Cameraphones are terrible cameras.

If, despite that awful photo, something about tonight's dinner appeals to you, proceed as follows.

Put on a pot of rice while you decide what should go with it. Drop in a couple bay leaves to flavor it while it cooks. Set the timer about halfway through since you forgot to set it when the rice came to a boil.

While the rice cooks, root through your pantry and the boxes that contain some pantry items (disregard this second part if you haven't just moved house). Eventually discover a can of black beans and a jar of salsa verde. Mexicanesque ideas will overwhelm you.

About now, the rice should be approximately halfway done. Or maybe even completely done if you used converted rice (which I don't recommend, but have in my house for some bizarre reason and need to use up). Wherever the rice is in its cooking process, you should chop up some cilantro. Or parsley. Or whatever you like. You should also look in the fridge and get out the salsa you made for Sunday's breakfast. It's a pretty fast recipe, so you could probably even make some salsa right now, if you want to inconvenience yourself for 3.5 minutes or so. Oh, and find some corn. Frozen, canned, whatever.

Now open up the black beans and the corn and the salsa verde (and do whatever needs to be done for your rice situation). Dump about half the bean juice out, and put in a quarter to half a cup of salsa verde. Microwave the beans for 2 minutes, or until hot. Get your rice off the stove and add a big handful of cilantro, a couple spoonsful of cilantro, and some corn. Stir it all up and make a plate.

Look at your plate and decide it's lacking in greenstuffs. Return to the fridge and find a bag of butter lettuce mix, but no satisfactory dressings. If you look behind the mountain of your fiance's Jell-O cups and move aside that 6 pack of Sam Adams Oktoberfest, you'll find a container of plain yogurt. Success! Now, go look in the makeshift pantry you keep in the (rarely used) bathroom and dig out the balsamic vinegar. Put some yogurt and balsamic in a tiny fish-shaped Japanese-style condiment dish and quickly discover that though cute, the dish is far too small to accomodate the amount of stirring necessary for blending a dressing. Stir it up anyway and wipe up the mess with a paper towel.

Drop a few handfuls of salad mix on the plate (and a few lettuce leaves on the floor), drizzle over the dressing, and, as an afterthought, crumble some queso fresco over the beans.

Put in a DVD (Rushmore, if'n you're sticking to my plan), settle in on the couch, being sure to hog the whole thing as the fiance is away at class, and enjoy your evening!

Now Even More Delicious!

I've posted a recipe for peanut sauce before, but reading the newest issue of Vegetarian Times gave me an idea for an even better version. It's simpler, tastier, and quicker to make. This is probably the best peanut sauce dish I've ever eaten. It's so great, in fact, that we ate it 3 times in one week.


Spicy Peanut Udon and Veggies

For the sauce:
- one third cup peanut butter (I like creamy, but crunchy would work, too)
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons Sriracha hot sauce, or to taste
- 2 cloves garlic, pressed or finely minced
- 2 teaspoons rice vinegar

- 6 oz udon noodles, cooked according to package directions
- 8 oz frozen vegetables, steamed or stir-fried (I used a mix including sugar snap peas, green beans, carrots, broccoli, water chestnuts, and red peppers)
- one-half cup frozen edamame (optional)
- 3 large scallions, diagonally sliced about one quarter inch thick
- one quarter cup chopped cilantro (cilantro haters may substitute basil or parsley)
- lime wedges (optional)

Whisk together the sauce ingredients in a large bowl with about a quarter cup of hot water (I used water from the boiling pasta pot). The sauce should be about the consistency of heavy cream, so thin it with additional hot water if necessary.

When the pasta and vegetables are cooked, add them to the sauce along with the frozen edamame, scallions, and cilantro. Toss well and serve with lime wedges. Serves 4.

I made a second version of this dish last week, which was just about as perfect as the original. It was after midnight, and we had spent the last 12 hours moving and cleaning. All I could find food-wise was a packet of ramen, a jar of peanut butter, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and Sriracha sauce. A very light dinner for 2 was had.

Midnight Peanut Ramen
- 1 packet ramen noodles (discard flavor packet if it isn't vegetarian friendly)
- 2 tablespoons peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha sauce

Cook ramen according to package directions. When noodles are done, add remaining ingredients (along with whatever else you might have in the pantry or fridge that sounds good) and stir well. Consume with gusto. Serves 2 as a midnight snack or 1 as a dinner soup.

The creamy, peanutty broth was particularly satisfying after a long day, and has set my mind to wondering about the possibilities of a peanut soup. Maybe with some coconut milk? Or even some roasted pumpkin? Perhaps when fall comes around I'll start working on that...

Mushroom Stroganoff

Yet another dish I never ate as a child unless you count convenience food versions. Hamburger Helper this time, rather than Campbell's Soup. Even though I never ate the real deal and only have photos and imagination to base this recipe on, I've managed to get carnivore approval on this one 3 times over!

- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 white onion, halved and cut in half inch slices
- 8 oz mushrooms, sliced (your choice, I've used white buttons and portabellas with equal success)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 can evaporated skim milk + half a can water (liquids at room temperature)
- half a teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 4 dashes vegetarian Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried dill (optional)
- salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- two-thirds cup frozen peas

Egg noodles tossed with parsley and butter
Sour cream or yogurt

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add one tablespoon of oil, mushrooms, onions and a pinch of salt. Stir well and cook, covered, for 2 minutes (If you've planned well, your pasta water is boiling. Put your egg noodles in during this step!). Watch out for a huge cloud of steam when you lift the lid. Now saute the onions and mushrooms until everything is soft and beginning to brown. Add in the garlic and cook until fragrant, just another minute or so. By now, the pan should be fairly dry, so go ahead and stir in the second tablespoon of oil, give it a minute to heat up, and then sprinkle the flour over everything. Stir well, until everything is coated with the floury roux, and then cook, stirring continuously for 2-3 minutes.

Continuing to stir constantly, pour in the canned milk and then just enough water to make a slightly-too-thin sauce. Bring to a boil, and then lower the heat to simmering. The sauce will begin to thicken. If it gets too thick, add a touch more water (preferably from the egg noodles you're cooking).

Stir in the Worcestershire, Dijon mustard, peas, dill, and season to taste. Cover and remove from heat. Allow to stand for 5 minutes to let the peas heat through. Spoon over egg noodles and top with a dollop of sour cream or yogurt.

Are you feeling sickly?

Vegetarian Chick'n Noodle Soup to the rescue! Now, to be honest, my mom never made chicken noodle soup from scratch. But she was a whiz at opening cans whenever she heard coughing and sniffly noses.

It may seem odd that I needed to make chick'n noodle soup for the first time when the high temperatures are topping 100F, but I had a need. I kept trying to tell myself to wait until the weather cooled off, that soup is more of a fall food, that I wasn't even feeling sick... but my mind kept coming back to it. When I walked past some Chicken Style Seitan at the health food store, I knew it was time.

This recipe marks my first time making any variety of chicken (or chick'n) noodle soup, my first time using seitan, and my first time eating chicken noodle soup not out of the red and white can.

I can offer up the testimony of 4 grownups, 1 four year old and 2 parrots that it was mighty tasty. It can be easily veganized by using eggless egg noodles or other pasta of your choice. Just make sure to adjust the noodle cooking directions to suit the pasta you're using.

- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 ribs celery, cut in quarter-inch dice
- 3 carrots, cut in quarter-inch dice
- 1 medium potato (approximately two-thirds cup), cut in quarter-inch dice
- 4 cloves garlic, crushed and roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 container chicken-style seitan (I used White Wave brand), roughly chopped and with juice reserved
- 6 to 8 cups vegan chicken-flavor stock (vegetable stock probably will not yield the same results)
- one quarter cup parsley, roughly chopped
- 1 teaspoon rosemary, finely chopped
- 2 cups wide egg noodles
- two-thirds cup frozen corn kernels
- one quarter cup white (shiro) miso
- half a teaspoon freshly ground pepper (or to taste)
- salt to taste

Heat a large soup pot over medium high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil to the pan and lightly fry the chopped seitan until most of the liquid has evaporated and the edges are beginning to brown. Remove the seitan from the pot and set aside. Add the second tablespoon of olive oil to the pot and dump in the celery, carrot, and onion along with a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are translucent and the vegetables are beginning to brown in places, approximately 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for one minute more.

Pour in 6 cups of stock and the cubed potatoes and then bring to a boil. Add the egg noodles, return the stock to a boil, and then turn down to a simmer. Simmer for 10-11 minutes or until the noodles are done. Return the seitan to the pot. Stir in corn, parsley, and rosemary, and cook until the corn is heated through. If you feel the soup is too chunky, add some or all of the reserved 2 cups of broth until the juice:stuff ratio suits your taste.

Finally, remove about a cup of broth and whisk in the miso. Stir the miso broth into the soup and taste for seasoning. Add salt and pepper as needed.

Excellent with challah and fruit salad, whether you've got the flu or not.

Song of the South?

Most of what I cook is influenced by foreign cuisines. Simple, easy, tasty, but not things that I ate as a child. I didn't eat tofu or fresh basil or balsamic vinegar or goat cheese or fresh cherries until I was a grownup who did my own grocery shopping. I love all those foods passionately, and unless cherries are out of season or I ate all the chevre the night before, you will always find those foods in my kitchen.

But sometimes, you just need to eat what you were raised on. I didn't have all day to cook up dry pinto beans, and I don't eat bacon, so making a pot of beans like my mama's was pretty much out of the question. However, I will say that I put together a mean red beans and rice on some pretty short notice. Okay, so the rice wasn't the Minute Rice my mom served me as a kid. But it was some beautiful Texmati rice that I think is a couple steps up from instant.

To make sure everything is ready about the same time, start cooking off the veggies for the beans, then put the rice on, and then put your cornbread muffins in the oven.

Red Beans and Rice
For the beans:
- 1 carrot, peeled and finely diced
- half an onion, finely chopped
- half a red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 rib of celery, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano or Italian seasoning
- half a cup chopped tomatoes (canned are fine)
- one quarter teaspoon of vegetarian Worcestershire sauce
- a few drops (like 3 or 4) Liquid Smoke
- sprinkling of Lousiana Crystal or Frank's Red Hot sauce
- 1 can pinto beans or red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- enough water or veggie stock to barely cover all this other stuff

Saute onion, pepper, carrot, and celery over medium heat until the onions begin to soften and turn translucent. Then add the garlic, tomatoes, and herbs and cook for 2-3 minutes or until fragrant. Dump in the beans, Worcestershire, liquid smoke, hot sauce, and barely cover with water or stock. (This is the time to put the rice on!) When I say "barely cover," I mean a few little bean tops may be breaking the surface here and there. Don't add too much liquid or you'll have bean soup instead of saucy beans!

Now turn the heat to medium-low, cover the beans, and simmer them until your rice is ready, or about 25-30 minutes. Check the consistency. If the bean juice is too soupy and not thick enough for your liking, take out a few spoonfuls of beans and veggies and squish them up. Return them to the pot and they'll thicken everything up nicely. Before serving, season to taste with salt, pepper, and hot sauce.

For the rice:
- 1 cup Texmati rice, rinsed until the water runs clear and drained well
- 1.25 cups water or veggie stock
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed slightly
- pinch salt
- coarsely ground black pepper to taste
- however much butter your conscience will allow

Put everything together in a saucepan with a tight fitting lid. Bring to a boil, stir once, cover, and lower the heat to medium and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to stand, still covered, for 10 minutes. Fluff with fork, add butter, and serve. This rice is really fantastic as a side dish to just about everything. Often I'll eat it for dinner with a big salad and a couple of boiled eggs.

Oh, and did I mention this is a three-fer? Or a four-fer if you count the cornbread muffins you'll be making from your favorite mix! On to dessert, my darlings! This crumble serves 2 generously. If you have more fruit to use up, multiply the other ingredients accordingly. One more hint: since there's very little sugar in this, it could be on the tart side. If you like sweeter desserts, please up the sugar to your taste.


Cherry Nectarine Crumble
- 2 slightly overripe nectarines, pitted and sliced
- half a cup fresh cherries, pitted and halved
- pinch nutmeg
- one quarter cup unsweetened apple juice
- one quarter teaspoon of almond extract or half a teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch

For the topping:
- one quarter cup flour
- one quarter cup rolled oats
- one quarter cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts or pecans
- 2 tablespoons shredded coconut
- pinch cinnamon and/or nutmeg
- pinch salt
- 2 tablespoons cold butter (I used Brummel & Brown, which is not butter, but worked nicely!)

Stir together all dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Cut or pinch the butter into small lumps, and then use your fingertips to rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture is crumbly and no chunks of butter remain.

Toss the fruit with cornstarch, almond or vanilla extract and nutmeg and dump into a sprayed or oiled small baking pan. Pour over the apple juice. My pan is a 6 inch round Pyrex dish with 1.5 inch sides, and this crumble fit perfectly in it. Crumble the crumble topping evenly over the fruit, making sure to cover the entire surface evenly. Bake at 350F for 25-30 minutes or until the juices are bubbling around the edge of the dish and the topping is golden brown.

Serve with yogurt for breakfast, or with a scoop of ice cream or frozen yogurt for dessert.

Spicy Orange Glazed Tofu

Spicy, citrusy, easy and quick. Better than takeout any day. Plus, now you know what to do with that jar of marmalade that's been lingering in the back of your fridge all this time!

- 1 brick tofu
- 1 tablespoon grated ginger
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1/4 tsp dried red pepper flakes
- 6 oz orange marmalade
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 3 scallions, chopped
- handful of chopped peanuts or cashews

Fry tofu triangles as in Soy Glazed Tofu, and remove from the skillet.

Add garlic, ginger, and pepper flakes to the hot oil remaining in the pan and stir briefly until fragrant. Add marmalade, vinegar, soy sauce and stir well. Return tofu triangles to the pan and cook until sauce is reduced to a glaze, coating all the tofu triangles evenly. Remove from heat, sprinkle with scallions and peanuts, and serve with steamed brown rice and green vegetable of your choice (kale or broccoli is good).

Peanut Sauce Party!

Saturday for lunch, I made noodles with sugar snap peas and peanut sauce. The peanut sauce was so good (and so abundant!) that we had it for dinner again tonight. No photos due to minor computer vs. camera issues, but trust me, it looked good. Having seen photos of food I've made that I thought looked and tasted delicious enough to show off, I'll leave it up to you to decide if you think your tastes will agree with mine.

Peanut Sauce:
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1.5 tbsp grated ginger root
- 0.5 cup peanut butter
- 0.5 cup soy sauce
- 0.5 cup rice vinegar
- 0.5 cup water or veggie stock
- 3 tbs brown sugar (if using unsweetened peanut butter)
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes (to your taste, we like it hella hot, so I used more and then we put Sriracha on it, too)
- 1 tbs hoisin sauce (if you don't have it, ketchup will work)
- 1 tbs cornstarch

Stuff to sauce:
This is pretty much up to you. It was good on Saturday with sugar snaps, cilantro, and scallions, but tonight I added some more stuff and liked it even better. I'm sure it would be good with chicken or shrimp (if you hate animals and want to eat them) and I know it would be tasty with tofu (that being my preference and all).
- 1 carrot, julienned
- 1 celery stalk, sliced on an angle
- 0.5 of a smallish onion or 5 scallions, cut into strips either way
- 6 oz sugar snap peas
- 1 tsp spicy mustard (I added this on a whim, you can leave it out)
- big handful of cilantro, chopped
- roasted peanuts, roughly chopped
- Oriental noodles, whichever kind is your favorite. I like wheat noodles, but if you like rice noodles or bean threads, have at it.

Put the pasta water on to boil, and heat up a skillet. While the noodles cook, add the onions, carrot, and celery to the skillet with a splash of soy sauce. Cook just until the onions start to turn translucent (not too long!), then put in the sugar snap peas, spoonful of mustard, and a tablespoon or so of the hot pasta water. Cover the pan, turn off the heat under the veggies, and let them hang out and steam until the noodles are done.

I had my sauce all ready to go from Saturday, so I don't have a pan-use-reducing solution for this one. Get out a saucepan and cook the garlic, ginger, and pepper flakes over medium heat just until they're fragrant. Stir the cornstarch into the veggie stock and set it aside. Then dump all the other sauce ingredients in and stir gently until they come to a simmer. It will look lumpy and gross, but trust me. When everything is simmering, dump in the cornstarch + broth slurry and simmer another minute. Sauce is done. Just keep it warm until you're ready to pour it over stuff.

Drain the noodles, reserving about half a cup of the cooking water to adjust the sauce consistency. Toss the veggies with the noodles with sauce, adding reserved pasta water as necessary. Sprinkle liberally with peanuts and cilantro before serving.

This made about 4 servings when I cooked about a 2 inch diameter bunch of noodles. Depending on your sauce usage, you'll probably have leftovers.

Everyday Sushi!

At our house, sushi is a quick hot-weather meal. It's done in just a bit more than the time it takes the rice to cook, is light but filling, and comes together quickly using whatever is in the fridge provided we have rice vinegar and nori (which we always do!).

For the rice:
- 1 cup white short-grain rice
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1.5 teaspoons sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt

And the rest of the supplies:
- 1 halved, pitted and sliced avocado, sprinkled with rice vinegar after slicing
- Five 8- by 7-inch pieces of toasted nori
- 1/2 cucumber
- 1/4 red bell pepper
- 1/2 stalk celery
- 1 oz cream cheese, cold, and cut into strips
- 1/2 carrot
- Thai Sweet Chili sauce
- wasabi (Japanese horseradish) paste
- pickled ginger as an accompaniment if desired

In a large fine sieve rinse the rice under running cold water until the water runs clear with no milky residue and drain it well. In a large heavy saucepan combine the rice with 1 1/4 cups water, bring the water to a boil, and simmer the rice, covered tightly, for 15 minutes, or until the water is absorbed and the rice is tender. Remove the pan from the heat, let the rice stand, covered tightly, for 10 minutes. Keep the rice warm and covered while you prepare the vinegar mixture. In a saucepan whisk together the vinegar, the sugar, and the salt, simmer the mixture until the sugar is dissolved, and let it cool. Sprinkle the rice with as much of the vinegar mixture as necessary to moisten it lightly (I used all of it, and it was perfect), tossing it carefully, and then cover it until you're ready to assemble the rolls. (Do not chill the rice.)

Cut all the veggies into thin strips. You've seen sushi, right? Thin strips like that. Use a big chef's knife to make your life easer and safer. If you have a mandoline, go crazy with that. My mandoline is hard to clean, so I just stick with my dear Mr. Wusthof.

Before making each roll, toast the nori sheet slightly. I preheat my toaster oven (just using the "toast" setting), and then put each sheet in there until I see it start to relax and warp just a little. Working with one sheet of nori at a time and with a long side facing you, spread about 3/4 cup of the rice in an even layer on each sheet, leaving a 1/2-inch border on the long sides, and about an inch border on the shorter side farthest from you. Keep a bowl of water nearby to dip your fingers in as you press out the rice to keep the rice from sticking to your hands. Arrange some of whichever veggies you want on the edge of the rice-covered nori closest to you (it will be a short edge), about half an inch from the edge of your rice. Combos I used:

- Avocado (this is my favorite. Just avocado, and lots of it.)
- Red pepper, carrot, and cucumber
- Red pepper carrot, cucumber and cream cheese
- Cream cheese, celery (or cucumber) and Thai sweet chili sauce (SO GOOD--2nd fave)
- Avocado, red pepper, and cucumber

Fold the edge of the nori and rice over your fillings, pressing gently but firmly so that the roll is tight and without air bubbles (it will stay together much better), and roll until only the final nori border is left. Moisten the edge of the nori with water, and finish the roll. Cut each roll with a dampened sharp knife into 3/4-inch-thick slices and serve the rolls with the soy sauce, the additional wasabi, and the ginger.

Quick Legume Lunch

I came up with this today using what was hanging around in the house. It's a really basic recipe that could be varied many, many ways.

- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 small can chopped green chiles
- 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 can vacuum packed corn, drained (or 1.5 cups frozen sweet corn)
- 4 oz lowfat cream cheese, cubed and at room temperature (or sour cream, or yogurt if you prefer)
- 2 tsp cumin
- Olive oil
- Cilantro
- Salt and pepper
- Cooked brown rice

Sautee the onions in the oil until translucent. Add the garlic and cumin, and stir until fragrant, no more than 2 minutes. Dump in the chiles, and fry one minute. Add corn and black beans, along with 1/2 cup water or veggie stock. Cover and simmer 5-10 minutes (you can skip the simmering if you're in a hurry, but I find black beans to be a little dry and fibrous if I don't cook them a little extra). Remove the lid, and continue simmering until most of the liquid has evaporated (or don't, if you want it to be saucier). Remove from the heat, and stir in the cream cheese until smooth and melty. Season to taste, add cilantro if you have it, and serve over brown rice.

Pretty tasty! In addition to cream cheese or sour cream (or a combination!), you could use half a can of condensed cream soup (cream of celery or cream of onion, or even cheese soup) for the dairy portion. Or you could leave it out entirely and just sprinkle on some grated monterrey jack or cheddar after it's dished up. You could even use vegan versions of everything if so inclined. Salsa would be good if you don't have any green chiles, maybe half a cup or so? Curry powder instead of (or in addition to) cumin, chickpeas instead of black beans, served with basmati rice! I might add a small can of diced tomates to that one, and use the yogurt for the dairy component.

Use your imagination, and vary this recipe according to what's in your kitchen and what sounds good to you!

Afternoon Snack

Half a cucumber, halved lengthwise, peeled, seeded and filled. On the left: shiro miso and cilantro. On the right: lowfat cream cheese, Thai sweet chili sauce, cilantro, and a drop of tamari. Not pictured: Pomegranate Black Cherry tea.

If I had them, I'd sprinkle sesame seeds all over both of them, and if I'd thought of it, I would have put green onions on the miso one.

Lentil Salad

I wanted a light, healthy dinner. Lentil salad fit the bill very nicely. My original plan was to serve the salad with broiled polenta rounds, but no polenta was to be had at the store, and I didn't want to exert the extra effort to make it from scratch.

Ballpark figures for the salad are as follows:

- 1 cup brown lentils
- 3 bay leaves
- large pot of water

- 4 small carrots, diced
- 1 large onion, sliced
- 5 oz baby spinach
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup balsamic or apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- lots of kosher salt and pepper

Heat large, heavy skillet until moderately hot. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, onions, carrots, and a pinch of salt. Stir to coat the veg with oil, then cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until about halfway cooked. Remove the cover, allow all liquid to evaporate, and then sauté until everything starts to brown around the edges. Turn off heat, top with spinach leaves, cover and set aside until lentils are cooked.

Cook the lentils as for pasta, i.e. in an excess of water. Bring the water to a boil (no salt!), add the picked and rinsed lentils and bay leaves, and cook 20 minutes or until soft but not mushy. Drain and add to skillet.

Add vinegar, remaining olive oil, freshly ground pepper, mustard, and salt to taste. Toss everything together. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary. I served this with slices of 9 grain bread spread with garlic-herb goat cheese.

Broiled or grilled polenta (perhaps topped with goat cheese!), hard boiled eggs, or a giant pile of salad greens would also be excellent accompaniments.

Tre Bruschettini

Pugliese sourdough bruschetta topped with (left to right) sauteed mushrooms and wilted baby spinach with garlic and pepperoncino, cannellini beans with pesto, and insalata caprese.

Fagioli con pesto
Open a can of white beans (canellini, great northern). Rinse and drain. Open a jar of Classico Pesto. Put 2 big blobs in with the beans and toss GENTLY. The beans are really delicate, so be careful.

Spinaci e funghi
Cook sliced mushrooms (4 oz) in a little oil until brown. Add sliced garlic and hot pepper flakes and stir until fragrant (less than a minute since your oil is hot). Toss several handfuls of spinach (5 oz) in and put a lid on. Remove pan from heat. Add a splash of balsamic vinegar (1.5 tablespoons?), salt and pepper just before putting on toast.

Insalata Caprese
Cut smallish tomatoes into halves or quarters. Cube some mozzarella (2 parts tomatoes to 1 part mozzarella). Salt and pepper generously. Roll up some basil leaves (4 biggish ones) and cut into chiffonade. Add to tomatoes and cheese, then drizzle with extra virgin olive oil (1.5 tablespoons or so).

Bruschetti
I made everything before starting the toasting process. I brushed sliced bread with olive oil, and broiled until golden and crispy, then rubbed each slice with a fresh garlic clove. The hot toasty bread acts like a grater and rasps off a little bit of the garlic. You might could leave it out, but I feel like it adds another dimension of spiciness and flavor. It's subtle, but with certain bruschetta toppings, indispensable.

When the toasts are done and rubbed, throw them on a plate and top generously. Then eat!

Ziti Florentine

So simple, so fast, and really insanely good. Tailor all the amounts to how many people you're serving. Just use the amounts suggested on the respective boxes of products and unless lumberjacks are dining with you, you should be okay.

Take ziti and cook it. While it's cooking, heat up some spaghetti sauce (I used Classico Marinara, but I really love all the Barilla sauces best) and defrost some spinach in the microwave. When the spinach is about halfway defrosted, grate or press a clove of garlic in with it and stir it up. Finish defrosting. When the pasta is done, return it to the pot and add the spinach, sauce, noodles, and about 2 ounces of cubed mozzarella (one ounce per serving is about right). Stir gently and serve immediately with garlic bread and a nice big salad with some vinaigrette.

Texas Caviar

- 1 can black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
- 1 can chopped green chiles, drained and large, annoying pieces of skin removed
- 1 large red bell pepper (or half a red and half a yellow pepper), seeded and diced
- 1 can vaccuum packed corn, drained
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- 1 clove garlic, pressed
- 1 finely minced jalapeno
- 1 small tomato or 5 cherry tomatoes, seeded and diced (very optional--if the tomatoes aren't beautiful, please omit!)
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (optional--better for salad, not necessary for salsa)
- salt and pepper to taste

Mix everything together in a large bowl. Allow to stand, covered, at room temperature for at least an hour for best flavors. Serve over greens as a salad (baby spinach is particularly nice), or with chips for a chunky, nutrient rich salsa. Also fantastic over basmati or brown rice. I don't bother to heat it. I just serve up the room temperature Texas caviar with the fresh, hot rice. Seems like it might also be good over fish or chicken, especially if you added some fruit. Peaches would be nice (preserving the Texanness), or mango. Cucumbers are good in there, too. They add a nice crunch if you're eating it as a salad.

Oh, Necessity. You have the best children!

Last night, I really wanted to eat my favorite meal from my college days. Sesame Tofu and Veggies with Thai tea from Mr. Chopsticks in Denton.

Problem? Mr. Chopsticks is over an hour away, it was 11:00 at night, and I was already in my pajamas.

Solution? A well stocked Asian pantry and inspiration from the internet!

I didn't have any sesame seeds, and I glazed the tofu rather than making a sauce. At Mr. Chopsticks, they tempura batter and fry all the veggies before tossing them with the sauce, and I had neither the ingredients nor the inclination for that. Still turned out pretty good.

Soy Glazed Tofu
- 1 brick extra firm tofu
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 3 chopped scallions

Cut the tofu into 1/4" thick slices (each brick makes 8 slices), and then into triangles (4 triangles per slice). Heat a cast iron skillet until drops of water bead up and roll around when flicked in the pan. Add oil. Arrange tofu triangles in a single layer , without crowding, and fry (without disturbing!) for 3-4 minutes or until they begin to turn brown at the edges and lift off the skillet easily. Flip tofu, and fry the second side until golden and crispy. Remove and set aside as tofu triangles finsh cooking. Repeat for any tofu that wouldn't fit in the first batch.

Stir together brown sugar, soy sauce, and rice vinegar. Return all tofu to skillet, and pour in the glaze mixture. The glaze mixture will bubble and pop, so be careful! Stir gently until glaze thickens and coats all the tofu, making each piece shiny and delicious!

Sprinkle with scallions (and sesame seeds if you have them!) and serve with steamed broccoli and brown rice.

What's for breakfast?

Scrambled farmhouse eggs with fresh spinach, sweet corn, cilantro, and jack cheese, topped with homemade salsa. And in keeping with the Mexican theme, chips instead of toast!

The picture is a little blurry, sorry. It looked clear on the camera viewfinder, and I was too hungry to check closely or take 12753 pictures like I usually do.

For the eggs:
- 6 eggs from your grandma's hens, whisked with a few tablespoons water
- 2 big handfuls of baby spinach, chopped
- 1 regular sized handful of cilantro, chopped
- half a can of vacuum packed corn kernels
- 1.5-2 ounces grated monterrey jack cheese
- salt and pepper to taste

Preheat a medium skillet over medium heat. Not too hot--the secret to good scrambled eggs is not to cook them too fast. I cook scrambled eggs at about 3 on my burner dial, which is low simmering level. Add oil, and then eggs. Scramble the eggs for a minute or two until they start to thicken, then add the spinach and corn. Continue to scramble until the eggs are nearly done, but still slightly moist, then add the cheese, cilantro salt and pepper, cover and remove from heat. Removing the eggs from the heat while they're still slightly underdone will allow the heat of the pan to finish cooking them and ensure that you won't have overcooked eggs. Serves 1 lumberjack and 1 regular appetite, or 3 regular people.

For the salsa:
- half a red onion, roughly chopped
- big handful of cilantro, large stems removed
- 1 regular sized can of diced tomatoes
- juice of 1 lime or lemon
- 1 fresh jalapeno or serrano pepper, roughly chopped
- salt to taste, and maybe a tiny pinch of sugar if your jalapeno is exceptionally hot
- 1 stick blender (makes this a very quick task)

Drain all the tomato juice and half of the tomatoes into the bottom of a tall, narrow container. Add cilantro, lime juice, onions, and jalapeno. Blend until no large chunks of jalapeno are left and the onion is pretty well chopped. This usually takes 15-30 seconds. The mixture will be rough, not like a smooth puree. Don't overprocess it or it will be runny. Add the remaining tomatoes and blend for 10 seconds or so. Allow salsa to stand about 10 minutes, then taste. Add salt and sugar (if necessary). Makes about 16 ounces.