This month I have two selections from Hugh Acheson’s cookbook, A New Turn in the South: Southern Flavors Reinvented for Your Kitchen (affiliate code) - Grilled Fish with Hot Sauce Buerre Blanc and Saffron Braised Celery. My husband, Paul, came back from a fishing trip in Mexico with nearly two coolers worth of California yellowtail (also called amberjack). For those of you who never had yellowtail grilled (most of us probably have tried it as sushi), it tastes a bit sweet and isn’t fishy at all. It’s the perfect fish to grill since it stands up to the high heat without falling apart. And it’s mild enough to go with just about any type of sauce or seasonings. Since Hugh’s original recipe in A New Turn in the South, calls for mahi mahi, I figured yellowtail was a good substitute. You can use either or another mild white fish like tilapia.

I included a side dish this time – Saffron Braised Celery. I don’t know about you, but I have a little teeny bottle of saffron in my spice rack that I rarely use. This recipe was a good way to use some of it along with the leftover celery I had in my refrigerator.

I made both dishes on a weeknight without too much difficulty – plan about 40 minutes to an hour total prep and cook time. To make it more convenient, you could make the sauce and the cucumber salad the night before and prep the celery dish. Or plan to make it on a Friday night when a late dinner won’t make it too difficult for your family to wake up early the next day. You may want to double the amount of sauce, too, as it goes great on leftover fish, vegetables, rice or chicken.

I made some minor changes to Hugh’s recipes such as using olive oil instead of butter in the celery. I used a buttery spread instead of butter and a Colorado beer infused hot sauce, Old Chub: 3 Chili Chipotle Sauce, in the buerre blanc because that’s what I had on hand. Feel free to your favorite hot sauce though Hugh warns that Tabasco sauce is too spicy.

Saffron Braised Celery

Based on Hugh Acheson’s Saffron Braised Celery recipe from A New Turn in the South (page 223)

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 shallots, thinly sliced
• 12 celery stalks with leafy parts removed, cut into 3-inch lengths
• 1 pinch of saffron
• 1 cup chicken stock
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Over medium heat in an oven safe sauté pan, Dutch oven or braising pan (I used my Le Creuset 5-Quart Round Braiser [affiliate code]) heat the oil and sweat the shallots for about 5 minutes.
3. Place the celery in the pan. Add saffron and stock.
4. Cover, remove from the stovetop, and braise in the oven for 30 minutes or until tender.
5. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
6. Serve hot.

Grilled Fish with Hot Sauce Buerre Blanc

Based on Hugh Acheson’s Grilled Mahi Mahi with Hot Sauce Buerre Blanc recipe from A New Turn in the South (page 158)

Ingredients:

• 1 English cucumber, thinly sliced
• 3/4 teaspoon sea salt, divided
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, divided
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh flat-leaf parsley (I used 1 tablespoon of Garden Gourmet’s parsley)
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons hot sauce
• 1/4 pound butter spread, cold, cut into chunks
• 4 6-ounce fillets of yellow tail, mahi mahi, tilapia, or other mild white fish

Directions:

1. Place the cucumber slices in a medium sized mixing bowl and season with 1/4 teaspoon of the sea salt.
2. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice over the cucumbers.
3. Add parsley and toss to combine. Let sit at room temperature as you prepare the rest of the dish.
4. Heat your grill.
5. In a small saucepan over medium heat, place the shallot, cider vinegar, and rest of the lemon juice.
6. Simmer until the liquid is reduced to about 2 tablespoons.
7. Add the hot sauce and reduce the heat to low until you have a slight simmer.
8. Whisk in the chunks of cold buttery spread until melted.
9. Season with a pinch of salt and keep warm on very low heat. (Or just the warm burner if you have an electric stove.)
10. Place fish fillets on a platter or plate and season with remaining sea salt.
11. Drizzle remaining olive oil over the fish.
12. Grill on high heat (so you have nice grill marks) until done. Amount of time will depend on the thickness of the fish.
13. To plate, arrange cucumbers on a plate and place grilled fish on top. Drizzle with the buerre blanc and serve.

Saffron Braised Celery and Grilled Fish with Hot Sauce Buerre Blanc from A New Turn in the South is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

Has your family participated in Meatless Monday yet? Maybe you’re reluctant to because someone in your family thinks veggies are yucky. Or maybe you’re just perplexed on how to cook up a vegetarian dish that’s filling and will be liked by all family members. That’s why you have to check out the new cookbook by Suzanne Landry, The Passionate Vegetable. Her health inspired recipes  promise to revitalize your life whether you’re a vegetarian or a meat lover.

You can tell that Suzanne is a health educator, because The Passionate Vegetable is as educational as it is inspirational. The cookbook includes a simple guide to food nutrition, suggestions for healthy vegetarian meals, transition recipes for the meat lover (love this!), and a guide to remaking your pantry to be healthier and vegetarian friendly. The Passionate Vegetable contains over 145 recipes including breakfasts, salads, soups, grains and bean dishes, and entries, as well as a chapter devoted to meat and healthy treats and desserts. It also features fantastic food photography for some but not all her recipes, unfortunately. Recipes I’m looking forward to making include Ratatouille over Spaghetti Squash and Roasted Fresh Figs with Goat Cheese.

Summer salads

With the weather getting warmer, I’m on the lookout for recipes that require a minimum of cooking and are more on the light side. This recipe from The Passionate Vegetable for California Fiesta Quinoa Salad fits the bill, since you can make it ahead of time in the morning when it’s cooler. Quinoa makes a terrific main dish since it’s an excellent source of vegetarian protein and it’s gluten free. Suzanne suggests adding leftover quinoa salad to scrambled eggs – just before the eggs set hard, add 1/4 cup and give it a stir. She likes this egg and quinoa salad dish for breakfast, but you could make it for lunch or dinner, too!

California Fiesta Quinoa Salad

Recipe from The Passionate Vegetable by Suzanne Landry from Health Inspired Publishing

Serves 6

Salad ingredients:

• 1 cup quinoa, uncooked
• 2 cups water
• 1/4  teaspoon sea salt
• 3/4  cup tomato, chopped (1 medium tomato)
• 1/4 cup celery, chopped (1 stalk)
• 1/2  cup cucumber, seeded and chopped (1 medium cucumber)
• 1/2 cup scallions, chopped (4 scallions)
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, cleaned and chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn, blanched
• 1/2 cup cooked black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/4 cup black olives, pitted and diced (Kalamata are the best!)

Dressing ingredients:

• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1   teaspoon hot red pepper flakes (or more to taste)
• 2   tablespoon red wine vinegar or 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/2  teaspoon sea salt

Directions:

• Boil 2 cups water and add salt. Thoroughly rinse quinoa in strainer. Place in boiling water, cover, and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook for 20 minutes or until grain is fluffed and water is absorbed.  Remove from pot into a large bowl and allow to cool before adding vegetables.
• Slice tomatoes into 1/2-inch slabs and remove most of the seeds.  Then cut tomatoes into sticks and crosswise into ½-inch cubes.  This will give you evenly sized tomato pieces that won’t get mushy if the salad isn’t eaten right away.
• Cut celery by slicing down the rib in the center of the stalk. If the stalk is large you might want to cut it in thirds. Then cut crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces.
• Slice cucumber lengthwise into 4 strips and then remove center seeds. Chop these strips into 1/2-inch pieces. Remove root ends of scallions and cross chop into 1/4-inch pieces. Toss cooled quinoa with all remaining vegetables, beans, and olives.
• Mix vinegar, oil, hot pepper flakes, and salt together.  Toss lightly with salad.  Refrigerate for an hour before serving.  This will last 5 days in the refrigerator.

Recipe and picture used with permission.

Meatless Monday: The Passionate Vegetable cookbook review and a recipe for California Fiesta Quinoa Salad #meatlessmonday #glutenfree is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

So much for Cookbook Week being only one week. Between Spring Break and more cookbooks arriving at my door, I didn’t have a chance to get to more than last week’s Food: Vegetarian Home Cooking and  Homemade with Love reviews. My apologies!

Let’s start this week off with a cookbook that was sent for me to review that’s perfect for all of you with vegetarian teens or kids who want the family to participate more in Meatless Monday. It’s Teen Cuisine: New Vegetarian, a finalist for the 2013 International Association of Culinary Professionals Cookbook Award in the Children’s, Youth and Family category.

Teen Cuisine: New Vegetarian features 50 delicious recipes arranged into chapters such as “Smart Starts,” “Party Hearty,” “Bowl Me Over” and “Just Desserts.” There’s even a special sushi section along with an “And On the Side” chapter on pickles, relish and other homemade condiments. The recipe format is perfect for those new to the kitchen, since each recipe features step-by-step instructions in a On Your Mark, Get Set, and Cook! format. Each recipe also features helpful tips and gorgeous photographs. This would be a wonderful cookbook to give someone as a high school graduation gift or as a way to keep them busy in the kitchen during summer break.

Here’s a sample of one of the recipes from Teen Cuisine: New Vegetarian. I’ve included the original formatting so you can see how recipes are laid out.

Bite-Me Chili

Vegetarian or Vegan

A bowl of chili is a thing of beauty. So what’s wrong with a triple dose of heat in your chili? This recipe combines three types of chilies into one big bite of zippy flavor and satisfying chili goodness. Read the chef’s tip below to find out how to adjust the heat level.

Serves 4

• 1 pound tempeh, any flavor
• 1 medium-size white onion
• 5 to 6 sprigs flat-leaf parsley
• 5 to 6 sprigs cilantro
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 to 2 jalapeno or Serrano chilies
• 1 to 3 dried Ancho, negro, or Pasilla chilies, depending on taste
• 1 14.5-ounce can fire-roasted or regular chopped tomatoes
• 1 10-ounce can Ro*Tel brand diced
• tomatoes and green chilies
• 1 15.5-ounce can red pinto, great Northern, or black beans
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive or safflower oil
• 1 4-ounce can chopped mild, medium, or hot green chilies
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon smoked or regular paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1 cup water, plus more as needed

Chili Fixings

• Chopped scallions
• Chopped white or red onions
• Cheddar cheese or vegan cheddar, grated
• Monterey Jack or vegan Jack cheese, grated
• Sour cream or vegan sour cream
• Plain whole-milk yogurt or soy yogurt

On your mark . . .

• Cut the tempeh into medium-size pieces and put into a 2-quart saucepan. Cover with cold water and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Drain in a colander and set aside.
• Peel the onion, chop into medium dice, measure out 1 cup, and set aside.
• Wash the parsley and cilantro, shake off any excess water, and dry by rolling in paper towels. Remove the leaves and discard the stems. Coarsely chop the parsley and cilantro together and set aside.
• Slightly crush the garlic by laying the flat side of a chef’s knife on the clove and pressing firmly to break open the skin. Remove the skin, cut off the root end, and discard. Coarsely chop the garlic and set aside.
• Slip on a pair of latex kitchen gloves. Remove the stem from the fresh chilies and cut in half lengthwise. Rinse under cold water and scrape out the seeds with the tip of a spoon. If you like the chili a bit hotter, leave in the seeds. Chop into small pieces and set aside. Rinse, dry, and remove the gloves.

Get set . . .

• Break the stem from the dried chilies and discard. Shake out any seeds, tear the chilies into small pieces, and place in a bowl. Add 1/2 cup hot water and set aside to soften. Wash your hands.
• Combine the tomatoes, including the liquid, and the tomato-and-green chili combination. Measure out 3 cups and set aside.
• Drain the canned beans in a hand strainer or colander. Rinse under cold water and set aside to drain.
• Coarsely chop the tempeh and set aside.

Cook!

• Drain the dried chilies in a hand strainer or colander and pat dry.
• Heat the oil in a 4- to 6-quart pot (with lid) over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking.
• Add the onion and dried chilies and sauté for 4 to 5 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent.
• Add the garlic, tempeh, canned green chilies, chopped fresh chilies, chili powder, paprika, salt, cayenne pepper, if using, and the chopped parsley and cilantro. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent sticking, until the tempeh has browned.
• Add the 3 cups tomato mixture, beans, and water. Bring to a boil, decrease the heat to low, and simmer for 45 minutes with the lid slightly ajar.
• Stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Add water if the chili becomes too thick, but avoid making it soupy. Taste the chili and correct the seasoning.
• Serve hot, passing the scallions, onions, grated cheeses, sour cream, and yogurt on the side.

Chef’s Tip

• If you like your chili very hot, use the full amount of cayenne pepper listed. You can reduce the heat to a less fiery level by omitting it altogether.

Pictures and recipes used with permission.

Cookbook Week cont’d: Teen Cuisine New Vegetarian and a #MeatlessMonday recipe for Bite-Me Chili is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

So many wonderful cookbooks have been crossing my desk lately that I decided to dedicate a week to (mostly) cookbook reviews. So sit back and enjoy! Since it’s Meatless Monday, we start the week with a vegetarian cookbook by Mary McCartney, the daughter of Paul and Linda McCartney.

Food: Vegetarian Home Cooking

I was excited to receive a review copy of the Food: Vegetarian Home Cooking because I’ve been a fan of Mary’s father’s music since I was a kid, and loved her mother’s photography for almost as long. Paul and Linda were the first people I ever knew in the public spotlight who were vegetarians, too. Indeed, Linda was the author of several very popular and still well thought of vegetarian cookbooks like Linda's Kitchen: Simple and Inspiring Recipes for Meat-Less Meals. So with an upbringing like that, I had high expectations for Mary’s cookbook, especially since she was doing both the recipe development as well as the photography.

Food features lovely vegetarian recipes that even non-vegetarians will like such as Corn Fritters, Super Quinoa Salad, Lip-Smacking Minestrone, and several desserts. These are straight forward, simple meals that are perfect for novice cooks or those who are new to vegetarian cooking. She doesn’t use crazy, hard to find ingredients – quinoa is as exotic as she gets. All in all Mary’s recipes in Food are very accessible to anyone who’d like to include more vegetarians meals in their culinary routine.

The only downside to Food is Mary’s food photography since I feel her food shots are too close up, overly blurry, and sometimes not very appetizing. I find that Mary’s a better photographer of people, spaces and gardens than food, and love her pictures of the signs at a farmer’s market and scenes from her home. That’s where her photographic talent and artistic personality come through in this book.

Can’t decide if Food: Vegetarian Home Cooking is right for you? Check out Mary’s recipe for Cheese and Eggplant Oven Bake, something you can easily make most weeknights. Even better, it’s gluten free if you use gluten free soy or tamari sauce.

Cheese and Eggplant Oven Bake

From Food: Vegetarian Home Cooking by Mary McCartney

This dish is wonderful just as it is, but sometimes I like to vary the recipe for a change. A pinch of chili flakes added to the tomato sauce provides a great kick, and 3 ounces of vegetarian ground meat substitute cooked into the tomato sauce adds substantial “bite” to the meal. Feel free to play around with it, too. This is good served with sautéed leeks and a leafy salad or steamed green beans.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons light olive oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 14.5 ounce can chopped tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon dried mixed herbs, plus a pinch set aside for the olive oil mixture
• sea salt and black pepper, to taste
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 medium eggplants, sliced crosswise into discs 1⁄3 inch thick
• 3 ounces soft goat cheese or chopped mozzarella
• 4 ounces goat Cheddar or sharp Cheddar, grated
• handful fresh basil leaves (if available), roughly chopped

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. First make the tomato sauce. In a medium heavy bottomed saucepan heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and gently sauté the chopped onion until softened and slightly golden brown, about 8 minutes. Then stir in the garlic, canned tomatoes, tomato paste, mixed herbs, a small pinch of sea salt, and some black pepper. Simmer gently for 20 minutes, stirring often, until the sauce has thickened. Set aside.
3. In a small bowl combine the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil, the soy sauce, and the pinch of mixed herbs. Lightly brush both sides of each eggplant slice with the olive oil mixture. Sauté the slices in batches in a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat, cooking for 3–4 minutes on each side, until golden brown.
4. Spread a third of the tomato sauce over the bottom of a medium baking dish. Arrange a layer of eggplant slices over the sauce and then spoon 1 teaspoon of tomato sauce over each eggplant disc. Scatter crumbled pieces of the soft goat cheese over the disc, followed by a layer of eggplant. Spoon the remaining tomato sauce over the eggplant slices and, finally, scatter the basil leaves and grated Cheddar over the top.
5. Bake for 15–20 minutes, until the tomato sauce is bubbling and the cheese is lightly brown on top.

A short interview with Mary McCartney

Q.  When did you first start cooking?

A. I was involved in the experience of cooking from a very early age. The kitchen was the center of the universe and Mum got us involved, helping cook and tasting…lots of tasting.

Q. Who influenced you most in the kitchen?

A. My main cooking influence was my mother, Linda. She described herself as a peasant cook and had the ability to transform whatever she found in the pantry into delicious meals.

Q.  How did she influence your own perspective on cooking then?

A. Her love of food was infectious, but never precious. She never seemed to write anything down, a trick I inherited, but which made the creation of this book particularly testing!

Q. How would you define your style of cooking?

A. I favor uncomplicated cooking, I enjoy meals that are bright, tasty and satisfying and not too time consuming to make.

Q. What’s your recipe of choice?

A. When we were young, Mum let us choose our favorite meal on our birthday. I often chose her cream of tomato soup and fluffy quiche with a large mixed salad.

Q. If you chose just one thing you loved most about cooking, what would that be?

A. I love cooking for friends and family, getting everyone around the table together to enjoy the banter around informal meals, and for me, the satisfaction of wiped-clean plates is worth the effort.

Recipe and photographs used with permission.

Cookbook Week: Mary McCartney’s Food: Vegetarian Home Cooking is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

Between the finches visiting our bird feeders and the trees starting to blossom, spring is certainly in the air here in northeastern Georgia. We’ve even managed to eat a couple of dinners outside on the deck, though we had to wear light jackets and sweaters. Even though it’s warming up, there’s never a bad time for a hot bowl of chili, especially on Meatless Mondays when you can substitute healthy tofu and beans for ground turkey or beef.

This vegan chili recipe from the folks at House Foods is high in protein and low in fat. With the extra vitamin C from the chili pods and the capsaicin revving up your metabolism, House Foods’ Tofu Chili is packed with both flavor and health benefits. House Foods Premium Tofu is non-GMO verified, made from certified organic soybeans grown in the US, kosher-verified and gluten free.

While great on its own, try serving the tofu chili on brown rice or quinoa.

Tofu Chili

Recipe by House Foods

Ingredients:

• 1 package House Foods Tofu Extra Firm, drained and cubed
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3/4 cup onion, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic (1 large clove)
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1  16-ounce can kidney beans
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• 1 can low sodium tomato sauce
• dash paprika

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in a large pot.  Add onion and garlic and sauté until tender. 
2. Add vegetable broth, bell pepper, jalapeno, chili powder, cumin, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce and kidney beans, stirring to combine.
3. Add tomato sauce and simmer for about 30 minutes or until kidney beans and peppers are cooked through.
4. Add cubed tofu and cook additional minute or two.  Serve and enjoy!

Recipe and photo provided by House Foods and used with permission.

Meatless Monday: Tofu Chili #vegan #glutenfree is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

Making pasta is a bit of an ordeal of my house, since I have to make regular whole wheat pasta as well as gluten free pasta. It’s made even more difficult because I have a 20-year-old Jenn Air range with only two working electric burners and two grill-like burners that take forever to heat up. This means I have to make the pasta first, then put it aside while I make the sauce. Then I have to reheat the pasta before serving. Needless to say, I can’t wait until we have enough money saved to do our kitchen remodel.

Even so, this month’s Secret Recipe Club assignment was enticing enough to deal with the inconvenience. I chose Melissa from Smell’s Like Brownies’ recipe for Spaghetti with Spicy Cauliflower Sauce for several reasons. First, it’s a terrific Meatless Monday dish, even if my husband thought I should have added some sausage to it. (Not a bad idea, frankly.) And second, because my daughter, Lucie, loves cauliflower.

Changes  to the recipe and cooking tips

Changes: I didn’t change up too much in this dish, except for the way I cooked it. For example, I minded and left it in the pan instead of crushing the cloves and removing them later. I also partially cooked the cauliflower  then added the onion and cooking both together instead of cooking them separately. 

How to cut cauliflower: I don’t like tossing the cauliflower stems and just using the florets as it seems such a waste. Instead, I slice the cauliflower head into 1 inch slices, then break them apart with my hands into bite sized pieces. Yes, there’s a mixture of pretty and not-so-pretty pieces of cauliflower, but it all tastes good to me!

About the type of cheese: Any freshly grated Romano style cheese is perfect with this dish. I used a Romano-Pecorino cheese from Trader Joe’s that’s very tasty, so feel free to experiment!remember to liberally salt your pasta. In my opinion, this pretty much eliminates the need for adding more salt to the sauce later on.

The convenience of Gourmet Garden herbs: Instead of fresh parsley, I used Gourmet Garden parsley instead. I’ve been having a lot of fun experimenting with Gourmet Garden’s products, and love the convenience of squeezing out just enough for a recipe without having to buy a whole bunch of herbs. There’s nothing worse than throwing rotten parsley into the compost bin because you didn’t have another use for it before it went bad. If you wish, use the same amount of fresh parsley instead.

Serving the sauce: Since I made two kinds of pasta, I served the sauce on top of it instead of dumping all the pasta into the sauce pot. This also is a better way to do things if you plan to have leftovers as the sauce will soften the pasta, so by the time you reheat it, it’s sort of mushy.

Salt your water: Finally, don’t forget to liberally salt your pasta cooking water. In my opinion, this practically eliminates the need to add extra salt to your pasta sauce.

Spaghetti with Spicy Cauliflower Sauce

Adapted from Smells Like Brownies adaption of the recipe from The Complete Book of Pasta and Noodles

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup olive oil, divided
• 1 medium head cauliflower, trimmed and cut into bite sized pieces
• 3 large cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 2 tablespoon fresh flat-leaf parsley, minced
• 1 pound whole wheat or gluten free spaghetti
• 1/2 to 1 cup freshly grated Romano-Pecorino cheese

Directions:

1. Heat 3 tablespoons oil over medium heat in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet.
2. Add the cauliflower and minced garlic. Sauté, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes.
3. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and the sliced onion to the pan and cook until golden brown – about 10 minutes.
4. Add the tomatoes and red pepper to the onion and cook until slightly thickened, about 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Then stir in the parsley and 1/4 cup of the grated cheese.
6. Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain and return to the pot.
7. Place one serving of pasta in a bowl or plate and liberally top with sauce. Serve immediately with extra cheese and crushed red pepper.

More from the Secret Recipe Club!

Want to join the Secret Recipe Club? You can sign up here.

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Disclosure: Amazon links are affiliate links. A commission may be earned from a referred sale to their website.

Gourmet Garden provided me with samples of their products to try out in my cooking. All opinions and experiences are my own.

Meatless Monday: Spaghetti with Spicy Cauliflower Sauce #src #meatlessmonday is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

Even though my mom’s an incredible cook, she rarely made homemade mashed potatoes since my dad was a baked potato sort of guy. Instead, it was my husband who showed me how to make homemade mashed potatoes, since we both loved having bangers and mash at home. Over time I’ve developed a few time saving, simplifying techniques when making mashed potatoes, such as:

• Use red potatoes instead of russets – you don’t have to peel them!
• Cut the cleaned or peeled potatoes into 1 to 2 inch pieces before boiling – they cook up faster!
• Salt the cooking water just like you would pasta – eliminates the need to add salt later!
• Use an immersion blender to whip up the potatoes right in the cooking pot  (I have a KitchenAid 5 Speed Hand Blender) – creamiest potatoes ever!
• Make a double batch of mashed potatoes – use the leftovers to make Shepard’s Pie!

Unfortunately, I’ve developed a food sensitivity to potatoes, so I’ve been making alternative mashes like Marsala Whipped Sweet Potatoes. After making Sorghum Glazed Parsnips for Thanksgiving, and seeing how much my children loved parsnips, I thought I’d try making mashed parsnips using Land O Lakes® Butter with Canola Oil.

A healthier, more natural mash

If you’re not familiar with parsnips, they taste like a cross between a potato and carrots, and are sweet enough to appeal to kids. Also, parsnips are an excellent source of soluble and insoluble dietary fiber, and contain many anti-oxidants. Parsnips are also a good source of vitamin C, folic acid, vitamin B-6 , thiamin, pantothenic acid, vitamin K and vitamin E. In addition, parsnips contain important minerals like iron, calcium, copper, potassium, manganese and phosphorus.

But what about butter! Shouldn’t I be using a buttery spread instead? Maybe, but I like that Land O Lakes® Butter with Canola Oil is made with only three wholesome ingredients: sweet cream, canola oil, and salt. Nothing artificial about that! I also enjoy using it because it’s spreadable right out of the refrigerator, making it super convenient to use, whether I’m making toast in the morning or putting it in a measuring cup or spoon when I’m cooking.

I’ve been eating Land O’Lakes butter since I was a kid and it’s a brand I’ve always trusted. (I like their eggs, too!) Land O'Lakes is a farmer-owned cooperative that produces sweet cream that's churned into Land O Lakes® Butter. Also, Land O'Lakes’ farm families take pride in the butter they help produce because you take pride in what you feed your family.

Easy Mashed Parsnips and Chives

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds of parsnips, peeled and chopped into 1 to 2 inch chunks
• Kosher or sea salt, to taste
• 1 cup skim or low fat milk
• 1/4 cup of Land O Lakes® Butter with Canola Oil
• Fresh chives, chopped into small pieces for garnish

Directions:

1. Place the parsnips in a large saucepan. Cover parsnips with water and season with salt. Place lid on pot.
2. Over high heat, bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium low and simmer until the parsnips are fork-tender, about 15 to 20 minutes.
3. Drain the parsnips in a colander and return them to the saucepan.
4. Place pan on stove on low heat. Add milk and Land O Lakes® Butter with Canola Oil.
5. Using an immersion blender, blend parsnips until creamy. (If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can put your potatoes in a food processor or blender. Then place the mashed parsnips back in the saucepan and warm them up on medium low on the stove top. Or avoid the mess and hand mash them right in the pot!)
6. Garnish with chives and serve immediately.

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Disclosure: The author was compensated by Land O’Lakes for this post. All opinions are my own.

Easy Mashed Parsnips and Chives #3SI #spon is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

There’s nothing better than homemade vegetable soup on a cold winter’s night. Or when you just got your braces tightened, like my son Nathan, and want something easy to eat. Luckily, this Hunt’s Signature Recipe is as easy to make as it is to eat. All you need to do is cut up a large zucchini, carrots, and an onion, add some spices and Hunt’s Tomatoes, a little water, and some frozen corn and you’re ready to go. With all these heart healthy vegetables, this is a terrific recipe to celebrate American Heart Month, too!

But before I share the recipe with you, could you take a minute to fill out a quick survey about tomatoes? Thanks!

Yes, you can make soup from scratch on a weeknight!

We’re all busy, busy, busy especially on weeknights when everyone’s coming home starving from work or after school activities. To cut the prep time in half, use frozen precut zucchini, onions, and carrots. Just adjust the timing to completely cook through the vegetables.

If you have a little extra time, make a double batch and freeze half. That way, you have a batch ready to go on those nights when you’re too busy to cook. Just defrost and heat up the soup in the microwave or on the stove top.

Finally, a few pointers. First, adding freshly grated Parmesan cheese to your individual soup bowl is so worth the calories. Yum! It’s easy to grate a bit over your soup bowl. However, you can save time by buying a container of grated, fresh Parmesan at the grocery store. (Please don’t use that weird powdered “Parmesan” that comes in cans in the spaghetti sauce section. The fresh stuff is so much tastier.)

Second, if you think the vegetable soup may be too spicy for you or your family, cut back on the ground red pepper. Instead, have a bottle of hot sauce on the table for those who like their food spicy and hot!

Third, smoked paprika is different from regular paprika. Its smokiness adds a lot to this soup recipe, so it’s worth buying if smoked paprika is not already in your spice cabinet.

Hunt's® Fire-Roasted Tomato Vegetable Soup

Hands On: 35 | Total: 45 | Makes: 6 servings (1-1/2 cups each)

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons Pure Wesson® Canola Oil
• 2 cups chopped zucchini
• 1 1/2 cups chopped carrots
• 1 cup chopped yellow onion
• 1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 1 cup frozen whole kernel corn
• 1 can (14.5 ounces each) Hunt's® Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes, undrained
• 2 cups Hunt's® Tomato Sauce
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Heat oil in large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add zucchini, carrots and onion; cook 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally.
2. Add paprika and red pepper; cook 1 minute more or until fragrant, stirring constantly. Add corn, undrained tomatoes, tomato sauce and water; bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer 10 minutes for flavors to blend.
4. Ladle soup into bowls; sprinkle with cheese.

Nutritional information

Per serving:

• Calories 159
• Total Fat 7 g
• Saturated Fat 2 g
• Cholesterol 5 mg
• Sodium 837 mg
• Carbohydrate 20 g
• Dietary Fiber 5 g
• Sugars 8 g
• Protein 5 g

Percent Daily Values*: Vitamin A 116%; Vitamin C 25%; Calcium 12%; Iron 7% (Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.)

Remember, Hunt's diced, whole, stewed, and crushed tomatoes are naturally peeled with steam – FlashSteamed  – not with chemicals like some other brands use. Plus, they add no artificial preservatives in the process. So you can feel good about using 100% natural Hunt's tomatoes in your recipes.

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Disclosure: I’ve been compensated by Hunt’s for my time and efforts on their behalf. All opinions and experiences are my own.

Hunt’s® Fire-Roasted Tomato Vegetable Soup #HuntsRecipes is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

As I mentioned in my post, Getting foodie at the Buick Encore Lifestyle Event, I was very excited to meet Chef Hugh Acheson at his restaurant, Empire State South. I had been to one of his two Athens restaurants, Five & Ten and was a big fan of his from watching Top Chef. (When you have a second, check out Hugh’s terrific blog on the Bravo website.)  I had put off getting a copy of his cookbook, A New Turn in the South: Southern Flavors Reinvented for Your Kitchen, when I had dined at Five & Ten as I was too busy at the time to devote to serious cookbook reading since we had just moved to Georgia. I’m so glad that I did as I not only got a copy at the Buick event, but Hugh signed and personalized it for me. Swoon!

A New Year’s Resolution

When setting up my blogging goals for 2013, I wanted to do something different here at This Mama Cooks! On a Diet. So I decided to share some of Hugh’s healthier and more practical recipes with you this year. I’ll be cooking at least one recipe a month from A New Turn in the South and sharing it here. I hope you enjoy it!

The first food I decided to tackle was collard greens since I had bought a large two pound bag of the stuff on sale, and needed to cook it up pronto! I’d made Tangy Collard Greens at Thanksgiving, and while my husband and I liked them, the kids thought they were too bitter. Well, after reading Hugh’s recipe I had the solution – add something sweet! He recommends sorghum or maple syrup. I used maple syrup since that’s what I had on hand, but I bet agave syrup would work, too.

Using up what’s in the pantry

I made some changes to Hugh’s recipe since I wanted to use up a few things in my pantry along with the collard greens. First, there was the bacon grease I had leftover from the previous weekend’s breakfast. I figured 1 1/2 tablespoons per pound of collard greens wasn’t too unhealthy and would add a lot of flavor. I also used thick ham slices (leftover cold cuts from the kids’ lunches) instead of ham hocks and the ham broth that I had made over Thanksgiving and kept in the freezer. (You can use vegetable or chicken stock instead.) I also used regular red wine vinegar instead of the sherry vinegar and left out the pepper flakes in order to entice the kids to eat it. (Lucie refused to but Nathan loved the collard greens and asked for seconds! My husband, Paul, also had seconds while telling me how good the collards tasted.)

This is a dish that takes some time – about an hour. So if you’re making it on a busy weeknight, plan accordingly. To save time, buy prewashed and chopped collard greens, if they’re available at your grocery store. Leftover collard greens taste great cold or heated up in the microwave.

Sweetened Collard Greens

Based on Hugh Acheson’s Collard Greens recipe from A New Turn in the South (page 222)

You’ll need a very large stock pot to cook these in. Initially the collard greens will take up the whole pot, but don’t worry, they’ll cook down. If you don’t have a large pot, divide and cook up a batch in two pots.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons bacon grease or olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 2 pounds cleaned collard greens, chopped into bite sized pieces
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 4 cups stock (ham, vegetable or chicken)
• 3 thick slices of black forest ham, diced
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions:

1. Heat the bacon grease or olive oil in a large stock pot over medium heat.
2. Add the onion and cook until it starts turning color.
3. Add the collard greens to the pot and sauté for 5 minutes.
4. Add the vinegar and cook down for 5 minutes.
5. Add the maple syrup, stock, ham, and kosher salt to the pot. Cook over medium heat stirring occasionally until stock is just about gone and collards are tender.
6. Serve and enjoy!

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Disclosure: Amazon links are affiliate links. A commission may be earned from a referred sale to their website.

I received a complimentary signed copy of A New Turn in the South: Southern Flavors Reinvented for Your Kitchen at the Buick Encore Lifestyle Event. All opinions and experiences are my own.

A New Turn in the South: Sweetened Collard Greens #TopChef is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

Here’s how I usually make roasted vegetables – combine root veggies, olive oil, salt and pepper and some seasonings and cook until done. Since we were having company last week, I wanted to try something new and this recipe from Mizkan caught my eye. I’ve had much experience marinating meats, but have never tried it with vegetables. The original recipe has you grill the vegetables, but I thought roasting them in the marinade would be even better. However, during grilling season, I bet this recipe would work well as a shish kabob marinade for both vegetables, beef, pork and chicken.

I served this for some of my husband’s friends from his bowling team along with my family. I never know how a vegetable dish will go over with people since some folks don’t like veggies. Needless to say, this dish disappeared and one of our guest asked for the recipe. It was such a success that I’ll be marinated my roast vegetables from here on out.

Note: The recipe originally used Holland House Red Wine Vinegar, but since I had none in the house, I used NAKANO® Italian Herb Seasoned Red Wine Vinegar instead knowing that the seasoning would only add more flavor to the dish.

Roasted Marinated Vegetables

Based on this recipe from Mizkan

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup NAKANO® Italian Herb Seasoned Red Wine Vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
• 2 teaspoons fresh oregano, chopped
• 2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 medium red bell peppers
• 1 medium zucchini
• 1 medium yellow crookneck squash
• 1 large yellow onion
• 1 large eggplant

Directions:

1. For marinade, combine all ingredients except vegetables in a small bowl; set aside.
2. Cut all vegetables into bite sized pieces – about 1 inch x 1 inch or so.
3. Place in a large bowl or rimmed platter. Drizzle marinade over vegetables, toss to coat, and let stand for 30 minutes.
4. Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
5. Place vegetables in a large oven safe pan, place in oven and cook for 20 minutes.
6. Stir vegetables and cook until soft and slightly brown around the edges – about 10  to 15 minutes more.
7. Serve and enjoy!

Save money with NAKANO

You can download a coupon for 50 cents off your next purchase of NAKANO rice vinegar here. Also, for more recipes using NAKANO rice vinegars, sign up for Mizkan’s Splash for Cash e-newsletter for a chance to win up to $600. (Mizkan is NAKANO’s parent company.)

You can connect with NAKANO online on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

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Disclosure: Mizkan, the parent company of NAKANO, provided compensation for this post. All opinions are my own.

Roasted Marinated Vegetables #NAKANOSplash is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!