No school snow day potato stoup (1/2 soup, 1/2 stew)

 

Today we awoke to a beautiful layer of snow illustrative of an image Paul Bunyan could have created by sifting powered sugar over the city while we slept.  And that is all it takes to shut down Eugene!  We took the opportunity to warm up with an everything but the kitchen-sink spin-off of a potato soup. 

 

Here is what we used  . . .

7-10 russet potatoes- peeled & cut into 1-inch cubes

1 onion-diced

2-3 cloves of garlic

5 stalks of celery-chopped

10-12 slices of bacon-chopped

6 cups chicken stock

sage

marjoram

bay leaf

salt & pepper

In the pot you intend to make the stoup in cook bacon on medium-when bacon is down reserve 2/3 of it off to the side for topping.  Drain fat but leave the brown bits at the bottom-that is where all the flavor is!  Leave the pot on the burner and add the onions . . .

 

Once the onions have started to sweat add everything else in no particular order & season to your liking, stirring as needed to bring up flavor from bottom of pan and prevent anything from sticking.  Bring to boil and reduce heat to a simmer-cook until the potatoes are done. This process will vary-in total I think we let ours go about 30 minutes.

 

It smells amazing!

 

Sophie can't wait for a piece to fall on the ground.

The drool is accumulating . . .

 

Once the potatoes are soft carefully pour about half of stoup into a blender an let cool for a minute.  After most of the steam dissipates blend until mixture is smooth.

 

And pour back in pot . . .

Serve with garnish of bacon, sour cream, shredded cheese and chives (which I didn't have but will definitely next time!)

Cali's Cool and Refreshing Coleslaw . . . perfect for any hot summer night

I will be honest . . . I have NEVER liked coleslaw! But as of last night I have officially changed my mind. As a way to get away from heating up the kitchen, I was desperately searching for something to make that was cold. I found some left over cabbage in the fridge . . . and because I hate when I forget about produce in the fridge and it goes bad, I chose to make coleslaw. Actually, Cali made it! It was beyond easy and so delicious. It was the perfect sweet and tangy flavor. Even our son, the pickiest eater, loved it!

Ingredients

1/3 cup mayonnaise - we used Vegenaise, it tastes exactly the same and is dairy & egg FREE
3 tbsp white vinegar
1 tbsp agave nectar
2 tbsp rice milk
1/2 - 1 whole head of green cabbage - whatever you have on hand, next time we are going to use red cabbage as well
1 cup shredded carrots - we cheated and used Bunny Luv Organic shredded carrots
salt and pepper to taste

Method

Mix everything together in a bowl! Voila!

Herb Crusted Tofu . . . aka The Faux Chicken Nugget

If you have a young child who LOVES chicken nuggets, try this recipe. Our son is a chicken nugget fanatic and since he was 3, if you asked him, he would tell you without hesitation that his favorite food is chicken nuggets. As a healthier alternative, we have started making these and even my super-skeptical husband has admitted this is the closest chicken flavor and texture we have made. This simple recipe has become our favorite way to make tofu.

I was first introduced to herb crusted tofu at The Farm Restaurant in Portland a few years ago. Since we don't have the luxury of living close to them anymore, we have come up with another version. We paired it with steamed broccoli and garlic mashed potatoes. Normally I would have made the mashed potatoes from scratch but today was like 100 degrees and I had no desire to make the kitchen hotter than it already was, so I cheated and used Alexia Foods Garlic Mashed Red Potatoes. They were so easy and delicious!

Ingredients

1 block extra firm tofu
1/2 cup cooking sherry
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1 cup soy sauce
1 cup water

1 cup panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp poultry seasoning
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper

vegetable oil for pan-frying

Method

1. First rinse, drain, and press the tofu. Slice tofu into ideal shapes, I cut mine into 12 triangles.

2. Put tofu in medium bowl and pour in cooking sherry, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce and water. Put in fridge and allow to marinate for 30 minutes. Tofu acts like a sponge, the longer you marinate it, the more flavor you will get. You can adjust the marinating time and ratio of ingredients to suit your palate. While the tofu is marinating, prepare herb crusting and set up a skillet with vegetable oil.

3. In a shallow dish mix panko bread crumbs, flour, thyme, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper. Carefully dredge tofu cutlets into mixture and place in skillet with hot oil. Allow to cook for about 5 minutes on each side, or until a dark golden brown.


*A fantastic benefit to cooking with tofu is that it does not carry any nasty bacteria like salmonella in chicken, you can cook it to your liking and visual expectation. Essentially you can eat in its most raw form, so don't panic if you are worried about cooking it long enough.

Don't have ricotta? . . . use this instead

This ricotta stand in was perfect for our lasagna last night, and as you can see this was so much fun for my sous chef to make. No utensils required, just hands for squishing!

Stick all of the ingredients in a bowl and squish with hands, that's it!

1 pound firm tofu, pressed and drained
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes
handful fresh basil leaves, chopped fine
dash fresh black pepper

You can use this in any Italian recipe that calls for ricotta; lasagna, stuffed shells, etc. We put it right into the lasagna (sorry there is no pic, the camera ran out of batteries last night), or you can pop it in the fridge and use it up to a couple days later.

And it begins . . .

This is the first post of what I hope will become a tool to share our love for food and attempts to appease a family with dairy and soy intolerance, Gout, Hypothyroidism, and particularly picky palates. We choose to approach our diverse needs with a plant based cuisine that is fun and family friendly, and gets the kids involved!

Last night we made black bean and sour cream enchiladas! Here is the recipe

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 or 4 chicken cutlets - We used Gardein brand "chicken" cutlets
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
dash of black pepper
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 small can diced green chiles
3 tablespoons fresh, chopped cilantro
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 can green enchilada sauce
1 package large flour tortillas - We used locally made Carmen's corn tortillas
Up to 12 ounces sour cream - We used Tofutti "better than sour cream"
Up to 16 ounces of your favorite shredded cheese -We used Daiya shreds

This recipe takes hardly any prep, and it is SO good!

1. Put the olive oil in a large skillet. Saute "chicken", onions, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, chili powder, and black pepper at medium heat for about 6-7 minutes or until onions look pretty soft. Remove from heat, and add beans, green chiles, cilantro, and sea salt.

2. Grease a large baking dish with olive oil or Earth Balance, and pour half the can of enchilada sauce on the bottom of it. Lay out a tortilla, and spread about a tablespoon or so of sour cream, then add some beans and chicken mixture, and fold up, enchilada or burrito style. Place in prepared dish, and repeat with tortillas until there is no mixture left.

3. Once dish is filled, pour the rest of the can of enchilada sauce and 3/4 of the cheese on top. Cover and bake 30 minutes at 375 degrees. Uncover, add the rest of the cheese and bake an additional 5-7 minutes, until lightly browned on top. Serve with more cilantro and sour cream on top, if desired.


It filled my large casserole dish and we had enough leftovers for lunch. They were delish!