Red Lentil Patties with Cilantro Sauce

This comes from the Healthy Hedonist and is similar to but different enough from the Red Lentil and Chickpea Burgers. I made this wed and as usually happens with Myra Kornfelf recipes about ate it all before it even got to the table!

I rec doubling the sauce. DH thought that the bean mixture (before shaping into patties) would make a great dip with some added seasonings- either curry for an indian and a bit unusual dip or mexican/hot pepper seasonings.

Red Lentil Patties with Cilantro Sauce
Healthy Hedonist
1 cup basmati rice (I subbed Red Bhutanese rice as she suggested)
1/2 cup red lentils
4 cups water
1/2 teaspoon ground tumeric
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons plus 4 teaspoons coconut oil, sesame oil, or ghee (I used sesame oil)
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
2 cups finely diced onions
1/4 teaspoons hot red pepper flakes
1/4 cup arrowroot powder
Cilantro Sauce- recipe follows

Wash the rice and lentils, and drain them. Place them in a medium saucepan and add the water, turmeric, and salt. Cover and bring to a boil. Then lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Uncover the pan and simmer, without stirring, until the water is absorbed, 15 minutes. (This took closer to 25- I wonder if its because I used the Red Bhutanese rice. It still looked kinda soupy but the recipe worked great anyway.)

Meanwhile, warm the 2 tablespoons oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and saute until fragrant, 1 minute. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until well browned, about 12 minutes. Stir in the red pepper flakes and remove the skillet from the heat. Add the mixture to the cooked rice and lentils. Stir to combine. Taste, and add salt if necessary. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and let it sit until cool enough to handle, about 20 minutes.

Spread the arrowroot on a large plate. Form the lentil mixture into 8 patties. Dredge the patties in the arrowroot, and place them on a clean plate.Heat 2 teaspoons of the oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 4 patties and saute until golden, about 2 minutes per side. Repeat with the remaining oil and patties. Serve warm, drizzled with the Cilantro Sauce.


Cilantro Sauce
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup unsweeten coconut milk, stirred before measuring
1 jalapeno chile, stemmed and seeded
1 garlic cloveone 1-inch piece fresh ginger
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Combine all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. The sauce will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to 5 days.

This weeks menus

DH was out of town so it was just me this week.

Sun- we golfed so dinner was out- pizza from a local chain- first time I had pizza from there since going almost vegan. I had the veggie with no cheese and it was very good! DH had the cheeseburger pizza.

Mon- giant salad with lots of veggies from my csa box and two new greens from the farmer at the next table- boma and water greens. Both were excellent in the salad and steamed. I liked the sweetness of the water greens better fresh and the complex flavor of the boma steamed. Brushetta- homemade tomato topping, Tomato Pomadoro, over the semolina bread.

Tues- Breakfast was a radish sandwich. I golf 18 holes and walked so Chinese for dinner tonight. Hunan Bean Curd- yum!

Wed- Giant salad and leftover steamed greens.

Thurs- Sauteed yellow squash with tempeh bacon for lunch and then Roasted Cauliflower, Wild Mushrooms, and Chickpeas with Horseradish Creme for dinner. The Horseradish Creme was also good on the last of the leftover Semolina bread.

A great rice salad

This is perfect for summer picnics, pot lucks at work or in the neighborhood, or just a great side for dinner. I love the asian flavors and its easy to play with. I've used edamame or green peas in place of the green beans (and I always almost double the green beans!) and brown basmati rice instead of plain white. For the brown rice, I just add a smidge more seasonings. This has been a tried and true for many years and I still love it.

5 flamingos for everything!

Cashew Rice Salad
Beyond the Moon Cookbook

1 1/2 cups basmati rice
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 heaping tablespoons peeled and minced fresh ginger
1/2 cup finely chopped carrot (1 medium carrot)- tg for pampered chef's chopper!
2 cups diagonally sliced green beans (1/2 pound)
1 large red bell pepper, seeded and cut into thin, 1 1/2-inch-long slices (1cup)
5 scallions, diagonally sliced
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
3/4 cup coarsely chopped roasted cashews (I add more- dh is fond of cashews)
3 tablespoons tamari or soy sauce
3 tablespoons sesame oil
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt (I omit this)

Cook the rice and then place in a medium or large-sized bowl.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Saute the ginger, carrot, and green beans, adding 2 tablespoons of water after a minute of two. After 2 to 3 minutes more, stir in the red bell pepper, and continue to cook until the beans are just tender, 2 to 3 minutes.

Stir the sauteed veggies into the rice along with the scallions, cilantro, and half the cashews.

Whisk the tamari with the sesame oil, vinegar, and salt. Stir the dressing into the salad. Garnish with the remaining cashews, and serve at room temperature.

6 servings

Chickpea Crepes with Wild Mushrooms, Roasted Cauliflower, and Chickpea Filling with Horseradish "Cream"

This does have unusual flavors but they work so well together. It reminded me a bit of my polish grandmom's kitchen. I took some advice and added the mushrooms to the pan of roasting cauliflower after 10 minutes so they both finished at the same time. I made this without the crepes and served it in a rimmed soup bowl. Not soupy at all though. I also used a sweet onion and red cabbage and it was still good.

5 flamingos for taste
4 for effort- this is a weekend meal

Chickpea Crepes with Wild Mushroom, Roasted Cauliflower, and Chickpea Filling
The Voluptuous Vegan

1/2 medium head of cauliflower, cut into florets (3 C)
3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
1/4 lb fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, sliced
1 Tbsp shoyu
1/2 oz dried porcinis
2 medium onions, thinly sliced (2 C)
1 Tbsp minced shallot
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 green cabbage, thinly sliced (3 cups)
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground caraway seeds
1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas or 1 15-oz can, drained & rinsed
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
Fresh ground black pepper
1/4 C chopped dill, plus 2 Tbsp for garnish
12 chickpea crepes (below)
Arugula, for garnish

Preheat oven to 375. In a bowl, toss the cauliflower with 1 Tbsp of the olive oil and 1/4 tsp salt. Place on a parchment-covered baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until the tops are browned.

Meanwhile, mix the sliced shiitake mushrooms with 1 Tbsp oil and add the shoyu. Place on a baking sheet and roast for about 20 min, stirring a couple of times, until the mushrooms have released their juices and become quite dry. Set aside the shiitakes and cauliflower.

Rinse the dried pocinis. In a small bowl, pour 1 C hot water over them and soak for 15 minutes.Warm the remaining Tbsp of oil in a medium saucepan and add the onions. Cook over low heat for 10 to 12 minutes, or until softened. Add the shallots, garlic, cabbage, cumin, and caraway, stir and cook 5 minutes, or until the cabbage has completely wilted.Pour the pocinis and liquid through 2 layers of paper towels in a strainer. Reserve the soaking liquid. Rinse the porcinis to remove any remining dirt and chop into small pieces. Add the chickpeas, shiitakes, cauliflower, and porcinis to the vegetable mixture. Combine the porcini soaking liquid with enough water to make 2 cups and add to the vegetables.

Simmer 10 minutes. Add the lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat and stir in the dill. Fold each crepe around 1/2 C of filling. Center two on a plate and sprinkle with dill. Tuck a few leaves of arugula under the crepes.

Chickpea Crepes
1 C chickpea flour
1 C unbleached white flour
1 tsp salt
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 C warm water
2 tbsp finely chopped chives

In a medium bowl whisk together the flours and salt. Add the oil and water and whisk to combine, then transfer to a blender and thoroughly blend ingredients together. Alternatively, use an immersion blender. Pour the batter back into a bowl and stir in the chives. Allow the batter to rest for at least 20 minutes. At this point, the batter can be refrigerated for up to a day.
Heat a 6-7 inch crepe pan over medium heat. Lightly oil the pan using an oil-saturated paper towel. Pour 1/4 C batter onto the pan, tilting the pan in a circular motion so that the batter covers the entire surface. Cook until the surface bubbles and the crepe becomes golden around the edges, about 1 min. Loosen the edges with a spatula, then with the spatula - or your hands - flip it. Cook the second side for about 30 seconds.

Transfer the cooked crepe to a plate and continue making crepes, lightly oiling hte pan between each, until the batter is finished.

Horseradish "cream"
1/2 lb soft tofu
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
3 Tbsp canola oil
2 Tbsp brown rice vinegar
3/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp white pepper
1/2 C minced red onion
1 Tbsp fresh chopped dill
2 tsp prepared horseradish

In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine the tofu, lemon juice, oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper and process until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the remaining ingredients.

Bruschetta Pomodoro

The Semolina Bread recipe suggested using the bread to make bruschetta. This recipe from Cooking Light has lots of my favorite things including fresh tomatoes, Kalamata olives, fresh basil, and capers. It is delicious and works great on the bread.

Bruschetta Pomodoro
Cooking Light, September 1997
Pomodoro is Italian for "tomato."

2 cups minced plum tomato (about 3/4 pound)
1 1/2 teaspoons capers
2 tablespoons chopped kalamata olives
1 tablespoon chopped red onion
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1/8 teaspoon pepper
10 (1/2-inch-thick) slices diagonally cut French bread baguette, toasted

Combine all the ingredients except French bread; cover and let stand 30 minutes. Drain the tomato mixture. Top each bread slice with 1 tablespoon of tomato mixture.
Yield: 10 servings

CALORIES 95 (20% from fat); FAT 2.6g (sat 0.4g,mono 1.4g,poly 0.5g); PROTEIN 2.2g; CHOLESTEROL 1mg; CALCIUM 15mg; SODIUM 255mg; FIBER 1.1g; IRON 0.8mg; CARBOHYDRATE 15.8g

Semolina Bread and Radish Sandwich

I'm back to playing the Sunday Game of the Week on Cooking Light's Great Food Boards. The cookbook this week is age based and mine turned out to be The Bread Lovers Bread Machine Cookbook by Beth Hensperger. I've been wanting to make some bread and I have some semolina flour that I bought for pizza but decided that I like the cornmeal better so I want to use this up. I found this recipe and it doesn't need any modificatios although I used half of the olive oil called for. I made a radish sandwich for lunch today using this bread and wow! the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. YUM! Brushetta tomorrow!

Semolina Country Bread

Pane di Semola is made using a simple straight dough. Be sure to use the finely ground semolina flour that is used for making pasta rather than the coarser grind that is similar to farina, a protein-rich flour also ground from durum wheat. This bread is a good one to choose if you will be using the Delay Timer. It is fantastic warm with garlic butter melting in, and also makes great bruschetta.

2-pound loaf
1 3/4 cup water
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 1/4 cups bread flour
1 3/4 cups semolina flour
2 tablespoons seesame seeds
1 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon gluten
2 teaspoons salt
2 1/4 teaspoons SAF yeast or 2 3/4 teaspoons bread machine yeast

Place all the ingredients in the pan according to the order in the manufacturer's instructions. Set crust on dark and program for the French Bread or Basic cycle; press Start. (This recipe may be made using the Delay Timer.)When the baking cycle ends, immediately remove the bread from the pan and place it on a rack. Let cool to room temperature before slicing.

Spanish Omelet

I made this Tuesday. I am trying to do better with the photography and now maybe video!

The omelet was very tasty although I would have liked more saffron flavor to have come through. DH's version was very close to the recipe as posted just no onions. My version, cooked separately, had onion but was not put in an omelet but served over steamed kale. I love kale- the filling was great on its own and I had the leftovers for lunch minus the kale (and egg!)

4 1/2 flamingos for taste and ease for both DH and I.

Spanish Omelet with Peas, Potatoes, and Saffron
A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen

Salt
1/2 pound red potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1/2-inch dice
1/2 pound peas in pod, shelled (about 2/3 cup)
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads, crumbled between your fingers
6 large eggs
freshly ground black pepper

Bring about 1 quart water to boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add salt to taste and the potatoes and cook until the potatoes are just beginning to soften but are not at all mushy, about 7 minutes. Add the peas and continue to cook until the veggies are barely tender, about 3 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool slightly.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a medium ovenproof nonstick skillet over medium heat. (I used a regular skillet and it didn't stick.) Add the onion and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook until softened, about 8 to 10 minutes. (If the onion starts to brown, lower the heat.) Add the saffron and cook until aromatic, about 1 minute. Set the pan asite to let the onions cool slightly.

With a fork, beat the eggs, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and several grindings of pepper together in a medium bowl until well combined. Beat in the peas, potatoes, and onions, scraping the skillet as clean as possible.

Move an oven rack to the top position and heat the broiler. Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon oil in the empty skillet over medium-low heat. When the pan is hot, swirl the oil to coat the pan bottom evenly (and sides if using a reg skillet!). Add the egg mixture and cook, occasionally sliding a spatula around the edges of the pan to loosen the omelet, until the bottom of the omelet is golden brown and the eggs are runny just on top, about 8 minutes.

Place the pan directly under the broiler and cook just until the top is golden brown and set, 1 to 2 minutes. Watch carefully to prevent the omelet from burning.

Remove the pan from the broiler. The omelet can be cooled to room temp in the pan if desired. Once cooked, the omelet can be removed from the pan whole and chilled for several hours. Cut the omelet into wedges and serve.