April 9th Workshop: MENU - Lemon Lentil Soup, Soba Noodle Salad, Buttermilk Biscuits w/Goat Cheese and Chives, Ratatouille, Apple Rhubarb Crumble

HOLY R@%B!RB!!!

I'm a city rat but I won't be fooled,
that could just be a novelty tiny chair.
Picture from: Veggie Gardening Tips

Lemon-Lentil Soup (Serves 12-16)

Ingredients:

2 cups dry red lentils
2 kg spinach
4 onions, cut in half then sliced thinly
8 Tbsp olive oil
12 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp flour
3 lemons, juice of

Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1) Wash and drain the lentils, place them in a pan with water to cover and simmer for 30 minutes
or until they are very tender, adding salt and pepper, to taste, towards the end of the cooking time

2) Wash the spinach thoroughly, remove the stems, chop the leaves coarsely, and add them to the lentils.

3) Sauté the onions and garlic in oil until soft, add the flour and stir well.

4) Add a cup of water and stir until soft, add the flour and stir well.

5) Add lemon juice and more water, if necessary, and simmer until the soup is thick.

6) Serve very hot.


Soba Noodle Salad With Cucumber and Shitake (Serves 12)

Ingredients:

3 pound shitake mushrooms, stems discarded
24 scallions
9 Tbsp peanut oil
Salt and pepper
12 Tbsp light soy sauce
6 tsp minced garlic
6 tsp freshly grated ginger
3 tsp sesame oil
1½ tsp rice vinegar
1½ tsp chili oil
Approximately 600 grams soba noodles
3 carrots peeled and cut into thick matchsticks (OR 3 cucumbers halved, seeded, and cut into thick matchsticks)
sesame seeds (optional)

Directions:

1) In a large bowl, toss the mushrooms and scallions with the peanut oil and season with salt and pepper.

3) Grill the mushrooms over moderate heat, turning once, until cooked through and tender, about 4 minutes; transfer to a plate.

4) Grill the scallions, turning once, until softened and blackened in spots, about 2 minutes; add to the mushrooms.

5) Let the mushrooms and scallions cool, then thinly slice them.

6) In a small bowl, whisk the soy sauce with the ginger, garlic, sesame oil, rice vinegar and chili oil.

7) In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the soba noodles until al dente, about 4 minutes; drain.

8) Transfer the noodles to a large bowl.

9) Add the mushrooms, scallions, carrots (or cucumber) and dressing and toss well.

10) Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

Recipe from: Food & Wine


Buttermilk Biscuits with Goat Cheese and Chives (Makes about 12-14 biscuits)
Best eaten just baked and warm, with a little butter.

Ingredients:

4 cups all purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ cup (1/2 stick) chilled butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup to 1 cup of freshly chopped chives (can also use chopped green onions)
2 5-ounce log soft fresh goat cheese, crumbled
2 cup buttermilk (plus an extra tablespoon for finish)

Preparation:

1) Preheat oven to 400°F. Line 2 heavy baking sheets with silpat or parchment paper.

2) Whisk flour, baking powder, sugar, baking soda, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Using fingertips, rub butter into dry ingredients until coarse meal forms. Stir in the chives. Add cheese and buttermilk; stir with fork just until a sticky dough forms (bits of cheese will be visible in dough).

3) Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently 8 times with floured hands. Do not over-knead! Form into a round, about 3/4-inch to an inch thick. Cut the round into 8 wedges. Use a pastry brush to brush on some extra buttermilk over the surface of the wedges.

4) Arrange wedges about 1/2 inch apart on an ungreased large baking sheet and bake in middle of oven until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Cool on a rack.

Recipe from: Simple Recipes


Ratatouille (Makes 12 servings)

Ingredients:

9 tbsp olive oil
3 onions, peeled and diced (½ in.)
6 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
6 cans (14½ oz. each) diced tomatoes
1½ lbs Asian eggplant, rinsed and diced (3/4 in.)
About 1½ tsp salt
About ¾ tsp pepper
1 lbs red, yellow, and/or orange bell peppers, rinsed, stemmed, seeded, and diced (½ in.)
1½ lbs zucchini, rinsed, ends trimmed, and diced (½ in.)
¾ cup chopped fresh basil leaves

Preparation:

1) In a 12-inch frying pan with sides at least 2 inches tall, heat 1½ tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and stir frequently until onion is limp, about 5 minutes

2) Add tomatoes (with juice), eggplant, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper, and ½ cup water and bring to a simmer. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until eggplant is soft when pierced, about 10 minutes.

3) Stir in bell peppers and zucchini. Return to a simmer, cover, and cook until squash is tender when pierced, 8 to 10 minutes longer.

4) Stir in basil and remaining 1½ tbsp olive o8il. Add more salt and pepper to taste.


Apple Rhubarb Crumble (Serves 12-16)
Preparation time: 15 minutes or less

Ingredients:

20 stalks of rhubarb
8 cooking apples
1 cup sugar

Crumble topping
½ cup melted butter
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 1/3 cup oats
1 1/3 cup flour

Preparation:

1) String rhubarb and cut into pieces 3 cm long

2) Peel, core and slice apples.

3) Place fruit into a large enough saucepan

4) Add sugar and water to cover and cook until soft.

5) Drain some of the water and spoon fruit into a 4L baking dish

6) Crumble topping: Place all ingredients into a bowl and mix well.

7) Sprinkle topping over fruit and pat down firmly.

8) Bake in a moderate oven for 25 minutes.

How to Bake a Camel

Picture from "camel sexes woman to death"
from the weblog tk-421 copied.

Bryanna is going to South Africa this summer, so this is why her mom got her a cookbook entitled: Focus on Africa Cookbook. This recipe caught her eye and probably not just because it was oddly sandwiched in between recipes for burgundy beef and cabbage rolls...

Ingredients:

• 1 large camel
• 2 sheep
• 4 turkeys
• 20 fish
• 200 seagull eggs
• 400 large dates
• banana & palm leaves

Preparation time: 1 week
Cooking time: 2 - 3 days
Serving size: Whole village

Cook eggs and peel. Scale fish. Fill fish with eggs and dates. De-feather turkeys. (Cut off head and feet to use later in soup.) Stuff fish inside turkeys. Shear sheep and set aside wool. (Card and spin wool. Weave into place mats.) Fill sheep with turkeys, and place inside camel. Wrap camel in wet banana and palm leaves. Dig a big hole in the sand. Fill with 500 kilos of charcoal. Let burn until white. Carefully place stuffed camel in hole and cover with sand. Bake 2-3 days. Serve with rice.

APRIL!!!

Even though the spring snow is kind of a bummer, come get warm with some seasonal cooking!

With the stress and time strains of exams in mind, The Student Kitchen Project will be hosting three cooking sessions for the month of April*, which means one each week until the end of school!

Drop by for some educational good times, a free dinner, and tons of leftovers to take home, so you can actually forget about cooking for a few days while you try and cram an entire semester's worth of reading into two weeks.

*APRIL 24th Cook-off: For the last few sessions, Bryanna and I have planned the menus beforehand, but April 24th will be a special "cook-off" where we'll organise a little cooking competition of some sort. Details TBA

March 26th Workshop: MENU - Thai Snapper, Seven-Vegetable Cous Cous, Frittata, Cabbage Salad, Warm Apple Rice Flour Crepes

Tonight's star ingredient: I'm pretty sure is B - The Red Snapper.
(Picture from: Florida Museum of Natural History)

Charlie's Thai Snapper* (Serves 12)
(I don't know who this Charlie is but s/he sure makes a mean fish recipe!)

• 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
  
• 12 garlic cloves, minced
  
• 3 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger
  
• 3 small onions, diced
  
• 1 Tbsp. red curry paste
  
• 2 Tbsp. curry powder
  
• 1½ lbs. fresh red snapper fillet, cut into large cubes
  
• 1½ cans coconut milk
  
• 6 stalks lemon grass, cut into 1-inch pieces
  
• 3 red bell peppers, seeded and finely diced
• salt
  

In a large frying pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring until golden. Add ginger, onion, curry paste and curry powder. Stir to combine. Place the fish in a single layer in the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side. Add the coconut milk and lemon grass, bring to a boil. Pour the coconut milk over the fish in the pan. Add the peppers and simmer for 5 more minutes. Season to taste.

*Recipe from the Vancouver Community Kitchen Project's cookbook Many Hands: Community Kitchens Share Their Best.


Seven-Vegetable Cous Cous* (Serves 8)

• 1 lb. carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
  
• 1 lb. parsnips, cut into 1-inch cubes
  
• 4 medium onions, peeled and cut into quarters
  
• 1 small green cabbage, cored and cut into eights
  
• 5 tomatoes, chopped
  
• 16 cups of water
  
• ½ tsp. turmeric
  
• 1 tsp. sweet paprika
  
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
  
• ½ tsp. cinnamon
• ¼ cup chopped parsley
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro
• 1 lb. zucchini, cut into 1-inch pieces
• ½ lb. sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch strips
• 2 red peppers, seeded and cut into 1-inch strips
• salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper to tast
• 1 19 oz. can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 4 cups cous cous
• 2 Tbsp. olive or vegetable oil
• 4 cups boiling water
• lemon wedges

In a large pot, combine the carrots, turnips, onions, cabbage, tomatoes, water, tumeric, sweet paprika, cumin, cinnamon, parsley, and cilantro. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Add the zucchini, sweet potatoes, red peppers, salt, pepper, cayenne, and chickpeas. Simmer until the vegetables are tender, 15-20 minutes.

While the vegetables are cooking, work the oil into the cous cous with your fingertips. Stir in the boiling water and cover tightly. Let stand until tender, 15-20 minutes.

Fluff up the cous cous and serve with the vegetable stew and lemon wedges.

*Recipe from the Vancouver Community Kitchen Project's cookbook Many Hands: Community Kitchens Share Their Best.


"Hakuna Frittata" (Mixed Vegetables and Feta Frittata)
On the 26th, the recipe was x3 to serve 12

• 2 tsp olive oil
  
• ½ cup diced red onions
• 1 tsp minced garlic
  
• ½ cup each diced red bell pepper, thinly sliced zucchini, and chopped mushrooms
  
• 1 Tbsp. minced fresh oregano leaves, or 1 tsp dried
  
• 1½ tsp minced fresh thyme, or ½ tsp dried
  
• 8 whole eggs, lightly beaten
  
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• ½ cup crumbled light feta cheese (2 oz/57 g)
  

1) Heat olive oil over medium heat in a 10-inch, non-stick skillet. Add onions and garlic. Cook
and stir until onions begin to soften, about 2 minutes. Add red pepper, zucchini, and
mushrooms. Cook and stir until vegetables are tender, about 5 more minutes. Stir in oregano
and thyme. Cook for 30 more seconds.

2) Reduce heat to low. Pour eggs over vegetables, making sure that vegetables are evenly
distributed in skillet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sprinkle feta cheese evenly over egg
mixture.

3) Cover skillet with a tight-fitting lid and let cook until eggs are completely set, about 12
minutes. Slice into 4 servings and serve hot.


Thai Red Cabbage Slaw (Serves 12)*

• 2 lbs. red cabbage, cored and finely shredded
  
• 1 cup coarsely chopped mint
  
• 1 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
  
• 8 greens onions, thinly sliced
  
• 4 cloves garlic
  
• 6 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• ¼ cup fish sauce
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup coarsely chopped peanuts
  
• ½ cup sesame seeds, toasted
  

Combined the cabbage, mint, cilantro and green onion. Stir the garlic, lemon juice, sugar, salt, pepper and fish sauce together. Slowly beat in the oil. Pour over the cabbage mixture and toss well. Toss in the peanuts and sesame seeds just before serving.

*Recipe from the Vancouver Community Kitchen Project's cookbook Many Hands: Community Kitchens Share Their Best.


Warm Apple Rice Flour Crepes (Serves 12)*

Apple filling:

• 10 braeburn apples, cored, peeled, and chopped
  
• Cinnamon

Warm apples with cinnamon in a sauce pan over medium heat with some water. Let boil and reduce heat to low and let simmer until apples are soft enough to mash.

Crepes:

• 2 cups milk
• 4 eggs
  
• 4 Tbsp melted butter
  
• 1 cup rice flour
  
• 2 Tbsp cane sugar
  
• pinch of salt
• Serve with vanilla yogurt or soyogurt
  

Mix dry ingredients together. In separate bowl, whisk eggs, milk and melted butter. Then, whisk into dry ingredients. Heat crepe pan over medium heat. Use 1/3 cup batter per crepe. Cook for 2 minutes per side. Remove from pan and set on a plate. Separate crepes with parchment or wax paper to prevent sticking. Crepes can be prepared up to this point and stored in the fridge for up to 3 days or the freezer for up to a month.

*This recipe is a variation of the one found at 5 to 10 a day - Recipes - Warm Apple Crepes

Attack of Soyzilla: The Eco-conscious Vegetarian's Dilemma

Incredible, unstoppable titan of terror!
(Picture from: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada - where you
will also find an article about the "economic magic" of soy).

Upon reading my blog entry, undoubtedly the one about meat-eating, a friend of mine sent me a link to a very interesting clip from a special report called Argentine: Le soja de la faim that was shown on the French/German channel ARTE. The report is about GMO soy production in Argentina, the role of agri-giant Monsanto, and the looming social and ecological disaster it is becoming for the country. Coincidentally, the issue of the environmental impact of soy production was also a topic brought up at the dinner table tonight.

To be fairly Canadian, here is a link to an English language article by Marcela Valente, from Inter Press Service News Agency, on roughly the same subject: AGRICULTURE-ARGENTINA: Soy Overruns Everything in Its Path.

In most produce stores one can find tofu and soy milk, and in the stores that service the more conscious eating crowd, one can find some of the novel products from whom I like to call "the soy engineers" like: soy cheese, soy dogs, soy burgers, soyogurt, soy gelato, and soy "ground meat." Diversity should be the golden rule to any diet but eating too much soy seems clearly like a bad idea - even if it is in a diversity of shapes, textures, and consistencies. I was in a vegetarian food store once and saw that I could buy soy moulded into a whole fish shape, or "beef slices".

Soy is a favourite and easy alternative to meat for vegetarians and healthy eating fans. I know that it was the first thing I found myself consuming more often when I started laying off the meat. I still hit the soy milk pretty hard, however, soy is also used for other purposes such as bio-fuel. Perhaps this is why it has become a major cash crop, and one of the causes of deforestation in parts of the world, including the Amazon, to pave the way for massive farms. The agricultural commodities market is also overrun with GMO soy. This means that sometimes, even if one's intentions are well-meaning to start, without informed decision-making, one could still potentially end up where s/he started.

So far, from what I've gathered through conversations with my nutritionist, happy vegetarians, and knowledgeable eaters, and through books and my travels on the interweb, some good alternatives to soy are legumes such as chickpeas and other beans such as kidney beans, red beans (adzuki beans), navy beans... Also, try to incorporate into meals lentils, or grains such as quinoa, millet, barley, or sorghum, to name a few.


Sincerely,
your colleague in trying to make more thoughtful choices,
-Bonnie

Wednesday Dinners at West Point Grey United Church

I was actively recruiting classmates today for cooking sessions when my professor mentioned that he helps out on Wednesday nights at West Point Grey United Church - at 8th and Tolmie - for their free dinners.
The 3-course dinners run every Wednesday from 6-8pm (contact for more details), from Thanksgiving to Easter, and are open to everyone.

Please send us anything you might know of, and we will also continue posting any happenings we hear of around the city that offer to make stomachs a little fuller.

March 26th

Come out!

Don't be afraid, it's only posturing for our posters.
We're not condemning canned goods.
We're friendly.
Radicals are what we mostly put in soups and salads!