Super Vegan Salad

Bonanza of vegetables!

Ingredients:
1 T cooking oil
1 bu lacinato kale, washed and sliced thinly
salt & pepper TT

1 sm yellow onion, sliced thinly
1/2 C vinegar
1 large pinch each salt and pepper

1 C cashews
1 t olive oil
1 pinch salt
1/2 t curry powder

1 lemon, juiced
1 t masala kala or another masala spice blend
1/2 t salt
1/2 C olive oil

1/2 bu celery, peeled & sliced thinly
4 Persian cucumbers, washed & diced
4-5 heirloom carrots, washed & sliced thinly
1/2 C dried cherries

Instructions:
1. Toss the onion with the vinegar, salt and pepper and enough water to cover in a small container. Soak the onions for at least and hour and drain.
2. Meanwhile, heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat and add the cooking oil. Add the kale, season and cook for 5 minutes. Set aside.
3. Toss the cashews with the olive oil, curry powder and pinch of salt. Set aside.
4. Whisk together the lemon juice, masala kala, 1/2 t salt and 1/2 C olive oil.
5. Toss all ingredients together and serve.

Red Cabbage & Cashew Slaw, Stuffed Collard Greens and Red Quinoa with Caramelized Fennel

To me, delicious vegan food means lots of vegetables. This recipe is a combination of three small dishes to create an entrée that's got a lot of variety but still hangs together as a whole.

Ingredients:
Red Cabbage & Cashew Slaw:

5 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 jalapeños, minced
1 grapefruit, juiced
1/2 t salt
2 t Chimichurri powder
1 t sugar (preferably raw sugar)
2/3 C olive oil
1/2 head red cabbage, sliced very thinly
2 red bell peppers, sliced thinly
4 Persian cucumbers (or 1 English cucumber), cut bite-sized
1/3 bu cilantro, sliced thinly (use the stems too)
2/3 C cashews

Stuffed Collard Greens:
1 T cooking oil
1/2 head red cabbage, sliced thinly
6 cloves garlic, peeled & sliced
salt & pepper TT
1/2 lemon, juiced (you use the other half below)
1 zucchini, julienned (cut into thin planks 2" long, and then cut along the planks into little batons)
1 bu collard greens, washed, cut in half & ribs removed

Red Quinoa w/ Caramelized Fennel:
1 T cooking oil
1 yellow onion, sliced thinly
1 bulb fennel, washed, outer layer peeled (vegetable peeler) and sliced thinly (remove the tough, cone-shaped core at the bottom of the bulb)
salt & pepper TT
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 1/2 C red quinoa

Instructions:
0. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Red Cabbage & Cashew Slaw:
1. Whisk together the first seven ingredients in a big bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix around.

Stuffed Collard Greens:
1. Heat a large sauté pan over high heat and add the cooking oil. Add the cabbage and garlic, season with salt & pepper and cook about 6-7 minutes. Mix in the lemon juice and zucchini.
2. Allow the filling to cool and stuff the collard greens with it like little burritos. Line them up in a baking dish, sprinkle with salt and pepper, cover and bake for 20 minutes.


Red Quinoa w/ Caramelized Fennel:
1. Heat the same large sauté pan over high heat and add the cooking oil. Add the onion and fennel and brown for 3-4 minutes, then season with salt and pepper, and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook for 15 minutes or until all soft and deliciously caramelized. Add the lemon juice and set aside.
2. While the onion and fennel is cooking, cook the quinoa according to package directions. Combine everything together.

Summer Vegetable Salad

So pretty.



Ingredients:
2/3 lb crimini mushrooms; washed, cut in half & sliced thinly
2 T cooking oil
salt and pepper TT

2 T cooking oil
5 ears corn, kernels cut off the cob
1/2 head garlic, peeled & cloves sliced
1/2 red onion, diced small
salt & pepper TT

1 bu lacinato kale, 1/2" trimmed off the bottom and sliced 1/2" thick
1 t cooking oil
salt & pepper TT

2 bu French breakfast radishes, washed & trimmed
1 T white wine vinegar (I used a really nice Pinot Grigio vinegar that my mom sent me)

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Toss the mushrooms with the first 2 T cooking oil and season with salt and pepper. Lay on a sheet pan and roast in the oven for about 20 minutes or until crispy.
3. In the meantime, heat a large saute pan over high heat and add the next 2 T oil. Add the corn, onion and garlic, season and saute for 6-8 minutes, or until lightly browned and softened. Remove from heat and reserve.
4. Heat the saute pan again over medium high heat and add the last 1 t oil, then add the kale. Season lightly with salt and pepper, and cook for 5 minutes.
5. Combine all ingredients and serve.

Black Pepper Strawberries

I know, it's barely a recipe.
from the last Pike Market Community Kitchen

Ingredients:
1 pt strawberries, washed, trimmed and quartered
1 t sugar
a few good pinches of black pepper, preferably freshly ground

Instructions:
1. Toss the strawberries with the sugar and black pepper, and leave to macerate (break down) for 15 minutes. Serve as-is, over ice cream or cake.

Chimichurri Braised Chicken & Black Bean Salad

(Chimichurri is originally from Argentina & Uruguay, but is now used widely)
from the last Pike Market Community Kitchen

Ingredients:
1/2 t cooking oil
4 whole chicken legs, scored
salt and pepper TT
1 red onion, diced
1/2 head garlic, peeled & sliced
2 t Chimichurri
2 cans black beans, rinsed well and drained
2 bell peppers, diced
1/2 C cashews
1 lemon, juiced
1 t Chimichurri spice blend (ours was from World Spice)
1/2 bu parsley, chopped

Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a large saute pan, heat the oil over hgh heat. Add the legs (be careful! they like to spit hot grease at you!), season with salt & pepper and brown well. Remove to a baking dish.
3. In the same pan, saute the onion and garlic for about 5 minutes, then add to the chicken. Add the 2 t Chimichurri and mix. Cover the dish and braise for about 45 minutes.
4. Pull the chicken off the bones and combine with all remaining ingredients. Season to taste.

Zanzibar Egg Curry

(There are a lot of curry powders available.. you can pick one from Zanzibar or use whichever you like.. we used one from Pakistan with a nice sweet flavor)
from the last Pike Market Community Kitchen

Ingredients:
5-6 yellow potatoes, diced large
2 T cooking oil
salt & pepper TT
9 eggs
1 red onion
1/2 head garlic, minced
1" piece of ginger, minced
1/2 can tomato sauce
1 T cooking oil
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 C water
1 T & 1 t Curry Powder (we used a Pakistani curry powder from World Spice)
1/2 t salt
1/2 head cauliflower, chopped small
1/2 # yellow wax beans (or green beans), trimmed & cut bite-sized
1 bu broccolini, 1/2" trimmed from the bottom and sliced 1/2" thick
salt & pepper TT

Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Toss the potatoes with salt, pepper and oil, and roast in the oven for 20 minutes or until golden. Remove and set aside.
2. Boil the eggs for about 10 minutes and set in an ice water bath to cool. When cooled, peel and cut them in half lengthwise.
3. In a food processor, puree the onion, garlic, ginger and tomato sauce together. Add a bit of water if you have to, taking from the 1/2 cup of water you'll use later.
4. In a large saute pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion-tomato mixture and cook for 5 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes, water, curry powder and 1/2 t salt, and cook another 5 minutes.
5. Add the cauliflower, broccolini and wax beans and cook until just cooked, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs and gently combine. Serve over the roasted potatoes.

Pav Bhaji

(a Western Indian snack or light meal, often sold in stalls as street food. Kala Masala is one of many masalas, or Indian spice blends)
from the last Pike Market Community Kitchen

Ingredients:
3 large carrots (or 8-9 baby carrots), diced
1/2 cauliflower, diced
4 yellow potatoes, diced
2 T cooking oil
1 red onion, diced
1 can crushed tomatoes
1/2 can tomato sauce
1" piece of ginger, peeled & minced
1/2 head garlic, peeld & minced
3 chile peppers, minced
1 T Kala Masala (an Indian spice blend I got at World Spice in the market)
Salt & black pepper to taste
Rolls or bread for serving

Instructions:
1. Boil a large pot of salted water. Add the carrots and cauliflower and boil for 5 minutes, then remove from the water and set aside. Bring the water back to a boil and add the potatoes, boiling until just done, about 10 minutes for potatoes cut fairly small. Remove the potatoes and set aside.
2. In a large saute pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes. Add the tomato products, ginger, garlic, chiles and Kala Masala and cook for 10 minutes. The oil should come to the surface and the sauce shoud reduce a little.
3. Add the potatoes and mash a bit with a potato masher or fork. Add the carrots and cauliflower, then season to taste.
4. Serve over toasted rolls.

Black Olive & Cashew Tapenade

from the last Pike Market Community Kitchen

Ingredients:
2 cans black olives
1 tin anchovies, drained (with or without capers included; we used one with capers)
1/2 head garlic, peeled & rough chopped
2/3 C cashews
1/2 bu parsley, rough chopped
1 C olive oil
1 lemon, juiced
black pepper to taste

Instructions:
1. Pulse all ingredients together in a food processor until blended but still a bit chunky. Serve over toast, as a dip for vegetables or pita, or as a stuffing for meat or vegetables.

Caramelized Spring Onion Fried Eggs

I was pretty sure that you could caramelize spring onions. You totally can.



Ingredients:
1 t unsalted butter
2 small spring onions, sliced (or one large one; I had two small red ones)
1 T water
1 T unsalted butter
2 eggs
salt and pepper TT
about 1 oz cheese, sliced (I had Comte)

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Heat a large saute pan over high heat and add the teaspoon of butter. Quickly add the the onion and allow to blacken slightly, for about 2 minutes.
3. Reduce heat to medium, add the water and the remaining butter. Add a little salt to help break the onion down and encourage caramelization.*
4. Add the eggs and season.
5. Cook for a couple of minutes per side, but be careful!

Yeah, when you already have stuff in the pan and you add eggs to fry, the stuff makes it a lot more likely that the yolk will rupture if, like me, you're a little clumsy. Whatever; melted cheese covers all mistakes.

6. Transfer to a plate, cover with cheese slices, and put in the oven for about 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

*Nerd alert: Salt ruptures the cell walls in all food, allowing the water inside to escape. Once the water pretty much leaves the item, it can cook at a higher temperature, because water keeps the temperature at its evaporation point, 212 degrees F, and caramelization usually happens at over 300 degrees F.

Stuffed Rice w/ Red Quinoa Caps

Two of my roommates went down to Oregon and ate at a Thai restaurant called Sweet Basil, in Eugene. They told me about how beautifully the rice was presented there: a layer of red rice topping white rice in the shape of a star. I thought that was so cool that I wanted to riff on it, so I expanded the idea into an entree. Unfortunately, I couldn't find red rice but I used red quinoa for a similar visual effect and a delicious nutty taste.

Ingredients:
1 t cooking oil
5 chicken drumsticks, scored*
1 onion, diced small
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 pt cherry tomatoes
salt & pepper TT

2 C white or brown rice (we used brown jasmine rice)
1 C red quinoa (or regular quinoa if you can't find red)

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Heat a large saute pan over high heat and add the oil. Add the chicken and brown it well.
3. Remove the chicken to a baking dish. Drop the heat to medium-high and add the onion.
4. Saute the onion for 3-4 minutes, then add the tomatoes and garlic. Season with salt & pepper, then add to the chicken. Cover and braise for 45 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, cook the rice & quinoa according to the package directions.
6. When the chicken is done, pull the meat off the bone and mix it with the braised onions, tomatoes & garlic. Season this filling to taste.
7. Line a medium-sized bowl with plastic wrap. Put in a layer of the quinoa, pat it down and make a depression in the middle where you can stack the filling. Put about a half cup of filling in, then cover with the rice. Pack that down neatly. Put a plate upside down on top of the bowl, get a good hold of everything, and quickly invert the whole thing, unmolding your stuffed rice onto the plate. Repeat. Fun, right?

*I've found that if you're going to braise something and you want the process to go faster, you can just cut into the item with a knife before browning it so that the second-stage, low-and-slow moist heat penetrates more quickly.

Stuffed Bell Peppers with Roasted Potatoes & Eggplant Salsa

Thank you Maria, for creating this dish with me!



Ingredients:
5 red potatoes, diced large
1 T cooking oil
salt & pepper TT

1 T cooking oil
8 baby eggplants (or 2 Japanese eggplants), diced small
3 tomatillos, diced small
3 serrano chiles, diced small
salt TT
1 lemon, juiced
1/2 bu cilantro, chopped

1 T cooking oil
3 ears corn, kernels cut off the cob
1 bu kale (we used beautiful red kale)
2/3 lb. Portuguese longanisa sausage (or another sausage of your choice), diced or separated into chunks about 1/4" on a side
4 Japanese leeks (or 2 regular leeks, or 2 bunches of green onions), sliced
salt & pepper TT
1/2 bu cilantro, chopped

4 bell peppers, tops and seeds removed
olive oil
salt and pepper TT

Instructions:
[Roast the potatoes]:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Toss the potatoes with the first 1 T cooking oil, salt and pepper, and roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden. Set aside. Keep the oven on for the bell peppers.

[Make the salsa]:
2. In a large saute pan, heat the next 1 T cooking oil over high heat. Add the eggplant and allow to brown well for 6-7 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and add the tomatillos and chiles, and cook another 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool, then add the lemon juice and cilantro, and season with salt to taste. Save the saute pan for the next step.

[Make the bell pepper filling]:
3. Heat the saute pan over medium-high heat and add the last 1 T oil. Add the kale and allow to wilt for 3-4 minutes. Add the corn and sausage and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Add the leeks and cook another 5 minutes. Season with salt & pepper to taste. Allow to cool and add the cilantro.

[Assemble]:
4. Rub the peppers with a light coating of olive oil and season inside and out with salt & pepper. Stuff with the filling and roast for 8-10 minutes. Serve with the potatoes and eggplant salsa.

Cucumber & Sausage Green Salad

Ingredients:
1 t cooking oil
2 sausages, diced (I used smoked chicken pesto sausages.. any would be fine)
1 lemon, juiced
salt & pepper TT
1 T olive oil
4 Persian cucumbers (I found these at Trader Joe's... you could use one English cucumber instead)
3 C or so salad greens

Instructions:
1. Heat a saute pan over medium-high heat and add the cooking oil.
2. Saute the sausage until well-browned and then remove to cool.
3. Add the lemon juice to the pan with a bit of salt & pepper and the 1 T olive oil. Scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon and mix to incorporate; this is your salad dressing.
4. Combine all the ingredients when the sausage is pretty cool. Serve as-is or with bread.

Roast Pork Tenderloin Sandwiches with Fresh Apple-Corn Relish

This was one of those "just throw it together" things that turned out really well.

Ingredients:
1 t oil
about 2 lbs pork tenderloin
salt & pepper TT

1 t oil
3 ears corn, kernels cut off the cob
salt & pepper TT
1 lemon, juiced
1 Fuji apple, diced

1 baguette, sliced thinly

Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Season the tenderloin well with salt and pepper.
3. Get a large saute pan hot over high heat, then add the first teaspoon of oil. Allow to heat up, then brown the tenderloin well. Transfer to a baking dish and roast in the oven for about 12-15 minutes, or until pretty firm to the touch.
4. Let the meat rest for 5-7 minutes under cover on a cutting board, so it remains moist when you cut into it.
5. Get the same saute pan hot over medium-high heat, add the last of the oil and the corn. Saute for 4-5 minutes.
6. Cut the heat and add the lemon juice. Scrape the good stuff off the bottom of the pan, turning it into a sauce with the lemon juice. Add the apple. Taste it. Mmmmm. Taste it again. Mmmmmm.
7. Cut the tenderloin into thin slices. Make sandwiches with the bread, pork and the corn relish.

Lamb Heart Salad

or... what did they call it last night? the bleeding heart? the bloody heart salad? it had something to do with blood and I think it was funnier than either of these. I had prepared beef heart before but never lamb, but it was a pretty straightforward muscle, with a few parts that were too rubbery for me to want to serve. find the lamb heart at a butcher and the pepper paste at a latin foods market.



Ingredients:
2 lamb hearts, fat & arteries trimmed (save trim) & diced about 1/2" on a side
1 t oil
2 shallots, peeled & sliced
1 t oil
1 bu radishes, washed & quartered
1 T & 1 t aji panca pepper paste
1/2 bu cilantro, sliced thinly
salt & pepper to taste
1 T white wine vinegar

Instructions:
1. Heat a saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the heart trimmings and render the fat off of them for about 5 minutes. Remove the trimmings and discard (or save for stock).
2. Heat the pan to high heat, add 1 t of the oil to the pan and add the shallots. Allow to brown then lower the heat to medium. Season the shallots and caramelize them for about 10 minutes. Remove form the pan and set aside.
3. Heat the pan over high heat again and add the last 1 t oil. Add the diced heart and cook over high heat until brown and cooked through, about 6-8 minutes. Deglaze the pan with a little water and add the pepper paste to coat the meat.
4. Combine all the ingredients, season to taste and serve.

This could also be a sandwich, or something served on crackers or toast.

Braised Chicken & Kale Sandwich (or, the Sloppy Chickwich)

Hahaha sloppy chickwich. This is another example of how easy, cheap and versatile braised chicken legs are.

Ingredients:
1/2 t oil
1 red onion, quartered and sliced 1/4" thick
1/2 head garlic, peeled & sliced
4 whole chicken legs (or 8 each drumsticks/thighs), meat scored with a knife so heat can penetrate and cook it faster
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
1 bu lacinato kale (also called "dinosaur" kale because of its cool bumpy texture)
salt & pepper to taste

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a large saute pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat, then add the onion and garlic and saute 5-6 minutes. Remove to a baking dish and heat the pan again, over high heat.
3. Brown the chicken in the hot pan until well browned and remove to the baking dish. Add the tomato sauce and season everything with salt and pepper. Cover the dish and start to braise for an hour to 90 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, heat the saute pan again over medium heat. There should be plenty of rendered chicken fat in the pan in which to cook the kale. So saute it in the delicious fat for 5 minutes, and season with salt and pepper. Set aside to wait for the chicken.
5. When the chicken's done, let it cool for a little bit so you don't kill yourself doing the following:
6. Pull the meat off the bones (the bones can still be used for stock), toss with the tomato sauce and kale, and use the mixture to fill sandwiches or wraps.

You could totally just eat this over rice or pasta, too.

Delicious Hummus

this is a condensed-format recipe, designed for a pocket recipe book called "Learn to Cook" I made and gave out to random people at the Pike Market for a few months in 2009. some of the ingredients may be difficult to find outside of the market, and can be substituted or disregarded.

2 cans garbanzo beans
4 T sesame tahini
1/4 head garlic [peel & rough chop]
1 lemon [juice]
1 t kosher salt
1/2 t black pepper
1/3 C water

[in a food processor, pulse, then blend all the ingredients together until the hummus is almost fluffy. the whipped consistency of hummus is important to fully enjoy the flavor.]

Every Day Bread Pudding

This is the recipe you drag out whenever you have a bit too much bread. Better yet, after making this once, I think you'll find it's so simple that you don't need a recipe anymore.

this is a condensed-format recipe, designed for a pocket recipe book called "Learn to Cook" I made and gave out to random people at the Pike Market for a few months in 2009. some of the ingredients may be difficult to find outside of the market, and can be substituted or disregarded.

[Prep: cut bread cubes, make flavor base; do these a day ahead if you want to.]
[Production: assemble and bake.]

Flavor base*
About 12-14 oz stale bread, cut into cubes
3 eggs
1/2 C milk, cream or half & half (depending on how sassy you're feeling)
1 t kosher salt
1/2 t black pepper

[preheat oven to 350 degrees]
[beat the eggs and milk together with the salt and pepper.]
[mix everything together and let sit for a couple of minutes to let the bread soak everything in, then press the mixture into an olive oil-coated baking dish. cover and bake for 20 minutes or until set. allow to cool, cut and serve.]

Chorizo & Apple Sandwich

this is a condensed-format recipe, designed for a pocket recipe book called "Learn to Cook" I made and gave out to random people at the Pike Market for a few months in 2009. some of the ingredients may be difficult to find outside of the market, and can be substituted or disregarded.

Serves 2 for under $12

[Prep: wash & cut apple, wash arugula, peel & slice garlic, get other ingredients ready]
[Production: saute sandwich filling, assemble sandwiches]

1/2 lb cured (Spanish style) chorizo, diced
1/4 head garlic [peel & chop]
1 bu arugula [wash]
1/2 apple [dice]
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
[saute sausage over medium-high heat in 1/2 t oil for one minute, then add garlic. reduce heat to medium and cook 2-3 more minutes. then add the arugula and apple, turn off the heat and set aside.]

2 rolls
mustard, mayo, whatever you like

[assemble and serve]

Easy Fresh Lasagna

This is a great recipe if you can get your hands on some fresh pasta. If you can't, just use dried and pre-cook the lasagna sheets most of the way to compensate.

this is a condensed-format recipe, designed for a pocket recipe book called "Learn to Cook" I made and gave out to random people at the Pike Market for a few months in 2009. some of the ingredients may be difficult to find outside of the market, and can be substituted or disregarded.

3 cups crushed tomatoes (almost one large 28 oz can, minus the 1/2 C crushed tomatoes used in the Delicious Soup recipe)
1/2 head garlic [cloves peeled & sliced]
1 t kosher salt
2 large pinches black pepper
[combine half the garlic with the other ingredients in a saucepan and simmer on medium-low for 15 minutes]

1 bu broccoli rabe [wash and slice 1/2" thick to within a half inch of the stem]
2 T butter
[saute broccoli rabe and the remaining garlic in the butter for 5 minutes over medium-high heat and set aside]

1/4 lb fresh mozzarella cheese [slice thinly]
fresh or dried lasagna sheets to create 4-5 layers in your baking dish
[layer from bottom: sauce, pasta, greens, cheese, etc.. try to end on cheese]
[bake at 375 for 30 minutes]

Spring Salad

A kind of fussy salad, but a good salad.

this is a condensed-format recipe, designed for a pocket recipe book called "Learn to Cook" I made and gave out to random people at the Pike Market for a few months in 2009. some of the ingredients may be difficult to find outside of the market, and can be substituted or disregarded.

1/4 C hazelnuts [rough chop]
1 head bibb/butter lettuce [rough chop or tear bite-sized]
2 oz pecorino romano cheese [dice]
[combine these in a large bowl]

1 Fuji (or any) apple [dice]
1/2 bu thick asparagus [slice 1/2" thick]
2 T oil
[saute asparagus in oil over medium-high heat until tender, about 2 minutes. turn off heat and add apple to cool the pan.]
[when the asparagus is cooled but not yet cold, pour the asparagus/apple mix over the lettuce mix.]

1 lemon [juice]
1 t soy sauce
1/2 t agave nectar
1 pinch black pepper
2 dashes Tabasco sauce
[toss everything together and serve]

Pasta in Broth with Fresh Peas

this is a condensed-format recipe, designed for a pocket recipe book called "Learn to Cook" I made and gave out to random people at the Pike Market for a few months in 2009. some of the ingredients may be difficult to find outside of the market, and can be substituted or disregarded.

serves 2 (or 4 as a 1st course) for under $10

1 lb English peas [shell]

[boil 2 qts water for the pasta, add salt until the water tastes as salty as the ocean, about 1/4 C kosher salt]
1 lb pasta, any
[cook pasta in boiling water according to directions. drain and toss with olive oil or butter and set aside.]

1 pt Delicious Stock
shelled English peas (above)
3 sprigs thyme [pick leaves & rough chop]
1 t kosher salt
2 pinches fresh ground pepper
[combine in a saucepan, cook on medium 5 minutes or until the peas are just done.]

1/2 lemon [juice]
[add to saucepan, add the pasta to warm it, taste & serve.]

Delicious Soup

this is a condensed-format recipe, designed for a pocket recipe book called "Learn to Cook" I made and gave out to random people at the Pike Market for a few months in 2009. some of the ingredients may be difficult to find outside of the market, and can be substituted or disregarded.

4 cloves garlic [peel & slice thinly]
2 yellow potatoes, small [dice 1/2"]
1/4 lb crimini mushrooms [quarter]
1 bu green kale [wash & chop 1/4" on a side]
1/2 C crushed tomatoes
1/2 C water
5 C Delicious Stock
[combine these in a large saucepan; simmer until potatoes are just tender, about 35 minutes on low heat]

1/2 lemon [juice]
1 1/2 t kosher salt
1/2 t black pepper
[add, taste & serve]

(that's it.)

(soup is really easy when you have already made good stock.)

Delicious Stock

this is a condensed-format recipe, designed for a pocket recipe book called "Learn to Cook" I made and gave out to random people at the Pike Market for a few months in 2009. some of the ingredients may be difficult to find outside of the market, and can be substituted or disregarded.

to be honest, this is a kind of involved stock. you can make simple soup stocks or complex ones and they'll all be good for what they are. this one will have nice nuance and a great depth and balance of flavors. but you can always just save vegetable scraps in your freezer for a week and throw that in simmering water, and that's a good stock too, with a more straightforward flavor.

makes over 20 servings for under $20
(scale the recipe down if you don't have a large stockpot at home)

7 lbs chicken backs (butcher)
4 shallots, med [peel]
1 yellow onion, med [peel & quarter]
[roast all these together w/ a little olive oil, salt & pepper at 425 for 30 min and then add to 2.5 gal water. simmer 4-5 hours]

3 black lemons (spice shop)
1 tsp tellicherry peppercorns (spice shop)
2 long pepper peppercorns (spice shop)
1 1/2 dried aji mirasol peppers (spice shop)
1 1/2 dried pasilla negro peppers (spice shop)
2 bay leaves
1 bu celery [wash & rough chop]
5 carrots [wash & rough chop]
[add all these and simmer 2 more hours]
[strain]

(this stock makes soup best finished with lemon juice. the black lemon spice is actually just dried lemon, which has a smoky flavor that's both bright and deep. that rich, dark lemon presence balanced with fresh lemon juice creates a delicious effect.)