This is a lovely vegetarian recipe that’s so hearty that even my meat-loving husband approves. It’s ubiquitous, too, enough so that I’ve added it to our weekly menu. These burgers are great as actual patties between a bun, with ketchup and mustard, or you can eat them without the bun.

Here’s the PDF of the recipe for [...]]]>

This is a lovely vegetarian recipe that’s so hearty that even my meat-loving husband approves. It’s ubiquitous, too, enough so that I’ve added it to our weekly menu. These burgers are great as actual patties between a bun, with ketchup and mustard, or you can eat them without the bun.

Here’s the PDF of the recipe for download.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup cooked quinoa
• 1/4 cup soaked bulgar, optional (see note)
• 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
• 1 egg
• 1 can rinsed beans (see note)
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• Pepper as needed
• 1/2 to whole chopped onion
• Olive oil

Steps

1. Rinse the beans under cold water. Throw all ingredients into a food processor and whir until it’s a paste.

2. Heat the oil in a pan and form the paste into patties about an inch thick. Fry the patties about 4-6 minutes on each side.

Notes

You don’t have to add bulgar, but doing so adds another nice grain. If you use it, soak the bulgar in a about 3/4 cup water for at least 30 minutes but up to a day before using.
For the beans, use any kind: black beans, great northern white, chickpeas. Anything mealy. I’ve tried them all and they’re all delicious.

This is a take off on a recipe I found in my trusty Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, but with important modifications. First, the sugar is cut down because the sweetness of the cranberries is really all you need here. Also, cornmeal has been added, which gives it a wonderful gritty texture and plays [...]]]>

This is a take off on a recipe I found in my trusty Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, but with important modifications. First, the sugar is cut down because the sweetness of the cranberries is really all you need here. Also, cornmeal has been added, which gives it a wonderful gritty texture and plays nicely with the cranberries.
This bread is also great with blueberries or rains. Resist adding chocolate chips (I wasn’t able to so I speak from experience), as they are overly sweet and don’t go with the batter.

Bonus! A PDF is available of this receipe, courtesy of moi. You can download here.

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup cornmeal
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup nuts (walnuts, pecans, or hazelnuts) chopped
• 2 tsp cinnamon

Steps

1. Preheat to 350°. Grease and flour a 9x5x3 loaf pan.In a small bowl, mix together half the sugar, the nuts, and the cinnamon. Set it aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine the remaining sugar, the flour, the baking powder. In another bowl, beat together the egg, milk, and oil. Pour into the flour mixture and stir.
3. Spoon half the batter in the prepared pan. Sprinkle the cinnamon mixture in and then pour the rest of the batter in. Use a knife to pull the cinnamon mixture up so it marbles.
4. Bake for 55 – 60 minutes until it passes the toothpick test.

Polenta comes from humble origins but can be transformed into many an elegant dish. Polenta is generally made of cornmeal, but other grains can also be used: quinoa, buckwheat, semolina. It is a healthier alternative to pasta or potatoes and just as versatile. It is also a good [...]]]> A guest post by Enid Powell

Polenta comes from humble origins but can be transformed into many an elegant dish. Polenta is generally made of cornmeal, but other grains can also be used: quinoa, buckwheat, semolina. It is a healthier alternative to pasta or potatoes and just as versatile. It is also a good source of calcium, iron and vitamins A and B6. It contains zero grams of fat… until you add the goodies.
You can boil it on the stove, bake it in the oven, grill it, sauté it, or cook it in the microwave. You can have it smooth and creamy or solid enough to slice. You can buy polenta in many forms, from prepared and ready to slice, packaged in a box, or in the bulk section at the supermarket. The size of the grain determines how smooth it will be. The more finely ground, the creamier when cooked. And, naturally, organic polenta is best.
Basic stovetop preparation:

• 1 cup of polenta
• 4 cups of liquid. Use water, vegetable or chicken broth or a combination. A little vermouth or wine can be used as well.
• A dollop of butter or 1tbs of olive oil.

I never cook with salt, but you can add a teaspoon to the mix if you want.

1. Bring the liquid to a boil and slowly stir in the polenta (it will form lumps if you add it all at once). Reduce the heat to simmer and cook for about 20 minutes. Stir frequently to keep from sticking to the pan.

2. After the polenta is cooked, the fun starts. Depending on how you are going to serve the polenta, you can add cheese as soon as it is cooked.

To make Ratatouille Polenta:
Cook the polenta and stir in about 5 ounces of gorgonzola. Spread the polenta on a wide flat pan or a large frying pan and cook over medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes. You could skip this step and just spread it on a large plate, but it is better cooked.

To make the ratatouille:

• 1 large onion
• 1 red and 1 green pepper
• 1 eggplant (skip if not available)
• 1 or 2 zucchini and/or yellow squash
• 1 tbs. oregano
• 1 tsp. thyme
• ½ tsp. tarragon
• ½ tsp. pepper
• ½ tsp. salt if you must
• 2 tbs. olive oil

In a large pan, heat the olive oil. Cook the eggplant until soft. Add the peppers and onion, squash and herbs. Add some fresh chopped basil, parsley or both when cooked.

To make the chicken:

1. It is best to use breast tenders, but if not available, use boneless, skinless thighs. Combine a half cup of flour with some herbs (oregano, thyme, marjoram, rosemary, dried parsley).

2. Sauté in 2 tbs. olive oil and 1 tbs. butter. Butter helps the browning process, but you can skip it if you want.

3. Assemble the dish:  Spread the polenta on a large flat plate or serve in the pan. Spread with grated parmesan cheese. Add the ratatouille mixture and place the chicken on top. Add a little more parmesan to the top.

Serve with a dry red wine, such as Zinfandel or Syrah.

Variations:

Polenta Italiano

• Cook or bake the polenta (for baking instructions, see below). Add some parmesan to the polenta.
• Add a marinara or other type of red sauce. Precooked from a jar is fine and easy. Or you could use a pesto sauce.
• Top with parmesan or mozzarella or both.
• Add sliced Italian sausage, ground beef or pork and a little more parmesan on the top.

Polenta Mexicana

• Cook or bake the polenta. Add a handful of jack and or cheddar to the polenta.
• Add black beans or red beans cooked with some onion and peppers. You can add pork or chicken.
• Top with a combination of jack and cheddar cheese and sprinkle with cilantro. You could also use sour cream and/or guacamole.

Polenta Milano

• Cook or bake the polenta. Add a handful of gorgonzola, blue cheese or gruyere to the polenta
• Sauté onions in olive oil. Add a cup or two of chopped ham and frozen peas.
• Top with cooked broccoli, kale or spinach. Add some crumbled blue cheese or gorgonzola to the top.

Polenta a la Grecque

• Cook or bake the polenta. Add a handful of feta.
• Sauté onions in olive oil. Add spinach to the pan but cook briefly, one to two minutes so that it doesn’t wilt.
• Add with cooked chicken thighs or a thin cut of pork loin cooked in olive oil and organo.
• Top with crumbled feta.
• Serve with a Greek salad of tomatoes and cucumber sprinkled with olive oil.

As you can see, you can do anything with polenta and it will be delicious.

To Bake Polenta:

Combine the polenta and the liquid in the same proportions as listed above in a two quart baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes. Remove from the oven and stir in butter, olive oil and cheese. Test the polenta to make sure the grains are cooked. If not, bake for another 10 minutes. Serve right away for soft polenta or let it sit for 5 minutes for stiffer polenta. Yum.

Pumpkin Bread

That being said, handling filo dough can be a chore. In most [...]]]> Spanikopita has a lot going for it: it freezes well, it’s great for leftovers (not everything tastes as nice a few days later), it has simple ingredients (just six!), and gives you a nice dose of veggies with the spinach. And it’s Greek!

That being said, handling filo dough can be a chore. In most recipes for spanikopita, you need to brush melted butter over each paper-thin sheet of filo–a painstaking and unrewarding process because the filo always rips apart under the brush. But I have a solution: butter spray. It keeps this recipe nice and light on the cals, too, especially if you use I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter. The spraying makes this very easy. That being said, melted butter certainly gives the filo a more crispy, hearty finish, so it’s up to you which one to use. I’ve used both. If you’re going to use a brush and melted butter, I recommend getting a silicone brush like this one. (I have it and it’s a real pleasure to use.)

A note on the amount of ingredients below. You can add as much or as little of each as you like; this recipe is pretty forgiving. If you do more, then you can layer the spinach mixture in between sheets. If you use less, you can just do one layer of spinach mixture. It’s tasty either way.

 
Spanikopita

• Spinach (if using fresh, use at least 2 bunches)
• Cooked chicken (optional), shredded, about 2 cups (or more or less as desired)- great to use from leftover chicken
• Feta cheese (again as much or as little, but try to use at least 8 oz)
• Butter spray or at least 1/2 cup of melted butter
• Filo dough
• 1/2 – 1 onion, chopped

1. Defrost the filo dough–usually overnight in your fridge. Preheat the oven to 375.

2. In a saucepan, cook the onions in olive oil over medium-high heat. When they’re softened, add the chicken and spinach. Cook until the spinach is wilted and stirs easily.

3. Add in the feta and mix until just starting to melt.

4. In a large glass casserole dish, spread one sheet of filo dough. Spray or brush it with butter, then add another 4 or 5 sheets–spraying or brushing with butter between each sheet.

5. Spoon in the spinach mixture. Place another filo sheet over the mixture, spray/brush, and repeat with about 6 or 7 more sheets. If you have a lot of spinach mixture, add in another layer of that now. Then place more sheets on top, spraying/brushing with butter.

6. Bake for 15-20 minutes. The filo dough should be crispy and brown.