Hazelnut Pesto Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes and Asparagus

 

Originally this post was suppose to feature delicious homemade gnocchi, however after carefully reading a recipe and crafting beautiful little pockets of goodness I put them in simmering water to cook. And it was disaster. I ended up with a huge pot of potato water. So now this post is about the pesto I made to go with the gnocchi.

Hazelnut Pesto

1/4 cup roasted hazelnuts without skin
1 - 2 cups of fresh basil leaves
1 clove of garlic
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Blend all ingredients together in a food processor or blender. You may need to add more olive oil or some water to help with blending.


To serve I roasted some cherry tomatoes in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes and saute some asparagus and peas with a little lemon juice.

Once my pasta was cooked I tossed it with the pesto mixture and served with the tomatoes, peas and asparagus.

This dish would be amazing with homemade gnocchi!

Vegan Split Pea Soup

This split pea soup is really tasty and super comforting. We are working on a pretty tight budget right now and until our CSA basket starts up again we are trying to use up some pantry ingredients. I had two big jars of split peas in the cupboard so I made my own version of a recipe from the Conscious Cook by Tal Ronnen.

The recipe below has been doubled from the original and should serve 4 for dinner. Also I find this soup needs to cook for a good few hours so usually I make it a day before or start it in the morning.

Vegan Split Pea Soup
Adapted from The Conscious Cook by Tal Ronnen

1 Tbsp olive oil
1-2 onions, coarsely shopped
3 large carrot, coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 a cabbage, coarsely chopped
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 bay leaf
1 tsp smoked paprika
10 cups vegetable stock
3 cups green/yellow split peas, rinsed (I use half green and half yellow)
Freshly ground black pepper


Place a large stockpot over medium heat. Add oil, onions, carrot, cabbage and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the rosemary, bay leaf, and paprika and continue cooking for 2 minutes. Add the stock and split peas and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, and then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 2 - 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

When ready serve with your favorite biscuits or bread.

Rice, Veggies and Broth

This dish is quick to make and I find it very comforting. You can make it with whatever veggies you have in the fridge.

I am sure there is a proper name for this dish but I have no idea what it might be. I leave some of the veggies cold while others I cook. I like the contrast while I am eating this but if you want you could cook everything.

Rice, Veggies and Broth

1 cup basmati or jasmine rice
12 mushrooms, roughly chopped
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp maple syrup or honey
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 red pepper, sliced into thin strips
1 green onion, diced finely
3 - 4 cups of veggie broth (I use broth cubes and water)
Sesame seeds to garnish

Firstly cook your rice according to the package. Usually it's a one to one ratio rice to water but you might have your own rice cooking tricks!

Meanwhile cook your mushrooms in olive oil until they are browned. Right at the end add the maple syrup and cider vinegar and cook for one more minute. Set aside.

To assemble put about a 3/ 4 cup or so of rice into a bowl. Top with some of the hot mushrooms, cold red pepper slices and some green onion. Ladle in a cup or two of hot broth and garnish with sesame seeds.

Pasta Puttanesca and Scallops

For this month's Secret Recipe Club I was given the blog Lisa's Cooking Adventures. I read in one of her posts that the her blog is more about her cooking failures than successes but after looking through tons of yummy recipes I don't think that can actually be true!

Lisa cooks a lot of different things but this recipe for Puttanesca sauce really jumped out at me. Although P and I are mostly vegan we have added fish and seafood back into our diet so I thought I would give this sauce a try. I absolutely LOVED it but P (Who hates olives) wasn't fooled and about half way through the dish asked "does this have olives in it?".

The original recipe called for black olives but I used green as that is what I had. I also cooked up some scallops to go with the dish and they were delightful. Thanks Lisa for the wonderful recipe!

Pasta Puttanesca and Scallops
From Lisa's Cooking Adventure

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 to 6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tin anchovy fillets, rolled with capers
1 /2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 can of sliced black olives (I used green)
1 (32-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
A few grinds black pepper
1/4 cup (a couple of handfuls) flat leaf parsley, chopped
6 medium scallops
Pasta 

Directions

Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add oil, garlic, anchovies, and crushed pepper. Sauté mixture until anchovies melt into oil and completely dissolve and garlic is tender, about 3 minutes: Add capers, tomatoes, black pepper, and parsley. Bring sauce to a bubble, reduce heat, and simmer 8 to 10 minutes.

In a small skillet heat some olive oil over medium high heat. Add scallops to pan and let cook for 1 minute. Turn over and cook on other side for 1 - 2 minutes. Scallops should have a lovely caramelization on the outside.

Toss sauce with cooked pasta and topped with scallops. Enjoy.

Beautiful Vegan Borscht

What a better way to celebrate Valentine's Day than with this gorgeous coloured borscht soup. The original recipe comes from one of my favourite cookbooks Get it Ripe by Jae Steele. (Also how cute is this tea towel. It comes in a set of three from Anthropologie. Before P and I got married my mother in law gave these to me and said "you can't get married without new dish towels". She's the best)

Make sure to use fresh dill in the recipe as the dried just doesn't cut it. I topped mine with a little vegan sour cream but the soup is awesome on its own.

Vegan Borscht
Adapted from Get it Ripe

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, sliced
6 cups veggie broth
1 large sweet potato, cubed
2 - 3 large beets, cubed
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp agave / maple syrup
3 Tbsp fresh dill
Fresh ground pepper
Soy sour cream to garnish (optional)

Heat oil  in a soup pot on medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for a few minutes until translucent. Add the carrot and sauté for another 5 minutes.

Add the stock sweet potatoes and beets and stir. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and let simmer for 20 minutes or until beets and potatoes are tender.

Add the vinegar, agave or syrup, dill and pepper. Stir and allow to simmer for another 5 minutes. If you like serve with a dollop of soy sour cream. And don't wear white while eating this soup!

Roasted Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce

I was walking through the pasta sauce section at the grocery store and a jar of butternut squash sauce caught my eye. I knew I had some squash at home so I thought I would try my own version. Super simple and delicious and I love the colour.

Vegan Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce

1 large butternut squash
1 Tbsp of olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
4 cloves of garlic, finely diced
2 orange bell peppers, diced
1 small can of tomato paste
1 1/2 cups of soy milk
Salt and pepper to taste

Firstly roast the butternut squash buy cutting it into quarters lengthwise. Take out the seeds and place the quarters on a baking sheet. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until tender.

In a pan heat the olive oil and cook the onions until translucent. Add the garlic and red pepper and cook for another 4 - 5 minutes until the peppers are tender.

In a blender add all of the ingredients including the butternut squash flesh. Blend until smooth. Return to the pan to heat and add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with pasta and roasted tomatoes.

Lemon Potato Soup with Pistou

We have had some really beautiful fall weather and somehow still don't have snow. Since it had been cooling off we have been making more and more soups. This one was thrown together as we had a jar of pistou in the cupboard. If you happen to have some fresh basil though you can make your own pistou by blending basil, garlic and olive oil together. This soup is sharp, aromatic and lemony.

Lemon Potato Soup with Pistou
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 leeks, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
5 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped
Juice from 1 whole lemon
2 broth cubes
1/4 cup pistou

In medium sized pot saute the leeks and garlic in olive oil until softened. Add carrots, potatoes and lemon juice and cook for 2 minutes.

Fill the pot with enough water to cover the vegetables with 2 or 3 inches of water. Add broth cubes and bring to a boil. Lower heat a simmer until potatoes and carrots are tender (25 minutes).

Take soup off of the heat and using a potato masher mash the soup so that carrots and potatoes break up a bit. (This soup is not quite blended and not chunky).

Add pistou and serve with a big hunk of bread.

Peach Glazed Salmon with Fresh Peaches and Garlic Scapes

I threw this dish together at the last minute but it turned out really yummy. We don't have a BBQ but I bet it would be really tasty cooked on one.

Peach Glazed Salmon
4 fillets of salmon
1/4 cup of peach jam (I used no sugar added variety)
2 tsp soy sauce
1 small onion cut into very thin rounds
1 fresh peach, chopped
3 radishes, thinly sliced
1 lime, cut into wedges

Mix the jam and soy sauce in a small bowl. Place the salmon on a baking sheet and brush on jam mixture. Top with thinly sliced onions and bake in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes. When salmon is cooked place on a bed of garlic scapes (See recipe below) and top with peaches, radishes and a squeeze of lime.

Garlic Scapes
1 bunch of garlic scapes
1 Tbsp of oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in a pan over medium high heat. Add garlic scapes and cook until tender. I like them with a lot of colour so i let them cook without moving them around to much. When they are ready add salt and pepper to taste.

Grapefruit and Fennel Salad

This is a super easy and refreshing salad for hot summer days. The fennel and cucumber came from our CSA basket while the mint came from our patio herbs.

Grapefruit and Fennel Salad
1 fennel bulb
2 grapefruit
1/2 cucumber
Handful of fresh mint
1 Tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Slice the fennel thinly using a mandoline if you have one. I chopped some of the tops to add to the salad but this isn't neccesary.

Zest grapefruits then peel and segment each one. Squeeze out the remaining juice from the left over pulp and reserve the liquid.

Chop cucumber and mix in a bowl with fennel and grapefruit. Chop mint finely and add to salad. Mix grapefruit juice with olive oil to make a dressing. Pour over salad and add salt and pepper to taste. Finally garnish with grapefruit zest and enjoy.

Herbed Turbot with Fennel, Apple and Peach Salad

I felt like a little piece of fish tonight and we received beautiful fresh fennel in our CSA basket this week - this is what came out.

Herbed Fish
6 fillets of white fish {I used Turbot}
1/4 olive oil
2 handfuls of fresh herbs {I used chives, oregano, basil, sage, lemon thyme and tarragon - all from our patio herb garden)
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt

Mix oil, herbs, lemon and salt in the blender until all herbs are broken down. Place fish into an oven safe dish and pour herb oil over fillets. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes or until fish flakes easily.


Fennel, Apple and Peach Salad
1 fennel bulb
1 apple
1 peach
2 radishes
3 Tbsp peach jam
2 Tbsp lemon juice
4 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
Pepper to taste

Using a mandoline slice the fennel bulb, apple and radishes thinly. {I also cut my apples into matchsticks but you could leave them whole}. Cut peach into wedges and put all ingredeints into a bowl.

Mix jam, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper to make dressing. Add to veggie mixture and serve with a helping of fish.

Tomato, Pear and Swiss Chard Salad with Garlic Scape Pesto and Zucchini

All the ingredients for this salad came from our CSA basket. (Except for the pears). I also added some smoked char to the top of this but it would be completely vegan if you left off the char.

Starting from the bottom layer:

Layer 1 - Wilted Swiss Chard with Balsamic Vinegar
Roughly chop 12 - 14 leaves of swiss chard. Place in frying pan with a little oil until the leaves wilt and add 1 - 2 Tbsp of balsamic vinegar. Take off heat and put aside. (I also fried the stems separately to use as garnish)

Layer 2 - Tomato and Pear Salad with Garlic Scape Pesto
Dice one large tomato and half of a pear and mix in a bowl. Add 2/3 cup of garlic scape pesto (Or regular pesto) and mix. 

Layer 3 - Smoked Arctic Char (Optional)
Slice the char into very thin layers.

Layer 4 - Quick Pickled Radishes
Slice 3 - 4 radishes very thinly. In a bowl mix radishes, 1 Tbsp of rice wine vinager and 1 Tbsp of sugar. Let sit for at least 15 minutes.

Layer 5 - Roasted Zucchini
Slice one zucchini into thin layers, about 1/4 inch thick. Place on baking sheet and drizzle with oil, salt and pepper. Bake in 350 degree oven for 10 - 15 minutes until soft and slightly brown.

To assemble:
Using a ring mold, add a one inch layer of the swiss chard mixture, press firmly down. Fill the ring mold to the top with a layer of the tomato, pear and pesto mixture, again press firmly down. Take ring mold off carefully and wrap the salad with two pieces of zucchini. Top with a few pieces of smoked char and add the pickled radishes. Pour a tsp of the radish liquid over the salad and add some swiss chard stalks as garnish if you like.

Vegan Garlic Scape Pesto

We received some beautiful garlic scapes in this week's CSA basket. They are really delicious and have a very sweet and garlicky flavour to them. I decided to make some pesto with them.

Garlic Scape Pesto
6 - 7 garlic scape stalks, roughly chopped
2/3 cup toasted sunflower seeds (or use pepitas)
2 tsp lemon juice
10 basil leaves
2 sprigs of marjoram
2/3 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Put everything into a blender and blend until smooth. Use on pasta, as a dip or sandwich spread or any other place you would use pesto.

Vegan Rice Bowl with Savoury Rhubarb Sauce

This sauce is one of my favourites and in our first CSA basket of the year we received some beautiful fresh rhubarb. Rice, some veggies and this sauce make a great combo.

2 cups cooked brown rice
Savoury rhubarb sauce recipe (To this recipe I add some water to make the whole thing blend easier)
8 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
1 Tbsp honey
1/2 tsp garam masala
3 beets, very thinly sliced
6 radishes, very thinly sliced
1 green onion, finely sliced
Fresh mint for garnish

Begin by cooking rice and then follow this recipe to make rhubarb sauce. If the ingredients don't blend well add some water to the blender. Meanwhile clean and chop spinach and cook in a large pan on medium heat until spinach begins to wilt. Add honey and garam masala and take off heat. You can leave the beets fresh or cook them for a few minutes until tender.

To assemble
Place rice in a bowl and top with some wilted spinach. Cover with rhubarb sauce and top with beets, radishes, green onion and garnish with a mint sprig.

BBQ mushrooms with Mashed Yams and Asparagus

This was a simple dinner I made the other night. The whole thing is vegan if you leave out the smoked Arctic char which I brought back from Iqaluit as a special treat.

BBQ Mushrooms
4 portabello mushrooms
1/3 cup BBQ sauce (I used Amaya's Indian Spiced ketchup)
1-2 Tbsp water

Clean and de-stem the mushrooms. Mix the BBQ sauce and water together in a shallow dish and marinate mushrooms for a 1/2 hour or more. Cook either on a BBQ until tender or in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes.

Mashed Yams
3 yams peeled and cut into cubes
2 -3 Tbsp maple syrup
2- 3 Tbsp Earth Balance
1/4 cup soy milk
1 scallion chopped finely
1 tsp cinnamon
Salt and pepper to taste

Boil a large pot of water and cook yams until soft. Drain and mash with maple syrup, Earth Balance, soy milk until smooth - you may need to add more of these ingredients to get the texture you want. Then mix in the scallions, cinnamon and salt and pepper to taste.

I love asparagus when it is is cooked very simply. This were cooked in a pan with some finely chopped onion, fresh thyme, salt and pepper and some lemon juice.

New York New York

Firstly I must say sorry for the extremely long time between posts. I was in Iqaluit, Nunavut for work twice in May and in between P and I met up with his family in New York City.

The culinary scene in Iqaluit wasn't much to talk about (Except for this smoked Arctic char and the Ungava Gin we got to try) But we ate lots of yummy food in New York.

I didn't get a chance to take pictures at every place but here are some highlights from the trip.

Breakfast at our hotel lovely hotel Muse. Smoked Salmon bagel with cream cheese, capers, onions and tomatoes.

Lunch at Le Pain Quotidian. I didn't realise this place was such a huge chain - but we had a really yummy lunch there. This is my white bean soup and soy latte.

We went for pre theatre cocktails at a little bar (whose name escapes me). The boys had this lovely organic English Ale which I thought was pretty cool.

The thing I was most looking forward to on this trip was finding the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck and we did! Sure we had to stand in line for 25 minutes but it was worth it. P had the Salty Pimp (1) - Vanilla soft serve infused with dulce de leche and sea salt and dipped in chocolate. I had my own creation (2) of vanilla soft serve in a cone filled with pomegranate balsamic reduction and rolled in curried coconut flakes. P's brother had the Monday Sunday (3) - Swirled chocolate and vanilla soft served with a nutella filled cone and dulce de leche, sea salt and whipped cream. SO GOOD.

 This was my breakfast at a little place close to the hotel called Brooklyn Diner. The "Vernon Brown" omelette with mushrooms, tomatoes, and scallions plus home-made challah bread and super tasty polenta nuggets which were delicious. P and I really liked our breakfast there because so much was made in house. Even the orange juice was fresh squeezed. We decided to take P's family there a second time however the it was a disappointment as the service was terrible.

We also had the most amazing diner at a place called The Lambs Club - however I was to embarrassed to take photo's that evening. I had the crab and green grape gazpacho to start and then ate the most amazing scallops at this place - seriously so freaking yummy. I finished with the honey pistachio cake.

New York was great and I can't wait until our next trip there!

Pickled Beet and Grapefruit Salad

I know another stacked salad but look at how pretty! Actually the inspiration came from a picnic in the park - P and I picked up some snacky stuff to eat in the park including grapefruit slices and a beet salad. Then I thought these would go really nice together so here's what I created.

I will give you the recipe layer by layer starting at the bottom

Layer 1 - Fried Potato

Take one large potato and slice lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices. Steam until soften but not mushy then fry in pan with olive oil until crispy.

Layer 2 - Avocado slices

Layer 3 - Pickled beets
I tried this recipe and it turned out very nice. I cut my beets into small cubes rather than rounds as the recipe indicates. Drain before adding to salad.

Layer 4 - Fried spinach & Garlic
Take a few cups of spinach and cook over medium heat with 1 Tbsp of olive oil and 2 or 3 cloves of garlic. Cook until soft and wilted.

Layer 5 - Grapefruit
Peel 1 large grapefruit, segment then cut into cubes. In a small bowl add grapefruit a pinch of salt and pepper and some olive oil.

Layer 6 - Watercress (or use another type of green)

Layer 7 - Grapefruit Zest

Dressing 
2 Tbsp grapefruit juice
1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
2 tsp maple syrup

To assemble salad
Place potato slices on plate and top with avocado. (This part I made wider than the rind mold rather than trying to get it to all fit). Place ring mold on top of avocado and place a layer of pickled beets at the bottom and pack with the back of a spoon. Follow with a layer of spinach and top with a layer of grapefruit. Pour 1 Tbsp of dressing over the salad, gently remove ring mold and top with greens and grapefruit zest.

Welcome Spring Dinner

 

 Last weekend the weather was beautiful, the sun was shining and it felt like spring had arrived. I was feeling ambitious and decided to make this plate of spring deliciousness. It includes a Stacked Cantaloupe and Tomato Salad with Balsamic Vinegar,  Avocado and Cilantro Mousse, Fresh Cucumber Rolls and Garlic Bread.

Cantaloupe and Tomato Salad with Balsamic Vinegar

3/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1 cup cantaloupe, diced finely

2 tomatoes, seeded and finely diced

1/2 cup cashews, chopped (optional)

Handful of fresh mint, julienned

 Olive oil

 Salt and Pepper

Place balsamic vinegar in a small pot and simmer over low heat until it has reduced and coats the back of a spoon. (should take 15 - 20 minutes). Set aside.

Toast cashew nuts until brown and crunchy.

Sprinkle cantaloupe and tomato with salt and pepper.

Using a ring mold place a layer of cantaloupe at the bottom and pack with the back of a spoon. Place a thin layer of cashews on top of the cantaloupe. Fill the rest of the ring mold with tomato and pack again with the back of a spoon. Pour 2 tsp of olive oil over the salad. Carefully remove ring mold. Pour 1 Tbsp of reduced balsamic vinegar over salad (I did mine in a little criss-cross pattern). Top with mint.

Avocado Cilantro Mousse

2 ripe avocado, halved, skinned and pitted

1 clove garlic

1- 2 Tbsp lime juice

Handful of cilantro

1 tsp salt

Put all ingredients into a blender. Blend until smooth. You may have to add some water to create the right consistency. Serve with toasted baguette brushed with olive oil and rubbed with a clove of fresh garlic.

Vegan Minted Pea Soup

 

 This soup is quick, easy and tastes like spring. Last year I made it all the time with frozen peas and fresh mint from the balcony.

 Minted Pea Soup

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 onion, diced

2 - 3 cloves garlic

1 medium potato, diced

4 cups veggie stock

4 cups frozen green peas

1/2 tahini

Salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot over medium heat, cook onions in olive oil until translucent. Add garlic and cook for 2 more minutes. Add potato and stock and simmer until potato is soft, 8 - 10 minutes. Add peas and cook for 2 minutes. Take off heat and add tahini. Using an immersion blender, blend soup until smooth (You can also use a regular blender and add soup in batches - just be careful it doesn't explode everywhere like in my kitchen!). Add salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Vegan Vietnamese Sandwiches

This idea for this recipes comes from a book called the Conscious Cook by Tal Ronnen. I change the recipe depending on what I have around the house.

Tofu Marinade
1/4 cup tamari
1 - 2 Tbsp dijion mustard
1 - 2 Tbsp fresh grated ginger
1 tsp chili flakes
1/2 tsp paprika
1 Tbsp maple syrup or agave nectar
1 package of firm tofu sliced into 1/4-inch slabs

Lay tofu onto baking dish in a single layer. Mix all ingredients and pour over tofu. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes, turning the tofu over half way through.

Carrot and Pepper Slaw
1/2 a bell pepper
1 -2 carrots
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp agave nectar or maple syrup
Salt and pepper to taste

Julienne the bell pepper and carrots. Mix remaining ingredients and in small bowl pour over vegetables. Leave to marinate while tofu is cooking.

To Assemble
4 demi-baguettes, split
4 Tbsp vegan mayo
4 Tbsp chille oil
Handful of fresh cilantro
Handful of fresh mint
1 ripe avocado, sliced thinly
1/2 English cucumber, sliced thinly lengthwise

Spread each baguette with mayo and chili oil. Top with some cilantro and mint, cucumber, avocado, tofu and the carrot and pepper slaw. Cut in half and enjoy!

Apple Chutney

 We had our new neighbours over for dinner this weekend. The menu included green mushroom curry, dahl, rice and this home-made apple chutney. I got the recipe here but changed the flavouring around. It was very yummy - tart, sweet and spicy.

Apple Chutney

4 small-medium tart apples, cored and chopped (you can peel them but I like the peel)
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
2-3 cloves crushed finely
1 tsp cinammon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 chilli flakes (optional)

Method

Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan and stir well. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 40 minutes. Uncover and simmer over low heat for a few minutes more to cook off excess liquid; let cool. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.