Simple Stir Fry: The Technique

Random veggie bits and pieces for stir fry.

 One of my resolutions was to waste less. Nine days in, I'm feeling pretty great about this goal. The last two weekends I've picked up most of our veggies from the farmer's market; the others hail from our dwindling backyard garden.

Having these beautiful, organic, locally grown vegetables on hand makes me feel like they're more special than average grocery store produce which encourages me to avoid wasting any bite. Since I know they're organic, too (and enjoy reading Johnson's Backyard Garden blog about this local produce), I tend to use more of the plant. Funny how that works, isn't it? Regard something as precious and you treat it better and use it more wisely. To me, this means, "Don't waste it!"

Kind of by accident, I happened upon a new tactic in the kitchen this week: I turned my stir fry into tacos. Which meant that with one basic prep night, I made two completely different meals (and enough for lunch leftovers, too). Beginning on Sunday night, I chopped a slew of seasonal veggies for a simple stir fry. Shredded cabbage, carrots, green onion, broccoli, and leftover minced purple cauliflower made it into the stir fry. At its best, stir fry is out-of-this-world unbelievable; I'll save that for the chefs. Because everyday stir fry can be so very simple to whip up on a weeknight; I learned my basics from Mark Bittman, and have found that this is more of an approach than a recipe.

Simple Stir Fry Technique 

4 to 5 cups vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, bok choi, snap peas, carrots, and celery work well)
1/2 cup onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons canola oil or other neutral oil
1/4 to 1/2 cup water
2 to 3 cups cooked long-grain brown rice or other grain of your choice

If you're cooking rice, prepare it first. You can make the entire stir fry (including veggie chopping) while the rice takes 30-40 minutes to cook. If you're using a quick-cook grain like quinoa, go ahead and prepare it and set it aside.

Get out your chopping board and set to work, chopping your vegetables into similar sizes. If I'm adding peas, I cut everything down to size; about half-inch pieces are the largest you want to go here. Keep in mind that carrots and broccoli take a little longer to cook. Generally, my mix includes carrots, celery, and broccoli as a base. But almost anything goes (maybe not potatoes or tomatoes) .

Put a heavy pan (I like to use my 10-inch skillet with tall sides) over medium heat and warm it up for about 30 seconds. Add the oil, and immediately throw in the onions and garlic. Saute these until they become almost translucent, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add in the veggies that will take longest to cook: carrots, broccoli, etc., and cook about 10 minutes, stirring and adding water as necessary to prevent browning.

When the tougher vegetables are almost done, add the tender veggies (peas, greens, etc.). I like mine to steam a bit, so I add about 1/4 cup of water and cover the entire thing for about 5 minutes. Cook until everything is fork-tender or wilted.

Keep an eye on it so that nothing browns too much in the pan; you'll want all the liquid to cook out, but nothing to be crispy. At this point, you can add any sauce you like, but I leave it blank.*

Put a serving of rice in a bowl and top with a heaping serving of vegetables. We dress our stir-fry/steamed veggies and rice at the table with hot mustard, chile garlic paste, and tamari. Store leftover rice and vegetables separately, and you have more variety with your leftovers.

*There are two three reasons I don't make any kind of sauce for stir-fry night:
1. The two of us generally disagree on our favorite sauces (I like the peanut variety, he likes garlicky). 2. Having a huge batch of vegetables cooked without any spices or sauces means the leftover vegetables can be turned into something entirely different the next day—like quiche, omelet, enchiladas, tacos, or even lasagna. 3. Oh, and it means less to prepare/clean up.

Leftovers transforming into a new meal.

The next night... I threw the vegetable leftovers, a can of black beans, and some spinach into a saute pan until everything was heated through. I added a dash of cumin, a little season salt, and voila! Taco filling.

Multi-grain tortillas topped with the veg and bean mix, with a bit of avocado, Greek yogurt (I like 2%), and a good splash of Cholula for kick: dinner is served. I had plenty for a healthy, satisfying lunch the next day.

I marveled at how easy it was to make these two meals—and how cheap.

How do you do stir fry in your house?

Read more ►

Breaking: Husband Asks for More Quinoa

Roasted sweet potato rounds topped with goat cheese. Like a little sweet potato pie.

I'd like to dedicate this post to my husband Ryan. Not only is he unbelievably handsome, muscular, smart, and charming; the man doesn't put up (much) of a fuss when I cook something a little... out of the ordinary.

In the last few years, as I've been mostly vegetarian, people often ask, "What about your husband?" in a kind of old-fashioned, but-your-husband-must-NEED-meat kind of way. "Does he eat vegetarian at home? Isn't he hungry all the time? Doesn't he insist you cook steak for him?"

Perhaps in some alternate universe, I married a man who demanded I cook certain things for him. But happily, in my actual universe, my husband is grateful for healthy, homemade food, and occasionally requests chocolate chip cookies and coconut cream pie. He tells me how much he appreciates me cooking for him, and gives honest feedback when a recipe is—or isn't—up to snuff.

So as I was putting together last night's menu, I wondered what Ryan's reaction would be. My last quinoa experiment was decidedly not delicious, and it was one of the very few times he wrinkled his nose and reached for the peanut butter and jelly. And here I was, making quinoa again. He inquired about the menu.

"Well, I'm making those roasted sweet potatoes that are so good," I began, trying to sell him on the idea.

"What else?"

Deep breath. It's game time. "Oh, this dish with quinoa and chevre and kale. Should be great." I'm no salesperson, though; my tactics were decidedly weak.

"Is it cous-cous that I like, or quinoa?"

"Um, actually, I'm pretty sure it's both. You like them both." Nice one, Amber, he's definitely going to believe that line.

It wasn't until we sat down to eat ("But wait! I have to take photos first!") that the proof showed up in the pudding. I think we were both pleasantly surprised; the quinoa was flavorful, fluffy, and the kale was bright—flavors enhanced by fresh lemon, goat cheese, and a slight bit of balsamic-laced caramelized onion.

I grinned as he reached for the bowl. "Mind if I have some more?"

So, here's to my husband Ryan: My soulmate, with whom I eat, drink, and am exuberantly merry.




Quinoa and Kale with Goat Cheese
adapted from Food 52

1 cup quinoa, rinsed thoroughly
2 cups water or vegetable broth
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
4 cups chopped fresh kale
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1/3 cup goat cheese, crumbled
salt and pepper to taste

Rinse the quinoa very well to remove its natural bitter coating (here's a great primer on quinoa!). Heat one tablespoon of the olive oil in a pot over medium heat. After about 20 seconds, add the quinoa and chopped onions. Saute until the quinoa and onions are golden, about five minutes (the onions will be almost translucent).

Add the broth or water and bring to a boil. Simmer for ten minutes. Add the kale, cover with a lid, and simmer for five more minutes. Check the quinoa; the water should be evaporated and the quinoa cooked but still al dente. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steam for about five more minutes.

In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, and goat cheese. Pour in the kale and quinoa and toss to coat.

Serve with a side of simple roasted sweet potato medallions! Adapted from Smitten Kitchen.

Read more ►

In Praise of the Simple Meal

I get it.

It's hot. You're tired. Cooking is the last thing you want to do. You're tired of takeout. Making a decision seems more difficult than cooking.

That's why we all deserve the simple meal.

Imagine it's a picnic, or a spread of hors d'oeuvres, and voila! Dinner. And it can be healthy, too.

This particular night, we enjoyed simple kale chips (I've gotten to where I actually pop them in the oven before it's even finished preheating, further simplifying and speeding up the process) and store-bought hummus. Goat cheese with a dollop of balsamic onion reduction and slices of day-old baguette. Crudite. Rose wine.

A magnificent meal that nourished us, pleased the palette, and could not have been simpler.

Earlier this week we had a similar meal with home-grown bruschetta; tomatoes, basil, garlic, and olive oil mixed together to top toasted slices of baguette.

What do you make when you can't bear to cook?

Read more ►

Cook It Again: Chilaquiles

Chilaquiles!

Last night, I made a new recipe (it's like I'm always recipe testing—what gives?) and when we sat down to eat, the dialogue went a little something like this:

Ryan, after the first bite, "Yum! Wow, this is really good. What is it again?"
Me: "Chilaquiles."
"Fascinating. It's really good. Are you sure it's healthy?"
"Well, it's got a little cheese... but yeah, healthy*."
"How come you never cook things twice? Even if they're good, you don't make them again."
"I should write down the good ones so I remember to cook them again."
"Um, isn't that what your blog is for? How about, 'Cook It Again Thursdays' or something?"

And so I give you, my inaugural "Cook it Again" post. I won't promise one every Thursday (you know how my Freshworthy Friday posts go), but he's got a point; it'd be nice to have a list of fail-safe recipes on hand. Especially easy ones that have room for improvisation already built in.

Back to the chilaquiles. I have unwittingly made similar dishes before, and last night realized it's amazing what you can do with some corn tortillas, a can of beans, and some vegetables. This came together in a snap and had all the merits of a tasty, family-friendly weeknight dinner. I only used two dishes—a pan for sautéing and the dish for baking. That's easy enough to clean up.

Chilaquiles, like enchiladas, have myriad variations and there is no one "right" recipe—so feel free to adapt as you please and add or subtract ingredients at whim. Basically, you need corn tortillas, a saucy mixture of vegetables with either a red tomato base or a green tomatillo base, and a little bit of cheese. Here's what I put together for ours last night, based on this recipe from Epicurious. Chilaquiles sometimes involve eggs; the recipe I used didn't call for them and I didn't add them. But now, it sounds delish.

Featured homegrown garden veggies: bell peppers, jalapeno, and zucchini.

*Because to me, beans and vegetables and corn tortillas (with only two ingredients) sounds pretty darn healthy. Mind you, I'm no nutritionist. 

Zucchini Chilaquiles

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 red onion, diced
1 large or 2 medium green bell peppers, diced
1 jalapeno, diced
1 large zucchini, cut into small pieces

1 can diced tomatoes with green chiles (like Rotel)

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 teaspoon cumin
salt and pepper to taste
8 corn tortillas, cut into strips
3/4 cup shredded cheese

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and lightly grease a medium-sized baking dish (I used one similar to a 9x9). Chop the vegetables and open the cans. In a large pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and peppers, and saute until the onions are nearly translucent. Add the zucchini and cook for about 5 minutes. Pour in the tomatoes and the beans and add the cumin; stir, taste, and season accordingly with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer for another five minutes.

Place a full layer of corn tortilla strips in the baking dish, completely covering the bottom of the dish. Pour about half of the zucchini and black bean mixture on top of the tortillas and add half of the shredded cheese. Add one more layer of tortilla strips, the rest of the vegetables, and the rest of the cheese.

Bake, uncovered, for about 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and a little bit browned. Let cool for about 10 minutes before serving. Add a side salad or a scoop of homemade guacamole to round out the meal.

Read more ►

Lately... It's Lettuce.

Peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, and herbs from the garden.

There's been a whole lotta cooking going on. Sunday I spent most of the day in the kitchen making casseroles. Five of them. With meat. Ryan lamented that, "It smells so good, and none of it's for me." (I also failed to take a single photo of the marathon cooking event; it's probably better this way because it was a little bit... chaotic.)

I had a grand ole time making King Ranch Chicken, lasagna, chicken spaghetti, and more for my lovely sister-in-law and her family. They're expecting their second child any day now and apparently I'm vicariously nesting by way of freezer-friendly casserole dishes. Poor Ryan. There was organic beef cooking on the stove in our home and it wasn't for him.

Once all the casseroles were shuttled to their house, we had only leafy greens and garden vegetables left. Which is just fine by this particular vegetarian-not-that-strict.

Let me tell you why this was particularly exciting: because my quick-pickled banana peppers would be the star of the show.

We have a bet going in our house. Hold on to your hats, this bet is c-r-a-z-y... That's just how we roll.

Ryan insists that "real" pickles (those processed in a hot water bath in a pot so big that it takes up two burners and takes almost two hours to reach full boil) taste better than "quick pickles," which are made with the exact same brine but left to pickle in the refrigerator for two weeks. I argue that quick pickles, made in the same brine but stored in the fridge instead of being fully processed, taste just as good.

While we haven't done the official pickle taste-test, the quick-pickled banana peppers were awesome. I also made tzatziki sauce with some of our garden cucumbers. Round it out with some homemade hummus, multi-grain tortillas, and a perfectly dressed salad, and you have yourself a bonafide Greek night. I'll admit that falafel would've been a nice touch.

Read more ►

Zucchini Enchiladas Verdes

If you had told me I'd have tried a dozen completely different zucchini recipes before June because the summer crop would be that prolific, I never would've believed you.

But it's the truth. I feel like the Bubba Blue of zucchini: zucchini salad, zucchini salsa, zucchini bread, zucchini brownies, zucchini pickles, zucchini pasta, zucchini tacos... You get the point. (And just to clarify... I am not complaining about my surplus of zucchini. It's finding its way to friends and colleagues almost daily so it's not going to waste, which makes me oh-so-happy.)

Here's a recipe to really drive home the zucchini madness: zucchini enchiladas verdes. They're both stuffed AND covered with fresh zucchini.

I made this as part of a vegetarian and gluten-free dinner party; despite its multi-special-diet appeal, it was wonderfully received by the omnivores. In fact, I'd planned on having leftovers for lunch the next day, but that wasn't in the cards since we polished 'em off. If you'd like to add cooked chicken to the filling or wrap the enchiladas with flour tortillas, be my guest!

This may look complicated, but it comes together fairly quickly. Pass the time while they're baking to enjoy some chips and zucchini salsa, and maybe a zucchini margarita or two.

Home-grown veggies featured in this dish: jalapenos, bell pepper, pattypan squash, and zucchini.

Zucchini Enchiladas Verdes

For the filling:
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1 medium squash, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1 cup chopped onion
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

To assemble:
10 to 12 corn tortillas
1 1/2 cups Zucchini Salsa*
1/3 cup water or vegetable broth
1 cup shredded cheddar or monterrey jack cheese

Chop all the vegetables and set aside. Preheat the oven to 350. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and bell pepper, and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the chopped zucchini and squash and saute until the vegetables are softened just a bit, about 5 to 10 more minutes. Add the drained black beans and the spices, and cook until heated through. Taste and season as you see fit. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Mix the zucchini salsa with the water or vegetable broth. In the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish, pour about one third of the salsa/broth mixture—just enough to barely cover the bottom of the pan. Assemble the enchiladas: in each tortilla, put a good sprinkle of cheese (about 1 tablespoon) and about 2 tablespoons of the zucchini/bean filling. Roll tightly, careful not to crack the corn tortillas, and pack tightly into the baking dish.

Top the enchiladas with a handful of shredded cheese, and pour the rest of the salsa/broth mixture over the enchiladas. Sprinkle one more time with shredded cheese, for good measure, and pop them in the oven for about 25 minutes. Or until they smell amazing, the cheese is lightly browned, and you can no longer stand it.

Let cool and serve with brown rice and fresh salad. Serves 4-6.

*Any salsa verde will do, but the zucchini salsa really is tasty and cooks very well.

Read more ►

Dining Alone: Tortilla Pizzas

Dining al fresco; this pizza is topped with pattypan squash and arugula.

Things are busy these days. While my hubs and I normally dine together, the last few weeks have hosted an unusual number of solo dinners. Ryan is taking some evening classes (for fun things, not school-related), and when I'm left to "fend for myself" for dinner, things in the kitchen can get a little strange.

And by strange, of course I mean delicious. 

When I'm cooking for myself, I tend to take risks. With no one but me to impress (or let down), the pressure's off. This usually involves curry, or eggs, and always the mandoline. Something about paper-thin vegetables lends itself to a feeling of upscale dining. 

Everything is nice and crispy and delicious!

The words "tortilla pizza" don't normally conjure ideas of fresh vegetables and good cheese. They're a quick and unfancy way to shovel food in your mouth, right?

Wrong. My impromptu tortilla pizzas that were inspired by the garden and an arugula craving are quick, healthy, and even a little gourmet. They are bright and fresh and even totally worthy of a dinner party—for one, two, or twenty!

I made a couple of versions; some with zucchini, some with squash, some without arugula... But my favorite by far was the zucchini and arugula. Feel free to experiment!

Arugula, Zucchini, and Goat Cheese Tortilla Pizza

Serves 1* 

2 whole wheat tortillas**

1 small zucchini, sliced paper-thin on a mandoline

2 cups (or handfulls) fresh arugula

1-2 ounces goat cheese

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

parmesan, salt, and pepper to taste

1-2 lemon wedges

Prep the veggies. Place the tortillas on a baking sheet and top with a generous layer of the paper-thin zucchini slices. Add one cup or one handfull of arugula for each pizza. Drizzle the olive oil on top and evenly disperse the goat cheese. Top with a little shaved parmesan, salt, and pepper, and spritz with a squeeze of lemon. Pop in the oven for about 10 minutes at 400, or until the cheese is melted and the edges are crisp but not burnt. Alternately, this is very easy to bake in the toaster oven!

A word of caution: tortillas can sometimes puff up with steam when they are heated. Just keep an eye on it; I learned the hard way when I made mine in the toaster oven and toppings wound up falling onto the heating element. And of course, be careful of the tortilla bubble; it's full of steam and that will be very hot should you puncture it!

*I found that two of these little tortilla pizzas made for a perfect meal; they're just like arugula tacos. If you're enjoying them with a side dish or decide to add a cooked protein (grilled shrimp or chicken would make a nice fit), you might find that one fills you up. And if you're cooking for more folks, just make extras! These come together so quickly and require so little oven time that you'll find they're perfect for summer nights.

**The whole wheat tortillas offer a nice nutty flavor that compliments the arugula. They're also healthy. Win-win, but you can use white flour tortillas if you prefer and I won't be too embarrassed. 

Read more ►

Squachos

The Zucchini Fairy made these zukes appear overnight. Most will be made into zucchini bread.

Thanks to an early and prolific summer garden, the squash/zucchini-to-person ratio in our house is currently about 5-to-1. We plucked five giant zucchini (and I do mean giant; the biggest one weighed in at 1 pound, 7 ounces) from our plants this weekend and doled them out to neighbors. But we still have plenty in the produce drawer at home.

Dinnertime was upon us, and I'm not sure if I was inspired by the thirst-quenching Lone Star I enjoyed or the garden surplus, but suddenly I had the second-greatest idea I've had this year:

Squachos.

Squachos: grilled yellow squash and jalapenos top run-of-the-mill nachos, elevating them to new heights.

Go ahead and let it settle in your brain for a moment. Squash and nachos coming together in one unmistakably easy and delicious dinner. Mmmm-hmmm.

The word popped into my head and I got myself into a full-on giggle fest, right there in the middle of the kitchen, with a chef's knife in one hand and a frosty beverage in the other. The absurdity of it all is not lost on me.

Growing up, my dad made us oven-broiled nachos every Sunday night. They are the perfect weekend-send-off food—cheap, easy, fast, tasty; qualities I appreciate now more than ever. I've even figured out how to make them healthier (black beans instead of refried, fresh veggies on top, and a little less cheese than before).

The squachos version involved just one extra step: grilling strips of pattypan squash in some olive oil and season salt prior to adding them to the nachos. I'm not sure this merits an actual recipe; you get the drift. Tortilla chips topped with cheese, black beans, grilled squash, fresh jalapenos, and baked at 450 until everything is toasty and the cheese is melted. I topped ours with store-bought tomatillo salsa and a few dollops of Greek yogurt.

Squachos are inspiring; I'm already thinking that squashadillas will be a regular part of our summertime diet, and I can't believe that I haven't already come up with the name "squacos" for these squash and zucchini soft tacos from last week.

The moral of the story is this: If you can't have fun cooking, why do it at all?

Read more ►

Fish Tacos with Cabbage Salsa

Fish Tacos with Cabbage Salsa and Black Beans

Opening up the meat and fish door again has led me to some surprisingly tasty fish recipes. Before my two-year stint as a strict vegetarian, I rarely cooked fish at home. For the last two years, I cooked meat at home twice, both times as part of recipe testing for a publication.

So it's been interesting for me to re-learn how to cook things. We're being careful to purchase sustainably harvested fish—if I'm bringing meat back into my kitchen, it's definitely going to be on my own terms, after all.

I have cabbage and cilantro begging to be used up from the garden, and this recipe was perfect for our tiny head of organic cabbage. My mom suggested this dinner plan, and I somewhat winged it. A bit of Googling, a little bit of Mark Bittman's advice, and an hour later, I had served up a fresh fish taco meal.

Cabbage Salsa

Fish Tacos with Cabbage Salsa

For the salsa:
1 small head cabbage, shredded or cut into thin ribbons (think slaw)
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
2 large jalapenos, seeded and diced
1/2 large red onion, diced
2 medium tomatoes, diced
juice of 2 limes
salt and pepper to taste

Prep all your ingredients and mix together in a large mixing bowl. Refrigerate until you're ready to serve.

For the tacos (adapted from Mark Bittman's instructions on how to pan-fry white fish fillets):
2 large tilapia filleta (or other white fish; the fillet must be less than 1 inch thick)
2 tablespoons blackening or Cajun seasoning
1/4 cup flour
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil for each fillet

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat for a few minutes. Meanwhile, combine the flour and seasoning together and dredge the fillet, shaking off the excess. Add the olive oil to the heated pan, and place the dredged fish fillet in the pan. Cook on the first side for about 4 minutes; carefully flip with a spatula and cook until the fillet is opaque and flakes apart easily. Wipe the pan out before cooking the second fillet.

Flake the fish apart and divide into corn tortillas. Top with the cabbage salsa and garnish with Greek yogurt, avocado, Cholula, and cilantro; serve with black beans to round out the meal.

This recipe makes about eight fish tacos on corn, or six on flour tortillas.

Read more ►