Lentil Burgers

Never again will I cook such a large amount of lentils for a meal for two. However, it has encouraged me to try some new things, and this one was pretty successful.

Cast of characters:
-1/2 cup lentils
-1 cup brown rice
-1/4 cup bread crumbs
-1/4 white onion
-1 egg
-A bit of cheese (I tried both cheddar and feta) - I used about 1/8 of a cup.
-spices (cayenne, seasoning salt, garlic, pepper, chili powder)
-Other veggies if you want: I added 1/4 cup of peas to some of them, and corn to others. 

Mix all the ingredients together in a food processor (or a stick blender, if you're lucky enough to own one of those) to your preferred texture.

Pan fry on medium, making sure the pan is hot before you start. I used a combination of olive oil and vegetable oil.  Use just olive oil spray if you are feeling healthy. Let them firm up for a couple of minutes before flipping. This part is the hardest for me. Patience is SUCH a strong suit of mine ;).

We served ours on Trader Joe's Ciabatta rolls, with lettuce and tomato. And some Lemonaise. Lemonaise will change your world, it's so good. Stalk your local food store for it.

I've tried these a variety of ways now, and here's what I think the keys to any home-made veggie burger are: an egg to help it hold together, spices, and a little bit of cheese (not much, a couple of tablespoons is fine). I tried it with no egg, and it tasted good but certainly not appetizing looking when it is a blob of lentils. Anyone made veggie burgers before? Any recommendations? Always love new ways to make delicious things!

Mr. C. approves. And if a toddler will eat it, it must be okay. He even asked me for more "hamburger". Winning! 

Pure Joy

Just a shot from last weekend with Mr. C. Wishing you a day filled with unbridled joy!

Lentil Curry Tomato Soup

I don't know if you can really call this soup, but call it what you whatever you want. It was pretty good.

If you've read any of these other posts, it's clear I'm a little obsessed with the tomato/curry/coconut combo. So this is really just what I do with it with lentils and a slow cooker. It was raining today, and it was a good excuse to put off paper writing.

So here goes:

-1.5 cups green lentils
-1 cup lentils from local harvest. I don't remember what kind they are, but they look like this:

It doesn't really matter, but I used 2.5 total cups of lentils (note: this is a LOT of lentils, ie: enough to feed at least 8)

1. Saute onion until caramelized, add to slow cooker.
2. Rinse lentils, add to slow cooker with 6 cups of water or broth (more if you want it to be more like soup).
3. Add 1 large can of whole, peeled tomatoes.
4. Cook on high for at least 4 hours. Somewhere about halfway, add 2 tablespoons curry powder and 1 tablespoon garlic powder (let's be honest, you all know me: these are made up numbers).
5. Near the end, add half a can of coconut milk, and bring to simmer again.
6. Serve over rice, quinoa, or whatever you've got. Adding fresh cilantro never hurt anybody. Unless you don't like cilantro (looking at you, A).

You could obviously do this without the slow cooker, significantly quicker. And if you only have two people, and don't want to eat lentils for days, only do 1.5 cups of lentils. Sorry, Robin.

In response, I've made leftover lentils just about any way you can imagine.

Like this lentil dip. I used the lentils I made, added some peas, more garlic, cilantro, cayenne pepper and seasoned salt, covered with cheddar cheese and baked at 350. It was great as a dip for crostini and carrots. Next up: veggie burgers made with leftover brown rice and lentils.

Hope your weekend has been filled with sunshine. And lilacs. And walks with puppies. Because my do I love those things!

Kale Salad

If you have eaten anything I have cooked in the past year and a half, you have probably eaten this. A friend of mine brought it to a barbecue not too long after we came to St. Louis, and I have been loving it ever since. But I think I finally made a few improvements, so try it out!

Ingredients:
-1 bunch kale, rinsed and chopped
-Small amount of salt 
-1/4 white onion (red would be better), chopped fine
-1 apple, diced (I used a little honeycrisp)
-1 red pepper, diced
-Feta cheese (or something else crumbly)

Dressing:
-Olive oil
-white balsamic vinegar
-honey
-dijon mustard

The reason I make this salad obsessively is because it's so EASY. It tastes best if you can let it marinate for a couple of hours after assembly, but there's nothing to it.

-Massage the kale with a little salt until it wilts (I was told 5 minutes, but I'm never that patient. You are all shocked, I know).
-Add all diced vegetables, then toss with dressing.

I thought the addition of honey and mustard, though probably only a teaspoon or two of each, added something. Perfect for a March BBQ. Well, at least when that March BBQ takes place with weather in the mid-70s.

Curried Carrot Quinoa Bites (how's that for a mouthful?)

I found a recipe for quinoa bites here:
And then I modified it quite a bit. With quinoa and cheese how can you go wrong?

Ok they don't look like much, but just trust me.

Ingredients:
-3 carrots, shredded
-1/2 cup frozen spinach, thawed
-1/2 onion, chopped
-2.5 cups cooked quinoa
-3/4 cup cheddar cheese,grated
-2 tsp tsp curry powder
-1/2 tsp powdered ginger
-1/2 tsp garlic powder
-1 egg
-2 T lemon juice, more to taste

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Grate cheddar and carrots, add to large bowl.
3. Add spinach, quinoa, and onion, along with spices.
4. Mix in egg and lemon juice.
5. Spray mini muffin pan and add quinoa mixture, pressing firmly into pan.
6. Bake 25 (ish) minutes, or until the cheese melts and the edges are just starting to brown.

I believe these should be dipped in something. If you have never bought Cilantro salad dressing from Trader Joes, now would be a good time. It's in the refrigerated section, and I am kind of obsessed.

Sweet Potato Goat Cheese Ravioli with Sage Brown Butter

I am going to try to focus on the point of this blog: food and house projects (and some Gertie: so basically, our favorite things). The latest food: Sweet Potato Goat Cheese Ravioli for our dear friends Abby and Adam after they put us up in DC.

Pasta is a labor of love. It's easy but repititious, and it's a perfect 2-person job. Robin and I have fallen hard for the excitement of homemade pasta. So here goes...

For the pasta:
-Approximately 1 egg per serving, and roughly 2/3 cup flour per egg (ie: for this ravioli, 4 people = 4 eggs)
-If you have a kitchenaid, dump eggs and flour in and use a dough hook to mix until dough is "raggy" (Robin's word, and he's the pro).
-Turn onto floured surface and knead well for at least 10 minutes. Add flour as needed. Dough needs to only stick to itself.
-Make a ball, wrap in cellophane, and let rest for 30 minutes.

**Cheater tip: if you don't have a pasta maker, ignore all the pasta making steps and buy wonton wrappers.**

For the filling:
-Roast sweet potatoes in 425 degree oven until soft.
-Let cool, then smash with goat cheese (we used 4 ounces of garlic and herb, but whatever floats your boat). I am of the mindset that you can never have to much goat cheese, so amend according to your goat cheese philosophy. Don't use any if you don't like goat cheese, omit it all together.
-Add spices: for us, black pepper and a tiny bit of nutmeg.

For the sauce:
Super easy, terrible for you, and delicious. Totally my style.

Melt 6 T of butter in a saucepan. Heat until butter is barely starting to brown. Add chopped fresh sage. I added 2 T of heavy cream at the end, but I'd leave that out next time.

Construction:
-Roll out the pasta dough. If you have a pasta maker, you know the drill. We did ours to '8' thinness. If you don't have a pasta maker, you are smart and using wonton wrappers.
-Place dollops of filling on half of pasta sheet (or in the middle of each wonton wrapper).
-Use water to draw around the edge of the filling, then seal, pushing all of the air out.
-Cut ravioli apart using a pizza cutter, then boil for ~4 minutes, or until the ravioli float to the top. The wonton wrappers should take the same amount of time.

Eating:
-Serve with parmesan and more fresh sage.

The photos don't do it justice, but here's another one anyway:

I am sure my arteries are just now recovering from this meal. But it was so, so worth it. And if you wanted to be healthier, you could do olive oil infused with sage. And if you cut out most of the goat cheese, it wouldn't be quite so bad for you. And if you had a good camera, you might have more lovely photos. But if wishes were fishes....

Time Flies...

When you're....studying?

We are having some fun too though:

 Brunch with friends,

 

A day full of sunshine (and sticks to chew on!),

Family to share delicious food with, 

a sleepy puppy while I study,

and spring has sprung! Or at least some daffodils. 

 

Oh and what I was theoretically going to write about: my latest go-to meal.  

You guessed it - roasted vegetables! I am nothing if not predictable. But I can't get over how little work it is, and how much it feels like a meal. This was quinoa (in the rice cooker! who knew?) 2 cups of water, 1 cup quinoa. Roasted sweet potatoes, onions, and zucchini. Baked some kale chips, because what meal is complete without kale? And made a little balsamic/mustard/honey dressing for it. It was pretty lovely. 

Hope it is feeling like spring in your neck of the woods, or at least like sunshine!