Tag Archives: vegetable

Dec8

Creamy Banana Squash or Winter Squash Soup

Posted on by
Standard

Creamy Squash Soup

Creamy Banana Squash or Winter Squash Soup

Serves 2 generous and 4 scant servings

Here you are using a true “New World” crop. Banana squash seeds were discovered from an archeological site in Peru.  In 1893 R.H. Shumway of the seed catalogue fame introduced this squash to us here in this country.  This squash requires long periods of warm season weather to reach maturity and often stays on the vine for up to 120 days.  Therefore, it requires over a half-year to cultivate and makes for just one single crop annually.  With that in mind, let’s really give respect to this very healthy and delicious squash.  I really enjoy squashes cooked in all sorts of various ways, however, this easy to make “creamy” soup is one of my favorites.  Even though I do call it creamy, as you may notice there is no fat in it.  There is another variety that does contain cream and butter which is more luxurious; however, frankly, this wintery warm-me-up version fits just right for my belly.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

  1.  3 C. peeled banana squash- cut into 1 to 2 inch cubes (about 1 ¾ lb.)
  2. 4-5 cloves of garlic, peeled
  3. 1 pippin apple-peeled, cored, and chopped fine
  4. 1/4 tsp. dried tarragon
  5. 2 tbsp. white wine or vermouth
  6. 4 C. chicken stock
  7. 4 to 5 slices of stale French bread torn into small pieces
  8. S&P to taste
  9. Green onion slivers (bulb and top) for a topping
  10. Plain yogurt(non-fat is fine) for topping

Instructions:

  1. Combine the first 6 ingredients in a large pot and place on medium high heat.
  2. Bring to a boil then turn the heat to medium low and cook for about 30 minutes—until pumpkin is very soft.
  3. Add the bread pieces and cook 5 minutes more
  4. Puree the soup in a blender, reheat and add S&P to taste.
  5. Top with a generous dab of yogurt and green onion slivers.

For easy access and printing of this and past recipes, visit Margot’s blog http://blog.tempinnkeeper.com  Call Margot for personal cooking help or hosting

 @ 721-3551.

Margot is a self-taught enthusiastic & passionate cook. Having been an inn-keeper for 5 years at her own inn, she accumulated a lot of good recipes which she loves to share.

 

Dec8

Spinach Simmered in Yogurt or Spinach Raita

Posted on by
Standard

Greens Simmered in Yogurt

Spinach Simmered in Yogurt or Spinach Raita

Serves 4 however I can eat almost all of it at one sitting

 

I loved traveling through India.  It’s such an awesome country in every way and I do love their cuisine. It is, I find, a very healthy one.  So, here is one of my favorite dishes.  It’s so easy to make and delicious to eat.  In fact, you can eat a lot and lot of it and not be worried about gaining any weight.  It’s nutritious and perfect for after the holiday extravaganzas.  I hope you’ll enjoy it as I do.

Ingredients:

  1. 1 lb. spinach well rinsed (6 C. of raw spinach = 1 lb.) and coarsely chopped
  2. 2 Tblsp. vegetable oil or olive oil
  3. 3 minced garlic cloves
  4. 2 small dried red chilies(if I don’t have that, I use chili flakes)
  5. 1 Tsp. ground coriander
  6. 1 Tsp. turmeric
  7. 1 C. plain whole milk yogurt (but I have used non-fat) whisked till smooth
  8. Salt to taste

Directions:

  1. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add the spinach. Cook over moderate high heat, stirring, until wilted.
  2. Place the spinach in a colander and press the liquid out of it.
  3. In the same skillet, heat the oil of your choice and add the garlic and chilies.  Cook over moderate heat about 2 minutes. Add the coriander and turmeric. Cook stirring until it hits your nose—about 1- 2 minutes.
  4. Add the spinach and yogurt. Cook over low heat, stirring until the yogurt just begins to separate-about 3 minutes.
  5. Season with salt and serve.  You can serve this over rice or with Nan of course.
  6.  I have made this with a variety of other greens—so don’t be shy about substituting.  Other greens usually take longer to cook though—so make sure to taste.  As well, you can add or substitute various ingredients such as adding grated fresh ginger or some green chopped chilies.

For easy access and printing of this and past recipes, visit Margot’s blog http://blog.tempinnkeeper.com  Call Margot for personal cooking help or hosting

@ 721-3551.

Margot is a self-taught enthusiastic & passionate cook. Having been an inn-keeper for 5 years at her own inn, she accumulated a lot of good recipes which she loves to share.

 

Nov12

Napa Cabbage Apple/Nut Salad and Apple Delight Nut and Cheese Salad

Posted on by
Standard

salads

Napa Cabbage Apple/Nut Salad and Apple Delight Nut and Cheese Salad

 This question below from my dear long time friend Benecia, and below I believe is the answer:

Margot, Do you remember the recipe for the Napa cabbage, apple, pecan salad? Benecia”

Hope the following answers your question Benecia.

Napa Cabbage Salad with Chopped Apples and Pecans

Salad Ingredients and Directions:

1 Napa cabbage sliced thin or shredded regular round green cabbage

5 green onions chopped

Chopped Pecans or other nuts that may appeal to you—as many as you desire

1 or 2 Pipin or other green apples–chopped

1 ½ pack of Ramen noodles—crunched and browned briefly under the broiler

Directions for salad:

Mix these ingredients in a large salad bowl

Dressing Ingredients:

1/3 to 1/2 C. sugar

1/2 C. olive oil

1/4 C. white vinegar (I use rice vinegar) but you can use another white vinegar

Sesame seeds (optional)

Put in blender and mix well.  Toss with salad ingredients from above.

Apple Delight Salad

Salad Ingredients and Directions:

2 heads frisee lettuce, tough outer leaves discarded

2 Gala apples

2 Tsp. fresh lemon juice

S&P

½ C. walnut halves

1/4 C. plus 1 Tblsp. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley for the top

8 oz. blue cheese, cut into 1/2 inch chunks

Directions for Salad:

  1. Halve and core the apples.  Cut lengthwise into 1/4 inch matchstick strips.  Toss the strips with the lemon juice to prevent browning.
  2. Separate the frisee leaves and rinse them in cold water.  Drain and pat dry.
  3. Place the frisee in a large salad bowl.  Season with S&P; then toss with the walnuts, 1/4 C. chopped parsley and blue cheese. Toss the salad with the dressing below.
  4. Place the apple strips atop the salad and sprinkle with the remaining parsley.

Apple Cider Vinaigrette:

1/4 C. cider vinegar

2 Tsp. Dijon-style mustard

S&P to taste

1/4 C. olive oil

Directions for dressing:

Place ingredients in a blender and whiz to blend well and use on the Frisee salad above.

For more salad, dressing and vinaigrette recipes, visit http://blog.tempinnkeeper.com

Sep22

Kale Soup with Potato

Posted on by
Standard

Bandit and IBBA display 003

Kale Soup with Potato

Makes 4 servings

I love Kale and my bird, Bandit loves Kale.  Hugo, my toy poodle, does not. Oh well, Hugo and I don’t always like the same foods. Funny though, I don’t remember seeing as much kale as that being displayed recently in our markets. Well, I’m glad it’s so readily available because there’s so much you can do with it and Bandit tells me that it’s extremely healthy for you.  Thanks Bandit. Additionally, I’ll tell you that I like kale raw for a salad as well as cooked in various ways as in this recipe.  Even if you don’t like Kale that much, I think that you’ll enjoy it this way.  So, here goes and as usual: ENJOY and Bon Appétit!!!

Ingredients:

  1. 1 large baking potato, cut into eighths
  2. 1 clove garlic, lightly smashed
  3. 5 cups vegetable stock (but you can also use chicken or beef stock)
  4. About 3 cups roughly chopped kale leaves (well rinsed and stripped from the stalks before chopping)
  5. 1 Tsp. FRESH marjoram (the fresh makes such a difference but dried will do and you can use oregano instead if you wish)
  6. 1 bay leaf
  7. S&P to taste

Instructions:

  1. Combine the potato, garlic and 2 C. of the stock in a medium saucepan and turn the heat to medium-high.  Cook until the potato is soft, about 15 minutes; cool slightly.
  2. While doing the above, cook the kale in the remaining stock (3 C) with the marjoram (oregano) and bay leaf until tender, about 10 minutes. Remove the bay leaf.
  3. Now, I use a potato masher to mash the potato mixture before putting it a blender to puree it. Puree it. The mixture will be thick. Stir it into the simmering kale, season with S&P, and heat through.
  4. Serve immediately

Additional versions:

  1. Beat 2 eggs with 1/2 Cup of shredded Parmesan Cheese.  Add this mixture at the last minute into your soup.  There will be bits of egg and parmesan in it and it’ll be delicious.  If you just do the eggs, that’s a bit Greek or Chinese. The Parmesan gives it an Italian twist.
  2. For a Japanese version, add a bit of soy sauce, sesame oil and a dash of lime.  You can even add a bit of green chili sauce.
  3. You can also add some sliced chicken sausage in the soup to make it a bit of the Portuguese version.

 

See how versatile just a bit of potato and kale can be?

 

For easy access and printing of this and past recipes, visit Margot’s blog http://blog.tempinnkeeper.com  Call Margot for personal cooking help @ 721-3551.

Margot is a self-taught enthusiastic & passionate cook. Having been an inn-keeper for 5 years at her own inn, she accumulated a lot of good recipes which she loves to share.

 

 

 

Aug19

Summer Vegetable Strata

Posted on by
Standard

Summer Vegetable Strata

4 servings

Summer is still here and so are the very fresh veggies in the markets and the Farmers Markets. So, here is a pretty healthy and dietetic dish made with egg beaters, skim milk, and low-fat mozzarella. It’s another easy one for the cook because it can be an overnight casserole.

Ingredients:

No-Stick cooking spray

1 medium onion, chopped

1 small zucchini, sliced

2 C. Italian bread cubes, (1 inch)

1/3 C. shredded low-fat mozzarella cheese

1 C. (8 oz.) Egg Beaters

3/4 C. Skim Milk

1/4 Tsp. salt

1/4 Tsp. ground pepper

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375.
  2. Spray an 8 X 8-inch baking dish; set aside
  3. Spray a large skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium high heat.
  4. Add onions, zucchini and bell peppers; book about 6 minutes or until the vegetables are crisp-tender, stirring occasionally.  Add bread cubes; mix lightly.
  5. Spoon into prepared baking dish and sprinkle with cheese.
  6. Beat Egg Beaters, milk, salt and pepper in a blender; pour over the bread mixture. Cover at least 30 minutes or overnight.
  7. Bake, uncovered, 50 minutes or until top is golden brown and knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
  8. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting into 4 squares to serve.

If you wish to substitute the non-fat ingredients for the “real” thing, that would be just fine.  1 C. of Egg Beaters is comparable to using 4 whole eggs. 

 

For easy access and printing of this and past recipes, visit Margot’s blog http://blog.tempinnkeeper.com  Call Margot for personal cooking help @ 721-3551.

Margot is a self-taught enthusiastic & passionate cook. Having been an inn-keeper for 5 years at her own inn, she accumulated a lot of good recipes which she loves to share.

 

Aug11

Roasted Corn with Basil/Shallot Vinaigrette

Posted on by
Standard

Roasted Corn with Basil/Shallot Vinaigrette

 

Our yummy Hagerman corn is still plentiful so here’s another wonderful and easy fresh corn recipe that I think you’ll all enjoy.

 

Ingredients:

3 C. fresh corn kernels—about 3 ears

2 Tblsp. olive oil

1/4 C. chopped fresh basil

1 Tblsp. minced shallot

1 Tblsp. red wine vinegar

1/4 Tsp. salt

Pepper to taste

 

Instructions:

Heat oven to 450

Toss corn and oil together so the corn is well coated and spread on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake stirring once 1/2 way through for about 20 minutes

Combine basil, shallot, vinegar, S&P in a bowl and add corn kernels.

Serve warm or cold.

This can be made one day ahead.

 

PS—One of my favorite ways of cooking our wonderful corn is in the micro.  First I slightly cut the soft end just a bit and then I soak the ears in cold water for 1/2 hour.  Then I wrap them in a damp paper towel and place them in the micro—2 minutes per ear so if only 1 ear, 2 minutes; 2 ears = 4 minutes; etc.  I take them out carefully, take the husk off and voila, crunchy crisp corn for your delight.  If it’s too crunchy for only 2 minutes, cook a bit more.

 

For easy access and printing of this and past recipes, visit Margot’s blog http://blog.tempinnkeeper.com  Call Margot for personal cooking help @ 721-3551.

Margot is a self-taught enthusiastic & passionate cook. Having been an inn-keeper for 5 years at her own inn, she accumulated a lot of good recipes which she loves to share.

 

 

 

Jun20

Lentils and Kale Delight-Think Single

Posted on by
Standard

Lentils & Kale Delight—Think Single

Servings: for one or possibly two people

 

I am a single person with a wonderful toy poodle and a lovely Green Singing Finch. Most of my days, I eat my main meal in the middle of the day (following my Swiss heritage I guess) and a little something more in the evenings.  This is a wonderfully EASY, quick, tasty, and healthy dish to make for your evening meal (or any time of the day for that matter)

Ingredients:

1/2 C. lentils (the packaged brown kind)

1 or 2 chopped garlic (I actually use the jar kind)

1/3 C. chopped red onion

4 or 5 sprigs of whole parsley

1 or 2 sprigs of fresh thyme

3 or more mint leaves (chopped)

1/2 Tblsp. cumin seeds

2 C. chicken broth

1 C. or more of chopped fresh kale

Shaved Parmesan cheese for topping

Additional ingredients you can add are:

One diced boiling potato to make a perfect protein with the lentils (you might want to add a bit more liquid if so).

For the naughty at heart, a bit of diced bacon from the start.

In a good sized pot, place the above mentioned ingredients and bring to a nice simmer. Place a lid on top but tilt it—and simmer for anywhere from 20 to 25 minutes depending how tender you wish the lentils and kale to be.  You can adjust the herbs to your taste. I felt that I didn’t need to add S&P—but do whatever inspires you.  That’s what cooking is all about—a little experimenting and lot of enjoying.  Use a lot of the right side of your brain when it comes to cooking.  It should be creative and fun.

Place in a beautiful soup bowl and top with freshly shaved Parmesan.

By the time I have cooked this, my toy poodle is hungry for his meal. So of course, I give him a bit of chicken stock and parmesan, all of which he loves and well appreciates. Then for Bandit, the bird, he gets some fresh kale.

For easy access and printing of this and past recipes, visit Margot’s blog http://blog.innkeeper.com  Call Margot for personal cooking help @ 721-3551.

Margot is a self-taught enthusiastic & passionate cook. Having been an inn-keeper for 5 years at her own inn, she accumulated a lot of good recipes which she loves to share.

 

 

 

 

Apr21

For Vegetarians here’s a delight–Celery Root Slaw

Posted on by
Standard

celery rootThis delicious, and I mean that very seriously, recipe comes from a dear friend of mine who was born in my hometown of Geneva, Switz.  She’s an amazing person in all respects, but one of them is glorious entertaining with even more glorious foods that she, mostly alone, has prepared to everyone’s delight.  The unusual aspect of this is that Renata is a vegetarian. Most guests, visiting her buffets, don’t even realize that.  They think that, for instance, that this excellent Celery Root Slaw is a pasta dish—I don’t think so.  She loves to share her recipes, as I do, so here it is for your enjoyment.  As well, you can visit her recent business venture: No Harm Done Design which is a small company that makes elegant faux-fur throws.  She and her partner started this business with a young penniless Cambodian woman who has now given a livelihood to many others and supports her whole extended family.  No Harm Done concerns that motto for animals and features a correct work ethic all around.  Please feel free to visit its website: www.noharmdonedesign.com.  Don’t forget to order your favorite throw.  You won’t be sorry.  Of course, I have one as well. 

Celery Root Slaw

Ingredients:

For Slaw:

1 Celery Root the size of a fist

For Sauce:

1 Tblsp. Dijon Mustard

4 to 5 Tblsp. mayo or olive oil mayo

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

S&P to taste

Onion Powder to taste

2 Tsp. Balsamic Vinegar

Half of an 8oz. can chopped pineapple, drained or 1 small shredded apple

Handful of walnut halves

Directions:

For Slaw:

1, Peel just the very rough exterior part of the celery root.  Don’t go overboard because then you won’t have any root left

2. Put in food processor and shred.

3. Set aside.

For Sauce:

1. Mix the next 7 ingredients well. The sauce should not be as thin as regular salad dressing however, if it seems too thick, add a bit more balsamic.

2. Add the sauce and the walnut halves to the slaw and mix well.

This can also be made with raw shredded carrots, shredded ginger &/or shredded apple. Optional and additional to the carrot slaw would be raisins.