Cauliflower-Cheese Pie

It seems so sacrilegious, but I paired this recipe from the Moosewood Cookbook with sausage.

Crust
2 c. grated raw potato
1/4 c. grated onion
1.5 t. salt
1 egg white lightly beaten
flour for your fingers (I was out of rice flour, so I used Bob's Red Mill gluten-free biscuit mix.)
oil

Filling
1 T olive oil
1 c. chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 t salt
black pepper
1/2 t basil
1/4 t thyme
1 med. cauliflower, in small pieces
1/4 c. milk
1 c. grated cheddar
paprika

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Oil a pie pan.
2. Combine first four crust ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Transfer to the pie pan, and pat into place with floured fingers to form the crust.
3. Bake for 30 minutes, then brush crust with oil and bake for ten more minutes. Remove from oven and turn down the temperature to 375.
4. Saute onion, garlic, salt, pepper, and herbs. Add cauliflower, stir and cover. Cook until tender.
5. Spread half the cheese onto the baked crust. Put sauteed vegetables on top. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Beat the eggs and milk together, and pour on top. Dust with paprika.
6. Bake 35 to 40 minutes, or until set. Serve hot or warm.

Rasberry Balsamic Chicken, Quinoa and Raisin Pilaf, broccoli

Chicken:
1/2 t dried thyme
salt, pepper
chicken breasts
1/3 c rasberry preserves
2T red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar

Sprinkle salt, pepper, and thyme on chicken. Saute until done. Mix preserves and vinegar. Add to chicken and heat through.

Quinoa:
•3 tablespoons butter
•3/4 cups chopped white onion
•1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
•1/2 teaspoon cumin
•3 cups chicken broth
•1 1/2 cups uncooked quinoa
•3/4 cup dried cranberries or golden raisins
•1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted
•4 tablespoons chopped cilantro
•Salt and freshly ground pepper
Preparation:

1.Melt the butter in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Saute the chopped onion in the butter until soft and golden.

2.Add the cinnamon and the cumin and stir briefly.

3.Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add the quinoa, stirring, and bring the liquid back to a boil. Lower the heat and cover. Let the qunioa cook, simmering, for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the quinoa has absorbed most of the water.

4.Add the cranberries and cook 5 minutes more.

5.Remove from heat and stir in the almonds and the chopped cilantro. Season with salt and pepper if desired. Serve warm or add room temperature.

I got the quinoa recipe from this website: http://southamericanfood.about.com/od/beansgrainspotatoes/r/quinuosalad.htm

Italian Meatball Soup with GF rolls

I hope this turns out as good as it looks! I am also going to make some Bob's Red Mill dinner rolls to go along with it.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/01/italian-meatball-soup/

Ingredients

• Meatballs:
• ¾ pounds Ground Beef
• ½ cups Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 3 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley, Minced
• 1 whole Egg
• 2 cloves Garlic
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• ½ teaspoons Black Pepper
• ¼ teaspoons Ground Oregano
• 2 teaspoons Lemon Juice
• SOUP
• 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 7 cups Low Sodium Beef Stock
• 2 cups Water
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• 2 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
• ¾ cups Onion, Chopped
• ¾ cups Carrots, Chopped
• ¾ cups Celery, Chopped
• 1 cup Russet Potato, Chopped (do Not Peel)
• ½ pounds Cabbage Chopped
• Grated Parmesan Cheese To Serve
• TIED IN A CHEESECLOTH BUNDLE
• 4 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley, Minced
• 2 whole Bay Leaves
• 1 teaspoon Peppercorns

Preparation Instructions

To make meatballs, combine all meatball ingredients and mix well. Shape into small balls and chill for 30 minutes.

Gather 4 tablespoons parsley, bay leaves, and peppercorns in a cheesecloth bundle. Tie to secure.

After chilling, heat olive oil over medium-low heat in a heavy pot. Briefly brown meatballs, then remove to a plate. To pot, add beef stock, water, salt, tomato paste, and herb bag. Bring to a boil, then simmer 30 minutes.

Add onion, carrots, celery, and potatoes. Simmer 15 more minutes. Remove herb bag.

Add cabbage and meatballs. Bring to a boil, then simmer 8 to 10 minutes.

Serve with plenty of freshly grated Parmesan cheese sprinkled over the top.

Asian Noodle Salad

I loved this! Pioneer woman calls this her most favorite salad ever ever ever ever, and I think I agree. If you don't like cilantro I apologize since it is really the dominate flavor here, but I loved the asian dressing and might make a jar of it to just keep around for our every day salads! For the noodles I used GF brown rice Fettuccine and spaghetti noodles.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/03/my_most_favorite_salad_ever_ever_ever_ever/

• SALAD INGREDIENTS:
• 1 package Linguine Noodles, Cooked, Rinsed, And Cooled
• ½ heads Sliced Napa Cabbage, Or More To Taste
• ½ heads Sliced Purple Cabbage, Or More To Taste
• ½ bags Baby Spinach, Or More To Taste
• 1 whole Red Bell Pepper, Sliced Thin
• 1 whole Yellow Bell Pepper, Sliced Thin
• 1 whole Orange Bell Pepper, Thinly Sliced
• 1 bag Bean Sprouts (also Called Mung Bean Sprouts)
• Chopped Cilantro, Up To 1 Bunch, To Taste
• 3 whole Scallions, Sliced
• 3 whole Cucumbers Peeled And Sliced
• 1 can (about 10 Oz.) Whole Cashews, Lightly Toasted In Skillet
• _____
• FOR THE DRESSING:
• 1 whole Lime, Juiced
• 8 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 8 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons (up To 3 Tablespoons) Sesame Oil
• ⅓ cups Brown Sugar
• 3 Tablespoons Fresh Ginger Chopped
• 2 cloves Garlic Chopped
• 2 whole Hot Peppers Or Jalapeno's, Chopped
• Chopped Cilantro

Preparation Instructions

Mix salad ingredients together. Whisk dressing ingredients together and pour over salad. Mix with tongs or hands and serve on a platter.

Pork Chops, Shredded Brussel Sprouts, Rice

I am not going to really go into details about this recipe because I thought it was gross, but I'm gonna post it just for posterity sake!

The chops I dusted with GF flour, season salt and pepper then pan fried.

The brussel sprouts I got from this recipie

http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/shredded-brussels-sprouts-apples-recipe.html

and the rice was just a pilaf mix from Costco!

Oh, the chocolate chip cookies were from a Betty Crocker mix!

Jen

Black Bean Veggie Casserole and Baked Stuffed Pears

3 c. uncooked brown rice
3 t. butter
10 c. water

3 15 oz. cans black beans, undrained
28 oz. can diced tomatoes
2 onions
4 zucchini
3 t ground cumin
8 t salt (If I make it again, I'll cut back on the salt. To me, it was too salty.)
8 T sour cream
1 c. Monterrey jack cheese

Cook rice with butter. I did this step during nap time. I left the rice, covered, on the stove on the lowest heat setting for 45 minutes.

I was going to use dried beans instead of canned, but when I went to put the beans in the slow cooker, I noticed that the Goya package had a disclaimer that the beans may contain traces of wheat. I substituted canned beans at the last minute.

Pre-heat the oven to 350.

Chop the vegetables, and mix all the ingredients except the cheese together. Pour into a baking dish coated with cooking spray. Cook at 350 for 30 minutes.

Because this was a simple recipe, I also made dessert. This recipe comes from the Ayurvedic cookbook, Heaven's Banquet, which is the book that I turn to when I need ideas on how to cook vegetables. I prepared the pears while the casserole was cooking, but if I make this again, I'll reverse the order, cooking the pears first and saving the warming of the casserole until the end.

8 ripe pears, halved and hollowed.
2/3 c. finely chopped dried apricots
1/2 c. orange juice
2/3 c. walnuts (The cookbook calls for pine nuts, but I don't like them.)
butter

Preheat the oven to 350. Butter a baking dish.

Puree the apricots and half the orange juice in a blender. If you are using unsulphered apricots, which I did, you are supposed to simmer them for 5 minutes in the orange juice before blending, but I neglected this step. Mix in the nuts.

Put a scoop of the fruit and nut mixture in the hollow of each pear. Pour the rest of the orange juice on top. Dot with butter. Bake for 1 hour.

Polenta Pie

From the Moosewood Cookbook:

I quadrupled the recipe, but wound up getting five pies out of it instead of just four.

Filling:

4 Tbsp. olive oil
2 small onions
2 c. thinly sliced bell pepper (I used green but would choose red if I do this again)
4 zucchini
20 cloves of garlic, sliced
8 tsp. dried basil.
2 tsp. dried oregano
(The original recipe calls for mushrooms, but I left them out.)

4 tomatoes, sliced
1 lb. mozzarella

I sauteed the vegetables the night before.

Heat the oil. Add the onion and cook until soft (5-8 minutes). Add the bell pepper and zucchini and cook till tender. Then stir in the herbs and garlic. Because I could never tolerate cutting that much garlic, I used jarred.

Crust:
6 c. cornmeal
4 tsp. salt
6 c. cold water
8 c. boiling water
olive oil

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Combine the first three ingredients in a bowl. Have boiling water on the stove, and add the corn meal mixture, whisking. Cook 10 minutes. Do this step in advance because you will need to give the polenta time to cool down to the point you can handle it.

Oil a 10 inch pie pan. Add the polenta and press it in to form a smooth, thick crust. Brush the surface with olive oil and bake uncovered for 45 minutes.

The original recipe calls for broiling the pie at this point, but the Pyrex pie pans aren't supposed to go on the broiler, so I just continued to bake at 375 degrees.

Sprinkle half the cheese onto the baked crust. Add tomato slices. Spread the sauteed mixture over the tomatoes, and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Stick it back in the oven to bake until the cheese melts.

Beef Stroganoff

1 lb. ground beef

1 can Health Valley Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 C. sour cream

12-14 oz. rotini pasta, cooked

McCormick's Grill Seasoning (or just salt), pepper, and garlic powder

Brown beef. Drain off fat. Add the soup, sour cream, and seasonings to skillet with the meat and stir. Serve over noodles. Add Parmesan Cheese to the top.

Served w/ peas, grapes

Moroccan Chicken with Baby Carrot Salad and Rice

Moroccan Chicken:

A bunch of chicken breast

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup dry white wine

2 Tbsp honey

juice of 2 lemons

grated rind of 2 lemons

1 clove garlic

1 tsp curry powder

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp each: oregano, thyme and crushed peppercorns

3 Tbsp melted butter

2 cups chicken stock

8 dried apricot halves, chopped and soaked in warm water

Mix soy sauce, wine, honey, lemon juice, lemon rind and all spices together. Marinate chicken in sauce overnight or for several hours. Remove pieces, pat dry, bake in baking dish with melted butter and salt until done. Pour chicken stock into pan, bring to a boil, add marinade from chicken and drained apricot pieces. Let sauce reduce by 1/2 and pour over chicken.

Baby Carrot Salad:

1 lb carrots (it called for baby carrots, but I just sliced up big ones)

2 Tbsp honey

juice of 1 lemon

1 cup orange syrup (orange juice, cooked and reduced by 1/2)

Salt (to taste)

2 Tbsp cumin

mint (I didn't add this because I couldn't find any this time of year)

cilantro

pine nuts (I used walnuts instead)

Feta Cheese sprinkled on top

Olives

Cook carrots in olive oil on high for about 2 minutes, then on medium for another couple of minutes until they start to get a bit soft. Remove from heat and add salt, cumin, lemon juice, honey, OJ syrup. Top with olives, feta, nuts, cilantro, and mint and more cumin if desired!

Rice:

2 cups Brown rice

1 cup quinoa (because I ran out of rice)

when rice is finished cooking, stir in saute'd spinach and cheese.

Vegetarian Chili with Polenta

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups chopped onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
4 cups water, divided
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 (14.5-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (15 1/2-ounce) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 (16-ounce) can cannellini beans or other white beans, rinsed and drained
1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
1/2 cup (2 ounces) reduced-fat shredded cheddar cheese, (optional)
Preparation
Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté 3 minutes or until tender. Add 3 cups water and next 8 ingredients (through cannellini beans), stirring to combine.

Combine remaining cup of water and tomato paste in a bowl, stirring with a whisk until blended. Stir tomato paste mixture into bean mixture. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Ladle soup into bowls. Top with cheese, if desired.
(from www.cookinglight.com)

Add water to store bought tube of polenta to make it soft. Salt and pepper to taste.