Sweet Potato Chili, Corn Muffins, Crudités

from Holly and Chris - I hope it wasn't too spicy...we really enjoyed it...hope you did too!

Sweet Potato Chili

http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2009/05/sweet-potato-chili-vegan-crockpot.html

Corn Muffins

http://southaustindinnercoop.blogspot.com/2009/11/pinto-beans-corn-muffins-salad-with.html

Bell Pepper and Carrot Crudites

Total Cost = $11 for 5 families ( I had a bunch of stuff and CM didn't charge me for the sweet potatoes...so incredibly cheap)

Orange/ Ginger glazed Salmon, Roasted fingerling potatoes, Roasted Asparagus by Heather

Orange/ Ginger Glazed Salmon--$30

1 jar orange marmalade
3 Tbs. ginger, coarsely choppped
1 Tbs. soy sauce
2 Tbs. orange juice

mix in pot and simmer on stove on low, brush on salmon and roast at 350 for 20 minutes

Roasted asparagus-- $6
Roasted fingerlings--$6
toss in olive oil, salt and pepper, roast at 350 for 20 minutes

Total Cost-- $42

This meal was so simple to prepare (good thing since both kids started melting down at the end!) you'll be seeing variations of it ALOT!!! Hope you all liked it :)

Vegetable Frittata, Sweet Potato Barley Risotto, salad

Vegetable Frittata

2 tbsp veg oil
2 cups diced veggies (can't remember what we used aside from red pepper)
3/4 cup onion
6 large eggs
2 8 oz pkg cream cheese
1/4 cup milk
2 cups cubed bread
6 oz shredded cheese
salt
garlic (several cloves)
pepper

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease quiche or 9 inch pan. Saute veggies/onion. Beat eggs, cream cheese, milk until smooth, then combine with cooked veggies. Add bread and cheese. Pour into pan and bake for 30 minutes.

Sweet Potato Barley Risotto

In crock pot, low for 8 hrs- I think I doubled this

1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp dried rosemary leaves
1 sweet potato, peeled and cubed
1 cup pearl barley
3 cups veggie stock

add freshly grated parmesan and serve immediately

and... don't really remember the salad, but we got our greens!

Pumpkin French Toast, Home Fries, & Fruit Salad

Pumpkin French Toast

(recipe for 5 families, all measurements are approximate)

24 eggs

1 cup buttermilk

1 can organic pumpkin

2 tsp. vanilla

freshly grated nutmeg

cinnamon

ground cloves

chopped walnuts

2.5 loaves of whole grain sliced bread

-Whisk ingredients, dunk bread, pan fry with small pat of butter ( I used maybe 1 tbsp for the whole thing)

Home Fries

Russet Potatoes, diced

chopped garlic

salt

pepper

a few tbsp canola oil

-Toss all together, pan fry in hot skillet with olive oil.

Fruit Salad

cantaloupe

large red grapes

strawberries

lime zest

agave nectar

Vegetable Lasagna, Salad, and Bread

from Chris and Holly

Lasagna with Fall Vegetables, Gouda, and Sage Bechamel

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=549977

I substituted Gouda for Gruyere, used whole wheat noodles, and only did one layer of sweet potato/mushroom and one layer of spinach. I tripled the recipe to make 5 8x8 dishes.

Homemade Wheat Bread from Chris

Salad with Cilantro Dressing

Martha Stewart

Artisan lettuces from Costco

1 tbsp champagne vinegar

1tbsp rice vinegar

chopped fresh cilantro

1 tsp lemon zest

6 tbsp olive oil

S&P to taste

Total cost = $50

I delivered to a food tree - so cost is for 5 families

Dinner 11/15/09

Minestrone Soup, Organic Pears and Apples, Bread and Cheese with Walnuts by Heather

Wow, so this was my first week back and I thought I'd start with something simple.... it wasn't easy with two kids to juggle this though. My soup was alot more prep than I expected, hope it was good and hope I can get the hang of this again!! It's good to be back : )

Minestrone Soup (my own)
veg stock (2 cartons)
2 can tom. sauce
1 1/2 can kidney beans
handful of pasta
4 carrots
5 sticks celery
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
1 bunch kale
2 bay leaves
oregano
salt and pepper

Saute the onion, garlic, carrots, and celery in olive oil, add tomato sauce and veggie stock to boil. Add kale and cook until tender. Add kidney beans and pasta at the end.

Organic pears and apples- Costco $8

Bread, Cheese, and Walnuts-- $10

Total for meal -- Probably around $40, but I made a ton (2 batches of soup frozen) and I delivered to Courtney, so overall a very affordable meal!

Plantain Wraps w/Tangy Black Bean Spread, Cole Slaw, Rice

cooked by Summer

Plantain Wraps

Tangy Black Bean Spread

I added some Cholula sauce to one dish of the spread for each family.

Cole Slaw

1 head cabbage

1 head red cabbage

about 1 lb. carrots

**I made up the dressing as I went, so don't have measurements

Olive Oil

Walnut Oil

Rice Wine Vinegar

Balsamic Vinegar

Agave Nectar

Nonfat Plain Greek Yogurt

Stone Ground Mustard

Pepper

Celery Seeds

Shred cabbages and carrots in food processor, emulsify all other ingredients besides celery seeds with blender, add celery seeds to dressing, pour dressing over slaw, and toss.

Baked Ziti, spinach salad, Chickpea salad

Baked Ziti

• 2 pounds dried ziti
• Kosher salt
• about 8 cups homemade sauce
  
• 2 cups grated Parmesan
• 2 pounds grated mozzarella
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Pinch of crushed red pepper or to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt generously, and boil the pasta until al dente, tender but still slightly firm. Drain.

In a large bowl, toss the cooked pasta with the marinara sauce, 1 cup of the Parmesan, and the mozzarella. Season with the black pepper to taste, and mix until well combined. Transfer the pasta to an oiled 9- x 13-inch baking dish. Cover the top of the pasta with more mozzarella, and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan. Bake until lightly browned and hot, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.

Chickpea Salad

• 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 small red onion finely chopped
• 1 small red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced or grated then grinded into a paste with salt
• 2 tablespoons rosemary, finely chopped, a few sprigs
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Combine chick peas with onions, peppers, garlic, and rosemary in a medium bowl. Dress salad with vinegar and oil, salt and pepper.

Spinach salad-- pretty standard stuff.

Herb Onion Tomato Quiche, Pesto Pasta, Two Bean Succotash

Herb Tomato Onion Quiche

3 tbsp unsalted butter
2 cups thinly sliced onion
1 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
1 cup milk (we used organic 2%)
1 tsp salt
freshly ground pepper
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley ( I think we subbed cilantro?)
1 tbsp chopped fresh chives
1.5 tsp chopped fresh tarragon
1.5 tsp chopped fresh basil
4 oz shredded cheddar
1 unbaked 9 inch pie crust
1 tomato, sliced

Preheat oven to 425. Melt butter in skillet. Saute onions, stir in flour. Beat eggs and milk in small bowl, add herbs. Put onions and cheese into pie crust. Cover with egg mixture. Bake 15 min, reduce heat to 350, bake another 15 minutes. Place tomato slices on top of pie and bake another 10 minutes.

Pesto Pasta

I don't measure for pesto, but this was just yard basil, olive oil, walnuts, garlic, and parmesan, combined with whole wheat gemelli pasta.

Two Bean Succotash

1 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp red onion
1/4 cup green beans or haricots verts
1/4 cup fava beans
1/4 cup frozen corn
salt
freshly ground pepper

Saute onion, add the rest for one minute.

Tofu with Noodles and Lime-Peanut Sauce, fresh fruit, salad

Okay... so sorry that I got so behind on posting these! Boo for me. This was from weeks ago. We doubled it, possibly tripled it.

Noodles with Lime-Peanut Sauce

2 tsp olive oil
1 cup snowpeas
1 tbsp minced ginger
1 jalapeno (we used a variety with no heat)
1/2 pound extra firm tofu, cubed
1 onion, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1/4 cup organic peanut butter
1/4 cup veggie broth
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1.5 tsp sesame oil
juice of 1-2 limes
2-3 tbsp cilantro
1 pound ww spaghetti

Heat oil in wok or skillet. Add ginger with tofu, onions, peppers and cook for about 3 minutes. Lower heat and whisk in peanut butter, broth, soy sauce, sesame oil, lime juice, cilantro. Remove from heat and add to just-cooked noodles.

I don't really remember the green salad or fruit salad that we made. Probably you don't either.

Broccoli Cheddar Soup, 3 Bean Quinoa/Amaranth Salad, Roasted Garlic Bread

So, I realize the bread was a little redundant with the croutons, sorry! How did the plastic wrap work as far as containing the soup? I'm not usually big on using plastic wrap, but I'm less big on a car or bag full of soup. Let me know how it worked.

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

3 Bean Quinoa/Amaranth Salad

adapted from this recipe

The quinoa/amaranth mixture got goopy for some reason when I cooked it. I wonder if next time I should cook them separately? Or maybe I got the grain-water ratio wrong...

Roasted Garlic Bread

from Costco, sliced and warmed in the oven.

Sloppy Lennies, Chips and Green Beans

I had to work all day on Tuesday, so my Mom made this meal entirely by herself. Rock on, Mom!

Sloppy Lennies: Stole from Heather

Chips from Costco

Green Beans my mama cooked.

Total: $23.00

Pinto Beans, Corn Muffins, Salad with Ginger Dressing

from Holly and Chris

Crock Pot Pinto Beans

from Fields of Greens (with modifications)

Pinto Beans

Bay Leaf

Sage

Canned Chipotles

Dried Chilies

Onion

Cumin

S&P

Soak beans overnight. Cut onion into quarters and slice in food processor. Add beans, onion, and water to crock pot with a few bay leaves, sage leaves, and salt. Turn crock pot to high. Soak dried chilies in a bowl with boiling water until soft. Blend chipotles and other chilies in food processor. Add cumin and chili puree to beans until desired level of heat. S&P to taste.

Corn Muffins with Smoked Cheese and Chilies

1/2 stick butter

1 ear of corn, about 3/4 cup

1 1/4 cups milk

3/4 cup wheat flour

3/4 cup white flour

1/2 cup course cornmeal

1/2 cup fine cornmeal

1 tbsp baking soda

2 tbsp sugar

2 eggs

1 cup grated smoked cheese

1/2 jalepeno, diced

Preheat the oven to 375. Grease muffin tins. Melt 1/2 tbsp butter in saute pan and add the corn and diced hatch, pinch of salt and pepper. Saute until tender, about 5 minutes.

In a saucepan, heat the milk and remaining butter together over medium heat until the butter has melted. Remove from heat. Combine the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir unti well mixede. Whisk the eggs together, then whisk them into the warm milk mixture. Pour them into the dry ingredients. Add the corn mixture and cheese; stir until just blended. Do not overmix - should be moist like pancake batter.

Spoon into muffin tins and bake for 20-25 minutes.

Salad - I happened to have the"Artisan" greens from Costco - so I just stole Summer's recipe...since I thought it was so good!

Ginger-Sesame Dressing

from the New Vegetarian Epicure

about 2 inches fresh ginger root (about 2 tbsp. minched)

2 Tbsp. fresh-squeezed lemon juice (I used bottled lime)

2 Tbsp fresh-squeezed orange juice

2 Tbspdark sesame oil

1 Tbsp soy sauce ( I used Bragg's)

1 Tbsp Rice vinegar

1 Tbsp honey

Total cost = $17.00

Focaccia Pizza, Ginger&Sesame Artisan Salad, Apples&Dates

Focaccia Pizza

Simple Focaccia

from the New Vegetarian Epicure

**I split this recipe for each pizza

1/4 oz (one envelope) dry yeast

1 1/4 cups warm water

pinch of sugar

1 tsp. salt

3 tbsp, Olive Oil

3-3 1/2 cups flour - (white, whole wheat, or a combination)

In large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in the warm water with the sugar, and leave it for about 15 minutes, until it starts to foam. Add the salt and half the olive oil, then start stirring in the flour, a scoop at a time.

When the dough is too stiff to stir with a spoon, turn it our on a well-floured board, sprinkle more flour on top of it, and begin kneading. Knead it gently, working in as much more of the flour as you must to keep it from sticking. When the dough is smooth and elastic, form it into a ball and put it in an oiled bowl, turning it once to coat it. Cover the bowl with a tea towel or with plastic wrap, and leave the dough in a warm place to rise for about 45 minutes, or until almost double in size.

Punch the dough down, lift it out of the bowl onto an oiled baking sheet, and pat or roll it out into a large, thick oval, about 12x16 inches. Cover it with a tea towel and leave it to rise again for at least 30 minutes, or until almost doubled.

Brush the focaccia delicately with the remaining olive oil, and sprinkle it with some coarse sea salt (I didn't do this, since I added toppings). If you like, you can cut shallow diagonal slashes in the top with a sharp knife, in a crisscross pattern. Or dimple the top of the focaccia with your fingertips, but don't be too aggressive-you don't want to punch it down again.

Bake the focaccia in a preheated 450 degree oven for 20-30 minutes, or until it is golden on top and sounds hollow when the bottom crust is tapped.

Toppings:

Tomato sauce (homemade, frozen from the spaghetti I made a few weeks ago)

mozzarella

goat cheese

mushrooms

caramelized onions

Salad

"Artisan" greens from Costco-(I thought these were really good, and I hope they keep stocking them)

chives

toasted sesame seeds

Ginger-Sesame Dressing

from the New Vegetarian Epicure

about 2 inches fresh ginger root (about 2 tbsp. minched)

2 Tbsp. fresh-squeezed lemon juice (I used bottled lime)

2 Tbsp fresh-squeezed orange juice

2 Tbspdark sesame oil

1 Tbsp soy sauce ( I used Bragg's)

1 Tbsp Rice vinegar

1 Tbsp honey

Apples & Dates

I made this up, hope it was okay

2 green apples, sprinkled with key lime juice

about 20 dates, quartered

toasted walnuts

all drizzled with agave nectar