40 Meatless Meals: Quick Potato Leek Soup

3 T butter
4 leeks, finely chopped

8 cups stock
4 cups instant mashed potato flakes

salt, pepper, thyme, and parsley

Sautee leeks in butter in a stockpot until bright green. Transfer leeks to a bowl. Bring stock to boil; whisk in potato flakes. Heat through; season to taste.

40 Meatless Meals: Bhaigan Bharta

Slow Cooker Bhaigan Bharta (Curried Eggplant)

2 medium eggplants, peeled and cut in 1" cubes
1 t coriander
1 t cumin
2 cinnamon sticks

2-3 T vegetable oil
2 large onions, finely chopped

1 T grated fresh ginger
1 t turmeric
1 T paprika
14 1/2 oz can diced tomatoes

1 cup frozen peas
1 T mayonnaise
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Place first four ingredients in the bottom of slow cooker. Heat oil in frying pan, and sautee onions until tender. Fold in ginger, turmeric, paprika, and tomatoes; cook 5 minutes. Stir tomato mixture into eggplant, and cook on low, 6-8 hours. Stir in peas, and let cook until heated through. Whisk in mayo; gently fold in cilantro and serve with rice, couscous, or flatbread.

40 Meatless Meals: Slow Cooker Baked Potatoes

Baking potatoes in a slow cooker has changed my life. The potatoes are much more flavorful than oven baked potatoes. I'm perpetually running short on foil, so I just throw the prepped potatoes in the pot. The extras can be used in other meals (might I suggest twice baked potatoes)?

40 Meatless Meals: St Joseph's Day

Check out these great recipes for St Joseph's day, which are traditionally meatless.

Related posts
2010 St Joseph's Altar
2009 St Joseph's Altar

40 Meatless Meals: Squash Pizza

Butternut Squash Pizza (from Real Simple magazine)

40 Meatless Meals: St Patrick's Day Drunken Fisherman's Pie

St Patrick's Drunken Fisherman Pie
(adapted from Cooking with the Saints)

For every two servings
3/4 lb mixed seafood, boiled
1 cup cooked vegetables
1/2 cup finely sliced sauteed leeks
1 cup white sauce, made with white wine or ale in lieu of milk
1 large boiled potato, sliced finely
1/4 cup grated cheese (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Combine seafood, vegetables, and leeks. Mix white sauce in thoroughly, and spread evenly in casserole dish. Cover with potato slices and bake for 30-45 minutes, until set. Top with grated cheese, if desired.

40 Meatless Meals: Seafood Gratin

1/4 cup finely minced onions
4 T butter, divided

3 T flour

1 cup boiling milk
1/4 cup vermouth

1/4 t salt
pinch of pepper
1/4 t oregano
4-6 T cream

1 1/2 cups cooked or canned salmon, tuna, or clams
1/4 cup grated Swiss cheese

Preheat oven to 425. Grease an 8" shallow baking dish.

Cook onions in 3 T butter in a saucepan over low heat for five minutes until the onions are tender, but not browned. Stir in flour and cook for two minutes without browning.

Off heat, beat in the boiling milk, then wine, then seasonings. Now bring this sauce to boil over moderately high heat, stirring. Boil several minutes to evaporate alcohol and allow the sauce to thicken considerably. Then thin it to a medium consistency with cream. Taste carefully for seasoning.

Fold the seafood into the sauce, and check seasoning again. Spread mixture in baking dish. Sprinkle on cheese and remaining butter in pea sized dots. Bake in the upper third of the oven for about 15 minutes, or until top is nicely browned.

Serve with a green vegetable and bread.

From Mastering the Art of French Cooking

40 Meatless Meals: Carrot Ginger Soup

1/4 cup olive oil
2 onions, chopped
3 lb carrots, peeled and chopped
2 large russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
2 gloves garlic, minced
1/2 t dried thyme
5 cups vegetable broth (use more for an oval pot)
2 T honey
1/2 t grated nutmeg
1/2 t powdered ginger
salt and pepper

Heat oil in skillet. Sautee onion until tender. Add carrots; sautee 5 minutes. Transfer to slow cooker. Add potatoes, garlic, broth, and thyme. Cook on low 6 hours. Puree smooth. Stir in honey, nutmeg, ginger, salt, and pepper.

Serves 6-8.

Adapted from Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker

40 Meatless Meals: Lentil Pate

2 cups brown lentils
2 large carrots, peeled and sliced
1 onion, peeled and sliced
water
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 T olive oil
dried thyme, salt, and pepper (to taste)
French bread

Simmer lentils, carrots, and onion until well done, about 20-25 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350, and grease terrine.

Drain lentils, reserving stock. Rinse lentils and vegetables, then blend with garlic, cream, olive oil, thyme, salt, and pepper. Bake for 30 minutes. Serve with French bread and a green salad.

Serves 4 as a sandwich spread, 6 as an appetizer

Adapted from In Celebration of the Seasons

Celebrating Sunday: First Sunday of Lent

Reflection:
Proper Sunday lunch is everything contemporary cooking is not... But neither nostalgia for nursery foods nor an interest in ponderous culinary Victoriana is what Sunday lunch- Sunday dinner- is all about... solidity, family, the home. [Nigella Lawson, How to Eat]

Recipe:
Sweet and Sour Crockpot Pork

About Celebrating Sunday

40 Meatless Meals: Tuna Cakes

3 T unsalted butter
3 T all purpose flour
1 cup milk
3 3 ounce cans tuna, drained
1 shallot, minced
3 T Worcestershire sauce
3 T capers, rinsed and drained (optional)
salt and pepper
cornmeal or breadcrumbs
olive oil for frying

In a medium skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the flour and let the mixture bubble for a minute. Off heat, slowly stir in the milk. Return the mixture to heat, and let it cook for a few minutes, stirring to deter lumps.

Transfer the white sauce to a bowl, and stir in the tuna, shallot, Worcestershire sauce, capers, and salt and pepper to taste. Chill the mixture at least 2 hours or overnight.

Shape the mixture into litle 2-inch round cakes. Coat the cakes with cornmeal or breadcrumbs. Heat a very thin layer of olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Fry the cakes until quite brown- about three minutes each side. Drain on paper towels.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Serves 4 to 6

Adapted from Good Day for a Picnic

40 Meatless Meals: Black Bean Burgers

Black Bean burgers

(Cloche tip to Dovian)

40 Meatless Meals: Mediterranean Rice Salad

Mediterranean Rice Salad

1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups long-grain rice
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp fresh oregano, minced
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/8-1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
2 cups chopped spinach leaves (fresh ones)
1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded, finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped green onion
1/2 cup chopped kalamata olives
1 cup crumbled feta cheese

In medium sauce pan, bring 2 1/2 cups water to a boil, add 1/2 tsp salt and the rice. Turn heat to low and simmer 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit 5 minutes. Uncover and fluff with fork. (I throw mine in a rice cooker--just cook the rice all the way! :)

In a large bowl, whisk lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, oregano, pepper, pepper flakes and remaining tsp. of salt.

Add rice to dressing and toss to combine. Add spinach, toss and let sit until no longer steaming, about 20 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and toss to combine. Serve at room temp or cold.
(from Sunset Magazine, Sept. 2006, shared by bethanyg)

Little Rewards

You may be familiar with the history of pretzels as being invented centuries ago by an Italian monk who gave them to children as a reward for learning their prayers. Pretzels have long been associated with Lent because it's such a simple, yet substantial recipe that fulfills the Lenten requirements at the time for abstaining from animal products.

I recommend this soft pretzel recipe by Alton Brown. You might also want to watch him give a bit of pretzel history, related science involving yeast and Ph, and demonstrate a technique or two in these videos. (The actual pretzel recipe starts about 5 minutes into the first part.) It does include a little butter to make the bread softer and it's brushed with egg yolk to give it that great color (without using lye), so if you're avoiding all egg and dairy products this Lent, you'll want to make those adjustments.

Related articles here, here, and here.

A little bit of POD in the mundane

My supermarket flier this week

Superbowl plans

Go Pack Go!

If you haven't heard, the bishops of Green Bay and Pittsburgh and Green Bay have a bet riding on tomorrow's game. You can also read about the Catholic roots of both teams here. (CLOCHE tip to Faith and Family Live)

The Church Ladies love Epicurious- check out their great game-day recipes. I also vouch for these delicious corn dog muffins.

What are your family's Superbowl traditions?

Image source

Chilled Strawberry Soup - National Soup Month

4 cups strawberries (can use frozen)

1 cup sugar

1 cup sour cream (can use vanilla yogurt instead or a combination)

1/2 cup cold water

Puree strawberries in a blender. Add to a saucepan, whisk in sugar and sour cream. Stir in cold water. Stir constantly over low heat until heated through; do not boil. Chill thoroughly, perhaps overnight.

I had the pleasure of eating this at a summer ladies luncheon out of an antique depression glass bowl. Perfect!

Split Pea/Vegetable Soup - National Soup Month

1 lb. dried split peas (2 cups)

3 qts. water

1 meaty ham bone

2 tsp. salt*

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp marjoram leaves

1 1/2 c chopped onions

3/4 c. chopped carrots

3/4 chopped celery

chopped garlic clove

Combine peas and water in a large kettle. Bring to a boil; simmer 2 minutes. Remove from heat, cover and let stand one hour.

Add ham bone, salt, pepper, marjoram, and onions. Cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours.

Add carrots and celery. Continue simmering until tender, 30-40 minutes. Serve hot. Makes about 3 1/2 quarts.

*I always taste it before adding any salt. You'll definitely need less than 2 teaspoons if your ham is salty.

Equipment - National Soup Month

Stock Pot

Of course you can make virtually anything work, but the best soup pots will work with you. On first glance, the $12 version you can get from your local discount store seems fine. It's big enough (often 12 quart or larger) to contain that large batch you want to make but that's only part of the equation. Broth-based soups often need to simmer for a long time, and cream-based soups scorch easily. You'll want a pot that keeps your delicious concoction from burning if you turn away for a bit. In addition to size, look for something that's heavy and has a bottom made of multiple metals bonded together. A common combination is a stainless steel outside with aluminum layers bonded to the bottom. You'll also want a lid that fits well. This version from Williams-Sonoma is a good choice, and this copper pot is the gold standard (but for $600 I would expect someone to actually deliver weekly meals to my house as part of the deal). I use an 8 quart Classic Farberware stockpot that I got for a wedding gift a long, long time ago and it's still in great condition!

Tureen

My least favorite thing about serving soup is the presentation. After carefully preparing ingredients and tweaking seasonings to perfection, I hate just plopping the possibly less-than-attractive kettle on the table. The alternatives are to keep the kettle out of sight by serving from the kitchen (not always practical when soup is a main dish for a family who will likely want seconds), or use a soup tureen. A tureen is typically porcelain or stoneware and has a lid to keep things warm. You'll want to look for one that's a reasonable size for your needs and, since it involves transporting a gallon of boiling hot liquid, look for one with a very stable base and useful-looking handles. (TIPS AND TRICKS: About 10 minutes before using your tureen, fill it with boiling or very hot water and then pour it out just before filling with soup. The hot water will warm up your dish and that will keep your soup hotter when served.) A tureen will typically come with a matching ladle.

Storage

There's one more dish that I bought recently for someone who likes to take soup for lunch. This CorningWare mug has a lid that really fits well and seems to be leak-free. It's big enough for a generous serving and microwaves much better than the plastic bowl he was using. Hardly essential, but I do recommend the product. (I got it at Wal-Mart for less than the price listed on the Corning website.)

The Machine Shed's Baked Potato Soup - National Soup Month

A family favorite!

2 1/2 lb. baby red potatoes (quartered)

1/2 lb. raw bacon, diced

1 jumbo yellow onion, diced

1/4 bunch celery, diced

1 quart water

2 ounces chicken base

1 quart milk

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

1 1/2 sticks margarine (or butter)

1/2 c flour

1 cup whipping cream*

1/4 bunch chopped parsley

1. Boil potatoes in water for 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. In a large, heavy pot, saute bacon, onions, and celery over medium-high heat until celery is tender. Drain bacon grease and return bacon, onions, and celery to pot.
3. Add milk, water, chicken base, salt, and pepper. Heat over medium-high heat until very hot. Do not boil.
4. In a heavy, large saucepan, melt margarine and add flour (called a roux). Mix well and allow to bubble, stirring for 1 minute. While constantly stirring soup, add the flour/margarine mixture (roux) slowly. Continue stirring soup until thick and creamy.
5. Stir in potatoes, parsley, and cream.
6. Serve hot. Garnish with shredded Colby cheese, fried bacon bits, chopped green onions, or all three.

*Between the butter and the bacon, this is obviously not a low fat dish. You can make it a little better, however, by using milk instead of cream. I've even used fat free milk successfully.