A Very Veggie Breakfast

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I'm still in my "I want to eat veggies. Lots of veggies. Lots and lots of veggies. Especially green veggies..." stage and I've been making sautes and stir-fries for breakfast because the idea of sweet breakfast turns my stomach a little. In particular, I've been making some variation of this for breakfast almost daily, either using kale, chard, collards, or cabbage, depending on what I have in my refrigerator (aka, depending on what I got cheap at the growers market or the grocery store).

This is nice for breakfast because it's simple. I can start it after I walk the dog, even on days I'm feeling somewhat more rushed than I'd like in the mornings. I can steep my coffee (French press) while my food caramelizes, perhaps get my lunch ready to go on my weekdays, and even turn on my computer to check email and other things, all the while, giving my food an occasional quick stir so it doesn't burn.

As a post-Thanksgiving day breakfast, this is fun, light, and doesn't involve leftovers--which there will be plenty of, for many people, in the coming days (and weeks! So glad that's not me this year.). Plus, if you pair it with a piece of whole grain toast or other whole grain, then you will have plenty of stamina for shopping, cleaning, decorating, or whatever it is you do with your Black Friday. Usually, I would make tamales. This year, I work. But as I said, I've been eating this, or some variation of this, for several weeks and I find it a lovely way to start my day in a veggie-intense way that doesn't involve a smoothie (kinda cool for that this time of year, and the blender noise is obnoxious first thing in the morning).

In the variation of this depicted by the picture, I'm using Lacinato kale, which (apparently) has a long tradition in Italian cuisine. I'll have to remember that next time I buy some -- I definitely want something with tomatoes and Italian flavoring soon, probably also for breakfast. Lacinato kale is the same thing as dinosaur kale (my personal favorite name for it), Tuscan kale, and black kale among many other names. This is simply the kale that's looked best at both the growers market and the grocery store.

Sometimes I add mushrooms, because I really like them. I don't always want mushrooms though and so I'm not including it in the list of ingredients. When I do add mushrooms, I usually add 4-6 sliced (depending on the size) a couple of minutes after I add the onions, but before I add my greens. They add a lot of extra flavor though, so if you like mushrooms and have them on hand, I highly encourage you to use them.

This makes a great main dish breakfast for one or two, or could be used as a side dish for several. You could also use it for lunch or dinner, if you're so inclined (and I've been doing some of that too, just changing up what specifically I add).

I've also been craving, recently, baked beans on toast with stewed tomatoes. Maybe all these British shows E and I have been watching are rubbing off. Fortunately, or unfortunately, I don't usually have baked beans or stewed tomatoes on hand. Maybe though, I'll make that happen.

It's Good to Be Green (and orange!) Breakfast (or dinner)
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped ginger
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, sliced
1 carrot, sliced in coins, or 1/4 cup chopped sweet potato
1 bunch kale, chopped
Salt (I use about 1/4 teaspoon, at most)
Red pepper flakes (I use about 1/4-1/2 teaspoon)
Red wine vinegar (if you don't have this on hand, use lemon juice)

One or more of the following:
1/4 cup raisins, optional
1 teaspoon curry powder, optional
2 tablespoons chopped or slivered, toasted almonds
2-4 tablespoons goat cheese
1/2 thinly sliced, firm apple such as Arkansas black or pink pearl 

Heat the olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add ginger, onion, garlic, and carrot. Stir to coat with oil and then only stir occasionally (every 2-3 minutes, perhaps) until the onions and carrots just begin to caramelize (about 7-10 minutes total, depending on your pan).

Add the kale (or cabbage), salt, and red pepper flakes. Saute until the kale begins to wilt and then add the red wine vinegar.

Remove from heat when the kale is mostly wilted and stir in the raisins, curry powder, almonds, goat cheese, or apple (I wouldn't recommend using all of these at once--but perhaps two or three, with a specific flavor-idea in mind as you're doing it), if using. Serve hot.

Eating on the Road (Or in the Office) -- Vegan Quiche

One of the things I struggle with when I'm on campus for the day: lunch. I need something and eventually I get tired of sandwiches--hummus & tomato; hummus, tomato & avocado; peanut butter; peanut butter & jelly or peanut butter & banana.

I have to take food that's not going to get smashed and doesn't (necessarily) need to be refrigerated. For a while, I took rice & fruit salads, or millet dishes, or wraps with beans and veggies.

But I get tired of these things too--or run out of ingredients (at least as likely). Or I just want something different--for instance, now that it's getting colder, something that can be microwaved and make me feel a little warmer.

One of my current favorites is a vegan quiche recipe. I'm not vegan--but the nice thing about this (as opposed to an egg-based quiche) is that I feel less like I'm going to die if it's not refrigerated (a fear I find slightly ridiculous anyway). Since I use aseptically packaged Nori tofu (you can find this at most grocery stores, usually in the "Asian" or "International" sections), I feel like maybe my food has had less opportunity to pick up germs. I also realize that this rationalization isn't in fact all that rationale. Nevertheless, this little pie works well for me and it travels easily.

I discovered it over the summer on 101 cookbooks and modified it to meet my tastes. One of the great things about this quiche is that it's easy to modify. If you don't like lima beans, use something else that has about the same amount of bulk. I often add a cup of mixed frozen veggies. If you don't have garbanzo bean flour, you can use more whole wheat. If you like it spicier (and I do), add more red pepper flakes. And if you don't have a lemon, lime juice works as well (or even just a little more rice wine vinegar--though this does alter the taste some).

Vegan Spinach-Mushroom Quiche
1/2 cup rolled oats (quick or old fashioned)
3 tablespoons sesame seeds
½ cup whole wheat flour
½ cup garbanzo bean flour (or more whole wheat)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly milled black pepper
1/3 cup unflavored soy milk or water
1/3 cup light sesame oil or pure olive oil plus more for brushing the pan

For the filling:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup finely diced onion
10 ounces white button mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 cup zucchini, diced
2 tablespoons white wine (semi-dry works well)
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse sea salt
10 ounces frozen, chopped spinach
1 cup frozen lima beans
1 roasted garlic clove (see note)
10 to 12 fresh basil leaves, chopped
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 teaspoons hot red pepper flakes, divided
1 10-ounce package soft tofu, rinsed
2 tablespoons flaxseed
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
Paprika for dusting

Preheat the oven to 350. Meanwhile, to make the crust, spread the oats and sesame seeds on a baking sheet and toast in the oven for 8 minutes while the oven is heating (watch them carefully to make sure they don’t burn). Transfer the toasted oats and sesame seeds to the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Add the flours, baking powder, salt, and pepper, and process until the oats are finely ground.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the soy milk and oil. Using a wooden spoon, mix in the dry ingredients to form a dough. Lightly brush a 9-inch or 10-inch tart pan with oil. Put the dough in the tart pan. Place a piece of plastic wrap on the dough and press down evenly, making sure to fill in the fluted sides of the pan. Trim the tart of any excess dough and refrigerate while you make the filling.

To make the filling, in a wide saute pan over medium heat, warm the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, mushroom, and zucchini. Raise the heat to high, and saute for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring and shaking the pan until the vegetables are caramelized and the pan is mostly dry. Add the wine and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Season with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and 1 teaspoon pepper flakes. Add frozen spinach and limas continue to cook until dry, stirring frequently. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the vegetables into a mixing bowl and set aside.

Dump tofu into the bowl of the food processor. Add the flaxseed, basil, thyme, nutritional yeast flakes, lemon juice, vinegar, remaining 1 teaspoon of salt, and remaining 1 teaspoon pepper flakes and puree until smooth. With a rubber spatula, scrape the puree into the mushroom-onion mixture.

Fill the tart shell with the tofu and vegetable mixture and smooth the top with the back of a spoon. Dust with Paprika. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until firm.
Let the tart cool for 8 to 10 minutes before slicing and serving.


**Note: If you don't have fresh herbs, dried ones will work too. Season to taste.
**Note: If you don't have ground flax, it's not the end of the world. Leave it out and don't worry.

Pictures to come soon!

Pizza Sauce, Coming Soon!

I've gone to the beach twice in the past three weeks to see a friend who will soon be moving across the country (she's a Marine and being relocated to a new base). I've had a great time both weekends I was down there--cooking, picking blueberries, seeing other friends, playing with her daughter. And while I was down there, we made pizza. She's not a big pizza (or bread) eater and I'm not really either, unless it's socially. But I'm about breaded out right now.

Since she'll be moving soon, I didn't want her to buy a lot of special things just for me to cook with (though it was nice of her to offer) and I didn't want to haul a lot of stuff with me or buy it there. It somehow removes some of the fun when Wal*Mart is right around the corner complete with all the supplies you need. We pretended it wasn't there for the most part.

The first time I made the sauce (which I'll be posting soon), I was flying blind. But a marinara-style sauce really isnt' that difficult as long as you don't have a cold or something else that effects your sense of taste/smell. The key was trying to make sure we got as much as we could, nutrient wise, out of the tomatoes--after all, why make pizza any less nutritionally sound than it already is? Tomatoes have alcohol-soluble nutrients, meaning you need some sort of alcohol (say, red wine) to fully benefit.

For alcohol my options were tequila (three different types, all her husband's), Jagermeister, or amaretto. I chose the amaretto. Its natural sugars combined with the earthy-nutty flavor of the almonds complimented the sauce nicely. Of course, dried oregano and other herbs--plus a lot of onion, garlic, and mushrooms, didn't hurt either!