky but by the end they're delicious!" So, here goes, hopefully this will be as successful at your home.

5 C day old bread, cubed (or fresh baguette works too)
6 med sz tomatoes, cut in bite size pieces
1 red onion thinly sliced
1/2 C basil, chopped or shredded
1/4 C olives, kalamata or green & black or any combination

Wisk the following ingredients together, pour over the top of the salad, and toss:

1/2 C olive oil
1/4 C red wine vinegar
1/4 C lemon juice
1/4 C parsley
1/2 tsp. kosher salt

Shave parmesan cheese over the top!

If you like it soggier let it sit for an hour before serving.

Pasta with Carmelized Onion Sauce

Pasta with Carmelized Onion Sauce

From the New Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen

The proportions of ingredients in this recipe are somewhat flexible. You can play with the amounts of onions and greens, and you can substitute other leafy greens (collard, escarole, mustard, etc.) for the arugula or spinach. Other soft pungent cheeses can be substituted for the feta or blue cheese.

½ c olive oil

4 to 6 large onions (however many you have the patience to slice), thinly sliced (abt 6-8 cups)

½ tsp salt

½-1 cup dry white wine

1 medium bunch arugula or spinach, stemmed and minced

1 cup crumbled feta or blue cheese

¾ lb pasta ( a short, shapely variety, like penne or fussili)

1 cup chopped, toasted walnuts

Parmesan cheese

1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet or sauté pan. Add onions and sauté over medium heat for about 15 minutes. Add salt, lower heat, and continue to cook for at least another 10 minutes (and up to an hour for really deliciously well-done onions)
2. Add white wine, turn heat back up to medium, and simmer uncovered for about 15 minutes. At this point the sauce can be set aside until you are ready to cook the pasta.
3. Turn the heat back on under the sauce when you are ready to cook the pasta. When the onions are hot, add the chopped greens, stir, and cook for about 5 minutes. Stir in the crumbled cheese, and turn heat to low while cooking pasta.
4. After the cooked pasta is drained, add it to the sauce, and stir briefly in the pan before serving. Sprinkle with walnuts and parmesan, and serve.

COOK’S NOTES: I used the max amount of onions and cooked them for the max amount of time. They were fabulous! I highly recommend using some sort of a mandolin slicer like a V-Slicer if you are going to make the recipe. It speeds up the onion slicing significantly and gives you evenly thin slices. Also light a candle nearby to help quench the tears. I used spinach and blue cheese and loved it. I have not tried any of the other variations yet, but I’m sure they would be tasty as well. The white wine I used was Savignon Blanc. It is a nice dry white wine that I’m told is not too sweet. I have yet to learn the in’s and out’s of wines and their use in cooking. I usually just get what’s recommended to me and this was great. The sauce clumped together when I added the pasta, so I might recommend serving the sauce over individual portions, if you want to try and avoid that. Also, sprinkle the walnuts and parmesan to taste over each portion. They really add to the overall flavor of the dish. We loved it. Very different and delicious!

So, I tried it with the feta and LOVED it. If you're not a complete fan of blue cheese, the feta is fabulous. Van and I both think we liked it more. The taste between the two is very different, but what we liked about both versions is the complete difference from any other pasta dish we usually eat. It awakens an otherwise bored palate. :) hope you try and enjoy soon.

Sweet Potato Pancakes

Sweet Potato Pancakes
From The New Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen

These can be for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or supper, depending on what you serve them with (and of course, what time of day or night it is). The sweet potatoes and onion can be grated by hand or in a food processor fitted with the grating attachment. Peeling the sweet potato is optional. If you choose not to peel, scrub. NOTE: the batter stores well for several days if kept in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator.

4 cups (packed) coarsely grated sweet potatoes or yams (approx. 1 large or 2 medium sized)
½ c grated onion
3-4 Tbs. lemon juice
1 tsp salt
Black pepper, to taste
4 beaten eggs
1/3 c flour
Optional: ¼ c minced parsley
Oil for frying
TOPPINGS: sour cream or yogurt, applesauce

1. Combine all ingredients and mix well.
2. Heat a small amount of oil in a skillet until it is very hot (It should sizzle a fleck of batter upon contact).
3. Use a non-slotted spoon to form thin pancakes, patting the batter down. Fry on both sides until brown, adding small amounts of additional oil, if/as needed.
4. Serve hot, with toppings.


COOK’S NOTES: These are super tasty. I served them with both the sour cream and Pear Sauce, because I didn’t have applesauce, and both were very good. Be careful about how hot the pan is. You don’t need it to be higher than med-high heat or they will quickly scorch. You can use less oil to fry them as well, but they can burn faster that way. I didn’t use the parsley, but I’m sure it would have been good. I used 4 T lemon juice and it added a nice tang—we didn’t find them too lemony. Enjoy!

Quick simple terriyaki shiskabobs

OK, so I don't know how to spell it, but I marinated baby portabellos, green and red peppers, large garlic cloves, and onions for about an hour in:

1/4 C Soy
1/4 C sherry
1/4 C olive oil
1 tsp fresh grated ginger
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T brown sugar

Served it up with steamed fresh spinach and brown rice. Mmmmm....the kids loved it too!