Nexus

Weekend Cooking

In an effort to cut down on (and hopefully eliminate all) processed foods I have been trying to cook more. I can never manage much cooking during the week, so I try to cook ahead on the weekend. I usually search for a couple of recipes while I watch a bit of Coronation Street. Then I make a shopping list. I usually get around to the cooking part in the late afternoon. And I just finished a few minutes ago. Today I made - the chick pea stew (recipe below) and lentil soup. The soup was wonderful as well - I used a recipe that is a Lebanese style. Very simple but wonderful. I will post that recipe sometime soon - I don't have an electronic copy so it will have to wait until I feel like typing it out. The trick I've learned about lentil soup is to - toast & grind the cumin seeds and to finish the finished soup up with a squirt of lemon juice. Some freshly toasted pita bread to go with and all is right with the world.

I also made green beans tonight. I've come to realize that the way I had been cooking vegetables sometimes makes them too harsh. I recently bought an unglazed clay dish - this works really well for finishing up veggies. I microwaved green beans tonight. Then put them in the oven in the clay dish with salt, pepper and butter. Left them in the oven for 15 mintes or so. They took on a really rich flavour and had a much more appealing texture. I think it is worth it to spend the extra time doing this.

So, these dishes along with lots of salads will be the foundation of my meals this week. I have been cooking on Sundays for 5-6 weeks now and hope to keep that habit up. Jamie Oliver's new series - 'Jamie At Home' on the Food Network is giving me lots of inspiration for cooking these days.

Chick Pea Stew

This is a great recipe ..... I make a lot of stews with chick peas and other legumes - this one is more 'finished' than most - I think adding flour to thicken it up adds a lot. I also added some hot suace (sambal oelek) I substituted red pepper for green and added potatoes instead of zucchini which I could not get today for some reason. Make sure you toast cumin seeds and grind them yourslef for lots of extra flavour.

2 Tbsp. Olive oil
1 small Onion, chopped
8 oz Carrots, chopped
1 small Green pepper, chopped
½ - 1 tsp. Cumin
1 – 1 ½ tsp. Ground coriander
1 ½ Tbsp. Spelt or whole wheat flour
8 oz. Zucchini, sliced
1 14 oz Can chick peas or two cups cooked chick peas
4 Tbsp. Tomato paste
Scant 1 Cup Hot vegetable broth (1/2 bouillon cube, stock, or store-bought broth)
Salt and pepper to taste

1) Prepare all ingredients, slicing the vegetables and combining the spices and oil.
2) Heat the oil in a frying pan. Add the onion, green pepper and carrots. Toss to coat the vegetables in the oil. Then cook over moderate heat until the onions are translucent (approx. 5 – 6 minutes).
3) Add the ground cumin, coriander and flour. Stir, and cook for 1 minute.
4) Add the hot broth, tomato paste, zucchini and chick peas. Stir well. Cook gently for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
5) Taste the stew and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve at once with garlic-flavored mashed potatoes (see below) or a slice of whole grain bread.