response 401 of 494:

Feb 18 03:22 UTC 2008

Tonight was a heavy cooking night,kmaking three dishes I'd never had 
before. 

I made a cold pea salad, that you put a shallot vinaigrette on, and it 
had small pieces of swiss cheese in it.  Dave and Debbie (visiting 
stepmother) loved it, I was not too keen.

A chicken manicotti, with a creamy chive sauce.  This was really good, 
and ridiculously easy.

I made a shells stuffed with crab, with a spicy tomato sauce.  It was 
good, but I think I'd adjust the recipe again if I were to make it 
again.  You mix the crab with ricotta, chopped parsley and both orange 
and lemon zests, then stuff the shells and bake it with the sauce.  
The flavors were good, but the crab broke up too much.

Still, a nice dinner.  Oh, I made the chicken dish because Dave hates 
crab.

response 403 of 494:

Feb 18 03:41 UTC 2008

Opps, not quite as written.  I used regular curry powder so I did indeed 
add 1/4 tsp. of cayenne pepper, as she suggested in the notes.

response 405 of 494:

Mar 6 03:02 UTC 2008

Pumpkin stew - spaghetti pumpkin (it has long strands which are orange),
onion, chickpeas, dried apricots from our tree, on millet with wood ear.  We
froze a large pumpkin.  A bit of lemon juice and sesame oil helps.  Jim says
he does not like pumpkin so I add flavor - last time it was curried.

response 407 of 494:

Mar 6 04:34 UTC 2008

There's an Afghan dish that is pumpkin which I love.  I think it's
called kadu burani.  It was the first time I realized pumpkin didn't
have to be in a pie.

response 409 of 494:

Mar 6 15:15 UTC 2008

Is it spaghetti squash?  I've eaten that a great deal.

The Afghan dish is chunks of pumpkin that is cooked to be somewhat
sweetened and then continued cooking in a spicy tomato sauce, then
served with a yogurt sauce.  It's tasty.

response 411 of 494:

Mar 29 17:04 UTC 2008

Garlicky black beans over baked sweet potatoes.

response 413 of 494:

Apr 21 05:52 UTC 2008

This is, bar none, the best homemade bread I've ever eaten.  The recipe
is from the December 2007/January 2008 issue of "Mother Earth News."  

No-Knead, Dutch Oven Bread

1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1-1/2 cups warm water
3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting (you can use all
all-purpose, whole wheat, or a combination of the two).
1-1/2 tsp salt

1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in water.  Add the flour and salt,
stirring until blended.  The dough will be shaggy and sticky.  Cover
bowl with plastic wrap.  Let the dough rest at least 8 hours, preferably
12 to 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees F.

2. The dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles.  Lightly
flour a work surface and place dough on it.  Sprinkle it with a little
more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice.  Cover loosely with
plastic wrap and let it rest for about 15 minutes.

3.  Using just enough flour to keep the dough from sticking to the work
surface or to your fingers, gently shape it into a ball.  Generously
coat a clean dish towel with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal.  Put the
seam side of the dough down in the towel and dust with more flour, bran,
or cornmeal.  Cover with another towel and let rise for about 1 to 2
hours.  When it's ready, the dough will have doubled in size and will
not readily spring back when poked with a finger.  

4.  At least 20 minutes before the dough is ready, heat over to 475
degrees F.  Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel,
Pyrex or ceramic) in the oven as it heats.  When the dough is ready,
carefully remove the pot from the oven and if off the lid.  Slide your
hand under the towel and turn the dough over into the pot, seam side up.
 The dough will lose its shape a bit in the process, but that's OK. 
Give the pan a firm shake or two to to help distribute the dough evenly,
but don't worry if it's not perfect; it will straighten out as it bakes.

5.  Cover and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove he lid and bake another 15 to
20 minutes, until the loaf is beautifully browned. Remove the bread from
the Dutch oven and let it cool on a rack for at least 1 hour before slicing.

Yield: One 1-1/2 pound loaf.

response 415 of 494:

Apr 27 23:37 UTC 2008

Made another loaf of no-knead today using Bob's Red Mill white
whole-wheat flour.  It didn't rise as much as the last loaf.  Next time
I'll try adding a couple tablespoons of gluten flour or maybe some honey
and see what happens.

response 417 of 494:

May 10 01:45 UTC 2008

Milk and vinegar might also work.  Baking soda needs an acid.

response 419 of 494:

May 11 20:37 UTC 2008

This recipe is from _The Garden of Vegan_ by Tanya Barnard and Sarah
Kramer. It's fantastic!  

Hayley & Ian's Peanut Butter Pasta

dry pasta (enough for 2 people)
1/3 C peanut butter
1/4 C hot water
1 Tbsp Bragg's Liquid Aminos (soy sauce works if you have no Bragg's)
1 tsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp dry sweetener
3 cups broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 C peanuts, dry-roasted

In a large pot of water, boil the pasta. While pasta is cooking, in a
small bowl, whisk together the peanut butter and hot water until smooth.
Stir in the Bragg's, Worcestershire, garlic, cayenne, salt, pepper, and
sweetener. Set aside. When pasta is almost done, add the broccoli to the
pasta and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes. Drain and return to pot.
Pour in peanut sauce and toss well. Garnish with chopped peanuts. Makes
2 servings.

response 421 of 494:

Aug 24 17:22 UTC 2008

This one comes from _Lean Bean Cuisine_ by Jay Solomon.  This is really
good.

White Bean and Sweet Potato Salad

4 cups diced sweet potatoes (about 2 large potatoes, scrubbed but not
peeled)
1-1/2 cups coked or canned navy or great northern beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup shredded mustard greens or dandelion greens
1/2 cup slivered red onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1/2 to 3/4 cup vegetable oil (I used olive)
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt

Place the sweet potatoes in boiling water to cover and cook for about 15
minutes, until they are easily pierced with a fork (check them at 8 to
10).  Drain and chill under cold running water.
Combine the potatoes with the remaining ingredients in a mixing bowl and
blend thoroughly.  Chill for at least 1 hour before serving.  (I mixed
the oil, vinegar, sugar, thyme, pepper, and salt separately before
adding it to everything else.)

response 423 of 494:

Aug 29 14:04 UTC 2008

For breakfast yesterday I made cherry scones.  It was a celebration 
breakfast.  By candlelight. Enjoyed al fresco. What was the special event, 
you ask?

OUR DECK WAS FINALLY REFINISHED!  It was a challenging problem the details 
of which would bore most sane people to death.  But know nailing the 
problem is sweet.  And scones were in order.