Tag Archives: vegetarian

Recipes

Falafels

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Ingredients:

  • 1 lb dry garbanzo beans
  • 1 small onion, roughly chopped
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
  • 3-5 cloves garlic
  • 1 1/2 tbsp flour
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
  • Pinch of ground cardamom
  • Vegetable oil for frying

Instructions:

  1. Pour the chickpeas into a large bowl and cover them by about 3 inches of cold water. Let them soak overnight. They will double in size as they soak.
  2. Drain and rinse the garbanzo beans well. Pour them into your food processor along with the chopped onion, garlic cloves, parsley, flour, salt, cumin, ground coriander, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and cardamom.
  3. Pulse all ingredients together until a rough, coarse meal forms. Scrape the sides of the processor periodically and push the mixture down the sides. Process till the mixture is somewhere between the texture of couscous and a paste (stop before it gets to hummus consistency)
  4. Once the mixture reaches the desired consistency, pour it out into a bowl and use a fork to stir. Remove any large chickpea chunks that the processor missed.
  5. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
  6. Fill a skillet with vegetable oil to a depth of 1 ½ inches.  Heat the oil slowly over medium heat. The ideal temperature to fry falafel is between 360 and 375 degrees F; the best way to monitor the temperature is to use a deep fry or candy thermometer.
  7. Meanwhile, form falafel mixture into round balls or slider-shaped patties using wet hands or a falafel scoop. I usually use about 2 tbsp of mixture per falafel. You can make them smaller or larger depending on your personal preference. The balls will stick together loosely at first, but will bind nicely once they begin to fry.
  8. Before frying my first batch of falafel, test one in the center of the pan. If the oil is at the right temperature, it will take 2-3 minutes per side to brown (5-6 minutes total). If it browns faster than that, your oil is too hot and your falafels will not be fully cooked in the center. Cool the oil down slightly and try again.
    When the oil is at the right temperature, fry the falafels in batches of 5-6 at a time till golden brown on both sides.
    Once the falafels are fried, remove them from the oil using a slotted spoon. Let them drain on paper towels. Serve the falafels fresh and hot; they go best with a plate of hummus and topped with creamy tahini sauce. You can also stuff them into a pita.

Here are some traditional add-ons that can be added to a pita: Tahini sauce, shredded lettuce, diced or sliced tomatoes, Israeli salad, onions, dill pickles, hummus, tabouli, french fries. Here are some less traditional add-ons that are also tasty: sprouts, cucumber slices, roasted peppers, roasted eggplant slices, sunflower seeds, feta cheese, yogurt, tzatziki.

Original recipe and additional variations can be found here. 

 

Recipes

Bruschetta

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Ingredients

  • 6 or 7 ripe plum tomatoes (about 1 1/2 lbs)
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
  • 6-8 fresh basil leaves, chopped.
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 1 baguette French bread or similar Italian bread
  • 1/4 cup olive oil

Directions

  1. Prepare the tomatoes first. Parboil the tomatoes for one minute in boiling water that has just been removed from the burner. Drain. Using a sharp small knife, remove the skins of the tomatoes. (If the tomatoes are too hot, you can protect your finger tips by rubbing them with an ice cube between tomatoes.) Once the tomatoes are peeled, cut them in halves or quarters and remove the seeds and juice from their centers. Also cut out and discard the stem area. Why use plum tomatoes instead of regular tomatoes? The skins are much thicker and there are fewer seeds and less juice.
  2. Make sure there is a top rack in place in your oven. Turn on the oven to 450°F to preheat.
  3. While the oven is heating, chop up the tomatoes finely. Put tomatoes, garlic, 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, vinegar in a bowl and mix. Add the chopped basil. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  4. Slice the baguette on a diagonal about 1/2 inch thick slices. Coat one side of each slice with olive oil using a pastry brush. Place on a cooking sheet, olive oil side down. You will want to toast them in the top rack in your oven, so you may need to do these in batches depending on the size of your oven. Once the oven has reached 450°F, place a tray of bread slices in the oven on the top rack. Toast for 5-6 minutes, until the bread just begins to turn golden brown.

    Alternatively, you can toast the bread without coating it in olive oil first. Toast on a griddle for 1 minute on each side. Take a sharp knife and score each slice 3 times. Rub some garlic in the slices and drizzle half a teaspoon of olive oil on each slice. This is the more traditional method of making bruschetta.

  5. Align the bread on a serving platter, olive oil side up. Either place the tomato topping in a bowl separately with a spoon for people to serve themselves over the bread, or place some topping on each slice of bread and serve. If you top each slice with the tomatoes, do it right before serving or the bread may get soggy.

Makes 24 small slices. Link to original recipe.

Recipes

Minestrone Soup

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Based on a recipe from Sara Moulton/Gourmet Magazine, modified by Mike Disharoon

Ingredients:

  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • 1 medium-size yellow onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 medium-size all-purpose potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 1 medium-size sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 1 medium-size yellow squash (about 1/2 pound), cut into 1/2-inch quarters
  • 1 medium-size green squash/zuchini (about 1/2 pound), cut into 1/2-inch quarters
  • 1 tablespoon dried basil, crumbled
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled
  • 2 large bay leaves
  • 4 cups torn kale (stems removed)
  • 1 large can (28 ounces) crushed low-sodium tomatoes, with their juice
  • 1 can (14 ounces) diced tomatoes, with their juice
  • 6 cups vegetable stock (can substitute chicken stock; may need to add more depending on preference)
  • 4 ounces tiny shells or tubettini
  • 1 can trimmed and cut green beans
  • 1 can hominy
  • 1 can kidney beans
  • Grated Parmesan cheese, if desired

Directions:

In a large heavy kettle, heat the olive oil over low heat for 1 minute; add the onions and cook, uncovered, for 5 minutes or until soft.

Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.

Raise the heat to moderate and add the potato, sweet potato, yellow and green squash, basil, oregano, and bay leaves. Cook, uncovered, 5 minutes longer, stirring occasionally.

Add Kale. Cook, uncovered, 3 minutes longer or until the Kale begins to wilt.

Add the crushed and diced tomatoes and stock and bring to a boil; adjust the heat so that the mixture bubbles gently and cook, uncovered, 30 minutes longer. Remove the bay leaves.

Add the pasta and cook until tender. Add additional chicken stock, if necessary.

Add the green beans, hominy, and kidney beans. Cook 3 to 5 minutes longer until heated through. Ladle into soup bowls and sprinkle with the cheese.

Recipes

Channa Masala

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Channa MasalaIngredients:

  • 2 cans chickpeas – rinsed
  • 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
  • 1 large onion chopped into long thin strips
  • 3 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped into bite-sized chunks
  • 1 Tablespoon finely diced ginger
  • 1 Tablespoon finely diced garlic
  • 1 Jalapeno, diced
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 teaspoons ground corianger
  • 2 teaspoons garam masala
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1 teaspoon onion seeds
  • Several tablespoons cilantro

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