Cajun Skillet Beans
from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home
Ingredients
1 Medium onion, chopped
3 Garlic cloves, minced or pressed
2 tablespoons Vegetable oil
3 Celery stalks (about 1 cup chopped)
2 Green or red bell peppers (about 1 1/2 cups chopped)
1 teaspoon Chopped fresh thyme (1/2 tsp dried)
1 tablespoon Chopped fresh basil (1 tsp dried)
1 teaspoon Chopped fresh oregano (1/2 teaspoon dried)
1/4 teaspoon Ground black pepper
Pinch each of cayenne and salt
2 cups Chopped fresh or canned tomatoes (14 1/2 oz can)
1 tablespoon Honey or molasses
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
4 cups Cooked black-eyed peas or butter beans (two 10-ounce frozen pkgs or two 16-ounce cans, drained Chopped scallions (optional)
Grated cheddar cheese (optional)
Preparation
In a heavy saucepan or skillet, saute the onions and garlic in the oil on medium heat. Chop the celery and bell peppers, and add them to the pan. Continue to saute for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the thyme, basil, oregano, black pepper, cayenne, and salt. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until the onions are golden, stirring once or twice. Add the tomatoes, honey or molasses, and mustard and simmer for 5 more minutes. Add the beans, cover and stir occasionally until thoroughly heated. Canned beans will be hot in less than 10 minutes, but frozen beans need to simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Top with scallions or grated chees if you like, and serve.
A suggested side for this is spicy kale.
Spicy Kale
Adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home
1 large onion
1 bunch kale (about 2 pounds)
2 teaspoons vinegar (or to taste)
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (or more to taste)
salt and ground black pepper to taste
Sauté the onion in a large, non-stick skillet on low heat, until translucent. While the onion sautés, thoroughly rinse the kale. Remove and discard the large stem ends, and coarsely chop the leaves.
Add the moist kale to the onions and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until the leaves are wilted but still bright green. Stir in the vinegar and red pepper flakes. Add salt and pepper to taste, and serve immediately or at room temperature.
-Heather
Greek vegetable stew
Nathan and I cooked a Greek vegetable stew, also known as a briami, for meals co-op this week. The recipe below is adapted from The Olive and the Caper, which I requested for Christmas last year just because I wanted this recipe. A good friend first made the stew for me several years ago, back when we were both grad students at UT, and I hadn't had it since. "You don't like mushy vegetables," she warned me, "You might not like this." But it's as good as I remember: chock full o' veggies stewed in olive oil, white wine, and their own juices, topped with capers and fresh parsley:
Greek vegetable stew
1/3 C olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 1/2 lbs potatoes, cut into 1/2-in pieces (I used Yukon Golds, and I left the peels on.)
1 1/2 lbs zucchini or other summer squash, cut into 1/2-in pieces
1 green bell pepper, seeded, stemmed, and cut into 1/2-in wide strips
1 1/2 lbs Roma tomatoes, peeled and coarsely chopped, with juices
1 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper
1/4 C chopped fresh dill
3/4 C chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 C dry white wine (I used a semi-dry Chardonnay.)
capers, lots of capers
1. Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until wilted but not browned, about 5 minutes.
2. Add the potatoes, tomatoes, zucchini, bell pepper, salt, pepper, dill, 1/2 C of the parsley, and the wine. Bring to a boil. Cover and cook over med-low heat until the veggies are very tender and the whole thing looks very juicy, about 1 hour.
3. Remove the cover and stir the veggies. Continue cooking uncovered until the liquid reduces a bit and the veggies are soft, about 30 minutes. Serve hot or at room temp topped with capers (I like about 1 tsp. of capers per big bowl full of stew) and the rest of the parsley.