Sweet Love and Ginger

Vegetarian

Chuck’s Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes

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It’s blueberry season in the northeast. Chuck and I try to
make time to go blueberry picking every year, but unfortunately this year has
gotten away from us. We can’t seem to make time for anything with all the
events we have to go to. I’m not loving it but I guess that’s part of being an
adult these days. I’ll be a bit relieved when this season passes for us.

Luckily a couple of friends came to visit us last weekend
and brought us a bit of the bounty from their berry picking excursions. I
couldn’t have been more thrilled that they offered to share with us! Most of
the berries were eaten just on their own, but I managed to get Chuck (the
breakfast chef of our house) to make me some blueberry pancakes.
I’m not usually a huge fan of pancakes, but these ones I just
love. They were exactly what I needed after a hectic couple days at work.
Coming back from vacation will cause some chaos let me tell you.



Chuck’s Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes

2 cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup sugar
2 ¼ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
2 eggs
2 cups buttermilk
½ tsp vanilla extract
¼ cup unsalted butter, plus some
1 cup blueberries
In a large bowl mix together flour, sugar, baking powder,
baking soda, and salt. Blend in butter, eggs, buttermilk and vanilla until it
forms a lumpy batter. Heat a small dab of butter in a skillet over medium heat
and ladle (about ¼- 1/3 cup) some of the batter into the skillet. Add a few of
the blueberries to the top of the pancake. When small bubbles begin to form in
the batter (about 2-3 minutes) flip the pancake and cook for another 2-3
minutes or until they it begins to brown. Serve warm with maple syrup. (Serves
4-6)




PS: Don’t Forget to enter the giveaway!!

Kchidhi – Easy, Clean, Vegan, and Delicious

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This is a easy and healthy recipe based on traditional Indian Kchidhi.

In my vegetarian adventures lately I have been stumbling across some really interesting new blogs that I will definitely be sharing with
you guys in the near future. This recipe is one that I adapted from one of these blogs, Holy Cow. It’s a super simple rice dish that I made for my lunch
at the beginning of the week. It was actually filling and satisfying enough to get me through the entire week without getting bored. That is something that never happens.

This recipe actually serves 4-6 people, but I’m sharing it here today because I think it’s a great vehicle for the single person to eat
all week. I just added whatever leftover veggies we had the night before, or steamed up some new ones and I had a complete meal that varied a little
throughout the week.
The version you see here is a simpler version, I guess you could say I “Americanized” it, but I wanted it to be an approachable recipe. The
original recipe isn’t difficult by any means, but I opted not to use a pressure cooker, and frozen veggies, to speed up the whole process.

 

Note: Garam Marsala was not available at my regular grocery store, however I did find it at whole foods.

 (Original Recipe)

Kchidhi – Easy, Clean, Vegan, and Delicious
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 4-6 Servings
Ingredients
  • 1 tsp vegetable oil
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • ¼ tsp turmeric
  • ½ tsp cayenne
  • 1 tbsp coriander
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • 1 tbsp dried ginger
  • 1 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 ½ cups brown rice
  • 1 cup moong dal (lentils)
  • 1 cup frozen peas and carrots
  • Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Place the moong dal in a bowl with 1 cup of water and let it sit for 15 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile heat oil in a large thick bottomed sauce pan, saute the onion for 5 minutes or so, until it is translucent and begins to carmelize.
  3. Add turmeric, cayenne, coriander, and ginger stirring for an additional minute.
  4. Stir in tomato paste for one minute then add rice moong dal (with liquid) and then 4 cups more water. Stir well and bring liquid to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 35-40 minutes or until the rice and lentils are soft.
  5. Stir in the frozen vegetables and garam masala. Then remove from heat. There should be some liquid left in the bottom of the pan so that the consistency is similar to a risotto. Serve warm.

My Yellow Table Gathering

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First off I want to start this by saying CONGRATULATIONS! to Anna of The Yellow Table. Before she had accomplished the monumental goal of raising
over $50,000 to publish her first book she asked her followers to help her
out by throwing dinner parties using her recipes to generate conversation.

I have been following Anna’s entire journey from day 1 and I
now feel like one of those creepy stalker people, because I am so completely
invested in this thing. From writing the book in about 100 days to completing
a cross country road trip, and preparing several dinner parties along the way
she has done so much, so very much that I cannot comprehend how one person
could possibly do it all and remain so humble and thankful.

She’s already reached her goal (and surpassed it by over $10,000), but that wasn’t going to stop me
from throwing my dinner party, besides Chuck might murder me if I didn’t make
those dates I told him about.

I decided to go with the easy dinner party menu that she had
listed, as we had planned to go group ziplining earlier in the day, and I
wasn’t sure how ambitious we all would be. I of course had made a few
alterations, because that’s just how things are done around here and added a
recipe or two.

The Menu
Bacon Wrapped Dates with Cider Mustard Glaze (Recipe Below)
Chocolate Chip Cookies

I decided to add the cider mustard glaze to the dates, because one
of our favorite restaurants has a similar appetizer with this kind of glaze,
and I’ve have been dying to figure it out. I also swapped the Roasted Carrots for the tomato tart because tomatoes are beginning to come in season here, and I
can’t resist them. Finally after all that, an adventurous day and the fact that
I don’t actually have any ramekins I decided to simply bake up some cast iron
cookies and serve them with vanilla ice cream instead of the Bittersweet Pudding Cakes, though some day I would really love to try out this recipe.
The night was I hope just what Anna had intended, light and fun
and full of casual chatter. 

I know our home isn’t ideal for dinner parties (I mean check our awesome table) but I
really want to make more of an effort to invite people over and share food and
conversation. It’s so necessary in today’s day and age.

Bacon Wrapped Dates with Cider Mustard Glaze
1/2 lb bacon, cut into thirds
30 dates

30 almonds

½ cup apple cider vinegar (plus a splash)
½ cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp ground mustard

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cut a slit into the side of
the date and slip an almond into the center. Wrap each date in 1/3 a slice of
bacon, and arrange with the open side down on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake for
15-20 minutes until the bacon is crisp. Once cooked remove from the oven and
place on a paper towel to drain. Meanwhile combine the vinegar, both sugars and mustard in a
small sauce pan, and bring it to a boil. Immediately reduce to a simmer and
cook for 10 – 12 minutes until syrupy. Remove from the heat and finish it with
a splash more of cider to keep the flavor bright. Move the cooked dates to a
serving tray and drizzle with the glaze. 
There is only one day left to pre-order The Yellow Table Cook Book. So if you are interested at all get to it!

Recouping with an Early Summer Abundance Bowl

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Despite the craziness of our July Fourth holiday we still manage to indulge.
Some of us really enjoyed the John Daily’s, maybe even a little too much; we
won’t talk about that though, I was having a good time. There was also lots of
food, as there always is at these kinds of things. Hamburgers, hotdogs,
sausages, bowls and bowls of creamy macaroni and potato salads, brownies, baked
beans, a friends signature cocktail meatballs, chips upon chips and dips are
just a few of the things on the list of indulgences.

After all of the cocktails and heavy food both Chuck and I were in
need of something with a little more freshness to it; you know something with
some green.
Luckily when we got home our gardens were over flowing. There was broccoli
that desperately needed to be cut, radishes that needed pulling, more lettuce
than we could ever hope to eat, and peas galore. There were even a few tomatoes
ready to be eaten, but they didn’t make it out of the garden, my tummy couldn’t
wait.
With all this fresh bounty I decided to make a very simple meal,
with mostly raw ingredients. I really love the concept of these wonderbowls
that Sarah from My New Roots has been posting; just using whatever you have on
hand, that is in season, and fresh and tossing it together into a big bowl for
the taking.

I made some wild rice with half water and half vegetable broth to
add some heft, and a bit of saltiness to the bowl; we wanted this thing to be
filling after all. I also added an apricot that I picked up from an organic
farm stand at a rest stop on the highway. There are some benefits to having to
take a day trip here and there for work. I also got some dried corn and kale chips
and dilly beans (so good!).
Chuck claims that it doesn’t need dressing but I’m sure there is a
few who would disagree. So I’m adding the recipe for the simple dressing that I
made, despite us not using it. The cool thing about this dressing is that it
can very easily be used as a marinade on chicken or seafood as well.
Simple Garlic and Ginger Dressing
½ cup reduced sodium soy sauce
2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 cloves crushed garlic
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tbsp honey (or agave syrup)

Whisk all ingredients together and serve. Will
keep in the fridge for about a week.

Gardens and Grilled Corn with Herb Butter

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Right now my garden is looking beautiful. All of my plants
are thriving, and I couldn’t be happier. I’m using any excuse to add a bit of that
freshness to our meals.

Herb butter can go on so many things, green beans,
asparagus, virtually any seafood (especially clams, just sayin’), steaks,
pasta. It’s so simple yet adds this huge boost of fanciness to any meal. I
usually make a whole bunch of it and stick it in the freezer to defrost, and
use as needed.

Sunday of this past weekend I made a fresh batch to smother
our grilled corm with. It’s not quite corn season here, but it was on sale at
the store, and I was too excited to pass it up. I also made turkey burgers on
whole wheat buns and a sprout salad.

I over planted pretty heavily in the garden. Last year I had
trouble getting anything to even come up so I wanted to be sure. This year I have
had to thin everything out, so some radish, arugula, and Swiss chard sprouts, along
with a few pea shoots made a nice little side salad. I used that Honey Mustard
Poppy Seed Vinaigrette that I have been obsessed with once again. I swear I will
eventually get sick of it, but we still have a long way to go before then, so
get used to seeing it around.

Grilling the corn is easy. I have done it about umpteen
million ways, but shucking it and popping it on the grill until it is warm, and
bright yellow, with just the slightest hint of char is my favorite. For one it’s
the easiest, and two that light hint of chard adds just a hint of Smokey flavor
that I love.

Herb Butter
1 stick of unsalted butter softened
1 tsp powdered garlic
½ tsp salt
2 tbsp minced fresh, parsley
1 tbsp minced fresh chives
2 large basil leaves, minced
Combine all ingredients in a re-sealable container. Stirring
until well mixed. Serve at room temperature, or freeze for later use. (Can
remain in the fridge for 7-10 days).

What is your favorite part about this time of year?