Asian Pears with Baby Greens

These stunning Asian Pears were a gift from our friend Mansing who’s mastered the art of growing all sorts of unusual vegetables in this crazy Colorado climate. Mansing, thank you so much for bringing life into our kitchen! Asian Pears are crisp and juicy with an ambrosial quality to their delicate flavor. They are delightful sliced and eaten as a snack, but also are a worthy addition to almost any green salad. They’re complimented here with candied nuts, olives, vegan feta cheese and a light ginger dressing.

yield: 4- servings  |  prep time: 25 minute  

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ingredients

• 5 cups mixed baby greens, washed

• 1 beet, peeled and grated

• 3 small Asian Pears (or one large)

• 1/2 cup candied nuts*

• 1/3 cup crumbled feta (vegan or not)

• 10 green olives, sliced

• 1 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar

• 4 tablespoons olive oil

• 2 teaspoons finely minced ginger

• 1 teaspoon honey or agave

• Salt and pepper to taste

• Toasted sesame oil (optional)

directions

1. Arrange the greens, beets, pears, nuts, feta and olives on individual or one large serving plate.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the rice vinegar, olive oil, ginger, sweetener, salt and pepper.

3. Toss salad with dressing just before serving or serve alongside for guests to add as desired.

4. For an optional flavor boost, sprinkle just a couple of drops of toasted sesame oil on the salad before eating.

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* See a recipe for maple walnuts in our Mint Scented Celery Salad recipe. For crisper nuts, omit the butter in this recipe, but cook otherwise as directed.

Fresh Grilled Shishito Peppers

Shishito peppers have become a fashionable appetizer at tapas bars and upscale Spanish and Mexican restaurants. The dormant gambler within us might be what’s driving the attraction to this simple dish—wondering if we’ll get the “one in ten” that is super hot. Or maybe it’s because they’re just so good and seem to compliment pretty much any meal they’re part of. Regardless, they’re super easy to make at home and though they’re best served hot off the grill, they are pretty amazing chilled as leftovers as well.

yield: 4- servings  |  prep time: 2 minute  |  cooking time: 8 minutes

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ingredients

• 1 quart fresh Shishito Peppers

  (about 4 cups)

• 2 teaspoons olive or coconut oil

• 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice

• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

directions

1. Place the peppers in a colander and rinse well under cold running water. Allow to drain for a few minutes.

2. Heat a medium sized skillet for about 30 seconds over high heat. Add the oil, tilting the pan to coat evenly.

3. Add the peppers to the skillet and toss to coat with oil. Allow the peppers to begin to change color, then reduce heat to medium high.

4. Stir in the lemon juice, zest and salt. Cook , tossing frequently, until peppers are tender and evenly blistered.

5. Turn out onto a platter and serve immediately.

Steamed Ginger Scallion Tofu

A simple yet unusually elegant way to prepare tofu! This dish pairs well with most vegetables and grains and is also very tasty served cold if there are leftovers.

Yield: 4 servings / Prep Time: 20 Minutes / Resting Time: 30 Minutes / Cooking Time: 20 Minutes

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ingredients

• 1 pound medium texture tofu

• 3 cloves garlic

• 2 tablespoons rice syrup

• 6 scallions, shredded

• 2 tablespoons shredded ginger

• ¼ cup dry white wine (optional)

• ¼ cup low sodium tamari

• 2 teaspoons raspberry vinegar (or use apple cider vinegar)

• ½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil

• 4 sprigs cilantro

directions

1. Drain the tofu and cut into 4-5 thick slabs. Place on a clean kitchen towel, folding the towel over the top. Put a cutting board on top of the tofu and press gently down to drain. Leave at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, prepare the other ingredients. Peel the garlic and thinly slice two cloves. With a garlic press, press the remaining clove into a small mixing bowl. Shred the scallions and ginger then add them half of them to the bowl, saving the other half to use later. Stir into the bowl the wine, rice syrup, tamari, and vinegar. Combine well and set aside.

3. Transfer the drained tofu to a heatproof serving plate. Using the tip of a paring knife, make shallow slices in each piece of tofu and gently insert sliced garlic into the slits.

4. Pour the ginger-scallion-tamari mixture over the tofu, covering thoroughly. Set the dish aside to marinate for at least 30 minutes, basting occasionally. (May be prepared up to 24 hours in advance to this point if refrigerated).

5. Place the dish in the top of a flat steamer basket over rapidly boiling water. (Or use a wok make-shift steamer as described in the note below). Steam the tofu covered and basting occasionally. After about 10 minutes of cooking add the reserved shredded ginger and scallions, then cook another 10 minutes.

6. Remove dish from steamer. Sprinkle the toasted sesame oil over the tofu and add cilantro as a garnish. Serve immediately.

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note

If you don’t have a Chinese Bamboo steamer for cooking the dish, you can set up a wok placing two chopsticks parallel to each other in the bottom of the wok, then filling the wok with about 4 inches of water, placing the heat-proof dish containing the tofu on top of the chopsticks and then covering the wok to create a steamer.

English Pea Hummus

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ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked English peas (may use frozen, thawed)

• 4 scallions, minced

• 1/3 cup finely minced parsley

• 2 tablespoons cashew butter (or use tahini)

• 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

• 1 teaspoon agave nectar or honey

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• Black pepper to taste

• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red chili pepper

• Salt and pepper to taste

directions:

1. Place the peas along with the remaining ingredients in a food processor or blender and process to blend. Scrape down the sides of the bowl several times during the puréeing process to make a smooth and creamy mixture.

2. Transfer to a container, cover tightly and refrigerate for at least an hour to allow the flavors to merge. Serve the “hummus” with crackers, bread or crudités as an appetizer or use as a filling for sandwiches and wraps.

Butternut Squash Chips

For some recipes the straight stem-end section of butternut squash is used in order to take advantage of the even shape and not having to deal with scraping out seeds. But then…what do you do with the rounded blossom end? These crispy chips are a good solution. They make a delicious addition to a tapas table or kid’s healthy snacking repertoire. Easy to make, they store well in an airtight container at room temperature for several days.

Yield: About 6 cups chips | Prep Time: 30 Minutes | Cooking Time: 30 Minutes

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ingredients

• Blossom end of a butternut squash

• 2-3 tablespoons olive oil or coconut oil

• Sprinkling of Kosher salt

• Pinch of powdered cayenne or chipotle pepper (optional)

directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Cut the squash in half length-wise. Scrape out and discard the seeds, then peel the squash and discard peelings as well.

3. Place the two halves of squash in a large steamer over rapidly boiling water. Cook, covered very briefly, about 5-7 minutes. They should be just beginning to soften. Remove immediately to cool. (This step is so the squash is easier to slice thin).

4. When cool enough to handle, slice the squash into thin strips, no thicker than ¼ inch and thinner is better if possible.

5. Brush the chips lightly with oil or melted coconut butter and arrange them on a shallow baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and powdered pepper if desired.

6. Bake in the middle of the preheated oven until beginning to crisp evenly and until the chips have begun to lightly brown. This can take anywhere from 20-30 minutes, but begin checking after about 20 minutes. Part way through cooking turn the chips to cook evenly on both sides.

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notes

When chips are light brown and crisp, remove from the baking sheet and cool on a cookie rack until completely crisp and cool. They will crisp more as they cool if they are cooked properly.

Some chips always seem to take longer to cook than others, even when they seem to be about the same thickness. So, be patient and surveil them closely to allow to cook fully and to notice when to remove before burning. It’s like a meditation to develop discriminating awareness!

Store in an airtight container.

Almond Crackers

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ingredients

• 2 cups almond meal

• ¼ cup ground flax seeds

• ¾ teaspoon salt

• Pinch of dried chipotle, powdered

• ¼ cup water

• 3-4 tablespoons olive oil

directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the almond meal, flax seed, salt and chipotle.  Stir to blend evenly.

3. Add the water, then toss to distribute evenly. Next, gradually work in the olive oil, adding just enough to make the ingredients into a soft dough.

4. Roll out the dough between two sheets of parchment paper into a rectangle that is evenly about 1/8 inch thick. Remove the top piece of paper and score the dough into 1-inch squares. Place the prepared crackers on a cookie sheet and bake until very lightly browned on the bottom, about 15 to 20 minutes. Some crackers may brown more quickly than others, so remove them to cool while allowing others to cook completely.

5. Cool for 10 minutes, then store in an airtight container for up to 10 days.

Raw Corn Chips

When you need the satisfaction of something crunchy, salty and a little bit spicy, when you’re thinking twice about the health implications of eating a full bag of standard fried corn chip and you can’t find a baked chip that hits the spot, try these. Which assumes you’ve got a dehydrator. Or a really good friend who’ll loan you theirs. This recipe and kale chips (which I’ll post recipes for in a few weeks) are what get many of us buying dehydrators in the first place. Unless of course we’re hunters and are wanting some jerky from our recent big game hunting trip. Which is a whole other issue. (If you’re a game hunter, you probably aren’t reading this vegetarian blog, but you might like the corn chips anyway!)

yield: 1 medium bowlful  |  prep time: 20 minutes  |  cooking time: 1 hour  | resting time: 8 - 10 hours drying time

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ingredients

• 2 cups corn kernels (fresh or frozen and thawed)

• ¼ cup ground flax seed

• ¼ cup tablespoons tomato salsa

• Salt to taste (optional)

directions

1. Place the corn, ground flax seed and salsa in a food processor fitted with the metal chopping blade or in a blender. Puree at first with a pulse action and then briefly with a straight “on” setting and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, until the mixture is evenly pureed.

2. Transfer the mixture to solid dehydrator drying sheets (those used for fruit roll-ups) and spread the mixture out evenly and to a thickness of about 1/8-inch. When held up to the light the coating of corn mixture should look even and there should not be visible holes in the layer. Depending on the style of dehydrator you have, you will be able to make 2-3 sheets of chips with this amount of corn. If desired, sprinkle salt over the sheets of corn mixture.

3. Place the sheets on dehydrator racks and dry at 110 F. for about 10 hours. Mid way through drying, when the sheets of corn chips can be removed from the drying sheets, carefully flip the sheets of chips and continue to dry until crisp.

4. Remove from the dehydrator, break into chips and store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Spicy Stuffed Lettuce Leaves

This dish is wonderful in summer served at room temperature for picnics or as a light evening main course. It is also lovely warm and you can make it more or less spicy and sweet according to taste and the rest of the menu.

yield: 6 servings | prep time: 30 minutes |cooking time: 15 minutes

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ingredients

• 1/3 cup low sodium tamari

• 1 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar

• 1 tablespoon honey or agave (or more to taste)

• 1 teaspoon minced garlic, minced

• 2 teaspoons minced ginger

• 1-2 Thai or Habanero peppers, seeded and minced

• 1 ½ cups finely diced carrots

• 1 cup finely diced mushrooms

• ½ cup finely diced celery

• ¼ cup finely diced jicama

• 1 ½ cups chopped, toasted, unsalted cashew nuts (or use other nuts)

• 12-15 butter lettuce leaves

directions

1. In a small mixing bowl, combine the tamari, vinegar, honey, garlic, ginger and minced pepper. You may add more or less pepper, depending on how spicy you want the dish to be. Stir well and set aside. This marinade may be prepared several days in advance if stored, covered, in the refrigerator.

2. Place the carrots and mushrooms in a 10-inch skillet. Add the marinade and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce the heat slightly and cook, stirring frequently until carrots and mushrooms are tender, about 8 minutes. Add the celery and continue to cook for only another minute or two to marry the flavors.

3. Remove the vegetable mixture from the heat to stir in the jicama and nuts.

4. To serve, line a platter or individual plates with lettuce leaves. Place the vegetable mixture in the center of the leaves.

5. Guests can prepare their own appetizer by spooning filling into individual lettuce leaves, then wrapping the leaf around the filling to eat as a hand-held snack.

Mixed Nut Paté

This type of raw “paté” can fool even seasoned foodies into thinking the dish is not one of these new-fangled raw concoctions. Having training in “classic French” cooking (with a little mandatory residue of any French chef’s mental state that it is the only real culinary art–a tendency towards fundamentalism is, after all, part of human nature) it actually took me a while to experiment with raw foods myself. More on that in a future post, but for now, check out this recipe for an interesting alternative to hummus or a paté.

yield: 5 cups  |  prep time: 30 minutes  |  cooking time: raw

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ingredients

• 1 cup almonds

• ¾ cup macadamia nuts

• 1 cup sunflower seeds

• ⅓ cup sesame seeds

• 1 small red bell pepper, chopped

• 1 stalk celery, chopped

• 1 carrot, chopped

• ½ cup minced scallions, minced

• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

• 3 tablespoons soy sauce

• ⅓ cup minced parsley

• 1 ½ teaspoons minced rosemary

• 1 teaspoon minced thyme

• ½ teaspoon minced oregano

• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced

• Salt and pepper to taste

• 3 tablespoons brewer’s yeast

directions

1. Soak the nuts and seeds overnight in enough filtered water to cover. Drain and then place the nut and seed mixture in a food processor fitted with the metal chopping blade or into a blender. Add enough fresh filtered water to come about 1/8 of the way up the height of the nut mixture. Blend until the nuts are very evenly ground, scraping down the sides of the bowl adding more water as necessary in order to obtain an even consistency. Depending on the size of your processor or shape of your blender bowl, you may need to puree the mixture in more than one batch. Transfer this paté mixture to a large mixing bowl.

2. Place the bell pepper, celery and carrot in the processor and, using a pulse action and scraping down the bowl as necessary, chop very finely. Stir this into the paté mixture along with the scallions, soy sauce, parsley, thyme, oregano, garlic, nutritional yeast and salt and pepper. Taste and adjust the seasonings.

3. The paté may be served immediately or stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You may serve it as a dip or shape it into a loaf (see directions below) and then serve sliced in a more formal fashion.

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notes

To make the paté into a loaf shape, line a 5-cup bread pan with wax paper. To do this, brush the inside of the pan with oil. Cut a piece of wax paper long enough so that it wraps from long side to long side around the outside dimension of the pan. (Using standard wax paper, it should also be exactly the right width to cover the pan end to end as well).

Place the pan in the center of the paper as a measuring tool and cut an angle from each of the four corners of the paper to the bottom corners of the pan. Place the paper in the pan, covering the bottom and sides then wrapping the trimmed ends so the fit neatly into the ends of the pan and the entire pan is covered with wax paper. Trim and discard excess paper.

Transfer the paté mixture into the pan. Smooth out the top of the paté and drop the pan gently onto the countertop to remove air bubbles. Cover with an additional piece of wax paper and refrigerate for at least an hour or up to 5 days.

To serve, peel off the top layer of wax paper. Place a plate over the paté and invert. Holding both plate and edges of the bread pan, give the paté several firm downward shakes and the paté should fall right out of the pan. Serve whole or in slices, garnished with fresh herbs.