Back Porch Pizza

This is one of the ways we use up our veggies! We pre-grill/roast a ton of stuff up and store in the fridge all week and add to pizza, sandwiches, omelettes/frittatas, and salads. The pre-grilling not only takes the extra moisture out of the vegetables - but makes their flavor stronger, richer, and sweeter. So, everything you use them for will be that much better.

I posted our dough recipe with a bunch of tips a few months ago. We have recently converted from cooking in our gas oven at super high temps to the outdoor gas grill. It is AMAZING! You have to fool around with your grill to get it all perfect. We put our stone directly on the grill and heat up all four gas jets as high as they will go for 5-10 minutes, then turn the middle two (that are directly under the stone) down to low and keep the outside ones on high. Pizza cooks in about 7 minutes and your house is not heated up. This will be my lunch all summer!

grated carrots

This is a staple in French delis for a healthy snack/salad/lunch. It keeps for a few days and is a great way to get loads of carrots into your diet. Here is our version - but it really lends itself to customization.

3 thickly grated carrots (we use the mandolin for this so they are crunchier)
oj (juice from one orange)
sprinkle of cumin
s/p

a bit of smashed and chopped garlic and a glug of olive or walnut oil are great additions.

Tabouli

from Moosewood Cookbook

1 cup dry bulgar wheat
1 1/2 cups boiling water
1 t salt
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 c olve oil
2 cloves of garlic, smashed and chopped
black pepper
4 scallions chopped (white and green) - or use some sweet onion
1 packed cup finely chopped parsely
10-15 fresh mint leaves (if you have it)
2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped (or a few handfuls of grape tomatoes)

think about throwing in some seeded chopped cucumber, red or green bell pepper, or chickpeas

combine the bulgar and boiling water, cover, let set 30 minutes until tender

mix in the salt, lemon, olive oil, garlic, pepper - cover and refrigerate until cool - then add the rest of the ingredients. Eat cold for lunch. Enjoy!

gazpacho

This is my adapted gazpacho recipe. It is inspired by Mollie Katzen’s version in Moosewood Cookbook (which is probably my favorite cookbook ever). I have experimented with all sorts of combinations of blending and chopping and found this to be the best. It is very versatile- taste along the way and add or subtract anything. I don’t add any salt because it breaks the veggies down too fast. I sprinkle sel de mer right before I eat it. This is the perfect summer/fall food and most kids seem to like it too.

Store it in jars in the fridge and grab one when you are running errands - better than the flu shot!

Amy’s Gazpacho

6 tomatoes

1-2 cucumbers (peeled and seeded)

1/3 vidalia onion

1-2 clove of garlic

green bell pepper

red bell pepper

honey

cumin

cayenne

olive oil

fresh herbs (I like to use tarragon, basil and parsley)

blend all but one or two of the tomatoes in blender or food processor until smooth (also, if you have extra red bell pepper puree one of those to add to the “stock”). Pour into a huge bowl. Finely hand chop the remaining tomato, cucumber, onion, garlic, bell peppers and throw them in the bowl. Add a couple of glugs of olive oil, a splash of something acidic (lemon juice or a mild vinegar), some chopped up basil, tarragon and parsley, a wee bit of honey, a shake of cumin and cayenne. Let chill if you can bear it and eat it up! This is pure nectar from the gods and will make you healthy and happy!

Pomegranates

This website has TONS of great recipies and even how to peel a pomegrantie. Thanks Katie for the tip!

http://www.pomegranates.org

Cream of Carrot Soup

Cat made this for our book club's poetry evening last fall and it was fabulous!

1 C chopped leak (substitute onions/shallots if you need to)
2 large onions
4 T butter
2 # carrots
3 C water
3 C vegetable broth
5 T uncooked white rice
pinch of sugar
1 t salt
1/2 tsp crushed dried thyme
1 small bay leaf
pinch of cayenne
1 1/2 C milk
1/3 C cream
dash of nutmeg

garnish with fresh chives

in a large, heavy saucepan, saute the onions and leeks/shallots in the butter stirring often, until they are golden. Meanwhile, peel and thinly slice the carrots. Add the carrots, water, broth, rice, salt, herbs and cayenne to the onion mixture. Cover and simmer for about 40 minutes, or until the carrots and rice are completely mushy soft.

Remove the bay leaf and puree the soup in batched in a blender or food processor until it is velvety smooth. Return the soup to the rinsed saucepan and stir in the milk, cream and sprinkle of nutmeg. Heat the soup through, stirring gently, then taste and correct seasoning with another pinch of salt or nutmeg.

Serves 8-10 (use left overs for lunch the next day!)

Refrigerator Pickles

here's what we did with our cucumbers this week. yum!

Makes about 1 gallon

5 pounds firm Kirby cucumbers, 3 to 5 inches long (about 20 cucumbers)
1 1/2 cups coarse salt
2 tablespoons mixed pickling spices, (available premixed in supermarkets)
4 to 5 cloves garlic, unpeeled
4 to 5 sprigs fresh dill
6 1/4 cups water
2 1/2 cups apple-cider vinegar
3 tablespoons sugar

Wash cucumbers well. Place in a large nonreactive container. Combine 1/2 gallon water with 1 cup salt, and stir until salt is dissolved. Pour over cucumbers. Place a plate on cucumbers to keep them submerged in liquid. Cover, and refrigerate overnight.

Drain and rinse cucumbers, discarding brine. Pack into four to five wide-mouthed quart jars. Distribute pickling spices, garlic, and dill evenly among the jars.

Combine 6 1/4 cups water, the remaining 1/2 cup salt, the vinegar, and sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, and pour into packed jars. Cool on a rack to room temperature. Cover, and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.