#34 pasta toscana

What to do with leftover veggies? Stick them in your pasta sauce.

1/2 bunch kale, cut thin
4 medium size cremini mushrooms, sliced
1/2 onion (diced)
~2 cups leftover canned crushed tomatoes
4-5 slices leftover tempeh (diced)
1 tbsp pesto

Heat olive oil and onion ~2 mins, add in mushrooms, cook ~5 mins, add kale, cook ~2 mins, add tomatoes, tempeh and bring to a simmer.

Cook pasta, drain, add pesto. Serve sauce over pasta.

#33 tartufo

My generous coworker always brings me a bottle of rum when coming back from Puerto Rico. Last week he brought bottle #4. This is his favorite dessert...so I've made an adapted version from about.com (before this I didn't know that ice cream rolled in various ingredients had a special name)

mango/vanilla ice cream
frozen strawberries
rum
chocolate covered sunflower seeds
homemade hot fudge sauce
dried cranberries
walnuts

Puree frozen strawberries with a little bit of rum, set aside. Warm up hot fudge. Make 3 balls of ice cream, cover one with strawberry/rum layer and top with a chocolate layer, the second with chocolate and top with sunflower seeds and the third with chocolate/cranberries/walnuts. Re-freeze and serve.

Thanks JJF! DonQ Anejo rocks!

#32 lupini beans

The lupini beans are done! An old family tradition, these are made around the holiday season and eaten as a social snack around the kitchen table. You can buy them already prepared in jars in some grocery stores but it's more fun to make them

1 pound dried lupini beans (find them at greek or italian specialty stores)
water
salt
1-2 weeks

Soak the beans overnight in copious amounts of water. Drain, add more water and bring to a boil. Boil about 1 hr. Don't eat them! They're super bitter now. Exchange the cooking water with fresh water, add some salt and let sit out at room temperature. Change the water every day, adding fresh water an some salt (maybe a tsp). Taste the beans after a week or so, and if you can eat them they're done.

Store under salted water in the fridge. To serve, put a few spoonfuls (drain the water) in a serving bowl, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper and eat. They're sort of like edamame where you suck the salt/pepper off the outside and eat the inner bean.

#31 french style roasted chicken

#30 clam linguini

2 6.5 oz can clams with juice
1 lb linguni
4 tbsp butter
1 tbsp italian seasoning
2 garlic cloves (minced)

Cook pasta, meanwhile warm clams & juice, butter, garlic and italian seasoning in a sauce pan. Drain pasta and toss with sauce.

Thanks E! This was the hit of the dinner party (I adapted the recipe slightly, it turned out great though), and super easy!

#29 Hot fudge pudding cake

#28 chicken croquettes

This is great for all the leftovers in your fridge, throw everything in!

1 leftover cooked chicken breast
1/4 cup leftover mashed potatoes
1/2 a (leftover) serrano chili
1/4-1/2 cup leftover chopped onions
1-2 cloves garlic
1-2 oz cheese

1/4 cup flour
1/2 liquid (milk/veg broth)
breadcrumbs

Cook onion and garlic in olive oil ~5 mins, add flour, cook for another 2-3 mins, stir in liquids, cook until it forms a paste and then about 3 mins more. Add flour mixture plus all the leftovers into a food processor and blend until smooth. Make balls, coat in bread crumbs and fry/bake until golden (I didn't have enough oil on hand so I baked them and they were delicious).

Recipe adapted from Epicurious

#27 quickie brownies

1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 tbsp flour
1 egg
1 tbsp oil

Combine 3/4 cup chocolate chips with 1 tbsp oil, microwave 1 min, mix until chocolate is smooth. Add egg, mix until combined, add flour and cocoa powder, mix. Mix in remaining 1/4 cup chocolate chips. Bake in a small greased/floured pan (brownies will be thin) 15 mins.

Bake in a small pan (9 in by 5 in)...it doesn't make much but they are great (and quick).

#26 indian spiced rice

3/4 cup white rice
1.5 cups boiling water
1/2 cinnamon stick (about 1 1/2 inches)
4 whole cardomon pods

Add cinnamon and cardamon to the boiling water, add rice and cook until rice is done (~15 mins).

...this tasted ok...needs some more work though. Anyone have a simple indian rice recipe to share?

#25 chicken tikka masala

#24 roasted broccoli

#23 butternut squash soup

1 large butternut squash, or 2 medium (about 8 cups, diced)
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 tsp garam masala
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 cup onion (finely chopped)
4 cups apple (about 4 small apples or ~1 pound) , peeled and diced
1/4 cup sweet white wine
3 cups water
1 1/2 cups veg. stock
2 tbsp soy milk

Preheat oven to 400°. Combine squash, 2 tablespoons oil, syrup, salt, garam masala, and pepper in a large bowl. Arrange squash in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Bake at 400° for 40 minutes or until soft.

Heat remaining oil in a large skillet, add onion; sauté ~2 mins, add apple; sauté 5-7 minutes or until tender. Stir in wine; cook 1 minute. Stir in squash, water, and broth. Bring to a simmer; cook 3 minutes. Blend (in batches) the soup mixture until smooth. Stir in soy milk.

...next time I would use 1 less apple....

Adapted from Cooking light

#22 tempeh & mushroom stroganoff

8oz wild rice tempeh
canola oil
1/2 onion (sliced thin)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 large portabello mushroom (sliced)
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1 packet brown gravy
4 oz sour cream

serve with rice

Slice tempeh into 1/4" slices and brown in canola oil until very brown (20 mins to cook it all), remove from pan, saute onion and garlic until onion is barely soft (2-3 mins). Add mushrooms, sesame oil and worchestershire sauch, cook until mushrooms are soft (5-8 mins), meanwhile dissolve gravy in water (according to package instructions). Once mushrooms are soft, add gravy, cook ~5 mins, add sour cream.

Serve mushroom gravy over rice and tempeh.

Recipe from Whole Foods.

#21 mango flambe over french toast

1 mango
few tbsp maple syrup
few tbsp rum

2 slices french toast (frozen)

Toast the french toast, meanwhile dice the fruit of the mango and broil ~6 mins (I cut the mango off the rind and put on aluminum foil and placed in the broiler). Combine rum and maple syrup. Place broiled mango on french toast, flambe the rum mixture and pour overtop.

Note: mango flambe along=delicious (really delicious);
mango flambe on french toast=not so good. The rum/syrup mixture was too thin and I didn't like the combo.

Recipe adapted from Epicurious: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/108127

#20 breakfast smoothie

milk
banana
frozen blueberries

Put it all in the blender and blend away!

#19 rice tea

1/4 cup brown rice
3-4 cups water

roast brown rice in a pan, about 15 mins, until nicely toasted. Add boiling water, boil 20 mins then steep 3-5 mins. Serve. Add sugar/honey to taste

http://www.vitalitymagazine.com/node/255

#18 chicken and pesto quesadilla

chicken
green onion (chopped)
pesto
cheese

tomato

Spread pesto over one tortilla, layer chicken, cheese and green onion, another tortilla on top and grill both sides until crispy. Serve with chopped tomato (season with salt/pepper).

#17 avocado muffins

3/4 cup sugar
5 tbsp butter
2 eggs
1 avocado (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup buttermilk (I substituted ~1/4 yogurt, 1/4 milk)
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp each of cinnimon, allspice (I used less allspice), nutmeg
1/2 cup walnuts (and raisens if you like them)

Cream butter, sugar and avocado together, add other wet ingredients and blend well. Mix in dry ingredients, bake in muffin pan 350C ~30 mins.

Serve with jam

Adapted from avocado.org

#16 trail mix

1 cup walnuts
dehydrated bananas, pineapple, gooseberries

toast the walnuts (~5-10 mins in a hot pan on the stove), mix everything together and you're ready for the trails!

#15 avocado/tomato salad

1 avocado
1 plum tomato (diced)
lemon juice
salt/pepper

Cut the avocado in half and scoop out the flesh. Place diced tomato in the center of each half (where the pit was, also, dice the tomato small, it'll look better), season with lemon juice, salt and pepper.

#14 chicken soup

~10 total cups stock (if the 6 cups of homemade stock tastes like...water...(apparently stock is not as easy as recipe #11 says) I recommend adding 4 cups boxed/canned chicken stock, a few shakes of garlic powder/onion powder/italian seasoning and a lot of salt)

2-3 carrots
1 onion
1.5 cups uncooked pasta
remaining chicken from roasted chicken (1-2 cups shredded)

Bring stock to a boil, add carrots and onion (taste/reseason stock, it will taste fairly watery, that's ok, when you add the chicken it will be fine), add chicken and pasta, serve when pasta is cooked.

Additionally, if you have pesto on hand, add a spoonful to your serving.

#13 Dehydrated food

Current list of dehydrated food

pineapple
gooseberries
olives
banana
sage
watermelon
kiwifruit
grapefruit (delicious!)
grape tomatoes

Suggest an item to dehydrate in the comments!

#12 shiitake miso soup

1 tbsp canola oil
1/3 lb shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded, thinly sliced
1 tbsp freshly ground ginger
1 tsp soy sauce
4 cups water
5 green onions
1 carrot
a few tbsp miso (I use red miso), to taste
1 potato (diced small)

Heat oil in saucepan, add mushrooms, ginger and soy sauce and cook until mushrooms are browned on edges (5 mins). Add water, green onion, potato and carrot, cook until potato is done (~10 mins), add miso paste (I didn't measure, maybe 3+ tbsps), stir until all miso dissolves and serve.

#11 chicken stock

1 carcass from 1 roasted chicken
1 carrot
peppercorns

Add cold water to cover chicken, add carrot and peppercorns, boil for 3-4 hours. Let cool, remove any remaining meat from bones. Skim fat off the top of the stock.

#10 pesto

2-3 cups basil (my garden is now depleted)
olive oil
few tbsps parmesan cheese

Add basil and parm cheese to food processor. Blend, adding enough olive oil to make a paste.

#9 roast chicken

1 3-4 lb chicken
salt/pepper

Rinse chicken, salt and pepper the outside, roast at 425C 30 mins, reduce to 375C and cook until thermometer reads 185C (~1.5 hrs)

#8 peanut butter cookies

1 cup unsweetened peanut butter (If using normal peanut butter you can probably omit brown sugar)
1/4 cup brown sugar (more if you want them sweeter)
1 tsp baking powder
1 egg
1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Mix peanut butter, brown sugar, baking powder together. When combined add the egg. Mix, add chocolate chips, form into balls and bake at 325C for 9 mins.

Adapted from Epicurious

#7 walnut balls

1 cup walnuts
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 cup monteray jack cheese (grated)
1 egg
2 tsp fennel
2 tsp italian seasoning

olive oil and garlic for frying

coursely chop walnuts in a food processor (not to small, not too big), mix with all other ingredients, form into balls. Fry balls in oil (flavored with garlic-add a crushed/smashed clove to the oil) until brown on all sides. Alternatively, bake in the oven until golden brown at 375C.

Recipe from Kim/Pete

#6 meatballs

4 large eggs
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
6 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
3 tbsp mayonaise
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
3 large garlic cloves (minced)
2 tps salt
1 tps ground black pepper
1.5 lbs ground beef

Additional olive oil (for frying)

Stir eggs, breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, mayonaise, parsley, garlic, salt and pepper in large bowl to blend. Add ground beef and mix thoroughly. Form meatballs.

Pour enough oil into heavy large skillet to coat bottom; heat over medium-low heat. Add a few cloves of garlic (whole, smashed) to flavor oil. Working in batches, add meatballs and fry until brown and cooked through, turning frequently and adding more oil as needed, about 15 minutes per batch.

Adapted from Epicurious

#5 smoked gouda and eggplant lasgna

2 lbs eggplant
no boil lasagna noodles
1 jar tomato/pasta sauce
1 lb ricotta cheese
2 shallots (diced)
8 oz smoked gouda (sliced thinly, or grated)
parmasean cheese

Dice eggplant, toss with 2-4 tbsp olive oil and bake at ~375C for ~20-25 mins (until very soft when pierced with fork). Meanwhile, mix ricotta with shallots.

Lasagna assembly: 1/2 cup sauce followed by 3-4 lasagna noodles (make single layer), spread 1/3 ricotta mixture onto noodles, layer 1/3 eggplant on top of ricotta, layer 1/3 gouda on top of eggplant, add 1 cup sauce and repeat steps 2 more times. Finish with a sprinkle of parm cheese.

Bake at 375C for ~45 mins.

Adapted from Epicurious recipe

#4 garlic potato leek soup

1-2 tbsp butter
1 medium leek (chopped)
3 garlic cloves (minced)
2 whole garlic heads (cut off top 1/3 of each garlic head)
6 cups broth (I used 4 cups veg stock, 2 cups water)
2 bay leaves
1.5 lbs russet potatoes (peeled and halved)
1 lb red bliss potato (unpeeled, chopped into bite size pieces)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1-2 tbsp thyme leaves (fresh)
salt/pepper

3-4 cloves garlic, sliced thin and fried until golden brown in olive oil (to make "garlic croutons")

Cook leeks until soft in butter. Add minced garlic, cook until fragrant (about 1 min). Add garlic heads, broth and bay leaves. Cook about 30 mins, add potatoes. Once potatoes are cooked (20 mins) take out russet potatoes, mash, and put back in the pot. Remove garlic heads, squeeze out garlic, mash, and put back into pot. Remove bay leaves. Add cream, thyme, salt/pepper.

Serve, garnish with garlic croutons.

Recipe from Cooks Illustrated Magazine

#3 tomato/cucumber salad w/ yogurt-dill dressing

A few tomatos (diced)
1-2 cucumbers (depending on size) (diced)

1-1.5 cups yogurt
3 green onions (chopped finely)
1 clove garlic (minced)
5-6 tbsp dill (rough chopped)
tsp lemon juice
tsp honey

Combine yogurt, onions, garlic, dill, lemon juice and honey. Add tomatos and cucumber and mix.

#2 baked brie

1 wheel brie
1/4 cup apricot jam
1/4 cup walnuts
1 egg

1 puff pastry

Roast walnuts in dry pan ~5 mins, until fragrant.

Defrost puff pastry 30 mins, roll out to increase by 1 inch each side, place brie wheel in center. put walnuts on top and jam on top of that. Pull up corners to encase, brush with egg and bake until golden brown, ~30 mins @350

adapted from http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_36697,00.html?rsrc=like

#1 Sangria

2 bottles white wine
2 apples
1-2 cups club soda

Mix together, let hang out a while, and serve!