Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

Ingredients:
1 head of cabbage, tough outer leaves & core removed (rinse and save the outer leaves to line the bottom of your baking dish... prevents the cabbage rolls from burning while in the oven)

(for the filling)

1 slice of bacon, diced
1 Tbs. olive oil
1 small onion, diced finely
1 rib of celery, diced finely
1/2 cup shredded carrot
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. dried rosemary, crushed
2 tsp. sweet paprika
pinch of cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
salt & pepper to taste
2 Tbs. flax seeds
1/4 cup quinoa
1 cup liquid of choice (I used veggie stock)

(for the sauce)
24 oz. tomato sauce or marinara (dealer's choice)
1 cup liquid of choice (I used more veggie stock)
1  Tbs. brown sugar (I actually used Splenda brown sugar blend)
2 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
1 Tbs. sweet paprika
salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

In a large pot over high heat, bring 1" of salted water to a boil and drop the whole head of cabbage in, core-side down. Cover and steam for 1 minute before using tongs to start removing the leaves and laying them out flat on a large cutting board to cool. I was able to remove 2 leaves at a time, would cover and steam for another minute, then repeat until I had 12 good sized leaves. Remove the remaining bit of cabbage (mine was softball sized by this time) and set aside to chop later and serve with finished cabbage rolls. (I read quite a few recipes, and many of them said to boil the entire the head of cabbage, but I liked the thought of steaming instead because the leaves retained good color and I wasn't losing all the nutrients in the water.)

Next, add the diced bacon and olive oil to a large saute pan THEN turn the heat to medium, allowing the bacon to slowly render out its fat, about 5 minutes. Add in the vegs and spices and continue to cook for another 3-5 minutes, until the vegs start to soften. Stir in the ground chicken, stirring often to break up the meat and coat it in the vegs/spice mix. Continue to cook over medium heat until the meat is slightly browned, about 5-7 minutes. Stir in the flax seeds and quinoa, then add your liquid of choice, cover the pan, and simmer over medium-low heat until the quinoa starts to bloom, about 10 minutes. Feel free to add some more liquid if the meat mixture starts to dry out. Remove from the heat and let the meat mixture cool slightly.

In a large bowl, mix together your tomato sauce/marinara with all other sauce ingredients. Adjust the seasoning as you like.

To prepare the cabbage leaves: Remove the tough part of the stem from each leaf with a paring knife, leaving the rest of the leaf intact.

Now that all of the components are ready, time to assemble...

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a glass baking dish with nonstick spray (makes for easy clean-up) then line the dish with the reserved outer leaves of the cabbage. (I tore mine to better cover the entire bottom of the dish.) Pour on just enough tomato sauce to cover the bottom of the dish.

To assemble the rolls: Lay out each leaf and spoon a mound of the meat mixture in the center. Fold the sides in, then wrap the longer bits of the leaf around the filling. Think egg roll or burrito making technique... but really, if the meat mixture is covered by the cabbage leaf, you've met the goal, no matter how you get there.

Lay each cabbage roll seam-side down in the prepared baking dish (they should fit rather snugly) then pour over the remaining tomato sauce, making sure to completely cover the rolls. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees for 90 minutes. Uncover the dish and bake for another 30-45 minutes or until the top is slightly caramelized. Best if you can allow the cabbage rolls to rest for 30 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

Apple Pie Irish Oatmeal

I found this recipe on one of my favorite food blogs, Closet Cooking, and couldn't wait to try it out. Not only did it sound incredibly easy (it is), but who doesn't like apple pie for breakfast? Even though I generally prefer a more protein-laden breakfast (read: eggs, turkey bacon, Greek yogurt), every once in a while I like to go with a good ol' bowl of comfort like oatmeal. I first tried steel-cut oats (also labeled Irish oatmeal) a couple of years ago and really liked the nutty, chewy texture which differs quite a bit from the softer texture of the more common rolled oats. However, you can't beat the convenience of quick cooking rolled oats because steel-cut oats take a good 30-45 minutes to simmer on the stove top and that's not exactly conducive to a fast breakfast. So. That's the other thing that struck me about this recipe: it's made in the slow-cooker so you can set the timer and have the oatmeal waiting on YOU when you wake up!

Apple Pie Irish Oatmeal

Ingredients:
1 cup steel-cut oats
2 cups of water (or apple juice as per the original recipe, but I just used water)
2 cups of milk (I used plain soy milk, but you could use whatever you want)
2-3 small apples, diced (I used 3 granny smith apples that were a little past the point of eating whole)
2-4 Tbs. of brown sugar (depending on how sweet you like things, you can use more or less- I prefer to use a little less)
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt (I used fine sea salt- this wasn't in the original recipe, but I think you really need the salt to offset the sweet)
1/4 cup dried fruit (recommended: raisins or dried cranberries- I used cranberries)
1/4 cup nuts, chopped (recommended: walnuts or pecans- I used walnuts)
2 Tbs. milled flaxseeds

Directions:
Dump everything in your slow-cooker and cook on LOW for 4 hours. Easy, right? ;)

Enjoy!

Vegetarian Meat(less)loaf

Vegetarian Meat(less)loaf
based on recipe from Food.com, Really Good Vegetarian Meatloaf (Really!)

Ingredients:
2 cups veggie stock (I suppose you could use water, but why not take the opportunity to add more flavor?)
1 cup lentils
1 shallot, minced
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup grated parmesan (fresh is best, but the stuff from the green can would work in a pinch)
1/2 cup shredded cheese (white cheddar or jack)
1 tsp. ground flaxseeds
2 Tbs. sun dried tomatoes, diced
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup marinara (plain tomato sauce would work, but I had an open jar of marinara in the fridge)
1 tsp. garlic powder (yes, the powder- not fresh)
1/2 tsp. onion powder (or dried onion)
1 tsp. dried basil
1 Tbs. dried parsley
1/2 tsp. sweet paprika
salt & pepper, to taste
pinch of cayenne

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside.

Bring the veggie stock and lentils to a boil then reduce the heat to low and simmer until the lentils have absorbed the liquid, about 25-30 minutes. (The original recipe says to add salt to water while cooking the lentils, but I've already learned NOT to do that to avoid tough lentils.) Set aside to cool slightly.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the remaining ingredients before adding in the cooled lentils, lightly mashing them as you fold them into the oat mixture. Pour the lentil mixture into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes until the top is golden brown and slightly cracked. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes before turning the loaf out onto a board to cool completely. Serve with mashed potatoes and green beans for that all-American comfort food classic.

Enjoy!

Hurricane Preparedness

With Hurricane Sandy approaching, we had quite a bit of work to do to get the house ready to weather the storm; my roommate handled the outside work and I was in charge of the inside work. At the top of MY list of preparations was to make sure we had water and non-perishable food items for a 3-5 day power outage (my neighborhood is notorious for losing power during major storms). While I stocked up on the standards like bread, crackers, peanut butter, canned soup (canned?! desperate times... *shudder*), fruit cups and the like, I also wanted to do some baking. So, what did I make? Well, in the sweets department there's the French apple pie with crumb topping, loaded oatmeal cookies, peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, and I still had a loaf of vegan banana chocolate-walnut bread in the freezer.

In addition to the sweets, we made a last-minute run to the grocery store to stock up on junk food like tortilla chips with salsa and queso dip, pretzels, and popcorn. Because I had several whole wheat pita pockets stashed in the freezer, I made pita chips (easy enough to slice and bake, spiced however you want) and my roommate requested spinach dip. For dinner last night, I made a rather simple (but delicious none the less) baked pasta with zucchini, mushrooms, marinara, and the last of the chicken breasts from the freezer.

Loaded Oatmeal Cookies

(based on the basic Oatmeal Cookie recipe from Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book)

loaded oatmeal cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup AP flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups old fashion rolled oats (not the quick cooking kind)
1 Tbs. ground flaxseed
3/4 cup butter (that's 1 1/2 sticks, and make sure to bring it to room temperature- it makes mixing easier)
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
2 eggs (room temperature)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup dried apricots, diced
1/2 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup walnuts, chopped
3/4 cup dark chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flours, oats, and flaxseeds.

In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to cream together the butter and sugars before adding in the eggs one at a time. Mix in the vanilla, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, scraping down the sides of the bowl to make sure everything is well combined before mixing in the dry ingredients. Fold in the dried fruits, nuts, and chocolate chips. Drop cookies by the tablespoonful on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 11-13 minutes until lightly browned. Cool on wire racks before storing in an airtight container.

Enjoy!

peanut butter oatmeal cookies

*Even though these weren't the only cookies I made, as the day went on, snapping photos kind of fell by the wayside. Also, I'd like to point out that between the oats and dried fruits, these cookies are practically a breakfast food (I saw that eye roll!) and as such, a definite necessity for any power outage.

(Vegan) Pumpkin Spice Bread

After yesterday's meltdown fiasco with the gingerbread scones, I wanted to try another vegan recipe but one that I knew would be more, shall we say, foolproof. A basic quick bread, this recipe was certainly easy enough to put together (even with the distraction of watching football and entertaining a friend), and it had the added bonus of filling my kitchen with the warm, spicy scents of the holidays. It was hard to wait until it was cool enough to slice, but it was definitely worth the wait! Much like the (vegan) banana muffins, the texture of this bread was much lighter than I expected it to be, especially given the fact that I swapped out some of the AP flour for whole wheat pastry flour which is denser than its counterpart. Also, this bread was incredibly moist, with just the right amount of chew to it, living up to the promise of the warm spices which gave it a delightful richness. I will definitely be making this again!

(Vegan) Pumpkin Spice Bread

original recipe from The Joy of Vegan Baking: The Compassionate Cooks' Traditional Treats and Sinful Sweets 

by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

Ingredients:
3 Tbs. ground flaxseed
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
1 (14-ounce) can pumpkin puree (NOT to be confused with pumpkin pie filling)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups AP flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup non-dairy chocolate chips (I like dark chocolate)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a glass measuring cup, whisk the flaxseed and water together until thick and creamy.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the sugar, oil, apple sauce, pumpkin puree, vanilla, and flaxseed mixture.

In a separate bowl, whisk (or sift) together all of the dry ingredients. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, stirring just to combine. Fold in the chocolate chips then pour the batter into (2) 8"x3"x2" loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 55-65 minutes, until a toothpick blah blah blah. Cool in the pans for 15 minutes before turning the loaves out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Slice and enjoy right away (after they've cooled, of course), or wrap in heavy duty foil and freeze for another day.

Enjoy!

(Vegan) Mexican Mocha Brownies

So we're planning another little fete tomorrow night at work to celebrate the birthday of one of the techs, and I was volunteered to make my Vegetarian Tofu Chili. While that was easy enough to throw together after work tonight (it's simmering away in the slow cooker even as I write this), I couldn't resist the urge to finally try out one of the recipes from the vegan baking cookbook another co-worker loaned me. I've been intrigued by the concept of vegan baking, namely, how in the hell that works without eggs and butter, and my vegan co-worker was all too happy to loan me her copy of The Joy of Vegan Baking: The Compassionate Cooks' Traditional Treats and Sinful Sweets by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau. If nothing else, it was certainly educational reading and answered many of my questions with regards to vegan baking.

So. To go along with my chili, I decided to try one of the easier recipes and make brownies. However, being me, I couldn't leave well enough alone and put my own spin on it.

(Vegan) Mexican Mocha Brownies

original recipe from The Joy of Vegan Baking: The Compassionate Cooks' Traditional Treats and Sinful Sweets 

by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

if they taste as good as they smell... yum!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce
2 Tbs. previously brewed, strong coffee
2 tsp. ground flaxseed
1/2 cup previously brewed, strong coffee
1 Tbs vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups AP flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
pinch of cayenne
3/4 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup non-dairy dark chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the sugar, apple sauce, and 2 Tbs of previously brewed coffee.

In a separate bowl (I used a glass measuring cup), whisk together the ground flaxseed and 1/2 cup of previously brewed coffee before adding it to the sugar mixture along with the vanilla.

In yet another mixing bowl, whisk (or sift) all of the dry ingredients together. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stirring until just combined. Fold in the walnuts and chocolate chips and pour batter into an 8"x 8" glass baking dish sprayed with cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes, until the edges are set and the center is still shiny. Cool before cutting.

Enjoy!

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all that was left... that's the mark of a great brownie!

Addendum: The brownies were a HUGE success at work tonight! I can't imagine making them any other way from now on because these were incredibly moist and fudgey... some seriously deep chocolately goodness. Yum... :)