Repost: Coconut milk & green lentil soup

This recipe comes from the sweetmiscellany blog. It's hearty, healthy & delish. Try it for dinner then as leftover for lunch. I nixed the bulgur wheat and used leftover brown basmati rice, which I always have in my fridge. Enjoy!

http://sweetmiscellany.blogspot.ca/2013/01/coconut-milk-green-lentil-soup.html?m=1

Zucchini Lasagna

Through my food obsession on Pinterest I discovered an alternative to traditional lasagna made with noodles. Replace the noodles with zucchini and presto you have gluten-free dinner! For me it wasn't about it being gluten-free, just about trying something new. And, well, I am converted!

I have always loathed making lasagna since it can be time consuming. And I hate to break it to you but this is no different. So I broke it down into a 2 day ordeal. Day one, make the sauce then refrigerate it overnight. Day deux, assemble, bake and mange. 

I made this recipe straight up with raw zucchini, so it was a bit watery but nothing off-putting. If you have *more* time you can try grilling the zucchini first. 

Now's a good excuse to get that mandolin you've been eyeing up... I've had one for a few years, and I rarely break it out, but now I WILL! Slicing the zucchini was awesome on this thang (slicing potatoes for gratin is my next favourite on this tool).

Give this lasagna a whirl and feel free to adjust, replace and customize as you see fit for your family. Btw, don't tell your family there's no noddles, I bet they don't even notice ;)

 

My Sauce

1tbsp coconut oil

1 lb ground chicken

1 onion

2 garlic cloves

1 carrot

2 celery stalks

½ tsp each dried oregano, basil and chili flakes

Salt & pepper

1 large jar marinara sauce (like Costco large)

Finely chop all produce.

Heat coconut oil in large heavy bottom pot, add ground chicken to brown taking care to break it up as you stir.

Stir in onion and garlic and sauté for 2 minutes.

Stir in carrot, celery, herbs and salt and pepper to taste.

Add the marinara, bring to a boil, turn down heat and simmer for 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Taste and adjust seasoning. Let cool.

Lasagna

3 long zucchini

1 ball mozzarella

½ cup cheddar

½ cup parmesan

Sliced black olives

Pasta sauce

Using a mandolin or a sharp knife, thinly slice (1/8”) the zucchini lengthwise.

Grate all cheese.

To assemble:

In a 9x13 pan spoon a wee bit of the sauce just to cover the bottom.

Layer in zucchini like you would lasagna noodles.

Top with a ½ the pasta sauce, half the cheddar & parmesan.

Another layer of zucchini.

Top with ALL of the olives, the rest of the pasta sauce and the rest of the cheddar & parm.

Another layer of zucchini.

Finish with the Mozza! Load 'er on!

Cover with foil and bake at 350C for 45 minutes.

Remove foil and bake another 30 minutes until cheese is browned and bubbling, sometimes I turn on broil for a few minutes, but watch it doesn’t burn!

Let cool 15 minutes, yes let it cool! 

Then…ENJOY!

Peach chutney

The reason for peach chutney is our new neighbour got us HOOKED on some delicious handmade samosas. They require a chutney and store bought stuff is...meh.

So my first attempt at canning is this lovely Canadian Living recipe. I halved the recipe and got 4-125mL jars. It's time consuming but wholly satisfying. 

http://www.canadianliving.com/food/peach_chutney.php

Balsamic Onions

These onions are easy and a great topper to burgers or bratwurst.

1 large onion
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt & pepper
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Peel onion, cut into quarters. Slice the quarters so you end up with "half moons".

Heat the olive oil on med high on a heavy skillet. Add the onions, salt and pepper. Stir for two minutes. Turn heat down to lo and cook for approx 20-30 minutes, stirring often.

When the onions have reduced by half, add the balsamic vinegar and cook for one more minute. Remove from heat and serve on whatever suits your fancy.

Cookbooks

I have to admit I love cookbooks. If I could have a library full of them I would... for now I have an overflowing shelf of them. I love the photography, the inspired ideas, the author's stories and shared food information, the myriad of things I'd love to cook but don't. It just all makes me happy. Despite all that I have a simple few go-to cookbooks, the ones I use to cook not just admire.
The Joy of Cooking. I first bought this one for the sheer fact of the encyclopedic nature of the recipe collections. It offers a lot of basic cooking information about meat, beans, veggies etc. There are no photos but nonetheless it's got a array of solid recipes that are reliable time and again. This has become my one true source for many recipes.
The Journey for Food Lovers series. Oh how I love these, I wish I owned them all! I have the Food of France, the Food of Spain, the Food of India, and the Food of Asia. They are beautifully photographed and offer segments on different ingredients that make up the food of each culture. The recipes sometimes require a bit more time or specialty ingredients, particularly in the Food of India. Overall the recipes are very home cooking friendly and turn out as expected. A delish find!
Bon Appetit magazine. Ok so this isn't a cookbook but it's always a treasured read for me. And in every issue I can find a recipe that I really want to make, that I do make, and usually end up keeping as a regular dish. They often do features on a particular cooking technique or food trend which are always a highlight. After returning from Italy earlier this year Bon Appetit had a pasta issue and showcased the simplicity of cooking a "real" pasta sauce. I tried the Amatriciana and I can attest to a good outcome. Perhaps Santa will bring me a subscription next year... ;)
I can't say I need another cookbook, but I don't think I'll ever stop buying them. They inspire me to turn the mundane task of every day cooking into a culinary adventure where the outcome is me eating. How much better can that be?!

Magic Bars

I make this every Christmas, sometimes twice since they magically disappear! This is an Eagle Brand recipe.

1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut
1 can Eagle Brand

Preheat oven to 350F. Put butter in a 9x13 pan and place in oven to melt. When melted remove from oven and add graham cracker crumbs, mix well and pat into bottom of pan to make a base. Top with the walnuts, then chocochips, and finally the cocunut. Drizzle the Eagle Brand over the top. Bake for 25 minutes.

Let cool (ya right!), cut, eat. Enjoy!

My new tomato soup

Ok, so I'm back and posting a vegan recipe as my new post....yes, I said vegan. Don't worry, I'm not vegan and have no intention of becoming solely vegan. I love a bbq burger in the summer; that said, there's no reason not to incorporate some heatly alternatives for the "non burger days".

I recently purchased the Vegan YumYum cookbook - and the first recipe I tried was a keeper. I can see this tomato soup recipe being a good one for kids, a good way to hide some healthy into a good soup. http://veganyumyum.com/

I have made mine a little less spicey to appeal to the little ones...

Tomato Chickpea Soup

2 tbsp veg oil (I use olive oil)
1/2 red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp chili flakes
1/2 tsp mustard powder
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 28-ounce can tomatoes
1 tsp salt
2-4 tbsp hot water
black pepper to taste

Heat oil in a large saucepan, add the onion and saute for 2-3 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and dried herbs and spices and stir for one minute. Add the chickpeas and saute for a few minutes until they turn golden.

Add the tomatoes and break the them up with the back of your spoon. Turn to low and let simmer for 10 minutes.

You can either transfer this recipe to a blender or use an immersion blender. I think and immersion blender is PRICELESS - you can find them cheap cheap at Superstore - and can be used for soooo many things. So get one.

Add hot water to your blended soup if necessary to thin out, and taste for seasoning adding salt and pepper as you like.

This is a vegan recipe but we like to enjoy it with a toasted baguetter with melted cheddar cheese : )