Stir-Fried Kohlrabi and Peppers

Recipe Adapted from Bergy

When I started Seasonal Eating in 2011, I contacted Bergy, food photography pioneer at Food.com for advice on kohlrabi. Back in 2001, no one considered food photography as art or craft. But at age 70+, Bergy inspired a new movement with her photographs of homestyle foods she cooked herself. Her food photo styling has become the industry standard, both in in print and online. Plus, her recipes rock! This kohlrabi recipe is no longer at Food.com, and is worth revisiting and republishing.

Sista Chrissa’s Vegetarian Chili

Recipe Adapted from BUNWC*

My sister claims not to cook, but don’t believe it. While raising her kids a generation or so ago, she made amazing meals every night. Everything that she makes is scrumptious. Including this amazing veggie chili recipe with its surprise ingredients: cashews, raisins, and red wine vinegar. The latter two impart a sweet-sour flair to the usual beans, tomatoes, and savories. The second surprise is allspice, most often tasted in apple pie. It’s counterintuitive to combine it with chili powder and cumin, and you might just have to try it to believe the delectable results.

Cherney’s Chili (Vegan)

Recipe adapted from R. Cherney

Way back when, I migrated from New England to California, with my worldly possessions and camping gear stuffed into an old Pinto station wagon. Along the way I stayed with a friend of a friend, a grad student at Champaign Urbana. He lived in a communal house and whipped up the most marvelous vegan chili for dinner, not that I knew anything about chili then. Many years and pots of chili later, I can say that what really sets R. Cherney’s recipe apart from the usual crowd is a goodly dose of red wine, enhancing both flavor and aroma.

Heirloom Tomato Pasta Sauce

 

Recipe by Robin 

Heirloom tomatoes! Those oddly shaped, strangely colored, and remarkably hefty hunks of flavor! They’re all over the farmers’ markets in September, maybe even in your garden. Though delicious on their own, they also add old-fashioned flavor to homemade pasta sauce. Cook up some sauce today and freeze it for the winter. You’ll love the fresh summery aroma and taste come January.

Salsa Fresca Nueva

Recipe inspired by Casalegno Farms

Every time I make salsa I wonder why I don’t make it more often. It’s easy and delicious, and can be varied numerous ways. Though I usually make salsa with lime juice, recently I learned a Casalegno Farms family secret: grandma used apple cider vinegar in her salsa. I was skeptical, but its subtle fruitiness enhances the tomato and pepper flavors without adding extra flavors from the citrus. So it allows me to bump up the Southwest spicing with cumin and cilantro, or whatever else I might have on hand.

Shakshuka for Two

Serve on a Bed of Spinach with Crusty Bread

Recipe by Robin

Shakshuka! A fun word to say, and a delightful dish from North Africa that satisfies at both brunch and supper.  It starts with a thick whole-tomato sauce, chunky with onions and bell pepper, lightly spiced (or not so lightly—your choice) with exotic Middle Eastern flavors. Next, eggs are poached directly in the sauce and topped with green herbs. For extra color and veggie-power, I serve shakshuka on a bed of steamed spinach or julienned steamed zucchini. Traditionally it’s accompanied by hearty homemade white bread for scooping up the yummy sauce.

Chilean Pumpkin or Winter Squash Casserole

Oldie But Goodie Vegetarian

Recipe from Moosewood Cookbook

Way back in 1974, Mollie Katzen hand-wrote, illustrated, and published the first Moosewood Cookbook, with recipes she and other Moosewood Restaurant cooks dreamed up. It became an instant classic for creating satisfying vegetarian meals. Both the restaurant and cookbook have survived the intervening 40-plus years. Many new revised editions have been published, but this recipe, from my original handwritten edition, is delightfully old-school. It's a tasty way to use up leftover pumpkin, either from autumnal displays or from a recipe like Argentinian Beef Stew in a Pumpkin.

Carbonada en Zapallo: Argentinian Beef Stew in a Pumpkin

Pumpkin and Beef Stew: A Delightful Combination

Adapted from an old Pumpkinnook.com Recipe

What is in an Argentinian beef stew? First, top quality beef: grass fed, organic, and humanely raised. Next, bell peppers, corn, sweet potato, and a sweet stone fruit. Add some typical US ingredients: onion, garlic, potatoes, and tomatoes. This masterpiece of flavors is stuffed inside a pumpkin and baked to perfection. It’s served by scooping out the stew along with some pumpkin. This is a wonderfully festive meal for a family gathering, or what my buddy Jon the Baker calls Friendsgiving celebrations.

Sausage and Peppers

Recipe by Robin and Bruce

‘Way back when the millennium was new, my husband-to-be and I moved in together and started cooking. Sausage and peppers was one of our first comfort food recipes. I credit Bruce for the chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (smoky preserved jalapenos), which spices up the traditional Italian recipe. We quickly discovered that making large batches of the recipe allowed us to either freeze half or share some with friends who were tending sick or injured family members. Originally we served sausage and peppers over wide noodles. On French bread is also traditional. These days we prefer no-carb, all-veg spaghetti squash.

Vegan Red Pepper Soup

Health and Happiness

Recipe from Women’s Health Big Book

In my quest for new smoothies this year, I came across a book with the rather intimidating title: The Women's Health Big Book of Smoothies & Soups: More than 100 Blended Recipes for Boosted Energy, Brighter Skin & Better Health. Although I liked some of the smoothie ideas, I looked askance at the blender soups, particularly those made with all raw ingredients that could be served hot or cold. Yet, Radiant Red Pepper Soup was compelling—especially with 5 red bells in the fridge due to a hot, long pepper season this year. I whipped up this soup as an appetizer, thinking that the flavor would be more healthful than delicious. Sometimes I love it when I’m wrong!

Baked Tunisian Eggah

Eggah! A Fantastic Way to Eat Your Veggies

Recipe from Mediterranean Light

Eggah! I made it because I love saying it, and because bell peppers and tomatoes will soon be out of season. Tunisian eggah is technically an oxymoron, since eggah is an Egyptian dish, and the closest dish in Tunisia is called tagine (and is quite different that tagines from other Arabic countries). It’s called kuku in Iran, and Ej’jah in other places. It’s similar to Spain’s omelette, except it’s packed with festive red and green veggies rather than potatoes, and spiced up with cumin, cinnamon, and other lovely aromatics. It’s similar to a frittata, but thicker and more fragrant.

Summer Corn and Tomato Salad

Summertime and the Living is Yummy

Recipe by Robin

The quintessential summertime meal is made with garden-fresh corn and tomatoes backed by toothsome barbecue. Late summer bell peppers and sun-loving herbs are the proverbial icing on the cake. For years I’ve wanted to create a corn and tomato salad. Finally this year I was spurred to action. Jeanne, a thoughtful librarian colleague, brought several pounds of flash-frozen halibut to work. Every summer her kids board charter boats in Ketchikan, Alaska to do some deep sea fishing, and she shares their fishy wealth with others. Her generous contribution inspired me to get going on the corn salad.

Moroccan Butternut Squash Soup

Swirled with Spicy Oil, Topped with Raisins and Cilantro

Recipe by Melinda’s friend

I love everything about my new job, even the fact that it cuts down on the amount of time that I have for blogging. What better job for a writer than library aide: juggling books, lifting, shelving, pushing carts, reaching, bending and generally getting off one’s duff and away from the screen? Also, there’s constant exposure to great (and not so great) literature for inspiration. Even better, Melinda, my new coworker, is cheerful, smart, and an amazing cook. Her version of butternut soup has a spicy kick to it, along with chunky interest provided by chickpeas, bell peppers, and not-pulverized butternut. The spicy olive oil and golden raisins garnishes add yet more flavor. Since my husband is ho-hum about any super-smooth, creamy, bland soup, this kicked-up, texture-rich squash soup became an instant family favorite at my house.

Vegetarian Pepperpot

Colorful and Comforting

Recipe Adapted from Live Earth Farm

After a month in the UK, I’ve returned to California, where it’s suddenly autumn. Shorter days, yellow leaves, and pumpkins in the market are sure signs. Though I seriously miss the delicious UK foods, I’m jumping back into US cuisine with the compellingly named Pepperpot soup. Traditionally, Amish folk prepared Pepperpot with tripe. I’ve never prepared tripe, and most likely never will. Luckily, our CSA recipe maven Rebecca Mastoris sent us a vegan option in a recent newsletter. I’ve doubled the amount of veggies to make a thicker, heartier soup (and to use more of our CSA share veggies), and have adjusted the spicing. The result is a warming, well-spiced bowl filled with early fall veggies. What a delightful American way to welcome the new season!

Buckwheat Kasha Stuffed Zucchini

Topped with Last of the Garden Basil for 2013

Recipe inspired by Mom & Old House Farm

At this time of year, as we approach Day of the Dead, the veil between the worlds gets thinner as we remember loved ones who have passed. Before my mom died, 10 years ago now, she reminded me of a stuffed zucchini I’d made for her way back when with buckwheat. I’d completely forgotten. During those early days I threw together whatever ingredients I had without much thought—or many ingredients. So this recipe is an approximation of the dish that Mom liked, and can be improvised upon freely.

Gazpacho with Basil and Parsley

Refreshing and Healthful

Recipe by Robin

After the delicious results of preparing cousin Sheila’s Mexican-style Gazpacho, I wanted to find a more traditional Spanish recipe. However, the original gazpacho turns out to be an entirely different soup, dating back to Greek and Roman civilizations. Its main components were bread, olive oil, water, vinegar, and garlic. Or perhaps the Moors brought a similar gazpacho, sans vinegar, to Andalucia. In any case, tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers weren’t added until they arrived from the New World in the 16^th century. Given the bounty of these veggies at my house, sticking with the ancient tradition was not an option. As usual in the gardener’s kitchen, necessity was the mother of invention.

Turkey Stuffed Peppers

Ready to Bake

Recipe adapted from Mom’s

As of last week it’s been 10 years since my mom died. Cooking was her passion, and it was indeed sad when she had to give it up due to disability in her latter years. Still, she remained interested in food and its preparation till the end, watching cooking show on TV and perusing menus from local restaurants. Even when she was barely able to feed herself, she enjoyed a rich variety of foods and knew which menu items were tastiest. Like many of Mom’s recipes that I’ve blogged, stuffed peppers were made without a written recipe.  Throughout the years I’ve made many attempts to recreate this classic Polish recipe.  Finally, I’ve gotten pretty darn close.

Spicy Salsa with Lime, Home Canned

Salsa Stash for Winter

Recipe adapted from National Center for Home Food Preservation

I inadvertently made one of the best cooked salsas I’ve ever tasted last week. In trying to use up enormous quantities of u-pick tomatoes and peppers, I discovered the National Center of Home Food Production at University of Georgia. NCHFP is a treasure trove of safe recipes for home canners. Their Choice Salsa ingredients allow the cook plenty of creativity in proportion and types of peppers and onions used. High acidity is their key to staying safe, as in all canning. In this recipe, acidity is accomplished deliciously with lime juice, lemon juice, or a combination. Try my decidedly lime-flavored scaled-down recipe (4 pints), or check out NCHFP’s recipe and make up your own variations.

Salsa Fresca: Fresh Tomato Salsa

Serve with Other Classic Mexican Garnishes

Recipe by Robin

I have a confession to make. I’ve never actually made salsa fresca before. It seems like a no-brainer recipe for a gardener in these days of abundant tomatoes, peppers, and cilantro, but I thought that there must be some tricks to salsa besides fresh veggies. And indeed there are: a couple of aromatics, a bit of acidic flavoring, and some salt. That’s it. The other reason I’ve not made salsa is the mystery of what to eat with it. I don’t want to encourage myself to eat lots of tortilla chips. And being spoiled by the variety of authentic Mexican food available in the neighborhood, I’ve not been motivated to develop my Mexican cooking skills. But tonight I’m making Parmesan-breadcrumb encrusted broiled sole, a recipe from a cooking class way back in May. Fresh salsa will perk up the visual appeal of this fish as well as complimenting its flavor.

Simply Braised Greens

Braised Greens with Rice and Turkey

Recipe by Robin

As readers who follow my Recipe Links by Month posts know, I’ve been trying to come up with a recipe for simple braised greens all summer. Flavoring the greens without overpowering them, while keeping the recipe simple, has been my goal. The secret, I knew, was a zippy braising liquid with a balanced combination of sweet, sour, bitter, pungent, and salty flavors. I’d been off on unsatisfying broth-and-lemon and ginger-and-raspberry-vinegar tangents for some time. Then sweet red peppers began ripening at the same time that our CSA provided a bunch of green onions—plus loads of assorted greens. The sweetness of the peppers contrasting with the bitter pungency of green onions is key to this dish—along with a significant amount of garlic.