Grown up Scalloped Potatoes

I was never a scalloped potatoes person growing up. But I am now looking at a cabinet full of potatoes from my CSA and thinking of everything I can do with them. I also have a stock pile of zucchini and summer squash. So I had an experiment last night with leftover ingredients and CSA vegetables.

The result was a very grown-up version of scalloped potatoes. It also seems like a great July 4th side dish.

Scalloped Potatoes

1.5 - 2 lbs potatoes

4 medium zucchini or summer squash

1 bunch green onions or summer onions

coarse salt and pepper

garlic powder

crushed rosemary

1 can 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup reduced fat sour cream

1/3 cup shredded smoky cheese, such as cheddar or smoked Gouda

1/2 cup panko crumbs

Preheat oven at 400 degrees. Wash and cut potatoes into one inch pieces - about the size for boiling mashed potatoes. Toss potatoes with one tbsp olive oil, coarse salt and pepper and spread into a rimmed baking sheet. Bake potatoes while you prepare vegetables. I love to use butter infused olive oil from Midtown Olive Press in Raleigh, but EVOO is also good.

Wash and cut summer squash into one inch pieces. Also slice onions. I get a lot of spring onions from my CSA, which always come in a combination of white, yellow and red. I like the color combination but any color/flavor is good for this recipe. Heat skillet on medium-high heat and saute onions first. Toss squash with 1 tbsp olive oil, salt, pepper and crushed rosemary. I have fresh rosemary in the garden, and if you let a stem dry for a day you can use a mortar and pestle to crush. Once pan is hot, add squash. You may need to do this in batches to make sure the squash is evenly spread in the pan.

Sear squash until soft. Check on potatoes - they should be slightly brown and easily pierced with a fork, but not tender. Reduce oven temp to 350 degrees. Mix vegetables and potatoes in a large bowl. Add cream of mushroom soup, sour cream, garlic powder and more seasonings. Stir in smoky cheese. Trader Joes has a great shredded bag of smoky cheese including cheddar, Gouda, mozzarella and provolone. Any of these cheeses work but the smoky will being out the best taste in this dish.

Pour cheesy vegetables into a baking pan. Top with panko crumbs and bake for 25 minutes. Turn oven to broil and let top brown slightly, 5 minutes max. This dish is very rich but surprisingly light. It's almost enough for a meal in itself, but I recommend this as a side for your holiday spread or a pot luck.

Wild Rice Casserole

Alright folks, it's Christmas and you can't cut-back ALL year. This is my family's wild rice casserole and I have plenty of friends and family who will contest to the greatness of this dish. It's almost a meal in itself but it makes an excellent side to Christmas dinner. I was introduced to the term "sidesgiving" for vegetarians who don't eat turkey or other meat main courses for Thanksgiving, so this should be a great recipe for those who are having a side dish holiday feast.

In all honesty, this dish does not resurrect well, so I highly recommend making it for a large group and taking it out in one night. Hopefully that won't be a problem ;)

Wild Rice Casserole

2 box Uncle Ben's traditional wild rice

1 pint slice mushrooms

3-4 stalks celery, chopped

1 yellow onion, chopped

2-4 tbsp butter

minced garlic

1 pint heavy cream or evaporated milk or combination of both

1/4 block of Velveta cheese, cubed

Cook rice according to package instructions. For some reason the "quick rice" doesn't work as well with this recipe - probably because it is also baked. So use the traditional recipe box.

Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Melt butter into pan and add garlic, onion and celery. I hardly ever saute using butter, but it just tastes so much better in this recipe. And after all the heavy cream and Velveta, you're not saving much on calories. Once celery is soft, add mushrooms and saute. Season with garlic salt and pepper.

Once rice is done, stir in vegetables. Spread into a 2 quart baking dish - preferably glass - and pour cream over rice. I've always made this recipe with cream, but one year Mom used leftover evaporated milk and it was great and also make the dish more of a traditional casserole. I normally have both in the house during the holidays so a mix is probably best. The rice mix should be well saturated - the rice will still absorb a lot of the cream when it bakes. Evenly spread the Velveta cubes over the casserole.

Bake casserole for 45-60 minutes or until the top starts to brown. Let the casserole sit to cool! I can't count how many times I burnt my tongue waiting for that thing to cool. It's just so good.

Happy Holidays everyone and enjoy all your Christmas goodies.

Cranberry

For OBVIOUS reasons, Thanksgiving is hands-down my favorite holiday. It is during the heart of my favorite season (autumn), close to my birthday (November 30), and includes my three favorite things in this world - family, football and food! Of course everyone has their traditional spread of Thanksgiving regulars, but one vegetarian side that cannot be skipped is cranberry sauce.

Cranberries are an incredible power-packed berry that we sadly only see during the holiday season. Cranberries provide anti-oxidants that help reduce the aging process and fight bad bacteria. It is a versatile berry that can be used in sauces, gravy and, of course, desserts. Here are some perfect ideas for the Thanksgiving week for the use of cranberry and leftover sauces.

Whole Cranberry Sauce

I will admit that I loved canned cranberry sauce. I know it is a foodie sin to indulge in something so canned and processed, but Thanksgiving is only once and year. However, in 2005 my roommate and I were having a Thanksgiving 2 for our friends in Raleigh and I tried my hand at Martha's homemade cranberry sauce - I will never go back.

This is a savory sauce without a lot of sugar or tart. In fact, homemade cranberry sauce contains 40% less sugar than canned. I generally use fresh berries, but since fresh is such a rarity outside November and December, I recommend freezing them or buying frozen if you attempt to work this into your menu during the year.

1 large shallot

1 tbsp olive oil

fresh ginger root

12 oz fresh or frozen cranberries

1 cup sugar

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

coarse salt and pepper

Mince shallot and saute in olive oil over medium heat. Add cranberries, sugar, vinegar and 1 cup filtered water. I shave frozen ginger root, about 1 tbsp, into the sauce. Or peel fresh ginger root and grate 1 tbsp for the sauce. It is more typical to have fresh ginger in the house around the holidays, but otherwise I will freeze the root to make it useful for more meals. Simmer sauce until thickened, mashing berries all the while - sauce should be done in 10-15 minutes. Season with coarse salt and pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Cranberry leftovers

I'll be honest, it is difficult to find uses for leftover cranberry sauce without using turkey as well. But here are some ideas.

Cranberry pancakes:

thin leftover cranberry sauce with red currant jelly, or other tart jelly, until you get a smooth sauce that can be used over pancakes. You can also stir in whole cranberry sauce into pancake batter for an after-Thanksgiving festive creation.

Cranberry Spread:

Use cranberry sauce as a spread on sandwiches. Because this recipe is more savory and less sweet, it can be used with a variety of sandwiches.

Mulled Cranberry Cider:

In a large pot, boil 1 quart apple juice or cranberry juice, 1/2 cup cranberry sauce, cinnamon stick plus 1/4 tsp each ground cinnamon and ground cloves. Heat on simmer until mixture is warm and cranberry sauce is diluted. Filter mixture through a mesh strainer and serve warm.

Have a happy and blessed Thanksgiving!

Fancy Endive Salad

If you are anywhere near Valle Crucis, NC and want to spoil yourself to a night of divine, gourmet food and a relaxing atmosphere, you must visit The Inn at Little Pond. Gay and Frank host a beautiful bed and breakfast as well as sponsor cooking classes for their guests and send you away with your own glorious recipes to make the same dinner at home.

The last time I went there, I learned I liked endive. Endive looks like a tasteless heart of iceburg lettuce, but in fact it is quite nutritious and tender. On the ultimate vegetable list, it scores a 307, above green leaf lettuce. The most appealing part of the salad was the vinegar and walnut oil salad dressing.

I like using the word "fancy" because it makes me feel like I can show up overpriced restaurants and still make a presentation worthy of my husband and important guests. This salad is a great, light appetizer for a fancy meal or even as a large side dish to a simple main course. This is also a great recipe to getting rid of the last of your lettuce, specialty cheese or apple sitting in your fruit basket.

Fancy Endive Salad

Salad:

1/4 cup hazelnuts, raw and unsalted

2 heads endive, chopped

1 apple, cored and sliced

2 oz. gorgonzola cheese, crumbled

Dressing:

2 tbsp white wine vinegar

1 tsp dijon mustard

coarse salt and pepper

7 tbsp walnut oil

Roast hazelnuts at 400 degrees for 7-10 minutes. As soon as you smell them, take them out of the oven. Again, Trader Joes has the best selection of raw, unroasted nuts in bulk amounts at a discounted rate compared to other grocery stores. Once cool, chop nuts with a large knife.

Fill a bowl with water. Add sea salt. Sink chopped endive into bowl and let leaves rise to the top. This lets the dirt sink to the bottom. Pull leaves out of water, don't squeeze, and completely dry.

Whisk together salad dressing ingredients.

Combine endive and chopped apple. Slowly stir in dressing until produce is modestly coated. Serve salad topped with hazelnuts and cheese. You can use alternatives such as pear, romaine lettuce, baby spinach, blue cheese, walnuts, etc.

Real Mac-n-Cheese

I am revived! I was getting a little discontent with my food blog lately because I wasn't making the best-tasting vegetarian recipes or finding really unique ideas. But after a girls weekend and a replay of "Julie and Julia" I have revived my foodie spirit.

Another revelation I had this weekend was about mac-n-cheese. You may have noticed some of the organic and all-natural substitutes for Kraft's dinner staple, but I assure you NONE are as satisfying or palatable as the original "blue box". However, the delicious side dish suffers from being over-processed. A good solution is to make your own, you might say, but I have had more than a few bad experiences making gourmet mac-n-cheese recipes and had all but given up on my own creation.

However, sometimes it's good to go back to the basics: southern comfort. I have a co-worker who is an admitted non-cook: chopping vegetables is overbearing for her. But she does have some pot luck staples that she makes very well. One being macaroni and cheese. This is admittedly not the healthy choice I try to promote in my recipes, but it is vegetarian and it is a great way to get rid of your mac-n-cheese fix minus the processed go-to item.

Mac-N-Cheese ala Wilson

1 can Carnation evaporated milk, reduced fat

1 tbsp flour

4 eggs, preferably organic or cage-free

1 cup milk, at least 2% and organic

1 tbsp sugar

dry seasonings: garlic powder, cyanne pepper, and salt and black pepper

two cups each (16 oz):

shredded sharp cheddar e.g. Cracker Barrell

cubed velveta

shredded mild cheddar e.g. Kraft

1 lb. macaroni

Boil macaroni according to package instructions. Preheat oven for 375 degrees. Whisk evaporated milk, flour and eggs together. Add milk, sugar and seasonings. In a two (2) quarter casserole dish layer macaroni and cheeses. Keep cheeses separated so you know you are using an even amount of each. You should have about three layers depending on the depth of your dish. Pour egg mixture over the pasta. Make sure you don't overfill the dish. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until eggs are set.

This is a big hit with my husband's friends when they visit for the weekend. It is very boy-friendly food. I do my best to get them to eat a side of broccoli, which tends to go well with mac-n-cheese.

Broccoli side

This photo has nothing to do with my recipe, but it's so cute. I want to enjoy my broccoli as much as this little hamster.

I went to a friend's pot luck party a few weeks ago and someone had sautéed broccoli that was out of this world! Since my CSA is now distributing broccoli, I went to look for a recipe. I didn't find much that didn't have some kind of cheese sauce, so I experimented with this idea.

Sautéed Broccoli

1 tbsp oil

1 tbsp minced garlic

chili powder

crushed red pepper

grill seasoning, such as GrillMate

1 head broccoli

Steam broccoli first with either a steam basket over boiling water or in the microwave. After water starts to boil I let broccoli steam about 5 minutes or until broccoli is bright green and tender.

Add oil to skillet and turn stove to medium heat. Make sure oil is hot before adding broccoli or the florets will absorb too much of the oil. Sauté garlic first until golden and add broccoli. Season with chili powder, red pepper and grill seasoning. I used a grill seasoning intended for steaks, but it doesn't have any animal product so it is still vegetarian. The grill seasoning adds a lot of flavor without added oils or ingredients. Sauté broccoli until starts to brown.

I served this dish inside a vegetarian burrito and fish tacos, but you can have it on it's own. I also served it over rice pilaf for a very light dinner. This is my new favorite side dish! Plain vegetable sides are difficult for me because I want massive flavor and, of course, I want to add cheese to everything. This side dish is good because it is so flavorful and works stand-alone.

If you have other ideas for this broccoli side please post! I would love to hear ideas from you too!

Gorgonzola Grits

There is a family tradition in my house that mostly focuses on the men: Dijon chicken and Gorgonzola grits. I was told it was a Williams-Sonoma recipe, but then I thought it was a Cooking Light recipe, but now I think it is just a Ross-family recipe. I may not be able to afford the kitchen tools, but W-S has some great recipes for those of you looking to expand your recipe base.

These grits are very fancy and almost take the Southern out of grits, but they are worth sharing because I think they are good enough to stand alone or match with other vegetarian dishes since they are so flavorful. Cooking Light also has a goat cheese grits recipe for those of you stinky-cheese lovers like me.

Gorgonzola Grits

4-5 packets of instant grits, butter flavor

1 bullion cube, chicken or vegetable

4 oz gorgonzola cheese (about half the carton)

4-5 green onions, whites and greens separated

1/3 cup sour cream (don't substitute Greek yogurt)

coarse salt and pepper

Cook grits according to package instructions but add bullion cube to water being used. Stir in cheese, sour cream and white onions until smooth. Season with salt (very little since cheese will supplement a lot of the salt) and pepper. Let grits sit for a bit until set. Serve grits with green chives for garnish.

I usually serve this with chicken, but you can also make it a filling side for a brunch or substitute for creamy polenta or potatoes for a richer side dish. Please post some more ideas. I love this side and want to use it for more vegetarian meals.

UPDATE: another foodie has posted a recipe for fried green tomatoes over cheesy grits. She used goat cheese but I think either of these recipes would go great with fried tomatoes. Check our her blog - she has some great recipes and even better photos of her meals.