Rice Bowls

I'm indebted to Heidi Swanson at 101 Cookbooks for inspiring me to use grains, veggies, nuts and seeds to produce a bowl filled with satisfying sustenance. Over the years, the unique combinations of grain based meals that Heidi has posted have spurred me on to try combinations of my own. Some, certainly, more successful than others, but all good. A light lacing of sauce is key to providing an interesting element that ties the various ingredients together.

The top image combines sautéed mushrooms and spinach with mahogany rice. The sauce is hoisin based. Topping the bowl with slivered almonds adds crunch, flavor and more nutrition.


This second image adds freshly cooked yellow squash to the leftovers, creating another meal with a bit of a twist. The idea is to start with a nutritious grain—not white rice—add some steamed or stir fried veggies, drizzle with an interesting sauce, then top with nuts or seeds to complement the dish.



I love using different ethnic flavors in grain bowls: Asian, Italian, Mexican, Indian. By using different combinations of herbs, spices and condiments it's easy to come up with a variety of options.




Tip: cook extra when preparing grains. They freeze well or just tuck away in the fridge for a quick meal another day.




Simple dishes like these, easy to prepare, loaded with fresh vegetables, make meal time fast and fun. The secret to elevating them from a blah bowlful, is to drizzle with an interesting sauce.




Hoisin Sauce
recipe may be doubled - as it keeps well.
1/2 cup Hoisin sauce
2 TBS rice wine vinegar
1 TBS chili paste
3 TBS finely minced sweet onion

Place all ingredients in small bowl and whisk with fork until well combined. Store covered in fridge. (I store in small jars to save space.)

A Light Lunch

Quickly filling a plate with goodies from the fridge is one of the big benefits of having leftovers.

This luncheon plate features a big, ripe tomato surrounded by stuffed mushrooms, pickled beets, faux feta cheese, Kalamata olives and a few sprouts.

The beets were roasted off on a day when I had the oven on to bake whole wheat pita, then when they'd cooled off, sliced and sprinkled with apple cider vinegar and a bit of salt and pepper. Kept covered in the fridge, the beets are a healthy addition to any salad as well as a colorful, full-flavored component for a composed salad plate like the one shown.

The beets are super, too, tucked in a pita pocket with tomato, avocado and sprouts — another luncheon favorite.

Keeping a well stocked pantry and fridge is the best route to 'fast food' you can take.

Almond Milk, Cashew Cream & Faux Feta Cheese

Finding suitable substitutes for dairy products has been one of the biggest challenges I've had as I transitioned to a vegan lifestyle with mostly raw food. And from all the reading and research I've done, I realized that shedding my addiction to cheese was one of the most important steps I could take toward achieving vibrant health.

I've long been a fan of almond milk. I started making it back in the late '80's thanks to Harvey and Marilyn Diamond and their Fit For Life program. Switching to almond milk was easy. I rarely used cow's milk other than to pour over cereal occasionally, or as called for in baked goods.

Heavy cream usually made an appearance in my kitchen around holiday meals and special occasions. But in the summer time, with fresh berries in abundance, sweet, whipped cream is the perfect complement to juicy berries. Cashew cream has produced a fine substitute.



Recently, I've begun experimenting with finding cheese substitutes. After reading some interesting suggestions, my first attempt at faux feta, produced this zippy cheese-like spread that was a fine accompaniment to some ak-nak crackers and a crisp, cool glass of sauvignon blanc. The base for the cheese is the left-over pulp from making the almond milk, how convenient and frugal that turned out to be.




As adults, we should have been weaned ages ago. Mother's milk was intended to get us up and growing for the first couple of years after birth. Once we moved on to whole foods that should have been the end of our milk experience. Why we all switched to making animal body fluids part of our daily diet is a marketing masterpiece, isn't it? Kicking the addiction isn't easy, but it can be done, and finding substitutes or replacements can be not only interesting but lots of fun.

I'm eager to try my hand at cheese making again soon. Yet, much like the real thing, milk, cream and cheese substitutes are not low calorie items and should be treated as transition foods, used occasionally and sparingly.

There are many instructions available for making nut milks. The proportion of nuts to water, additions for flavor or sweetening, and methods of preparing the milk may vary a bit. This is what I've finally settled on for making an everyday almond milk that's quite versatile.



Almond Milk

Makes 3 cups - may be doubled easily.

Soak 1/2 cup raw almonds overnight.
Drain and then rinse thoroughly
Place almonds in blender container with 1 1/2 cups of filtered water.
If using a high-powered blender - blend until completely smooth.
If using a regular blender, purée until nuts are pulverized as small as possible.


Either way, I like to strain the nut milk through a nut milk bag (may be purchased online) or through a fine sieve or through layers of cheesecloth. Though puréeing is not necessary if using a high speed blender. Having the residue (almond pulp) is great for other uses: dehydrated cookies/crackers, pâtés or faux cheese.


Rinse out the blender container, put the strained nut milk back into the blender with another 1 1/2 cups of filtered water, a teaspoon of agave, 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla and a pinch of salt. Blend to mix well.
Pour into a covered container and refrigerate.
The milk keeps well for 3-5 days in a cold refrigerator. The saved pulp freezes well.




Cashew Cream
(adapted from The Conscious Cook)

1 cup raw whole cashews soaked overnight, then rinsed under cold water.

Drain the cashews, place in the blender with enough filtered cold water to just cover them.
Blend on high until very smooth. If you are not using a high speed blender, you may have to add a bit more water, and you'll want to strain the cashew cream through a fine sieve.
Save the water that drains out and add it to your almond milk for a rich creamy result.



To sweeten the cream for desserts add:
1/4 cup of light agave (or to taste)
1/2 tsp vanilla
Blend again to incorporate. Chill and serve as you would whipped heavy cream. This sets up even more if chilled for several hours.




Almond Feta Cheese
(adapted from Vegetarian Times - April 2009)


1 cup raw almonds, soaked overnight, drained and rinsed well.*
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 TBS olive oil
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
1 tsp salt

* If using almond pulp proceed from here.

Purée almonds, or almond pulp, with remaining ingredients in a food processor for 5 - 6 minutes, scraping down as necessary, until very smooth and creamy. Add a few drops of water if needed.

Place a strainer over a bowl and line with a triple layer of cheesecloth (unless you are fortunate to have a little gadget made to drain yogurt). Spoon the almond mixture into the cheesecloth. Bring corners and sides of cloth together, and twist around cheese, forming into a ball, squeezing gently to remove excess water. Secure with rubber band and chill overnight. Discard any drained liquid.

The cheese will be smooth and very spreadable . For a firmer result that is more crumbly and closer in texture to feta cheese, it may be baked for approximately 40 minutes at 200° in a conventional oven or for the raw food purist, placed in a dehydrator for 4 to 6 hours.

To dry out: Transfer from cheese cloth to a parchment lined baking sheet and flatten to a 6 inch disk about 3/4 inch thick.

To serve soft and creamy: Transfer from cheese cloth to a covered glass dish and refrigerate.

Either way, drizzling with a bit of olive oil and herbs when serving adds to the enjoyment.

Green Smoothie?

This could easily be dessert but it happens to be a 'green smoothie'. Rich and creamy, smooth and dreamy—don't neglect the magic of a frozen banana to give the mouth feel we have come to know and love in ice cream.

This smoothie is a combination of one frozen banana, half a fresh banana, a cup of diced mango, a handful of blackberries and two cups of baby spinach, all blended with a cup of almond milk. A great way to start the day. The blackberries mask the green color - who would know this is loaded with vitamins and nutrients?


For a thicker version to serve as dessert (similar to soft serve) use two frozen bananas and less almond milk - or for a richer version - use cashew milk. Substitute fruit and berries for some great flavor combos. Use the frozen bananas for the base and go wild!

Lunch with an Asian Influence

Marinated baby portabella mushrooms filled with sunflower pâté.

I had an 8-ounce container of baby portabella mushrooms intended to be sliced and served in salads. But my taste buds were clamoring for some zingy sunflower seed pâté and what better vehicle to pair them with than marinated mushrooms. I first posted this combination last August and have since made the sunflower pâté many times. It's a wonderful item to have on hand for quick snacks, any raw vegetable is great with a schmear of pâté. Or use it as a base for leafy roll-ups or veggie sushi in nori rolls.

I stuffed the marinated mushrooms with a generous mounded teaspoon of the filling and included a few on my luncheon plate of summer rolls, rice wrappers filled rice vermicelli, shredded napa cabbage, slivered carrots, red bell pepper and cucumber. Not a completely raw meal, but mostly raw.

Summer rolls with peanut sauce.

I use almond butter in all recipes that call for peanut butter— choosing to avoid peanuts, which aren't really nuts, but legumes. I make several different versions of 'peanut sauce'. All are simple to make and great to have in the fridge for dipping or thinned out with water to make an interesting sauce for steamed vegetables and grains.

Peanut Dipping Sauce: 1/2 cup almond butter . 1 clove garlic, minced . juice of one lime . 2 TBS grated ginger . 2 Tbs agave nectar . 2 TBS tamari . 2 TBS water . 1/2 tsp salt . 1/8 - 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes. This can be mixed in a blender or food processor, but I find it just as easy to whisk all together in a good size bowl (to avoid splashing).

Sunflower Pâté: 1 cup sunflower seeds (soaked) . 1/2 cup walnuts (soaked) . 1/2 sweet onion . 1 cloves garlic . 1 heaping Tbs tahini . 2 Tbs lemon juice . 2 Tbs tamari . 1/2 tsp salt . dash of cayenne. Place all ingredients in food processor. Blend until well combined with a smooth consistency. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

The pâté and dipping sauce quickly become staples in vegan and raw food kitchens, offering protein, a myriad of nutrients, not to mention they're real palate pleasers.

More Salad Ideas

A dinner salad is more than a side dish of lettuce with a slice of tomato and perhaps a few pieces of cucumber. A dinner salad that will hold you for the evening has to be filled with nutrient rich ingredients that will satisfy the body's needs. I've found when the body finds the nutrition it requires to operate, cravings disappear.

With a fridge filled with fresh fruit and vegetables, it doesn't take a lot of imagination to whip up a salad bowl that will please the palate, fill the stomach and satisfy our cellular needs. Key to eating well and keeping it simple, is to plan ahead, make shopping a priority and start experimenting.

Vary the greens from day to day. I include more than one type of dark leafy green in most salads. Not only will you be getting a better variety of vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients, but the different flavors and textures offer more appeal and eliminate any chance of boredom.

This salad includes: arugula, red leaf lettuce, sweet onion, sweet red bell pepper, cucumber, tomatoes, corn, cauliflower, chick peas, sunflower seeds and a few dried cranberries. It's dressed with olive oil and apple cider vinegar. And I just couldn't resist sprinkling the final presentation with a light coating of a new spice offering from Penzey's— a dynamite combination of black pepper and cayenne. Cayenne has super medicinal properties. Adding a bit to most savory meals will kick the foods up a notch (as Emeril would say) while adding hidden benefits for the body. Try it.

Topping it off with Sea Vegetables

With sweet corn and succulent grape tomatoes in abundance at the market, this salad bowl was a no-brainer. To add a flavor boost, I added some chopped Kalamata olives and sprinkled the bowl with a generous shake or two of Mixed Sea Vegetables*.

As well as the corn and tomatoes, the salad also includes hearts of romaine, shredded white cabbage, slivers of Vidalia onion, olives, sunflower seeds and a few raisins.

This is another oil-less salad dressed with the juice of half a lemon and a sprinkle or two of raw apple cider vinegar. The fat from the olives and sunflower seeds is not only a healthier option but offers fewer calories as well. As long as you use a judicious helping of nuts and olives!

* Sea Vegetables: I use the triple blend flakes from Maine Coast (dulse, laver and sea lettuce).

All Those Greens

Spurred on by the memory of images of the contents of Tera Warner's fridge which she posted a while back, upon returning from a trip to the produce market, I shot a few frames of my refrigerator. Stuffing in all those greens is often a challenge.

More local items and more variety are some of the benefits of summer's arrival. Here in Florida the heat and humidity make eating a mostly raw foods diet very advantageous.

Simple salads, plates of sliced veggies with interesting dips, cold blender soups, big fruit salads and icy cold smoothies are all great ways to keep cool while eating our way to slim bodies filled with vibrant energy. Not to mention the added benefits of including all that fine nutrition.

No need to dirty pots and pans, just wash and prep the produce, find some interesting sauces and dressings and enjoy!

Here are a couple of quickies:

Easy Cucumber Salad

1. Peel and slice 2 cucumbers (deseed if needed).

2. In a large bowl, whisk together 2 TBS honey; 2 TBS rice wine vinegar; 1/2 tsp salt; a dash (or more to taste) of crushed red pepper (optional).

3. Toss the sliced cucumbers in the dressing, then transfer to a covered glass container and refrigerate until ready to use.

These are terrific as a side dish or drain and toss in a mixed salad.

Avocado and Lemon Dressing

1.Place washed mixed greens in a large salad bowl,

2.Dice half a ripe avocado, and if you aren't afraid to get your hands dirty, massage the avocado into and over the greens, leaving some hunks. A fork does the job, too.

3.Toss in other ingredients of choice (such as sliced onions, shaved carrots, sliced red pepper, slivered cauliflower, etc.) then toss all with 1 - 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice (or to taste). Adding a handful of nuts to your salads adds a flavorful punch as well as providing texture and more good fat. A generous sprinkling of mixed sea vegetables adds another layer of flavor and is a good source for minerals.

And for those still hung up on having enough protein, toss in some cooked beans. Black beans and fresh corn with tomatoes are great with avocado dressed greens.

Fill the fridge with fresh produce. Experiment, explore, enjoy!

Golden Beets and Their Glorious Greens

Finding a fresh bunch of organic, gold beets for two dollars at the market was my find of the weekend. The bulbs were caked with remnants of the rich soil they grew in and the crisp big green leafy tops needed three changes of water to come clean.

I'm overjoyed when I find 'dirty' produce, particularly if the soil is fresh and moist and better yet if it bears evidence that it still supports life. An occasional live lady bug is a surefire indication that this is freshly picked, not something that has been stored for months in a warehouse.

I'd rather wash my food with a familiar water source—my kitchen faucet, finishing the cleaning with a final rinse in filtered water. I've read too many tales of produce becoming contaminated from the bacteria infested water it's often washed in commercially.

The greens cook up quickly. Simply wilt them down over medium hot heat. I started these off with a couple of crushed cloves of garlic and a sliced sweet onion. The water that lingers on the leaves from the final rinse should be enough moisture to quickly wilt them. If not, a splash of stock, white wine or water will do the trick. Or, if you prefer, a splash of apple cider vinegar leaves a nice finish.

I washed the bulbs, wrapped them in a foil packet and popped them in a 350° oven for about 35 - 40 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting the tip of a paring knife. Once cooled, the skins wipe off with a paper towel and they're ready to be used in salads, sandwiches or as a side dish.

One of those golden beauties diced, and tossed into a cup of cooked quinoa along with a couple of sliced green onions, and a generous handful of toasted pumpkin seeds and sliced almonds, made a great one bowl meal.

For an Asian twist, I whisked together a little sauce: 1 tsp toasted sesame oil, 2 TBS tamari, 2 tsp mirin, 1 tsp fish sauce and a few drops of Tabasco.

Give it all a quick toss and you've a great quick lunch or supper.

The two dollars worth of beets (3 medium beets with a hefty head of greens) were divided into two meals. The greens were a side dish for supper one night, and the next night, this tasty bowl of quinoa showed off the diced beets like little jewels. But served together they'd certainly make a colorful, nutritional feast!

I've still two more golden globes in the fridge. One is headed for a beet, tomato, avocado and sprouts wrap for lunch tomorrow.

What will I do with the third one? I'll just have to wait and see what inspires me.

Cooking for one is an adventure and making the most of a frugal find makes it even more fun!

Green Beans - the Budget Lunch

Don't you just love the ads for the .99 meals at those drive-thru places? Well, today I had a .99 meal.

Green beans were .99/lb this week at the supermarket. Mixed with some sautéed pearl onions, this plateful of savory greens was a winner. Granted, I added half a pita bread to round out the meal, but it was homemade, not only superior in flavor to store bought, but only pennies out of pocket, too.

I know that not everyone is into mono meals, or can 'fill up' on a plate of green beans. But if you eat the whole pound, it will hold you for hours. Lots of fiber, great vitamins (a lot cooked away) but it still beats anything from a drive-thru any day.

Wash and tip the green beans. Quickly blanch them in a large pot of salted water. Drain and chill down with ice and water to stop the cooking and keep them bright green. This can be done ahead (store the beans in a plastic bag in the fridge until ready to use).

Sauté a generous handful of frozen pearl onions in a tablespoon of coconut oil. Let them brown a bit, 5 - 6 minutes. Then toss in the green beans, season to taste with salt and pepper and a sprinkling of cayenne. Heat through and enjoy.

This makes a great side dish, of course, but a plate full with sliced tomato or a tossed salad is a filling lunch. Take advantage of the vegetables that are on sale each week. It's easy on the budget and offers great versatility on the plate.

The Economy of Fresh Foods

Yesterday, I popped into my local produce market to pick up some Florida grown beefsteak tomatoes and these ruby red radishes caught my eye. The greens were so fresh and crisp and the soil clinging to the bulbs was dark and moist. . .radishes unlike those dried up specimens neatly packaged in plastic we so often see at the supermarket.

How could I resist their cry of, 'take me home'?

While radishes are often used as an embellishment to a salad — not something taken too seriously, today I chose to let these beauties star as the main event.

Inspired by an anecdote related by Patricia Wells in Vegetable Harvest, I washed and thinly sliced a few radishes. Using a mandolin would produce more uniform slices, and I would have pulled out my fancy slicer had I been preparing more. But for 3 or 4, I used my faithful chef's knife to achieve fairly thin slices.

With fresh whole wheat pita bread on hand, I sliced a loaf in half making two thin rounds, spreading each with an even coating of softened organic, cultured, sweet cream butter. Then I distributed the sliced radishes in somewhat concentric circles until the entire piece of bread was covered. A sprinkling of sea salt finished it off.

These were quite filling as well as delicious. Accompanied by a welcome glass of light, fruity Cabernet, Sunday lunch was perfect.

Simple fare, to be sure. But with flavors to savor. Inexpensive? You betcha!

The lovely bunch of radishes was only .99!

Tabbouleh and Hummus

Middle Eastern favorites, both dishes offer great nutrition, super taste treats and assemble easily with a minimum of preparation time, providing great versatility at the table.

There are many variations of both dishes. The basic ingredient in hummus are chickpeas and the basic ingredient in tabbouleh is bulgur. Both deliver super protein. The addition of so many fresh herbs and vegetables in the tabbouleh makes it a nutritional powerhouse.

Hummus is often served as a dip for pita bread, crackers or crudités, or slathered in a pita pocket along with a generous helping of tabbouleh, leaf lettuce and/or sprouts. Leafy greens make a handy vehicle for getting the salads from plate to mouth, limiting the calories.
However you eat these Mideastern staples, they're sure to please.

I love having both on hand for quick snacks and great lunches.

Tabbouleh

1/2 cup fine bulgur

1 TBS olive oil

1 cup boiling water

2 cups finely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

1/2 cup finely chopped fresh mint

2 med tomatoes, diced

1/2 European cucumber, peeled and diced

3 Tbs fresh lemon juice

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp fresh black pepper

Place bulgur and olive oil in heatproof bowl. Pour boiling water other, stir, then cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let stand 15-20 minutes until most of the water is absorbed. Drain, pressing on bulgur to remove any excess liquid.
Add bulgur to serving bowl with remainder of ingredients and combine well. An additional tablespoon of olive oil may be added if desired.

Basic Hummus

2 cups cooked chickpeas or one 19 oz can (drain & reserve liquid)

1/2 cup tahini

1-2 cloves garlic

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

salt to taste

cayenne or crushed dried chili (to taste)

Puree all ingredients until completely smooth, adding reserved liquid if necessary.

These are easy dishes to make and great to have on hand. When hunger strikes; strike back with a fridge filled with pleasurable possibilities.

The Joys of a Spiral Slicer

How about making a little go a long way? Trying to lose weight? Fill your plate with colorful, tasty, high water content foods. A little goes a long way when you use the Spiral Slicer, a novel gadget that lets you defy that old admonition "don't play with your food".
I think using the slicer is such fun!

Imagine filling a bowl using one zucchini, two red radishes and a two inch piece of daikon radish. Adding a bit of zip is a diced green onion. Dressing it? Why not try a very slight drizzle of sesame oil, a few drops of Umeboshi vinegar and a generous sprinkle of black sesame seeds. But there are so many options! Use your imagination and slice up a bowl soon!

The total effect is pleasing to the eye, takes but moments to prepare, and provides a satisfying, low calorie, high fiber lunch.

The radishes remind me of ribbon candy...

Chili Rellano—An Unstuffed Vegan Version

Once the ingredients enter the mouth, and hit the tongue, do you think our taste buds really know, or care, if the poblano was whole, in tact, sans seeds, when filled with goodies? Heck, no! The pieces of roasted pepper, and in this case, vibrant black beans and rich, chewy rice topped with spicy tomatoes, all blend together to provide a party in the mouth.

Chili rellanos were a favorite of mine for many years, especially as prepared at Paco's restaurant in Orlando. Theirs, too, was a unique take on the familiar traditional poblano pepper stuffed with cheese, dipped in batter and deep fried.

I found a package of 3 beautifully formed poblanos when I shopped last week. My intention was to use them to make the delicious raw version that I haven't made in quite some time.
But when the day dawned cloudy with showers, I decided a tray of warm, comfort food would be just the thing.

I roasted the poblanos for about 20 minutes and then placed them in a bowl and covered them with plastic wrap to sweat. Meanwhile, I cooked a cup of Lundberg Farms mahogany rice, and opened a can of organic black beans, which I rinsed well.

When the peppers had cooled enough to handle easily, I rubbed off the roasted outer skin and then gently removed the stem, sliced each open, and removed the seeds. I had the idea to prepare the chilis as a casserole rather than try to stuff them.

In a 13 x 9 baking dish, which I lightly brushed with a half teaspoon of olive oil (just to prevent any sticking), I spread the pieces of pepper to cover the bottom of the dish. Then I spooned on a layer of the cooked rice, then a layer of the black beans. I topped the beans with a 15 oz can of fire-roasted diced tomatoes.

I covered the dish tightly with foil and let it roast for about 45 minutes in a 350° oven. Non-vegans could easily add some zingy shredded cheese, and vegans who eat faux cheese could add that. A few sliced pickled jalepeños scattered around would add a little zip, too.

It's particularly good with a side of salsa fresca (diced tomato, green onion, cilantro and fresh lime juice) and I can vouch for it being even better as a leftover.

It keeps for several days in the refrigerator and reheats well.

Citrus Inspired Salad

With juicy ruby red grapefruit plentiful at the market, I was inspired to make a luncheon salad based on an appetizer I'd seen in The Conscious Cook. Tal Ronnen gives instructions along with a handsome image for shiso bites.


Despite no shiso leaves, the components held a lot of appeal and when I came home with a 5 pound bag of grapefruit my lunch became a salad adapted from my memory of Ronnen's appetizer.

Thinly sliced green cabbage or Napa cabbage

Sliced red radishes

Julienned fresh daikon

Red grapefruit segments

Grapefruit juice

Sea Salt

Cayenne Pepper

Sesame Seeds

To serve one, as pictured, I used approximately 1 cup of sliced cabbage, half a dozen red radishes, about a 3 inch piece of daikon, segments from a whole grapefruit with half the juice, a dash of salt and a pinch of cayenne, then sprinkled the top with white sesame seeds. Increase the amount of each item for more servings.

The citrus juice will soften the cabbage a bit if you toss it by itself first and let it rest while you prepare the rest of the salad. Or not, the crunch from the cabbage, radishes and daikon makes a nice change from salads made with soft greens.

Yakisoba— A New Comfort Food

When we think 'comfort food' we most often think of 'peasant food'. Simple dishes made with inexpensive, plentiful ingredients, that not only satisfy our hunger, but tend to make us feel warm and fuzzy with memories of childhood, gram ma's house, or lean years when we weren't so invested in accumulating 'stuff' but were happy with a hot meal on the table each day.

I recently ran across this wonderful noodle dish in Mark Bittman's minimalist column in the NY Times. Mark made his version with thinly sliced pork, but it could certainly be made with chicken or even tofu.

I chose to make it with just vegetables. Shredded Napa cabbage, carrots, sweet onion, wilted down with minced fresh ginger, then mixed with cooked noodles and a zingy sauce that's easily concocted by opening a few bottles of condiments and stirring together an enhancing combination of sweet, savory, salty and hot.

Like most vegan dishes I make, I thought it was fine without the need for added protein. And finer yet the next day, when I reheated the leftovers. Best, warmed slowly in the top of a double boiler. But then, I tossed the microwave out years ago. The double boiler is my 'go to' method for reheating almost everything.

For a complete ingredient list and step by step instructions, check out Mark's column.

Great food need not be complicated nor expensive, and the preparation need not be difficult nor time consuming. Try some easy one pot/one dish meals. Easy on the cook, easy on the budget, too!

Cabbage Rolls

With big fresh heads of bright green cabbage on sale at the market this week, I just had to have an old favorite: stuffed cabbage.

I use the same basic stuffing for cabbage leaves as I do for red peppers , but add a little sweet and savory surprise: raisins and olives. In this case, Italian brine-cured Gaeta olives, finely diced and mixed with my favorite Lundberg mahogany rice, diced celery and diced onion and minced garlic.

My friend, Helen, gave me a jar of the olives. Her mother used them in her stuffing for peppers, but instead of rice, she used bread as a base. Gaeta olives are often dry cured, which makes them very black and wrinkled, or brine cured which leaves them dark purple and smooth skinned, much like a Kalamata olive, which would be a good substitute.

I used the big bright green outer leaves of the head for stuffing. After washing them well in cold water, I let them sit in a wide pan of hot water to soften them. Cutting out the center hard stem makes the leaves easy to work with. Treat the leaf as you would a tortilla for stuffing a burrito. Lay it on a flat surface, put a couple of tablespoons of filling about a third of the way up the leaf (use an amount of filling to match the size of the leaf. Too much filling and it will pop open) then roll up and fold in the sides. Place the roll, seam side down, in a baking dish.

The rolls should cook with some liquid. They can be steamed or simmered on top of the stove, or as I prefer to do it, the lazy man's way, covered and baked in a 350° oven for about an hour.

I like a bit of tomato sauce in the braising liquid. On this occasion, I used a cup of diced tomatoes which had been cooked down with garlic and herbs (leftover pizza topping). I added the cup of tomato sauce to 2 cups of very hot veggie broth and poured that over the stuffed rolls. I had a bit of filling leftover, so as not to waste, I spread that evenly over the rolls before adding the sauce. A can of tomato sauce stretched with veggie broth would do as well, or just broth without the added tomato is fine, too.

This is another easy meal that adapts to what's on hand and is easy to make with a little practice.

Leftovers AGAIN?

Here's a quick, light lunch made with a little imagination and some great leftovers.

Ya gotta love those leftovers—often a treasure trove tucked in the fridge.

As a kid I shuddered to eat the same foods reheated time and time again. My mother cooked food in huge quantities on a Sunday and we ate it, reheated over and over throughout the week. With each reheating the vegetables became mushier and mushier and the flavors lost their initial appeal.

For years afterwards, as a grown-up out on my own, I refused to cook 'too much'. Often not having quite enough for seconds or extra if anyone dropped in. Ask my sons.


But as the years have gone by, or perhaps as I've grown wiser with age, having extras tucked in the fridge has become a boon.


Take today, for instance.


Remember the roasted cauliflower from one night last week? And how about that great melange of Swiss chard with onions and raisins? Here they are, again, served cold, stuffed into crisp pockets of Boston lettuce, drizzled with a fresh batch of Angela Elliot's Satay sauce.

See how these things all come together for good?

A little imagination coupled with some tasty leftovers can be magic.

Red Swiss Chard

A fridge filled with leftovers is often one of the big advantages to cooking. Today was one of those days. I'd picked up a lovely big bunch of red Swiss chard at the produce market and knew it couldn't linger much longer before being used up.

As I wondered how best to use it, I thought of greens and beans, or greens and grains and knew the slightly bitter greens would do well balanced with a little something sweet and perhaps a little acidity.

The fridge held the answer. I had some leftover thick, spicy marinara sauce that I'd made for pizza topping and a bowl of baked quinoa. All I had to do was clean and cook the chard and then assemble a tasty lunch.

The stems require a bit more cooking time than the greens. Separate the thick stem from the greens and then slice the stems crosswise into small pieces. These I sautéed with a diced sweet onion and two cloves of garlic, finely minced. I started the onions in 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large 14" sauté pan to give the greens plenty of room to wilt down once they were added.

When the onions became fragrant, I added the sliced stems and a dash of water, covered the pan and let them sweat for a few minutes, then uncovered and added the minced garlic. Continue cooking the stems and onions until they become tender but not mushy. Meanwhile, stack the greens, roll up and slice into ribbons (chiffonade). Add to the pan tossing with the stems and onions. I added 1/4 cup of dry white wine (water or veggie broth are fine as an alternative). The greens cook down very quickly. While this was happening, I toasted 1/4 cup of pine nuts in a dry pan and measured out 1/4 cup of dark raisins.

When the greens are just about wilted, add the raisins tossing to mix everything and add salt and pepper to taste.

I chose to plate the combination using a mold and layering, first some marinara sauce, then the quinoa with a spoonful of sauce over top. Then I packed on a generous portion of the finished Swiss chard. I sprinkled the portion liberally with pine nuts.

It looked lovely but tasted even better.

The Swiss chard alone makes a wonderful side dish. Don't be afraid to combine it with grains or beans or even sweet potatoes for a quick flavorful meal. Rice and chard rolled up in a tortilla with a big dollop of spicy salsa is another super way to use these greens.

Roasted Cauliflower

Cauliflower, prepped and ready to roast.

The March issue of Food & Wine offers some great ideas for serving familiar foods with an ethnic flair. I often roast cauliflower, but it never turns out quite as soul satisfying as this version which appears in a section called Thai Recipes for Health and Happiness, recipes by Su-Mei Yu, chef and owner of Saffron in San Diego.

With an intro that briefly explains Thai traditional beliefs that the world is made up of four elements: water, fire, earth and wind, the author of the article, Emily Kaiser, using some of Yu's recipes, gets right into examples of how the key to balance and physical health lies in cooking and eating the right ingredients based on the weather.

While the section covers more than just vegetables, it was the vegan recipes that caught my eye. Particularly the roasted cauliflower. There's also directions for a roasted mushroom dish that I plan to make soon.

For some great ideas to add some spice and new life to everyday meals, check out the current issue of Food & Wine. The emphasis this month is on healthy cooking. Word is getting out, isn't it? Many of us are wising up. What we eat or don't eat will greatly affect our health and wellbeing.

This spicy roasted cauliflower is a far cry from the blah 'health food' of yesteryear!

Yu roasts the cauliflower with spices and serves with slivers of kumquat, shallot and fresh cilantro. I breezed along with no shallots and no kumquats yet still had a fragrant, spicy rich dish.

Toast coriander seeds and white peppercorns until fragrant. Allow to cool, transfer to spice grinder then grind to powder. Mix spices with minced garlic, turmeric, crushed red pepper and olive oil, then toss with cored and separated cauliflower florets cut into one inch pieces.

Spread out on baking sheet and roast at 400° for about 25 minutes. Season lightly with salt and then add chopped cilantro, thinly sliced shallots, and chopped kumquats to serve. Check out the March issue for complete details and more great recipes.