The Makeshift Cook

If your rice is already flavored with lime juice and cilantro, there's no point in trying to make rice pudding out of it. Instead, grate a carrot, chop some cabbage, add more cilantro and lime juice, a few chopped scallions, a splash of orange juice, a little salt, a little olive oil, and some diced avocado. Mix it up and eat it up.

Here are some other things I have done with my recent Big Batch of Beans.
1. Bean dip. You can treat these little critters pretty much like black beans, which is to say: spice them with olive oil, garlic, cumin, chipotle peppers, lime, cilantro and/or leftover salsa and puree using your favorite pureeing machine. I did two different incarnations of bean dip for two different cookouts. The smokier, more chipotle-heavy one was a bigger hit. But some people like the cilantro-heavy first one.

2. Chili. Again, use in place of black beans in your favorite recipe.

3. Stew. I guess this wasn't really all that different from the chili, but I didn't use any chili POWDER. Sauteed onions and garlic and adobo sauce, added some tomatoes and the leftover beans and broth, realized there were hardly any beans left, and quick chopped up sweet potatoes and zucchini and simmered with frozen corn. I also fried some cubed tofu in oil, braggs, chili powder, cumin, and coriander, and sprinkled with lime juice. Served the whole shebang over cilantro-lime brown rice.

The adzuki beans are finally gone and it's time to move on to some other corner of my bean stash. I'll keep you posted.

Hat tip to What the hell does a vegan eat, anyway, for depicting a version of this dish and sending me on an internet quest for more information.

Turns out not much information is needed. This is a one-pot meal with potatoes, pasta, green beans, and pesto. I added olive tapenade and Gimme Lean snausage for extra flava.



Pasta Genovese
3 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
8 ounces of pasta (a short cut of pasta--I used farfalle)
A few handfuls of green beans (I used frozen)
As much pesto as you need--at least 3 tablespoons, I'd say
Tapenade if you have it, or some chopped kalamata olives
Gimme Lean sausage, or your favorite alternative

Bring a big pot of water to a boil and then salt it. Add potatoes and cook until tender but holding their shape. Add the pasta and cook until al dente.

While this is going on, heat a bit of oil in a saute pan and add your veggie sausage in little plops and cook until nicely browned.

About 3 minutes before the pasta is scheduled to be done, add the green beans. If you're using frozen, add them a bit at a time, so you don't interfere with the water boiling.

When everything is done, drain in a fine colander, reserving some of the cooking water. I didn't actually need any, but it's a good thing to have on hand in case your pasta plus adornments seems a bit dry or sticky. Pour the pasta mixture into a bowl and stir in the pesto and olives/tapenade and sausage. If cheese is your thing, add some parmesan too. Salt (if needed) and pepper to taste and chow down.

My first adzuki bean project for the week was a super-hearty noodle dish.

Greens, Tofu, and Adzuki Beans with Soba Noodles
For the tofu:
Heat a few tablespoons of vegetable oil and a few dashes of soy sauce (or shoyu, or tamari, or whatever) over medium-high heat. Add a package of cubed firm tofu and saute until all sides are golden and crispy. When done, set them aside on a plate.

For the noodles:
Boil water and cook noodles according to package directions. Don't overcook unless you like gummy soba.

For the veg (use the tofu pan!):
A bit more oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch fresh ginger, minced
1 bunch of stemmed, chopped lacinato kale (regular is fine too)
As many chopped mushrooms as you like
2 cups cooked adzuki beans and some bean broth
A few handfuls of fresh chopped spinach, why not?
3 scallions, chopped
Sesame seeds
Rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, and sri racha to taste

Heat the oil in the pan and add ginger and garlic. Saute quickly and add chopped mushrooms and a bit of water if the pan is too dry. Add chopped kale, and a bit more water and some soy sauce, and braise your delicious greens. When the greens are cooked, add adzuki beans and broth, and cook it all together, adding water whenever the pan is dry. Dash on some sesame oil and sri racha sauce, and add the tofu back in and stir to coat.


Serve over noodles garnished with scallions and sesame seeds.

Then! You have leftover noodles, and you want something like lo mein, and your co-op had house brand broccoli slaw for half price, so:

Broccoli Noodles
A bit of veg oil
A bit of sesame oil
A minced garlic clove
An inch of minced fresh ginger
A chopped leek
A ten ounce bag of broccoli slaw, or a bunch of peeled and grated brocc stems
A grated carrot
Some leftover noodles
Rice vinegar, soy sauce, and sri racha
A handful of chopped cilantro

Heat the oils and saute garlic and ginger for a minute or two. Add leek and saute until wilted and translucent. Throw in broccoli and carrots, and a few splashes of rice vinegar and soy sauce. Cook until the vegetables are tender-crisp, and stir in the noodles to coat and reheat. Add sri racha to taste and a wad of cilantro. Yummmm.


I love this because it ends up being mostly broccoli with just a few noodles mixed in.

It's been the week of the chickpea here at the makeshift kitchen. Several days ago I cooked up a huge batch with no real plan for them, but it's been nice to have cooked beans on hand to use as I wish (and with which to make yet more Chickpea Cutlets). I just cooked an even larger batch of aduki/adzuki/azuki beans, so stay tuned as I explore their manifold uses.

Anyway, this slaw thing just sort of came to me after I shredded a bit of beet for a variation on the house salad the other day. I love beets in all forms, but I have to say I haven't done a lot of raw beet goodness apart from the occasional trip to a juice bar (my favorite: carrot apple beet juice with lots of ginger). This recipe totally remedies that situation. It also made use of an old-ass apple I had in the fridge. You know that one apple? It's gotten a little too wrinkly to eat as a snack, but you only have one of them, so you don't want to make applesauce? Here's one way to use that apple.



Carrot Apple Beet Slaw with Chickpeas
Mix up a vinaigrette:
1/4 cup olive oil
a few tablespoons of apple cider vinegar
a healthy plop of dijon mustard
a few squirts of Braggs Liquid Aminos (or plain old soy sauce)
1/2 tsp of thyme
1/2 tsp basil

Whisk together in a medium bowl and add 2 cups cooked chickpeas. Let that all mellow together and work on your veggies.

2 large carrots, grated
1 medium beet, grated
(Note: I just scrubbed the veggies really well instead of peeling. They're organic and there's good stuff in the skin, you dig?)
1 apple, peeled and grated
1 rib celery, chopped, including the leafy bits, why not?
1 scallion, chopped

Mix it all together with the vinaigrettey chickpeas, add salt if you need it, and garnish with black pepper and pumpkin or sunflower seeds or serve over lettuce.

I used to make this stuff all the time, especially when I lived by myself, and have no idea why it fell out of rotation because it's the easiest meal ever, endlessly adaptable to whatever you have on hand. The only thing you really need is chickpeas.

Chickpea Hash
Olive oil
1-2 smashed and diced cloves of garlic
A big pinch of chili flakes
A few big pinches of dried basil
A can of chickpeas, or a cup and a half of cooked ones
One big quartered and sliced zucchini
A few big handfuls of fresh spinach, chopped

Saute the garlic and herbs in olive oil. Add chickpeas and toss to coat, then add zucchini and cook until tender. Throw in spinach and saute another minute, just til wilted. Salt and serve. That's it.



The next day, I added to the leftovers a cup of frozen corn (cooked), a chopped fresh tomato, and a sliced Quorn cutlet. And some baguettes on the side, from the New French Bakery.



Chickpea Hash is also great with crumbled tofu, veggie sausage (cook separately and mix into saute), diced bell peppers (raw or cooked), a little chopped onion, salsa, chili powder and oregano instead of basil, feta cheese, etc. GO NUTS.

I made this bomb-ass salad for Mother's Day potluck and it disappeared before I could photograph it, as did my Veganomicon Curried Carrot Dip.

Sesame Ginger Rice Salad
Pop 1.5 cups of brown rice into your rice cooker.

Meanwhile, start pressing the water out of a brick of tofu (wrap in a clean, lint-free towel or paper towels, set on a plate, and put another plate and a can of beans on top of it).

Meanwhile, clean a small head of broccoli and steam the florets until just tender, about 5 minutes. Peel all the fibrous stuff off the stalk of the brocc and slice thin. I left these raw for extra crunch.

Meanwhile, whisk together:
1 tbsp dark sesame oil
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp grated ginger
1 minced clove of garlic
1/3 cup seasoned rice vinegar
A few shakes of red pepper flakes

Meanwhile, you can chuck your chopped brocc stalks in there. Also grate a carrot while you're at it, and throw it into the dressing.

Meanwhile, your tofu is pressed (but your rice is still cooking). Heat a little veg oil and soy sauce in a non-stick pan, cube your tofu, and fry the cubes until golden and delicious.

Meanwhile, chiffonade some spinach--a few handfuls, including the stems which you will chop into little pieces. Chop a few scallions while you're at it.

Combine everything when the rice is cooked and serve room temperature, if you can wait that long.

I accidentally got a subscription to Bon Appetit, which is less a cooking magazine and more a lifestyle magazine, although really what magazine ISN'T a lifestyle rag? What happened was, I bought something from Amazon's home and garden section and got to choose a free magazine. The last freebie I got was Domino and I have had enough of rolling my eyes at that particular wad of advertorial, so I opted for recipes instead.

So far there's little of real use in Bon Appetit, but this little recipe for Ground Coriander and Cilantro Flatbreads caught my eye because it looked super-easy AND I had an overabundance of plain yogurt that needed to be used. I altered it a bit because I didn't have any cilantro, but damn I bet it would be delicious. Just sub cilantro for parsley. Bon Appetit also calls for whole milk yogurt; use it if you have it, but lowfat worked fine too.

Coriander Flatbreads
1 1/2 cups (or more) AP flour
2 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
3/4 cup (or more) plain yogurt
Olive oil (for frying)

Sift dry ingredients together. Stir in fresh herbs. Add yogurt and moosh together with a fork until dough starts to clump together. Then knead in the bowl, adding more flour or yog as necessary, until you have a soft and slightly sticky dough. Turn out onto floured surface and knead for a minute. Divide into 8 pieces, roll into balls, and then roll out with a rolling pin (or my favorite makeshift, a wine bottle). Heat a generous plop of olive oil at medium high heat in a non-stick skillet and fry the breads three at a time until golden and puffed, about 3 minutes per side.

I made the soup to go with it on a day when I really felt like I had no food in the house. It just goes to show you how pampered and silly I am, because look at the bountiful soup I came up with! I think I'm just craving copious farmer's market veg and we're not quite there yet, weather-wise.

Curried Red Lentil Soup
Olive oil for the pot
1 onion, diced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
1 tbsp garam masala or curry powder
1 large can diced tomatoes
2 cups red lentils
1 large sweet potato, cubed
8 cups of water
Fresh spinach (frozen is fine too)
Salt to taste

Rinse and pick over the lentils, discarding any foreign objects (duh). Drain in a fine sieve/colander.

Heat the olive oil in your soup pot at medium-high heat. Add onions and spices (feel free to improvise), and saute until onions are translucent. Add garlic and cook a bit longer. Add sweet potatoes and stir to coat with spices. Dump in the can of tomatoes, lentils, and water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until lentils are tender and sweet potatoes are cooked through (20-25 minutes). Blend some or all of the soup in your blender or with an immersion mixture (optional). Return to pot, add chopped fresh spinach, and cook just until wilted. Salt to taste.

Serve with brown rice or all by itself, and definitely eat flatbreads.