Stir-fried Portobello Mushrooms

A simple stir fry with some custom-made marinade/sauce. Snap peas, peppers and onions add body and flavor to the meaty texture of the portobello mushrooms.

Ingredients for marinade/stir-fry sauce:
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
½ tsp coconut sugar (or agave nectar)
½ tsp red pepper flakes
2 Tbsp tamari
1 Tbsp lime juice
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp grated ginger
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 Tbsp water

Stir together the marinade/sauce ingredients and pour over the veggies, allow to marinate for 10 minutes or so. Then, heat a cast iron skillet or wok to high heat, add a tablespoon of sesame oil, then add in the marinated veggies with all the marinade; stir on and off till crisp-tender.

Serve on a bed of arugula, or with brown basmati rice.

Roasted Squash, Arugula, Hemp Hearts Salad

Hemp hearts is a treasure, a fairly pricey treasure, which I indulge in small doses as a special treat. A jar of shelled hemp seeds usually waits in the fridge patiently until called to enhance salads, oatmeal, yogurt and anything else that could use a boost from this nutrient-rich garnish.

Roast squash is a quick addition to winter salads. When cut into thin slices and tossed with olive oil winter squashes like acorn squash roast up in no time at all - say, 10 to 15 minutes in a 400 ° F oven.

Hearty arugula forms the base layer for this salad, topped with roast acorn squash, caramelized red onions, feta, and hemp hearts. Raspberry+balsamic vinaigrette with a touch of agave nectar is what I prefer to drizzle on this salad, sparingly.

Cream of Arugula Soup

In the recent heat wave, and my partial neglect, the home garden arugula shot up and bolted. While its delicate white flowers were pretty, I didn't want it to go to seed too soon and spread wildly. So, I snipped the lot of it, stem and all, leaving  just enough for it to possibly recover by autumn.

Of course, salads with arugula tossed in is a staple, but this time I was craving for some hearty dal-like soup. 

I discarded the bottom few inches of chewy woody arugula stalk but used the rest of the thick stem and leaves and flowers for this soup. To add body and protein, I went with the staple moong dal.

This easy-to-cook thick and creamy arugula soup can be served chilled on a hot summer day. I prefer it warm with a hunk of Olive Ciabatta bread.

Ingredients

5 cups chopped washed arugula, stem and all

1 cup moong dal, uncooked (aka mung bean, green gram)

2 Serrano chilies, chopped (reduce if preferred)

1 medium onion diced

2 vine tomatoes cut into quarters

6 cloves of garlic, peeled and ready

1 Tablespoon Coconut oil

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

2 teaspoon cumin powder 

2 Tablespoon coriander powder

3 cups stock or water

1/2 cup heavy cream

Salt to taste

Preparation

1. Wash and drain the moong dal, keep handy 

2. Heat coconut oil in pressure cooker pan, add onions, chilies, garlic, and tomatoes and sauté till aromatic 

3. Add the washed and drained moong dal and sauté some more 

4. Add the chopped arugula, some salt, stock or water, and stir well

5. Put the lid on and pressure cook; since dal cooks quite fast, can also just cook in a saucepan instead of pressure cooker

6. When done and safe to open the pressure cooker, stir in the spice powders and simmer gently on low heat

7. Use a hand blender or potato masher to mush up the cooked dal and veggies

8. Stir in some heavy cream and turn off heat; adjust flavored to taste

9. Garnish with spring onions and chives and serve warm or cold

Arugula Quinoa Citrus-y Salad

I tend to sound like a broken record at times here - but, I do love the rice cooker. I use it a lot and not just for cooking rice. Anything from cous cous to polenta, millet, kasha, steamed veggies, kichdi, and quinoa, I trust my rice cooker to help out. Of course, the first few tries of any new item is experimental, until I figure out the amount of liquid needed and whether one regular cycle is enough etc.

Quinoa comes out perfectly in the rice cooker. I buy quinoa in bulk. Per cup of dry quinoa, I use 1 cup of liquid - either stock or water. Typically, I soak the quinoa in warm water for about 5 minutes and drain the stuff that floats to the top. Rinse and repeat washing a couple of times. And then I am ready to measure out the water and cook it in the regular cycle of the rice cooker. And to keep the grains from getting clumped and sticky, I like to add a small amount of olive oil (or any favorite oil). Rice cooker is particularly helpful for making flavorful brown rice and pilaf (pulao/pulav), of course.

The Berry Sweet Citrus Dressing is something I came up with for this salad as I was in the mood for it. This recipe here yields about half a cup of this delicious dressing. I tend to dress the salad on the conservative side for serving; however, I also serve extra dressing on the side.

Berry Sweet Citrus Dressing:
2 Tbsp Raspberry Red Wine Vinegar (I use Pompeian™)
1 tsp agave nectar
1 Tbsp fresh orange juice
1 tsp black raspberry jam
1 tsp sambal oelek (less if preferred)
½ tsp Italian seasoning herbs
⅛ tsp salt (optional)
⅛ tsp smoked paprika powder
½ tsp freshly grated ginger
4 Tbsp Olive Oil

Simply whisk all the ingredients together, taste and adjust as preferred.

For the salad:
¼ medium red onion, sliced thin
¼ medium red pepper, sliced thin
1 or 2 sweet mandarin oranges, peeled and sectioned
¼ cup julienned cooked beets
2.5 oz Arugula, cleaned and ready to use
1 cup cooked quinoa, cooled to room temperature
Slivered almonds (optional)

Toss the salad ingredients together, reserving the beets, almonds, and the orange slices as topping.