Spiced Chickpea Stew With Coconut and Turmeric

  • ¼ cup olive oil, plus more for serving
  • 4 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 1 large yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 (2-inch) piece ginger, finely chopped
  •  Kosher salt and black pepper
  • 1 ½ teaspoons ground turmeric, plus more for serving
  • 1 teaspoon red-pepper flakes, plus more for serving
  • 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 2 (15-ounce) cans full-fat coconut milk
  • 2 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 bunch Swiss chard, kale or collard greens, stems removed, torn into bite-size pieces
  • 1 cup mint leaves, for serving
  •  Yogurt, for serving (optional)
  •  Toasted pita, lavash or other flatbread, for serving (optional)
  1. Heat 1/4 cup oil in a large pot over medium. Add garlic, onion and ginger. Season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally until onion is translucent and starts to brown a little at the edges, 3 to 5 minutes.
  2. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric, 1 teaspoon red-pepper flakes, and the chickpeas, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, so the chickpeas sizzle and fry a bit in the spices and oil, until they’ve started to break down and get a little browned and crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove about a cup of chickpeas and set aside for garnish.
  3. Using a wooden spoon or spatula, further crush the remaining chickpeas slightly to release their starchy insides. (This will help thicken the stew.) Add coconut milk and stock, and season with salt and pepper.
  4. Bring to a simmer, scraping up any bits that have formed on the bottom of the pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until stew has thickened, 30 to 35 minutes. (Taste a chickpea or two, not just the liquid, to make sure they have simmered long enough to be as delicious as possible.) If after 30 to 35 minutes, you want the stew a bit thicker, keep simmering until you’ve reached your desired consistency. Determining perfect stew thickness is a personal journey!
  5. Add greens and stir, making sure they’re submerged in the liquid. Cook until they wilt and soften, 3 to 7 minutes, depending on what you’re using. (Swiss chard and spinach will wilt and soften much faster than kale or collard greens.) Season again with salt and pepper.
  6. Divide among bowls and top with mint, reserved chickpeas, a sprinkle of red-pepper flakes and a good drizzle of olive oil. Serve alongside yogurt and toasted pita if using; dust the yogurt with turmeric if you’d like.

Pesto Cauliflower Bowl

cauliflower rice :
  • 1/2 head cauliflower (cored, cut into small florets)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
swiss chard pesto :
  • 2 garlic cloves (peeled)
  • 2 cups chopped swiss chard leaves (packed)
  • 1/2 cup walnuts (chopped)
  • 1/4 cup parmesan cheese (plus shaved for garnish)
  • 1/4 cup flat parsley leaves (plus leaves for garnish)
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • For the Cauliflower Rice: In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a blade attachment, add the cauliflower florets, and pulse until finely chopped. In a large skillet pan over high heat, add olive oil and cauliflower and cook for about 3 minutes, or until tender, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  • For the Swiss Chard Pesto: Clean the bowl of the food processor and blade attachment and add the garlic into the clean bowl. Pulse garlic to chop. Add swiss chard, walnuts, grated parmesan, and parsley and pulse until finely chopped. Scrape down the inside of the bowl with a rubber spatula. With the food processor running, add the oil, salt and pepper and process until smooth.
  • To Assemble: Pour the pesto over the cauliflower rice and mix together in the skillet. Remove the cauliflower to a serving platter. Garnish with shaved parmesan and parsley leaves.
  • Tip: Prep the recipe in advance! Cut the cauliflower, make the pesto, and salt the chicken the day before to make for a quick and easy meal the next day!

Alma’s Cooked Water Soup, Lidia

2 pounds Swiss chaalma's_cooked_water_soup_851_frd
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery , trimmed, peeled and cut in chunks
⅓ cup Italian parsley
8 fresh basil leaves
⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon peperoncino
1 tablespoon tomato paste
9 cups water
2 teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
eggs, (1 for each serving of soup)
day-old country bread, (1/2 a slice)
pecorino, freshly grated

Wash and drain the chard and tear out the long stems from the leafy parts. Stack the leaves and slice crosswise into 1-inch strips. Cut off the tough base of each stem and discard. Chop the trimmed stems into 1/2-inch pieces.

Using a food processor, mince the onion, celery, parsley, and basil into a fine textured paste (pestata). Heat the oil in the saucepan over medium heat, scrape in the pestata and stir it all around the pan as it starts to steam and sizzle. Sprinkle in the peperoncino and cook, stirring, until the pestata has dried and starts to stick, 4 minutes or so. Drop in the tomato paste, and stir to toast it for a minute.

Pour in the water, raise the heat to high, and stir up all the cooked seasonings, while adding 2 teaspoons of salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

Bring the water to the boil and dump in all of the cut chard leaves and chopped stems. Return to the boil, cover partially and cook at a steady simmer for about 40 minutes, until the chard is very tender and the broth is quite flavorful. Turn off the heat until you’re ready to serve.

For each portion, ladle about 1 1/3 cups of soup into the skillet. Heat to a simmer; crack and carefully slip into the soup one egg for each serving. Turn the heat down very low, cover the skillet tightly, and poach the eggs for 2 minutes or longer. Put a bread slice or croutons in each warm soup bowl, and when the eggs are done as you like them, lift them out, one at a time, with a slotted spoon or spatula, taking some cooked greens too. Lay the egg and greens on the bread and ladle in hot broth to cover. Sprinkle pecorino over the egg and broth, and serve immediately, passing more cheese at the table.

– See more at: http://www.lidiasitaly.com/recipes/detail/851#sthash.F17C3DBN.dpuf

Lentil Soup with Mushrooms and Swiss Chard



 

 

 

 

 

This soup gets much of its savory appeal from umami-rich mushrooms and red wine.  A generous amount of butter and olive oil and a nice long cooking time contribute to rounding out the broth.  The end result is a rich, filling dish with a depth of flavor sometimes missing in vegetarian soups.

2 cups brown lentils
6 cups cold water
1 tablespoon coarse kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 tbsp unsalted butter
3 tbsp olive oil
1 large can plum tomatoes, drained and crushed with your hands
1 large onion, diced
2 tablespoons minced fresh dill OR 1 tablespoon dried dill
3 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
3 bay leaves
1 head of Swiss chard, ridges removed and cut into ribbons
¼ cup red wine
8 ounces crimini or button mushrooms, sliced ¼ inch thick

Place all of the ingredients except the Swiss chard, red wine, and mushrooms into a large, heavy-bottomed pot and bring to a boil.  When it begins to boil, add the red wine.  Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for two hours.

Thirty minutes into the simmering time, add the Swiss chard and stir well to combine.

Saute the sliced mushrooms in a little bit of olive oil.  After the soup has been simmering for one hour, add the sautéed mushrooms to the soup pot and stir again.

After two hours of simmering, taste the soup.  If the lentils aren’t tender yet, allow the soup to simmer for another thirty minutes or until the lentils soften.  Adjust the salt and pepper to taste.

This soup keeps in the fridge for several days and also freezes well.

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