Oh Joy! More cabbage. Last week my friend Jackie over at
Vegan Yack Attack suggested making a
“Tomato & Cabbage Soup,” so I just might have to try my hand at a variation of
her recipe. I’ve exhausted all my other recipes. I also had an amazing
“Tomato & Fennel Soup” last weekend while having lunch at
Solace with my friend Amy. Been dying to recreate that too & with fennel in this week’s box, it’s the perfect time to do it!
Here are the goods I’ll be picking up this afternoon…
- Napa Cabbage
- Red Onion Bunch
- White Turnip
- Fennel
- Green Garlic
- Green Butter Lettuce
- Salad Mix
- Cilantro
I haven’t had much chance to think or plan recipes to use with this week’s box. Time & thoughts have been consumed with work stuff & life stuff. Tonight I’ll be packing my bags, as bright & early tomorrow I am hitting the road for a quick trip up the the Bay Area. I am really looking forward to dinner at Millennium in San Francisco tomorrow. Follow me (@vegenista) on instagram for real time updates.
(source)
After the trip, I have a number of things to sort out & once the dust settles, I hope to return to a more frequent blogging schedule. My days are long & weekends are spent making up for lost sleep, yoga & time. Inspiration comes & goes, but I have managed to think up a couple of awesome recipes that I really want to share here soon.
See you in a few days!
Cabbage, again. Tis the season. This is the only disadvantage of being a CSA member: non-preferred ingredients, ad naseam. But it teaches you to be creative, think outside the box, discover new favorites, & I try to make the best of it. Thank goodness I have some new & old recipes at my fingertips.
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Chard
- Parsley
- Fennel
- Carrots
- Arugula
- Kale
I have yet to share the outcome of how I utilized the cabbage from the last box, & will do so soon, I promise. But here is a hint…
This time I plan to make another dish from trusty culinista, Heidi Swanson - “White Beans & Cabbage” from her latest book, Super Natural Everyday. I’m sick, again, so my taste buds are flat & I’d just like to keep it simple. This recipe looks rustic & hearty. In fact, here it is on the cover!
Speaking of being under the weather, I haven’t had much of an appetite, but I did have a craving today for something comforting. I’ve also had a hankering for vegan mac & cheese & a bit of inspiration popped into my inbox yesterday - “White Cheddar & Arugula Pesto Mac & Cheese”. Perfect use of arugula from the CSA, but hmmmmm….how can I veganize the mac & white cheddar part? I think I’ve come up with a plan. I’ll test it out & if it is successful, I’ll share.
I was very excited to see kale on the list, as I usually have to buy it separately. I am always up for kale. My CSA has recently begun adding recipes to our boxes & it’s wonderful. This week they included a recipe for “Kale & Potato Gratin” & were kind & amazing enough to add a “vegan adaptation” to the recipe. Thank you, Suzie’s! I will be making it for sure & will share the recipe here. Bring on the comfort food.
In other news…just booked a trip to the bay area. A quick San Fran-Berkely-Napa excursion. Leaving two weeks from today. Made a reservation at Millennium….yes! I need this more than anything right now. Things in my little life have been a bit overwhelming lately.
Weeknights are often busy. Between 2 jobs, I work a long day, then come home, tend to my dog, & squeeze in yoga or exercise, & try make a fresh, nutritious meal. Some meals are healthier that other, & sometimes cheating is involved…
By cheating I mean taking reasonable short cuts. A Gardein Chik’n Breast & steamed or roasted vegetables with rice is a staple, as is spaghetti & veggie meatballs, or a frozen Amy’s roasted veggie or vegan pizza & a salad. Other times, I’ll make a little more effort, but still just cheat a bit, as I did here, by using a pre-made red curry sauce instead of making the real deal.
A few weeks ago I received a gem of a kabocha squash in my CSA share. Kabaocha is a rare gift in terms of squash & I was determined to do something special with it. That is when I came across this recipe & flagged in on my “Veganize It!” Pinterest board. Veganize & simplify - that was my mission. A Thai restaurant in my neighborhood makes a gorgeous pumpkin curry that I often crave, so why not make a semi homemade version?
But let’s talk a bit more about our star ingredient - kabocha squash. It is a centuries-old variety of Japanese squash that is often referred to as a Japanese pumpkin & is popular in dishes ranging from soup to sushi. Kabocha is a hard winter squash available from late fall to late spring. It has a brilliant yellow-orange flesh & as its rich orange flesh indicates, it is high in the powerful anti-oxidant beta carotene. One 3/4 cup serving of cooked Kabocha squash is only 30 calories yet provides 30% of your daily recommended vitamin C & 70% of vitamin A. It’s also high in dietary fiber, especially if you eat the skin, which turns soft when cooked. Both the texture and flavor of Kabocha squash is reminiscent to a sweet potato: the soft, moist, fluffy flesh is delightfully sweet & slightly nutty.
Cheater, Cheater Pumpkin Eater Kabocha Squash Curry
- 1 large kabocha squash
- 8 oz firm tofu, cut into bite sized chunks
- 1 large handful green beans, cut in half
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 3/4 jar of vegan Thai Red curry sauce (be sure to check the label for traces of fish sauce, dairy & eggs - I used Fresh & Easy brand)
- cooked jasmine rice for serving (to save even more time I love the frozen rice packages from Trader Joe’s - throw in the micro for 3 minutes!)
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drizzle olive oil on a foil lined sheet tray. Slice kabocha squash, remove seeds, & place cut-side down on the sheet tray. Roast squash halves for about 30 minutes until tender. Remove & let cool completely.
- Press tofu for 20-30 minutes & drain excess water. Cut into chunks.
- Heat oil in a large pot, add red bell peppers, green bean halves & sauce & simmer for about 15 minutes until vegetables are just cooked but not mushy.
- Peel kabocha squash, or leave peel on for extra nutrients. Chop into large chunks & add along with the tofu to the curry sauce. Serve curry over jasmine rice.
So simple, nutritious & tasty. That is what an easy weeknight meal is all about. Prep the veggies & tofu while the squash is roasting. Then throw everything into a pot & simmer away while enjoying a glass of wine.
T.G.I. almost Friday! It’s been an exhausting week back at work & I am so looking forward to a 3-day weekend. I picked up my share today & was so happy to see it filled with a beautiful bunch of chard…
& these lovely veggies…
- Broccolini
- Spinach
- Celery
- Chard
- Butter Lettuce
- Parsley
- Carrots
- Napa Cabbage
- Rainbow Microgreens
Oh Napa cabbage, here you are again! To be honest, I am never very excited when I pull cabbage out of the box. There is usually a big sigh accompanied by a scratch of the head & the question “what the heck am I gonna do with you?” Well, that could change with the discovery of this Chopped Miso Salad recipe from 101 Cookbooks, which looks absolutely divine! I will be making it for sure.
Chopped Miso Salad (image via 101 Cookbooks)
We’ve been enjoying unusually warm weather here in Southern California, but after this weekend that is projected to change. That is fine with me! I wasn’t quite ready to put away my scarves & boots quite yet! I also love to cozy up the house with a nice pot of soup or stew simmering on the stove & that is just what I intend to do. I’d love to make a vegan version of this: Chard & White Bean Stew from Smitten Kitchen. Of course I can use up the rest of the cabbage with The PPK’s Chickpea Rice Soup with Cabbage which I made previously & really enjoyed.
Speaking of The PPK, I’m sitting on two sugar pumpkins from my last share & am wondering if I can incorporate fresh pumpkin puree in their Chocolate Pumpkin Loaf recipe, which sounds scrumptious as all get up. I see a weekend baking project!
It’s beginning to feel a little more like winter again around here, at night anyway. I’ve been bundling up & turning on the heater again in the evenings, which means it is the perfect time for soul warming soup…
Fennel & Tomato Soup
While thumbing through the Jan/Feb 2012 issue of Vegetarian Times, I came across this recipe & immediately dogeared it.
Not only do I absolutely love tomato soup, I had fennel bulbs from my last CSA share & leftover Field Roast Sausage from my NYE paella on hand. All the more reason to make this soup on a chilly winter’s night.
Upon looking closely at the recipe, it didn’t seem right to me - one large fennel bulb yielding four cups of diced fennel? Hmmmm…I had three small bulbs that yielded almost two cups, & come to think of it, I’ve never seen a fennel bulb quite monstrous enough to yield that many cups. Perhaps a typo, or perhaps fennel bulbs are smaller around these parts? Also the proportion of broth to canned tomatoes seemed too much to me. I wanted a tomato rich recipe.
Needless to say, I was gonna need to make some modifications. Adding onion, & reducing the broth to make it more of a hearty stew.
“Vegan Sausage, Fennel & Tomato Stew”
- 3 Tbsp. olive oil
- 3 small fennel bulbs, diced
- 1/2 white onion, diced
- 2 vegan Italian sausages, sliced into 1/2-inch-thick rounds
- 1 tsp. fennel seeds
- 2 Tbsp. dry white wine
- 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
- 1 28-oz. can crushed tomatoes
- 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh Italian parsley, plus more for garnish
- Heat oil in soup pot over medium heat. Add fennel & onion, & sauté 3 to 5 minutes.
- Stir in sausages & fennel seeds, & cook 5 minutes, or until fennel seeds are slightly softened & bits of sausage are stuck to bottom of pan. Add wine, & cook 5 to 10 seconds to de-glaze pan, scraping up any brown bits. Add broth, tomatoes, & parsley; cover, & bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to medium-low, & simmer 10 minutes. Season with salt & pepper, if desired.
- Garnish with additional parsley & serve with sourdough bread.
This soup is hearty, savory & definitely full of lycopene rich tomato. I have to warn you, the fennel & tomato pair nicely, but the fennel seeds really impart that licorice-like fennel flavor, so if you’re not a fennel fan, omit the seeds.
Otherwise, enjoy!
It’s my last share of the year! I joined
Suzie’s Farm almost two years ago & it’s been one of the best choices I’ve ever made. Eating locally grown seasonal produce is a magical thing & I am so lucky to be able to do it. If you live in San Diego, or you have friends or family here why not share the love & give the gift of Suzie’s? Even though Christmas has passed,
Holiday Specials are still available, &
a gift subscription,
farm tour passes, or a
Good Farm Box would make a wonderful offering to yourself or loved ones who have healthful goals on their New Year’s Resolutions!
I am off to the Farmers’ Market pick up these goodies from Suzie’s:
- Broccoli
- Spinach
- Wee B Little Pumpkin
- Orange Carrots
- Head Lettuce
- Cilantro
- Kale
- Fennel
Yay kale! I might pick up some extra, because it’s about time to make some kale chips! In addition, I’ll be picking up veggies for my NYE Paella. I usually have a NY Day “Champagne & Paella Party,” but this year I’m changing it up. I am also trying a new recipe & will be making the recipe in my new Candle 79 Cookbook. I want to use as many organic & local veggies as I can find. Can’t wait to try it & tell you all about it!
What are your New Year’s plans?
I picked up my goods last night & some other fun stuff. Yay! It was slim pickins’ in my fridge!
First of all - If you live in San Diego & love hummus, you must check out Baba Foods. Best hummus in town. My all time favorite is the “Vegan Curry Hummus,” but last night I selected the “Pesto (Basil) Hummus.” I’ve been in a veggie sandwich mood lately & it sounded like a fun sammie spread. Okay back to the latest share from Suzie’s Farm…
- Napa Cabbage
- Spinach
- Arugula
- Bok Choy
- Red Kabocha Squash
- Spicy Salad Mix
- Cannellini Bean Dry
In addition, I grabbed some Romanesco cauliflower, carrots, beets, sunflower sprouts, red grapes, & red leaf lettuce. I am in need of some good clean greens, so I am grateful for all of the roughage! This box has also inspired quite a few recipes that I hope to make over the weekend & next week! It’s been so hard for me to blog about what I am cooking lately. Working two jobs & trying to attend evening yoga classed puts me home past dark, which we call know doesn’t lend itself well to food photography. I might have to build a light box, but that is a project for another time. I hope to do some cooking/photo projects on the weekends so I have some fun stuff to post. In the meantime these are the recipes I hope to make over the next two weeks:
What are your favorite recipes to make this time of year?
***Oh, & by the way I just signed up for a Pinterest acccount & have been having so much fun with it. Follow me here.
Nothing soothes the soul on a cold rainy night more than a steamy bowl of soup. I love the rain, especially in the evening when I am home curled up under a blanket with my snuggle Pug & a good book. A rainstorm always inspires me to put a soup or stew on the stove & a hearty loaf of multigrain bread in the oven, & that is how this recipe was born last Saturday night.
When I picked up my CSA share, I cringed just a bit at the sight of savoy cabbage. Cabbage is not something I would purchase at will, but when the CSA throws it my way, I must catch it & run! So I did, on that rainy evening. My intention had been to attempt a veganized “German Sausage & Cabbage” type meal, but when the clouds & cold front blew in, that plan quickly shifted. With soup on the brain, I searched & found an “Italian Sausage & Cabbage Stew” recipe that seemed easy enough to make vegan. It turned out wonderfully.
“Vegan Italian Sausage & Cabbage Stew”
Serves 8-10
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 package vegan Italian sausages, crumbled (I used Tofurky)
- 1 large yellow onion, half sliced and half minced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 1/2 cups white wine
- 1 15-ounce can of white beans, drained
- 1 quart vegetable stock
- 1 quart water
- 1 teaspoon salt, more to taste
- 1 savoy cabbage, quartered, & sliced into 1/4-inch thick slices
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 cup chopped Italian parsley, loosely packed
- 1/2 cup of vegan Parmesan (I used Galaxy’s, but I love Parma too!)
- Heat the olive oil on medium-high heat in a large, thick-bottomed pot. Add the sausage, & cook until browned. When the sausage has nicely browned, remove & set aside.
- Add the minced onion (save the sliced onion for later) & sauté for 3-4 minutes, stirring often. Once the onions release their water, use a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Add the minced garlic & cook for another 1-2 minutes.
- Add the white wine & the beans & bring to a rolling boil. Reduce to a simmer. Cover & cook for 10 minutes. For a thicker base, use an immersion blender to blend some (or all) of the beans & onions.
- Add the water, stock, salt, cabbage, sliced onion half, bay leaves & browned sausage. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer. Cover & simmer for 10 minutes, then uncover & continue cooking until the cabbage is tender, about another 10-20 minutes.
***To serve, sprinkle on chopped parsley & cheese & pair with a side of crusty bread.
The perfect one pot meal for that cozy rainy night! Enjoy!
I absolutely love my CSA, Suzie’s Farm. Not only do they provide wonderful fresh, organic produce to restaurants, farmers’ markets, & households across San Diego County, they frequently open up the farm grounds for tours, u-picks, & family friendly events! Here is what is going on this Fall at Suzie’s…
I really wanted to attend the Autumnal Equinox Dinner, especially after seeing this video, but the menu isn’t vegetarian. Come to think of it, Lucila, one of the farm’s owners is vegan, so perhaps they would’ve honored a veg request? Oh well too late now & not in my budget for this month! As I will finally have my weekends back beginning in October, I do plan to check out the sunflower maze & attend a pumpkin u-pick! Also…yoga in the middle of a sunflower maze? Sounds divine! Yes, please!
After work today, I am off to pick up my last share of the summer season! Here’s what I have to look forward to…
- Sweet pepper mix
- Onion 1
- Tomatillo 1lb
- Cabbage
- Tomato 2lb
- Lettuce
- Padron peppers
- Onion Sprouts
I thought I was in the clear with cabbage for the rest of the season! Well, as the weather cools down, I begin craving soup so I can always pull out my favorite Hot & Sour Soup recipe! However, what do I do with tomatillos? These are a first for me! Looks like I’ll be piled high under cookbooks tonight! Anyone have any recipes or suggestions?
- Cucumber
- Sweet Pepper Mix
- Summer Squash
- Carrot
- Lettuce
- Tomato
- Eggplant
- Onion Sprouts
After two weeks off from summer squash, here it comes again! I had a feeling it was, so I planned ahead & flagged some recipes! I’ve got my eye on the “Summer Squash Fritters” & ”Squash Linguine with Vegan Cream Sauce” from the Skinny Bitch Cookbook! With the tomatoes & eggplants coming in, I also really want to make Gwyneth Paltrow’s “Vegan Paella”, or In the Kitchen with Kath’s “Curried Eggplant!”
On a different note, I had the pleasure of dining across from Lucila, who owns Suzie’s Farm with her husband, at last weekend’s Vegan Garden Dinner. Not only is she stunningly gorgeous & glowy (all that farm fresh organic produce!), she is an absolute character & a charming soul! It’s always given me such pleasure to support this local family farm as a CSA member, but even more so after meeting one of the key people behind it! I’ll be touring the farm this weekend & hope to take lots of photos!
