Portabella Mushrooms with Avocado Chimichurri Sauce

I’ve been so lax with my blogging lately - for lots of reasons but mostly I’ve been gardening; at home, at the Hopkins Community Garden, at Vera’s Garden, and soon Karamu Communal Garden - I guess you could say I like to plant things, let’s hope they all grow.

We’ve also just returned from a 12-day vacation in Europe. We traveled with friends starting in Prague and then on a Viking River Cruise from Regensburg to Budapest. We had some good and some not-so-good weather but the sights were beautiful - we even took a bike excursion around the Inn River in Passau, Germany. 

Now we’re back, the garden is planted, flowers are in pots and the peonies will bloom this week - Summer has arrived. 

Dan did his traditional Memorial Day camping with his family last weekend and I had a weekend of cleaning out flower beds and hanging out with friends. 

Last night we decided to grill some portabella mushrooms with zucchini and onions and I tossed together a chimichurri sauce for the mushrooms - it was quick. It added something that I always feel is missing when grilling mushrooms. 

Ingredients:

3 portabella mushrooms, cleaned and trimmed 

3 T balsamic vinegar

2 T olive oil

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 salt and pepper

1/4 tsp paprika

Chimichurri Sauce

1.5 cups finely chopped cilantro

2-3 cloves garlic (minced)

1/4 cup chopped onion

1/4 tsp red pepper flake

2 Tbsp olive oil 

2 red wine vinegar 

1/2 tsp each sea salt and black pepper

1 small ripe avocado, cubed

Instructions:

Clean mushrooms. Combine all marinade ingredients in a shallow container and add mushrooms - marinade for 10 minutes on each side. 

In a medium bowl combine all ingredients for the chimichurri sauce and set aside. 

Grill mushrooms put them on your plate and add the sauce. It’s that easy!

Here's to Summer - may she treat us well and improve our garden harvest!

Thanks for stopping by! 

Mighty Microgreens -Little Greens with a Powerful Nutrient Punch

Last night we had dinner with friends and it was brought to my attention that I have not blogged in quite some time - almost a month to be exact. I guess that’s what happens when you have a lot going on. 

I’ve been working on my garden design and thinking about moving our front lawn from pretty grass to more flowers and a bee lawn mainly because pretty grass is just too hard to maintain and I have other things I’d rather do with my time. 

The garlic in the veggie garden has emerged and it looks like it will be a good crop - fingers crossed. The crazy Spring weather has me wondering when to begin planting. I’ve got some spinach growing in winter sowing jugs - but it’s not doing much - we need more sun and warmth. 

I’m planning to add some new veggies - okra, patty pan squash, and some lemon cucumbers and I’ve got all my seeds purchased just waiting for some real growing weather, which to be honest doesn’t arrive in Minnesota until mid to late May. So while I wait I’ll clean garden tools, finalize my growing plan, and read. 

You may recall I mentioned a Master Gardener class for Microgreens in my last post - it’s come full circle. The class, which will be held on May 1st & 2nd, is in the final stages. Microgreens are planted, slides are ready and we have our activities and tastings all planned. 

Microgreens (aka vegetable confetti) are very young vegetable greens that are harvested when

they are 1–3 inches tall. They consist of the stem of the plant and 1-2 leaf pairs. They are low in calories and high in fiber, are good sources of vitamins A, C, E, and K, have many minerals and antioxidants, and have as much as 4 to 40 times the nutritional content of mature vegetables. The best part, they can be grown year-round.

Mighty microgreens are also pretty easy to grow; you can grow them in soil, use hemp or fiber mats, or hydroponically. With just a few items - soil or mat or water, a container, seeds, and water you can get started and in about 2 weeks they are ready to be harvested and enjoyed. 

Many vegetables can be grown as microgreens from broccoli, kale, and chard, which are mild to radish, mustard, and arugula, which are spicy to peas and sunflowers, which are crisp there are many options. You can use microgreens in many ways; add them to a salad, as a replacement for lettuce in tacos, as a nutrient punch to a smoothie, or my favorite on avocado toast - yum. 

I’m on my third batch of microgreens and today I harvested some broccoli and used them on top of my avocado toast. I started with a slice of toasted seeded bread, mashed avocado, added a little salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes, and then topped with the microgreens - a quick and delicious breakfast. 

Enjoy your greens and thanks for stopping by!

Jackfruit and Black Bean Enchiladas

Happy Spring! The days are getting longer and I love waking up and finding out that the sun has gotten up before me. It’s time for the snow to melt - like now!

The gardening season is beginning to heat up. I’ve been working on a Master Gardener project about microgreens. I’ve learned so much and I’ve started to grow some on my own. There are so many options from spicy radish to sweet broccoli - the options are amazing. 

We’ve been laying low recently and trying to empty out the freezer and pantry. I had a can of jackfruit that I purchased a while ago and it just seemed like a good time to use it. If you haven’t heard of jackfruit before - it is a tropical tree fruit grown in Asia, Africa, and South America. It belongs to the same plant family as figs and mulberries. It’s very versatile; if you use it when it’s green it is a great replacement for meat especially BBQ meats as it has a neutral flavor and nice texture. If you let it ripen it is sweet and delicious. 

To get started, I did some Pinterest searching and found several possibilities but decided on enchiladas - mainly because we haven’t had them in ages. So, I chopped, sautéed, stuffed, and baked - the result was delicious. 

Ingredients:

2 T olive oil

1 can jackfruit - shredded

2 T chopped cilantro

2 - 3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1/4 tsp salt

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 onion - diced

1 1/2 cup delicata squash, seeded and chopped in small pieces

10 corn or wheat tortillas

vegan cheddar cheese 

1 small can of diced green chiles

1 1/4 cups enchilada sauce

 Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Coat a baking dish with cooking spray
2. Drain and shred jackfruit. 
3. Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet. Add onions and saute until translucent. Add jackfruit, squash, cilantro, garlic, smoked paprika, and salt, and cook over medium heat for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the black beans, and 4 tablespoons of the enchilada sauce and continue cooking for 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat, mix well, and set aside
4. Spread ½ cup of enchilada sauce on the bottom of the baking dish. Spread 1 tsp of the enchilada sauce on each tortilla. Fill each tortilla with a heaping amount of the jackfruit mixture.  Roll them and place them seam-side down on the baking dish.  Spread the remaining enchilada sauce in the middle of the rolled tortillas, leaving the ends without sauce
5. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the aluminum foil, and sprinkle the remaining cheese and diced chiles as desired. Bake, uncovered until the cheese is melted. Serve warm

Vegan Italian Wedding Soup

Good news, bad news. The good news is that Dan is just about over his cold and is feeling ready to be out and about. The bad news is that he gave it to me and I am feeling crummy. 

We’ve been cautiously going out - flew to Ft Myers Florida to visit my sister (masks on the plane), eating out once in a while, and for the first time since 2018 we went to the Home and Garden Show, which is where we think Dan got the bad cold from. 

I have also been meeting with other Master Gardeners at a few events, although most of those are asking for masks. We have still not gotten COVID, which means we are doing something right, right? I think in time COVID will be like the flu, we will get an annual vaccination and move on. This is not to diminish the incredible loss many people have felt during the pandemic. My heart goes out to you and your families.

When Dan was feeling bad I made a batch of Vegan Italian Wedding Soup - it was so good. Carrots, onions, and celery sautéed in olive oil then add veggie broth and orzo pasta and finally some vegan meatballs from Aldi (they are soy based but delicious) the result is a delicious and tasty soup that warms your soul. And the leftovers tonight have definitely warmed me up. 

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

2 medium carrots, diced

2 stalks of celery, diced including leaves

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup dry white wine

8 cups vegetable broth

1 teaspoon dried thyme

3 large handfuls of spinach  

1 package Earth Balance Vegan Italian Meatballs (from Aldi)

Instructions:

Coat the bottom of a large pot with olive oil and place it over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion, carrots and celery. 

Sauté until the veggies begin to soften a bit, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté until very fragrant, about 1 minute more. Stir in the wine and bring it to a simmer. Cook until reduced by about half, about 4 minutes. 

Add in the broth and thyme and raise the heat to high. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and allow to simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Stir in the orzo and spinach. Continue to simmer until the orzo is fully cooked and the spinach is tender about 8 minutes.

While the soup is cooking place the entire bag of vegan meatballs on a baking tray and bake according to the package directions

Ladle the soup into bowls, then add a few meatballs to each bowl. serve.

For those of you who know about Dan's robot passion, here is a little sneak peek of his new project - I love the faces!

Thanks for stopping by!

Garlic, Mushroom, Cauliflower, and Veggie Sausage Bake

Ever have one of those days where you look into the fridge and say OMG I totally forgot about X, Y, or Z - well today was one of those days. Last week I bought a head of cauliflower with the intention of making buffalo cauliflower tacos. I also purchased mushrooms for - not sure what the reason was but they looked delicious. 

I did a quick Pinterest ingredient search and found a delicious cauliflower, mushroom, and garlic dish. I added some veggie sausage and a green salad and - voila dinner. 

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter (or ghee)
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1/2 head cauliflower, cut into florets
• 1 pound (500 g) mushrooms, cleaned
• 2 field roast veggies sausages - chopped
• 2 tablespoons low-sodium vegetable stock
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions:

1. Heat the butter and oil in a large pan or skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onion until softened (about 3 minutes).

2. Add the mushrooms and cook for about 4-5 minutes on all sides. Make sure the mushrooms render as much moisture as possible. Brown them a little more if necessary, to avoid the side dish becoming soggy at the end. Keep an eye on it so they don’t burn either ;)

3. Once mushrooms are well browned, add cauliflower florets. Cook until golden and crispy on the edges, about 10 - 12 minutes. Veggies must be well-browned.

4. Pour in the vegetable stock and cook for 2 minutes, to reduce the sauce slightly.

5. Add thyme, 1 tablespoon of parsley, garlic, and veggie sausage. Cook the mushrooms and cauliflower until the veggie sausage is warm. Season generously with salt and pepper, sprinkle with remaining parsley, and serve.

Thanks for stopping by!

Root Vegetable Biryani

Still cold, still slippery, and still winter. January is my least favorite month mainly because it’s too early to get my vegetable seeds started, the health club is packed with all the New Year’s resolution people (I know I know they’ll be gone in a few weeks), and the Master Gardener season is quiet. Tomorrow, however, things should pick up - I get to meet the interns I will be mentoring this year - I’m excited. 

I’ve also been considering converting some of Dan’s favorite Indian dishes - like Chicken Biryani - and making them vegetarian. Last night I pulled out the recipe that his mom uses and decided it was a good time to experiment. I chopped, sliced, blitzed, sautéed, and baked until it was done. 

One thing to note - root vegetables i.e. carrots, turnips, etc hold up and are better in this dish than zucchini or eggplant so keep that in mind when choosing your vegetables. I originally thought I had too many vegetables, but 2 cups of raw rice make about 6 cups cooked so it was fine. We served it with a couple chutneys (coconut and tomato) that we had on hand - it was delicious and it looks like we’ll be having leftovers for a few days and according to Dan - that is great.

Vegetables:

4 medium to large carrots - peeled and cut into chunks

2 onions - chopped

4 small turnips - peeled and chopped

1 large delicata squash - cut in half, seeds removed, and then sliced

1 small head of broccoli - break into florets

1/2 head cauliflower - break into florets

Mix vegetables in a large bowl with the following:

olive oil 

3T coriander powder

2T cumin powder

1tsp turmeric 

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 - 2 tsp red pepper

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp cloves

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

In a blender add:

6 cloves garlic

2 large jalapeno peppers

1/2 cup water

1-inch chunk of grated ginger

Pour 1/2 of the blender mixture over the veggies and roast 400-degree oven for 25 minutes.

Rice

2 cups brown basmati rice washed and drained.  

2 cinnamon sticks

4 cloves

4 cardamom pods

2t salt

1t turmeric

1/2 cup oil

Fry rice in 1/2 cup of oil until kernels are opaque.  Put rice in a roaster or cake pan.  

Fry 2 cinnamon sticks, 4 cloves, and 4 cardamom pods.  Add 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp turmeric, and the blender mixture (garlic/jalapeño/ginger mixture).

Add the fried spices and blender mixture to the rice plus 4 cups of water. Cover and bake rice for 1/2 hour at 350 - stir once halfway through. 

Remove rice from the oven and add the roasted vegetables to the rice - bake another 30 - 40 minutes (covered) until vegetables are tender. If the rice is still firm, add more liquid and bake for an additional 20 - 30 minutes. 

Toppings:

Fry 1 cup raisins in butter until puffed (or if preferred soak raisins in warm water for 1/2 hour until puffed and then fry in less butter just to coat). Add 1 cup of cashews and mix.

Serve with tomato-yogurt raita.

1-pint yogurt (unflavored) - can use non-dairy i.e. almond, coconut, or oat

1/2 tsp salt

1 T sugar

Chop 1 large tomato, and add onion to taste.  Mix all together and add fresh cilantro to taste

2023 Book Update - I'm an avid reader as well as a cook. This year I will be adding a short shout-out to my post about what I've been reading. If you've read the book or have book suggestions, please put them in the comments below. 

For those of you science fiction fans - I recently finished Cetaganda - book 9 in the Vorkosigan Saga written by Lois McMasters Bujold - if you are a fan it’s a must-read. The book was written back in 1996 so it’s likely you’ve read it if you are a fan.

Fabulous Focaccia

It’s January 16th and already I am so so over Minnesota weather - complete with ice dams, rain, snow, and ice, you name it we’ve had it. And if the weather is not enough, the refrigerator in our bar area died - and I didn’t find it until things had gone south. I had to toss all of my pesto, some apple butter, and part of this year's tomato sauce - ugh. The good news is the new fridge will be here on Monday.

On Sunday we had Dan’s dad and a friend over for dinner. I’ll start by saying my father-in-law is the easiest person to have over for dinner; he’ll eat pretty much anything, never complains, and is always complimentary and grateful - you can’t ask for an easier guest. 

We had some turkey in the freezer leftover from Christmas dinner and some butternut squash to go with it. I added a salad, some onion gravy, and garlic, rosemary, and thyme focaccia. 

I found a recipe that mixed everything together in a single bowl (as opposed to blooming the yeast/sugar first) and I decided to give it a try. After an hour of rising, which was what the recipe called for, it was still sad and lonely. I decided to turn on the oven and let it rise on top and after an hour it was ready to bake. I topped it with minced garlic and fresh rosemary and thyme from my indoor garden and baked it for about 35 minutes. 

As you can see I tried a little corner before Dan took the photo - it smelled so good, I couldn't help myself!

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil, to drizzle onto the pan

Dough:

1 1/2 cups warm water

3T olive oil

1 1/4 t salt

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon instant yeast or active dry yeast

Toppings:

1 teaspoon sea salt flakes or kosher salt

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon chopped rosemary

1 tablespoon chopped oregano

Instructions:

Drizzle about 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a 9" x 13" pan.

Combine all of the Dough ingredients, and beat at high speed with an electric mixer for 60 seconds.

Scoop the sticky batter into the prepared pan, cover the pan, and let it rise in a warm place for at least 1.5 hours.

While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).

Gently poke the dough all over with your index finger. 

Drizzle dough with olive oil and add toppings. 

Bake @ 375 for approximately 30 - 35 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes. Turn bread out on a rack and cut it into pieces - serve warm or at room temperature.