Ful Medames

This is one of the most famous dishes out of Egypt.  It's the reason I was looking for fava beans.  Making it with limas here.  Cannellini and butter beans would also work.  Really, any bean is fine to use, but it's designed for one of the larger legumes.  It's also a very quick dish to make, perfect for those short on time to cook dinner.

The recipe I chose to follow is mild.  I didn't omit the chiles or any other spice.  If you do want heat, sink a couple of hot peppers into the mix.  The short cooking time really doesn't lend itself to absorbing the flavor, but leftovers will be spicy.  A sliced jalapeño or cayenne powder will do more for an immediate kick.

The original recipe classifies this as an appetizer, so I added that label to the list.  It's eaten at any time of day for any course except dessert.  I'm using it as a vegan main.  Garnishes can go from basic (olive oil, more chopped cilantro) to elaborate (tomatoes, fresh vegetables, chopped cooked meat, cheese).

For the average American diner, I'm calling this a four-serving recipe, about a generous half cup per person.  If you can handle more fiber, it's really 2-3.

1 15 oz can fava beans or any similar large bean; or 3/4 C dry
2 Tb olive oil, plus more for garnish
*2 tsp minced garlic
*2 green onions, sliced
1/2 C water, or as desired
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp dried parsley
2 Tb fresh chopped cilantro, plus more for garnish if desired
*Juice of 1/2 lemon (about 2 Tb)

1.  If making the beans from dry, soak for 8 hours, then drain.  With fresh water, bring to a boil for 5 minutes, lower heat to a simmer, cover, and cook 1-1/2 to 2 hours, until very tender.  You need to be able to mash them a bit.  Drain.  For canned, drain and rinse.

2.  In a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium.  Cook the green onions and garlic until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add the cumin, paprika, salt, and dried parsley and cook another minute, until fragrant.

3.  Add the water and beans.  Bring to a low boil and cook 5 minutes to allow flavors to meld.  Mash some of the beans so they thicken the sauce.  Stir in the 2 Tb fresh cilantro and lemon juice and allow everything to come to temperature.  Serve hot, with garnishes as desired.

Difficulty rating  π

Marinated Eggplant

I forgot to take a picture of the finished product.  Here's my whole mezze meal.  The eggplant is to the left of the cucumbers.

They do sell this canned in Mediterranean sections of the market, or with the pickles and condiments in better markets.  I wanted to learn how to do it in case imported convenience versions are unavailable this summer.

My eggplant bush died.  I suspect a plant disease.  I only got a couple of eggplants off it anyway.  I need to think of something to put in the pot.  That's a big piece of garden real estate not to have something in it.  Maybe carrots.  Where I was going with this is that eggplants have gotten expensive.  I'll have to decide if it costs more to buy them or try not to kill a starter plant.

You're going to use a lot of olive oil on this one.  Eggplants soak it up.  I'm going to post a half recipe of what I made.  It was so much, I put some in the calzones I saved the onions for.

1 eggplant

1/4 C olive oil, plus a whole lot more as needed

*3 Tb lemon juice

*2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1.  Slice the eggplant into thin slices, less than half an inch thick.  Brush both sides with olive oil while you heat up a foil-lined grill or large skillet over medium-high heat.  This is really a grilling recipe, but you can absolutely do it on the stove.

2.  Arrange slices on cooking surface.  Cook until tender, turning as needed.  This does take a while, like 20+ minutes if you're doing it in batches.

3.  While the slices are cooking, whisk together the other 1/4 C oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl.

4.  Toss cooked slices in the dressing.  Allow to chill at least 6 hours before serving.  Store refrigerated in a non-reactive container, preferably glass.  Plastic picks up flavors.  Serve as a condiment, sandwich topping, or tapas.

Difficulty rating  :)

Quinoa-Stuffed Onions (Sogan Dolmasi)

I really shouldn't have planned an elaborate mezze meal on a closing day, so I made sure all the recipes could be morning prep or cooked the day before.  That turned this into a pretty awesome, cold Saturday-night dinner that I ended up dressing up for and eating out on the patio on china, which I have never done.  I really hate eating outdoors, but this made it feel like I was on vacation after a long day on my feet.  Didn't like the sun in my eyes, though.  If I do it again, it will be for breakfast or lunch.

These stuffed onions are my own version of a Turkish recipe.  I used quinoa instead of half of the rice to give a protein boost.  Basically, the part that would be ground meat if it was a meat-stuffed tapa.  I never did find pomegranate molasses, even at Sorrento, and didn't feel like a trip to the Middle Eastern market or Western Kosher, so I used a combination of date syrup and balsamic vinegar to mimic the flavor profile.

I expected this to be a lot harder than it is.  While the onions were boiling and then cooling, I made the filling.  Stuffing them was so much easier than rolling up cabbage.  The onion layers curl themselves around it into a shell-pasta shape with very little effort.  Now that I mention pasta shells, I bet you could use the onion wraps as a keto/GF way to make them.

Yes, there are a lot of ingredients in this one.  They're worth it.

For the onions

3 large onions (yellow or sweet)
1/2 C dry rice
*1/2 C dry quinoa
*1 clove garlic, minced
*1/4 C fresh parsley, chopped, or 2 T dried
*1/2 tsp dried mint
*2 Tb currants, optional
3/4 tsp Aleppo pepper or dried chili flakes, optional
1/2 tsp each allspice, oregano, and kosher salt
1/4 tsp pepper
*1 Tb tomato paste
*1 Tb pomegranate syrup, or 2 tsp date syrup and 1 tsp balsamic vinegar 
2 Tb olive oil

For the sauce

1 C tomato sauce
1 C hot water
1 Tb pomegranate syrup, or 2 tsp date syrup and 1 tsp balsamic vinegar 
1/2 Tb olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

1.  Bring a pot of water to a boil.  Cut off the root and stem ends of the onions and peel.  Carefully cut once to the center of each onion, pole to pole.

2.  Boil the onions for 10-15 minutes, until they look like they're opening up.  Drain and allow to cool until you can handle them.  Gently peel apart all the concentric layers.  The cores can be used for other purposes, such as broths.  I went ahead and baked mine with the stuffed ones to use the following week on calzones.

3.  While the onions are cooking and cooling, make the filling and sauce.  The sauce is easy.  Just stir together all ingredients and set aside for the solids to dissolve.  For the filling, rinse the rice and quinoa until no longer "soapy", usually 3 good rinses.  In a bowl, combine them with the remaining filling ingredients.  I skipped the spicy part, but added the currants.  Some versions have you par-boil the rice.  I was using brown rice instead of jasmine, and probably could have given them ten minutes on the stove first.  I just baked the dish a little longer.

4.  Preheat the oven to 375º.  Spoon a generous tablespoon of filling into each onion layer.  Loosely close the dolma, allowing the natural curve of the onion layer to wrap itself.  Place, seam-side down, in an 8x8 baking dish.  Repeat until all the filling is used, anywhere from 10-14 pieces depending on how you spoon your portions.

5.  Pour the sauce over the onions.  Cover tightly with foil.  Bake 45 minutes.  Remove the foil and baste the onions.  Cook uncovered until the sauce reduces, another 30 minutes or so.  Serve warm or hot, drizzled with the sauce.

Serves 4 as a main, 8 as a side or appetizer

Difficulty rating  :)

Tomato and Avocado Quesadillas

These turned out prettier than I expected, so they're getting a post.  I also realized that the relatively bland guacamole from the previous post was exactly what I wanted on them, so that made me happy.

Quesadillas are an easy 10-minute meal.  I usually just throw some shredded cheese on a tortilla, toast it in a dry pan, and slice up an apple for a balanced lunch or afternoon snack.  For dinner, I went to a little more effort and had beans on the side to up the protein and veggie factor.  I wasn't very hungry and only made one the day I took the photos.  They were small tortillas, and other days I made two for a dinner.  For the sake of the recipe and quantities of ingredients, we'll pretend that there are two 6" fajita tortillas per serving.

*8 6" flour tortillas
*1 C guacamole
*2 C shredded "Mexican" cheese
1 C diced Roma tomatoes
1/2 C cilantro leaves, chopped (optional)

1.  Preheat skillet or griddle over medium-low heat while you top the tortillas.

2.  On a work surface, lay out as many tortillas as fit on the griddle.  Spread 2 Tb of guacamole on each, like it was pizza sauce.  Sprinkle evenly with about 1/4 C cheese, then a generous sprinkle of diced tomatoes on one half.  It will make it easier to fold later.  If using, scatter with cilantro.

3.  Place topped tortillas on griddle.  Toast until cheese melts and underside of tortilla is lightly crispy, about 5 minutes.  Fold over into a half-moon shape (non-tomato half over tomato half), press lightly to make sure all the cheese is melted, and remove to a cutting board.

4.  Cut quesadillas into wedges and serve hot.  Optional to have salsa and/or sour cream on the side.

Difficulty rating  π

Black Bean and Cheese Masa Patties

These are sort of pupusas, but with way more beans than there should be in them.  I made a half batch of masa and added twice as many beans as usual, so they barely held together.  That's what the cheese is for.  As far as I know, this is not an authenic dish in any country south of the U.S., but I'm calling it international anyway.

My power was off for less than 8 hours during the recent fires, a preventive measure that I approve of because my neighborhood did not catch fire.  I'm always ready for a power outage of up to 24 hours, and was glad that my fridge did not get above 45º so I didn't have to toss anything.  If it was that temperature after 12 hours, I would have had to purge the eggs, dairy, any leftover cooked food, most open containers, and nearly all of the condiments.  I didn't bother to check the chest freezer because there's a turkey in the bottom acting as a twelve pound block of ice.  The ice in the kitchen freezer was barely stuck together, meaning the frozen veggies in there probably didn't defrost.

I was definitely thinking of recipes I could make without electricity.  These could be done on an outdoor grill in a foil pan.  Which you wouldn't do during a wildfire, but you get the point.  My stove is gas, which still worked, and I would have lit it with a match if necessary.  The outage was only overnight, so I didn't care until I got cold around 1am.  The power came on at 2am, and the heater about 10 seconds later.

I know I said I wasn't going to make tomatillo salsa anytime soon, but these could definitely have benefitted from some kind of vinegary accompaniment.  Maybe a slaw, curtido, or any kind of salsa.  They were yummy, but I wanted something more piquant than just a salad.  Next canning day, I'll make some.

1 C masa harina or *masarepa
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp chili powder
1 C water, more if necessary
1 15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
*1 C shredded cheese of choice
oil for frying

1.  In a bowl, stir together masa flour, salt, cumin, and chili powder.  Stir in water to make a paste.

2.  Stir in beans and cheese until evenly combined.  Squeeze a handful of the mixture.  If it crumbles instantly, add more water until you can get it to stick together.  I'm not sure if mine was crumbly because the weather was so dry.  It also depends on how wet the beans are when you add them.

3.  Start heating a griddle or large skillet over medium-high.  Portion dough into eight balls.  Once griddle is warm, add a couple of tablespoons of oil to it, just enough to coat the bottom, and let that heat.

4.  Shape the masa balls into patties about half an inch thick.  Cook on oiled griddle until browned and crispy, about five minutes.  Flip and cook until the other side browns.  If doing batches, re-oil the skillet between them.

5.  Serve hot, with salsa, curtido, or a salad on the side.

Difficulty rating  π

Sweet Potato Latkes

I made these for Chanukah dinner, but I'm only getting around to posting them now.  We're having staffing issues at work, and I'm very glad it's the slow season.  Otherwise, we wouldn't be able to keep up.

There are a lot of firsts for me with this recipe.  I've never used sweet potatoes or puréed vegetable in a latke, and I've never baked them before.  With everything going on for an admittedly excessive meal, I found this to be the easiest way to make them.

I got out a bag of pre-steamed sweet potatoes from the freezer, leftovers from the canning session.  It was 2 pounds, so a double recipe of what I'm posting for four servings.  In a surprise twist, the skins were super easy to remove after defrosting, almost as easy as tomatoes.  I was thrilled.  You don't have to go through all that.  You can absolutely open one of the large cans if you don't have the wherewithal to do this from raw potatoes.

*1 lb sweet potatoes or one 30 oz can, drained
1/2 small onion, diced, about 1 C
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
2 Tb flour (matzoh cake meal or potato starch for Passover)
oil for frying

1.  Scrub potatoes well.  Place in a large pot in a steamer basket or sieve over 1" of water.  Cover, bring to a low boil, and cook until thoroughly tender, at least 30 minutes depending on size.

2.  Once cool, peel potatoes.  Either with a masher or food processor, break down into a chunky purée.  Stir together with diced onion, cinnamon, salt, egg, and flour.  Allow to sit 15 minutes while you preheat the oven to 375º.

3.  Smear a rimmed baking sheet with about 2-3 Tb of neutral oil.  You can use olive oil if you want, since this isn't deep frying and the oven won't overheat it.

4.  Spoon or scoop potato batter onto the baking sheet.  I used the 3 Tb cookie scoop and liked the size.  1/4 C would also bake well.  I wouldn't go larger, since they are soft when you flip them later.

5.  Bake until the undersides are crisp and easy to scrape off the pan with a pancake turner, about 20 minutes.  Flip and cook other side until done, 15-20 minutes more.  They're sweet enough that I wouldn't serve them with applesauce, but you could have sour cream with them if you choose.

Makes 8-10

Difficulty rating  :)

Carrot and Chickpea Tart

I bought two pounds of carrots, then kept not using them for their intended purpose.  While they do store for an extended period in the fridge, I didn't want to test the limits.  So "chickpea flour" on the meal calendar turned into this instead of a socca.

I bought a steamer basket at an estate sale for $2.  They probably cost just a bit more than that new, but it was there and in really good shape.  Maybe had been used twice.  I definitely need one, so I can stop gumming up mesh strainers when I steam.  Steaming the carrots for this dish was its first adventure.

This recipe is a dirty dishes factory, even if you use an immersion blender instead of a food processor.  I knew that going in and just did the best I could.  You have been warned.

I'm including the recipe for the yogurt and feta sauce I had with it, but you could have it with anything, or even no sauce at all.  This tart would be great with a side of roasted vegetables, or as the side dish for fish or chicken.  I happened to have it with a green salad because Smart & Final was having some crazy sale on salad ingredients and I ended up with a week's worth for $2.  Meal plans are adaptable.

1 lb carrots
*3/4 C chickpea flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp curry powder
*1/2 C (about 2) chopped green onion
*1/4 C cilantro or parsley

1.  Peel carrots and trim off tops.  Chop into pieces and place in a steamer basket in a pot over 1" water.  Close lid, bring water to a boil over medium-high heat, and steam until easily pierced with a fork, about 20 minutes.  Remove carrots to cool and dry out a bit.

2.  Preheat oven to 350º and grease an 8" pie pan with oil or pan spray.

3.  Place carrots, salt, curry powder, green onion, and cilantro in a food processor and pulse into a slightly chunky paste.  I wanted this to have some texture, and for the herbs to be visible.  If you run it all the way, green and orange make brown, and I didn't want that.

4.  In a bowl (or back in the original steamer pot), stir together purée and chickpea flour into a paste.  Pat into the cake pan.  If you plan to fill the finished tart with a sauce or other topping, make a rim around the edges.  Bake until set, about 30 minutes.

5.  Allow tart to cool in pan about 10 minutes, to firm up a little, but remove it while still warm so the oil hasn't hardened yet.  If you want to serve this in one piece, a removable-bottom tart pan or springform might be a good choice.  None of mine were the right size, so I cut wedges.  Serve warm or room temperature, with a sauce if desired.

Yogurt & Feta sauce

1 C plain yogurt
*1/2 C crumbled feta cheese
*1/4 tsp celery salt
*1/4 tsp sumac
1/4 tsp cumin

1.  Stir together all ingredients while the tart is baking.  Rest in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Serves 4-6

Difficulty rating  :)

Quinoa Dolmades

I'm not a huge fan of rice dolmades (or dolmas).  Something tends to be not right in the consistency half the time, or maybe the way the rice reacts with the herbs.  I thought I'd give a different filling a try, using quinoa to make it lower carb and a vegan protein.

It could have gone a little better, but I did get over half of them to stay wrapped.  Quinoa doesn't have any sticking power, unlike rice and most grains.  It's a seed, like sesame seeds or chia.  At least chia develops that gummy exterior.  The taste, however, was what I was expecting.  The nutrition level was exactly what I wanted it to be.  There are numerous recipes that turn this idea into a salad with finely chopped grape leaves, and that may be a better idea if I were to try this again.

Also, I have a ton of grape leaves left.  The jar I bought had approximately 90 leaves in it.  The jar that had the 30 I wanted cost twice as much.  Fine, whatever, I'll find a use for them.  I topped off the brine with vinegar and stuck the jar in the fridge.  I might try to wrap tamales with them.  It will probably require two leaves each, so there you go.

3/4 C dry quinoa
1/2 tsp kosher salt
*1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp dried oregano
*1/2 tsp dried mint
*1/2 tsp dill weed
*1 C kalamata olives, minced
about 30 grape leaves
*1 orange or lemon, thinly sliced

1.  Rinse quinoa well.  Add it and 1 C of water to a small saucepan.  Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook 10 minutes.  Set aside to cool, and it should absorb the remaining water.  It's ok if it isn't fully cooked.  You want it to expand more in the wrappers.

2.  Rinse grape leaves very well.  I rinsed, then left them in a container of hot water while I was working.

3.  In a bowl, mix together quinoa, chopped olives, salt, and herbs.

4.  Line a large saucepan or soup pot with a few grape leaves.  On a work surface, lay one leaf shiny-side down.  You want to see all the veins on the inside part.  Cut off the stem if still attached.

5.  Spoon a generous tablespoon of quinoa onto the center of the leaf.  Fold in the sides, then roll from the stem end to the point.  Place, point-side down, in the pot.  Continue until the rolls are tightly packed.  Cover with orange slices and a few more leaves, then start another layer.

6.  Once all the quinoa is rolled, fill the pot with water to cover.  They float, so you may have to place a plate over them to keep them under water.  Bring to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes.

7.  When I took the plate off and there was quinoa floating, I knew there were fails.  Still, it was a lot.  Gently remove the rolls from the water and place on a serving plate.  Can be served hot or cold, with any sauce of your choice or a squeeze of lemon.

Makes about 30

Difficulty rating  :)

Vegetable Strudel

I really thought I had a post of this, and have been trying to avoid making it for a couple of months.  Can't find one, so here we go.

I had half a package of puff pastry taking up freezer space and a can of mushroom gravy that was a good idea when I bought it.  Somehow, this inspired a very good meal.  While I had it for dinner, it's also excellent for lunch, brunch, tea, an appetizer, or as a side.

This does generate a wee bit of dishes, since you have to cook the vegetables first.  On the other hand, you could cook them earlier in the day or the day before and split up the work.  The vegetables need to cool a bit before going on the pastry, so it's the same amount of time.

This was another fly by the seat of my pants recipe, even though I did research.  Pepperidge Farm's recipe (that I now can't find) was kind of close to what I did.  A lot of the recipes have you mix an egg into the veggies, to form kind of a casserole.  Others use shredded cheese as the binder.  My vote is for the cheese approach.  I used slices, and it was hard to roll the filling into the pastry.  Once I broke up the cheese, everything fit, so that's what I'm posting.

Sorry, I didn't realize how many ingredients this was.  I was mostly clearing out the crisper and last year's frozen broccoli.  The result is very nice, so it's absolutely worth it.

1 Tb olive oil
1 Tb butter
1/2 tsp salt
*1 yellow or sweet onion
*1 C chopped broccoli
*1 C chopped spinach or other greens
*1 carrot, peeled and chopped
*2 Tb chopped sun dried tomato, either from oil or soaked if dry
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp basil
*1 sheet puff pastry
flour for rolling the pastry
4 oz shredded cheese of choice (about 1 C)
egg wash

1.  Heat the oil and butter over medium low in a wide skillet.  Peel the onion and French it, which is slicing stem to root ends instead of in rounds.  Separate the layers, sprinkle with salt, and slow cook for 15 minutes.  Stir, come back 15 minutes later again, and come back every five minutes after that until the onions are as caramelized as you like.

2.  Add the broccoli, greens, carrot, and tomato pieces.  Stir in oreganto and basil.  Cover and cook on low until the greens are wilted and the carrot starts to soften.  Turn off the heat and allow to cool.  This part can all be done ahead and refrigerated.

3.  Defrost puff pastry according to package directions, usually on the counter for 45 minutes.  Preheat oven to 400º.  Line a baking sheet with parchment.

4.  Roll the pastry out to about 14" x 10", dusting with flour as necessary.  Stir cheese into the now-cooled vegetable filling.  Place filling in a log on the long side of the pastry, slightly off-center.  Roll the filling so you have a clean side for sealing.

5.  Transfer the log to the baking sheet seam-side down and seal the ends of the log.  Cut vents in the top, then brush with an egg wash if you would like a shiny crust.  Bake 25 minutes, or until well browned and the pastry is cooked.  Allow to sit 10 minutes before slicing.  Serve hot or room temperature, with gravy on the side if desired.

Serves 4 as a main, 6-8 as a side

Difficulty rating :-0

Red Lentil Crackers

I love the red lentil crepes, but they're kind of time consuming.  We Cook Vegan tends to do a lot of bean-based balls and patties, so I thought I'd try to invent some of my own.

Well, not every recipe works as well in real life as it does in my head.  I don't generally do recipe testing of my new ideas.  I kind of go for it and make the fixes on the back end.

This recipe tasted great, but was an epic fail in structure.  I had to change the approach a couple of times as I went along, when what I was trying didn't work.  Patties turned into a tart shell.  Then, when I got it out of the oven, it largely stuck to the pan despite quite a bit of olive oil.  However, the chips I scraped off onto the plate tasted really good.

So, I reworked the patties into crisps.  Basically, I had been trying to get out of using the food processor the first time.  Fine, I got it dirty and got the product I wanted, sort of.

*1/2 C red lentils
1/4 C cilantro
1/4 C Italian parsley
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp celery salt

1.  Rinse the lentils until the water runs clear.  Refill saucepan and simmer lentils until tender and split, about 10 minutes.  Drain very well.

2.  Place all ingredients in the food processor, removing the toughest stems from the cilantro and parsley.  Pulse into a thick paste.

3.  Preheat oven to 375º and line a baking sheet with parchment.  Spread a tablespoon of paste into a round cracker shape about 2" across and very thin.  Continue until all the paste is used, about a dozen.

4.  Bake until the tops of the crackers look dry, about 15 minutes.  Carefully flip with a spatula, as they will still be soft.  Bake another 10-15 minutes, until crisp.  I may have let mine go a little long.  Some of the edges were kind of burnt.

5.  Allow to cool, then carefully transfer to a serving platter.  Remember, gluten-free.  They break easily.  Eat alone, or with a dip spooned on top.  I wouldn't try to pick up anything heavier than salsa on them.

Makes about one dozen

Difficulty rating  :)

Vegetarian Zuppa Toscana

I've never actually had Olive Garden's zuppa Toscana, mainly because I'm not a huge fan of Italian sausage.  I do like it on pizza, because there generally isn't a lot of it.  Most of the vegetarian versions use plant-based sausage, which defeated the purpose for me, until I found recipes using white beans and compensating by adding in the sausage spices.  That's what I wanted.  Also, there's a significant amount of kale in it, because that's still a thing in the garden.

I probably should have used cannellini beans, being an Italian recipe, but I don't have any at the moment.  I didn't realize they're part of the kidney bean family.  Think I'm going to put them on my hypothetical bean-canning list, but only one pound, if I can even find them.  I only use them a couple of times a year.

I did have to buy sun-dried tomatoes, which assume the flavor profile of the bacon for this recipe.  I admit, I got a super late start on my tomatoes this year, like by three months, but I had hoped to have more than a couple by now.  Without any of my own oven-dried to put in the soup, I opted for the dried ones in pouches, rather than the canned ones in oil.  They do have to be refrigerated after opening, but you can reseal the package and cram it in anywhere.  Jars tend to leak if they're not upright.

2 Tb olive oil
1 C diced yellow or white onion
*2 ribs celery, diced (optional, but I like celery in a cream soup)
*3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp Italian seasoning (or enough of related dried herbs to equal 2 tsp)
*1/2 tsp dried fennel seed, optional
2 Tb sun-dried tomatoes, cut in small pieces
chili flakes to taste, optional
salt and pepper to taste
*1/4 C white wine, optional, or extra broth
2 C drained white beans, veggie Italian sausage, or diced mushrooms
*4 C vegetable broth
1-1/2 lb Yukon gold potatoes, cut in bite-sized pieces
*1 C half & half or 1 can evaporated milk
*3-4 C kale, de-stemmed and chopped
*Parmesan cheese for serving

1.  Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium heat.  Cook onion and celery until softened.  Add Italian seasoning, garlic, fennel, sun-dried tomatoes, chili flakes, and a little salt and pepper.  You don't want to over-season before the broth goes in.  Cook until fragrant, another 3 minutes.

2.  If using mushrooms or sausage, add to pan and cook until browned.  Deglaze pot with wine, if using, or a generous splash of broth.  Add remaining broth, potatoes, and beans if using.  Bring to a low boil.  Cover, lower heat to a strong simmer, and cook until potatoes are done, about 15 minutes.  Actual time will vary based on size of pieces.

3.  Add half and half and kale.  You'll be surprised how creamy the soup gets with only a cup of milk.  Keep at a simmer until kale is wilted, about 5 minutes.  Taste and add more salt and pepper as needed.  Ladle into bowls and garnish with grated Parmesan.

Serves 4 as a main dish, 8 as an appetizer

Difficulty rating  :)

Gozleme

I went down a bit of a recipe rabbit hole and bookmarked a bunch of things to make.  Up first is a Turkish street food called gozleme.  No idea how to pronounce it.  It's kind of like a calzone, or a Greek phyllo pie but with tortilla-ish dough.  I saw a vegan version at the market with pumpkin that looked good, but not $10 good.  There are both meat and vegetable fillings on most of the sites I visited.  I'm making the spinach and feta.

I got this recipe from RecipeTin Eats.  She's Australian, so both metric and Imperial measurements are given.  Her recipe serves four, but that is as a full meal.  I was having this as part of a tapas arrangement and cut it in half, to be just another thing on the plate with my hummus and veggies.  It was still kind of a lot, so I'm reducing the amount of filling.  This version will serve four as a lunch or as dinner with side dishes, or many more cut up into an appetizer.

Dough

1-1/4 C flour
3 Tb olive oil
6 Tb water
1/4 tsp salt

1.  Since this is a small batch, you probably can't make it in the stand mixer.  Stir together in a bowl until it starts to come together.  I used part whole wheat flour, which probably changed the water absorption, so your consistency may vary.  Knead in the bowl until you can get it out in one piece, then knead on a work surface until smooth, without adding additional flour.  It will surprisingly come together as a smooth, not sticky ball.  I scrubbed the counter and did it there.

2.  Cover with a towel and allow to rest 20 minutes.  You can also wrap in plastic and refrigerate for up to 3 days as a do-ahead.  While resting, make your filling.

Filling

4 oz spinach, either fresh or thawed and squeezed dry
1 clove garlic, minced
1 egg
1/4 tsp pepper
4 oz feta, crumbled

1.  Combine the spinach, garlic, egg, pepper, and feta in a bowl.  If using fresh spinach, knead it first to crush it and make it pliable.

2.  Divide dough into 4 portions by weight and roll each out into a thin rectangle on a floured surface, about the thickness of a tortilla but oblong.  Start heating a griddle or skillet over medium-high heat with a thin layer of oil, like you were making pancakes.

3.  Divide spinach evenly among the rectangles, placing it in a thin layer on half of each.  Fold the clean half over and pinch the gozlemes shut, pressing out any air pockets.

4.  Carefully transfer gozlemes to the skillet.  These should be small enough to carry without the help of a plate, unlike the giant ones in the original recipe.  Even with these smaller pieces, you'll probably have to do them in batches unless you have one of those cool, two-burner griddles.

5.  Cook about 3 minutes per side, until crispy.  Pressing down with a pancake turner will help to cook them faster and more evenly.  If doing batches, add more oil before the next one.

6.  Cut into slices and serve, with lemon wedges if desired.

Difficulty rating :-0