vegetarian Archive

Kimchi Breakfast Bowls

Nich and I went out to brunch a couple of weeks ago and ordered a few things to share. I don’t recall anything else we ate that morning, but I do know we had a delicious breakfast bowl with a fried egg and kimchi. I’ve been craving it ever since.

The funny thing is that I’ve been making a similar rice bowl – Eggs in a Nest – for years. I just never thought to add kimchi into the mix.

I’m not sure why, but the kimchi makes all the difference. It’s tangy, it’s funky, and it’s good. (If you’re not a fan of kimchi, then you’re out of luck. But you should seriously reconsider. Kimchi is wonderful!)

In addition to the funky goodness of kimchi, this recipe is also great because it can be made a million different ways. I basically just sauteéd a few vegetables I had in the fridge (green beans, onions, red bell peppers, kale) and tossed them atop some brown rice. I then topped that with a healthy portion of kimchi and a fried egg. Lastly, I poured kimchi juice (the fermenty goodness left in the jar) and Sriracha over the whole thing.

I devoured the whole bowl in seconds and felt like a champ. I highly recommend you do the same.

KIMCHI BREAKFAST BOWLS
Makes 2 servings

Ingredients
1.5 cups cooked brown rice
2 eggs
1 heaping cup of kale, roughly chopped
1 small red bell pepper, sliced thinly
1 small yellow onion, sliced thinly
Olive oil
Salt & pepper, to taste
Various other fresh vegetables: zucchini, green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, snap peas, etc.
1/2 cup kimchi, at room temperature (homemade or store bought. I’m a sucker for Choi’s Kimchi, which I get at the PSU Farmer’s Market in Portland. It’s SO stinking good.)

Optional sauces: Sriracha and/or Gochujang

Method:

If you made your rice ahead of time and left it to cool (or stored it in the refrigerator), warm the rice in the microwave or on the stovetop. If your kimchi has any liquid in the jar, pour a little of the kimchi juices into the rice to season it. Stir, and set aside.

Heat one tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat in a large non-stick skillet. Once the oil is hot, add in the onions. Cook for 1-2 minutes before adding in the rest of the vegetables (except for the kale). Season with salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Once the vegetables are cooked (and starting to caramelize), add in the chopped kale. Place a lid on the skillet and turn the heat down to low, and allow the greens to wilt. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the kale (and other veggies) are fully cooked.

Divide the rice between two soup bowls. Portion the kimchi and the sauteed vegetables between the two bowls of rice. Set aside. In the same pan you used to cook the veggies, fry two eggs.

Once the eggs are cooked to your liking (I like the yolk nice and runny!), place a fried egg atop each rice bowl. Douse with a hefty squirt of Sriracha (or Gochujang. or both!). Add salt and pepper if needed.

Asparagus & Arugula Salad with Feta and Mint

I took a week off from everything.

It’s been wonderful.

I slept in (which I never do). I went to the gym. I spent time with friends and family.

I cooked, I baked. I concocted fun summer cocktails.

I watched a lot of Breaking Bad.

I went off the grid.

It was just what the doctor ordered.

And now, I’m starting my new job with Plate & Pitchfork. Our summer dinners start next weekend and I honestly can’t wait. It’s going to be a lot of work, but it’s the work I want to be doing. It’s what I love.

Oh, and I suppose I should say something about this asparagus salad. That’s what you’re here for, right?

The salad is remarkably simple. It’s bright and summery and wonderful. The asparagus is crisp, with just a hint of delicious char. Since we are nearing the end of asparagus season, I’m imploring you to snatch up as much as you can. Get it while it’s hot.

ASPARAGUS & ARUGULA SALAD WITH FETA & MINT
Note: While I call for roasted asparagus in this recipe, you could also grill, steam, or sauteé the asparagus. Really, it’s up to you! I prefer roasting or grilling, as I think the char on the asparagus tastes particularly good in this salad.

1 bunch of asparagus (approx. 1 lb)
1.5 cups arugula
2 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
Drizzle of good quality olive oil (1 tablespoon, plus more for roasting)
Salt & pepper, to taste
Fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Trim the woody ends off the asparagus. Toss asparagus with a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper. When the oven is hot, roast asparagus in the oven for 8-12 minutes, or until asparagus is roasted. I prefer my asparagus to be slightly undercooked, so it’s still crisp (but cooked).

Remove asparagus to a plate (or bowl) to cool.

Once the asparagus is fully cooled, toss the asparagus with the arugula. Drizzle olive oil over the mixture, and toss with vinegar and lemon juice. Gently toss in the feta cheese and mint. Season with salt & pepper. Add more olive oil or lemon juice, if needed.

Serve immediately. (Note: this salad doesn’t keep particularly well. It is best if you eat it the same day you make it.)

Curried Potato Salad

I’ll be honest, I wasn’t planning on posting this recipe.

(I’m not sure what my problem was, since this potato salad is really damn delicious.)

It’s just that potato salad is a funny thing. It’s not a particularly sexy dish, it’s a bit kitschy and old fashioned, and it certainly doesn’t look good in photographs. But good grief, it sure tastes great. But it doesn’t matter how Stepford-wife I feel when I show up to a BBQ with a bowl full of potato salad, it always gets eaten. Every last bite.

My girlfriends all implored me to post this recipe on the blog, despite the fact that it photographs like an ugly, yellow bowl of mush. (It doesn’t taste like an ugly bowl of mush, I promise.) I’ve always loved the combination of curry and potatoes, and it works just as well in this context. This potato salad somehow still tastes like the one you remember from your childhood, but with more adult flavors: curry, cilantro, and cumin.

Since Memorial Day is right around the corner, it does seem like an appropriate time to post a recipe for the ultimate BBQ side dish. Funny enough, I’m actually making this potato salad for my family’s Memorial Day BBQ, which means I’ll make this recipe 3 times in one week. Thankfully, I happen to really like this salad. And I kind of can’t wait to eat it again.

If you’re looking for something to eat alongside a giant bowl of potato salad on Memorial Day, check out my “What to Eat: Grill Edition” over at Plate & Pitchfork’s blog. I posted a little bit of everything – grilled kebabs, pizzas, veggies, meats, and more!

Happy Memorial Day weekend, everyone!

CURRIED POTATO SALAD

Ingredients:
6-10 small Yukon Gold potatoes (or other small waxy potato), cut into 1″ or 2″ cubes (skins left on)
1/4 cup Greek Yogurt
1.5 Tablespoons mayo (I used Kewpie mayo)
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Salt & pepper to taste
2-3 stalks celery, diced
1 small shallot, finely diced
2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

Method:
Bring a medium-large pot of water to a boil. Carefully add the cubed potatoes to the water and allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft and cooked all the way through. (I test them with a fork or knife tip after 15 minutes).

Once the potatoes are cooked, drain the hot water using a colander or strainer. Rinse the potatoes with cold water and set aside to continue cooling. (Optional: I like to sprinkle a bit of red wine vinegar over the potatoes at this time, as it absorbs into the potatoes and gives them an extra tang.)

In a small bowl, mix together the yogurt, mayo, red wine vinegar, curry powder, coriander, cumin, and salt and pepper. Taste, and adjust seasonings to your liking. Set aside.

Once the potatoes have cooled to room temperature, gently toss them with the diced shallots and celery. Gently stir in the yogurt mixture, to coat. Once the potatoes are coated in the yogurt mixture, gently stir in the chopped cilantro. Chill in the refrigerator for at least a half an hour before serving. Just prior to serving, garnish with more fresh cilantro and a dash of curry powder.

Ramp Tartines with Ricotta and Ramp & Radish Pesto

I might be the first person in the history of the internet to post two separate blogs on radish leaf pesto. Last year, I posted my recipe for radish leaf pesto pasta salad with asparagus. And here I am, posting another recipe with radish leaf pesto.

Really, the pesto on these tartines doesn’t have to be radish leaf pesto. It can be any kind of pesto you want it to be! I happened to sautée a bunch of radishes and I had all the leaves leftover. Hence, the radish leaf pesto.

But this post isn’t really about radishes leaves…it’s about ramps (otherwise known as: spring onions, wild garlic, rampson, wood leeks, or wild leeks.). For those who are unfamiliar, ramps are “a spring vegetable; a perennial wild onion with a strong garlic-like odor and a pronounced onion flavor.” I’m relatively new to the ramp world myself, but I’ve quickly come to love this spring vegetable. The ramp season is quite short – they only appear at farmer’s markets for a couple of weeks – so I make sure to get them while I can.

If you can’t get ramps in your neck of the woods, don’t fret – you can easily substitute normal garlic for ramps in this recipe. However, if you’ve not had the pleasure of eating and/or cooking ramps, I urge you to try to get your hands on some in the next couple of weeks! They’re like garlic, but milder and slightly onion-esque. They’re wonderful.

As I explained in my last post, these tartines were part of a market-inspired dinner I made for myself over the warm and summery weekend. Paired with sauteed radishes and a glass of rosé, it made for the perfect spring meal.

RAMP TARTINES WITH RICOTTA AND RAMP & RADISH LEAF PESTO
Note: As I’ve said before, pesto is really as simple nuts + greens + hard cheese. The amounts and quantities listed below can be changed to your tastes and likings. Use any green you like (parsley, cilantro, beet greens, spinach, arugula) and mix with nuts and cheese. The end.

For the pesto:
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
A handful of ramps (10-12), washed and ends/roots removed (leave the green parts in tact)
1.5 cups radish leaves (the leaves from 1 bunch of radishes), washed and patted dry
A handful of fresh basil
1/4 cup (or more) olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Salt & pepper to taste
Dash of red pepper flakes

For the tartines:
Thin slices of grilled bread and/or crostini
8-10 ramps (1 per tartine)
Whole milk ricotta
Freshly ground pepper

To make the pesto (can be done ahead of time):
In a food processor or blender, blend together the pine nuts and grated cheese. Place half of the radish leaves, ramps, and basil in the food processor. Blend while drizzling olive oil over the mixture. Remove lid, and stir the mixture. Add in the rest of the greens and ramps, plus olive oil salt, pepper, and red chili flakes. Pulse until well combined, adding olive oil until desired consistency is reached. (I like my pesto rather thick, so I use less olive oil than most). Taste, and adjust seasonings as needed.

To assemble the tartines:
In a small pan, heat 1/2 tablespoon of butter over medium heat. Add remaining ramps and cook over medium heat until the greens are wilted and the lower white part of the ramp is soft and starting to brown (about 6-8 minutes). Set aside.

Spread a good amount of ricotta on each slice of bread. Add a dollop of radish leaf pesto on top of the ricotta, and place one sauteed ramp atop the pesto. Season with a bit of freshly ground black pepper and enjoy!

Sautéed Radishes with Butter and Chives

Hello friends! I feel like I’ve been gone forever.

I was in Chicago and St. Louis for a week, and I had a lovely time. I caught up with old friends, ate a lot of good food, and experienced tornado season in the Midwest. I then came back home and wrote a big, long post about my travels (complete with lots of pictures!) and somehow managed to delete the entire post. My dear friend ‘Auto-Save’ managed to save immediately after I deleted everything I’d written. Go figure.

So, you’re just going to have to trust that Chicago and St. Louis were fantastic. I just don’t have it in me to re-write the post.

But, now I’m back home in Portland. As great as it is to be home and sleeping in my own bed, I can’t help but feel slightly overwhelmed. There are emails to write, vegetables to plant, clothes to be washed.

And then the sun came out and wrecked all of my plans (in the best possible way)! I had every intention of accomplishing things, but all of those intentions went out the window the second the sun came out. I went to the farmer’s market, BBQed with friends, drank margaritas in the sunshine, and generally had a fabulous weekend.

I did manage to stop by the farmer’s market on Saturday morning. I had planned on only picking up a couple of things, but instead left with two giant bags of produce: radishes, asparagus, ramps, rhubarb, tomato plants, and more. I can’t get over how much I love spring in Oregon! I was so excited about my farmer’s market purchases that I promptly came home and made myself a delicious spring meal: tartines with ricotta and ramp and radish pesto (more on these in another post), and sautéed radishes with chives and butter. Nich works on Saturday evenings, so I poured myself a glass of French rose and dined alone in the backyard. It was absolutely perfect.

I feel almost silly posting the recipe, as it’s ridiculously simple. But I’m a new convert to cooked radishes and thought I might make a few converts out of y’all! I love radishes, but like most people, I grew up eating them raw. It wasn’t until somewhat recently that I realized that radishes are super delicious when cooked. I’m not sure how to explain the flavor of a cooked radish, it’s just a bit more mellow and sweet than a raw radish. Cooked radishes retain some of their radish-y bite, but the cooking calms them down a bit. (Also, most things taste better when sautéed in butter. It’s a fact.)

I could talk til I’m blue in the face, but really, you must try it for yourself. Just cook up some radishes with butter, and you’ll be happier for it. I promise.

SAUTEED RADISHES WITH BUTTER AND CHIVES

Ingredients:
1 bunch of radishes, washed and leaves removed (reserve leaves for another use)
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon minced chives
Salt & pepper, to taste

Method:
Slice radishes into quarters (or sixths, if the radishes are large).

Heat butter in a medium sized skillet over medium-high heat. When the butter is melted and beginning to brown, toss in the radishes. Sprinkle with a generous amount of salt and freshly ground pepper, and give the radishes a stir.

Cook radishes, until golden brown and caramelized on the outside, about 8 minutes. (Stir occasionally, to ensure that all sides of the radishes are browned.) When the radishes are done, remove from heat and toss with the minced chives. Taste, and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Serve immediately.

Recipe Swap: Quinoa Stuffed Poblano Peppers

I’m so pleased. I killed three (not two, three!) birds with one stone with this recipe.

Let me explain…

First of all, I made these stuffed poblano peppers for this month’s Recipe Swap. If you aren’t familiar, the recipe swap consists of 25 foodies and writers from all over the world, and each month we re-interpret a vintage recipe (selected by Christianna of Burwell General Store) and post our creations on the first Sunday of the month. This month, Christianna asked us to re-create a recipe for Wild Rice Dressing.

I was really excited to dive into this recipe. I love wild rice, and felt that this recipe could so easily be re-interpreted in a number of interesting ways. The possibilities were endless!

Which brings me to the second bird I killed with this post. This weekend, I went to a dinner party with friends out at a gorgeous Bed & Breakfast in Dundee. My friend Mari was making Pork Molé for the main course, and I wanted to bring a side dish that would compliment the molé. While dreaming up my dinner party side dish, I also realized that I still needed to make something for this month’s recipe swap. And thus the idea of Quinoa Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce was born.

The stuffed peppers were a fantastic tribute to the wild rice stuffing and they were the perfect compliment to pork molé tacos. (If you’re counting, that’s two birds…)

The third bird was more of a happy accident. I had a whole bunch of the quinoa and filling leftover, so I decided to make these stuffed peppers again for the Superbowl. I’m not a huge football fan, but I do like to use the Superbowl as an excuse to eat a lot of snack food and watch a few good commercials. And since I was asked to post a recipe on Superbowl Sunday, I think it is completely appropriate to make said recipe for a Superbowl snack! (Confession: this is the one day a year I allow myself to eat Doritos. Specifically, Salsa Verde Doritos. They’re so bad, but so good.)

So with one post, I created a recipe for the swap, a side dish that paired nicely with pork molé, and a radical Superbowl snack. Huzzah!

With that being said, happy Recipe Swap and happy Superbowl Sunday! If I were you, I’d skip the Madonna halftime show and instead I’d recommend you visit the Recipe Swap page to see all the amazing creations my fellow swappers made! ;)

Quinoa Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Roasted Red Pepper Cream Sauce

For the Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
1 cup roasted red peppers
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (+ 1 teaspoon of the adobo sauce)
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin

For the Quinoa Stuffed Peppers:
4 Poblano peppers
1.5 cups cooked quinoa (I used a tri-color quinoa blend, but any quinoa will work)
1 yellow onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 carrots, diced
1 stalk of celery, diced
1 heaping cup roughly chopped swiss chard
1 can of black beans
1 cup frozen corn
Cotija cheese
1/2 teaspoon cumin
Salt & pepper, to taste
3 tablespoons roasted red pepper sauce

To make the roasted red pepper sauce:
Blend all sauce ingredients together in a food processor or blender. Taste, and adjust seasonings to your liking. Set aside until use.

To make the stuffed peppers:

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add in the diced onion and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add in garlic, carrots, and celery and continue to cook over medium heat until the vegetables are lightly browned, 5-7 minutes. Add in the chopped chard and cook until chard is wilted, another 4-5 minutes. Once the chard is cooked, add in the frozen corn and black beans. Cook until they are heated through. Turn off the heat and stir in quinoa and 3 tablespoons of the roasted red pepper sauce. Set aside until needed.

To prepare the poblano peppers, cut each in half and carefully remove the stems and seeds. Place poblano halves on a baking sheet and lightly brush each side with olive oil. Place poblanos under the broiler, and broil each side for 3-4 minutes (until starting to blacken on each side). Remove poblanos, and set aside to cool. At this point, turn off your broiler and set your oven to 350 degrees.

Once the poblanos are cool enough to handle, begin stuffing the peppers. Sprinkle a small amount of cotija cheese in the pepper halves, and then fill the pepper halves with the quinoa mixture. Sprinkle more cotija cheese over the top. Place in a baking dish, and arrange the poblano halves snugly in the dish (so that they support each other). Bake for 10-15 minutes in a 350 degree oven, or until the cheese is nicely browned and the peppers are cooked all the way through.

Serve warm, with roasted red pepper sauce.

Wintery Grilled Cheese (with Goat Cheese, Roasted Beets & Wilted Chard).

It’s a quiet winter Sunday and I’m puttering about the house and working on various projects (cleaning, organizing, laundry, etc). It’s freezing outside and the weather is manic; alternating between snow flurries and sunshine. I’ve got a chill in my bones that I can’t quite shake, and no amount of coffee seems to do the trick. I click back and forth between the Packers game and the Golden Globes, as I can’t decide which is more depressing.

I think it’s the perfect day to make a grilled cheese sandwich.

Why? Because grilled cheese is the perfect winter meal.

In addition, the grilled cheese sandwich is a prime example of a time-tested culinary rule: melty cheese + bread = culinary magic. (If interpreted loosely, this rule also applies to pizza, quesadillas, nachos, lasagna, mac n’ cheese, cheeseburgers, etc. You get the idea.)
So, this sandwich is essentially a dressed up version of the bread and cheese rule. I took a couple slices of quality bread and added goat cheese, roasted beets, wilted chard, caramelized onions, along with a healthy dollop of creamy horseradish.

The result? My new favorite winter meal. I’m not kidding. This sandwich is a wonderful tribute to the season, and utilizes some of my favorite winter vegetables: beets, onions, and chard. The creamy goat cheese melds together perfectly with the earthy winter veggies, and the horseradish gives the sandwich just the right amount of punch.

If this is what winter tastes like, then I hope winter lasts forever.

(OK, maybe I’m exaggerating a bit with that last sentence. At the very least, this sandwich makes the winter much more tolerable.)

Wintery Grilled Cheese: With Goat Cheese, Roasted Beets, and Wilted Chard.
(Inspired from a similar sandwich I consumed at Bunk Bar. Thank you, Tommy. You rule.)
Makes 4 hearty sandwiches.

Ingredients:
8 slices quality bread (I splurged on Grand Central Bakery’s Sliced Campagnolo. So good.)
4 ounces goat cheese (Chevre), room temperature
3 cups of rainbow chard, roughly chopped
1 large yellow onion, sliced thinly
2 medium-large beets
Horseradish, to taste

Method:
Roast the beets: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash beets and trim off beet greens, leaving a 1/2 inch “stem”. Wrap each beet individually in tin foil. Once the oven is hot, place wrapped beets directly on the oven rack (or on a pan, if you’d rather). Roast for 40 minutes (up to an hour), until beets are soft all the way through when pricked with a fork. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Once cool enough to handle, unwrap beets and remove skin. The skin should come off easily (I usually use a paper towel and gently rub off the skin). Set beets aside.

While the beets are roasting, caramelize the onions. In a medium size non-stick skillet, heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil over medium-low heat. Once the oil is hot, add in the sliced onions. Allow to cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until brown and caramelized (about 30 minutes). If they begin to cook too quickly, turn the heat down to low. Remove the onions from the pan and set aside.

In the same skillet (no need to clean it, the onion flavor will just enhance the chard), heat a splash of oil over medium heat. Add in the chopped chard and allow to heat. Stir, and after a minute or two, add one tablespoon of water to the pan. Cover, and turn the heat down to medium-low. Allow the chard to cook like this for 5 minutes. Check on the chard, if the water has evaporated but the chard is still under-cooked, add a bit more water and cook for 2-3 more minutes. I like my chard leaves to be wilted, but I like the chard stems to still retain a bit of crunch. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Set aside until ready to make your sandwiches.

Once the beets, chard, and onions have cooked, your sandwiches are ready to assemble!

I trust that you all know how to make a grilled cheese sandwich, so I’m not going to go overboard with instructions. Essentially, spread a (thick) layer of goat cheese on one slice of bread. Top with beet slices, wilted chard, and caramelized onions. Spread creamy horseradish on the other slice of bread (along with a little more goat cheese, if you so desire). Butter the exterior of your bread slices, and cook your grilled cheese sandwiches on a griddle (or non-stick skillet) over medium-high heat. Cook sandwiches for 3-5 minutes on each side, until bread is golden and the goat cheese is warm and ‘melty’.

Note: goat cheese does not “melt” like other cheeses, but it will get warm, gooey, and delicious.