The reason why I haven’t blogged in a month is because our lives have been a total whirlwind, an absolutely fantastic whirlwind. In a nutshell, Carlo started a new full time job that he loves, we decided to move back to Austin, I interviewed for a great position in Austin (fingers crossed!), we found the perfect house in Bouldin Creek that is a few minutes walk away from the hike and bike trail, Carlo graduated with his MBA with both of our families in town to cheer him on, and we are in the middle of packing up our house because we move next Wednesday!

Yikes it has been crazy, but it seems as though after fairly crappy year on many fronts, the universe is finally smiling down on us. Two months ago I was convinced that we would be moving to Portland, Oregon this summer and that we would never live in Austin again, but all of a sudden, it felt like we were meant to be back in Austin and that it was most the obvious choice in the world to make. The response from our family and friends about our decision to move back has been overwhelming and further proves that we made the right one. So this will probably be my last post in a couple of weeks as we drive back to Texas and settle into our new house and more importantly, our new life.

Like our recent life when a bunch of different and disparate circumstances came together to create a perfect opportunity, this Carrot and Chickpea Salad takes two main ingredients that I would never pair together and makes something fantastic with the addition of a few spices. The smokiness of the paprika, the heat of the cayenne, and the earthiness of the cumin combine with the texture of the carrots, chickpeas, and almonds to produce a really hearty salad with a complex flavour that will have you returning to the salad bowl for more. This recipe makes enough for 4 people at 64 cents per serving.

Carrot and Chickpea Salad, adapted from Food & Wine, May 2010
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1 lemon
1 garlic clove, minced
2 packed cups cilantro leaves and stems
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon sweet smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 pound carrots, peeled and coarsely shredded

Start by toasting the almonds in a dry frying pan over a medium heat. Toast them for around 5 minutes until they start to turn golden brown.

In a small food processor, squeeze in the juice of 1 lemon and then add the garlic, cilantro, cumin, paprika, cayenne pepper, olive oil, and half of the toasted almonds. Whiz everything up into a nice paste.

In a large bowl, place the grated carrots, rinsed chickpeas, and the remaining toasted almonds. Add the dressing and mix everything together. Finish off the salad by seasoning to taste with salt and pepper.

Whisk together the lemon juice, garlic, and honey in a small bowl. Season the dressing with salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper, and then slowly whisk in the olive oil until well combined.

Place half of lettuce on each plate, and arrange the chickpeas, bell pepper, tomatoes, cucumber, onion, olives, and feta on top in sections. Sprinkle the mint leaves over the salad and then drizzle the dressing over everything.

I’ve decided that I like couscous much better in soup than pasta because it holds its shape a lot better, especially when the soup is reheated, and adding couscous makes the soup making process a lot faster too. The harissa (my new favourite condiment again since we just got a new jar) adds a nice spicy zing to the soup, so you can add as little or as much as you want. This recipe makes enough for 6 bowls of soup at 97 cents per serving.

Moroccan Couscous Soup
glug of olive oil
2 medium zucchini, halved and sliced into 1/2 inch slices
4 green onions, thinly sliced including the green tops
4 cups vegetable or chicken stock
2 14-ounce cans diced tomatoes with juice
1 14-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
small jar of marinated artichoke hearts
1 cup couscous
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon harissa, plus more to taste
salt and pepper

Heat up the olive oil in a large pot and saute the zucchini and green onions over a medium heat. When they have softened, add the stock and the remaining ingredients minus the parsley, salt, and pepper. Bring the soup up to a quick boil and then reduce the heat and let everything simmer uncovered for 7 to 10 minutes, or until the couscous is fully cooked. If the soup is too thick, add some extra water or stock until you get the desired consistency. Taste the soup and add more harissa if needed, then season with salt and pepper. Throw in the chopped parsley at the last minute and serve.

If you have leftovers, you might need to add some extra water when you reheat it because the couscous absorbs a lot of the soup liquid when it is in the fridge.

Of course, all of this craziness happened right after I posted on the blog on Friday that I would start doing regular posts on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and then I couldn’t find the time to post something yesterday. But here is my intended Monday post for Chickpea, Potato, and Kale Curry, which is fitting since this dish has become our latest super fast weeknight dinner choice!

Lots of veggie curries can tend to be a bit bland, but this one is full of flavour and the toasted cumin seeds on top are just a genius addition with the Greek yogurt. More importantly, it is so easy to make that it ensures you can still eat well even if your schedule is insane like ours has been this past week. This curry makes enough for 6 dinners at 95 cents per serving.

Chickpea, Potato, and Kale Curry, from Huge Fearnley-Whittingstall
2 14-ounce tins of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, plus a little ¬?extra to garnish
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 hot dried red chilli, crumbled
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large onion, peeled, halved and finely sliced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
10 ounces potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch dice
5 ounces kale, finely shredded
2 tablespoons cilantro leaves, chopped
Greek yogurt to garnish
rice to serve

Put a dry frying pan over a medium heat and, when hot, toast the cumin, coriander, and mustard seeds and the chilli for a couple of minutes ¬?until they smell ¬?really fragrant and the mustard starts to pop. Grind the spices to a powder in a coffee grinder, spice mill, or with a pestle and mortar, and mix in the turmeric and ginger.

Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium heat, and fry the onion, stirring regularly, until it is soft and golden brown. Stir in the garlic and spices, let it cook for a minute or two, and then add the stock. Simmer everything for five minutes, then add the chickpeas and potatoes. Cook the curry until the potatoes are tender, then add the kale. Cook for a few minutes, until the greens are tender. While the curry is cooking, toast some extra cumin seeds in a dry frying pan to sprinkle over the final dish with a dollop of Greek yogurt and some chopped cilantro.

I made a large batch of the chili a couple of weeks ago, and both Carlo and I loved it. It is so filling, full of flavour, and is obscenely good for you since it is crammed full of veggies and beans. You could eat it just plain, but I think it tastes best over some brown rice or couscous, and then topped with tons of chopped red onion, avocado, sour cream, and a few tortilla chips thrown in there as a little guilty indulgence. We ate all of the first batch and then I made it again the following week, which never happens. Neither one of us complained about eating so much of this chili, which I think stands as a pretty good testament to just how delicious this chili is. I dare you to try it and see what you think! This chili recipe makes enough for 8 meals at 95 cents per serving, toppings extra.

Winter Vegetable Chili, adapted from Food and Wine, February 2010
1/4 cup olive oil
2 onions, chopped
4 medium garlic cloves, grated or very finely chopped
2 large red bell peppers, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 pound butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 pound carrots, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons chile powder
2 tablespoons ground cumin
salt
1 28-ounce can peeled whole tomatoes
2 canned chipotles in adobo, plus 2 tablespoons adobo sauce
1 1/2 cups water, plus more water as needed
1 cup frozen sweet corn
1 15-ounce can red kidney beans, drained

In a large Dutch oven, heat the oil. Add the onions and garlic and cook over high heat, stirring, until they slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Add the bell peppers, butternut squash, and carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are lightly browned in spots, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chile powder and cumin and season with salt. Cook for 1 minute.

In a blender, puree the tomatoes and their juices with the chipotle, adobo sauce, and water until it is very smooth. Add the mixture to the casserole along with the frozen corn and kidney beans and bring to a boil. If the chili is too thick, add more water as needed and stir it in well. Cover the pan partially and let the chili simmer over a moderate heat until the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. Season with salt. Serve the chili with brown rice, chopped red onions, cilantro, sour cream, avocado, and tortilla chips.

In his book, Bittman details his new eating lifestyle that helped him lose 30 pounds, improve his health drastically, and help him run faster and longer than he had in a long time. Basically his diet boils down to eating a heavy plant, fruit, and whole grain-based diet, especially at breakfast and lunch (he is a flexible vegan during these meals), and then eating whatever he wants at dinner. Whenever we eat like this, we feel much better and sleep like babies every night! Plus the last time I did it before Christmas, I lost 4 pounds in 1 week. So we are starting off the new year following this diet, even though it doesn’t even feel like a diet, just a better and healthier way to eat.

Bittman took over the pages of Runner’s World in October 2009 to talk about his eating style and his running. In this spread, he talks about his diet and its effect on his life and lists 8 easy rules for better eating. I highly recommend reading these articles and if you are still interested to learn more, be sure to check out Food Matters.

Here is a recipe that Bittman included in his spread in Runner’s World. He called it cassoulet, but considering that Carlo and I ate our way through Southwest France when we first started dating and that included lots of cassoulet, I hesitate to call this cassoulet but instead call it Vegetables and White Beans with Sausages. This dish makes a great dinner: you get your fill of tons of veggies and beans with a little bit of meat for some flavour. This recipe makes enough for 4 large dinners at $2.60 per serving.

Vegetables and White Beans with Sausages, adapted from Mark Bittman in Runner’s World, October 2009
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound Italian sausage
1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
2 onions, sliced
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch lengths
3 celery stalks, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 medium zucchinis, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 cups canned tomatoes (and juice), chopped
1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped
2 bay leaves
4 cups canned white beans, drained and liquid reserved in case needed
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the sausages and cook, turning them until they are browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Remove the sausages from the pan and drain off all but a couple tablespoons of fat.

Lower the heat to medium, and add the garlic, onions, carrots, celery, and zucchini. Season the veggies with salt and pepper, and cook for five minutes, or until everything is softened. Add the tomatoes and their juice, sausages, and herbs. Bring everything to a boil. Add the beans and bring the dish to a boil again, stirring occasionally; reduce the heat so the mixture simmers gently. Let everything cook for 20 minutes, adding the stock or some reserved bean liquid when the mixture gets thick.

When everything is cooked, take out the sausages and chop them up. Return them to the pot and add a bit of cayenne pepper to the dish. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Anyway, I’m determined to eat less Asian food this week and eat way more vegetables instead. Y’all know that I love making soups because they are so easy to prepare and make weekday lunches effortless if you cook a huge pot of soup at the beginning of the week. Plus soups are a really great way to load up on your veggies. On one of our healthy non-Asian food eating days last week, I made this simple but delicious soup crammed full of roasted veggies and spinach. I let the soup sit on the stove while it cooled and the roasted butternut squash really flavoured the broth. This recipe makes enough for 6 bowls of soup at $1.10 per serving.

Roasted Vegetable Soup with White Beans and Spinach, adapted from Bon Appetit, January 2000
nonstick vegetable oil spray
3 medium carrots, peeled, quartered lengthwise, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 large tomatoes, quartered
1 large onion, cut into 8 wedges
1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
6 garlic cloves, peeled
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 cups (or more) vegetable or chicken broth
4 cups baby or finely chopped spinach
3 large fresh thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf
1 15-ounce can Great Northern beans, drained

Preheat the oven to 400¬?F, and spray a baking sheet with oil. Arrange the carrots, tomatoes, onion, butternut squash, and garlic on the sheet, and drizzle with a bit of olive oil. Sprinkle the veggies with salt and pepper and toss them to coat. Roast the vegetables until they are golden and tender, stirring occasionally, about 45 minutes.

Set aside the carrots and butternut squash. Place the garlic, tomatoes, and onion into a food processor and puree until the veggies are almost smooth. Pour 1/2 cup of broth onto the baking sheet and scrape up any of the browned bits stuck on the sheet.

Transfer the baking sheet broth and vegetable puree to a large pot, and add 5 1/2 cups of broth, spinach, thyme, and bay leaf to pot. Let the soup come to a boil and then reduce the heat and let everything simmer until the spinach is tender, around 20 minutes.

Add the beans and the reserved carrots and squash to soup. Simmer for 5 minutes to blend the flavors, and add more broth to thin soup if it is necessary. Season the soup with salt and pepper, and discard the thyme sprigs and bay leaf.

Despite our Thanksgiving trip to Tucson negating a couple weeks of hard work in the gym, we are trying to get back on track by eating lots of vegetables this week and hope to continue eating this way when we are at home so we can prevent the dreaded holiday weight gain. This Veggie Shepherd’s Pie with Sweet Potato Mash is one of my favourite weekday meals to make. The recipe makes a huge pie that can be eaten for either lunch or dinner throughout the week, and we have even frozen half of it before and it always holds up well after it is defrosted.

After the gluttony of Thanksgiving, there is something soothing about eating a huge bowl of lentils and vegetables for lunch. Although don’t get the wrong impression that this dish tastes like boring health food because the sweet potato mash and grated cheddar make it feel like you are still being decadent. This recipe makes enough for 8 large portions at 95 cents per serving.

Veggie Shepherd’s Pie with Sweet Potato Mash, adapted from BBC Good Food
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, halved and sliced
1 pound carrots, peeled and thickly sliced
2 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
7 ounces red wine
14 ounce can chopped tomatoes
2 vegetable (or chicken) stock cubes
1 pound dried lentils
2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
2 tablespoons butter
4 ounces mature or Irish cheddar, grated
salt and pepper

Cook the lentils according to the package instructions, which is usually to let them simmer for around 45 minutes until they are tender. Heat the oil in a large pot and fry the onion until golden. Add the carrots and all but a sprinkling of the thyme leaves. Pour in the wine, 5 ounces of water, and the tomatoes, then crumble in the stock cubes and let everything simmer for 10 minutes. Add the drained lentils to the pot and simmer for another 10 minutes until the carrots are almost tender and the lentils are pulpy. Season the pie filling with salt and pepper to taste.

Meanwhile, boil the sweet potatoes for 15 minutes until they are tender, drain well, then mash them with the butter and season to taste. Place the lentil mixture into a pie dish, spoon the sweet potato mash on top, then sprinkle over the cheese and remaining thyme.

Heat the oven to 375 degrees F and cook the shepherd’s pie for 20 minutes, or until the cheesy top of the pie becomes golden and bubbly.

I’ve always enjoyed cooking (and of course eating), but since getting laid off, I have become the primary chef in the house after Carlo taking the lead for the last 8 years. Thinking about what I’m going to cook, grocery shopping, and then actually cooking takes up a large portion of my unemployed life, which helps add some structure and significance to days that are largely indistinguishable from one day to the next. Cooking makes me happy, and I love making something that Carlo enjoys. Plus I like sharing my cooking adventures with y’all too.

On Monday when I was super down in the dumps about not getting this job that I wanted, I knew that I had to get into the kitchen and cook something even if we did have Beef, Guinness, and Cheese Pie leftovers for dinner. I decided to make this Mexican Pumpkin Soup that my old friend Tina from Wales was raving about and which is in the great cookbook that she gave me last month when she visited Vegas.

The meditative process of chopping vegetables and pureeing made me forget about my crappy afternoon. Instead I focused on the delicious soup that I was making and how it would nourish me and Carlo, both literally and metaphorically. Making the soup made me think of my friend Tina and all of the good times we had together at the UEA Union Bar all those years ago, and it made me wish that I had more friends and family in Vegas with whom I could share this soup.

I’m a firm believer that any food that you put love into tastes great, but this soup was a knockout winner with its spicy sweet flavour and the crunchy flavorful topping. Plus it seemed to have magical powers in chasing the blues away. This Mexican Pumpkin Soup recipe makes enough for 6 bowls at $1.40 per serving.

Mexican Pumpkin Soup, adapted from the Riverford Farm Cook Book
1 pumpkin or butternut squash (about 3 pounds), peeled, deseeded, and cut into 1-inch cubes
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 onions, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
5 garlic cloves, crushed
2 red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
14 ounce can of chopped tomatoes
1 quart chicken or vegetable stock
14 ounce can of red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup frozen corn, defrosted
1 tablespoon sweet chilli sauce or garlic chilli sauce
juice of 1 lime, or more to taste
1/2 chopped cilantro
sea salt and freshly ground pepper

To garnish the soup:
tortilla chips, crushed
grated cheddar cheese
2 ripe avocados, peeled and diced

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the pumpkin or squash cubes on a roasting tray and toss them with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and generously season with some salt and pepper. Put the pumpkin in the oven and let the cubes roast for 40 minutes, until they are slightly golden.

While the pumpkin is cooking, heat the rest of the olive oil in a large pan and add the onions. Cook the onions for 20 minutes until they are tender and slightly caramelized. Stir in the paprika, garlic, and chillies and cook for 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and let them simmer for 15 minutes or until the base is reduced and thick. Stir in the roasted pumpkin.

Add a little bit of the stock and begin pureeing the soup using a hand blender. Slowly add the stock and continue to puree until everything is well combined. Bring the soup to a boil and add the kidney beans and corn. Season well, adding the cilantro, chilli sauce, and lime juice to taste. Let everything simmer for 10 more minutes.

To serve the dish, top with crushed tortilla chips, grated cheese, and diced avocado.

Winter Minestrone, adapted from Gourmet, January 2009
1/3 pound sliced bacon or pancetta, chopped
3 medium red onions, chopped
4 celery ribs, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 bunch Swiss chard
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 28-ounce can whole tomatoes in juice
3 quarts hot water
5 cups coarsely chopped cored Savoy cabbage, about 6 ounces
5 cups coarsely chopped escarole, about 1/2 pound
1 piece Parmesan rind, about 3 by 1 1/2 inches
1 14-ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
4 ounces dried macaroni pasta

Brown the bacon or pancetta in oil in a 7-to 9-quart heavy pot over medium heat. It is best to get the bacon as crispy as possible so that the majority of the fat renders and you aren’t left with flimsy and fatty pieces of bacon in your finished soup. Add the onions, celery, and carrots, and stir occasionally, while preparing the chard.

Cut out the tough stems from the chard and then chop them up, reserving the leaves for later. Stir the chard stems into the bacon and veggie mixture with garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, and 3/4 teaspoon pepper and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until all of the vegetables are very tender and begin to stick to bottom of pot, about 45 minutes total.

Push the vegetables to one side of pot, and add the tomato paste to the cleared area and cook, stirring constantly, until the paste begins to caramelize, about 2 minutes. Stir the paste into the vegetables and let everything cook for another 2 minutes while continuing to stir.

Stir in the canned tomatoes with their juice, and use a spoon to break them up into smaller pieces. Add 3 quarts of hot water and scrape up any brown bits from bottom of pot.

Bring everything to a simmer, and then stir in the cabbage, escarole, and Parmesan rind. Let the soup continue to simmer, covered, until the greens are tender, about 40 minutes.

Coarsely chop up the chard leaves and stir them into the soup along with cannellini beans and pasta. Simmer, partially covered, for another 10 minutes. Remove the Parmesan rind from the soup and season with salt and pepper to taste.