Forks Over Knives: The Cookbook (30 page)

⅛
teaspoon turmeric

¼ teaspoon ground cumin

¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste

½ cup spinach

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Add the fava beans, quinoa, and fenugreek seeds to a pot with 3 cups of water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the leeks and garlic, and cook on medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes. Add 1½ cups of water, the tomatoes, turmeric, cumin, and salt, and cook for another 5 to 7 minutes on medium heat, or until the quinoa and fava beans are tender. Add the spinach and season with black pepper. Serve hot.

HOMINY IS MADE from dried corn that has been treated with lye, an acid which helps preserve the grain. It is used extensively in American Southern and Mexican cooking, either served whole in soups and stews, coarsely ground and served as grits, or ground more finely to make masa. In any preparation hominy has a mild flavor and takes on the flavor of whatever other ingredients it is cooked with. Ancho chiles can be found dried or canned in the Mexican section of most grocery stores. Toasting the dried chiles gives them a smoky flavor you don’t quite get with the canned version, but both work for this dish. If you can’t find either, use 1 tablespoon of ancho chile powder instead.

SERVES 6

1 large onion, peeled and chopped

1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1 tablespoon cumin seeds,
toasted
and ground

1 dried ancho chile, toasted in a dry skillet for 3 minutes, soaked in warm water for 15 minutes, seeded, and pureed

2 cups cooked
pinto beans
, or one 15-ounce can, drained and rinsed

One 15-ounce can hominy, drained and rinsed

One 28-ounce can tomatoes, drained and puréed

2 cups
Vegetable Stock
, or low-sodium vegetable broth

Zest of 1 lime and juice of 2 limes

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Spicy Cilantro Pesto

Place the onions and red peppers in a large saucepan and sauté over medium heat for 10 minutes. Add water 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time to keep the vegetables from sticking to the pan. Add the garlic, cumin, and ancho chile and cook for another minute. Add the beans, hominy, tomatoes, and vegetable stock and bring the soup to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, covered, for 30 minutes. Add the lime zest and juice, and season with salt and pepper. Serve garnished with a dollop of Spicy Cilantro Pesto.

THE WORLD’S MOST expensive spice meets one of the world’s most popular herbs in this hearty soup. Saffron can be found in most grocery stores, but you may find it cheaper online. If you use the spice on a regular basis, buy it in bulk for even better savings.

SERVES 6

2 yellow onions, peeled and diced

2 celery stalks, chopped into medium dice

2 medium carrots, peeled and diced

3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

½ cup white wine

2 large pinches saffron, crumbled and soaked for 15 minutes in ¼ cup of water fthat has just been boiled

One 28-ounce can diced tomatoes

4 cups cooked
cannellini beans
, or two 15-ounce cans, drained and rinsed

2 cups
Vegetable Stock
, or low-sodium vegetable broth

1 cup
 finely chopped
 basil leaves

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the onions, celery, and carrots in a large saucepan and sauté over medium heat for 10 minutes. Add water 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time to keep the vegetables from sticking to the pan. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the wine and the saffron with its soaking liquid and bring the pot to a boil over high heat. Add the tomatoes, beans, and vegetable stock. Bring the pot back to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes. Add the basil, season with salt and pepper, and cook for another 5 minutes.

USE WHATEVER MUSHROOMS you have on hand for this stew, but keep in mind that mushrooms like cremini and shiitake have much more flavor than white button mushrooms. Serve this dish with
Basic Polenta
and a salad.

SERVES 4

1 medium onion, peeled and diced

1 pound cremini mushrooms, halved

6 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

One 14-ounce can diced tomatoes

¼ cup minced basil

1 tablespoon minced thyme

2 teaspoons minced rosemary

1 bay leaf

4 cups cooked
navy beans
, or two 15-ounce cans, drained and rinsed

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the onion and mushrooms in a large saucepan and sauté over medium heat for 10 minutes. Add water 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time to keep the vegetables from sticking to the pan. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes, basil, thyme, rosemary, bay leaf, and beans and bring the pot to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, covered, for 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

COOKING LIMA BEANS with aromatics like cloves, garlic, and bay leaves adds a depth of flavor to the already flavorful bean, the most underappreciated of the bean family. I never liked them as a kid because I, like most children, had a very sensitive texture palate. But after years of my avoiding them, one day a friend served them to me and the love affair began.

SERVES 6

1½ cups dry lima beans, soaked for 8 to 10 hours (or overnight) and drained

2 bay leaves

4 whole cloves

4 cloves garlic, peeled

1 large onion, peeled and chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped

1 green bell pepper, seeded and sliced

1 teaspoon thyme leaves

¼ cup
 tomato paste

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1.
Place the soaked lima beans to a pot with 4 cups water, and add the bay leaves, cloves, and garlic. Simmer for 1 hour, or until the beans are just tender, adding more water as needed to cover the beans well. Remove the bay leaves, cloves, and garlic.

2.
While the beans are cooking, place the onion, celery, and carrot in a large saucepan and sauté over medium heat for 10 minutes. Add water 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time to keep the vegetables from sticking to the pan. Add the green pepper and thyme and cook for 4 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute.

3.
Add the vegetable mixture to the cooked beans and cook for 15 minutes over medium heat. Season with salt and pepper.

A TRADITIONAL COUNTRY soup from one of the world’s culinary capitals, this soup is simple but very satisfying.

SERVES 6

3 large leeks (white and light green parts), diced and rinsed

2 celery stalks, diced

2 medium carrots, peeled and diced

2 cups chopped green cabbage

1 large russet potato, peeled and diced

6 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

3 cups cooked
cannellini beans

6 cups
Vegetable Stock
, or low-sodium vegetable broth

½ cup
 chopped
 basil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the leeks, celery, and carrots in a large saucepan and sauté for 10 minutes over medium heat. Add water 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time to keep the vegetables from sticking to the pan. Add the cabbage, potato, garlic, beans, and vegetable stock and bring the soup to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, uncovered, for 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Add the basil, and season the soup with salt and pepper.

ANASAZI BEANS ARE similar to pinto beans but have a richer flavor. They are considered an heirloom bean and are not readily available in grocery stores. If you can’t find them, use pinto beans instead.

SERVES 6 TO 8

1 large yellow onion, peeled and diced

2 large carrots, peeled and diced

2 celery stalks, diced

2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

2 tablespoons cumin seeds,
toasted
and ground

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 small pumpkin (about 1 pound), peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch cubes

4 cups cooked
anasazi beans
, or two 15-ounce cans, drained and rinsed

6 cups
Vegetable Stock
, or low-sodium vegetable broth

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

6 green onions (white and green parts), thinly sliced

Place the onion, carrot, and celery in a large saucepan and sauté over medium heat for 10 minutes. Add water 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time to keep the vegetables from sticking to the pan. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the cumin, tomato paste, pumpkin, beans, and vegetable stock and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, covered, for 25 minutes, or until the pumpkin is tender. Season with salt and pepper, and serve garnished with the green onion.

THIS TRADITIONAL JEWISH stew is usually prepared for the Rosh Hashanah meal and usually contains meat and prunes, as well as other dried fruit. I am personally not a fan of prunes and have always prepared this dish with dried apples, although feel free to substitute prunes if you enjoy them. The inspiration for the cinnamon and allspice comes from my favorite carrot cake recipe. Tzimmes is best served over couscous or quinoa with a salad.

SERVES 4

4 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch sliced

3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into ¾-inch cubes

1 cup dried unsulfured apricots (see
more
on sulfites and sulfur dioxide)

1 cup dried chopped apples

½ cup golden raisins

2 tablespoons lemon juice

½ cup unsweetened apple cider

¼ cup brown rice syrup

1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground allspice

Salt to taste

1.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.

2.
Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over high heat and add the carrots and sweet potatoes. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Drain and rinse under cold water until cool.

3.
Combine the drained carrots and sweet potatoes, apricots, apples, raisins, lemon juice, apple cider, brown rice syrup, cinnamon, and allspice in a 9 × 13-inch baking dish. Season with salt, and cover with a lid or aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring gently every 10 minutes.

Recipe by Judy Micklewright

THIS RECIPE IS reminiscent of the aroma, taste, and comfort of my mama’s traditional stew recipe, but my version is easier to make, healthier, and heartier. The potato, white bean cream, and Worcestershire sauce are some of the key elements in this dish—they give off flavors and textures similar to those that are achieved by braising (browning food in fat and then stewing). You can soak, cook, and store the white beans in the freezer in ½- to 1-cup portions, which are then readily at hand for thickening soups and sauces. Make sure you place the potatoes on the bottom of the pans so that they will be sure to cook within the suggested times.