We heart larb, and we used to make larb gai all the time, but with Lisa being on a veggie kick lately, we introduced this version into the mix. Instead of chicken, I used a mix of various mushrooms we had on hand — shiitake, cremini, and good old white button. It was delicious! One thing to note is that after sauteeing the mushrooms you should try to get as much excess liquid out as you can — you’ll be adding more liquid via lime juice and fish sauce, and you don’t want to end up with a soupy mess. Also, I noticed this version warranted a greater fish sauce to lime juice ratio than when done with chicken.

How about we don’t talk about this one, and just eat it instead?

Chris says:

I’m *so* okay with that. Also, “om nom nom nom nom”.

Mushroom Larb
1 lb mixed mushrooms (shiitake, cremini, white, etc.), roughly chopped
1 tbsp roasted rice powder
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 green onions, chopped
2 tbsp chopped shallots
3 tbsp chopped mint leaves
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp garlic and red chile paste
cabbage leaves
cilantro

Spray a nonstick skillet with oil and heat to medium. Add in the chopped mushrooms and cook until they release their water and start to brown.
Remove from the heat and put in a strainer to drain excess liquid. Add the mushrooms to a large bowl and stir in the rice powder, cilantro, green onions, shallots, and mint leaves.
In a separate small bowl, mix together the fish sauce, lime juice, chile paste, and cayenne pepper. Taste for desired levels of spicy/salty/sour.
Add to bowl with mushrooms, stir, and adjust seasonings.
Garnish with cilantro sprigs and serve with cabbage leaves to scoop.

Local, organic bakery The Essential Baking Company has a few cafés around town, and I’ve been enjoying their bread salad on a pretty regular basis, so much so that I decided I had to recreate it at home. I love the mix of roasted yams, beets, and leeks (!), and when tossed with big chunks of crispy-on-the-outside bread, mixed greens, and balsamic vinaigrette, it’s a salad I just can’t say no to. In a wonderful instance of kismet, our CSA box this week provided both the yams and beets for this recipe.

Hey, this looks familiar!

Chris says:

Yeah, I think I did pretty good recreating it…

Lisa says:

What kind of greens are these?

Chris says:

Well, I meant to pick up some mixed baby greens, but accidentally got this mix of mustard greens, kale, and chard…

Lisa says:

Whoops…

Chris says:

Yeah, but it’s actually fine, I think — it may have been overwhelming if it was all greens, but most of this salad consists of the roasted veggies.

Lisa says:

It *is* totally fine; actually, it’s pretty good. I heart kale and chard.

Chris says:

I heart these leeks. I may want to just roast those up on a regular basis; maybe add them to mashed potatoes or something — they’re really good.

Lisa says:

I love it. Hmmm, I’m going to come up with a list of other dishes to recreate at home!

Roasted Root Vegetable Bread Salad
Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
3-4 medium beets
2 medium/large yams, peeled and sliced 3/4″ thick
2 leeks, washed and sliced on a bias into 1/2″ thick pieces
favorite day-old bread (we used Essential Bakery’s Rosemary Diamante), cut into 1″ cubes
mixed salad greens
balsamic vinaigrette

Preheat the oven to 400F. Arrange oven racks so that both can be used during the roasting process. The beets take the longest, so you should be able to swap in the remaining vegetables to roast while the beets are going.
Wrap each beet in aluminum foil. Place the beets on a cooking sheet and into the oven, on the lower rack, for 45 minutes to an hour, until a knife pressed into a beet gives little resistance. While the beets are roasting, toss the yams in a bowl with a little olive oil, salt, and pepper. Turn out onto a baking sheet and roast for 20-30 minutes, flipping once, until soft on the inside but still a bit crisp on the outside. Set aside to cool. Toss the leeks with just a little olive oil and turn onto a baking sheet, and roast for about 10 minutes, until soft and just starting to brown. Set aside to cool. When the beets are ready, remove and open the foil packets. When cool enough to handle, peel the outer layer and cut into chunks.
Meanwhile, toss the bread cubes in a little olive oil (sounding familiar?), place on a baking sheet and bake just until crisp on the outside — you don’t want to make rock-hard croutons.
Now you can just throw everything, including the salad greens, into a bowl, add enough dressing to your liking, toss until coated, and serve! Season as desired.

2-3 servings.

I was looking for a dish that would go well with our Korean pancakes, and after a quick interwebs search I came across this dish at epicurious. Rather than the usual sirloin, this recipe uses salmon as the lucky recipient of a tasty, spicy marinade made with soy sauce, onions, ginger, sesame oil, and more. It’s served over a bed of baby bok choy and shiitake mushrooms. I only made slight modifications to the recipe — I doubled the marinade and upped the number of mushrooms. The sauce/glaze is deeelicious.

Yum, this is really good!

Chris says:

Yeah, I really like how the salmon is cooked.. super tender on the inside. And I think that’s the first time our oven’s been set at 500.

Lisa says:

Well mark it in the calendar.

Chris says:

… anyway … I loves me that marinade/glaze. It’s good on the veggies and the salmon.

Lisa says:

You know, that spicy red sauce from the pancakes is good on my salmon, too.

Chris says:

I’m sure that’s good on cardboard. I think we’re going to have to do more Korean recipes soon.

Bulgogi-Style Salmon with Bok Choy and Mushrooms
2 large garlic cloves, peeled, divided
1/3 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tbsp Chinese rice wine or dry Sherry
1 tsp minced fresh ginger
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp Asian sesame oil
1 tsp chili-garlic sauce
2 6-oz center-cut skinless salmon fillets
1 tbsp olive oil
5-6 baby bok choy, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-wide strips (about 3 1/2 – 4 cups)
8 large fresh shiitake mushrooms, stemmed, caps sliced

Blend 1 garlic clove and next 7 ingredients in mini processor. Arrange salmon in a small glass baking dish. Spoon marinade over, and let marinate 5 minutes.
Preheat oven to 500°F. Transfer the fish, with some marinade still clinging, to a rimmed baking sheet. Roast the fish until just opaque in center, about 8 minutes. Meanwhile, transfer any remaining marinade to a small saucepan. Bring marinade in saucepan to boil; set aside and reserve for glaze.
Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add bok choy and mushrooms; using garlic press, press in 1 garlic clove. Stir-fry until mushrooms are tender and bok choy is wilted, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Divide vegetables among two plates, top with the salmon, and brush with the glaze.

2 Servings

We made this recipe from Asian Flavors after one of Lisa’s running buddies put the thought of Korean food in our heads. I’d been wanting to make this recipe for a while, and the promise of a new hot sauce to dip them in made it a no-brainer. These pancakes aren’t as fluffy as American pancakes, and you can throw just about anything in them. These feature green onions, green beans, and red bell peppers. This is sure to be a fun recipe to experiment with later.

I could eat an entire meal consisting of just these.

Lisa says:

We’re almost there already…

Chris says:

Well, I had to toss the first one — my pan and oil weren’t nearly hot enought and it turned into a super-oily goo.

Lisa says:

Well it looks like you figured it out fine…

Chris says:

Yep, I think each successive one was better. By the way, I love that red hot sauce.

Lisa says:

I know! I like dipping them in that better than the soy sauce-based one.

Lisa says:

I didn’t think it was too spicy at first, but it builds… the more you have, the hotter it gets.

Chris says:

In that case, I have to find more stuff to dip into it!

Korean Green Bean & Scallion Pancakes
2 oz green beans
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup cold water
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
peanut oil
4 scallions, sliced into thin strips
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into strips

Blanch the green beans in a saucepan of boiling water for about a minute. Drain, cool with cold water, and chop into small pieces.
In a bowl, mix together the two flours. Make a well in the center, add the egg, and stir into the flours until mixed, gradually adding the cold water. The batter will be runnier than breakfast pancake batter. Stir in the sesame oil and let stand for 30 minutes.
Heat a small, heavy, non-stick skillet over medium heat, and add peanut oil to coat. Pour in a quarter of the batter, then add a quarter of the vegetables. Cook for 3-4 minutes until set and browned underneath. Flip and cook for 2-3 minutes more. Transfer to a warming platter, and repeat to make a total of four pancakes.
Cut into squares and serve with the dipping sauces.

Dipping Sauce #1 (not pictured)
1/2 cup Korean Hot Pepper Paste (Gochujang)
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp of sesame oil
1 clove of garlic, minced

Dipping Sauce #2 (pictured)
4 tbsp Japanese soy sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1/2 tsp ginger puree
1 tsp sesame paste
Pinch of sugar
1 tsp black sesame seeds

Sometimes you just need to bite the bullet and pay full price. That’s what I walked away with after Lisa made this version of Pad Thai from Almost Meatless, a great cookbook to give those in your life who are trying to eat less meat but can’t quite, or don’t want to, go vegetarian. When we went shopping to pick up the ingredients for this one (a few months ago, now), the lump crab meat at our local Whole Foods was something like $32/lb, and they didn’t have any whole crabs on hand. We already had the rest of the ingredients for this recipe at home, so we decided to go with the pre-pack cans of crab meat. The pieces fell apart rapidly and overly-infused the dish with too much crabbiness. One the other hand, we’d never made Pad Thai at home, and it’s good knowing that it’s actually pretty easy to do. Next time we’ll either wait for a sale, or go with tofu.

Whoa, way too crabby.

Chris says:

…but the noodles themselves are good.

Lisa says:

Yeah I like the noodles and the sauce, but the crab is still overpowering.

Chris says:

Although… hunger vs. tastebuds…

Lisa says:

Well obviously hunger wins. But next time I’m just making this vegetarian.

Chris says:

And I like the picture, so there’s that.

Lisa says:

Yes, there’s that — is that why you waited so long to post this one, though? Because it wasn’t exactly our favorite?

Chris says:

Hmm… laziness vs. pride…

Crab Pad Thai
8 oz rice noodles
1 cup tamarind water/concentrate
1/2 cup fish sauce
3 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp soy sauce
8 tsp vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 eggs, lightly beaten
8 oz lump crabmeat
2 cups bean sprouts
6 scallions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup roasted salted peanuts, chopped
2 limes, cut into wedges, for serving

Prepare the noodles as directed on the package by soaking in hot water for 10-15 minutes until just softened, then rinsing under cold water. Set aside.
Whisk together the tamarind concentrate, fish sauce, sugar, and soy sauce in a bowl and set aside.
Make each serving one at a time: Heat two teaspoons of the oil in a wok over high heat. When the wok and oil are hot, drop around 2 cups of the noodles (about 1/4th) and toss continuously for 30 seconds. Add 1/4th of the sauce mixture and 1/2 tsp of minced garlic, tossing to coat the noodles. Push to the side and add in 1/4 of the beaten eggs. Let it start to set, then scramble into the noodles. Add 1/4th of the crab meat, bean sprouts, and scallions, toss to heat through, then plate. Top with peanuts and add lime wedges. Repeat for the remaining three servings.

4 Servings

Lisa made this soup when we were in California during the holidays — orzo, chickpeas, and spinach swim in a simple vegetable broth, topped with garlicky tomatoes and shredded Parmesan. Lisa’s dad liked the soup so much he decided to make it again just a few days later. The recipe is based on one from Heidi’s site, with a few additions.

A delicious noodle soup, orzo it seems

Lisa says:

C’mon, no puns tonight please.

Chris says:

Alright, fine. I do love the addition of the chickpeas…

Seto says:

This is very good Lisa! I’m having more.

Lisa says:

Awesome! I love the egg whites… they add a neat texture to the broth.

Chris says:

I bet this would be good with the kale option as well — if we make this when we get back to Seattle let’s do it that way.

Seto says:

I’ll be making this myself by the end of the week. Leave me the recipe…

7 cups vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups orzo
2 cups spinach, chopped
1 14-oz can chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
1 14-oz can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, well drained
1 tsp crushed red pepper
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
extra virgin olive oil
3 egg whites
sea salt

grated Parmesan cheese

Bring the broth to a boil in a large saucepan. Add the orzo and cook until just tender – about ten minutes. Stir in the chopped spinach and chickpeas.

Meanwhile, heat the tomatoes, red pepper, garlic, and a splash of extra virgin olive oil in a separate saucepan. Taste for seasoning and salt if needed.

Just before serving, slowly pour the egg whites into the soup, stirring quickly with a whisk. Taste and add more salt if needed. Divide the soup among four bowls, each serving topped with a spoonful of tomatoes, a drizzle of olive oil, and some of the cheese.

4-6 Servings

Here’s an incredibly delicious dish courtesy of VeganYumYum.  Tofu is covered in an amazing spicy/sweet/tart glaze, and piled atop a mound of greens and grains.  This particular version uses collard greens and quinoa, but this would work equally well with kale or chard on top of brown rice.  Honestly, the star is the tofu.  You could plop it on a pile of green construction paper and cardboard and I’d eat it.

This is the best tofu ever.

Chris says:

Yeah, I’m about to stick my tongue right into that pan.

Lisa says:

Too late; it’s all on my tofu now! I heart glaze! I like that it’s also the perfect amount of spice — just enough heat to know it’s there.

Chris says:

Yeah it’s great — you should make stuff like this more often.

Lisa says:

Delicious vegetarian meals?

Chris says:

Um… well… more specifically, tofu triangles with some sort of awesome glaze over steamed greens and quinoa.

Lisa says:

Did you not hear me? I said I heart glaze. That won’t be a problem.

Chili-Lime Tofu with Steamed Collards and Quinoa
1 14-oz package extra-firm tofu

Sweet Chili Lime Sauce:
3 tbsp Sugar
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 3/4 tbsp fresh lime juice
zest from 1/2 lime
1/2 tsp red chili flakes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp Salt
4 mint leaves, rolled and thinly sliced

Quinoa:
3/4 Cup Quinoa, rinsed in cool water, drained
zest from 1/2 lime
2 bruised cardamom pods
1 small Stick of Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Salt
1 1/3 Cup Water

Collards:
1 Bunch Collard Greens, middle veins removed, washed
2-3 tbsp Water
1 Pinch Salt
1 tsp fresh lime juice

Combine all the quinoa ingredients in a pot with a tight-fitting lid. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes, turn of heat, and let sit for 10 minutes.
Prepare the sweet chili lime sauce by whisking all of the ingredients together until the sugar and salt is dissolved.
Drain the tofu and cut it into small triangles: Cut the block of tofu into 8 slices, then cut each slice in half, and each half diagonally to create four triangles per slice. Heat a non-stick skillet over medium heat, one that the tofu will not stick to without adding oil.
Spread the tofu out in one layer in the pan. Using a spatula, press the tofu until the liquid squeezes out and boil away. The tofu will begin to turn golden. After several minutes, flip the tofu over and press the other side. After about 10 minutes of “dry” frying, turn off the heat and set the tofu aside.
Stack the collard leaves on top of each other and roll into a cigar shape. Slice in 3/4 inch segments, then cut through the chopped collards to make smaller pieces. Add them to a shallow pan with the water, lime juice and salt. Cover and cook over high heat for 3-4 minutes until the collards are steamed and tender.
To finish the tofu, heat the pan and the tofu over high heat, making sure the tofu is hot all the way through. Add the sauce and stir to coat the tofu. Keep the heat on high until the sauce bubbles up, reduces, and forms a glaze.
Arrange the collards atop of a bed of quinoa. Add tofu over the top, drizzling any leftover sauce over the dish. Garnish with lime slices and mint leaves.

2-3 Servings

Here’s another good one from Almost Meatless: okra, chard, onions, and just a bit of chicken in a richly-flavored broth made with peanut butter and chicken stock. The recipe makes quite a bit, and was so good that in addition to Lisa, I brought in leftovers for lunch the following day! (Those of you who know us realize how monumental that is!) The original recipe calls for dark-meat turkey (attention to those of you looking for ideas for Thanksgiving leftovers!), which we substituted for chicken.

Yum, this sauce is so good — and the rice just soaks it all up.

Chris says:

Yeah, I really like this — and even though you’re not the biggest fan, I heart the okra in it.

Lisa says:

Hey, I guess I won’t have to have my ritual spoon of peanut butter tonight!

Chris says:

Ha, guess not — and although you definitely taste the peanut flavor in here, it’s not like those Thai peanut sauces that are *super* peanutty.

Lisa says:

Nope — definitely not… not that I’d mind. I’m glad this is “almost” meatless, I’m almost ready for another vegetarian week.

Chris says:

…I’ll gladly eat whatever you aren’t in the mood for!

Lisa says:

Hey, fork off! I didn’t say I was ready for vegetarian week just yet…!

African Peanut Stew
2 tbsp oil, divided
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast (about 3/4 lb), cut into strips
4 oz okra, sliced thinly
1 onion, sliced into strips
4 cups chicken stock
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp garam masala
1 cup canned diced tomatoes (or fresh, if you have ‘em)
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
4 cups thinly-sliced rainbow chard
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup roasted salted peanuts, coarsely chopped
6 green onions, thinly sliced

Heat one tablespoon of the oil in a dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for five minutes, until lightly browned. Transfer meat and juices to a plate.
Add the 1/4 cup water and deglaze the pot, scraping up the bits from the bottom. Pour the liquid and bits over the chicken and set aside.
Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pot, add the okra, and saute for five minutes on medium heat, until it starts to look sticky. Add the onion and saute another five minutes. Pour in 1/2 cup of the stock and deglaze the bottom of the pot.
Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about a minute. Stir in the spices, tomatoes, peanut butter, reserved meat and juices, remaining stock, and chard. Lower heat to medium-low and simmer for 45 minutes.
Serve over brown rice and garnish with red bell peppers, chopped peanuts, and green onions.

6 Servings

Here’s a quick & easy, packed-full-of-flavor slurpy bowl of goodness from Super Natural Cooking: Noodles, tofu, and onions swimming in a rich, creamy coconut curry broth. Just the right amount of spice, and a garnish of cilantro and shallots provide nice color contrast to the yellow broth.

Ooooh, good choice! This is different than what we usually make.

Chris says:

Yeah, I’m usually not in the mood for coconut-broth-type dishes like this. I certainly never order them out.

Lisa says:

Well I’m glad you made this one; and I actually like the spiciness level.

Chris says:

Yeah it’s perfect — could always kick in additional hot sauce if you want it hotter.

Lisa says:

What makes it yellow, the curry paste?

Chris says:

It was a little closer to orange before the turmeric. Adding that and the coconut milk gave it the nice yellow color. I think the only thing I don’t think the recipe as shown in the book needs is the peanuts. I’ll leave them out when I make this next time.

Lisa says:

Agreed — they don’t really add much. It’s plenty awesome without them!

Big Curry Noodle Pot
8 1/2 oz. dried whole wheat udon noodles
2 tbsp coconut oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
1 1/2 tsp red curry paste
12 oz. extra firm tofu, cut into 1″ long columns
1 14 oz can coconut milk
2 cups vegetable broth
2 tsp turmeric
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
Juice of 1 lime
2 shallots, sliced into rings
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Cook noodles according to package directions in lots of boiling water with a dash of salt. Drain, stop the cooking by running cold water over, and set aside.
Meanwhile, heat the coconut oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the garlic, onion and curry paste, stirring until the curry paste is well incorporated, 1-2 minutes. Add the tofu and gently stir until coated. Stir in the coconut milk, broth, turmeric, soy sauce and sugar. Bring to a slow simmer and keep it there for about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the lime juice and noodles, and stir.
Add the noodles and some extra both to each of 4 bowls. Top with the shallots and cilantro.

4-6 Servings

I’ve been sitting on this recipe for a while, looks like I had bookmarked it about a year ago and finally got around to making it.  Originally from a Cooking Light recipe, this modified version from The Kitchen Sink features chicken, potatoes, and other veggies in a smoky-tasting, creamy broth — using just 1/4 cup of cream.

This is bueno — I knew I’d saved that link for a reason…

Lisa says:

It’s pretty creamy tasting…

Chris says:

I know! There’s a little cream in there, but not a lot — most of the texture is from pureeing the broth and onion, celery, and carrots.

Lisa says:

Oh good, I like that the potatoes aren’t pureed in. I like the chunks.

Chris says:

Same here… and I just want to add lime and cilantro to every recipe.

Lisa says:

Don’t we already?.

Chris says:

Good point.

Lisa says:

Good dinner.

Chipotle Chicken Chowder
1 chipotle chile canned in adobo sauce, minced with 1 tsp of the adobo sauce *
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped carrot
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground oregano
6 garlic cloves, minced
6 cups chicken broth
2 small chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
3/4 lb yukon gold potatoes, in 1/2″ dice
1/4 cup whipping cream
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus more to garnish
1/2 teaspoon salt
lime wedges

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add chopped chile, adobo sauce, onion, carrot, celery, cumin, oregano, and garlic; cook 7 minutes or until onion is tender, stirring frequently. Stir in broth; bring to a boil. Simmer for 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Remove pan from heat; let stand 5 minutes. Use an immersion blender to puree the mixture until smooth. Stir in the potatoes and chicken; bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook, uncovered, 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Stir in cream and cilantro; simmer 5 minutes. Top with additional cilantro and serve with the lime wedges.

* Tip: To avoid wasting an entire can of chipotles when you only need one for a recipe, do the following: Once the can is opened, line a baking sheet with foil, spoon each chipotle chile with sauce onto the foil, and place in the freezer. Once frozen, remove from the foil (they’ll slide right off) and place into a ziploc bag or other container and keep in the freezer. Easy to remove just one when required for future recipes.