Broccoli, Leek and Acorn Squash Bisque

We've been getting into Broccoli Bisque recipes lately and decided to use some different ingredients we had on hand for this one.  There's a short discussion about the sulfurophane in broccoli which is an anti-oxidant and which is useable either in raw broccoli or in broccoli that has been ground up raw and allowed to sit for 45 minutes before cooking.  The discussion is in our last blog post Broccoli-White Sweet Potato Bisque

This we used leeks and acorn squash with a bit of cayenne pepper and roasted pumpkin seeds for garnish.

4 cups fresh broccoli florets, chopped in a food processor or blender 45 minutes before cooking
4 leeks light green and white parts washed well and chopped
1-1/2 tsp. dried dill weed
4 cups vegetable broth
4 cups cooked, mashed acorn squash
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
2-1/2 cups plain soy or rice milk
2 dashes white pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper (or to taste)
Salt, to taste
2 Tbsp. tamari roasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds), optional
1 tsp. chia seeds, optional

Add the broccoli, leeks, vegetable broth and dill weed to a soup pot.  Bring to a boil, cover and simmer on medium heat for about 15 minutes, or until the broccoli and leeks are cooked.  Use a hand held blender to make a smooth consistency, then add acorn squash and heat through.  Add mustard, soy milk cayenne pepper and pepper and salt to taste, stir and allow to heat for a minute or so.  Ladle into bowls, sprinkle with pepitas and/or chia seed (if desired) and serve.

Broccoli-White Sweet Potato Bisque

We've been reading a lot about anti-oxidants and learned that cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and kale are true super foods that we need to incorporate into our diet every day. Some vegetables are better eaten raw due to the enzymes that can be destroyed by cooking.  In the case of broccoli and kale, you can chop them in a food processor or blender and let them sit for about 45 minutes to allow the anti-oxidant sulforofane to develop, then they can be cooked.

Here's a recipe that uses pre chopped sulforofane rich broccoli and white fleshed sweet potatoes instead of regular potatoes for an extra nutrient boost.

4 cups broccoli florets, chopped in a food processor or blender
2 cups skinned, shredded white sweet potatoes
1 red onion chopped
1-1/2 tsp. dried dill weed
3 cups vegetable broth
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
2-1/2 cups plain soy or rice milk
1 dash white pepper
Salt, to taste

Add the broccoli, sweet potato, onion, vegetable broth and dill weed to a soup pot.  Bring to a boil, cover and simmer on medium heat for about 15 minutes, or until the broccoli, potatoes and onions are cooked.  Use a hand held blender to make a smooth consistency, then add mustard, soy milk and pepper and salt to taste, stir and allow to heat for a minute or so.  Ladle into bowls and serve.

Dijon-Balsamic Vinaigrette

We've been enjoying Roasted Brussels Sprouts lately and Mike wanted to try a Dijon mustard based sauce to put over them.  We found some great candidates on the internet and put together a sauce we really like.  This is very easy and uses common ingredients.  Note: there's really no substitute for Balsamic vinegar for this recipe in my opinion.

Dijon-Balsamic Vinaigrette

1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup Balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3/4 cup water
2 Tbsp. maple syrup (or agave nectar), or to taste

Put all ingredients into blender and blend well.  Taste and add maple syrup to taste.  Makes about 2 cups.

Pour over roasted Brussels sprouts, or even use as a salad dressing.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Brussels Sprouts is one of our favorite cruciferous veggies and our favorite way to eat them is roasted.  This is easy and tastes wonderful.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

1 lb. fresh Brussels Sprouts

cooking oil spray

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Take a pound of Brussels Sprouts, rinse them well, cut off the stem ends, cut them in half and add them to a bowl.  Spritz the sprouts lightly with cooking spray, mix them well to coat them, add salt and pepper to taste, mix again.

Add them, cut sides down, to a baking pan lined with enough parchment paper to cover the bottom and be wrapped over the top.

Fold the edges of the parchment paper over the sprouts, and bake for 30 minutes.  Check to see if they are cooked and bake longer if necessary until they are cooked to your preference.  They're best when they're a bit crispy on the cut sides. They should look like this when they're done:

YUM!  Serve with Dijon-Balsamic Vinaigrette

Ratatouille with Rice

Ratatouille with Rice

2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes halved
1 bay leaf
3 cups cooked brown rice
1/8 tsp. turmeric
3 Tbsp. Vegan Alfredo Sauce (see recipe below)
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1-1/2 cups chopped onions
3 cups diced green and/or red bell peppers (1-inch dice)
3 cups diced zucchini (1-inch dice)
2 large eggplants cut into 1-inch cubes (6-8 cups)
6 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. salt
Ground black pepper
Fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced (optional)

Cook the brown rice for 45 minutes until tender and water is absorbed (or use leftover
cooked brown rice). Add the tomato halves and bay leaf, cover and cook over low heat
until the tomatoes wilt, taking care not to let the contents scorch at the bottom of the
pan. Add the turmeric and Vegan Alfredo Sauce to the rice mixture, stir well, cover and
remove from heat.

Warm the balsamic vinegar in a soup pot, add the onions and bell pepper, stir and cook
over medium heat for about 4 minutes, or until the onions start to become translucent.
Add the zucchini and cook for a few minutes more until the zucchini starts to soften.
Add the eggplant, thyme, oregano, pepper and salt and cook, stirring occasionally until
all the vegetables are tender, about 7 minutes.

Add the rice mixture to the vegetables and stir well. Serve in bowls topped with fresh
basil (optional).

Vegan Alfredo Sauce


Ingredients
Makes 4 servings
1 cup raw cashews
2 tablespoons raw pine nuts
1 1/2 cups water
4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/16 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
4 cups cooked fettuccine (or other pasta of your choice)
3 tablespoons freshly minced parsley

Directions
In a blender, grind cashews and pine nuts into a fine powder. Add water, lemon juice,
garlic, nutmeg, and salt. Blend until completely smooth.
Transfer to a small saucepan over medium heat and whisk as you bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to low and simmer for 7 minutes, whisking regularly. Stir in black pepper.
Serve over hot pasta and garnish with parsley and fresh ground pepper to taste.

Black-eyed Pea Hummus from Fat Free Vegan

Black-eyed Pea Hummus

One of our favorite sources of recipes is Susan Voisin's Fat Free Vegan website.  She's a brilliant cook and her recipes are so tasty and satisfying.  You will definitely want to bookmark her site!

One of our favorite recipes from her is this Black-eyed Pea Hummus.  It's an amazing, wonderful recipe idea!  It's especially good with whole wheat chips made from Trader Joe's Whole Wheat Lavash Bread cut into 1-1/2" squares and baked.  We can't stop eating this stuff, yum!

http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2012/09/black-eyed-pea-hummus.html

Our Garden August 2012

Living in a mobile home park means small lots and tight quarters so we decided to make our little home and lot colorful and friendly.  Our garden has evolved to include plants grown from cuttings and found objects added for color and interest.  We've really enjoyed putting it together over the past 16 months.

Welcome to L Row!

We found used wine barrels for planters

Most of our plants are from cuttings of plants found in our area

We love the colors and variety of shapes

We found driftwood on a beach close by...

...and added river stone found locally... 

...added found objects...

...and a few store bought objects

The neighbors stop often to examine the latest additions

Sedums do really well in Morro Bay

The area to the right around the corner is the nursery for plant cuttings. 

It doesn't take much effort to turn cuttings into full grown plants here, so it's easy and inexpensive to create a garden.  It didn't cost much money to put this together, just time and lots of backpack loads of rocks and cuttings.