Fried Rice, 'Deis style

This is a recipe I made up after watching the people in Usdan cooking. This means that all the measurements are estimated. However, everyone who has tasted this has loved it. My creation involves:

-Laziness
-Frying pan
-1 can white beans, drained
-1 can diced tomatoes, not drained
-1/3 of a bowl (regular old bowl, what ya eat yer cereal out of) of chopped spinach
-Rice (I dunno how much... guesstimate based on how many people you're cooking for. Generally one frying pan makes two servings)

Put the frying pan on medium heat, and fry the beans until they just start to turn golden brown. Then dump in the can of tomatoes and let it all stew for a couple of minutes. Add the spinach and then the rice, and let it cook (stir occasionally) until most of the tomato juice has cooked away. The rice should be slightly reddish. Lastly, and I speak from experience, let it cool down before eating.

The End.

Aloo Daal

Indian-Style Lentil and Potato Ragout

* 2 cups brown lentils
* 2 yellow onions, chopped
* 3-4 russet potatoes, peeled and diced
* 2 cans veggie stock (approximately)
* olive oil, as needed
* 1 teaspoon turmeric
* 4 teaspoon ground cumin
* 1-2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
* 3 cloves garlic, minced
* salt to taste
* garam masala to taste
or replace all spices with curry powder

Directions:

Rinse the lentils, and then set them to boil in a large saucepan or pot, in just enough veggie stock to cover.

While they're boiling, chop up the potatoes and onions.

Place the potatoes, onions, garlic and all spices in a large skillet and put enough olive oil on to cover or to taste. Sautee on medium-high heat for about fifteen minutes, or until onions are tender.

Add the potato/onion mixture to the boiling lentils. Add a bit more veggie stock, if needed (the whole thing should have enough liquid to boil, but not stew).

Boil the mixture for thirty minutes or so, until the liquid becomes thick and gravy like. Add more salt/garam masala to taste.

I serve this over puri or naan. I usually have a side of raita, for those of you who eat yogurt. It's also good with a few lemon wedges squeezed over it.

Serves: 8-10

Preparation time: 1 hour

Is It Done Yet?

Here are some useful tips I found:

CASSEROLES
-until hot and bubbly
-until heated through
-until cheese melts

MEAT (not useful for this blog, but for general reference)
-Beef (roast or steak): medium - 145F, well done - 160F
-Beef (ground) - 160F
-Lamb: medium - 145F, well done - 160F
-Pork: well done - 165F to 170F

POULTRY
-Chicken/Turkey: temp in thigh is 180F, until no longer pink in center, until temp in breast is 170F

SEAFOOD
-Fish: until it begins to flake when tested with fork
-Shrimp: until pink and opaque

SAUCES
-until heated through

SOUPS
-until heated through

STEWS
-until meat is tender
-until vegetables are tender

VEGETABLES
-until crisp-tender
-until tender
-until browned

Butternut Squash Soup

Seeing as autumn has arrived, the season of warm colors and hot food, I give you a yummy soup:

INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp margarine
1 chopped onion
salt & pepper (to taste)
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp. thyme
4 carrots, diced
1/2 cup honey
2 celery ribs
1 peeled & sliced butternut squash
14 1/2 oz. chicken (substitute veggie) broth
1 peeled potato

METHOD
Combine everything in pot. Boil until tender.
Run through processor to make it smooth.

Baked Penne with Roasted Vegetables

2 red peppers, cored and cut into 1-inch wide strips
2 zucchini, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 summer squash, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1-inch cubes
4 cremini mushrooms, halved
1 yellow onion, peeled and sliced into 1-inch strips
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt, divided
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 tablespoon dried Italian herb mix or herbs de Provence
1 pound penne pasta
3 cups marinara sauce (store bought or homemade)
1 cup grated fontina cheese
1/2 cup grated smoked mozzarella
1 1/2 cups frozen peas, thawed
1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus 1/3 cup for topping
2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

On a baking sheet, toss the peppers, zucchini, squash, mushrooms, and onions with olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and dried herbs. Roast until tender, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook for about 6 minutes. Since you will be cooking the pasta a second time in the oven, you want to make sure the inside is still hard. Drain in a colander.

In a large bowl, toss the drained pasta with the roasted vegetables, marinara sauce, cheeses, peas, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Using a wooden spoon, gently mix, until all the pasta is coated with the sauce and the ingredients are combined.

Pour the pasta into a greased 9 by 13-inch pan. Top with the remaining 1/3 cup Parmesan and butter pieces. Bake until top is golden and cheese melts, about 25 minutes.

Food Network - Everyday Italian

Summer Vegetable Spaghetti

INGREDIENTS
2 cups small yellow onions, cut in eighths
2 cups chopped, peeled, fresh, ripe tomatoes (about 1 lb.)
2 cups thinly sliced yellow and green squash (about 1 lb.)
1-1/2 cups cut fresh green beans (about 1/2 lb.)
2/3 cups water
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
black pepper to taste
1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste
1 lb. uncooked whole wheat spaghetti
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS
1. Combine first 10 ingredients in large saucepan; cook for 10 minutes, then stir in tomato paste. Cover and cook gently, 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until vegetables are tender.
2. Cook spaghetti in unsalted water according to package directions.
3. Spoon sauce over drained hot spaghetti and sprinkle parmesan cheese over top.

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Blog info

So, for the moment this blog is set up so that only authors can view the entries, and only people I invite can be authors. I'm having some moral qualms because a lot of the recipes I like and want to share are actual published recipes from books and magazines...and technically speaking, I shouldn't be sharing those all over the interweb.

However, it would be cool if we could make it more open than that so that we could share it with friends/family/etc. There's also an option where I can make it so that anyone we authorize can read it, even if they can't write, and there's the option of making it completely open and risking mass copyright fraud.

Any thoughts? :)