Swiss Chard & Grilled Tofu

Here's our simple but very tasty Tofu and Greens "Stack" (where you pile a protein on top of greens (and sometimes a starch like mashed potatoes)). The lesson from this recipe, for the non-tofu-eaters? Treat tofu like meat. Put some BBQ sauce on it, and grill it like a steak. It's not the raw, bland tofu you're used to from the salad-bar.

1 bunch Swiss Chard

2 cups sliced Mushrooms (crimini usually)

1 clove garlic

1 package firm Tofu

Iron Chef Garlic Sesame barbecue sauce (or substitute your favorite BBQ sauce)

Slice tofu across the smallest face (as you would a loaf of bread) into 3/4 inch slices. You should get about 6 slices for a regular package of tofu. Press tofu"steaks" between double layers of paper towel placing a small cutting board on top to give a small "press". Leave for 15-20 minutes. Place tofu on a plate and marinate both sides with a generous amount of BBQ sauce and let stand for 20 minutes. Prepare a grill, brush grill with olive oil to prevent sticking.

Clean Chard, removing toughest part of stems. Grab the entire bunch of chard, rolling it into a bunch and slice crosswise to make strips 1/2 -3/4 inch wide.

Grill the tofu slices over a medium flame for a few minutes on each side to get nice grill-marks. The tofu is now "rare", cooked on the surface, but still moist in the center. We love it this way, but some prefer a firmer texture, which you can get by moving the tofu away from the direct flame, covering the grill and "baking" the tofu further.

While tofu is grilling....

Saute sliced mushrooms in olive oil, adding a few grindings of salt, remove to a plate. Add garlic and a little more oil to hot pan and dump in all the chard with the water that clings to the leaves. Saute until just wilted, stir in mushrooms and heat through, season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with two tofu steaks on top. For a little extra flavor, drizzle tofu with just a bit more of the BBQ sauce.

Carrot Som Tam (Thai Spicy Carrot Salad)

1 T Raw unsalted peanuts

1/4 c Fresh lime juice

2 T Nam pla (fish sauce)

1 t Light brown sugar

1 lg Clove garlic, peeled

2 Bird or other fresh hot chiles, seeded and finely chopped

1 t Dried shrimp powder (opt)

2 Ripe plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped

4 c Grated carrots

1 Head leaf lettuce, washed dried & torn into approx 2″ pieces

1/2 sm Head green cabbage, cut into thin wedges

Som Tam usually has shredded papaya, and I'm sure it would be awesome that way. Here's a carrot variant that soaks up all those early farm-share carrots and has just the right SomTam taste.

Heat a small heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add peanuts

and dry roast, stirring constantly, until golden, 2 to 3 minutes.

Remove from the skillet, cool slightly and chop. Combine lime

juice, nam pla and brown sugar, stirring to dissolve sugar.

Place the peanuts in a food processor fitted with a metal blade.

With the processor blade spinning, add garlic, chiles and dried

shrimp powder, if using. Add the lime-juice mixture and process

until smooth. Transfer the dressing to a bowl; add tomatoes and

a handful of the carrots. Use a large flat spoon to press and

mash the tomatoes and carrots into the dressing. Gradually add

the remaining carrots until the salad is fully blended. (The

salad can be prepared ahead to this point and stored, covered, in

the refrigerator for up to 1 day.) Line a platter with lettuce,

place cabbage wedges around the edge, mound the carrot salad in

the center and serve. 68 calories per serving: 2 g protein, 1 g

fat, 14 g carbohydrate; 265 mg sodium; 0 mg cholesterol. From

Eating Well Magazine, Apr '95.

Mrs. Ralph Izard's 'Awendaw'

In this vintage recipe credited to "Miss Emma Gaillard Witsell," grits are called "hominy." Reprinted from Charleston Receipts: Collected by the Junior League of Charleston.

1-1/2 cups hominy, cooked
1 heaping tablespoon butter
3 eggs
1-1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup corn meal
1/2 teaspoon salt

While hominy is still hot, add butter and eggs beaten very light. Then gradually add milk and when well mixed, add corn meal and salt. The batter should be like thick custard. Pour in deep greased pan, bake in moderate over (375 degrees).
Serves 6-8.

Basic Grits

Reprinted from Falls Mill Stone-Ground White Corn Grits Recipes.

1 cup grits
2 cups water
½ teaspoon salt

Place grits in a bowl, cover with water and stir. Skim off the chaff that rises to the top. Stir and skim again. Pour off water and light bran. Add water and salt to a heavy-bottom saucepan and bring to boil. Stir in grits. Reduce heat to low and cook covered for 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until grits are thick and creamy.

If too thick, add either water, milk or whipping cream. Stir in 2 tablespoons butter or margarine, if desired, and serve.
Serves 6.

Nassau Grits

Reprinted via NPR from Side Orders, Small Helpings of Southern Cookery & Culture, by John Egerton (Peachtree Publishers).

4 strips of bacon
1 small bell pepper
1 medium onion
1 large clove of garlic
1 16oz can of tomatoes
½ to 1 cup cooked ham, chopped
1 cup grits
1 quart water

Fry the strips of bacon until crisp; drain, crumble and set aside. Leaving about 2 tablespoons of drippings in the skillet, sauté the pepper, onion, and garlic, all finely chopped, for about 5 minutes, or until somewhat softened. Then add the can of cut-up tomatoes, reserving the juice, and simmer the mixture for 20 minutes. Next, add the chopped ham and simmer for about 10 minutes more. If too dry, add some or all of the tomato juice.

While this mixture is cooking, boil the water and add the grits, cooking as directed on the package. When the grits are done, stir the vegetable mixture in with them and simmer for a few more minutes to let the flavors mingle. Ladle into a serving bowl, sprinkle the bacon on top, and rush to the table, there to join the biscuits, eggs, and coffee already prepared.
Serve 6 generously.

Garlic Cheese Grits Casserole

Reprinted via NPR from Miss Mary Bobo's Board House Cookbook, by Pat Mitchamore, recipes edited by Lynne Tolley (Rutledge Hill Press).

4 cups water
1 teaspoon garlic powder (or more to taste)
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 cup quick-cooking grits
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 ½ cups grated white cheddar or other processed cheese, divided
4 eggs, beaten
½ cup milk

In a large saucepan bring the water to a boil. Add the garlic powder, salt and pepper. Gradually stir in the grits. Lower the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the butter and 1 cup of cheese until melted. In a small bowl mix the eggs with the milk. Stir the mixture into the grits. Pour the grits into a greased 2-quart casserole dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake at 350° for 1 hour.
Serves 6.

Greek Village Salad with Cabbage

From the Frugal Gourmet.

Use any amount of the following according to your taste (now that's why we love Jeff Smith).
White or Yellow Onions peeled and sliced thin
Green Sweet Bell Peppers, cored and sliced thin
Feta Cheese, cut into tiny pieces
Greek Olives
Oregano, whole and crushed by hand
Cabbage, cut as for coleslaw
Cherry tomatoes or very ripe regular tomatoes cut or sliced to salad size
Cucumber, peeled and sliced thin
Salt andGroungPepper to taste.

Dressing:
3/4 cup good greek olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon
Salt and Pepper (and fresh oregano if you have it)
(mix, or immersion blend, baby).

Place the onions, feta cheese, greek olives and green peppers in a bowl with enough of the greek dressing, and enough oregano to taste for the entire salad, and marinate for 1 hour.
Toss all remaining salad ingredients with the marinated vegetables and the rest of the dressing. Taste for salt and pepper and serve.

Zucchini Pancakes with quick Basil Pesto.

Another recipe shamelessly stolen from Beyond Salmon. I love Helen Rennie's cooking style, and she is completely correct, this is a great way of using the glut of zucchini we all seem to get at around this time of year. It is a new core recipe and totally DR. We made a quick pesto for over top, and it was great (the instructions incude a slight variation that makes it a little easier to get right). Helen says...
What do you do with a zucchini that doesn't require any other ingredients, yet isn't totally boring? That was the dilemma facing me a few days ago. I didn't want to grill since it was raining, and I didn't feel like sautéing since I find sautéed zucchini kind of boring. Roasting could be a good idea, but it's much more interesting when zucchini are mixed with some other veggies, which I didn't have. That's when it dawned on me -- how about zucchini pancakes! I've never made them and was dying to try this dish I remember my Mom making. It's common in Russia to make oladyi (pancakes) with all kinds of vegetables and zucchini were one of our favorites.

I didn't have a recipe, but the one I improvised seemed to work incredibly well. The only extra ingredients necessary to make this dish are flour, eggs, salt, and oil (all of which are staples). I threw in some scallions since I found them lying forgotten in a drawer of my fridge, and then fried my pancakes in sunflower seed oil (the olive oil of Russian cooking). It's perfect for frying since it doesn't burn and imparts a great aroma to your dish (at least if you buy the real stuff from a Russian store). But if you don't have sunflower seed oil handy, canola oil will work just fine.

Serves 4 as a side dish

3/4 Lb zucchini (about 1 medium)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1/4 cup finely chopped scallions (optional)
Salt and pepper
Sunflower seed or canola oil for frying

Grate zucchini on the large holes of a box grater (or using a food processor).

Add flour, egg, scallions, and a generous amount of salt and pepper (and whatever other spices strike your fancy) in a large mixing bowl. Mix well to form a thick pancake-lie batter. Transfer zucchini to the bowl. Helen recommends squeezing the excess liquid out of the zucchini at this stage, which I think I forgot to do. Mine weren't overly wet, and the pancakes had a nice moisture to them, when done, so it's your call.
Set a large skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, add enough oil to lightly coat. When oil is hot (moves as easily as water when you tilt a pan), add the batter a spoonful at a time (each spoonful makes one pancake). Cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Flip the pancakes and cook until golden brown on the other side, about 2 minutes. Remove to a plate lined with paper towel and repeat with the rest of the batter adding more oil as necessary. Serve immediately with sour cream, yogurt, or plain.

We added a quick pesto by combining

A large handful of fresh basil leaves
1/3 cup pine nuts
1 clove garlic
olive oil to the desired consistency.
juice from a lemon wedge
touch of salt

we threw these in the bowl of the little chopper attachment that came with our immersion blender. zip, zip, zip, and we had enough for a nice dollop on each pancake. I could see a variety of different toppings working well here, and that's what makes this recipe a keeper, easy and lots of variations. We served alongside a nice big dinner salad.

Sauteed Zucchini with Feta

As the zucchini turns, and the summer onslaught begins, something yummy to do with them.

2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 large zucchini, thinly sliced in rounds
2 large garlic cloves
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/4 cup chopped parsley or basil, or both
1 tbsp. chopped cilantro
1/2 cup crumbled feta

In a 12 inch skillet, heat oil on low. Slowly saute zucchini and garlic with a little salt until golden and slightly carmelized, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Mix in parsley or basil, cilantro and feta.

Leeks and Sautéed Greens

Taken from a new DRI Fav. World's Healthiest Foods because leeks were the "Food of the Week." This recipe is a great tasting way of receiving the many health benefits of the super food kale. The leeks are a delicious complement, and this dish can be made very easily, so you can have it often. Adding the oil at the end gives it a rich taste without heating it, making this even healthier than most sautéed greens.
We've added WHFoods to our food blog list because they are a constant source of inspiration, they have have food of the week, and recipes throughout the week that use that ingredient. They are into whole, healthy, real food, but they're not didactic about it (like us!).

Prep and Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:
1 cup sliced leeks, about 1 leek
4 cups chopped kale
1/4 cup + 1 TBS chicken or vegetable broth
3 medium cloves garlic, pressed
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
salt and black pepper to taste
soy sauce to taste (optional)
Directions:

Heat 1 TBS broth in a 10-12 inch stainless steel skillet. Healthy (which means to sauté in broth) sliced leeks in broth over medium low heat for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add kale, ¼ cup broth, cover and simmer on low heat for about 7-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Toss with pressed garlic, lemon juice, soy sauce, olive oil, salt and pepper.
Serves 2

White Beans with Tomato, Basil and Parmesan

1T olive oil
1 tsp. minced garlic
24oz. can white beans, drained
1 cup chopped grape tomatoes
1/4 cup fresh parsely
1 tsp. dried basil
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese

In non-stick skillet saute garlic in O.O. on medium heat, 3 minutess. Stir in beans, chopped tomatoes, parsley and basil and cook about 7 minutes or longer. Mix in parmesan just before serving. Add spinach, mushrooms or whatever else seems good at the time.

Sautéed Broccoli Rabe with Garlic & Olive Oil

Stolen from WholeFoods web-page. Say what you like about WholeFoods, I feel great when I shop there! Broccoli rabe (pronounced "robb") is a non-heading variety of broccoli with long, thin leafy stalks topped with small florets. Sometimes referred to as rapini, broccoli raab, or broccoli di rape, this Italian staple will fit right at home in your holiday kitchen. Here we quickly boil and then sauté the hearty winter green in a little garlic infused olive oil, top it with sea salt and freshly ground pepper and serve with lemon wedge and optionally some grated parmesan. The taste is fresh, simple and let's the spiciness of the rabe come through. we love it, but you may want to serve with a starch that will mellow it out (like mashed potatoes).

Serves 6

2 bunches broccoli rabe
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 medium garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
freshly ground black pepper
Lemon wedges
grated parmesan (optional)
sea salt, to taste
Boil several quarts of water to boiling. Remove any tough or damaged outer leaves of broccoli rabe. Peel the thick, lower stems from the broccoli rabe. Tear the broccoli rabe into large pieces. Clean the broccoli rabe in a large amount of cold water until all dirt is removed.

When water is boiling, place broccoli rabe pieces in colander and pour boiling water over them to scald. Drain the broccoli rabe well and set aside. Meanwhile, heat the extra-virgin olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and crushed red pepper. Sauté the garlic until browned. Be careful not to burn the garlic! Add the broccoli rabe to the pan and toss to coat with the garlic/pepper mixture and heat through, around 2–3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper, if desired.

Beets with Onion and Cumin

2 tablespoons canola oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seed
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 medium beets, peeled and
quartered
2 tomatoes - peeled, seeded
and chopped
1 1/2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
DIRECTIONS:
1. Heat a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Pour in oil and saute onion and garlic until translucent. Mix in cumin seed and saute an additional 2 minutes. Sprinkle in flour and saute 1 minute more.
2. Stir in beets, tomatoes, water, and salt. Reduce heat to low, cover pan with lid, and allow to simmer 30 to 45 minutes, until beets are tender

Chinese Style Hot and Spicy Green Beans

Make these tasty green beans as spicy as you wish by adding more or less hot chili flakes. The dish is good served hot or at room temperature.

Serves 6

2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
Hot chili flakes to taste
1 pound green beans, trimmed
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
2 tablespoons thinly sliced garlic

In a small bowl whisk together the soy sauce, vinegar, sugar and chili flakes. Set aside.

Place 1/4 cup water in a large skillet and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the green beans, cover the pan, and cook until the beans are crisp tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover, and drain any water that remains in the pan.

Add the oil, ginger and garlic to the beans in the skillet and cook over medium high heat, stirring frequently, until the beans are lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Do not let the garlic burn. Add the soy mixture to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens and glazes the beans, about 2 minutes.

Transfer to a platter and serve the beans hot or at room temperature.

Scalloped Kohlrabi

ingredients
175 g (6 oz) onion, skinned and thinly sliced
3 Tbsp (40 g) butter
2 lb (900 g) kohlrabi
7 fl oz (200 ml) milk
salt and freshly ground pepper
chopped fresh parsley to garnish

method
1. Soften the onion in 25 g (1 oz) butter in a covered pan.
2. Thickly peel the kohlrabi to remove all the woody outer layer. Slice thinly and layer with the onions and seasoning in a 1.7 litre (3 pint) lightly buttered shallow ovenproof dish, topping with a neat layer of kohlrabi.
3. Pour over the milk and dot with remaining butter. Place on a baking tray and cook in the oven at 200°C (400f) mark 6 for about 1 1/2 hours, until tender.
4. Garnish with chopped parsley for serving.

Kohlrabi in Cream Dill Sauce

350 g (12 oz) kohlrabi
8 oz (225 g) carrots
2 tbsp (25 g) 1 oz butter
1 chicken stock cube
2.5 ml (1/2 tsp) dried dill
2/3 cup (150 ml) 1/4 pt fresh single cream
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 level tbsp (15 ml) cornflour

method
1. Thickly peel the kohlrabi to remove all the woody outer layer. Slice thinly and cook with the carrots, butter, 300 ml (1/2 pint) water and stock cube for about 10 minutes, until tender.

2. Blend the cornflour with very little cold water and strain in the vegetable liquid, stirring.

3. Return to the boil, stir in the dill and the fresh cream, then adjust seasoning. Bring almost to the boil and pour over the vegetables.

serving amount
serves 4

Kohlrabi With Anchovies

1 kg (2 1/4 lb) kohlrabi
6 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
4 anchovy fillets in oil, drain
90 g (3 oz) 1/2 cup dried fine breadcrumbs
4 garlic cloves, minced
salt and pepper

method
1. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil.
2. Peel the kohlrabi and slice thinly.
3. Cook in the water for about 5 minutes and then drain.
4. Place the oil in a saucepan over a low heat.
5. Add the anchovies with the oil, breadcrumbs and the garlic, and saute for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
6. Reserve half the mixture and then add the kohlrabi to the pan.
7. Add a little water, cover and cook for 5 minutes more, until tender.
8. Add the pepper, arrange on a platter, cover with the remaining breadcrumb mixture and serve immediately.

Sesame Noodles

1/2 lb Chinese noodles; or
1/2 lb Linguine
2 ts Sesame oil
1/2 c Sesame paste
1/2 c Chicken broth
2 tb Sugar
1/2 ts Salt
1/2 ts Freshly ground pepper
1 ts Freshly grated ginger
1/2 ts Freshly minced garlic
2 ts Rich wine vinegar
1/2 c Fresh bean sprouts
1/4 c Finely minced cucumber
1 tb Chopped chives

Cook noodles until al dente. Rinse in cold water, drain well, and toss with sesame oil. In another bowl, mix sesame paste, chicken broth, sugar, salt, pepper, ginger, garlic, and vinegar using a wire whisk. Add noodles (once cool) and bean sprouts to above mixture and blend well. Taste. Adjust seasoning if desired.
Place noodles in glass bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for two hours. Remove from refrigerator, divide onto small plates, top with cucumber and chives. Makes four small servings.

Sauteed Fiddleheads

Fiddleheads mean "spring is here!" This recipe is simple, and something we look forward to when we see the first fiddleheads of spring in the market.

Ingredients

3/4 pound fresh fiddlehead ferns
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 to 3 cloves garlic or spring garlic, very finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Clean and trim the ends off the fiddleheads.

2. Bring a medium pot of water to boil over high heat. Add the fiddleheads and let cook 10 seconds. Immediately drain the fiddleheads and place under very cold running water to stop the cooking and retain the green color. Keep the fiddleheads under the cold water until they are cool. Drain again.

3. In a large skillet heat the oil over moderately high heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, for about 10 seconds. The idea is to let the garlic just begin to turn golden brown, but not burn. Add the fiddleheads and cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes. Season liberally with salt and pepper. The fiddleheads are done when they are still crisp, with a bite, but not raw tasting. Serve hot with pasta, rice, or potatoes, or alongside any poultry or seafood dish. The fiddleheads can also be served at room temperature with vinaigrette. Serves 3 to 4.

Kathy made this dish on WBUR's Here and Now on Wednesday May 14th, 2003.

Kale with Sesame Dressing

Tastes just like Ohitashi, the spinach dish we often get as a sushi appetizer.

1 Bunch Kale, well washed, roots and course stems removed
2 1/2 T toasted white sesame seeds
1 1/2 t cane sugar
1 1/2 t Soy Sauce
Pinch Salt

Steam kale over boiling water for 3 minutes, or until just bright green and wilted. Drain in a colander, and rinse under cold water. Gently squeeze kale to release excess water. Lay kale on a clean towel and gently roll up to absorb any remaining liquid.

In a small bowl, mix sesame seed with sugar, soy and salt

Unroll kale and cut into 1 inch pieces place in bowl and mix with dressing. Serve cold or warm slightly.