Herbs

Greek Red Lentil Soup

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ 3 Comments

finished red lentil soupThe days are so changeable now. One day its 90 and humid and the next it’s in the 60s. Soup is the perfect meal for days like that and this simple, and very flavorful Greek red lentil soup is vegan and totally satisfying. However, if you wish to add some sausage to it or a dollop of Greek yogurt when serving it, I certainly won’t complain. All this needs is good bread and a simple green salad. This soup is so quick and delicious, I have even made it before leaving the house for work! What’s not to love? Afterall, Esau sold his birthright for a bowl of these delicious lentils.

Greek Red Lentil Soup adapted from soup served at George’s Restaurant in Astoria, NY

Yield: 6 -8 first course servings or 4 dinner servings

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons EVOO

1 large onion, chopped (1 cup)

2-3 cloves of garlic, minced

Kosher salt and cracked black pepper to taste

2 carrots diced or cut into rounds about 1/8 inch thick (about 1 cup)

2 stalks celery, sliced thinly or diced (about 1 cup)

4 cups vegetable stock or chicken stock

1 cup water

2 bay leaves

1.5 cups dried red lentils, picked through and rinsed (try to buy the really small red lentils, although either large or small will work) dried red lentils

1 28 ounce can or 1 large box of Pomi chopped tomatoes, with the liquid

1 teaspoon dried basil, crushed

1 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed

Fresh basil leaves or fresh thyme for serving (optional)

Directions:

  1. In a 5-6 quart pot with a lid, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until translucent – about 3 minutes
  2. Add the garlic, salt and pepper and saute for another 3 minutes, stirring occasionally (How much salt you use will depend on several factors: tomatoes and celery are high in natural sodium and I use unsalted stock. I don’t like things heavily salted becasue I want to taste the food not the salt. However, your tastes may be different and you may use stock that is already salted. You can always add salt later.)
  3. Add the celery and carrot and saute for another 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. lentil soup stage 1
  4. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover the pot partially and simmer for 35 minutes, or until the lentils and vegetables are tender. Remove the bay leaves before serving.

NOTE: The soup is ready to go at this point, but if you are serving it as a first course to company and you want it to be a bit more elegant, take an immersion blender (thank you Matthew and Frances for that wonderful GIFT!) and puree the soup to the desired consistency. You can do this in a blender but make certain that the soup is cool and you do this in batches. I learned the hard way about the mess that blending hot soup can make. Garnish with fresh basil leaves or fresh thyme if you have it.

Heirloom Tomatoes and Grilled Vegetables

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Grilled Vegetables with Fresh Herbs

So even though I may be planning for the holidays, we still have to eat everyday meals until then. I have some beautiful heirloom tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, zucchini and Yukon Gold potatoes and fresh herbs in pots and when you have gorgeous vegetables (or fish) I always think it is a shame to hide these under sauces. I enjoy a good sauce as much as anyone, but let’s face it, sauces came about to make less than the best quality ingredients edible. When I have really fresh fish, I just want to grill it with a generous squeeze of lime, salt, pepper and a bit of EVOO. Well, I feel the same way about vegetables and grilling them with some EVOO is the best way to bring out that wonderful flavor when they are at the height of the growing season. You can do this on an outdoor grill or you can buy a simple non-stick grilling pan like I have and do it right on your range. There is no recipe. Simply slice your vegetables in a way that looks nice and so the slices are between a 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Drizzle them generously (but don’t drown them) with olive oil, sprinkle on some Kosher salt or sea salt and a bit of cracked pepper. Put them in the hot grill pan which has also been drizzled with olive oil and cook them for a few minutes on each side, watching them until they take on some nice grill marks. Adjust your heat as necessary so they don’t burn. Take them off the grill pan when they are finished and generously sprinkle them with whatever herbs you  have on hand and happen to like, Tonight, mine have some lemon thyme, oregano, French lavender and flat-leaf parsley.

Once they are ready, you can serve them over pasta or rice and leftovers are wonderful in sandwiches, especially with some goat cheese. But tonight, they will be served with crusty bread, drizzled with a Sciabica flavored olive oil (thank you, Frances, for introducing me to this wonderful source for olive oils and vinegars!) and thick slices of heirloom tomatoes with nothing but a good sprinkling of Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper. If you are not a vegan, a slice of fresh mozzarella wouldn’t go amiss.   Heirloom tomatoes

Lentil Salad with Raisins, Tomatoes and Tarragon

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Lentil Raisin salad with tarragon

I absolutely love lentils – any lentils. The red ones or the tiny lentils de puy or even the lowly but versatile green lentil. I love them in salads and soups and mixed in pilaf. They are a wonderful source of protein, especially when eaten with whole grains.           Lentils uncooked

In Israel, every meal, including breakfast starts with salads – multiple salads. While this lentil salad doesn’t come directly from any particular cuisine, it is certainly inspired by Mediterranean cooking. If you can find fresh tarragon, I encourage you to use it. If not, this salad will still be delicious using only a good French dried Tarragon. it will lose a bit of its lustre if kept for a couple of days, but none of its taste or texture. It’s a great way to get children to eat this magical legume because of the raisins. Try it.                            raisins

Lentil Raisin Salad

Yileds: 6-8 generous servings

Ingredients:

1.25 cups dried green lentils

1 teaspoon dried tarragon

1 teaspoon salt

2 Tablespoons Fig Vinegar or white wine vinegar

1/4 cup EVOO

1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, quartered

1/2 of a small onion thinly sliced or chopped

1/2 cup raisins (dark, light or mixed)

1 Tablespoon fresh tarragon, chopped or 1 additional teaspoon dried

Freshly cracked black pepper

Directions:

  1. After picking through the lentils to make sure that there are no tiny stones or grains, place them in a medium pot and cover with water by about 2 inches. Add the dried tarragon. I like to layer my seasonings so not only do I put tarragon into the mixed salad but I cook the lentils with tarragon. You can also add a little salt if you want but I don’t. Bring the water to a boil, reduce the heat to a strong simmer and cookuncovered for about 18 minutes. Drain well and run cold water over the lentils to stop the cooking.
  2. While the lentils are cooking, prepare the other ingredients in a bowl and toss well. Add the lentils once they have cooled. Enjoy!Lentil raisin sald stage 1

So Many Tomatoes – Heirloom Tomato and Plum Galette

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ 1 Comment

Tomato and Plum GaletteMy life goes back and forth between extremely stressful and fairly boring. As a way to relax, I read mysteries and look up recipes. I came across this one from a link on Food 52 and thought that I would give it a try. The farmers’ market had beautiful heirloom grape and cherry tomatoes and the plums are at their peak right now. I made the crust Saturday night and refrigerated it until I was ready to finally bake the galette tonight.

Here is my version of Tomato and Plum Galette adapted from a recipe by Elizabeth Stark

Yields: 8 servings

Ingredients:

For the crust

1.25 cups, unbleached all-purpose flour

2 Tablespoons grated Asiago or Parmesan Cheese

1/2 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

8 Tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, very cold

2 Tablespoons Greek Yogurt (I used Fage 2% Plain)

5 Tablespoons ice water

For the filling

3 cups heirloom tomatoes (I used a mix of grape and cherry)

sea salt

2 medium firm, but ripe, black plums

1/4 cup grated Asiago or Parmesan cheese, divided into 2 Tablespoon portions

1 egg, lightly beaten

cracked black pepper

1 Tablespoon torn fresh tarragon leaves

Directions:

  1. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, cheese, black pepper and sea salt. Pulse a few times to mix well. Add cold butter (divide the stick into 16 pieces). Pulse until the mixture is the size of frozen peas.
  2. In a small bowl, whisk together the yogurt and ice water until well combined. Pour it over the flour mixture and run the machine just until the dough starts to form a ball. It will seem relatively wet compared to other pastry. Don’t worry! Turn it out onto waxed paper or plastic wrap and form a disk. (Make a ball and then flatten it.) Wrap the dough and refrigerate it for at least one hour. This can be made a couple of days ahead if you like.
  3. When ready to bake the galette, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Have a rimmed baking pan ready to use. Remove the dough from the fridge.
  4. Slice your tomatoes lengthwise into 4 pieces. Using your fingers, scoop out the seeds and slice away any core. Line a plate with paper towel and turn the tomato pieces onto the plate. Sprinkle with sea salt.
  5. Cut your plums in half along the axis, remove the pit and thinly slice.
  6. On a piece of floured sheet of parchment, roll the dough into a rough 14-inch circle. Brush away any excess flour.
  7. Scatter 2 Tablespoons of the cheese in a 12-inch circle inside the larger dough circle.next, arrange a band of tomatoes around this 12-inch circle. Working inwards, alternate circles of plum and tomatoes, tucking each layer up against the other.
  8. Fold up the sides of the dough (you will have some folds – this is fine). Lightly brush the folded over dough with the egg wash and sprinkle with sea slat and cracked pepper. Galette stage one

9.  Carefully lift the parchment and     galette onto the rimmed baking pan.  Trim parchment as needed. Bake at 425 degrees F. for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, remove the galette from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees F. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top and bake until the galette is a rich golden brown, anywhere from 20-30 minutes depending on your oven.

Galette stage two

10. Cool for 15 minutes and scatter the tarragon leaves over the top. Serve warm.

Galette slice2

Get your Freekeh on – with this lemony, herbed salad

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ Leave a comment

I love Mediterranean food and while I am an omnivore, I don’t actually eat a lot of meat and frequently make vegan meals or side dishes that serve as a great left-over lunch the next day. I have never met a legume or grain that I didn’t like and I’m always on the lookout for new recipes, especially those that use a lot of herbs.

I don’t remember how I first heard about the grain freekeh, but the name Market grains Israelintrigued me enough to learn a bit more about it and to find out where I could buy it. I already loved faro and wheat berries, so why not freekeh? As it turns out, freekeh is roasted green wheat. It has a wonderful nutty flavor and stands up well to salads or soups. It cooks up in about 35 minutes. I purchase mine through Nuts.com, a wonderful source for dried fruits, grains, spices and of course – nuts.

 

The following salad is adapted from one I found from Martha Rose Shulman. I have been making her vegetarian recipes for over 25 years and they have never failed me. While the beautiful fresh herbs may lose a little color by the second or third day, the flavor is just as wonderful. That assumes that you will actually have any left-overs. It’s that good!

Freekeh, Chickpea and Herb Salad

Yield: 6 servings as a side

Ingredients

  • 1 cup freekeh
  • ½ teaspoon salt, more to taste
  • ½ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh mint
  • 1 cup thinly sliced celery, plus 3 tablespoons chopped leaves
  • 1 bunch scallions, finely chopped
  • 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • juice of 3 lemons – more to taste
  • 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin, more to taste
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 6 tablespoons EVOO

Preparation

  1. Heat a medium-size heavy saucepan over medium-high heat and add freekeh. Toast in the dry pan, shaking pan or stirring, until freekeh becomes fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Add 2 cups water and salt and bring to a boil.
  2. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 30 to 35 minutes or until water has been absorbed. Turn off heat and uncover. Place a clean dish towel over the pot and return lid. Let sit at least 10 minutes. Uncover and allow freekeh to cool another 10 minutes.
  3. In a large bowl, combine freekeh, chopped herbs, celery, scallions and chickpeas and toss together. In a small bowl, whisk together lemon juice, cumin, garlic, salt and olive oil; toss with salad. Taste and add more lemon juice if desired. Serve right away or let sit for up to 1 hour before serving.
  • Advance preparation: The salad is best served within a few hours of tossing with the dressing, when the herbs are their brightest, but it will keep for a few days in the refrigerator. The cooked freekeh will keep for 3 or 4 days in the refrigerator.