Savory fig jam

Our good friends Steve and Andrea generously gave us about 4 lb of figs harvested from their fig tree. We tried this chutney-like recipe: https://pastrychefonline.com/savory-fig-jam/ In terms of proportions, we used: 3 dry cups fresh, ripe green figs (see Note); 6 palm sugar lumps (called "small cubes" even though they are shaped like half-globes), and… Continue reading Savory fig jam

New Orleans-style dirty rice with mushrooms and black-eyed peas

We had a craving for creole cuisine and decided to try this plant-forward take on dirty rice: https://savorandsage.com/mushroom-dirty-rice/ It reminded us a bit of Ghanaian jollof rice. Our modifications: first, to add more texture, we halved the mushroom amount and supplemented with black-eyed peas. We used 8 oz (1/2 lb cremini mushrooms), trimmed and roughly… Continue reading New Orleans-style dirty rice with mushrooms and black-eyed peas

Korean spicy shiitake mushroom and daikon soup

This is a plant-forward riff on a Korean spicy beef and daikon soup that had been a family favorite. You will need two pots for this recipe: one for the mushroom-kombu stock, and another for the soup. First, in a medium soup pot, heat 10 cups of water with 10 dried shiitake mushrooms and an… Continue reading Korean spicy shiitake mushroom and daikon soup

Quinoa and vegetable soup

We tried this America's Test Kitchen recipe from its Bowls cookbook, available at Bowls: Vibrant Recipes with Endless Possibilities https://a.co/d/dyP4wtB To make this a brothier stew, we doubled the garlic, spices, and chicken broth. We found the diced avocado and fresh cilantro brightened the soup. (July 2022) We found a very similar recipe here: https://www.cookingclassy.com/quinoa-vegetable-stew/… Continue reading Quinoa and vegetable soup

Vegetarian chipotle chili

We sought a plant-forward chili that used chipotle in adobo. Details here: https://healthynibblesandbits.com/chipotle-vegetarian-three-bean-chili/ Based on our pantry, we used white kidney beans instead of red. We prefer thicker chilis, so we used 2 1/4 cups chicken broth (instead of 3 cups). This easily could be vegetarian with vegetable broth. At the end of cooking, we… Continue reading Vegetarian chipotle chili

Korean sautéed zucchini (hobak bokkeum)

We tried this recipe: https://www.koreanbapsang.com/hobak-bokkeum-stir-fried-zucchini/ We didn’t have wet shrimp paste, so instead we finely chopped one small dried shrimp (about ¼ tsp) and added a dash (maybe ½ tsp) fish sauce. After adding 1 Tbsp water, we covered the seasoned zucchini with a lid and let simmer until the zucchini slices were crisp-tender. We… Continue reading Korean sautéed zucchini (hobak bokkeum)

Roasted vegetable, kale, and lentil shepherdess pie

First, we soaked 1 oz dried porcini in 1.5 cups hot water. We roasted a variety of vegetables (about 8 cups), cut into bite-sized chunks and lightly tossed in canola oil at 425 (or 450, as needed): 3 parsnips, 2 carrots, ½ cauliflower, 1 red bell pepper, and 8 oz mushrooms until caramelized (about 25… Continue reading Roasted vegetable, kale, and lentil shepherdess pie

Roasted vegetable makloubeh (Palestinian upside-down rice)

We tried this recipe: https://plantbasedfolk.com/maqlouba/ Our modifications: first, we prepared ½ large cauliflower (cut into ½" thick small florets), one Russet potato (peeled, ½" thick slices), one red bell pepper (seeded and cut into ½" vertical slices), and one red onion (cut into ½" vertical slices), tossed in 1-2 Tbsp canola oil, seasoned lightly with… Continue reading Roasted vegetable makloubeh (Palestinian upside-down rice)