Brownies (pt 1) - Single-Serve Microwave Brownies

Winter is brownie season. Not because of Girl Scout cookies, but because what is better on a cold winter night than a brownie? Nothing, that's what. With all of the snow we've been getting hit with on the east coast, I have tried out some of the biggest internet phenomenons in the brownie world. This post highlights the single-serve microwave baked goods wave. I love everything about this recipe except for the fact that there are no leftovers. I microwave mine for 60 seconds instead of the recommended 50, because mine were coming out very underdone in the middle. I love how quickly these brownies are from start to finish. About 3 minutes from getting your butt of the couch to getting your butt back on the couch, including cleanup time. Can't beat that.

Preety's Vegan Mug Brownies


(I apologize for not adding a picture, but it is incredibly hard to get a nice-looking picture of a brownie in a mug, especially when that mug is also the mixing bowl)

Black Bean and Sausage Stew

 I recently ran across an old issue of Family Circle with some great soup recipes. I made this black bean and sausage stew, and loved it!

1 lb black beans (soaked overnight)
1 tsp vegetable oil
1/2 lb sweet Italian sausage (casings removed, if any)
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
4 cups reduced-sodium vegetable broth
2 cups water
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp cumin
1 sweet red pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
Chopped cilantro, avocado, and tomato for garnish (optional)
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1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add sausage and cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add onion and garlic. Cook five minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Stir in broth, water, soaked beans, chili powder, oregano and cumin.
4. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered, 60 minutes or so until beans are tender. Add red pepper during last few minutes of cooking.
5. Remove about 1 cup of the mixture to blender and puree, return to pot. (I skipped this step).
6. Garnish each serving as desired.

The World's Easiest Tomato Tart

Another great pinterest find! I had to bring appetizers to two different parties last weekend (as well as 2-3 dozen cookies to each), so I wanted something simple, yet classy and tasty. This fit the bill perfectly. It's from babble and I doubled the amounts to make the two pictured.

1 sheet puff pastry, defrosted

2-3 large tomatoes, or a handful of cherry tomatoes, cored and sliced

2-3 branches fresh thyme

1 T. good quality olive oil

Pepper

a generous pinche of Sea Salt

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF. Line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper or a Silpat. Place the puff pastry on the lined baking sheet and lightly score a 1/2″ border around the edge with a sharp knife. Use fork tines to prick the pastry inside the border all over. This will prevent the pastry from puffing up too much when baking.

2. Place the tomato slices in a single layer on the puff pastry (the original recipe said be careful not to overlap, but I think that would make it even more delicious). Strip the thyme branches and sprinkle over the tomatoes, then drizzle with olive oil, a few cranks of good pepper and sea salt.

3. Baked for 30-40 minutes or until pastry is crispy and deeply browned. Sprinkle on a dash more salt. Serve.

Roasted Cauliflower, Broccoli & Sun-Dried Tomato Salad with Chickpeas

Another "inspired by pinterest" recipe.

I found a recipe for Roasted Cauliflower, Broccoli & Sun-Dried Tomato Salad with Chickpeas and knew immediately that it would be my lunch the entire following week. I love how easily it comes together and how little work is involved. Especially if you're roasting veggies for dinner, you can just make extra for tomorrow's lunch!

I left out the olives and served it over mixed greens. I added in some baked tofu and topped it with a dijon vinaigrette. So yummy! If I were going to eat it immediately, I'd roast the chickpeas in the oven and get them super crunchy. If you're preparing it ahead of time, I don't think that cooking them at all is really needed, but that's a personal preference.

Summer Series: Too Hot to Cook - Part 1: Panzanella & BBQ Tofu

I'm attempting a summer-long series inspired by my lack of desire to do lots of prep work or stand over a hot stove as temperatures hover in the 90s.

Last night, I made a Panzanella salad and BBQ tofu strips (which I just called "BBQ strips" until my 3-year-old declared them a winner) with a side of sliced avocado. Simple, not a lot of prep and perfect for a hot summer evening. Honestly, I would eat just the salad for dinner with some sliced avocado, but for the kid's sake, I wanted to round the meal out.

For the BBQ tofu, I followed this recipe from my BBQ Tofu Sandwiches.

Panzanella Salad
Ingredients:
(all vegetables are approximate)
5 nice-sized tomatoes, cut into a large dice
1 English cucumber, cut into a large dice
1/2 red onion sliced thinly
1 loaf of yummy bread (ideally getting stale, but if it's not, that's okay!), cubed - I used ciabatta
1/4 cup vinegar (red wine or balsamic)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 (small) clove garlic, minced or grated on the microplane
salt & pepper to taste
1 handful basil, chiffonaded

Directions:
If your bread isn't stale, set your oven to 200 and put the cubes on a cookie sheet and let them dry out for about 40 minutes. Once that is done, continue with the recipe.

In a measuring cup, measure out the vinegar and oil, add the garlic and salt & pepper and mix together.

Put the rest of the ingredients in a bowl and mix together. Add the dressing and toss and toss and toss. Then refrigerate for at least an hour to let the dressing soak into the bread.

Add basil and toss again just before serving.

Choco-berry Crispy Cups

This recipe is loosely based on a recipe for Chocolate Cranberry Crunch Bars. I made a bunch of changes, though to make it exactly to my liking.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup Almond butter (or any other nut/seed butter you prefer)

3/4 cup dairy-free semi-sweet chocolate chips

1-3/4 cups Rice Crispies-type cereal

1/2 cup freeze-dried raspberries (strawberries would also be great, just crush them a bit first)

2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

Directions:

Melt the chocolate either in a double boiler or in the microwave (for about 1 minute).

Combine the nut butter and chocolate in a large bowl, whisking until relatively smooth. Stir in the cereal and raspberries until well coated. Finally, gently stir in the maple syrup until well combined.

Press the mixture into an 8×8-inch dish lined with parchment or wax paper, 9 to 12 muffin cups, or 24 to 30 mini muffin cups. If using a muffin pan, I suggest lining the pan with wrappers to get them out easier.

Chill for 15 minutes. If making bars, remove the batch with the parchment paper and cut into bars while still a touch soft. Return to the refrigerator or freezer to chill completely. To maintain their crispiness, store these crunch bars in an airtight container in the freezer. Pop one out when guests arrive or when the cravings strike!

Simple Carrot Salad

In reading French Kids Eat Everything, my biggest takeaway was that French kids eat carrot salad with dijon vinaigrette. I thought "My kid would eat that!"At the end of the book, the author was kind enough to include the recipe for the dressing, along with a bunch of others.

This salad also tastes similar to a vinegar-y coleslaw if you let it sit in the dressing overnight. Mmm!

Ingredients
Grated carrots (1 small per person)
Tomatoes (chopped, optional)
Grated or chopped cauliflower

for dressing:
1/4 cup Olive oil
2 Tbsp Red wine vinegar
3/4 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 Tbsp Maple syrup (optional)


Directions:
Mix together all dressing ingredients thoroughly. Pour (use discretion, I used about half of the dressing for 3 big servings of salad) over carrots and tomatoes, if using. Let it marinate if you have time. Keep chilled until serving.

Note: I used my food processor for all the grating, so I throw in the carrots and then the cauliflower and dump that into a bowl and pour the dressing on. It practically makes itself.

Chickpea Broccoli Casserole

A friend told me about this recipe years ago, but I never made it until recently. Big mistake! It's simple, but yummy. From Vegan with a Vengeance by Isa Chandra Moskowitz.

Three 16-ounce cans of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 large onion, quartered and thinly sliced
3 large carrots, grated (about 2 cups)
1 head broccoli, cut into small florets (about 4 cups)
2 tablespoons thinly sliced chives
1/2 cup bread crumbs (preferably whole wheat)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup vegetable broth
1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350º F.

In a large bowl, mash the chickpeas well, using a potato masher or firm fork. It takes about 2 minutes to get the right consistency. Add the vegetables and mix well. Add the bread crumbs and mix; then add the oil, and mix again. Finally, add the vegetable broth and salt, and mix one last time.

Transfer all ingredients to a 9 x 13-inch casserole dish (preferably glass or ceramic). Press the mixture firmly into the casserole. Cover with foil, and bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake for 15 more minutes.

Roasted Corn, Black Bean, and Mango Burritos

I'm always seeing black beans and mangoes together. I couldn't help but want to try a recipe for my bean and mango loving husband and kid. I adapted this recipe for a salad into a burrito recipe by (dush) putting it on a tortilla and also made some changes to make it more friendly to my family. It's also incredibly easy and takes less than 20 minutes INCLUDING chopping all of the veggies if you do your chopping and lime-squeezing while the corn is cooking.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 cups corn kernels (frozen or about 6 ears, fresh)
• 2 cups diced peeled ripe mango (about 2 pounds)
• 3/4 cup chopped red onion
• 3/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 1/3 cup fresh lime juice
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 drained canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce, chopped (optional, I didn't use them because of the spice-averse baby and it was super tasty anyway)
• 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained or 3 cups cooked beans (I only had 2 cups on hand and it was great anyway)
• Tortillas

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic; cook 30 seconds. Stir in corn; cook 8 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally. Add beans and warm through. While corn is cooking, add the rest of the ingredients together in a large bowl (I kept mangoes on the side). When everything is ready, add corn and beans to the veggies & seasonings and mix well. This is when I took a big scoop out, because I do not like mangoes. Then add mangoes in and mix well again. Scoop a nice spoonful onto a tortilla for each person and enjoy. Would be nice garnished with avocado or sour cream.
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3. Place corn mixture in a large bowl. Add mango and remaining ingredients except greens; stir well. Arrange 1 cup greens on each of 8 plates. Spoon onto tortillas.

Classy Ramen-Style Mushroom Soup

Super flavorful and quick enough that it just may get me to drop my Top Ramen habit.

From The Mushroom Channel

Makes 3 to 4 servings

• 8 small dried shiitake mushrooms
• 8 square inches dried kombu (optional)
• 4 ½ cups water
• 4 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
• 6 – 8 ounces cremini and/or shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and sliced
• 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon – 1 tablespoon crushed red chili flakes (to suit your tastes)
• 1 ½ tablespoons shiro miso (white miso paste)
• 1 ½ tablespoons aka miso (red miso paste)
• 10 ounces dried ramen noodles (aka, chukka soba), freshly cooked (or any other Asian noodle you have - soba would be delicious)
• Fresh cilantro leaves, to garnish (optional)

1. Make the mushroom stock: Place the dried shiitake mushrooms and kombu a pot with the water.  Bring the water almost to a boil and then turn down the heat to maintain a simmer.  Cook for 5 minutes.

2. Remove the pot from the heat and let the stock stand for 3 minutes.  Strain the stock through a fine-mesh strainer and set the stock aside.

3. Make the soup: Heat 3 teaspoons of the toasted sesame oil in a large skillet or wok over high heat.  Add the sliced cremini mushrooms and cook for about 20 seconds.  Drizzle in the remaining 1 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil, then add the finely chopped garlic and crushed red chili flakes, and stir-fry for another 20 seconds.

4. Pour the mushroom stock through a fine-mesh strainer held directly over the pan.  (Discard the solids left in the strainer.)  Adjust the heat to maintain a steady simmer, and separate the cooked noodles into 3 or 4 bowls.

5. Place the shiro miso and aka miso in a small bowl and ladle some of the hot stock from the pan into the bowl. Whisk the miso pastes and broth together until smooth, then add to the simmering stock in the pan.

6. Turn off the heat, then ladle the broth over the noodles in each bowl.  Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves and serve immediately.

Cinnamon Apple Swirl-overs

A simplified version of my simplified apple turnovers.

Ingredients:
1/2 package (1 sheet) of puff pastry, thawed
1 large apple (any variety) peeled & sliced thinly (use more if you want it super apple-y)
cinnamon sugar (I use this ratio, very cinnamon-y and good)
a pinch of nutmeg (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400. Line a small cookie sheet with parchment paper or grease it. Unroll the thawed puff pastry sheet and sprinkle generously with cinnamon sugar. Lay apple slices over the entire sheet. Sprinkle generously with cinnamon sugar and a pinch of nutmeg. Carefully roll the long side away from you (as you would sushi or cinnamon rolls). Lay the log on the cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Remove the log and slice it into 1/2 inch rolls (be careful, it's hot!). Place rolls back on the cookie sheet and put back in the oven for another 10 minutes. Allow a few minutes to cool after removing from the oven before eating.

"F it" Brunch (brunch foods that start with "F") Part 2

A great dish to make when you're having people over, because it doesn't create a lot of dishes. You can serve it right in the pan you cooked it in! I was inspired by a recipe from Martha Stewart, but altered it, because I wanted to use spinach instead of zucchini.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2/3 small onion, finely diced
• 1/3 cup frozen chopped spinach, defrosted
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 6 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons cup milk
• 1/4 cup shredded shredded white cheddar
• 2 medium vine ripe tomatoes, cored and thinly sliced crosswise

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a 10-inch skillet over medium heat, warm oil. Add onion,  and thyme; cook, covered, stirring often, until tender but not browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Uncover, add spinach and cook until all the liquid in the pan evaporates. Season with salt and pepper; remove skillet from heat.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, milk, and cheese, salt, and pepper. 
3. At this point, since I don't have a non-stick skillet, I removed the onion mixture from the pan, and oiled it well. If your pan is non-stick, you could get away with skipping this step.
4. Pour egg mixture into pan, then add back onion mixture (or, if using non-stick, gently lift the mixture to allow eggs to coat bottom of pan). Arrange tomatoes in an overlapping pattern on top.
5. Return skillet to medium-low heat, and cook until sides are set yet still slightly runny on top, 15 to 20 minutes. Place in oven, and cook until the center is cooked through when tested with a wooden skewer, and the tomatoes are browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven; gently slide a heatproof spatula around the edges and underneath to loosen from skillet. Serve immediately.

"F it" Brunch (brunch foods that start with "F") Part 1

We were having friends over for brunch this past weekend and I wanted to impress without having to, you know, slave in the kitchen all morning or especially while they were here. So I knew a French Toast casserole was in the cards - something I could prepare ahead of time and pop in the oven.

Baked Apple Cinnamon French Toast (I halved the recipe from the website, because there were only 4.5 of us. This version is my adaptation)

1/2 loaf of challah bread (I used homemade, because I made a rocking, but giant one for Yom Kippur)

3/4 cups non-dairy milk (soy, almond, rice, hemp, etc.)
1 1/2 tbs. cornstarch
2 tbs. white whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. allspice or nutmeg
Topping:
1 1/2 tbs. vegan margarine (I like Earth Balance)
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 tbs. brown rice syrup
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. allspice or nutmeg
3 apples, peeled, cored and sliced (use a firm variety)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Slice bread into 2" pieces. Place into a 9"x9" glass baking pan. In a large bowl whisk together milk, cornstarch, flour, vanilla, cinnamon and allspice. Pour mixture over the bread in the baking pan and turn the bread over a few times to make sure the mixture is equally absorbed.
Melt the margarine in a large skillet over medium heat and stir in the brown sugar, brown rice syrup, cinnamon and allspice. Add in your apple slices and toss until they are coated in the brown sugar sauce. Pour the apple topping over the bread in the baking pan and evenly distribute. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.
Remove pan from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes

Serve with maple syrup.

Baked Polenta with (vegan) sausage and artichoke hearts

A very friendly cashier at Trader Joe's suggested this recipe to me. I made a few adjustments, to suit my taste, and it was great!

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 white onion, thinly sliced
• 1-2 vegan sausages (I like Tofurkey's Italian flavor), chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 3/4 cup marinated artichoke hearts, coarsely chopped
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 tube (18 ounces) prepared polenta, cut into 1/4-inch rounds
• 1/3 cup vegetable stock
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley (optional), coarsely chopped

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium. Add onion and cook until softened, 5 minutes. Add sausage and cook, until heated through. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. Remove skillet from heat and stir in artichokes; season with salt and pepper.
2. In an 8x8 baking dish, layer polenta rounds and spoonfuls of sausage mixture. Pour stock over top and bake until bubbling and polenta is pale golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.

Mother's Day Brunch

Mother's Day has come and gone, but this recipe will suit you anytime a delicious, easy breakfast is in order. Make it for your mom next time you see her!


Adapted from this recipe from Whole Foods.


They say this recipe serves 6, but I beg to differ. Two hungry adults and one toddler took this to town.

Ingredients

1/2 - 3/4 loaf of stale challah bread, sliced thick
blueberries and sliced strawberries (as many as your heart desires)
4 eggs 
1 cup milk (I used soy, but any milk would work)
1 Tbsp maple syrup 
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg 

Method

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8-inch baking pan with bread, overlapping slices; scatter berries over top. Whisk together eggs, milk, syrup and nutmeg and pour over bread. Bake until golden brown and set, 45 to 50 minutes.

Blueberry Raspberry Flax Maple Steel Cut Oats

The name literally says it all. This recipe makes enough for 4 servings, so you can have extra in the fridge for later in the week. I like to make it ahead of time, since it takes 30+ minutes. If you do, 2 minutes in the microwave is all it takes to have a hot breakfast. You can use any kind of milk you'd like, or only water

Ingredients:
1 cup steel cut oats
2 cups almond milk
2 cups water
1 cup blueberries
1 cup raspberries
3 Tablespoons maple syrup
2 Tablespoons ground flax seeds

Put everything in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Then simmer for 25-30 minutes. If your flax seeds are raw, you can add them after the oats are cooked to get all of the flaxy goodness out of them. If they're toasted, add them whenever.