Pumpkin Saag

One small pumpkin, tons of garlic, a section of fresh ginger that needs to be used up, and what seems to be acres upon acres of chard... What's a woman to make?

Rainbow chard. It's pretty and grows & grows & grows...

I decided to focus on the pumpkin and searched through a few cookbooks for inspiration, finally alighting on Moskowitz & Romero's Veganomicon.  Their recipe for Pumpkin Saag was easily adapted to assist me with my I-have-so-much-chard-I-could-scream situation.

Pumpkin Saag

3 pounds sugar pumpkin

3 Tbls oil [the recipe calls for peanut oil, but due to daughter's allergy I used olive]

1 large onion, diced finely

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 teaspoon garam masala 

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon cayenne

1 cup water

1-inch cube fresh ginger, peeled

2 bunches fresh spinach chard greens, washed well and chopped coarsely

juice of 1/2 lime [I used the cheater plastic-lime kind]

First they have you cut the pumpkin in half (clean out the stringy insides and the seeds) and bake the two halves cut-side-down on a cookie sheet at 350 F for about 45 mins. Then you let the pumpkin cool completely and, once cool, you peel off the tough skin and chop the pumpkin up into 1 inch cubes.

Next you saute the onions in oil for a few minutes, then add the garlic and saute for a few more minutes.

Once the onions and garlic are lightly browned, you add the pumpkin and cook until heated (about 3 mins). Add the spices and salt and ginger. Add the water and cook for 5 minutes, mixing often. Finally, add the greens in batches, mixing well after each addition.

Cook for another 10 minutes or so, stirring often. Add the lime. Adjust the salt. Allow to sit for a bit before serving.

The cookbook suggests pairing this with basmati rice, chutney and flat bread, which would have been good, but we kept it simple and served it atop brown rice.

It was delish, and made for tasty, beautifully aromatic leftovers to take to work.

Care for Curried Carrots?

As mentioned in my last post, I have 5 lbs of carrots to cook. Thank you Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero for this tasty, zippy recipe I found in my copy of Veganomicon.

Curried Carrot Dip

• 1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
• 1/4 cup roasted sunflower seeds (salted are okay, just add less salt)
• 2 teaspoons grapeseed or other vegetable oil
• 1/2 teaspoon minced raw garlic
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Boil the carrots for 7 to 10 minutes, until soft. Drain and let cool just until they are no longer steaming.

Place the sunflower seeds in a blender or food processor and process into crumbs. Add all remaining ingredients and blend until smooth, scraping down the sides of the processor as you go. 

Taste for salt and adjust the spices and lemon. Transfer to a covered container and refridgerate until ready to use (at least 30 minutes).

It's an attractive dip (I actually took pictures! I just need to load them onto my computer... I'll get to it this weekend)--orange, with a texture similar to hummus. And far more pleasing to look at than those sad, pale ranch or dill dips that everyone usually brings to potlucks.

Thinking about serving this dip with carrot sticks gives me an icky cannibalistic vibe; thankfully it pairs well with crackers, bagel chips and cucumber sticks or rounds. It would also be great tucked into a pita with some lettuce and maybe some raisins.

Mama and Baby Girl give this recipe a thumbs up. Daddy hasn't tried it yet (but I suspect he'll like it).

Can You Cassoulet?

It turns out that I'm not just addicted to cookbooks, I'm a cookbook whore. I actually bought a cookbook (okay, I admit it: TWO cookbooks!) for myself instead of searching for presents for my daughter's birthday. I cannot not buy one if I hold one. But rather than worrying about my problems, I'll work harder on this blog in a pitiful attempt to justify my doings.

Long live America! (Something patriotic to further endear myself to you and confuse us all about what we were actually talking about.)

I cooked something new this weekend. We had a sudden influx of leeks and onions from our last CSA pick-up and I wanted to do something other than potato leek soup. Not that there's anything wrong with soup, but I wanted to be fancier. I wanted cassoulet.

No, I didn't know what cassoulet was either. In fact, I'm still unsure. I looked it up on-line yesterday and supposedly a true cassoulet always always has meat in it, but this recipe had nada.

But whatever the French would call it, it was awesome. I grabbed my copy of Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz (hereto only used a couple of times even though it's teeming with amazing recipes and food tips) and looked in the index for leeks. And what a recipe I found!

Leek and Bean Cassoulet with Biscuits <--click here for recipe

I substituted cannelloni beans for the white navy beans, and rather than fresh thyme I used dried oregano. But no matter, it was great. It took some prep time, I admit, and thus may remain a weekend meal in our household until I fulfill my stay-at-home-mom dream. But it was SO GOOD. Very comforting and hearty. And smelled great. Satisfied both me and my omni husband and my sick one-year-old and gave us leftovers.

If you find yourself with leeks coming out your ears (or potatoes growing from them) or are just looking for a stew--I mean cassoulet--that will create a wonderful aroma as well as stick to your ribs, this is the recipe for you. Mmm-mm good.

(Someday I'll start taking pictures of what I cook. I keep forgetting.)