Sloppy

Posted on November 17, 2011 by Laura

Recently, I started to crave the dishes my parents made as I grew up. The more I think about it, the main ingredient in most of those dishes is lentils. So down the road I headed to our new bulk foods store and bought a pound. I have been doing so reading up on how to cook lentils and other legumes and it would seem that not everyone feels you need to soak them overnight before cooking them, but I like coming in the kitchen in the morning for my coffee and seeing the bowl of soaking lentils on my stovetop. Now, all I need are those pans with the wonky handles I hated scrubbing cooked rice off of and I’d be 15 again. This recipe is an adaptation of my dad’s sloppy joe sauce, but it still tastes like home.

With this meal, I also celebrated the end of the processed ketchup in our home. I had bought two HUGE bottles for making sloppy joes for Liam’s birthday party last summer. I gave away one, but have been slowly chipping away at the other bottle. Really, for as much I’ve been wanting to get rid of the processed things in our home, I hate to waste. And even though the only time we use that ketchup is when we have cookouts, I just couldn’t waste it. I may have danced a little on the way to the recycling bin.

As far as the family reviews on this meal, Matt ate it without complaint and said that he didn’t notice a difference in taste, but the texture got his attention. He also said he didn’t want to take it for lunch at work. No one in his office is vegetarian. I get it. Liam spit his out and declared it “yucky”. He’s 2, I ignored him. Sylvia didn’t get anything but a bit of the bun and the roasted sweet potatoes. Currently, she’s my best eater in the house. I loved it and I will be making it again to freeze for my own lunches.

Sloppy Lentils

1 c. lentils, soaked over night and cooked until tender
1 Tbsp. olive or coconut oil
1 small onion, diced
1/2 green pepper, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 c. ketchup
2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp. Apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp. Brown sugar

Heat the oil in a saute pan and add the onions, peppers and garlic. Stir in the lentils and mix thoroughly. Then, add in all the ingredients for the sauce and bring to a boil. Then, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Serve on buns. Makes 8 sandwiches.

The first meatless Monday in our home!

Posted on October 24, 2011 by Laura

And the toddler ate well!

When I first met Matt, I was still largely a vegetarian. I enjoyed my vegetables and had a faint hope that I’d find someone with the same tastes to share my life. This was not the case. While Matt politely ate my parent’s meals whenever we were together, he informed me that he never wanted to see sprouts or tofu in our home. So then, I actually had to learn how to cook food beyond steaming broccoli and brown rice. Anyway, this Thanksgiving marks 7 years of love and many, many extra pounds. There are days when I wish I could have my vegetarian body back… but then, I’d also be 22 years old so…

Anyway, I’ve been craving good, homemade falafel for a long time, but it’s a lot of work (I thought) and I didn’t have a recipe that was reliable. A few weeks ago though, I saw a post on a friend’s Facebook page about how she had made falafel and I decided that despite Matt’s aversion to meatless foods, I’d make it. I used the base recipe from Feeding the Whole Family and then did what I remembered from when I had made it at home. The only complaint that I had about this recipe is that it didn’t make enough for me to have leftovers. Matt ate and enjoyed it and Liam even ate it pretty well. The chickpeas were sweet and there was just the right amount of seasoning. I made pitas to go with this and I’ll be sharing the recipe tomorrow!

Falafel:

3/4 cup dry chickpeas
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 small onion
2-3 cloves garlic
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cumin
1 Tbsp. dried cilantro
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 cup. whole wheat flour

In a medium sized pan, place the dry beans and cover with water. Soak them 10-12 hours. Drain the chickpeas and cover with water up to 1 inch over the top of the bean. Sprinkle in about 1 tsp salt. Bring the water to a boil and boil for 1 minute. Then reduce the heat to a simmer and allow the beans to cook until they are fork tender, 30-45 minutes. When the beans are done, drain and rinse them. Set them aside to cool.

Place the onion and garlic in a food processor and chop. You can leave them in a rough chop or almost puree them. I chose to almost puree mine so that the texture would be smooth. Then, add in the beans and puree. You may need to stream in some water so that the puree doesn’t become too thick and you can blend it easily. (Once the texture is what you want, add in the spices and flour. The original recipe does not call for flour, but I recall my parents using cooked millet in their recipe to give it some body and help it stick together. I was very pleased with the texture of the falafels.)

In a large skillet, heat a few Tablespoons of oil so that when you sprinkle a bit of flour in, it sizzles. Drop your falafel mixture into the oil in the shapes you’d like. My father used to form his into rounds or patties. I just scooped a full spoon’s worth and flattened it out once it was in the pan. Cook until golden brown on each side. Serve in pita with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, hummus and plain yogurt. I like to put a thin schmere of mayo on one side of the pita and then load it up with hummus and veggies. Yum.

I’m posting this recipe as part of Sweet Peas and Pumpkin’s Meatless Monday Challenge!

Spicing up our weeknight recipes

Posted on September 1, 2011 by Laura

I’ve been looking for some new recipes that can be made in advance and have some options built in. As I’ve mentioned in practically ever post that includes beef, this is the easiest ingredient to ensure Liam will eat supper. Soooo… back to the drawing board with that. I came up with a mini-meatball recipe that was inspired by a fantastic Remoulade sauce that Matt brought home from the store last weekend. We shaped them with a small ice cream scoop and then fried them like you normally would. These mini-meatballs were then turned into 2 recipes: Spicy meatballs over rice and Cajun meatball subs. I loved them both ways and so did Liam! I think what really made these fun was the addition of Adobo paste to the meat mixture for an added flavor and kick. I made the full recipe and then froze half for use this week. I must say… I’m really beginning to love batch cooking!

Spicy Meatball Recipe:

2 lbs. ground beef
1 small onion, diced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. dried mustard
1 egg
salt and pepper
3 Tbsp. Adobo Paste
1/4-1/3 cup flour (used to bind the meatballs together)

Mix all the ingredients together and then shape into whatever size you’d like. I chose a mini size to add to the novelty, but that was just for me. Fry them in a pan with hot oil until they are cooked through and a brown crust as formed on the outside. Serve in either of the 2 suggestions below.

Spicy Meatballs over Rice:

half a recipe of meatballs
2 cups cooked rice
2 cups tomato puree
1 Tbsp Adobo paste
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. red pepper flakes

Mix together the puree, Adobo paste, garlic and onion powders and pepper flakes. Heat through. Serve the meatballs over the rice with the sauce and garnish with cilantro.

Cajun Meatball Subs

Half a recipe of meatballs
4 Hoagie buns, sliced lengthwise
Remoulade Sauce
Shredded cheese
shredded lettuce, tomato slices and diced onions (optional)

Warm the meatballs thoroughly and toss with the cheese. Remove a small amount of bread from the inside of the buns to form a small indentation. Place the meatballs and cheese in this space. Generously spread the remoulade on the bun. Top with lettuce or tomatoes or onions if desired (or just make a salad on the side).