Search results for 'vegetables'

Scallops and Vegetables with Citrus Soy Sauce

4 Sep

Scallops and Vegetables with Citrus Soy Sauce is great for entertaining, and is sure to please even the biggest seafood skeptic.  The Citrus Soy Sauce adds an amazing bust of flavor.

Scallops and Vegetables with Citrus Soy Sauce hold a special place in my heart.  This is one of the first meals I made my husband when we had first started dating.  I love scallops, they are tender and sweet jewels from the ocean.  This dish is great for entertaining, and is sure to please even the biggest seafood skeptic.
Scallops and Vegetables with Citrus Soy Sauce, continued…

Roasted Vegetables for Pasta

24 Jun

Roasted vegetables served on a bed of pasta puts a new spin on classic comfort food.  Try them topped with a spinkling of Parmesan or feta cheese.

Roasted vegetables served on a bed of pasta puts a new spin on classic comfort food.  Try them topped with a spinkling of Parmesan or feta cheese.

To ensure even cooking and a pleasing appearance, cut all of the vegetables into approximately 1-inch cubes or pieces.  Seed the zucchini if it has a very seedy center.  Roasted vegetables are best served soon after baking.  If you’re not serving them right away, leave them on the baking sheet; when hot roasted vegetables sit in a serving bowl for too long, they steam and lose some of their special roasted texture.
Roasted Vegetables for Pasta, continued…

Heirloom Vegetables

19 Apr

EggplantMix

Until recently, farmers and plant breeders saved the seeds of the most desirable plants from each year’s harvest for the next year’s crop.  Gardeners gave their  surplus to friends and relatives, and especially noteworthy varieties found their way to seed companies for wider distribution.  Today with larger mechanized farms, fewer gardeners harvesting seeds, and more hybrids and sterile seeds, many heirloom varieties have become rare or extinct.

This amounts to more than just the old being pushed out by the new. Heirlooms are not the first choice for agribusiness where concerns of perishability, yield, shipping endurance, pest resistance, and appearance are more important than flavor. As more old varieties are lost, we also lose a broad genetic base. This creates a less diverse source of food crops that may not be as adaptable or hardy.

What can the consumer do?  If you enjoy gardening, grow heirloom vegetables yourself.  Patronize farmers’ markets and produce stands where farmers label and promote  heirlooms.  Buy locally grown fresh produce to support growers who can produce a wider range of varieties than what is offered at typical supermarkets.  Another option is to join Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) to encourage regional small-scale farms.  CSA members buy shares in the produce they will eventually receive.  Most CSAs encourage participation, including input on what to grow.  For more information, visit www.reeusda.gov/csa.

Here is a list of a few favorite heirloom varieties that can be found if you look hard enough.

BEANS:  Cherokee trail of tears – Carried by the Cherokees on their forced march west to Oklahoma.  These are very tasty purple podded beans.

Kentucky wonder – A classic green bean, excellent flavor, great fresh, frozen, or canned.

Jacob’s cattle – White beans attractively spotted with maroon.  Good for all bean dishes, especially soups or baked beans.

BEETS:  Chioggia – Strong-growing beautiful Italian variety.  Horizontal slices show alternating rings of rose pink and white.  Nice in salads.

Golden beet – Brilliantly colored roots that are also particularly sweet.

BROCCOLI:  Romanesco – Spiraling florets form psychedelic patterns on this nutty-flavored Italian heirloom.

CABBAGE:  Early jersey wakefield – A very tender and sweet English variety from the eighteenth century.

CARROTS:  Scarlet nantes – Non-fibrous texture and sweet flavor for all uses, particularly jucies.

CORN:  Golden bantam – Introduced in 1902, this is still a popular sweet corn for home gardeners.

EGGPLANT:  Rosa bianca – Delicate flavor, smooth texture, and unusual  lavender stripes on a white fruit make this Italian heirloom worth trying.

KALE:  Russian red (ragged jack) – Brought to North America by Russian traders, this is a favorite variety of a very nutritious cooking green.  The flat, violet-veined leaves are milder and more tender than other kales.

LEEKS:  Black seeded simpson – A crisp, tasty, classic looseleaf with bright yellow leaves.

Forellen schluss (speckled trout) – An Austrian heirloom with very tender, light green leaves speckled with maroon.

MUSTARD GREENS:  Mizuna – A Japanese type that is versatile; baby greens are good in salad, mature leaves cook quickly for soups or stir-frys.  Plant has a lovely feathery, fern-like habit.

Tatsoi – A Chinese heirloom with deep green leaves on white stalks, similar to pak choi, but smaller.  Use like mizuna.

PEAS:  Golden sweet – Unusual chartreuse snow pea, new to this continent but grown for centuries in India.  Eat the pods before peas develop.

SWISS CHARD:  Five color silverbeet – The flavor of this Swiss chard is not different from the green variety, but the gorgeous color range of red, pink, yellow, orange, and cream range stops people in their tracks.  Good in both flower and vegetable gardens as an edible ornamental.

SQUASH:  Delicata – A nineteenth-century introduction valued today for its dry, sweet flesh.  Sized just right for individual servings of stuffed squash.

TOMATOES:  Amana orange – Huge slicing tomatoes with rich flavor.  Combine with other colored slices for festive platters.

Black krim – Russian heirloom with full flavor and purplish-red fruits that turn almost black in hot weather.

Brandywine – Large pink beefsteak, good for slicing, intense tomato-ey flavor.  An Amish family heirloom that has become very popular.

Cherokee purple – Tennessee variety reputed to be one of the sweetest.  Unusually colored rose, green, and brown.

Costoluto genovese – Italian variety good for sauce, juice, fresh eating.  Somewhat tart, bright red.

Green zebra – An introduction from the eighties that is grouped with heirlooms because of its appearance and non-hybrid status.  Zesty tart-and-sweet flesh that is, not surprisingly, striped yellow to yellow-green.

Joya de oaxaca – Mexican variety that is god both fresh and dried.  Yellow flesh streaked with pink, orange, and red.  Highly flavorful.

Mortgage lifter (radiator charlie’s mortgage lifter) – Huge beefsteaks that enabled the breeder to pay off his mortgage by selling the plants and seeds of this exceptional tomato.

Yellow Pear – Prolific producer of sweet, juicy small tomatoes that are low in acid and very flavorful.

Moosewood Restaurant New Classics, Copyright 2001, Moosewood, Inc., Clarkson Potter, Publishers.

Shepherd’s Pie

25 Feb

Shepherd's Pie is a super tasty traditional comfort food, and an all-in-one meal.  Perfect for chilly nights.

Beef Shepherd’s Pie is a traditional, all-in-one comfort dish.  Shepherd’s Pie is full of flavor, and with the veggies mixed in with the beef filling, it is the perfect way to sneak in veggies to picky eaters.  The creamy mashed potatoes on top are one of my favorite parts of this dish.  To help make the preparation easier, you can purchase frozen potatoes that are ment for mashing.  Simply cook in microwave and you are ready to mash away.  Much faster then peeling, cubing, and boiling your own potatoes.
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Crock Pot Stuffing

15 Dec

Crock Pot Stuffing is a great way to make this traditional dish.  Super moist and flavorful, sure to be a family favorite at the table.

Stuffings are a delicious side dish, often found on tables around the holidays with turkey, but is also a perfect accompaniment to pork chops and chicken.  It seems like there are endless possibilities to stuffing recipes, but my Crock Pot Stuffing Recipe is one that I found is a hit with all that try it.  When you are going to be busy in the kitchen preparing your holiday meal, it is great to be able to make Crock Pot Stuffing and not have to worry about it until you are ready to serve.
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Chicken Pot Pie

8 Nov

Chicken Pot Pie is a wonderful comfort food, perfect for chilly days.  Don't buy the typical frozen pot pies, make your own, you'll be glad you did!

There is nothing better than a Chicken Pot Pie to comfort you, especially on chilly nights.  This is one of my all time favorite dishes, but I never really made it that much until I found this awesome Chicken Pot Pie recipe.
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Tomato Basil Sandwiches

24 May

Tomato Basil Sandwiches is a  great summertime entree.  When it starts getting hot outside, I like recipes that don't require a lot of prep work or cooking.

Tomato Basil Sandwiches is a  great summertime entree.  They are easy to make, and the tomato-basil is very refreshing.  When it starts getting hot outside, I start looking for recipes that don’t require a lot of prep work or cooking.  These Tomato Basil Sandwiches can be made on the grill, along with corn or other veggies to be served as a side dish.  However, I like to use a Panini press or similar indoor grill sometimes instead of cooking outside, especially when it is really hot out.
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Creamy Pasta Primavera

17 May

Creamy Pasta Primavera is a favorite dinner recipe, especially when spring veggies are abundant.  This is a great recipe that truly highlights the best in-season, local vegetables.

Creamy Pasta Primavera is a favorite dinner recipe, especially when spring veggies are abundant.  With farmers markets reopening, this is a great recipe to make that truly highlights the best in-season, local vegetables have to offer.  Creamy Pasta Primavera is a cinch to make, taking about 20 minutes total.  This recipe gets even better though, by offering a low calories, low fat, yet full flavor to the traditional Pasta Primavera recipes, with a hint of lemon.
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Broccoli Casserole Recipe

17 Mar

Broccoli Casserole is the perfect way to sneak vegetables into dinner.  This dish is creamy and flavorful, and my favorite part, cheesy!

Broccoli Casserole is the perfect way to sneak vegetables into dinner.  This dish is creamy and flavorful, and my favorite part, cheesy.  One of the things I love best about this recipe, is that you can really play with the ingredients.  Your not going to make any major mistakes if you decide to add a little something extra to it.  This allows you to really make Broccoli Casserole Recipe your own.
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Vegetable Chowder Recipe

10 Mar

Vegetable Chowder Recipe is the perfect spring soup.  Even though it is called a chowder, it is not as thick as you would think.  Fresh veggies and a cheese sauce make for one awesome chowder.

There is nothing I like better then eating homemade soups, stews, and chowders.  I love how the longer ingredients simmer the more the flavor develops, and you can get completely different tastes from similar ingredients depending on how they are combined.  Soups are multi-talented, they can be served nearly any time of the day.  They can be hearty and warm on those cool days, or they can be chilled and light when it’s warm out.  Soups are simply fabulous!
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Chicken Parmesan Recipe

10 Feb

Chicken Parmesan Recipe

Chicken Parmesan is a good recipe everyone should have…or two, as this is the second one found on The Hungry Wife.  Although similar recipes, this one is particularly wonderful for a weeknight meal.  Easy to prepare, I like using thin cut chicken breast halves so I don’t have to pound the chicken thin.
Chicken Parmesan Recipe, continued…

Corned Beef and Cabbage

9 Feb

Corned Beef and Cabbage deserves more respect then it typically gets.  The meat is super flavorful, with a subtle and unique taste.  Leftovers are perfect to use in homemade Corned Beef Hash and sliced on sandwiches.

With March just around the corner, I start to get the craving for Corned Beef and Cabbage in preparation to celebrate my Irish heritage.  Even though I love this dish, I seem to forget about it until St. Patrick’s day rolls around.  Corned Beef and Cabbage deserves more respect then it typically gets.  The meat is super flavorful, with a subtle and unique taste.  Leftovers are perfect to use in homemade Corned Beef Hash and sliced on sandwiches.
Corned Beef and Cabbage, continued…

Split Pea Soup

7 Dec

This Split Pea Soup Recipe is not like you average canned soup.  It is thick, flavorful, and fills your belly.  Super easy to make, this is the perfect winter soup.

There seems to be a love/hate relationship with Split Pea Soup.  I happen to love it, my husband, not so much.  However, since I find Split Pea Soup to be amazing and a super winter comfort food, I’m going to share my recipe with all the other people who love and appreciate the soup as much as I do.
Split Pea Soup, continued…

Brooke’s Beef Stew

18 Nov

Brooke's Beef Stew is the ultimate winter comfort food.  A full meal in itself, serve with crusty bread and you'll have a full, happy family.

Nothing says comfort to me more, especially in winter, then homemade Beef Stew.  The wonderful aroma fills the house as the hearty ingredients simmer.  It is a meal in itself, serve it with some crusty bread to mop up the left over juices in the bowl, and the family will be full and happy.  There are many, many recipes for Beef Stew out there, and I swear I’ve tried most of them.  Brooke’s Beef Stew arose out of 3 stew recipes, and contains the best of each one.  I hope you enjoy my personal version of Beef stew.
Brooke’s Beef Stew, continued…

Coconut Cream Kale

16 Nov

Coconut Cream Kale is an awesome little dish that makes the greens sing.  Slightly creamy, with just the right amount of seasoning.  It will be a hit this holiday season.

Incorporating vegetables into every meal is a extremely important to healthy eating.  They help fill you up and eat less calories, something everyone is looking for.  Sometimes, finding new ways to make vegetables tasty and different can be difficult.  You don’t have to settle with eating the same veggies the same way.  There are plenty of delicious alternate ways to cook veggies and get your family to eat them.  Coconut Cream Kale is one of them.
Coconut Cream Kale, continued…

Shrimp and Pancetta

9 Nov

Shrimp and Pancetta has a light salty, smoky flavor and is a cinch to make.  Taking only about 30 minutes, including prep time, this is the perfect weeknight meal.

One of the things I love most about making seafood for dinner, is how quick you can make a healthy and delicious meal for your family.  Shrimp and Pancetta takes about 30 minutes total, including the prep time, to make and put on the table.  Another thing I love about this recipe is how simple it is.  Few ingredients and a quick cooking time, make Shrimp and Pancetta a perfect weeknight meal when time is of the essence.
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Vegetarian Mediterranean Stew

3 Nov

Vegetarian Mediterranean Stew is the ultimate veggie stew, that will have even die-hard carnivores wont miss the meat in this hearty meal.

I love building up an excellent collection of vegetarian recipes.  Vegetarian Mediterranean Stew is something everyone will enjoy, even die-hard carnivores, wont miss the meat in this hearty meal.  Everyone should incorporate plenty of vegetables into their diet, and making one night a week meatless is a great way to get health benefits and try out new veggies.
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Oriental Chicken Wings

1 Nov

Oriental Chicken Wings is a super flavorful dish, that can be served as an appetizer at a party or as a delicious main dish.  Either way, this dish is sure to please.

Last night I was staring in my refrigerator, looking for something to make for dinner.  It was the end of the week, the day before grocery day, and the options were limited.  I had thawed out some chicken pieces earlier, now I just needed to figure out what to do with them.  Flipping through one of my trusty cookbooks, I found the recipe for Oriental Chicken Wings.  I had all the required ingredients (chicken pieces instead of wings, but close enough), and even though it is cooked in a slow cooker, you can make it in two hours.  Perfect.
Oriental Chicken Wings, continued…

Spicy Shrimp and Grits

13 Oct

Spicy Shrimp and Grits is the ultimate food, and a classic dish found in lowcountry cuisine. They are a staple food here, and are served for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Shrimp and Grits are a classic dish found in lowcountry cuisine, which is cooking traditionally associated with the South Carolina Lowcountry and the Georgia coast.  They are a staple food in this area of the south, and are served for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  Spicy Shrimp and Grits is the ultimate food.
Spicy Shrimp and Grits, continued…

Pumpkin Waffles

29 Sep

Pumpkin Waffles should taste like you're taking a bite into a pumpkin pie.  This recipe has an amazing flavor, and if you love pumpkin pie you will totally fall in love with these Pumpkin Waffles.

Cooking with foods that are in season is one of the best things you can do.  Not only do vegetables and fruits taste so much better, packed with flavor, but you can get them from local farms.  This helps your local economy and the environment, and provides you with the best tasting food you can ever imagine.  The fall harvest gives us some amazing squash, and pumpkin is one of them.  Pumpkin is extremely versatile, and can be used in many more recipes then just pie.
Pumpkin Waffles, continued…

The Hungry Wife