Mustard Scrambled Eggs

We love to use eggs as our main dish for dinner. Omelettes, fritattas and even scrambled eggs make a filling and nutritious meal, especially when served with a big salad and some crusty bread. This recipe is amazingly simple and delicious.

2 1/2 oz butter
8 eggs, beaten
6 Tbsp Gruyere or cheddar (we used Comte)
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp finely chopped fresh herbs (tarragon, parsley, chives or scallions are all good)

melt butter in a saucepan over medium low heat. Add eggs and cook, stirring
constantly, until just thickened. Add the cheese and stir until just
melted. Remove from the heat. Stir in the mustard, herbs and salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

from Organic Cooking, Naturally Good Food by Renee Elliott and Eric Treuille.

chicken paprikas with dumplings

this recipe came to me from my hungarian grandmother. we make dumplings all the time - usually with chicken paprikas and the cucumber salad i posted earlier...

dumplings
4 eggs, beaten
4 cups flour
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
2 cups milk
mix all ingredients well (kitchen aid of course!) drop batter by tablespoons into salted boiling water. boil about 10 minutes - or until dumplings float to the top and are fairly firm. remove from the water with a slotted spoon and top with lots of butter and salt!

we often make chicken paprikas and top the dumplings with that - with the cucumbers as a side dish.

chicken paprikas
1 large onion, chopped
4 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon paprika (plus a little more for good measure! :)
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons salt
chicken **
1/2 pint sour cream
brown onions in butter. add seasonings and chicken. brown 10 minutes (5 mins on each side). cover and let simmer slowly - about 30 minutes. add sour cream to drippings in the pan and mix well.

** my grandmother used to make this with bone-in, skin-on chicken - all kinds of pieces. we use boneless, skinless thighs and breasts. i usually use about 6 thighs or 4 breasts - depending on size. it should all fit in a regular frying pan.

-Erin

eggplant soup

If you are wondering what to do with those little eggplants, I adapted a recipe I have for eggplant soup & it turned out great.
I blackened the eggplant & purple peppers on the grill, placed in a plastic bag for at least 10 minutes & cooled. Peeled and discarded the skins. Cut up into pieces. In a 3-qt. pot, over low heat, In a couple of Tbsps. of olive oil, I cooked the veggies w/a large garlic clove & a small red onion, both chopped, for 15 minutes or until very tender. Added salt and pepper to taste & a couple of cups of vegetable broth (could use chicken broth). Pureed the whole mixture in the blender until very smooth.

Koz

Poblano Peppers

These are called anchos when they are dried. The are the mildest of spicy peppers - like a spicy green pepper. They can be roasted and added into anything or cooked like the recipe below which is what I am going to make today - with the roasted corn variation. I can not wait!

Green Poblano Rice
1 2/3 cups chicken broth or water
2 fresh poblano chiles, stems and seeds removed, and roughly chopped
12 sprigs cilantro, plus extra for garnish
Salt, about 1/2 teaspoon if using salted broth, 1 teaspoon if using unsalted or water
1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil
1 cup rice, preferably medium grain
1 small white onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
5 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

The flavoring: In a 2-quart saucepan, combine the broth and chiles, bring to a boil, then partially cover and simmer gently over medium to medium-low heat for about 10 minutes, until the chiles are very soft. Pour the chile
mixture into a food processor, add the cilantro (stems and all), and
process to a smooth puree. Press through a medium-mesh strainer into a
bowl and stir in the salt.

The rice: Wipe the pan clean, add the
oil and heat over medium. Add the rice and onion, and cook, stirring
regularly, until the rice is chalky looking and the onion is soft,
about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook a minute longer.

Add the warm (or reheated) chile
liquid to the hot rice pan, stir once, scrape down any rice kernels
clinging to the side of the pan, cover, and cook over medium-low heat
for 15 minutes. Uncover and check a grain of rice: It should be nearly
cooked through. If the rice is just about ready, turn off the heat,
re-cover and let stand for 5 to 10 minutes longer to complete the
cooking. If the rice seems far from done, continue cooking for 5
minutes or so, retest, then turn off the heat and let stand a few
minutes longer. Fluff with a fork, scoop into a warm serving dish,
decorate with cilantro sprigs and it's ready to serve.

Advance
preparation: The rice can be made several days ahead; turn out the
fluffed rice onto a baking sheet to cool, transfer to a storage
container, then cover and refrigerate. Reheat the rice in a steamer
basket set over boiling water.

Variations and improvisations: An obvious variation is to use 3 or 4 long green (Anaheim) chiles, or to mix poblanos and long greens with hotter chiles like jalapeño, manzano or habanero.
Grilled corn cut from 1 cob or 1 large grilled zucchini (cubed) are
tasty vegetable add-ins. About 1 cup coarsely shredded roast (or
barbecued) pork or smoked salmon, mixed in toward the end of cooking,
will make green rice a full meal.Makes 4 servings.

from: http://poblanorecipes.blogspot.com/

Koz's Black Bean Dal

Here's an easy & different recipe for black beans that my family loves. Serve w/warm tandoori bread or jasmine rice or pita bread.

1 pound black beans (or 2 cans, rinsed)
6 cups water
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 small garlic clove, chopped
2 tsps cumin seed
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp ground ginger
salt and ground red pepper
1 cup whipping cream

I boil the dry beans for 2 min. & let sit for 1 hr, then rinse.
Transfer to 6-8 quart pot. Add water and bring to boil over high heat, skimming foam as it accumulates on surface. Add butter, garlic, spices, salt and red pepper. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until beans are tender, adding cream near end of cooking time (mixture should be consistency of thick soup). (Can be prepared ahead and refrigerated 5 to 6 days. Reheat before serving.

Faith in Action

I am so excited to announce that we will be donating our surplus fruits and veggies to Faith in Action each week. This food will go to seniors who need food and rarely get fresh. I will let you know how it goes and might offer some donation opportunities along the way (canned food drive, money to buy more fresh stuff).

My mom has offered to donate $10 a week to buy extra (which can go a LONG way at the market because I can buy what is a good deal and not be worried about trying to make a balanced bag).

This just makes me so happy because it is super easy and is nothing for me to do - but according to the director will have a BIG impact.

http://www.fiacl.org/

Amy

Escarole

I usually eat escarole as a bitter raw lettuce but found this recipe on Allrecipes.com to cook it with beans that sounds super! I might try it tonight as a side with my roasted lamb! If anyone else gives it a whirl - let us know your results. You can easily cut it in half.
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"This is a creamy concoction of escarole and beans. It's rich, and it's divine! It's also best served with a warm crusty Italian bread and Chianti."

INGREDIENTS

* 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
* 2 large heads escarole
* salt and pepper to taste
* 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
* 1 clove garlic, minced
* 2 (16 ounce) cans cannellini beans, undrained
* 3 sprigs fresh parsley, chopped

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Toss in escarole, turning to coat with oil. Season with salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes, or until tender.
2. In a separate skillet, heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Stir in garlic. Pour in beans with juices, and simmer until creamy, about 10 minutes. Stir in escarole and parsley; simmer 10 minutes more.