A Veggie Venture

Rhubarb Recipes ♥ Alphabet of Vegetables

2013-05-15T11:30:00.000-05:00

Hello Vegetable Lovers: Over the next while, watch for some housekeeping with the Alphabet of Vegetables here on A Veggie Venture. The goal is to separate out our "most favorite" vegetables so their pages will load more quickly, handy for all but especially those of us who check for recipes on our phones. ~Alanna

PS Facebook & Pinterest users, if you love A Veggie Venture, be sure to "like" and "pin" this page! More and more, search engines and even real-live human beings rely on social media indicators to identify favorite sources of trusted information.

RHUBARB: THE BASICS
Pronounced [ROO-barb]. Also called "Pie Plant".

The rhubarb season is "spring and early summer". The rhubarb plant is technically a vegetable but its crisp, sour stalks are most often cooked like fruit with sugar. Like celery ribs, rhubarb stalks are long and smooth, sometimes thin and sometimes thick, sometimes pale green and best of all, "rhubarb red" – my favorite color! A rhubarb's triangular leaves are inedible at best, toxic at worst. Rhubarb is especially appreciated in the Midwest and Scandinavia, especially the red varieties that add glorious color to pies, muffins, cobblers and other treats.

RHUBARB: BASIC TIPS & TECHNIQUES
How to make rhubarb jam
How to make rhubarb pie
How to make rhubarb sauce
How to roast rhubarb

Keep Reading ->>>

Mark Bittman's "Salted" Chopped Salad ♥

2013-05-07T11:00:00.000-05:00

Today's new vegetable salad recipe: Mark Bittman's chopped salad recipe, the one from last week's New York Times, the kind of salad you can make every few days, adding and subtracting vegetables as you see fit. Healthy. Low carb. Low points. Not just vegan, "Vegan Done Real".

Michael Pollan's new book Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation is on my read-soon wishlist. It rethinks our adventures in the kitchen, following four elemental ways of cooking.

FIRE That's captured fire like a gas or electric stove or the open flame of wood fire.
WATER That's boiling and braising.
AIR That's baking. (Have you ever thought of an oven as just a small furnace? Me either.) It's also air-drying thin-thin layers of meat, say, as the Swiss and other Europeans do.
EARTH That's the action of fermentation, whether cooking up some homebrew or making cheese.

Peeling and chopping, slicing and dicing, these are the constants of a vegetable lover's kitchen, the acts that come before Earth, Wind, Water and Fire. This salad takes more than the usual measure, leaving time to consider which element of cooking would be applied here, when salt is applied to "cook" the vegetables just enough to soften and infuse with freshness and flavor. I suppose, yes, it must be "Earth"?
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Party Asparagus with Aioli ♥ Two Classic Recipes

2013-05-03T06:30:00.000-05:00

Today's recipes: How to cook and shock fresh asparagus to retain the bright green color and enhance the natural asparagus flavor for serving chilled. How to make aioli, the classic sauce. Great for parties, buffets, composed salads.

~recipe & photo updated 2011, republished 2013~
~more recently updated recipes~

First the asparagus. At Easter, my favorite dish at a magnificent brunch prepared by a former White House chef and recent Silver Toque winner was, um, yes, the asparagus. Aiii it was good – arrayed on huge platters, stems peeled halfway to the tips and perfectly salted. At first, I thought there might have been garlic in the cooking water. The chef sniffed at that idea so hmm, perhaps not. At home, it took three tries and three pounds of asparagus to get the salt balanced properly. Yes, I concede, dozens of spears were sacrificed to get the salt right. (2011 Update: Chef Chambrin is the source of the recipe for Raspberry Bliss, my first column in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch!)

SALT It's another ingredient with (in my mind) an undeserved bad reputation. Because salt is "bad" for us, we cook rice and pasta and eggs and – heavens, vegetables – with minimal salt and even – horrors – without salt. Our bodies require salt. My solution, my rationalization? If we'd all just nix prepared and commercial food – and their high, high proportions of sodium – then it seems to me, we can let loose with salt for food cooked at home. I'm not a nutritionist so please don't violate a doctor's order. But I'd love to know – is salt a good thing or a bad thing in your world? How much salt would you use to cook a pound of asparagus?
Keep Reading ->>>

Artichoke Asiago Cheese Bread ♥

2013-04-28T08:30:00.000-05:00

Today's fun recipe for spring, a savory quick bread studded with artichoke hearts, olives and cubes of asiago cheese.

Who else regularly falls down an internet rabbit hole? What, who me? who you? It starts so innocently, doesn't it? Just a mindless click of a finger, following a link or a Pin or a Facebook share, never realizing that ten minutes later, we'll look up, wondering, Now, where was I? Acck. Our screen-filled lives make it so easy to get lost, to focus intently on something of momentarily great but altogether fleeting import.

And then again, the rabbit hole can lead to cheese bread! A savory cheese bread, to be exact, plump with artichoke and if you like, olives too. Last week, I asked if favorite recipes should be added to my small collection of artichoke recipes. E-mail subscriber Louise Black wrote back right away, "We have visited Castorville, California (the Artichoke Capital) many times and eaten at the Giant Artichoke Restaurant there. They serve Artichoke Quiche, Artichoke Quick Bread and lot of other artichoke food! Would love to have recipe for the quick bread and quiche."

Hint, hint. Artichoke quick bread? Dowwwwwwwwwwwwn the rabbit hole I went. And when I returned to screen-free consciousness, this is what emerged from the oven, a moist loaf of cheesy bread stuffed with artichokes and olives. Thanks for the suggestion, Louise, this is one rabbit hole I'm happy to have dropped into!
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Artichoke Recipes ♥ Alphabet of Vegetables

2013-04-23T13:30:00.000-05:00

Hello Vegetable Lovers: Over the next while, watch for some housekeeping with the Alphabet of Vegetables here on A Veggie Venture. The goal is to separate out our "most favorite" vegetables so their pages will load more quickly, handy for all but especially those of us who check for recipes on our phones and tablets. ~Alanna

PS Facebook & Pinterest users, if you love A Veggie Venture, be sure to "like" and "share" and "pin" this page! More and more, search engines and even real-live human beings rely on social media indicators to identify favorite sources of trusted information.

ARTICHOKES: THE BASICS
The artichoke season is "spring". Did you know that the edible portion of an artichoke is really a large flower bud of a kind of thistle? Artichokes are native to the Mediterranean region and are celebrated in Italian, Greek and North African cookery. Today we best know the "globe" artichoke, mostly large but also in small, younger and more tender artichokes. In the U.S., nearly the entire artichoke crop comes from a single county in California. To cook a whole fresh artichoke, first snip off the thorns which protect the outer leaves. After cooking it by steaming or microwaving, break off the leaves one by one, then scrape one between your front teeth, releasing a tiny pocket of flesh. The "choke" itself is at the bottom, thistle-y and inedible. The "heart" is the most coveted part of the artichoke. Artichoke hearts are sold in frozen and canned form, they're good for casseroles and dips and yes, convenience, but nothing like the luxurious seduction of slowly tackling a whole artichoke leaf by leaf. It's a spring tradition!

What's your favorite artichoke recipe? or what artichoke recipe did you hope to find here? I'm always looking for new ones, especially healthy artichoke recipes. Leave me a quick note in the comments! ~Alanna

ARTICHOKES: BASIC TIPS & TECHNIQUES
How to Cook Artichokes in the Microwave

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How to Cook Artichokes in the Microwave ♥

2013-04-16T17:30:00.000-05:00

Today's vegetable recipe: Fresh whole artichokes cooked in the microwave. Dead easy. Quick. Low carb. Weight Watchers 1 point.

~recipe & photo updated 2012, republished 2013~
~more recently updated recipes~

ORIGINAL 2008 POST So the Year 2008 will go down as the Year Alanna Finally 'Got' Artichokes. When I stuffed artichokes, my friend Cindy wrote, "Your artichokes look great. But please don't tell my girls because all I do is throw them in the microwave."

My friend Ann, too, after we both received an artichoke primer at our bookclub last week, found cooking artichokes in the microwave pretty ~~interesting~~ exciting. "OMG!!!" she wrote. "I bought an artichoke today and cooked it for lunch. Seven minutes in the 'wave and ten minutes 'rest' and then I devoured it!!!!!! Wow! I will fix another one tonight!!!"

The microwave? Can dense and prickly thistles really cook in the mike? Yes, said my source of all questions about vegetable cooking techniques. So yes, but then, how long do we cook artichokes in the microwave? In minutes! (Detail below.)

Dead easy. Dead fast. Dead delicious. I've died and gone to artichoke heaven.
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How to Cook Eggs in a Coffee Cup in the Microwave ♥ Happy Birthday, Alex!

2013-04-10T16:17:00.001-05:00

Today's easy breakfast recipe: Eggs cooked in a coffee mug in a microwave. Quick and easy and so very adaptable. Yes, mine includes veggies, spinach and red pepper. And for any naysayers? It's surprisingly good!

Hey Vegetable Lovers, This recipe is dedicated to my sister's son Alex, my nephew, who turns 21 next week. If you have any quick and easy recipes that a young man should learn how to make, would you leave them in the comments? Links from bloggers welcome!

Dear Alex,

Forgive me, won't you, Alex, for remembering the sweet time when you and I first bonded? It was Thanksgiving Day and your mom and I were busy in the kitchen, stuffing the turkey, mashing the potatoes, stirring the gravy. Your seven-month self wanted attention! So I spent the day cooking with you in my arms: it wasn't efficient but it's my very favorite Thanksgiving memory. As you've grown older, Alex, your Generous Heart gets bigger and bigger, it's no wonder that at Stevi and Tony's wedding last month, a certain four-year old flower girl was smitten by your attention, gifting you her last cake pop to say goodbye.

So here's the thing. My birthday "present" is a small kick in the you-know-what, aiming you toward the kitchen. It's time to learn how to cook a few basics. Eggs are a great place to start. They're cheap, they're good for you and they can be cooked a hundred different ways. So this is your first recipe, it's not even really a "recipe" – you can be as creative as you want, you can make it your one favorite way or you can make it different every time. It's a lot like your mom's Homemade Egg McMuffins which we all love so much. But this is even easier, you just mix it all up in a big coffee mug!
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Perfect Pan-Fried Broccoli ♥ Recipe

2013-04-01T18:45:00.000-05:00

This recipe for cooking broccoli in a skillet comes from Cook's Illustrated. And lest you think that "pan-fried" means frying the broccoli in lots of fat, think again. This recipe uses just a single tablespoon of fat for a whole pound of broccoli! If it were me, I would call the recipe "heat-fried" broccoli because the skillet is brought to a hot-hot-hot temperature.

~recipe & photo updated & republished 2013~
~more recently updated recipes~

ORIGINAL POST Bye bye 2006. Hello 2007. Bye bye Christmas cookies. Hello ... broccoli. But if you too are coming off a sugary, buttery holiday high, this delicious pan-fried broccoli will make the trip back to real-life food really easy. I'm willing to bet it's one we'll all make again and again. I know I will.

I call the recipe "perfect" pan-fried broccoli because it is slightly adapted from the "test til it's perfect" folks at Cook's Illustrated. I keep old issues nearby because they're packed with recipes and tips that build technique and confidence. I really do recommend a subscription, for both new and experienced cooks.
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Cauliflower "Hummus" ♥

2013-03-18T17:30:00.000-05:00

Today's low-carb "hummus" recipe, made with (surrrrprise!!) cauliflower instead of chickpeas. And I have to say, cauliflower has done the impossible again, converting itself into something it's not, this time lower-calorie, low-carb hummus. Really, there's no telling the difference. Not just vegan, "Vegan Done Real".

Cauliflower, it's a real chameleon. It mimics the texture of rice in Cauliflower Spanish "Rice" and the heft of potatoes in both Lighter Mashed 'Potatoes' and Cauliflower "Potato" Salad. Now here is cauliflower in hummus, a low-calorie, low-carb substitute for high-calorie, high-carb chickpeas.

And yes, side by side, someone paying extra-close attention would notice. But otherwise? I think not. Cauliflower fools our sense of sight, our sense of taste, even the all-important mouthfeel. This stuff is good, deserving of make-it-now status.

WORD DANCERS My dear friend Pille of the Estonian food blog Nami Nami, whose fresh, seasonal Nordic sensibility sends me s-w-o-o-n-i-n-g AND a reader both alerted me that in Arabic, "hummus" means "chickpeas" not "chickpeas mashed with tahini, garlic and a little oil". In deference, I've changed the recipe name to Cauliflower "Hummus" – in quotes. Thanks for the tip!
Keep Reading ->>>

Winter Tomato Salad ♥ (Quick Pickled Vegetables)

2013-03-05T05:30:00.000-06:00

Today's quick, healthy vegetable salad recipe: Wow. An easy, cheap, make-ahead and portable salad? A healthy, low-carb, low-calorie and vegan salad? All that AND absolutely ZERO Weight Watchers points? Like I said, W-O-W. Not just vegan, "Vegan Done Real".

Back in February, we turned ourselves into "snowflakes" and headed for Florida. (Snowflakes? Yes, snowflakes. Snowbirds head south for the winter. Snowflakes head south for a few days.) On the way back north, roadside stands beckoned: the "last" strawberries and the "first" tomatoes, the signs said. Still, I was dubious about the claim of local tomatoes. "Where are the tomatoes from?" I asked gently. "Are they from here?" "No! No!" said the woman with a shake of her head. "The tomatoes are from Immokalee!" ... that would be a town about 300 miles further south. Ha! Imokalee might not meet the "100 mile" standard for local food but in February, Florida is Florida.

The tomatoes, however, were lackluster, not the juicy ripeness of sun-ripened garden tomatoes that will grace our tables come late summer. So I had no qualms about tossing a few into a Mason jar with a few other vegetables and little more than vinegar and a few spices. Good? No! Fabulous! I wondered whether supermarket-variety Roma tomatoes would work too. Good? No. Fabulous! A winter tomato salad? It's a wonderment.
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Slow Cooker Vegetarian Lentil Sloppy Joes ♥

2013-02-26T10:55:00.002-06:00

Today's easy veg(etari)an recipe for the slow cooker: Sloppy joes made with lentils instead of ground beef. Beautifully seasoned with pantry ingredients. Just a little bit spicy, easy to make it even spicier. Low carb. Weight Watchers 1.5/3 points. Not just vegetarian but vegan and not just vegan, "Vegan Done Real".

I l-o-v-e food blogs. If truth be told, I follow hundreds a few posts at a sit-down, really reading, stopping to appreciate the photos, the stories, the curiosity and the expertise, the response of the community and yes, the recipes too. Following my fellow local St. Louis food bloggers is especially cool. I've met many face-to-face so catching the inside bits about special ingredients, shopping finds, neighborhood doings, life changes, it's like the best jigsaw puzzle. Our St. Louis food blogger Facebook page is less puzzle, more dutiful reporting of recent recipes. Most slip by but the idea of sloppy joes made with lentils instead of meat really caught my attention. Our friends Denise and Craig are omnivores but actively hunt out meatless main dishes. When Denise called her experiment with vegetarian sloppy joes "THE" best vegetarian dinner for a carnivore, I knew that sooner than later, I'd be turning hot lentils into buns.

Call me glad I did! Regular readers know that slow cookers, tastewise, often disappoint me. NOT HERE! The lentils and seasonings both stand up to the heat, the flavor is great, the texture is great, the combination is wonderful. And meaty brown lentils really do mimic the traditional texture of sloppy joes, you won't "fool" a carnivore but these are excellent.
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Kale Salad To-Go with Avocado & Apple ♥

2013-02-20T14:30:00.000-06:00

Today's kale salad recipe: A salad that's perfect for an on-the-go healthy lifestyle. Make it ahead of time, then carry it along to work or outdoor activities. Low carb. Weight Watchers 1 or 2 point. Not just vegan, "Vegan Done Real".

My name is Alanna "Procrastinator" Kellogg. At least it should be. Last year, a reader (hi, Kathleen Houlihan!) forwarded a favorite recipe for a raw kale salad, one she knew I'd like. But it even though the recipe appealed, it took me a year, to the day, to make her salad. (Why? No good reason, did I mention that my name is Alanna "Procrastinator" Kellogg?) Back to the salad.

When she googled recipes for massaged kale salads, Kathleen wrote, all seemed to use a separate dressing. In this one, she explained, "You squeeze lemon juice on the kale and then massage in avocado, that makes the dressing. Then you can add apple, nuts, etc. and let it all sit overnight to soften. Keeps a couple more days."

I really liked this kale, especially since it was as good to go on Day Two and Day Three as Day One. I have the idea that it might become a go-to "real food" Medifast small meal once I move into maintenance. (Getting close, down 27 yesterday! See Why I Switched from Weight Watchers to Medifast.)
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Vegan Chickpea Gumbo ♥ Guest Post by the Fatfree Vegan

2013-02-04T08:30:00.000-06:00

Could I pick 'em or what? Way back in 2006, I invited SusanV from Fatfree Vegan Kitchen to write a guest post for A Veggie Venture. Her blog was not even a month old! Now of course, Fatfree Vegan Kitchen is the source of inspiration for a wide and passionate community of vegan eaters. But until now, 2013, a full seven years later, I'd never made Susan's Chickpea Gumbo myself. Whoa – was I ever missing out, WHAT a gumbo. I made it once and was very sorry to not be able to make another batch right away! This is one of the best things I've made in a long time!! And naturally, it's not just vegan, it's "Vegan Done Real". It would be a great choice for a Mardi Gras party! (Looking for ideas for Mardi Gras? Check out Mardi Gras recipes!)

~recipe & photo updated & reposted 2013~
~more recently updated recipes~

Please welcome SusanV from Fatfree Vegan Kitchen:

Look through any Cajun cookbook, and you’ll notice that meat or seafood is in everything, even in most of the vegetable dishes. In fact, many vegetable recipes are so heavily “seasoned” with meat that the vegetables get lost in the mix. So to my family and friends back in Louisiana, I’m something of an eccentric: a vegan, someone who eats no animal products at all. “How could you give up gumbo?” they ask. “Or jambalaya or red beans and rice?” The answer is — I didn’t!

The first thing I did after becoming vegetarian was to start adapting the recipes I grew up with to eliminate the meat and seafood. At first I used a lot of “fake meats” to try to replicate the taste and “mouth feel” of the original recipes. As time went on, I wanted to lighten up my cooking even more, to use more natural, whole foods and to reduce the fat. I’ve stayed true to the seasonings of my native cuisine, but I’ve tried to add an element of freshness.

This Chickpea Gumbo, for instance, started off life as a Chicken Gumbo — a chicken gumbo that also originally included bacon grease and smoked sausage. I’ve eliminated all of the meat — as well as the cholesterol — but kept the wonderful seasonings: the “trinity” of onions, green pepper, and celery and the spiciness of the black pepper and cayenne. And I’ve added a little Liquid Smoke to impart a smoky, ham-like flavor.

A word about the okra: Some people never get past the slicing stage of okra preparation. They see the slime oozing out, and they toss the whole batch into the garbage. But I’m here to tell you that once it is cooked, okra is not slimy at all. If anything, it helps to thicken the gumbo. So don’t be afraid. But if you can’t get over the sliminess, feel free to use frozen, sliced okra. You don’t even have to thaw it before adding it to the gumbo, so you never see the sliminess.

And a word about spiciness: This is not an extremely spicy gumbo, and for most people it will be spicy enough just as it’s written. In fact, if you know you don’t like spicy foods, you should cook the recipe without the red and black pepper or the Tabasco and add those ingredients at the end, to taste. But, if you’ve got a real “hot tooth,” feel free to add all the extra spiciness you want.
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Two-Can Ten-Minute Homemade Tomato Soup ♥ Quick Recipe

2013-01-27T16:30:00.000-06:00

Today's easy homemade soup recipe: Tomato soup made from scratch in just ten minutes. No "weird" ingredients like canned tomato soup and lower in calories, too.

So I suspect that purists won't consider this homemade soup. After all, I didn't till the soil to grow the tomatoes and I certainly didn't toil over a hot stove canning summer tomatoes, all to toss together an easy, steaming bowl of tomato soup during the cold and damp of a Midwestern winter.

But here's why for me, Two-Can Ten-Minute Homemade Tomato Soup not only qualifies, it rocks. Let's look at the ingredient lists.

Diced Tomatoes: Tomatoes.*
Tomato Sauce: Tomato Concentrate, Salt, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Citric Acid, Natural Flavors, Dried Bell Pepper.*
* Caveat: It took careful examination of several labels to find diced tomatoes and tomato sauce without sugar.

versus

Campbell's Condensed Tomato Soup (Australia**): Tomato Puree, Sugar, Onions, Modified Tapioca Starch, Salt, Garlic, Acidity Regulator, Natural Flavors, Xanthum Gum, Natural Food Color, Herbs, Spices.
Campbell's Condensed Tomato Soup (United States**): Tomato Puree, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Wheat Flour, Water, Salt, Potassium Chloride, Flavoring, Citric Acid, Sea Salt, Ascorbic Acid, Monopotassium Phosphate.
** Fascinating, the difference in the ingredient lists between canned tomato soup in Australia and canned tomato soup in the U.S. Are the soups actually different or do the labels reflect differences in labeling laws?

Besides, did I mention it takes just ten minutes to make this soup? That's start-to-finish, with plenty of hands-off time to make grilled cheese sandwiches. Yahoo, lunch!
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Recipe for Peasant Cabbage-Tomato Soup ♥

2013-01-15T08:45:00.000-06:00

Today's simple cabbage soup recipe: Just onion, cabbage, tomato, a touch of sugar and hot sauce but very, very satisfying. Just 15 minutes to make, just 30 minutes to put onto the table! Just one or two Weight Watchers points! And, when made with vegetable broth or water, not just vegan, "Vegan Done Real".

~recipe & photo updated & republished 2013~
~more recently updated recipes~

2007: Perfectly simple = simple and perfect. This sweet 'n' sour cabbage soup hit just the spot after a frosty walk and a too-big lunch. And it made up in minutes, another plus. And it's pretty, that broth has a lovely cast of tomato-y color. That said, it's decidedly homely fare. Like I said: perfect, simple, perfectly simple. It's eatable in minutes but does improve with 24 hours in the fridge.

2013: If this is peasant food, then royalty should eat so well. Is it just me who finds a certain elegance in such simplicity? All these years of cooking and it still stuns me how much a few ingredients can deliver. You WANT to make this!
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Why I Switched from Weight Watchers to Medifast

2013-01-08T20:55:00.000-06:00

No recipe today but instead a story, one of Choice and Hope and Compromise.

You'll find the story posted on Kitchen Parade, Why I Switched from Weight Watchers to Medifast. There's a lively discussion there, come join the chatter!

A Veggie Venture is home of 'veggie evangelist' Alanna Kellogg and the
famous asparagus-to-zucchini Alphabet of Vegetables.
© Copyright Kitchen Parade 2013

How to Roast a Pepper (Capsicum) on a Gas Stove ♥ Techniques, Tricks & Tips

2013-01-08T10:20:00.000-06:00

Today's quick & easy way to roast one or two sweet peppers or hot chilies right on the stove, a gas stove, that is.

To roast a pepper – the sweet peppers like green bell peppers, yellow and orange bell peppers and especially red bell peppers – is to change not only its texture but its flavor. A raw pepper is wet and crunchy, a roasted pepper is slippery and smoky.

This same technique works not only with sweet peppers but also with hot chile peppers with a little or a lot of heat. My favorite pepper for roasting is a poblano chile (as picture) but I've also roasted jalapeños and other chiles.

Mostly it's a hands-off operation, just throw the pepper on the fire, then carry on in the kitchen – no wandering off, now, it's not that hands-off! – keeping an eye on the roasting process, turning as needed.

The technique is best for roasting one or two peppers, for a whole trayful, you'll want to follow this technique that works in both gas and electric ovens, How to Roast Peppers in the Oven.

And I should add one more thing, and that's that when I was cooking on a typical kitchen stove, I didn't have much luck roasting peppers this way, it seemed to just take too long. So it's possible that this technique works only with high-BTU commercial stovetops like Viking and Wolf. Or maybe you have more patience than I!
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Best Vegetable Recipes of 2012 ♥ Personal Favorites

2012-12-31T06:30:00.000-06:00

The best vegetable recipes of 2012 from A Veggie Venture, just one per month, all in one handy spot for easy reference.

It's that time of year, the week when we food bloggers look back over a year's worth of recipes and pick our favorites! I love-love-love this process! It really helps us hone our recipe collections, highlighting the best of the already very good, especially for sites like A Veggie Venture and my food column Kitchen Parade which by design, already post only really good recipes, the ones that work, the ones that are special or especially useful. (Here's the 2012 favorite recipes from Kitchen Parade too.)

But I also love all the many sources of "best of the year" lists for movies, books, gadgets, etc. So this year, I'm collecting "best of the year" lists on Pinterest. Follow me there and you'll see all the new entries over the next couple of weeks on this board, Best of the Year Lists & Favorites.

But okay, here you go, my favorite recipes for 2012. Do we share some favorites? Have I completely missed one you loved? Let me know in the comments!
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Good Luck for 2013: New Year's Soup Recipe ♥ with Black-eyed Peas & Collard Greens

2012-12-28T06:45:00.134-06:00

Today's soup recipe: Easy, healthy and satisfying, a good way to kick off the new year (even a few days early!) after the indulgence of the holiday. For Weight Watchers, just 2 points (PointsPlus) and 1 point (Old Points).

So how did 2012 treat you? Mine was just swell, thanks for asking. (And yours? Do tell!) Should credit be given to this lovely little soup that I cooked up for New Years a year ago? Maybe! You see, by southern tradition, black-eyed peas bring "good fortune" to the new year and greens – any green, that's collard greens, turnip greens, kale, chard, etc – bring "financial success".

And no bitter medicine, this soup. It really hits a sweet spot with just a tiny touch of underlying heat. It's a vegan soup, though no one will likely notice. On the other hand, a little ham or bacon wouldn't hurt here (Note to Vegetarians). Meat isn't needed, mind you, but it would just add a protein component and calories that might especially satisfy, say, the menfolk at the table.

DO BLACK-EYED PEAS NEED TO SOAK BEFORE GETTING COOKED? Great news, they don't! So this soup is easy to make right now, ASAP. You might even have all the ingredients on hand!
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Easy-Easy Healthy Holiday Appetizers: Party Rye with Tomato & Cucumber ♥

2012-12-05T16:30:00.000-06:00

Today's easy appetizer recipe, red and green for the holidays but fresh and festive for summer, too. Just one Weight Watchers point!

Scramble mode, that's me just before a party's to start, that rush-rush hour or so when there will be exactly enough time to get everything done but not a minute, not a second, more. How does that happen anyway?

But here's an appetizer I used to keep in my back pocket, just in case I really ran short of time and the appetizer I'd planned, more elegant but more fussy, just wasn't going to happen. But now I just put these out on purpose, because people like them. There's nothing unfamiliar or mysterious about this, you also can tell, hey, it looks fresh and healthy. So these just go, one by one, some people back for seconds and thirds, until the platter is empty.

I hesitate to call this a recipe, really, it's more like a visual suggestion, an eyeball reminder. Buy a packet of those small party squares (I'm partial to the rye ones, more flavor), slather on a little Boursin or something similar, then add thin slices of tomato and cucumber. The real trick though? The bit of seasoning salt on top!
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Silky Smooth Corn Pudding ♥ Recipe

2012-11-13T16:46:00.000-06:00

Today's extra-easy Thanksgiving vegetable recipe: An oh-so-smooth custardy corn pudding that takes all of ten minutes to throw together. Now don't turn up your nose that it starts with a can of creamed corn. The resulting custard is slightly sweet, oh-so-smooth that I promise, no one will know. Everyone will think you are a kitchen magician!

Have you developed your own style, a personal preference for taste and timing? I sure have. When it's supper for one or two, my style is to make it fresh, eat it asap, no setting the slow cooker in the morning, no putting aside meals for the freezer.

But for parties and family gatherings? I am the make-ahead queen. That's why virtually every single Thanksgiving recipe here on A Veggie Venture includes tips for making a dish the day before. Last year's Thanksgiving, I cooked and prepped so much on the Wednesday that by Thursday morning, all that was left was to "cook" was the turkey my grandmother's butterhorns in the oven: talk about a relaxing day!

This easy corn pudding recipe strays from style but compensates by prepping – assembling, really is all – in a flat ten minutes. For such simplicity, the results are astounding, this dish looks and tastes like the cook spent time and effort coddling a custard.

T MINUS NINE DAYS Who's still looking for ideas for Thanksgiving recipes? I've got lots to share, from Favorite Recipes for Thanksgiving's Favorite Vegetables to Vegetarian Entrées for Thanksgiving to a full Six Thanksgiving Menus.
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Simple "Sweet Potato" Potato Salad ♥ Recipe with Hardly Any Mayonnaise

2012-11-06T18:45:00.000-06:00

Today's healthy sweet potato salad recipe, made with a bare minimum of mayonnaise, just enough to hold the salad together. Great crunch from celery, a touch of sweetness from honey and a few chopped dried cranberries. When made with vegan mayonnaise, not just vegan, "Vegan Done Real".

Two things to know about this sweet potato salad.

It's really a classic potato salad, except that it's made with sweet potatoes instead of potatoes. Why don't we do this more often?
It's "barely dressed" with hardly any mayonnaise, just enough to hold it all together. This makes the taste and texture all about the softness of the sweet potatoes, the crunch of the celery and the "tiny bit" of sweetness from the dried cranberries. Why don't we do this more often?

But make that three.

You want to make this salad, you really do. It's so simple and somehow, it just works. Besides, you know, don't you? that the sweet potato is the favorite vegetable for Thanksgiving? It is, I tell that story here in Favorite Recipes for Thanksgiving's Favorite Vegetables. This salad? It totally makes the list.
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Quinoa Pilaf with Kale & Corn ♥ Recipe

2012-10-23T04:30:00.000-05:00

Today's new favorite kale recipe: Quinoa and kale cooked in one pot, then tossed with a bright lemon vinaigrette and a few kernels of corn. You might serve it on the side, you might choose it for Meatless Monday.

So. Confession time. You know that household chore you put off and put off and put off some more and then when you finally buck up and just do it, well, it takes all of ten minutes start to finish? (Except for the four months it took to get around to it in the first place.) Kale is like that for me, it's a bit of a chore, something I ought to buy/cook/eat more of but always put off. Then when I finally do, I'm half surprised to realize all over again, that "Hey! Kale is really good stuff!" And no chore at all!

Enter this quinoa, just quinoa and kale cooked at the same time in the same pot – yay, just one dish – then tossed with raw corn kernels and a lemon vinaigrette and topped with a few toasted walnuts and feta. That's it. Why did I put this off? You don't want to make the same mistake.
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Fried Zucchini Sticks vs Baked Zucchini Sticks ♥ Recipe

2012-10-16T04:30:00.000-05:00

<< Today's vegetable recipe: My friend Helen's recipe for Fried Zucchini Sticks (what she calls just "Fried Zucchini") plus my test of the same recipe, but baked, so Baked Zucchini Sticks. It's a face-off, Fried vs Baked in taste, calories and Weight Watchers points. Which recipe wins out, the Fried Zucchini Sticks or the Baked Zucchini Sticks? You might just be surprised. >>

Are fried vegetables the "gateway" technique for vegetable haters? I admit a weakness for fried plants: fried onions, fried green beans, fried pickles, fried okra, fried eggplant. Fried eggplant? Yes, it's been known to turn self-proclaimed "we are not eggplant people" into fried-eggplant fiends.

So why no fried vegetables on A Veggie Venture? Well, it's a healthy-eating thing. Because we all know that fried food is bad, right? Right?

Well maybe it is, maybe it isn't. These Fried Zucchini Sticks were fried in a skillet that started with 8 tablespoons (1/2 cup) of vegetable oil. When they were done, 5-1/3 tablespoons (1/3c) of vegetable oil was still in the pan. That means that exactly 2-2/3 tablespoons of oil were used to fry the zucchini sticks.

Now granted, 2-2/3 tablespoons of oil is considerably more than the 1 tablespoon of oil I typically allow for a pound of vegetables. But it's also considerably less than the 1/4 cup of oil I often see used in vegetable recipes in magazines and cookbooks.

That said, I really did want to see how Fried Zucchini Sticks and Baked Zucchini Sticks compared, taste-wise, goodness-wise. The verdict?
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Baked Oatmeal with Pumpkin & Pears ♥ Recipe

2012-10-09T04:30:00.000-05:00

Today's healthy breakfast recipe: Oatmeal baked with pumpkin plus fall fruit, pumpkin-pie spices and nuts. There's just enough pumpkin for color and moisture without making the oatmeal dense and heavy.

Come October 1, American-based food blogs take on a fevered orange tinge – pumpkin orange, that is – as we go cra-zee for pumpkin recipes. I have my own collection, My Favorite Pumpkin Recipes but am always happy to add another! "Never look a gift pumpkin in the face," I say, especially when it's a healthy pumpkin recipe. :-)

The last few weeks, I've been made one pan of Easy Baked Oatmeal after another, twice with blueberries and bananas, twice with apples and pears (and the all-important bananas), then twice more with pumpkin and pears (and more bananas). It took some tweaking to get the right amount of pumpkin and pumpkin-pie-type spices and the baking time right, but the last batch was just excellent.
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