Thai-style pizza

Another slightly-odd (but delicious) pizza!

Mats
10oz pizza dough
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, sliced thinly and cooked. I generally pan-fry it.
4oz mushrooms, sliced
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced thinly
1/4c cilantro, roughly chopped. I'm growing a few varieties of basil in my garden this year, so I've substituted both Thai basil and purple basil for the cilantro.

'Sauce' Mats
1 Tbsp sesame or peanut oil
1/4c tamarind concentrate
1/4c smooth peanut butter
1tsp red curry paste
1Tbsp brown sugar

Preheat oven to 500 degrees, or as hot as it will go. Put your bakeware in the oven to heat up along with the oven. This is the secret to a crispy crust that won't get soggy from your toppings.

Cut a square of parchment paper out a little larger than whatever you're cooking your pizza on.

Sprinkle a bit of flour or cornmeal on the parchment (to prevent sticking. You should only need a tablespoon or two). Roll out the pizza dough to the desired shape and thickness on the parchment paper.

In a small bowl, combine all the 'sauce' mats and mix until you have a smooth paste. Spread the sauce on the raw crust. It's really sticky, so I generally rub a tiny bit of peanut oil on my fingers and use them to move it about, instead of a utensil.

Top the pizza with the mushrooms, then the sliced red pepper, and finally the chicken.

Open the oven, lift the parchment paper with the pizza and place it on your now-heated bakeware. Cook for 3 minutes.

Use a spatula (or two) to loosen the par-baked crust from the parchment, then pull the parchment paper out, setting the pizza back on the hot bakeware. Think of that magic trick where the magician pulls the tablecloth out from under the set table.

Continue cooking the pizza for an additional 6 minutes, or until the crust is golden and the toppings are hot.

Remove the pizza from the oven, sprinkle the chopped cilantro over top. Let rest for 3 minutes, then slice and serve.

Green curry with cashews

Usually I make red curries; this one is green. I found this curry to have a more delicate flavor and the lemongrass complimented the green beans well.

Mats
1 Tbsp peanut oil
1 onion, thinly sliced. I mandolined it again.
12 oz mushrooms, sliced
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
1 tsp fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1 lb green beans, cut into thirds
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup coconut milk
3 Tbsp green curry paste. I used Taste of Thai
2 Tbs lemon juice
2 Tbsp tamari sauce
1/2 cup roasted, salted cashews, chopped
1/4 cilantro, chopped

Heat oil in large wok over medium high heat. Add onion and mushrooms, cover and cook 6 minutes or until mushrooms begin to brown.

Uncover pan, add garlic and ginger, cook for two minutes, stirring often. Add green beans and cook 3 minutes, stirring often.

In a separate bowl, combine coconut milk, curry paste, lemon juice and tamari sauce. Whisk well.

Add curry mixture to wok, reduce heat to medium low, stir and cook for 2 minutes.

Remove from heat, top with cashews and cilantro and serve with rice.

I like to use the leftover coconut milk to cook the rice with, replacing it 1:1 with the usual water.

Peanut Noodles with Celery

This recipe won a thumbs-up immediately. I served it room-temperature the first time, but next time I'm going to do it warm. I like how it uses the celery leaves in addition to the more-commonly used stems, so there's less waste!

Mats:
1/2c sesame or peanut oil
1/2c soy sauce
1/2c smooth peanut putter
4 Tbsp lemon juice
4 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp ground ginger
4 cloves garlic
2 tsp thai curry paste (I ran out of my old stuff, so now I'm using Thai Kitchen's Red Curry paste. I don't like it quite as much)
1 lb linguine
3 cups celery stalks, sliced into 1/4 inch nuggets
1 cup celery leaves, chopped plus 1 cup whole leaves

Combine oil, soy sauce, peanut butter, lemon juice, brown sugar, ginger, garlic and curry paste in a food processor. Run it until it forms a smooth sauce.

Cook the pasta in boiling water according to package directions. Mine was about 10 minutes cooking time.

*I ran the pasta under cold water after it was done to make this a cold noodle salad. It would also work as a warm dish*

Transfer the pasta to a large dish, then add the sliced celery stalks, chopped celery leaves, and 1 cup peanut sauce. Toss to combine.

Scoop into bowls, add a handful of whole leaves as garnish, and a bit more sauce, if you'd like.

When saving leftovers, save the extra sauce separately, as the noodles will absorb it all as they sit.

Samosa-style stuffed peppers

I really liked this dish. It was just a tad too spicy for my husband, though, so next time I'll have to cut the curry powder down a bit. You can make these ahead, stuff them and even freeze them, just skip the final baking step. Then just defrost and pop them in the oven.

Mats

4 large red bell peppers, cut in half vertically, seeds removed

2 Tb vegetable oil
1 large onion, diced

4 tsp curry powder

3 tsp garam masala
2 tsp ginger powder
3/4 cup basmati rice. I actually used orzo pasta, because I had it on hand.
3/4 cup lentils
½ tsp. salt
1 15-oz. can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
2 large carrots, chopped

1 cup green beans, cut in bite sized pieces
½ cup raisins 

½ cup unsalted peanuts or cashews, coarsely chopped. I like cashews better, so those are what I used.

Preheat oven to 350.

Lightly grease a large baking dish (either rub a stick of butter along the bottom or spray with cooking spray). Place the bell peppers, cut side down, in the baking dish, cover the top with aluminum foil, then bake for 25 minutes.

While the peppers are cooking, take a large pan and heat the 2 Tb oil. Add the onions and saute over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until they start to turn translucent.

Add the curry powder, garam masala and ginger powder to the onion, stir well and cook for 1 minute.

Add the rice, lentils, salt, chickpeas, carrots green beans, raisins and 4 cups water to the pan. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. **NB** if you're using orzo instead of rice, add the pasta 5 minutes into the cooking time, as it only takes 10 minutes to cook the pasta.

Uncover the pan after 15 minutes and stir in the nuts. If you've still got a lot of broth left in the pan, let it boil for a bit, uncovered, to evaporate some of the liquids.

When the peppers are finished cooking, take them out of the oven and flip them over in the pan so they're now cut-side up. Save the foil, you'll be putting it back on the dish in a moment.

Spoon the samosa filling into the pepper halves. If you've some filling left over, it makes a delicious salad, even without the peppers.

Put the aluminum foil back over the baking dish with the filled peppers, then return to the oven for 15 minutes.

After the 15 minutes, remove the foil and continue baking uncovered for 5 more minutes.

Serve and enjoy!

Hummus Pizza

While decidedly heavy on the carbs, pizza doesn't have to be a dripping, oil-drenched slog of cheese and/or meat. While I make my own dough (admittedly I'm fairly bad at it still), many stores sell pre-made dough that all you need to do is roll out.

Mats
12oz pizza dough
1 1/4 cups hummus. I used plain hummus, but stirred in a clove of crushed garlic
1/2 cup roasted red pepper, chopped
1/2 red onion, either diced or sliced super-thin. I used my mandoline.
1 tsp ground sumac. I found the stuff in Williams-Sonoma. It's quite good.
1/4c cilantro, chopped.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees, or as hot as it will go. Put your bakeware in the oven to heat up along with the oven. This is the secret to a crispy crust that won't get soggy from your toppings.

Cut a square of parchment paper out a little larger than whatever you're cooking your pizza on.

Sprinkle a bit of flour or cornmeal on the parchment (to prevent sticking. You should only need a tablespoon or two). Roll out the pizza dough to the desired shape and thickness on the parchment paper.

Spread the hummus evenly over the crust. Top with the roasted red peppers, onion and ground sumac.

Open the oven, lift the parchment paper with the pizza and place it on your now-heated bakeware. Cook for 3 minutes.

Use a spatula (or two) to loosen the par-baked crust from the parchment, then pull the parchment paper out, setting the pizza back on the hot bakeware. Think of that magic trick where the magician pulls the tablecloth out from under the set table.

Continue cooking the pizza for an additional 6 minutes, or until the crust is golden and the toppings are hot.

Remove the pizza from the oven, sprinkle the chopped cilantro over top. Let rest for 3 minutes, then slice and serve.

Savory Oatmeal with Brie and Cherry Tomatoes

Oatmeal is not just for breakfast! This savory dish uses the frankly quite bland taste of oatmeal as a canvas for a its savory components to shine.

Mats
2 Tbsp butter
1 shallot, peeled and diced
2 cups (1 pint) cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not the quick cook kind)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
3 oz Brie cheese, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/4 c basil leaves, torn

Heat the butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallot, tomatoes and salt, cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally

Add the oats and stir, cook for 1 minute more.

Stir in crushed garlic and 4 cups water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer (uncovered) for 10 minutes.

Remove from heat and sprinkle the Brie cubes and basil leaves over the top, then serve.

Black Pepper Fettuccine with Chardonnay Sauce

This is another high-veggie, no-dairy meal. It portions out for two people, so just perfect for me and my husband!

Mats:
Sauce
1 cup raw cashews
1 cup Chardonnay wine
1 Tbs. nutritional yeast
1 Tbs. lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
Pasta
3 oz. uncooked fettuccine
1 cup baby spinach
1/4 lb green beans, cut in half
1/4 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips

Start the sauce by pureeing the cashews with 1c water in a food processor until smooth. You may need to add a bit more water, if the processor starts seizing up. Strain the cashews through a square of cheesecloth* to remove the solids. Retain the liquid.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring the Chardonnay to a simmer. Cook for 7 minutes.

Stir in cashew mixture, nutritional yeast, lemon juice and black pepper. Stir really well, reduce heat to super-low and keep warm.

For the pasta, cook the fettuccine in a pot of boiling water according to package directions. Usually about 3 minutes. Drain the water.

Heat a medium saucepan over very high heat. Add the green beans and pepper strips and cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. You're going for a blackened sear on the outside. Remove from pan.

Reduce heat under the saucepan to medium, add 1/4c water and the baby spinach. Cover and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until wilted.

Toss the spinach, green beans and red bell pepper with the fettuccine, then top with Chardonnay sauce and serve!