roasted zucchini with parmesan

 At first I thought this roasted zucchini with parmesan was kind of meh, but I ate a heap and I do like the flavor and the texture, so it's a keeper for sure.  

Ingredients

• 4 small zucchini ends trimmed, quartered lengthwise
• ⅓ cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 ½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
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• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs such as parsley, basil, dill, or a mix (optional)

 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Coat a cooling rack with nonstick spray and place on a rimmed baking sheet. In a small bowl, stir together the Parmesan, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Place the zucchini in a large bowl. Drizzle with the oil and sprinkle with the Parmesan mixture. Toss to coat, then arrange the zucchini on top of the cooling rack on the prepared baking sheet, being careful not to overlap the spears. Place in the oven and bake until the zucchini is tender, about 12 to 15 minutes. Turn the oven to broil. Cook until the Parmesan is lightly crisp on top, about 2 to 3 minutes. Don’t walk away! The second you stop watching the cheese, it will decide to burn. Remove the zucchini from the oven and immediately squeeze the lemon juice over the top. Sprinkle with herbs. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.

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white bean vegetable soup

 Isn't it great when you have all the ingredients for what you're craving?  Score!  Celery to use up, an onion about to turn, canned tomatoes I need to start using, a tub of "baby" greens to start working on. Idea from here. 

Ingredients

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2-3 carrots, chopped
• 2-3 celery stalks, chopped
• 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp thyme
• fresh rosemary or 1/2 tsp dried
• 1 jar of canned tomatoes
• 2 jars of white beans or cooked equivalent - if from a can, rinse and drain
• 2-4 cups broth 
  
• salt & pepper
• bay leaf
• a few handfuls of chopped greens 
  
• parmesan
• parsley (optional)
  

Process

• Heat olive oil, saute onion, carrot, celery for several minutes until softened.
• Add garlic a minute, then add herbs.
• When aromatic, add tomatoes and beans.
• Add broth (less if tomatoes with juice, less if bean liquid included).  
• Cook about 20 minutes.
• Stir in the greens and cook a couple of minutes.
• Stir in parmesan.
  
• Top with parsley if desired.
  
• Add
  

green borscht

 I picked up some sorrel at the farmers market and what to make, what to make?  This recipe for green borscht popped up.  I made it vegetarian because I don't care for pork, and I didn't put the raw egg in because I don't care for egg drop soup and such, though I did put in hard boiled eggs.  

Ingredients

• 500 grams Young Potatoes cubed
• 200 grams Sorrel fresh
• 1 Onion
• 1 Carrot
• 4 hardboiled eggs
• 1 raw egg
  
• 1 tbsp Sour Cream or Smetana if you can find it
• 2 Bay Leaves
• Salt to taste
• Pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp Oil

Instructions

1. Bring broth to boil; add in the potatoes and bring back up to a boil. Let cook for 10 minutes.

 2.  While the potatoes are cooking quickly fry some grated onion and carrot in a pan with a bit of oil. Add to the borscht and give everything a stir. Also chop up the hard boiled eggs and add that in. 3.  In a small bowl beat together an egg and the sour cream. Swirl the pot of boiling borscht and slowly pour in the egg mixture so it cooks immediately as it hits the soup. 4.  Turn off the heat and add in the chopped sorrel. Give everything a good stir and let sit for a few minutes before serving. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust as needed.

millet beet salad

 Idea taken from here.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup dry millet - cooking instructions from here
• 1 cup water or broth 
• 1 large beet or 1 jar of canned beets
• 1/2 lemon, juiced or 2 T lemon juice
• 2 T olive oil
• salt, pepper
• large garlic clove, pressed
• 2 T coarsely chopped almonds
• arugula or other salad green
  

Lightly toast millet for 4-5 minutes in pot, then add 1 cup water or broth and cook for 15 minutes.  Remove from heat, let sit for 10 minutes, then fluff.

Make dressing: mix together lemon juice, oil, salt & pepper, garlic.  Stir into millet.  Add drained beet, almonds, serve with arugula.

broccoli quinoa salad

 This is a quite tasty salad from the NYT found here. Broccoli was looking good at the farmers market so it came home and I had just read this recipe on-line, so now it's made.  It's good.  A little strange, and we'll see how it is in a few days because it makes a lot.  I'll probably stuff it in a pita for breakfast, as I'm liking my days better when they start with vegetables. 

Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 servings 

• Kosher salt
• 1cup quinoa, rinsed
• 1lemon
• 3tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3tablespoons Dijon mustard (maybe start with 2 - it seemed a little mustard heavy)
• (recipe called for 2tablespoons honey but I deleted that and added some extra ACV)
• 2tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1large bunch broccoli (about 1½ pounds)
• 1medium tart and crisp apple
• 4ounces sharp Cheddar
• ¾cup toasted pecans, roughly chopped
• ½cup dried cranberries (I used dried cherries)

Preparation

1. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil on high and season aggressively with salt. Add the quinoa, then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer; cook until plump and tender, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a fine-mesh sieve; rinse with cool water and drain well.

2. While the quinoa cooks, finely grate the zest of the lemon into a large bowl then cut the lemon in half. Add the olive oil, mustard, honey and apple cider vinegar, plus the juice of ½ lemon; whisk together. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
   
3. Peel the stem of the broccoli and trim off the dry end. Finely chop the entire broccoli and add to the dressing. Core the apple then finely chop the apple and the cheese; add to the broccoli and toss to combine.

4. Add the cooked quinoa, nuts and cranberries and toss to combine. Taste and add more salt, pepper and lemon juice, as needed. Store, refrigerated, for up to 3 days.

millet greens salad

 I took the idea from here, and it would be good with asparagus and basil but I didn't feel like shopping so plan to use what I have on hand and I'll eat it with sardines.  

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup millet
• 1 1/2 cup vegetable broth 
  
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup sherry or red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  
• 1/4 cup minced onion
• pepper, salt
• 4 cups baby arugula 
  
• 1 cup dried cherries
• 1/2 cup herbs (using mint today; basil would be good as in recipe) 
• other vegetables such as roasted asparagus 
• pepitas or other nuts/seeds

 Directions

Cook the millet - rinse well, then toast for a few minutes in a dry skillet, then add to heated broth and cook for 20 minutes.  Fluff, let rest off heat for 10 minutes, let cool. 

Make dressing: whisk together oil, vinegar, mustard, salt & pepper in a large bowl.  Add in onion.  Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.  

 

cocoa hemp hearts bites

 I somehow convinced myself to get a very large bag of hemp hearts at Costco, and I need to use them up.  So, this recipe for cocoa hemp hearts bites caught my attention.  They're quite tasty, especially with the cocoa doubled and adding some vanilla and salt.  I like the coconut taste and texture, and the peanut butter is there but not overwhelming.  I made about 26 of them, which I'll freeze and take out from time to time to keep a stash in the fridge when I'm wanting a treat.  Edit: continuing to change up the proportions.  Below is latest incarnation. 

Cocoa Hemp Heart Bites

1/2 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup hemp hearts 

1/2 cup flaked or shredded coconut

1/2 cup cocoa powder

 

10 - 12 pitted dates

1/2 tsp vanilla

a bit of salt if the nut butter is unsalted 

3/4 cup peanut butter (or alternate nut butter) 

Using a food processor or heavy duty blender, blend together the oats, hemp hearts, coconut, and cocoa.  Next add the dates, vanilla, and optional salt, pulsing until they break down. Add the peanut butter and pulse until well incorporated. 

 

Roll the dough into small balls (bites!), and freeze or refrigerate.