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February 28, 2008
 Update on our vegetarian adventure…
Well, we’re not even remotely vegetarian and likely never will be, but I HAVE managed to reduce red meat meals to only one per week, plus we have incorporated 1-3 vegetarian dinners into the meal plan each week. This represents a significant improvement in the healthfulness of our diets!
Also improved is the variety in our meals. My husband is really enjoying this. He loves trying new things - the more exotic the better (franky, more exotic than he’s ever likely to get from me; I’ll never make food with tentacles, let alone eat it!). I’m a midwestern-raised girl, so my food tastes and experiences have long been quite midwesternly conventional (cow, pig, chicken). I don’t think I even tasted my first gyro until I was in college - and I never even considered ordering something as strange as falafel!
So my husband was a little surprised when he saw falafel appear on the menu plan for this week. He was also a little uncertain. He was pretty sure he wasn’t in love with falafel when he tried it in the past. But my research indicated that it is a mainstay for vegetarians and reading various recipes, considering the ingredients and how they blended - I was pretty sure I would like it.
I wasn’t so sure about the kids, though. However, they LOVE hummus, so I presented this as something “kind of like hummus, but cooked differently.” It didn’t hurt that it smelled wonderful as I was preparing it. Garlic and cilantro, cumin and coriander. Cucumber, yogurt and dill. Yum. It was so fresh and delicious - a real pleasure to prepare!
Anyway, we ALL loved it so much (hubby included) that the only problem was I didn’t make enough! I would absolutely double the recipe next time, so everyone got enough for dinner and there would be some leftovers for me and my boy the next day.
Kids in the kitchen: Have them mash the chickpeas for heaven’s sake! An older child could be entirely responsible for making the cucumber sauce. It’s very simple, but so satisfying because it is an important flavor contribution to the meal!
Also, keep in mind the teaching opportunity present when you prepare a meal from a different culture. In researching falafel recipes, I learned all kinds of things about the dish and its popularity in the Mideast. (So popular that McFalafel is on the menu at McDonalds!) I didn’t plan it at all, but having this for dinner last night was a nice segue into a discussion about other cultures and their foods.
Making it healthy: Most of the recipes I found called for frying the falafel balls (as is traditional). But it seems tragic to make something with such healthy ingredients - and then plunge it into a bath of fat! I also read many comments from newbies like me that if they didn’t get the texture of the batter just right, the falafel fell apart in the oil. I’m sure I would love these things fried, yummy yum! But I chose to bake these instead - healthy AND foolproof. If you want to make them the traditional way, disregard the baking/broiling instructions below and instead fry them in a skillet (1 inch of oil heated to 375F) until browned on both sides.
Side dish: Fresh strawberries.
Pita Falafel
Cucumber Sauce
1 cup plain yogurt
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 cucumber - peeled and diced
1 teaspoon dill weed
salt and pepper to taste
Whisk together yogurt, mayonnaise, cucumber, dill, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
 Healthy Falafel
1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), rinsed and drained
1 onion, cut into wedges
1 handful fresh parsley
1 handful fresh cilantro
3 cloves garlic
1 egg
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon salt
1 dash pepper
1 pinch (or more) cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup dry bread crumbs (you can also use flour)
1. In a large bowl mash the chickpeas until they are thick and pasty. Alternatively, you can (gently!) mash the beans in a blender, but take care you don’t over-mash. They should have a coarse, broken texture. If you choose this method, remove mashed chickpeas from the blender to a large bowl.
2. Add the onion, garlic, parsley and cilantro to the blender and process until smooth. Stir into mashed chickpeas.
3. In a small bowl whisk egg, cumin, coriander, salt, pepper, cayenne, lemon juice and baking powder. Stir into chickpea mixture along with olive oil. Add bread crumbs or flour gradually until the mixture is holds together - firm but malleable. It should form a small ball in the bowl and not stick (too much) to your hands. Add more or less bread crumbs or flour as needed to achieve the proper texture. You can do this step in advance and refrigerate the dough until mealtime.
4. Form falafel dough into balls approximately 2 inches in diameter and gently flatten into patties. Place on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 375F for 20 minutes. (I flipped the patties halfway through for even browning.) Next time I think I will broil them instead! To do this, brush both sides of the patties with olive oil and place under the broiler for 2-3 minutes per side until golden.
5. Stuff pitas with lettuce and falafel. Drench generously with cucumber sauce. Top with any or all of the following:
- Chopped raw peppers (red, yellow and/or green)
- Chopped or sliced onion
- Diced tomato
- Bean sprouts
- Tahini
February 21, 2008
 I love pasta, but I don’t usually have a lot of variations - most of my creations are some combination of noodles, ground beef, red sauce and cheese. Sometimes I’ll get crazy and alfredo it up. I’m a busy working mom. I love to cook, but I just don’t have enough time or energy to play in the kitchen. Besides, my family is picky and they don’t want to try new foods.
Isn’t that lame? Because, really, there is no excuse! Going (somewhat) vegetarian has forced me out of my comfort zone with food and I’m finding it’s incredibly fast and easy to discover new recipes. We’ve had a couple flops, but we’ve also had some interesting successes. I’ve been impressed by how my family has taken to this culinary adventure.
This week so far we’ve tried two new pasta dishes.
 Garlicky White Beans, Sage and Orecchiette
This recipe would have been a direct hit, but I screwed it up a little. Because I was cooking for the WHOLE family (which includes 3 girls ages 8-12 and one 15 year old boy, plus one hungry daddy and one always-ravenous nursing mama), I made TWO packages of the orecchiette. That was all well and good, but I only doubled the bean mixture portion of the recipe and I probably should have tripled it. It didn’t quite stretch and it needed to.
With that said, however, the beans had a wonderful flavor and everyone enjoyed this dish! It was fast, unusual and filling. As a bonus, it’s a “pantry recipe,” meaning that you can have no idea what the heck you’re going to have for dinner tonight and make the decision about this recipe 30 minutes before dinnertime without any emergency run out to the grocery store. (Don’t have orecchiette? Use whatever pasta you DO have. Don’t have fresh sage on hand? Dried is fine.)
By the way, when cooking this up, the aroma was divine. I love recipes that start off with garlic and herbs sauted in olive oil. Add the white wine and a simple beans-and-noodles dish goes gourmet.
The funny thing is, this meal was as fast and simple as making hot dogs and Kraft macaroni and cheese - yet so much tastier and a million times healthier!
Kids in the kitchen: My 12 year old drained and rinsed the canned beans, chopped the red and yellow peppers and set the table while I did the rest of the preparation.
Whole-Wheat Pasta with Broccolini and Feta
Wow. Just wow. This was another simple recipe, but the flavors - feta and orange vinaigrette - were so intense and complex. You can serve this up hot, room temperature - or cold as a pasta salad. We had it warm and I loved the texture and flavor of the melt-y feta on the pasta.
One slight variation I made… no shallots on hand, so I threw some thinly sliced sweet onion into the pot when I blanched the radish slices. I think you also couldn’t go wrong with a handful of pine nuts tossed in.
And let’s talk about the radishes - I eat them VERY rarely; usually just a few raw slices in a salad mix. I’m surprised this recipe even appealed to me because of the radishes, but they had a wonderful mild flavor and tenderness when slightly blanched. Even the kids liked the radishes!
On the side: We had raw red pepper slices and orange segments (my husband peeled and segmented the orange I had used for the zest).
Family review: The verdict? Well, I loved it! My husband was skeptical, but decided he really liked it after a few bites - he took it to work next day as a cold dish, too. My 12 year old mostly liked it. I think the flavor overwhelmed her about halfway through, however. My 8 year old LOVED it. My 10 year old was completely not interested. She opted to reheat some leftovers for her dinner. Because of that, I probably won’t make it frequently as a family meal where it is the primary course.
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 As Betsy tells us about her vegetarian adventure, I was reminded of a time that my husband and I decided to try a vegetarian diet.
We did not approach this idea of a vegetarianism from a moral point of view or philosophical reasoning. It wasn’t cute faces or factory farming that drove the decision. It was far more pragmatic than that.
He was in graduate school, and the household budget was tight. I realized at some point that the amount of money we were spending on meat was high, and we were getting a little too dependent on high-calorie, high-fat meat and potato type meals. The kinds of meals that were okay once in a while were our norm. We discussed a vegetarian diet as a way to break out of our rut, get healthier, and save some bank.
We already had a couple of good vegetarian cookbooks, relatively unused, so I searched them for a dozen or so recipes. We decided to try it for a month and reassess. We went to the grocery store and sadly bypassed the meat section. Steak never looked better. The final total at check out helped us feel better about the test, but oh, that steak.
For a couple of weeks it went really well. Yes, I missed meat, but we were eating enough of a variety of new things that I was okay. I felt pretty good. I thought this might be something we could stick to.
About the third week of the test, I was out at lunch with my boss. He ordered a cheese burger. Oh, man, it looked good. Really, really good. I was salivating, almost drooling. My vegetarian sandwich was not the same caliber. I wanted that burger.
But I resisted. I was so proud of myself. I almost forgot about that burger by the end of the day. Not quite, however.
That evening at home, I told my husband about my lunch challenge. He kinda looked at me funny.
“What?” I asked.
“I, uh,” he hestitated, “didn’t think we were being that serious about this.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
He said, “I’ve been having burgers at lunch this whole time.”
I looked at him, stunned. Then I left the apartment, drove to the nearest fast food joint and ordered myself a cheeseburger.
And that, my friends, was the end of our vegetarian test.
The abbreviated test did have the effect of expanding our repertoire of recipes. While we didn’t maintain a vegetarian diet, we did eat less meat, we did eat healthier, and we did reduce the food budget a bit. Overall, it was a good thing to try, I think, and I think back to it whenever we get into a rut now. I go back to the same vegetarian cookbooks to see what might be interesting now. Cheeseburgers, though, still happen.
One of our favorite recipes from that time was this black bean soup.
Vegetarian Black Bean Soup
2 c dry black beans
3 1/2 c water
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 medium to large onion, chopped
3 cloves crushed garlic
1 large carrot, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 tsp coriander
1 1/2 tsp cumin
2 oranges, peeled, sectioned and seeded
1/2 c orange juice
1 tbsp sherry
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp red pepper (optional)
1/2 tsp fresh lime juice
Sour cream for garnish
Soak the beans in water overnight, changing the water several times.
Put the beans in a saucepan with the water and salt. Simmer for about an hour and a half.
Saute the onions, garlic, carrots, celery, coriander and cumin in the vegetable oil for 5-10 minutes. Add the beans and water and continue to simmer a while - maybe 30 minutes or so. Add the oranges, orange juice, sherry, peppers and lime juice. Cover and let simmer 10 minutes.
Serve with a dollop of sour cream on top.
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February 14, 2008
 To get you caught up:
Day 2 of our vegetarian adventure I had chicken taquitos for dinner. It was one of those rare fend-for-yourselves nights. And technically I wasn’t ready for whole hog vegetarian, right? Right.
Day 3 of our vegetarian adventure we had Chick-Fil-A. Yes, I know. Lest you think I’m failing miserably at this so far, let me direct you to…
Day 4 of our vegetarian adventure… I had steak. See?! I can fail worse! It was good, too.
Day 5 of our vegetarian adventure we had a chicken/veggie stir fry with funny little pastas. I didn’t eat the chicken. It was okay. Simple, fast, bland, boring… but healthy. Everyone was satisfied except me. My palate doesn’t like boring. I need to get my menu plan and shopping list together so I can make more interesting fare.
Day 6 of our vegetarian adventure was pizza night. So much for planning and shopping. I’m on a tight work deadline and my kids all had dental appointments right after school. Even getting dinner made was too much of a challenge. I had a big salad (with bacon bits, I confess - the shame, the shame) and one large slice of cheese pizza.
<sigh>
Back on the wagon… Day 7: I made 16 bean soup. This was super easy. I had a one-pound bag of 16 beans on hand, so I rinsed them and dumped them in a pot with 8 cups of water to soak overnight. The next day I drained and rinsed them and put them in the crockpot with 8 cups of fresh water. Chopped some onion and baby carrots and threw those in there. Cooked on low for hours and hours.
With lots of salt and pepper and cornbread, they were pretty… mediocre. Man, I really missed the ham flavor. The next time I have a bag of 16 beans, I would do something completely different. Maybe something like this:
>> 16 Bean Adai
I flavored the [bean] batter with a good dose of fresh ginger, some red and green chillies, a handful of fresh cilantro and was estatic when this batter turned out crisp, crunchy, absolutely delicious Adai!
Now that’s what I’m talking about. My mouth is watering. I like rich flavors and interesting textures. Bland is boring.
February 7, 2008
 Day 1 of our family’s vegetarian adventure.
I wasn’t actually ready to start planning vegetarian meals yet. I was giving myself a week to adjust to the idea before I dive in with menu planning and grocery shopping with vegetarianism in mind.
But then I saw this recipe for Pappardelle with Spring Veggies on our SheKnows site, and I thought hmmm. I don’t have all of those ingredients, but I can easily modify it for what I DO have. So I went at it. I prepared the veggies, sautéed the nuts and cooked the pasta. I didn’t have an fresh Parmesan on hand, but I did have a delicious sheep cheese a visiting friend brought over one day. It’s similar in texture to fresh Parmesan, and it has a fresh, nutty flavor. It seemed like it would blend beautifully with this this dish (and it did!). While the pasta was cooking, I grated some of this cheese.
The house smelled wonderful - is there any better smell than onions and garlic sautéed in olive oil? Any meal with that as the base is usually a sure-fire hit with me. 
I called my family to the kitchen and started dishing up.
“What’s for dinner?” “Oh, this is something new.” “Smells good, mom!”
My husband, Scott, says, “I don’t know how well I can do this vegetarian thing when I’m looking at this meal and thinking it looks like a great side dish for a… STEAK!” Heh, we had a good laugh about that one. We do love our steak.
I am pleased to report: Everyone loved the meal, including my picky 11 year old! I would absolutely make this again - it is even likely to go into regular rotation. It’s an easy dish, perfect as a last minute meal decision, especially since I’m likely to have the ingredients on hand (and when I don’t, the recipe lends itself to variation). Scott ended up feeling that this meal was very satisfying and surprisingly filling. The flavors and textures were perfect.
Here’s my version of the recipe:
Whole Wheat Penne with Spring Vegetables
This served 2 adults, 3 kids - and I had two days of generously portioned leftovers for lunch.
Ingredients
1 package whole wheat penne pasta
1 lb. green asparagus
2 cups frozen peas
1/2 large onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup of slivered almonds, toasted
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Salt and pepper
Directions
- Remove the tough ends of asparagus and blanch for 5 minutes in water until just tender. Blanch peas separately until heated through.
- In a heavy saucepan, gently sauté the onions and garlic in olive oil until they begin to turn gold. Add peas and asparagus and cook for a few minutes.
- Cook the penne in boiling water according to package instructions, drain and pour into serving dish. Add veggie and oil mixture to serving dish. Add almonds and parmesan and season to taste. Serve immediately.
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February 6, 2008
 Lately I’ve been dealing with some (relatively minor) health problems. To get my immune system back on track - and hopefully avoid surgery - my doctor referred me to a naturopathic doctor on her staff for an herbal protocol. In addition to supplements, the protocol also requires THREE MONTHS of vegetarian diet, heavy on the fruits and veggies.
Observing the horrified expression on my face, she backpedaled a teensy bit and said that if I absolutely must have meat, then I could have a small portion of chicken, turkey or fish no more than once per day. I barely like chicken. And fish/turkey not at all. I’m a red meat girl!!! And pork. So this is a blow.
Not to mention the challenge of preparing family dinners for anywhere from five to seven people! Initially, I just rejected the idea, but over the past week, I’m starting to come around. First of all, I certainly could stand to eat healthier. Plus, like most women six months postpartum, I could afford to lose a few pounds (like 30).
So I started doing some research on vegetarian recipes, and WOW have I been impressed with the results. I found some gems, like the following:
Yummy! I might actually GAIN weight on this diet if I’m not careful.
Since this represents such a major lifestyle change - even if it is a temporary one - I thought I’d share my progress, discoveries and results with other mamas here at ChefMom. This could be fun! Heaven knows I’m trying to make it as fun as possible.
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