Vegetable Soup with Thai Flavors

My first exposure to Thai food was many years ago, and the dish was tom yum gai, an explosively flavorful soup.  I fell in love immediately.  Fast forward to today, when I made this incredibly easy soup that is not quite tom yum gai, and not quite Thai, to be frank.  But its flavor is definitely in the ballpark.  It has a serious punch of lime, lemongrass, cilantro, and onion, with a spicy kick to round it out.  It is, in a word, yummy.

This soup also happens to be extremely healthy, completely vegetarian, and cheap to put together.  It's another one to add to the ever growing "remind me to make this next time I have a cold" list.  But there's no need to wait to get sick. 

And a cheater's note:  you can buy crushed lemongrass in a tube in the produce section.  If you opt to go that route instead of buying fresh, use about two inches.

Vegetable Soup with Thai Flavors

adapted from Bon Appetit

serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

pinch of salt

4 cups low sodium vegetable broth

1 four-inch piece lemongrass, smashed with back of knife

1 tablespoon Sriracha sauce (Asian chili sauce)

1 five-oz. package baby spinach

1 cup 1/2-inch cubes extra firm tofu

juice of 2 limes

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Heat oil in a heavy soup pot over medium-low heat.  Add onion and garlic, and season with a pinch of salt.  Saute until tender, stirring often, about 15 minutes.

2.  Add broth, lemongrass, and Sriracha.  Increase heat; cover and bring to a boil.  Turn off the heat and let stand for about 15 minutes.  Uncover, remove the lemongrass and discard.

3.  Add spinach, tofu, lime juice, and cilantro to broth.  Place over medium heat and cook until spinach wilts, and tofu is heated through, stirring occasionally.  Serve.

Enjoy!

Roasted Potatoes with Bacon, Leeks and Sage

Well hello, fall comfort food.  Thank you for turning up on my dinner plate.

This is such an easy dish that showcases some incredible fall flavors.  Baby fingerling potatoes, crispy and brown on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside?  Check.  Pungent fresh sage leaves, turned crispy after a visit to the oven?  Check.  Roasted leeks and crispy bacon to tie it all together with a power chord of flavor?  Check.

It's that simple.  And it's that good.  This sounds like a side dish, but trust me, you won't need anything else.

Roasted Potatoes with Bacon, Leeks and Sage

adapted from Bon Appetit

serves 2 as a main course, 4 as a side dish

INGREDIENTS:

1 strip of bacon, chopped

1 pound of baby fingerling potatoes, halved

1 leek, white and light green parts only, chopped

5 or 6 fresh sage leaves, coarsely chopped

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Preheat oven (preferably toaster oven) to 375.  Line a baking sheet with foil.

2.  Heat a small skillet over medium heat.  Add the bacon pieces and cook until browned and crispy.  Remove with a slotted spoon and place on paper towels to drain.

3.  Toss the potatoes, leek, and sage with the olive oil (and drippings from the bacon, if you like, in which case reduce the amount of oil).  Season lightly with salt and pepper, place on the baking sheet, and bake for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are getting evenly browned, and leeks and sage are getting crispy.

4.  Add the bacon pieces and toss everything together.  Raise oven temperature to 400 and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, or until everything is browned and crispy, and potatoes are tender.  Serve.

Enjoy!

Beef with Broccoli

Beef with broccoli was always one of my favorite things to order in Chinese restaurants. I had oodles of broccoli in the fridge that needed to be used, so I thought I'd partake in my monthly beef in the form of one of my favorite Asian dishes.

This is a very easy recipe. Like any stir fry, it requires that you do all the prep work first before you start cooking. You need to be ready to throw things into the pan and keep an eye on them, keeping things moving almost constantly. Don't try to multitask here. Follow the directions and you'll be rewarded with a flavorful, reminiscent-of-takeout-from-your-favorite-Chinese-joint meal.

If you want to make it spicy, chop up a chile and throw it in with the veggies. Or if you want to just add a hint of extra flavor, sprinkle toasted sesame seeds over the top of your meal before serving.

Beef with Broccoli
adapted from Bon Appetit Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook
serves 3

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 pound thin ribeye or flank steak
4 1/2 tablespoons plus 1/2 cup low sodium vegetable broth
2 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons dry white wine
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
2 cups broccoli florets
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

DIRECTIONS:

1. Trim excess fat from steak. Cut it into evenly sized pieces, no more than 1/4 inch thick and 3 inches long. Combine beef, 1 1/2 tablespoons broth, 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, 1 tablespoon cornstarch, and 1 tablespoon soy sauce in a medium bowl and stir to coat. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

2. In a small bowl, combine 3 tablespoons broth, wine, sesame oil, remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch and 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce in a small bowl for sauce, stirring to dissolve cornstarch completely.

3. Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a heavy large skillet over high heat. Add beef with marinade and stir fry until no longer pink, about 1 1/2 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

4. Add remaining 1/2 tablespoon of oil to pan and heat over high heat. Add ginger; stir carefully (oil will spit at you) for about 30 seconds. Add broccoli and stir fry until dark green, about 1 minute. Add bell pepper and remaining 1/2 cup broth. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 3 minutes, or until broccoli is crisp tender.

5. Return beef and juices to the skillet. Stir the sauce in its small bowl, and add to the skillet, tossing and stirring until sauce thickens, about 30 seconds. Serve over rice, or on its own.

Enjoy!

Pasta with Braised Kale

In honor of World Vegetarian Day (yes, that's a real thing, apparently), I made a delicious, meatless pasta dinner tonight. It features our good old friend kale, braised for about twenty minutes with onion and garlic, doused with lemon juice at the last moment, and tossed with pasta. It's simple, wholesome, and yum.

This is a great introduction to kale, for those of you who haven't tried it yet, or just haven't introduced it to your diners yet. It's much more approachable when tender and mixed with everyone's favorite starchy food.

Pasta with Braised Kale
adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine
serves 2-3

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
salt
1 bunch kale, large stems removed, torn into chunks and rinsed
1/3 pound whole wheat linguine or spaghetti
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon finely grated parmesan

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and cook until soft and translucent, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes. Add garlic and sprinkle with salt; cook until onion is golden brown, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes.

2. Add kale (still wet from rinsing) and remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil and toss until just wilted, about 2 to 3 minutes. Cover the pot and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, and adding a little bit of water now and then if it becomes dry, until kale is very tender, about 20 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, bring a medium pot of water to a boil and salt it. Cook pasta until al dente, according to package directions. Reserve about 1/4 cup pasta cooking water before draining the pasta. Add drained pasta to the kale pot.

4. Add lemon juice and a tablespoon of the pasta cooking water and toss everything together. If it's too dry, add more pasta water (you probably won't need to). Serve topped with a little bit of parmesan.

Enjoy!

Chard Risotto

I'm sure I've said it before, but risotto is the ultimate comfort food for me. It's relaxing to make, and incredibly satisfying to eat. Even a very basic risotto with no meat or vegetables is tasty, but I love bumping it up to a full meal by adding things to it.

I had a gorgeous bunch of rainbow chard, and decided to try my hand at incorporating it into a risotto. The result was magnificent. Incredibly hearty and comforting, and absolutely packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants to make me feel good about eating it.

This is a bit more brothy than your typical risotto, but it's not quite a soup. Something about it just felt like if I were coming down with a cold, this would be the recipe to help knock it out of the park.

If you haven't experimented much with chard, I encourage you to let this be your gateway recipe. I think it may have trumped kale as my favorite leafy green. It's softer, like spinach, but it doesn't get mushy when it wilts. I think we'll be seeing it a bit more in this blog, just so you know!

Chard Risotto
adapted from Bon Appetit's Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook
serves 3

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 large onion, chopped
3/4 cups arborio rice
3 cups coarsely chopped rainbow or red chard leaves
1/4 cup red wine
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan
salt and pepper
2 scallions, thinly sliced

DIRECTIONS:

1. Bring broth to a simmer in a small pot, and keep warm.

2. In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in arborio rice to coat with the oil, and then add the chard. It will fill up the pot completely, but be patient and stir carefully until it starts to wilt, about 3 minutes. Add wine and stir. Cook until mostly absorbed, about 2 minutes.

3. Add the broth and stir. Bring to a simmer, stirring frequently, until the broth is almost completely absorbed and the rice is starchy and creamy, about 20 minutes. Stir in parmesan and salt and pepper to taste. Serve topped with the scallions.

Enjoy!

Beet, Chickpea and Almond Dip

No, this is not a recipe for hot pink play-dough. On the contrary - it's a recipe for a sophisticated, yet simple and healthy dip. This is a great one for parties, as people will scratch their heads trying to figure out what on earth is in that mysterious pink dip.

It's beets, people. Beets. The much-maligned root vegetable that has recently become trendy in upscale restaurants. It's no wonder that beet juice is used to add color and sweetness to other dishes, when you see what happens to it in a food processor.

Even people who think they don't like beets will probably like this dip. It is like a garlicky hummus, only instead of tahini, you have beets and almonds! It's spicy and sweet at once, with a very pleasing smooth texture just waiting to be slathered on a crunchy pita chip.

Beet, Chickpea and Almond Dip
adapted from Bon Appetit's Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook
makes 2 cups

INGREDIENTS:

salt
1 large beet, peeled and chopped into chunks
1 cup rinsed and drained canned chickpeas
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil (or more if needed)
1/4 cup slivered almonds
4 small garlic cloves, peeled
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
freshly ground pepper

DIRECTIONS:

1. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil over high heat. Salt it and add the beet chunks. Cook until tender, about 12 minutes. Drain and add beet chunks to food processor.

2. Add chickpeas, olive oil, almonds and garlic to food processor and process until smooth. If it's too thick, stream in a smidge more olive oil. Add red wine vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste. Process again until smooth. Serve with pita chips or fresh pita bread wedges.

Enjoy!

Polenta with Chiles and Cheese

We've discussed polenta before, and my intense love of this apparently controversial grain. The texture isn't for everyone, I suppose. But for me it is like having cornbread in a more socially acceptable form for a side dish. Pretty fabulous. And it's more versatile than you might think; case in point with this recipe. Add some Mexican flavors, including cheese, chiles and cilantro, and you suddenly have a whole meal centered around this lovely little yellow grain.

I was hoping that by baking this casserole, the polenta would get firm and solid, but it still maintained its porridge-y texture. That didn't make it any less delicious, but I think next time I might make it with less liquid. Or perhaps bake it a bit longer and see what happens.

Serve this with a green salad and prepare for the party in your mouth!

Polenta with Chiles and Cheese
adapted from Bon Appetit's Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook
serves 4-6

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups skim milk
1 1/2 cups low sodium vegetable broth
3/4 cup yellow cornmeal (polenta)
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan
1 7-ounce can whole green chiles, drained
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
2/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
4 oz. Monterey Jack cheese, grated
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

DIRECTIONS:

1. Grease an 8x8 baking dish. Combine milk, broth, cornmeal, garlic, and salt in a heavy medium saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, whisking constantly. Cook until polenta is tender and thickened, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in parmesan.

2. Pour half of polenta into prepared baking dish. Cover with half of chiles and half of corn. Sprinkle with half of cilantro and jack cheese. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons cream. Spoon remaining polenta evenly over, top with remaining chiles, corn, cilantro and cheese, and pour remaining cream over the top.

3. Up to this step, you can prepare ahead, cover, and refrigerate. When ready to cook, preheat oven to 400. Bake uncovered until heated through, puffed, and golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Grilled Steak Sandwiches with Chimichurri

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. When you restrict your beef intake to a once a month thing (as I do), you'd better make that once a month experience really worthwhile. Here is an excellent and easy recipe that certainly accomplishes this. It's absolutely brimming with intense flavor, and is so satisfying you won't believe it. Yes, it's that good.

Chimichurri is Argentina's answer to pesto, and I have to say, I think it wins. Pesto is fabulous too (and will be featured later this week), but chimichurri is simply incredible. It's spicy and herby, and with good quality extra virgin olive oil, it's a heavenly sauce to dollop on grilled meat or veggies. And it's super cheap to make!

So here it is, grilled steak with bell peppers and chimichurri, placed inside a beautiful crusty roll. Friends, meet dinner.

Grilled Steak Sandwiches with Chimichurri
adapted from Bon Appetit Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook
serves 2

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1 1/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, peeled
1/4 teapsoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons quality EVOO
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 bell pepper, seeded, cut into 3/4-inch strips
10 ounce rib-eye steak (3/4 to 1 inch thick)
2 crusty rolls, warmed

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a food processor, process the parsley, cilantro, vinegar, garlic, red pepper, and 1/3 cup EVOO until almost, but not quite, smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

2. Preheat grill pan (or outdoor grill) over medium-high heat. Brush the steak and bell pepper strips on both sides with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Grill the peppers for about 4 minutes on each side, until just tender. Grill steak about 5-6 minutes on each side for medium-rare, or to desired doneness. Set aside and let the steak rest a few minutes.

3. Slice the steak thinly. Assemble sandwich as follows: steak slices on bottom bun, topped with chimichurri sauce (up to 1/4 cup per sandwich), then peppers, then put on the top bun. Serve immediately.

Be warned that you might get messy eating this. But it is sooo worth it. Enjoy!

Spice-Rubbed Chicken & Veggie Soft Tacos

My husband and I love Mexican food. It's bordering on an obsession, really. I almost never make it at home, though, and I'm seeking to rectify that. Tonight's meal wasn't exactly authentic, I'm sure, but it was extremely tasty and healthy. And easy. Are you starting to see a theme in my cooking??

The key to success in this recipe is the spice rub. It absolutely makes the dish. It gives this great, complex spiciness to the chicken and red pepper that is difficult to identify unless you know what's in it. When you put the chicken on the hot grill, the spice rub forms a magnificent sort of skin around the chicken.

As for the slaw, I used broccoli slaw mix, and it was tasty but a bit strange. You might want to stick with a more traditional cabbage slaw, unless you're feeling adventurous.

Spice-Rubbed Chicken & Veggie Soft Tacos
adapted from Bon Appetit's Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook
serves 2

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon golden brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic salt
1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into strips
cooking spray
1 large boneless skinless chicken breast, pounded to 1/2 inch thick
2 cups coleslaw (or broccoli slaw) mix
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
juice of one lime
1 tablespoon canola oil
4 warm corn tortillas

1. Preheat a grill pan over medium-high heat. While it's heating, combine the first four ingredients in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the chicken and rub into it with your fingertips, both sides.

2. Spray a small amount of cooking spray on the strips of red pepper. Rub the spice rub into the pepper strips. When the grill is preheated, spray with cooking spray. Cook the chicken breast and pepper strips, turning once or twice, until peppers are tender and chicken is cooked through, about 5-7 minutes. Slice the chicken into strips.

3. While chicken and veggies are cooking, combine slaw mix, cilantro, lime juice, and canola oil in a large bowl. Toss.

4. Assemble the tacos: distribute chicken and pepper strips among the four tortillas, and top with slaw. Serve.

It's nothing fancy, but it tastes amazing and you won't need to be rolled home afterward. Enjoy!

Asparagus Soup

Our enjoyment of asparagus season continues. Here it takes the form of a delicious, refreshing soup. And I'd like to make a (strong) recommendation - that you make this soup and serve it alongside its best friend, the grilled cheese sandwich. (April is Grilled Cheese month, as you may know).

This soup is velvety, flavorful, with a hint of lemon and a strong dose of asparagus. You can almost feel the nutrients seeping into you. In a good way.

Asparagus Soup
adapted from Bon Appetit's Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook
serves 2

INGREDIENTS:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 large onion, coarsely chopped
1 bunch of asparagus, trimmed and chopped into 2-inch pieces
leaves from 3 sprigs of thyme
14 oz. low sodium vegetable broth
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest

DIRECTIONS:

1. Melt butter in a heavy soup pot or Dutch oven. Add onion and saute for about 5 minutes, until softened. Add asparagus and thyme and stir to coat with the butter. Add broth and bring to a simmer.

2. Cook until asparagus is tender, about 5 minutes. Puree in batches in a blender, or use an immersion blender. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with the lemon zest sprinkled over the top.

Don't forget the grilled cheese! Although I suppose something classy like crostini or fresh crusty bread would be good too. Enjoy.

Lemony Chicken Milanese with Arugula Salad

This is one of those easy midweek meals that you can throw together in a pinch. It's tasty and healthy, but doesn't pack a huge flavor punch. It's safe. Impressive enough for unexpected company, but easy enough that you won't find yourself harried in the kitchen.

Arugula is really the flavor star of this meal, if you ask me. You've probably noticed that I use it a lot. I find it to be such a convenient leafy green to have on hand, as it is delicious cooked or raw, in salads or pestos or pastas or anything else. It has a naturally peppery flavor, to the point where you really don't need a vinegary salad dressing to liven it up. If you're new to arugula, this meal is a great introduction. The chicken isn't half bad, either.

Lemony Chicken Milanese with Arugula Salad
from Bon Appetit's "Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook"
serves 2

INGREDIENTS:

2 skinless boneless chicken breast halves, or 4 chicken tenders
1 large egg, beaten
heaping 1/2 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
salt and pepper
2 tablespoons EVOO, divided
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 cup (packed) baby arugula leaves

DIRECTIONS:

1. Use a meat mallet or rolling pin to pound chicken between sheets of plastic wrap or wax paper into cutlets.

2. Mix panko, parsley, oregano, a pinch of salt and pepper on a plate. Coat each chicken cutlet in egg and then the panko mixture, making sure to create a complete coating.

3. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons EVOO in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add chicken and saute until golden brown and cooked through, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to plates and drizzle with lemon juice.

4. Toss arugula with remaining EVOO in a bowl to coat, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Mound salad atop chicken and serve.

You can throw this one together in about 20 minutes, no problem. Enjoy!

Orange Ginger Chicken

I work adjacent to Chinatown in downtown Los Angeles. When we go for Chinese on a workday, there is usually a group of us and we share several dishes a la carte. Inevitably, someone always wants to order orange chicken. I'll be up front with you, no holds barred: I abhor orange chicken. Okay, maybe I just wanted an excuse to use the word abhor. But I never order it myself because of some bad experiences in college involving certain inexplicably popular Chinese fast food joints. It's always greasy. It is deep fried and covered in a syrupy sauce. And I'm sorry to say that even the Chinese restaurants downtown serve something similar and call it orange chicken. Ick.

On a recent cookbook buying binge (a frequent occurrence, as you might have gathered), I picked up the Bon Appetit Fast Easy Fresh cookbook. It's a beautiful green book filled with delicious-sounding recipes. It seemed only fair to try their version of orange chicken, which sounded remarkably more palatable than the fast food version, as a sort of induction of this book into my cookbook collection.

I don't make Chinese food at home very often, other than the occasional stir fry. I was very excited to try something a bit more interesting that might satisfy us a bit more than haphazardly cooked veggies with soy sauce and sesame oil. This recipe, my friends, did the trick. It takes orange chicken to new, healthy and delicious heights. You can actually taste - gasp - REAL orange! Remarkable. Slightly sweet, slightly tangy, an all-around delicious dish. Welcome to the family, new cookbook.

Orange and Ginger Chicken
Adapted from Bon Appetit Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook
serves 2

INGREDIENTS:

2 boneless skinless chicken breast halves, or 4 breast tenders
salt and freshly ground pepper
2-3 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 tablespoon EVOO
2 teaspoons grated peeled fresh ginger
1 garlic clove, minced or pressed
1 tablespoon (packed) dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon dry ground mustard
1 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (Naked Juice is a nice shortcut)
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
1 scallion, green parts only, thinly sliced

DIRECTIONS:

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and dredge in the flour; shake off the excess. Melt butter in the EVOO in a large skillet over medium-high heat, then add the chicken. Saute until just browned, 2-3 minutes each side. Remove chicken from the skillet and set aside on a plate.

2. Add ginger and garlic to the skillet and stir, cooking about 30 seconds. Add brown sugar and dried mustard and stir to blend into the sauce. Add orange juice and zest. Simmer until sauce is slightly reduced, about 6-8 minutes.

3. Return chicken and any juices to the pan. Simmer 3 minutes, then flip chicken over and add green onions. Simmer until chicken is cooked through and sauce is thick, about 3 minutes longer. Season to taste with salt and pepper if necessary. Serve.

We had ours over brown rice with ever-so-slightly steamed broccoli. This meal is way better than any syrupy, greasy orange chicken you might get at certain unnameable Chinese fast food places! I'm tempted to go to the one across the street from our home and tell them about this recipe.

Enjoy!