Sorry its been a while. We have been busy (not) cooking but now that
it's winter, I am looking forward to warming up the kitchen again for
the cold months.

First off, a curried carrot pumpkin soup recipe. We had an excess of
pumpkins this fall in our farmers box and we can only do so much thai
pumpkin curry (yum!) before we needed to try something new.

So now we have a sort of indian-hippie infusion soup. Perfect for a
cold raining November day.

2 tsp mild curry
pinch chili flakes
1 tbsp olive oil
800g carrots , washed (about 8 carrots of large size)
1 large onion chopped
1/4 a small pumpkin cubed and raw
2 small potatoes with skin
100g celery or celery root (optional)
200g split lentils (we used 2 hand fulls of green, dried lentils,
boiled them then put them in)
200ml hot vegetable stock (from a cube is fine)
* plain yogurt or pumpkin oil to taste, and naan or a nutty warm
out of the over bread, to serve

1. Heat a large saucepan and fry the curry and chilli flakes for 1
min. Add the oil and onion. Cook until translucent

Then add about half of the carrots and all the pumpkin, celery,
potato with about half of the stock. Simmer for 15 mins.

Then add the pre-cooked lentils and bring to boil.

2. Whizz the soup with a stick blender or in a food processor until
smooth (or leave it chunky if you prefer). Season to taste and finish
with a dollop of yogurt and a sprinkling of the reserved toasted
spices and pre-cooked carrot pieces. Serve with warmed naan breads.

Among my favorite spinach plates are these 'Keftes'. They are great if
you have a CSA box appear with loads of spinach and are tired of
making salads but want something equally quick or freezable. These
patties are traditional on Passover and Rosh Hashanah, corresponding
to the emergence of the early and late spinach crops. Onions and
nutmeg add a sweet flavor with complexity.

* 1 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 large onion, chopped
* 2 to 4 cloves garlic, minced (optional)
* 2 pounds fresh spinach, stemmed, cooked, chopped, and squeezed dry
* About 1 cup matza meal or fine dried bread crumbs (I use ground
knodel brot in Austria)
* About 3/4 teaspoon table salt + pepper to taste
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg to taste
* 4 large egg whites, lightly beaten or 3 whole eggs

1. In a skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion,
garlic and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and
add the spinach, matza meal, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir in the
eggs. If the mixture is too loose, add more matza meal.

2. Shape the spinach mixture into patties. In a large skillet, heat a
thin layer of oil over medium heat. In batches, fry the patties,
turning, until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Drain on paper
towels.

This drink was inspired by an unusually hot spring afternoon. Fresh ginger, strawberries and mint make for an amazing (alcoholic free) drink.

These instructions are for 2 drinks, scale as necessary. 

- fresh ginger, peeled and grated- 1 tablespoon
- sparkling water
- 2-4 fresh, clean, diced strawberries
- mint or basil (fresh) to taste
- brown sugar

Put 1 tablespoon grated ginger into the base of a large glass, add 1 teaspoon brown sugar and 4-6 basil and/or mint leaves. crush together. Add sparkling water and strawberries. Add more sugar if needed. Stir and enjoy!

Tip: if you have the time, I recommend soaking the ginger in the water before making the drink. It intensifies the ginger flavor slightly.

This is one of my favorite Austrian desserts. You can find MarrillenKnödel (Apricot Dumplings) pretty much everywhere here during Apricot season. They are amazing. Sort of like a personal size bread pudding with a fruit center. I had planned to write out detailed instructions on how to make them but when I found this website in English, I thought it was fair to forward you along as their how-to is great. If you don't have an Austrian grandma near you making these during the fruit season, I highly recommend making them yourself.

Here are my simple instructions below.

1 egg
1/2 pound topfen or quark
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
Bread crumbs
Butter, for browning
1 pound plums or apricots, pitted (fresh is better but canned also work)
Sugar, enough to fill fruit

Beat egg. Add to cheese and mix thoroughly. Add flour to mixture. Mix until it forms a dough. Knead dough well, then put in refrigerator for 3 to 4 hours.

Roll out with rolling pin. Cut squares of dough. Put pitted plum or apricot in center. Fill some sugar into plum and wrap dough around it.

In large pot, bring water to a boil. Slowly drop dumplings in boiling water. Let cool 25 minutes.

Remove and roll in a pan with bread crumbs that have been browned in butter. Top with powdered sugar and enjoy!

I've been on the hunt for a good high protein breakfast option which isn't eggs or a protein shake and doesn't cost a lot (pre-packaged cereals are surprisingly expensive and usually loaded with sugar, fake and/or real. Sad.)...

I also wanted something I could make and eat over the course of the day (I am a big time post-workout snacker), so leftovers were key and I was getting sort of bored with my granola and yogurt routine. .

Then I came across this porridge. Which is sort of all of the things I was looking for. No sugar, high protein, high fiber and low fat, its even cheap too if you can find the ingredients in bulk! Score! Often I cook enough so that I can have leftovers to snack on in the afternoons after a long run. Its good hot or cold and the iterations are really limitless.

1/3 cup quinoa
1/3 cup millet
1/3 cup amaranth
1/3 buckwheat groats
5 cups water
Pinch sea salt
1/4 cup flax or sesame seeds, ground

Put all ingredients into a pan, wait until it reaches a rolling boil. Turn off stove and allow to sit (I usually turn it on, wait till it reaches a boil, get dressed while it's boiling (yah for multitasking!), turn it off right before I go for my run, let it sit on the stove while I'm out and reheat it when I come back for breakfast)

Different iterations or things to try:

- add or sprinkle dutch cocoa on top with banana
- add maple syrup, walnuts and fresh apple
- dried cranberries with pine nuts or hazelnuts
- yogurt or soy milk
- agave with cinnamon

What you'll need:

For Filling:

2 ripe avocados
cilantro to taste
2 red onions diced
tequila (.5 shot will do)
red beans
vegan sour cream
vegan chorizo

For Tortillas:

2-3 cups whole wheat baking grade flour
water to reach consistency
a touch of olive oil and salt

To Make Tortillas:

In a large bowl combine the flour and 1 cup of water until you reach a
slightly dry dough state. On a floured surface knead the dough until
it is soft.
Make it into balls (6-10 depending on size). On a well floured board
take each ball and roll it as flat as possible.
Meanwhile heat a pan until it is quite hot. Place the rolled out
tortilla in the pan and cook for about 45 seconds to 1 minute or until
it is bubbling and starting to brown and turn it over and cook for
another 45 seconds. As each tortilla comes out of the pan put it
inside the towel and wrap them up. Wipe pan with towel and repeat.

For Filling:
- mix 1 diced onion with 2 avocados (peeled and smashed). Add cilantro
to taste. Add .5 shot of tequila to the mixture and stir. set aside
- toast vegan chorizo on a lightly oiled pan until brown. set aside
- saute remaining onion in a light amount of water with tabasco sauce,
add beans and heat until warm.

layer the ingredients into the warm tortillas and top with a little
(vegan) sour cream.

I first fell in love with this raw granola while eating at a vegan
cafe in San Fransisco during the tech boom (e.g. back in the days I
would of paid $20 for a bowl of granola). Since then I have tried to
recreate it various times with different levels of success. This
recipe is the closet I've come to that $20 bowl.

Ingredients:

* 2 cup raw buckwheat groats (500g)
* 1 cup nuts (I use 50/50 cashews and hazelnuts)
* 2 cups grated apple (with peel)
* dried cranberries and/or figs (to taste)
* sugar to taste (agave, honey or maple syrup)
* 8 medjool dates
* 1/2 t salt

1. Soak the buckwheat and nuts in water in separate containers for
6-8 hours (I usually just soak them overnight). Rinse well after
soaking. The buckwheat groats will double
2. Process nuts in food processor for 15 seconds. Or finely chop
them with a knife. Repeat this for the fruits.
3. Combine buckwheat, nuts and fruits in a bowl. Add all remaining
items to mix.
4. Grate 2 cups of apple
5. Puree dates in food processor with 1/2 cup grated apple.
6. In separate bowl, mix agave/sugar with pureed dates. Then mix in
remaining grated apple. Combine these “wet” ingredients with the “dry”
ones.
7. Transfer mixture to dehydrator or if you don't have one like me,
your oven on the lowest temp on a cookie sheet covered in baking paper
8. Dehydrate at 145 degrees for the first hour (b/c there is a lot
of moisture it won’t be overheating the granola), and then turn down
to 115 degrees. Dehydrate 16-24 hours depending on thickness.

This is a super simple salad which is perfect for summer. I discovered
it while spending a hot July day in Paris. It requires no heating or
cooking. My suggested drink to pair it with is a chilled White made
from Sauvignon Blanc or a young red like a Malbec.

- 1 sweet melon
- 1-2 ripe tomatoes
- a few ounces fresh goat cheese
- fresh basil and olive oil

In a food processor, or by hand. Put a few springs of basil with a
tablespoon or two of olive oil into the processor and grind until
finely distriuted

Cut tomatoes, melon and cheese.

Toss together with the basil/olive oil.

Enjoy!

This soup has a bittersweet past for me but I love it none the less. I
often made this soup while living in Humboldt County years ago. It was
a perfect heavy (but not creamy) soup which was filling and perfect on
cold winter nights while living on the coast. I based this vegan
recipe loosely on the non-vegetarian Italian Wedding Soup.

* 1 head escarole or kale, tough ribs discarded and leaves thinly sliced
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* 1 large garlic clove, chopped
* 26-30 ounces vegetable broth
* 3 cups water
* 1 (16- to 19-ounce) white beans such as cannellini drained

Cook kale in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water until
tender, about 5 minutes, then transfer with slotted spoon to a large
bowl of ice and cold water to stop cooking. Drain escarole in a
colander, pressing gently to remove excess water.
Saute onion, garlic stirring occasionally, until golden, about 8 minutes.
Add broth and water and bring to a boil, then add kale and beans and
simmer about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Everyone says this sauce is so good it needs its own name but I was
never able to think of one.. so its now know as the unnamed pasta.

*1 can artichoke hearts (in oil, drained) cut into quarters
*1 pint cherry tomatoes
*2 tablespoons pine nuts chopped
*2-3 cloves of garlic chopped

Using a small amount of the olive oil from the artichoke hearts (or
even better oil from anchovies) saute the pine nuts and chopped garlic
until golden brown.

Add the tomatoes and stir until they burst and some of the water has
cooked out. Add artichoke hearts and let simmer for 5-10 mins while
cooking the pasta.