Black Beans & Rice

So good I can't believe I didn't make them before today. This is our new favorite....

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup uncooked white rice
• 1 - 1.5 cups vegetable broth (or chicken if you're not worried about keeping it veg)
• 1 tsp ground cumin (or more if you like spicy)
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (or more)
• 1.5 cups canned black beans, drained

In a stockpot over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add the onion & garlic & saute for 3-4 minutes. Add the rice and saute another couple minutes.

Add the broth, bring to a boil, cover and lower the heat. Cook for 20 minutes.

Add spices and beans. Stir.

Cover and keep over low heat until ready to serve.

Gia-Ninh's Clear Cooked Napa w/ Sesame Oil

As I've said before, Gia-Ninh knows his stuff. Here's a delicious side to go with any asian-style meal you're working on:

• 1 medium sized head of napa cabbage, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 2 tbsp corn oil
• 2 tbsp kosher salt
• 1/4 - 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp sesame oil

Heat wok until SCREAMING HOT - Gia-Ninh says, "when you can flick water at it and it skittles across the surface of the pan, you're ready". Add the corn oil & then 1 tbsp of the salt & swirl to coat.

Add napa to the pan & toss to coat the cabbage with the oil (you're not going to get everything coated right away so just toss it a few times). As the napa cooks down, add sugar to taste. Stir fry on super high heat, stirring vigorously as it cooks down. Once close to doneness, taste & adjust for salt, add sesame oil, take off the heat (always take off heat after sesame oil is added because it has such a low smoke point, to avoid scorching the oil).

Eat it while it's hot.

Slammin' Spaghetti Sauce

I didn't realize a little lemon zest makes such a difference but it really adds something!

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 10 garlic cloves, minced
• two 14oz cans of tomatoes, w/ juices
• pinch or two of red pepper flakes
• 1 tbsp grated lemon peel
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (or basil, I've done both) + more for garnish
• coarse salt
• freshly grated black pepper

In a large saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat.

Add the onion & cook until soft & light golden brown, about 7 minutes.

Add the garlic & cook another minute.

Add the tomatoes & juices & bring to a boil, stirring frequently.

Add the red pepper flakes & lemon peel, then lower the heat & simmer for about 20 minutes, taking time to smash the tomato pieces so the sauce is more pulpy than chunky.

Stir in the chopped parsley.

Check for flavor and salt & pepper to taste.

Sauce will keep one week in a tightly sealed container in the fridge. Just heat it when you want it and pour it over pasta.

*you can also add about 1/2 lb of ground beef to make a meat sauce

Roast Yourself Some Garlic

Roasted garlic goes great in so many pasta recipes and is awesome just spread on a piece of crusty bread. Maybe mash it in with some potatoes? The sky is the limit. It smells wonderful too (if you like the smell of garlic as much as I). Here's all there is to it:

• 1 full head of garlic
• olive oil
• aluminum foil (thorough, aren't I?)

Cut 1/4 inch off the top of the garlic head and remove any extra skin (still leave some on, though).

Drizzle the olive oil over the garlic.

Wrap garlic in a bit of foil and bake at 350 for about 40 minutes.

James' Baked Yuca

Yuca is the root of the cassava plant and starts out looking like the above. It's a tuber (just like the sweet potato) and has a really addictively good flavor when done right. It's really popular with our friends in South America, Africa, Central America and the Carribbean. And man, do they know what they're talking about. James made this for us last night and we went crazy for it.

• 1 yuca root
• non-stick cooking spray

Peel the yuca with any regular vegetable peeler.

Slice the peeled yuca into 1/2-inch discs.

Put the yuca slices in already boiling water and par boil them for exactly 5 minutes. Then strain and let them cool completely.

When the yuca has cooled enough that you can pick it up and hold it in your hand, stack them in a glass pyrex type baking dish that has been coated with non-stick cooking spray.

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes and you should have lovely lovely baked yuca. Very similar to the potato but much more flavorful.

Mango Salsa

Made this tonight to go with some lovely jerk chicken. I think the lime is what really gives it it's punch. You could vary this by adding red onion instead of green, or throwing in lots of avocado, pineapple or papaya, but it's great just like this, too!

• 1 mango, peeled, seeded & chopped
• 1 red bell pepper (I used a bit of red, a bit of yellow and a bit of orange)
• 1/4 cup green onion, sliced thin (I think it may have been better with a little less)
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp lime juice, with pulp (dig the pulp out with a fork or just use your hands)
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar (other vinegars would do as well)
• 1/2 tsp lime zest
• salt & pepper to taste

Mix it all up and you've got salsa. :)

Miso Soup

If you've ever been to a Japanese restaurant (sushi, or maybe teppanyaki where they cook the food in front of you) you are almost always given miso soup at the start. It's simple, quick and really good for you. The traditional version contains seaweed. I'm not big on seaweed, so I left that out.

• miso paste (you can get this at any asian grocer, or maybe even the ethnic section of a regular grocery store). Here's what it looks like:
  

• 1/2 block Tofu, cut into 1/2-inch squares. Tofu is often in the refrigerated part of your produce section with the salad dressings. You can get firm or soft or many variations in between usually, though, the soft kind is used for miso soup.
• 2 spring onions cut as thinly as possible.
• water.

Put a pot of water on to boil and add the miso paste first. I didn't put an amount there because it's really up to you. I used about 4 heaping spoonfuls, kind of a lot. I liked it but you may want to start with 2 and taste it before you add more.

Chop up your tofu in small squares (try getting some of the liquid out of it first by rolling it up in paper towels for a bit) and add. Add scallion/green onion before you serve.

Micro Green Salad w/ Fig Vinaigrette

I wanted to make use of the Microgreens I had leftover from last weekend but I wanted to do something simple that wouldn't overwhelm their flavor. Micro greens are lovely but can be a little on the bitter side, so my goal was to create a salad with a sweet vinaigrette. I LOVE fig and it's natural sweetness. Hence, my salad:

• fresh micro greens (or any salad, really)
• red wine vinegar
• olive oil
• fig spread (any kind works, I used the kind that you typically find in the cheese section of the grocery store)

I'm not including any amounts here - it's up to you. Just add a bit of each and keep wisking until you get the flavor and consistency you like.

If the fig spread is thick, microwave it for about 30 seconds before adding the oil and vinegar.

Then just pour it over your greens and mix with your hands (that was the fun part).

This turned out absolutely lovely. The sweetness of the fig really complimented the bitterness of the greens. And micro greens always just look so gorgeous!

Vegetarian Minestrone

Made this tonight for family potluck. Healthy, easy and inexpensive. Vegetarian (as long as you use water instead of stock) and actually vegan if you leave out the cheese.

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3/4 cup chopped onion
• 3 cups water (or chicken broth if you're not trying to keep it veg)
• 2 cups diced zucchini
• 1.5 cups cannellini beans (canned works fine)
• 1 cup diced carrots
• 3/4 cup diced celery
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground pepper
• 2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes (with juice)
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 cup of the smallest pasta you can find
• 1/2 cup frozen white corn
• 2 bay leaves
• grated parmesan cheese

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.

Add chopped onion & saute for 4 minutes or until just lightly browned.

Add water(or stock), zucchini, carrots, beans, celery, basil, bay leaf, oregano, salt, pepper, tomatoes, garlic & corn.

Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover & simmer on med-low for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add macaroni, cover & cook 10 more minutes.

Serve hot, topped with grated parmesan. Look how great it turned out!

Roasted Vegetable & Tofu Napoleon

Tofu gets a bad rap. Seriously. It's inexpensive, it keeps forever, and it goes with everything. It's also high in protein, low in fat, and I think it tastes really good too. Give it a chance. This is the first tofu dish I am posting but there are more to come. Tofu got me through college. Hey, (wo)man cannot live on Ramen alone. I believe I got this from Weight Watchers several years ago. It's healthy, flavorful and sure to please your inner vegan:

• 1 large red onion
• 1 medium eggplant, peeled
• cooking spray
• 1-2 medium zucchini
• 1 medium yellow pepper
• 1 medium sweet red pepper
• 1 pound extra-firm tofu
• 3 tbsp fresh rosemary
• 9 tbsp fresh parsley
• 9 large garlic cloves
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3/8 cup lemon juice

Preheat oven to 425.

Coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray.

Slice onion in half and then cut each half into quarters, or smaller. Slice eggplant, zucchini (diagonally), and peppers into 1/4 inch slices. Slice tofu across into 8 slices, about 1/4 inch thick.

Place onions on one half of a baking sheet and peppers on the other half. Place eggplant & zucchini separately on second baking sheet (I actually needed 3). Coat tops of vegetables with cooking spray.

Roast 15 minutes and then rotate baking sheets, roast 15 minutes more. Turn off oven and leave vegetables in oven to keep warm.

Place rosemary, parsley and garlic in a food processor; add oil & lemon juice & blend until smooth - about 3-4 minutes. Set aside.

Spread about one heaping tablespoon of herb mixture onto both sides of each tofu slice. coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Place tofu in heated pan and brown both sides of tofu, about 2-4 minutes per side.

To serve, place once slice of tofu on a plate. One top of tofu, stack one slice of eggplant, one slice of red pepper & one wedge of red onion; top with another slice of tofu & then top what with more yellow pepper & zucchini & another piece of red onion.

Drizzle with remaining herb mixture. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

Gia-Ninh's Soy Lime Dipping Sauce

Gia-Ninh and I have been friends for over 10 years and he really REALLY knows his way around a kitchen. When he talks, I listen. He came over a couple of weeks ago to make us dinner and taught us how to make this sauce/marinade. We haven't looked back since. Wayne has seriously made it at least 3 times already. It's delicious. And it goes with everything chicken, shrimp, tofu, etc). Gia-Ninh tossed it with lo mein noodles and veggies when he was here but we've since combined it with beef and marinated chicken in it - all equally good things. Make it. Slather it on everything. Smile.

• 1 clove garlic
• approx. 1/2-1 inch of grated ginger
• juice of 1/2 a lime (with pulp)
• 1-2 tbsp raw sugar
• 1/2 to 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/8 tsp Siracha hot sauce (or any other chili garlic puree) to start, taste before you add more
• up to 1/4 cup water

Crush the garlic & sugar with a mortar & pestle (see? I told you this would be fun).

Add ginger. Add lime juice & pulp (get the pulp out with a fork).

Add soy sauce & Siracha. Blend.

Taste as you go & add the water to balance it out.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Siracha, it's asian chili garlic burning fire sauce. It's hot as hell and goes great in everything. You can usually find it in the ethnic aisle of a regular ole grocery store:

Look familiar?