Escarole Loaded Tomato Sauce with Fresh Basil

Our home of the moment on this nomadic adventure is Utica, New York.  We've only been here a few weeks (and only here for about one more), but in that little time, it's become obvious that Utica has about three claims to fame: beer, the Boilermaker, and Utica Greens.  Since we didn't sign up in time for the Boilermaker, and I'm not a big fan of beer, I've been focusing on the latter.  I'm from Central New York, so I've experienced Utica Greens before- in fact, I've made my own "healthified" version before.  I had no idea though that Utica Greens are on the menu of just about every restaurant in the Utica/New Hartfod area. Each restaurant has its own proportion of ingredients, which largely stay the same no matter the maker.  Those key ingredients are escarole, hot cherry peppers, Parmesan/Romano, prosciutto, and bread crumbs.  Since we've been here, we've sampled a few variations on the weekends, but they are a little too indulgent for my normal weekdays.

 Still, I've got escarole and cherry peppers on my mind, even if I don't want to douse them in cheese and breadcrumbs.  I had some calamari in the freezer, which made me think marinara sauce, and combined that thought with my obsession with escarole.  I made the sauce completely separate from the calamari, and had enough for the next night's dinner as well, where it was combined with rotisserie chicken (on sale for $2.20!! can't beat that).  I just took some meat off of the chicken and threw it into the sauce as it was reheating.  It would also be great with meatballs, as a dip for bread, rolled up in roasted eggplant pieces, or on spaghetti squash (or pasta if you're into that ;-)).  And though I avoided adding cheese on this particular occasion, some Parmesan would make an excellent addition.

Ingredients:

1-2 teaspoons olive oil
1 large onion, sliced thinly
1/2 head of garlic, cloves peeled and sliced
1/4 cup sliced hot cherry peppers, fresh or pickled *
2 medium tomatoes, cut into chunks
1 LARGE or 2 small heads escarole, WASHED and torn into large chunks**
salt and black pepper to taste
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomato
5 anchovies, or a scant tablespoon anchovy paste
10-15 kalamata olives, sliced
1/2 cup fresh basil, sliced

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large pot.  Add onions and garlic.  Saute for a couple minutes, then add cherry peppers and saute for another couple minutes.  Add tomatoes and stir.  Add escarole, stirring as you add.  It won't all fit in the pot all at once, but as it wilts, you'll be able to add more.  Once all of the escarole is added, add the can of crushed tomato, the anchovy paste, and the kalamata olives.  Stir and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium-low and let it continue to simmer for 20-30 minutes, uncovered unless it starts to get too thick.  Stir every now and then as it simmers.  Add the fresh basil, reserving a little for garnish if desired.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

*this will make it HOT, so use less or omit if you don't want spicy
**if your escarole looks like it is lost in the tomato sauce because you didn't have a big enough head, you can add in some romaine lettuce leaves to up the green proportion.  I did this and couldn't even tell what was romaine and what was escarole when I was eating. :-)

Spinach, Tomato, and Jalapeno Curry with Broiled Salmon and Dill-Cottage Cheese Puree

We've got a week left in Florida, so I'm starting to rummage through the groceries I've bought and get things used up.  It's a fun little game of piecing together different ingredients so I can avoid buying anything new.  I get to play pretty often due to our nomadic lifestyle.  This is last night's outcome.  It's great for anyone else who doesn't feel like going to the store, too, as it primarily uses pantry staples.  

If you're looking at the title and thinking "cottage cheese puree... umm, ewww...", just trust me on this one.  Cottage cheese actually makes awesomely creamy and super healthy sauces.  You can also make dips for veggies out of it.  It's the same idea as substituting Greek yogurt to make creamy dressing or sauce, but minus the tangy flavor.  Sometimes I use Greek yogurt for such things, sometimes I use cottage cheese.  Actually, more specifically, I use Greek yogurt for such things when I'm lazy and cottage cheese when I want my husband to like it better.  Or when I'm trying not to go to the store and we only have cottage cheese and no Greek yogurt.  I made the sauce for the salmon, but ended up using a little on the veggies too, just because.  

This whole dinner takes less than an hour from start to finish, and part of that time in just the curry simmering on the stove sans (much) supervision.   This makes enough for 3-4 servings, depending on your appetite and whether or not you choose to make some sort of grain to round things out.

What you need:

Curry:

1 teaspoon coconut oil

1 medium onion, chopped

~10 garlic cloves, roughly chopped (or less if you're not a garlic fiend)

2 jalapenos, seeds and pith removed, sliced

10 ounces frozen spinach

1 14 ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes 

2 bay leaves

1 tablespoon coriander powder

1/2 cup water or broth of choice

1 teaspoon black pepper

salt to taste

Salmon:

16 ounce fillet salmon (I used Coho, Sockeye would also be delicious)

1 teaspoon coconut oil

Salt and pepper

Dill-Cottage Cheese Puree:

1 cup low fat cottage cheese

1 teaspoon garlic powder

~1/2 cup packed fresh dill OR 2 tablespoons dried dill (or basically to taste, but that is roughly what I used)

Curry: 

Start by heating the coconut oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the onion, garlic, and jalapeno.  Saute for a few minutes, or until they are lightly browned.  Add the spinach, tomatoes, bay leaves, coriander, and black pepper.  Stir around for another minute or two, until the spinach is thawed.  Add 1/2 cup water or broth reduce heat to medium.  Cover partially and let simmer for 30 minutes (or if you don't have a cover, just add a little more water if things start sticking).  Season with salt to taste.

Salmon:

After the curry has been simmering for about 15 minutes, preheat oven to a high broil. Grease a baking sheet with coconut oil.  Place salmon on the baking sheet.  Season lightly with salt and pepper.  Broil for 10-15 minutes, or until salmon is cooked through.  Time will vary depending on how thick your salmon is and how hot your broiler gets, but you can test it by seeing if it flakes easily in the thickest part of the fish.  If you have a large piece of salmon, you may want to cut in half before cooking so that the thinner edges do not overcook.

Dill-Cottage Cheese Puree:

While the salmon is in the oven, make the puree.  Simply add all puree ingredients to a food processor or blend and blend until smooth.  If your blender is struggling, add a little water and a pinch of salt to get things going (the salt is so that the water doesn't make it too watery tasting).

And enjoy!

Spaghetti Squash "Lasagna"

Sorry to anyone on Saba reading this- I think I took the only spaghetti squash on the island and it was only there by mistake in the first place.

I love spaghetti squash.  It really doesn't have much flavor at all, but is a great base for a flavorful sauce, much like its namesake.  In contrast to actual spaghetti though, it is super low in calories, with only about 40 per cup, cooked.  And, honestly, I think it is better than real pasta (then again, I don't like pasta, like a weirdo).  

What you need:

1 small spaghetti squash (1-2 pounds) or 4-5 cups cooked squash
1 cup low-fat cottage cheese, blended until nearly smooth (or ricotta, but the cottage cheese is lower in calories)
5-6 cups chunky homemade pasta sauce, with or without meat (see recipe I used below for a chunky and meaty version)
1/4 cup EACH mozzarella and Parmesan


*If you haven't already cooked your squash, all you need to do is poke a few holes in it with a fork and then cook it a) in the oven at 375 Fahrenheit for about an hour, or b) in the microwave for 15 minutes or so.  The squash should be soft when done.  Cut in half and scoop out the seeds.  Shred the flesh with a fork and place in a bowl.  You can also cut your squash in half before baking and scoop out the seeds as well.  Just bake/ microwave face-down and reduce the time accordingly.

To prepare  the "Lasagna":

Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Spoon about a cup of sauce into the bottom of an 8 x 8 inch pan.  top with about two cups cooked spaghetti squash.  Spread all of the cottage cheese over this.  Top with more sauce (about two cups), then the rest of the squash.  Top with another couple cups of sauce.  Bake for 25 minutes, then remove from oven and sprinkle with cheese.  Bake from another 10-15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbly.   Serve and enjoy!

Chunky Vegetable and Meat Sauce:

Is you are vegetarian, the meat can easily be omitted, of course.

What you need:

1 pound ground beef, browned and drained (optional)

2 teaspoons olive oil

pinch of salt

1/2 large onion, chopped

1/2 leek, chopped (or just use a bit more onion- I just needed to get rid of this!)

1 celery stalk, sliced thinly

1 head of garlic, peeled and roughly chopped

1/2 eggplant, sliced and cut into quarters (about 2 cups chopped)

1/2 zucchini, sliced and cut into quarters

1/2 cup of mushrooms, chopped OR 1/4 reconstituted dried mushrooms, chopped

1 cup dry red wine

1 28 ounce can crushed tomato

1 14 ounce can diced tomato

1-2 cups water, chicken broth, or liquid from reconstituting the dried mushrooms

2 bay leaves

Spices: Oregano, basil, black pepper, sage, thyme, etc.

Splash of red wine vinegar

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat.  Add onion, garlic, celery, and the salt.  Saute until starting to brown and slightly softened.  Add the eggplant, zucchini, and mushrooms.  Continue to saute, stirring occasionally, until vegetables have begun to brown.  Add the wine and de-glaze the pan.  Add the canned tomatoes, the liquid of your choice, and the bay leaves.  Add the cooked ground beef, if using.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and cover.  Simmer for about 2 hours (give it a stir every once and a while), or until vegetables are all cooked through and the sauce has thickened.  Add the spices to taste, as well as a splash of red wine vinegar.  Remove bay leaves.  Done!

Deconstructed Eggplant Parmesan

I was all set to make actual Eggplant Parmesan (albeit a healthy version).  But then my eggplant rounds came out of the oven looking all crispy and delicious and I couldn't bear the risk of them becoming too soggy as part of the casserole.

And besides, why knife and fork a dinner when you dip it or pick it up like pizza?

I can see this going in a lot of different directions in the future... laying out an array of different dipping sauces as a fun party/game food, trying out an Asian-inspired version, or simply enhancing the Italian dip I made this time.

What you need:


For the Eggplant:
2 medium Eggplants, peeled and cut into 1/2 rounds (or try making stick shapes, which is what I would have done if I wasn't still planning on a casserole at this point)
Olive oil spray
1/2 cup Egg beaters (or egg whites, or a few beaten eggs)
1-2 cups Bread crumbs (I used a mixture of regular and panko- would've tried whole wheat if they were easily available here)
1-2 teaspoons Garlic powder
1 teaspoon Black pepper
2-3 teaspoons Season-all (or just a bit of salt)

For the Dipping Sauce: (Also see other suggestions below)
1 24 ounce jar of your favorite Marinara/ Pasta Sauce (or use 3 cups homemade, that'd be tastier, but I was lazy)
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/4-1/2 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese
Chopped fresh Thyme, Basil, Oregano

Start by heating the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Place egg beaters in one bowl.  Mix both bread crumbs, the garlic powder, black pepper, and Season-all on a plate.  Spray a large baking sheet with olive oil.  One by one, dip the eggplant pieces into first the egg beaters and then the bread crumbs, coating all sides.  Place pieces, just barely touching, on the baking sheet.  Continue until you have used all of the eggplant (you may need additional eggs/ bread crumbs- I didn't actually measure mine, and I added a bit at some point, but then didn't finish it all).

Bake for 50 minutes to an hour, flipping once (this is for rounds, reduce time if you cut into sticks).  The pieces should be browned and completely cooked through.  You can slice into one to check- it should be all soft inside.

About 20 minutes before the eggplant is supposed to finish cooking, make the dipping sauce:  Pour the sauce into small-medium casserole dish and top with cheeses and herbs (and any additional seasonings you like- maybe some garlic, black pepper, or red pepper flakes).  Place in the with the eggplant and cook for 15-20 minutes, or until nice and bubbly.

Serve with a spoon in the dipping sauce for slopping over the rounds (and then eat like pizza).  Or cut rounds into slices and dip.  Enjoy!

And some ideas for future dipping:

• Amped Up Italian Dipping Sauce: Same idea as above, but better.  Roast some garlic cloves and mix the roasted cloves into some ricotta cheese.  Spoon ricotta cheese in the bottom of the pan.  Cover with a homemade meat and veggie pasta sauce.  Sprinkle with the mozzarella and Parmesan. Bake. 
• Put out an Italian-themed dipping assortment:  A tomato-based sauce, such as above, some pesto,  some dipping oil 
• Try something a little Asian: a spicy mayo (wasabi or sriracha mixed with light mayonnaise, or light mayonnaise and greek yogurt, to make it healthier), a soy sauce based dip: maybe some soy sauce, rice vinegar, minced garlic and ginger, and honey.
• Or a White Pizza Dip, like this one on How Sweet It Is.  I haven't actually tried it yet, but have eyed it before and it came to mind when I was thinking of other ideas for this eggplant.

Happy Creating!

Crockpot Tomato Soup

Last night while I was eating out, I had an AMAZING tomato soup... which tasted like pure cream with a little tomato mixed in.  Mmmm...

And it made me want more tomato soup.  But, I can't really justify making such creamy goodness at home, so I made something a bit lighter, but delicious in a different, more wholesome way.  

If you've been reading my blog much at all, especially the soup recipes, you'll notice that I often use fat-free cream cheese.  Even if you're not usually a fan of fat-free products, you seriously should try this stuff.  It only has about 30 calories in 2 tablespoons, and most of that comes from protein.  While it doesn't taste exactly like the real stuff, I personally think it still works wonderfully in a lot of dip and soup recipes (but perhaps be wary about baked things like cheesecake).  

I didn't go crazy with the extras in this recipe, but I could definitely see adding parmesan cheese, fresh basil, or maybe even a homemade pesto dolloped on top.  This is a good base recipe that could be modified to make it more interesting.  And a little extra creaminess would make it better, so if you're not watching fat or calories, I'd definitely add in a little real cream instead of the milk.  

What you need:

1 medium onion, cut into quarters

1 red bell pepper

1 large-ish carrot, cut into large chunks

Olive oil spray

2 stalks of celery, roughly sliced

1 1/2 can crushed tomatoes

2 cups chicken broth

salt, pepper, garlic powder, Season-All

1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce

3/4-1 cup fat-free cream cheese

1/2 cup Silk coconut milk (or regular milk or cream)

2-3 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Goat cheese and red pepper flakes, for topping (optional)

Croutons (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Spray a baking sheet with olive oil.  Place onion, bell pepper, and carrot pieces on it.  Spray again with the oil and lightly sprinkle with salt.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until beginning to brown.  The bell pepper and onion should be completely cooked, but the carrot may still be somewhat hard.  Let bell pepper cool, and then remove its skin, stem, and seeds.

Place celery in crockpot, followed by the roasted vegetables.  Pour the crushed tomatoes and chicken broth over the top.  Cook on high for 4 hours.  Remove lid, add about 1 teaspoon EACH pepper, garlic powder, and Season-All, plus the worcestershire.  Add the cream cheese, milk, and vinegar.  Puree until smooth.  Season with additional salt, pepper, garlic, or Season-All if necessary.

Serve with goat cheese and red pepper flakes sprinkled on top, and some croutons or toast on the side.  Enjoy!

Roasted Tomato and Garlic Gazpacho

A nice refreshing soup- perfect for this hot weather we've been having on Saba.  Serve it with some shrimp, guacamole, and tortilla chips. 

What you need:
4-5 medium-large tomatoes
2 heads garlic (this may sound like a lot, but roasting it really mellows the flavor.  But you can always cut back if you're not a garlic fan)
1 small-medium cucumber, peeled
1 small red pepper, chopped into blendable chunks
1 small onion, roughly chopped (about 1/3 cup chopped)
2 jalapenos or serrano peppers, roughly chopped.
1-2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper, to taste
Soy sauce or Worcestershire (if you think it needs it)
Cilantro, for garnish


Start by roasting the tomatoes and garlic:
Heat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Spray a baking pan that will fit the tomatoes and garlic with olive oil.  Poke a few fork holes in the tomatoes.  Cut the tops off of the garlic heads.  Place the tomatoes and the garlic in the pan and spray again with olive oil.  Season with a little salt and pepper.  Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until the tomatoes are a little charred and the garlic is soft.  Let cool.

Dump your chopped vegetables into the blender.  Add the tomatoes and squeeze the garlic from its paper shell.  Add in the lemon juice and vinegar.  Start blending and slowly add some water to get things going.  Once smooth, add salt and pepper to taste (and maybe a little soy sauce or Worcestershire if it needs a little something more.  I actually cannot quite remember if I did, but I think I might have).  Chill for an hour or two and then serve into bowls and garnish with the cilantro.  Enjoy!

Roasted Vegetable Salad with Fresh Basil and Arugula

Mmmm... so tasty, so healthy, and simple to make.  It was a lovely side to the baby octopus I made, but would also make a nice light lunch or dinner on its own or with some bread or rice.  

What you need:

2 medium eggplants, cut into 1 inch thick rounds

2-3 cups cremini mushrooms

3 jalapeno peppers

1 small onion, cut into 1/4-1/2 inch wedges

cooking spray, salt, pepper

2-3 cups fresh arugula, chopped

1 cup fresh basil, chopped

2-3 small tomatoes, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces

1/4 cup (or more) seasoned rice vinegar

1 teaspoon EACH chili oil and sesame oil

1-2 teaspoons soy sauce

1-2 teaspoons fish sauce

1 tablespoon (or more if you're a garlic fiend like me) garlic powder

2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh ginger

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Spray two 13 x 9 pans with olive oil.  Spread the vegetables across the two pans (I filled one up with the eggplant and the other with the other vegetables.  That way you can easily leave the eggplant in longer).  Spray with olive oil and lightly season with salt and pepper.  Roast in the oven until softened, lightly browned, and cooked through.  This took about 20 minutes for the pan with the mushrooms, peppers, and onion, and between 45 minutes and an hour for the eggplant.  Let cool a bit, and then chop everything into bite sized chunks (except the mushrooms, which I like to leave whole).  Place the veggies in a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients.  Toss and let sit for 20 minutes (or more) before serving to let the flavors meld a bit.