Hello folks,
I've been fighting a nasty bout of Strep Throat all week and for the first time since probably last Monday, I'm finally feeling somewhat energetic tonight. I finally got around to eating something of substance tonight, a sort of vegetable soup from scratch. It was so wonderful, I figured I would share it, but not before a couple more recipes I've come up on my own...
Over the past several months I've been making an effort to cook for myself more often and as such, I've tried a couple other recipes. I made a Vegetable Tetrazzini over the Christmas holiday, which didn't turn out half-bad and an Asian Fried Rice dish that I made just last week that turned out amazingly well.
The three recipes below, again, have come about as merely experimenting with different vegetables and various other ingredients. If you see one that you would like to have on a more permanent basis, please let me know and I can send a printable version.
1. Garlic-Curry Vegetables with Rice
Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
1 Green Bell Pepper (quartered & sliced)
1 Red Bell Pepper (quartered & sliced)
1 Sm. to Med. Head Celery (halved length-wise & sliced)
2-3 Shallots (sliced)
2 Jalapeno (halved length-wise and sliced)
1/2 Garlic clove (minced)
1/3 Cup Lemongrass
2 teaspoons Lemon Juice
White Rice
Red Garlic Curry (1/3 Cup for every 2 servings of rice)
Procedure:
- Prepare rice, as desired. (4-6 Servings best)
- Once rice has cooked, mix red garlic curry then set on Warm Heat.
- Warm mixture of oil and lemongrass in skillet or wok on Med-High Heat.
- Stir-fry peppers, celery, shallots and jalapenos for 10 min's.
- Add garlic and lemon juice, stirring for an additional 5 minutes.
- Reduce to Low Heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, 2-3 minutes
- Serve.
This makes for an excellent meal for one or two people and can be completed within about 30-50 minutes, depending on how long it takes for you to clean the vegetables. Serve with the rice as a base, with the vegetable mix on top. You could probably do without the lemongrass and still come away with a delicious dish, so this could be an optional ingredient. Also, seeds from the Jalapenos may be left out if spiciness isn't desired.
Recommended Beverages:
White wines will complement this meal really well. A cool-tempered Riesling or Moscato will go exceptionally well, if you would happen to have one.
2. Fried Vegetables with Garlic-Rosemary Potatoes
Ingredients:
4 Tablespoons vegetable oil (2 per skillet/wok)
4-5 Med. or Lg. Potatoes (cubed)
1 Sm. to Med. Head Bok Choi
1 Sm. to Med. Head Celery (halved length-wise & sliced)
- leave 1-2 stalks uncooked for serving
1 Green Bell Pepper (quartered and sliced)
1 Red Bell Pepper (quartered and sliced)
2-3 Cayenne (fresh/dried & finely chopped)
-or- 1 Teaspoon Cayenne Powder
1 Cup Broccoli Florets
1 14oz can Bean Sprouts (drained)
1/2 Garlic clove (minced)
-or- 2 teaspoons Garlic Powder
1 Tablespoon Cilantro Leaf (finely chopped)
2 stalks Fresh Rosemary
2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice (1 per skillet/wok)
2 Tablespoons Low-Sodium Soy Sauce
Procedure:
First skillet/wok
- Warm 2 tablespoons of oil, fresh rosemary and minced garlic on Med-High Heat.
- Caramelize shallots or onions by stir-frying 2-3 minutes.
- Place potatoes into mixture and fry for 10 additional minutes, sprinkling in lemon juice.
- Fry for additional 10-15 minutes (or until potatoes have browned), sprinkling with salt & pepper (as desired).
- Reduce heat to warm and set.
Second skillet/wok
- Warm 2 tablespoons of oil and cilantro leaves (and cayenne powder, if using) on Med-High Heat.
- Place bok-choi in oil and caramelize by stir-frying 4-5 minutes.
- Insert bean sprouts, broccoli, celery, red & green peppers and cayenne (if fresh/dried) and stir-fry for 5-10 minutes on Med. Heat.
- Drizzle in lemon juice and soy sauce, and cook for additional 5 minutes.
- Reduce to Low Heat and set.
This meal will serve 1 to 2 people rather heartily and 2-4 somewhat well and will take approximately 45-minutes to an hour to prepare and cook. Serve by placing potatoes and onions or shallots on one half of the plate and vegetables with, at least, one or two Bok Choi stalks, on the other half. Complement the plate with one half of the 1 or 2 uncooked celery stalks (more, if desired, and left over). In addition, the lemon juice may be left out of the vegetables in the second skillet/wok, however, it does help caramelize the vegetables, pulling out the flavor a bit more.
Recommended Beverages:
A red wine, at room temperature, complements this meal very well, however a dry white wine may also suffice. I've had this with Tempranillo, a Spanish wine, and enjoyed this, in particular.
3. Spicy Cucumber Soup
Ingredients:
2 Cups Vegetable Broth
2 Cups Water
1/2 Cup Baby Arugula (finely chopped)
-or- 1/4 Cup Lg. Arugula
1/2 Med. Cucumber (sliced)
1 Cup Celery (halved length-wise & sliced)
3/4 Cup Snow Peas (halved)
3/4 Cup Med. Carrots (chopped or sliced)
1/2 Tbsp. Cilantro Leaf (finely chopped)
3/4 Tbsp. Table Blend Mrs. Dash
-or- Black Pepper
2-3 Fresh/Dried Cayenne Peppers (chopped)
-or- 1 teaspoon cayenne powder
Procedure:
- Mix broth, water, Mrs. Dash blend or black pepper, cilantro leaf and arugula (and cayenne powder, if used) and bring to a boil.
- Continue boiling and occasionally stirring for 5 minutes.
- Add cucumber, celery, snow peas and carrots (and fresh/dried cayenne peppers, if used) and boil for an additional 10 minutes.
- Reduce to Low Heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Once vegetables have become tender, reduce heat once again to warm, then after setting for a couple of minutes, serve.
The recipe will make 4-5 servings, so it makes for an easy and quick meal for 1-3 people and only takes a half-hour to 45 minutes to prepare and make. If you don't enjoy spiciness, you may reduce the number of fresh/dried cayenne, reduce the amount of powder in half, or leave out altogether. The mixture of cilantro and Mrs. Dash Table Blend (or black pepper) will likely still leave it slightly spicy. Serve in a small to medium bowl, half-full.
Recommended Beverages:
A cooled, neutral to sweet white wine will go rather well with the spiciness and kick to this soup. I would recommend, a Pinot Grig or, perhaps, a low-end Moscato, if you have one.
I've been fighting a nasty bout of Strep Throat all week and for the first time since probably last Monday, I'm finally feeling somewhat energetic tonight. I finally got around to eating something of substance tonight, a sort of vegetable soup from scratch. It was so wonderful, I figured I would share it, but not before a couple more recipes I've come up on my own...
Over the past several months I've been making an effort to cook for myself more often and as such, I've tried a couple other recipes. I made a Vegetable Tetrazzini over the Christmas holiday, which didn't turn out half-bad and an Asian Fried Rice dish that I made just last week that turned out amazingly well.
The three recipes below, again, have come about as merely experimenting with different vegetables and various other ingredients. If you see one that you would like to have on a more permanent basis, please let me know and I can send a printable version.
1. Garlic-Curry Vegetables with Rice
Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
1 Green Bell Pepper (quartered & sliced)
1 Red Bell Pepper (quartered & sliced)
1 Sm. to Med. Head Celery (halved length-wise & sliced)
2-3 Shallots (sliced)
2 Jalapeno (halved length-wise and sliced)
1/2 Garlic clove (minced)
1/3 Cup Lemongrass
2 teaspoons Lemon Juice
White Rice
Red Garlic Curry (1/3 Cup for every 2 servings of rice)
Procedure:
- Prepare rice, as desired. (4-6 Servings best)
- Once rice has cooked, mix red garlic curry then set on Warm Heat.
- Warm mixture of oil and lemongrass in skillet or wok on Med-High Heat.
- Stir-fry peppers, celery, shallots and jalapenos for 10 min's.
- Add garlic and lemon juice, stirring for an additional 5 minutes.
- Reduce to Low Heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, 2-3 minutes
- Serve.
This makes for an excellent meal for one or two people and can be completed within about 30-50 minutes, depending on how long it takes for you to clean the vegetables. Serve with the rice as a base, with the vegetable mix on top. You could probably do without the lemongrass and still come away with a delicious dish, so this could be an optional ingredient. Also, seeds from the Jalapenos may be left out if spiciness isn't desired.
Recommended Beverages:
White wines will complement this meal really well. A cool-tempered Riesling or Moscato will go exceptionally well, if you would happen to have one.
2. Fried Vegetables with Garlic-Rosemary Potatoes
Ingredients:
4 Tablespoons vegetable oil (2 per skillet/wok)
4-5 Med. or Lg. Potatoes (cubed)
1 Sm. to Med. Head Bok Choi
1 Sm. to Med. Head Celery (halved length-wise & sliced)
- leave 1-2 stalks uncooked for serving
1 Green Bell Pepper (quartered and sliced)
1 Red Bell Pepper (quartered and sliced)
2-3 Cayenne (fresh/dried & finely chopped)
-or- 1 Teaspoon Cayenne Powder
1 Cup Broccoli Florets
1 14oz can Bean Sprouts (drained)
1/2 Garlic clove (minced)
-or- 2 teaspoons Garlic Powder
1 Tablespoon Cilantro Leaf (finely chopped)
2 stalks Fresh Rosemary
2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice (1 per skillet/wok)
2 Tablespoons Low-Sodium Soy Sauce
Procedure:
First skillet/wok
- Warm 2 tablespoons of oil, fresh rosemary and minced garlic on Med-High Heat.
- Caramelize shallots or onions by stir-frying 2-3 minutes.
- Place potatoes into mixture and fry for 10 additional minutes, sprinkling in lemon juice.
- Fry for additional 10-15 minutes (or until potatoes have browned), sprinkling with salt & pepper (as desired).
- Reduce heat to warm and set.
Second skillet/wok
- Warm 2 tablespoons of oil and cilantro leaves (and cayenne powder, if using) on Med-High Heat.
- Place bok-choi in oil and caramelize by stir-frying 4-5 minutes.
- Insert bean sprouts, broccoli, celery, red & green peppers and cayenne (if fresh/dried) and stir-fry for 5-10 minutes on Med. Heat.
- Drizzle in lemon juice and soy sauce, and cook for additional 5 minutes.
- Reduce to Low Heat and set.
This meal will serve 1 to 2 people rather heartily and 2-4 somewhat well and will take approximately 45-minutes to an hour to prepare and cook. Serve by placing potatoes and onions or shallots on one half of the plate and vegetables with, at least, one or two Bok Choi stalks, on the other half. Complement the plate with one half of the 1 or 2 uncooked celery stalks (more, if desired, and left over). In addition, the lemon juice may be left out of the vegetables in the second skillet/wok, however, it does help caramelize the vegetables, pulling out the flavor a bit more.
Recommended Beverages:
A red wine, at room temperature, complements this meal very well, however a dry white wine may also suffice. I've had this with Tempranillo, a Spanish wine, and enjoyed this, in particular.
3. Spicy Cucumber Soup
Ingredients:
2 Cups Vegetable Broth
2 Cups Water
1/2 Cup Baby Arugula (finely chopped)
-or- 1/4 Cup Lg. Arugula
1/2 Med. Cucumber (sliced)
1 Cup Celery (halved length-wise & sliced)
3/4 Cup Snow Peas (halved)
3/4 Cup Med. Carrots (chopped or sliced)
1/2 Tbsp. Cilantro Leaf (finely chopped)
3/4 Tbsp. Table Blend Mrs. Dash
-or- Black Pepper
2-3 Fresh/Dried Cayenne Peppers (chopped)
-or- 1 teaspoon cayenne powder
Procedure:
- Mix broth, water, Mrs. Dash blend or black pepper, cilantro leaf and arugula (and cayenne powder, if used) and bring to a boil.
- Continue boiling and occasionally stirring for 5 minutes.
- Add cucumber, celery, snow peas and carrots (and fresh/dried cayenne peppers, if used) and boil for an additional 10 minutes.
- Reduce to Low Heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Once vegetables have become tender, reduce heat once again to warm, then after setting for a couple of minutes, serve.
The recipe will make 4-5 servings, so it makes for an easy and quick meal for 1-3 people and only takes a half-hour to 45 minutes to prepare and make. If you don't enjoy spiciness, you may reduce the number of fresh/dried cayenne, reduce the amount of powder in half, or leave out altogether. The mixture of cilantro and Mrs. Dash Table Blend (or black pepper) will likely still leave it slightly spicy. Serve in a small to medium bowl, half-full.
Recommended Beverages:
A cooled, neutral to sweet white wine will go rather well with the spiciness and kick to this soup. I would recommend, a Pinot Grig or, perhaps, a low-end Moscato, if you have one.
This entry was posted on Saturday, February 06, 2010 and is filed under food , recipes . Monitor this post through the RSS 2.0 feed. You may leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.
2 Comments
cjharrol
February 18, 2010 at 7:53 AM
Why not use Olive Oil instead of veggie oil?
Matthew Hartman
February 18, 2010 at 9:44 AM
Chris,
You could probably use Olive Oil, if you wanted... I just mentioned vegetable oil because it's cheaper and what I usually get. :) It works best at lower cooking temperatures (when you're saute'ing vegetables) as well. But, Olive oil would probably add a bit more flavor. They're both just about as healthy for you, if you get the right kind. I actually cook with a Canola oil that's high with Omega-3 polyunsaturated fat - it's about as healthy as you can get.
It's all preference, I suppose. :)