Beans beans and beans

black beans, string beans, tofu, bean sprouts, brown rice
dressing: rice vinegar, sesame seed oil, garlic, ginger, chili flakes, soya sauce, sesame seed, pepper

Lentil Soup

shallot 1
onion 1/4 of a medium size
garlic cloves 4 cloves
butter 1 tbsp
tomato (crushed) 1 cup
vegetable stock 4 cups
lentils 1 cup
parsley 1/2 cup
dried lime 3 (found in Persian food stores)1
golpar 1 small pinch (found in Persian food stores)2
dried chili flakes 2 pinches
turmeric 1 tsp
salt and pepper

Saute onion, shallot, garlic, turmeric, golpar, chili flakes, salt and pepper in butter for 3 minutes. Add tomato and bit more salt. After 3 minutes add lentils, dried lime and parsley, bring to boil, turn the heat down and simmer until the lentils are soft. Blend using an immersion blender and serve with a nice bowl of spinach/tomato/pecan/onion/goat cheese salad.

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_lime
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golpar

Roasted Chicken Sandwich

chicken thigh 1 with skin and bone
double smoked bacon 1 thick slice
string beans 3 to 4
tomato 1
kalamata olives 3 to 4
garlic 2 colves
parsley 2 tbsp
nice bun (kaiser or ciabatta)

charmoula sauce:
meyo 2 tbsp
lemon 2 tsp
cumin 1/4 tsp
parsley 2 tsp
salt, pepper

Score and dress the chicken with salt, pepper, olive oil, parsley and chili flakes. Chop and fry the bacon until crispy. Put the bacon aside and drain most of the fat. Fry the chicken, skin side first, in the same pan. Add sliced garlic. Fry each side for 2 minutes. Add the beans and put in the oven, 250 F, for 30 minutes. Take the beans out half way through. Once the chicken is ready, pull the chicken apart and assemble the sandwich!

Dinner, wine, tea and movie at Nastaran's

Spring Grocery

Warm Caramelized Onion/Chickpea Coleslaw

• red onion 1/2 medium, sliced thin
• chickpea 1/2 can
• green cabbage 1/3 medium, sliced thin
• carrot 1 to 2, grated
• lemon 1, juice and zest
• cumin 1/2 tsp
• salt, pepper, olive oil

Caramelize the onion (with salt/pepper/olive oil) in a sauteing pan on low heat until soft and sweet. Add chickpea, half of the lemon juice, cumin and mix until the mixture is warm. In a bowl mix the cabbage and carrot. Add lemon zest, the rest of the juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Serve in individual bowls and top with the warm mixture.

Mark Bittman: What's wrong with what we eat

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/mark_bittman_on_what_s_wrong_with_what_we_eat.html

Carrot Ginger Soup

Ingredients:

• Carrot 3 normal size (1 ½ lb), chopped
• Ginger 1 inch, graded
• Onion 1 medium size, finely chopped
• Garlic 2 cloves, finely chopped
• Coconut milk ½ can
• Vegetable Stock 1 ½ cups
• Curry powder 2 tsp
• Coriander 1 fistful finely chopped
• Butter 1-2 tbsp
• Olive oil (just a bit)
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• Salt, pepper, kayan pepper (optional)
• Scallion, finely chopped for garnish
  

Sauté the onion in butter/olive oil (2 minutes), add garlic (1 minute) add curry powder, salt, pepper, kayan (3 minutes) add ginger (1 minute) add carrots, sauté for 5 minutes then add vegetable stock and let cook, low heat for 15-20 minutes until carrots are tender. Let cool down a bit, add coconut milk, coriander and lemon juice/zest and blend well until very smooth … taste and adjust the seasoning. Garnish with fresh chopped scallions. Noosh e jaan!

Baked Pasta with Eggplant and Roasted Red Pepper

Ingredients (serves 5-6):

• Canned tomato x 1 big can
• Eggplant x 2 baby eggplants, or 1 medium size normal eggplant
• Bell Pepper x 1 medium size
• Rigatoni x 1 bag
• Mozzarella Cheese x 1/2 of a ball
• Smoked Gouda A bit less than the mozzarella (optional)
• Parmesan cheese
  
• Garlic 2 Cloves, finely chopped
• Red Onion 1/2 of a medium size, finely chopped
• Fresh herbs as much as you fancy! I usually use cilantro or basil
  
• Kalamata Olives 10-15, de-pitted and chopped
• Chili x 1 de-seeded and finely chopped (optional)
• Pine nut x 1/4 cup
  
• Salt, black pepper and olive oil

Roast a bell pepper in the oven for 30-40 minutes at 375, turn every 10 minutes. Once blackened, sweat for 3 minutes (cover in a plastic container), then peel the black skin, chop and set aside.

Meanwhile prepare the eggplant: there are 2 ways, one is to roast it (you can put it in the oven with the bell pepper), once the inside is soft, it is ready. the other way is to fry it (which is the less healthy way cuz eggplant is like a sponge and sucks up so much oil, BUT it's definitely the tastier way!). If you want to fry, chop the eggplant in rings (1 cm thick), heat (a bit higher than medium) and oil a pan (be generous!). Turn every 2-3 minutes until both sides are golden brown. when you turn the eggplant you should add a bit more oil (I know, its a lot of oil! but after the eggplants are fried, you can put them in a bowl to drain the oil out and use that to cook the sauce ...)

Now, boil water in a big pot, add a good pinch of salt and start cooking the pasta (cook for 9-10 minutes, don't over cook the pasta, you will be baking it later...). Use a separate big pan for the sauce. Heat and add oil, garlic and onion, fry for 3 minutes, add the tomato, some salt and pepper and some fresh herb. after a couple of minutes, add the eggplant, roasted red pepper, olives and chili. mix well and let it simmer for 7-8 minutes. Taste to see if it needs seasoning. Take the pasta off the heat and drain most of the water (let some stay in the pot ... the starchy pasta water helps the sauce stick to the noodles easier). mix the pasta with the sauce in the big pot. then pour one layer of the mix into a baking pan, add a layer of cheese and sprinkle some herbs. Repeat this step one more time and top up with a good amount of cheese. Put it in the oven for 30 minutes at 375 F until the top layer of cheese is golden brown. Take out of the oven, eat and noosh e jaan!

Creamy tomato pasta with pine nuts

Ingredients:

• Fettuccine 3/4 box
• Crushed tomato 1 can
• Cream (or half and half) 1 cup
• Butter 1 tbsp
• Olive oil 1/2 tbsp
• Pine nut 1/2 cup (or more!)
• Garlic 2 small cloves - chopped
• Cilantro 1/3 cup (or more ...) - chopped
• Salt, pepper, Parmesan and Gouda cheese

Saute the garlic with butter and olive oil on medium heat for 1 and half minutes. add the tomato and a good pinch of salt and pepper. let it sit for 3-4 minutes. add the pin nuts, cream, cilantro and parmesan cheese, mix well and TASTE. adjust the flavors as desired. cook the fettuccine separately.once cooked, drain and add to the sauce. mix well, and serve on a nice big round dish. Garnish with gouda cheese and some fresh cilantro. Noosh e jaan!