Thai Coconut Lentils

This was a meal that came out of a need to use up various odds and ends in the fridge, and I wanted to see if I could put off going grocery shopping for another week. Though this was anything but a traditional Thai curry, I determined it to be delicious enough to count as a success. These lentils are super fragrant, filling, and of course full of fibre. I feel like lentils get a bad rap, and this is a great way to show just how versatile they are. If you wanted to make the dish stretch, you could serve it over rice, but the leftovers absorbed any juices pretty well by the next day. I found them satisfying just by themselves.

After spending several years learning how to cook for one (fortunately I already loved leftovers, which is very nearly a necessity to effectively cooking solo. Thanks, mom!) I have a couple tricks up my sleeve. For example, I will buy a few stalks of lemongrass, wash, and slice the stalks into two inch pieces or so, and keep them in the freezer. That way I always have it on hand, and its ready to be grated or thrown whole into a soup. I also stumbled on powdered coconut milk at the Asian supermarket - it works a lot like regular powdered milk and is a more frugal option than cans of coconut milk (which I stock up on when they go on sale).

I've gone ahead and labeled this recipe as both vegetarian and vegan - though fish sauce is a core component of Thai cooking, it can easily be substituted for vegetarian soy sauce if desired. If you've never used fish sauce, don't be scared to try it! It smells terrible but works magic in small amounts. I really can't explain it. It's unami in a bottle. And if you aren't able to find kaffir lime leaves (I cook enough Thai food to warrant always having them on hand), the zest of one lime will work in a pinch.

Recipe: Thai Coconut Lentils
Difficulty: easy
Author: Amanda
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• 1 cup dry green lentils
• 2 medium potatoes
• 1 bell pepper
• 1/4 head of green cabbage
• 1 yellow onion
• 1 can of coconut milk
• 1 inch fresh ginger
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 2 inches lemongrass stalk
• juice of one lime
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seed
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce or vegetarian soy sauce
• 3-4 kaffir lime leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 15 cranks fresh ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil, for frying

Directions

Rinse lentils and simmer with 2 cups of water for approximately 25 minutes, or until tender but still retain their shape. Rinse, and set aside until ready to use. Dice small the onion, potatoes, and bell pepper. Shred the cabbage using a large-holed cheese grater. Mince the garlic, and use a microplane or small-holed cheese grater for the ginger and lemongrass. On a pan over medium heat, add the onion, garlic, ginger, and lemongrass to the coconut oil and stir often, until onions are translucent. Add the potato, and continuing stirring often for approximately five minutes. Add the bell pepper and shredded cabbage. After 2-3 minutes, add the cooked lentils, coconut milk, lime leaves, lime juice, and the rest of the seasonings. Simmer dish, covered, on medium-low heat for 20-25 mins, stirring occasionally. Remove the lime leaves before serving.

Step-by-Step Photos

First, you'll want to get started on those lentils. Green lentils are very firm and should mostly retain their shape even when cooked, unlike red lentils, which cook quickly and can sometimes be a little mushy. I'm more partial to green lentils myself. Rinse them off, put them in a pot with about two cups of water, and simmer covered for approximately 25 minutes.

While the lentils are simmering, dice up the onion, potato, and bell pepper. Shred the cabbage.

Mince and grate the garlic, ginger, and lemongrass. Garlic and ginger together is one of my favourite things, and I make a point to use them often. The lemongrass really brightens up the heady garlic and ginger, so they all work quite well together.

By now, the lentils should be pretty much done and should look like this. Rinse them off, and set aside until ready to use.

In a pan over medium heat, melt the coconut oil and add the garlic, ginger, lemongrass, and onion. Stir often to prevent sticking for 2-3 minutes, or until onion is translucent.

Add the diced potatoes, and continue to stir often so the potato pieces don't stick to the pan.

Add the bell pepper and cabbage, and stir to mix.

Add the lentils, lime leaves, ground coriander, crushed red pepper flakes, ground black pepper, brown sugar, and fish sauce.

Also add the coconut milk...

...and the lime juice.

Stir well, and lower the heat to medium-low. You'll want to stir it occasionally for the next 25-30 minutes.

Once the dish is done simmering, pull out those lime leaves before serving. They are very flavourful, but are not edible (like bay leaves).

Serve, and enjoy lentils like you've never had them before.

Brie, Basil, and Apple Scrambled Eggs

I will be the first to admit I am not a fan of typical breakfast foods (at breakfast time). The last time I bought cereal was over three years ago, and it was for my housesitter. Generally, I'll eat leftovers for breakfast, which is quick, easy and keeps me full before work. However, when I do have the time to make a good breakfast, these eggs are easy to impress. Brie, basil, and apples are a fresh way to look at plain old scrambled eggs. I happened to have Fiji apples on hand, but any firm apple (especially Granny Smith!) would be appropriate. Fresh basil is definitely required for this, I have tried with dried before and all it will bring you is sadness, an echo of what it could be. Trust me - you want fresh basil here.

And of course, this meal can easily be adapted to serve any number of people.

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Recipe
Serves: one
Difficulty: easy
Author: Amanda

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 1/4 chopped apple
• 1/8 small wheel of Brie
• 3-4 leaves fresh basil
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 rough tablespoon butter for frying
• salt and pepper

Directions Dice a quarter of an apple and set aside. Wash basil leaves thoroughly before chopping roughly and set aside. Remove approximately 1/8 of the wheel of Brie and separate into 1cm pieces. Crack both eggs into a small bowl or coffee mug, add the milk, and whisk together with a fork. Melt the butter in a small pan over medium-low heat. Once pan is hot, add diced apple and cook until apples softened. Add egg mixture, and stir minimally to prevent eggs from becoming rubbery. Once eggs are half done, add the Brie to allow to melt. Salt and pepper to taste. Turn off the heat, and fold in the fresh basil. Serve.

Step-by-Step Photos

Dice a quarter of an apple. What do you do with the rest? Have it as a snack later, or wrap it up to use for more eggs tomorrow. Totally up to you.

Melt the butter in a small pan over medium-low heat. High heat will burn the butter and the eggs, so patience is a virtue here.

Add the diced apple and stir occasionally.

Meanwhile, scramble your eggs and milk and obtain your wedge of Brie.

Once the apples are softened, add the scrambled eggs. Resist the urge to stir the living daylights out of them or they will turn rubbery. When they look like this (which shouldn't take long), you're okay to stir it a bit so the uncooked eggs get to touch the hot pan.

When the eggs are close to being finished, add the Brie so it has time to melt. Also wash and prepare your basil. (I am usually lazy and just tear it as I go, but you can still chop it if you want.)

Turn off the heat, and fold in the fresh basil, salt, and pepper. You want to turn off the heat when the eggs are very nearly done, because they will still continue to cook from the heat of the pan. Eggs are fickle things.

Serve with toast, if desired.

Cinnamon Hazelnut Biscotti

The thought of buying a little chunk of biscotti at Starbucks hurts my feelings, especially when I know how easy it is to make. I am going to share this recipe I used that I discovered on the back of a bag of hazelnuts.

Ingredients 

• 3/4 butter 
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs 
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups flour 
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder 
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• 1 cup hazelnuts 

Directions

Before you start, preheat the oven to 350F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper for easy clean up. 

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Crack eggs into separate bowl (you don't want shells in your biscotti ya turkey) and add to large bowl with vanilla.

Whisk (or sift) the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Combine with the mixture in the large bowl. Add in those delicious hazelnuts.

Use clean hands to mix everything together. Shape the dough that you have created into two equal logs that are about 12 inches long. Put onto cookie sheet and flatten until they are half an inch thick.

Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool for about five minutes, or until the logs are cool enough to touch. Place one loaf on a cutting board and cut into 1/2 inch slices.

Return the slices to the cookie sheet. Bake on one side for 5 minutes and then turn them over and bake for another 5 minutes on the other side.

Let them cool completely and enjoy with tea, coffee, hot chocolate or be like me and eat them just by themselves. Store in an airtight container.







 

Chipotle Black Bean Burritos with Cilantro-Lime Rice

After acquiring this amazing jar of ground Morita Chipotle chilies from a local spice shop, I knew I needed to make something with it immediately. These burritos were the answer - the smokey, rich flavour lent to the beans by the chilies is contrasted with the bright flavours of the rice and easily became my at-work-lunches for a week. And honestly, I found the avocado creamy enough that I didn't add cheese to my last couple of burritos, so don't feel obligated unless you are a cheese fiend. I realize that this particular chilie powder might be a bit of a specialty item, so feel free to substitute with 1-2 chilies in abdo sauce (usually found in the Mexican food aisle), or even cayenne powder or dried red pepper flakes. You may not have that same smokey notes with the cayenne and the red pepper flakes, but the burritos are still delicious enough to make it worth your while.

Note: this recipe is labeled vegetarian despite the chicken base. You can easily skip the chicken base and add 1 teaspoon of salt instead. For a vegan option, omit the chicken base and cheese.

Recipe
Makes 6-8 burritos.
Difficulty: easy
Author: Amanda

Bean Salsa

• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1.5 cups frozen corn kernels
• 1 bell pepper
• 2 tomatoes
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 yellow onion
• 3/4 teaspoon ground Morita Chipotle chilies
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Cilantro-Lime Rice

• 1.5 cups white rice
• 3 cups water if using stove top, otherwise follow rice cooker directions
• 1 teaspoon chicken base
• 1/2 bunch cilantro
• zest and juice of one lime

Burritos

• 2 avocados, sliced
• 6-8 10 inch tortillas
• 1 cup shredded cheddar or monterey jack cheese (optional)

Directions
First, prepare the rice either using a pot or rice cooker. Add chicken base. Cook per package instructions until done. Zest and juice the lime and finely chop the cilantro. Once rice is cooked, allow to cool slightly before adding lime juice, zest and chopped cilantro. Stir to combine. Set aside until ready to add to burritos.

Dice the onion, bell pepper, and tomatoes to prepare for the salsa. Mince the garlic. Add the oil to the pan and allow to heat for a couple of minutes, then add the onion and garlic in the pan. Once translucent, add the bell pepper. Once the bell pepper is softened, add the beans, diced tomatoes, and seasonings. Cook on medium heat for 10 minutes or until tomatoes lose their shape.

To assemble burritos, place 2 tablespoons of rice mixture on the first third of the tortilla. Add 3 tablespoons of the bean salsa, 2 avocado slices, and a sprinkle of cheese to burrito. Fold in the sides and roll together while attempting to keep the fillings intact. Serve.

Step-by-Step Photos

First, prepare the rice either using a rice cooker or a stove top. Add the chicken base and cook per package instructions. Personally, I love my rice cooker. I can set it, leave it, and have perfect rice every time.

Once the rice is cooked, stir in the lime juice, zest, and finely chopped cilantro. Set aside to keep warm while preparing the rest of the ingredients.

Dice the onion, bell pepper, and tomatoes. Mince the garlic.

Heat a pan with oil on medium heat, and add the onion and garlic. Stir often, until onion is translucent.

Add the bell pepper, and cook until softened. Stir the mixture often to prevent sticking to the pan.

Once the bell pepper is softened, add the black beans, Morita Chipotle powder, cumin, and salt. (I snapped this picture before adding the seasonings, oops!)

This is the chipotle chilie powder pictured with some alternatives if you can't find something similar. Confession: I have opened the container only to smell it more than once. Spices are my weakness.

Continue to cook on medium to medium-low heat, until the tomatoes have lost their shape and look like this. Your kitchen will also smell amazing at this point.

If you haven't already, slice up those avocados for the burrito toppings.

To keep the avocado slices from browning, you can place them in an airtight container and juice another lime if you have it to cover the avocado slices. That should help keep them fresh in the fridge for a couple days.

To assemble the burritos, scoop roughly two tablespoons of the rice onto a third of the tortilla.

Add three tablespoons of your bean salsa on top of the rice. It's easy to go crazy here, but remember at some point this burrito needs to be rolled up.

Add the avocado slices and (optional) cheese.

Fold in the sides and roll it up, and you're ready to go!