Paleo Vegan Chili

Ok. When I first mentioned this to someone, they said "so it's tomato soup?"  But the true key to making a Paleo friendly chili that is also vegetarian/vegan is in the textures and spices.  In place of beans, I caramelize small bites of cauliflower until slightly chard but still crunchy. And the correct use of fresh spices makes the flavor divine (that's a shout-out to #Mark Divine of SEALFit).

Ingredient list:

*Olive oil

*Salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes

*1/2 head cauliflower cut into 1/2 inch pieces (the size of your favorite bean)

*1 onion, diced

*1 large red pepper, diced

*1 leek, cut in half and sliced in 1/2 inch moons (optional)

*3 garlic cloves, minced

*3 tbs tomato paste

*3 tbs cumin

*3 tbs chili powder

*1 tsp garlic powder (optional)

*1 25oz can tomatoes (San Marzano preferably)

*1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice

Instructions:

In a Dutch oven, cook cauliflower over high heat in olive oil until starting to char and blacken just a bit.  Remove to a bowl and season with red pepper flakes and salt.  

Add additional olive oil to the Dutch oven and add onion, red pepper, leek and season with salt and black pepper and cook over medium high heat for about 7 minutes. Add the garlic, cumin, chili powder and tomato paste. Cook for an additional 3 or 4 minutes.  

Add the tomatoes. Rinse out tomato can with 1/2 can water and add to the Dutch oven.  Raise heat to high and bring to a boil and let cook at a slow boil for 5 minutes.  Taste and adjust seasoning as needed (this includes all spices because if your spices are older, they'll loose some of their flavor and you'll need to add more...or if you just like it spicier).

Add butternut squash and just enough water (if needed) to cover the squash. Bring back to a boil and reduce to medium low. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes with the lid off to let the chili reduce and thicken. After 30 minutes, adjust seasoning again until it tastes great!  Add the cauliflower, stir and serve.

You can break with hardcore Paleo and Veganism by sprinkling a little shredded cheddar on top...if you dare!

Thanks to my buddy Andy Kort for making this last night and taking the photo for me.

Honey Citrus 'Semi-Guilt-Free' Cake

I am not a baker.  I don't like to measure and I cook by taste and sight much more than I do by measurements and timing.  BUT, you have to have a cake in your arsenal.  I saw an easy cake recipe from Melissa d'Arabian and had to try it.  It was fine, but not geared to the palate of our household. So after a couple of tries, I turned her spice cake into this citric cake.

And it only takes ten minutes to mix together, twenty-five minutes to bake and ten minutes to cool. So you can easily make this any weeknight.  Or you can make it a day ahead, it keeps perfectly. I am catering an event for about 20 people tonight, so I baked two of these cakes last night and they are ready to go!


Cake ingredient list:
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda (the box in the back of your fridge)
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 egg
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce (organic if possible, Kroger sells a great organic house brand)
1/2 cup honey
2 tbs. canola oil (any vegetable oil will do)
1 tsp. vanilla
the zest of one orange
the zest of one lemon
1 tbs. orange juice

Glaze ingredient list:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 tbs. orange juice
(glaze is totally optional, depending on how healthy you want this cake to be)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray a nine inch cake pan with  non-stick spray.

In a large bowl, whisk together the first 4 ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the rest of the ingredients (minus the glaze ingredients). Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently whisk in a folding motion everything is well incorporated.

Pour cake batter into the cake pan and put in the oven. Bake for 25 minutes, until the top of the cake gently springs back when touched.

Remove the cake from the oven and put cake pan on a wire rack to cool for ten minutes. Then invert the cake onto a plate, removing the cake pan. Then invert back onto the wire rack. This allows the cake to cool completely.

When the cake is cooled completely, mix together the glaze ingredients, whisking until there are no lumps. Then pour evenly over the cake.  I use a pastry brush to smooth our the glaze, as it tends to puddle in the middle of the cake.

Now your are ready to serve it up!

Vegan Corn and Sweet Potato Chowder

My friend, Katie Case, visited us last week and said that she had gone vegan.  I find the concept of a true vegan diet very difficult for me to follow, as I am a dairy lover.  But there is inspiration in everything.

So last night, when trying to decide what to have for dinner, corn chowder came to the top of the list.  While I am trying to limit my white potato intake, I decided to make the chowder with sweet potatoes instead of the standard white potato that is the mainstay in chowder recipes.  And while configuring this dinner into my pseudo-Paleo diet, I thought I'd make it more interesting by making the chowder vegan.  Why not.

After some thought, I decided to try making the chowder with a broth base (I usually make my chowders with more milk and less broth) and stir in dairy free Tofutti sour cream.  And it worked perfectly!  So Katie, here's a recipe that that will give you creamy flavor in a vegan platform.  Enjoy.

Vegan Corn and Sweet Potato Chowder

Cook time: 1 hour  Serves 6

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
• 3 celery stalks, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4 dice
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 5 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 5 cups vegetable stock
• 12 oz package of frozen corn
• 12 oz container of Tofutti non-dairy sour cream
• Chopped parsley as a garnish (optional)

Start by heating a dutch oven or large soup pot over medium heat. Add the olive oil and then the onions.  Cook for a couple of minutes and add the carrots.  Cook for a couple of minutes and add the red and yellow peppers and the salt and pepper.

Cook the vegetables for a total of 15 minutes from the time you added the onions or until softened. Then add the thyme and bay leaves. I like to tie them together into a bouquet garni using kitchen twine as it is easier to fish them out at the end, but feel free to just toss them into the pot.

Now add the sweet potatoes and the broth. The broth should just cover the vegetables, so use less or more depending on your pot dimensions.  Stir to combine everything.  Now bring to a boil, then cover and reduce the heat to medium low.  Cook for 20 minutes.

Next add the corn and return to a boil over medium high heat and cook for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat (very important) and stir in the non-dairy sour cream and whisk it into the soup.  It will turn into a gorgeous creamy color in a minute. Check for final seasoning of salt and pepper as all vegetable stocks vary in this regard.

Ladle into bowls and garish with chopped fresh parsley and serve.

Maple Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Risotto with Sage Butter

     Two things that are prevalent at the farmer's market right now are butternut squash and apples.  Last evening, one of the first cooler nights here in Bloomington, I was in real need of some hearty comfort food.  Looking at my produce bowl in my kitchen, I knew exactly what I wanted to make.

     The idea of roasting the squash with maple syrup comes right from my mother who used maple syrup in everything from baked beans to salad dressing to roasting any assortment of root vegetables and squash.

    This is the perfect meal to make for a casual dinner party where everyone is lingering in the kitchen. Risotto is so easy to make (despite what so many people say), the only trick is to attend to it every two or three minutes.  Plenty of time for a sip of wine and to join in on the conversation.

Maple Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Risotto with Sage Butter
serves: 4  total time: 40 minutes

• 1 1lb. butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed
• 2 apples, cored and cubed
• Olive oil
• 2 tbs. maple syrup (even though I live in Indiana now, I'm still a huge fan of Vermont maple syrup)
• salt and pepper
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed but still intact
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 hot red chili pepper (or to taste), finely diced
• 2 cups arborio rice
• 2 quarts vegetable stock 
• 1 cup dry white wine (whatever you are serving your guests or yourself)
• 5 sage leaves
• 2 tbs. butter
• 1/2 cup parmigiano reggiano cheese, grated

Preheat the oven to 425

Place the butternut squash and apples on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and maple syrup.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss well to coat all evenly.  Roast in the oven for 20 minutes or until a fork can easily pierce through the squash.  Remove from oven and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat 2 quarts (8 cups) vegetable stock in a pot until just simmering. Cover and continue to let it simmer.

Heat a dutch oven or large pot over medium high heat. Add enough olive oil to fully coat the bottom of the pan. Add the garlic and let it cook for two or three minutes until the garlic is turning brown.  Now remove the garlic and discard. This will give you lovely garlic infused olive oil for cooking the risotto.

Add the onions and peppers to the dutch oven and reduce the heat to medium.  Season with salt and pepper and saute until the vegetables are translucent and softened.  Now add the rice and continue to cook for three or four minutes until the rice is fully coated with the oil and has just started to brown ever so slightly.

Now pour in the white wine and stir constantly for a minute or two, until the wine is almost fully evaporated.  Now is when the real cooking begins!

Pour a ladle of the stock over the rice.  Stir well to make sure that all the rice has lifted off the bottom of the pan.  Now sip a little wine for minute or two. Once the liquid has almost fully evaporated in pan, add another ladle full and repeat. Continue this process (the sipping of wine is fully optional but highly recommended) until you have incorporated all the stock into the risotto.

Taste a bit of the risotto and be sure that the rice is tender but still a little firm in the middle. Turn off the heat and stir in the cheese.  Now check for seasoning, adding salt and pepper to taste. At this point, put the lid on your dutch oven and let the risotto rest for a few minutes for up to 15 minutes  (it will absorb some of the liquid in the pot and firm up just slightly).

Now heat up the butter in a saute pan over medium heat.Chop the sage leaves and add to the butter.  Let this cook for a minute or two but don't let the butter brown too much.

Call the guests to the table.  Ladle out risotto into 4 bowls. Drizzle a teaspoon of the sage butter over the top of each bowl and sprinkle with additional cheese if you like. I also like to drizzle just bit of olive oil over the top to create a truly luscious texture. Serve immediately.

You can serve this with a fresh green salad, but the risotto is a wonderful meal all by itself.

French Style Onion and Oven Roasted Tomato Soup

It is amazing that the farmer's market still has such gorgeous tomatoes.  All of the organic tomatoes today were small and beautiful in color.

With my goal of trying to make food using only produce from the farmer's market, I decided that today's bounty would make a wonderfully sweet and luscious soup.

Roasting the tomatoes and caramelizing the onions brings out the most intense flavors.  Adding some herbs and garlic just enhances the natural flavors of the produce.

Because it takes a little time to make, it is the perfect soup to make on a day where you are at home with a list of chores as it takes very little man power, just random checking in.

French Style Onion and Roasted Tomato Soup
serves 4

• 3 lbs tomatoes
• 3 medium onions (or 6 small onions as that's what was available at the farmer's market)
• 3 cloves of garlic, sliced
• Thyme sprigs
• Salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes
• Olive oil
•  4 c. vegetable broth (I prefer 2 tsp. of Better Than Bouillon and 4 cups water)
• 1 tbs. dry basil
• 1 tbs. balsamic vinegar 
• 12 slices mozzarella cheese
• 4 tbs parmigiano reggiano cheese, grated

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees
(cook time is 2 1/2 hours, but active time is only about 30 minutes)

Cover the bottom of a large baking sheet with olive oil.  Cut the larger tomatoes in half and core. Place all tomatoes on the baking sheet in a single layer.  Peel and slice the garlic and scatter over the tomatoes (note: don't crush the garlic here like everyone does on TV to peel it, simply roll the clove around on your cutting board a few times and the skin will come right off.  This allows you to slice the garlic cloves more easily).  Then lay a few branches of thyme over the tomatoes. Drizzle with more olive oil and season liberally with salt and black pepper. Place in the oven to roast for 2 hours.

Meanwhile, peel and slice the onions. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add olive oil to the pan and add the onions. Season with salt and red pepper flakes to taste. The red pepper flakes infuse into the sweetness of the onions and it is wonderful.  Saute for a minute or two until the onions are coated in oil and the pan is sizzling. Then reduce the heat to low and cook for 1 hour and 45 minutes, until the tomatoes are done. Cooking on such a low temperature takes much longer, but it also takes much less maintenance.  Stir the onions every 15 minutes or so.

Put the tomatoes and all their lovely juices into a soup pot along with the garlic, removing the thyme stems. Add 4 cups of stock.  Puree the soup with an immersion blender, blender or food processor. Be sure to keep the tomato skins that will get stuck in the immersion blends as they will add great texture to the soup.

Now add the onions, basil and balsamic vinegar.  Bring to a simmer and cook on low heat to meld all the flavors. This soup can sit on the stove on low for quite a while.

Preheat the broiler in your oven.

When you are ready to serve, ladle soup into ramekins. Cover with the slices of mozzarella cheese and then sprinkle 1 tbs of Parmesan on top of the mozzarella. Put on a sheet pan and place in the oven until the cheese is browned.  Serve with a green salad and/or bread.

Scrambled Eggs with Apples, Onions and Oregano

Fall is the time when you start looking for dishes that are a little heartier. And to live deeper into the local food movement, every ingredient in this super flavorful dish is at the farmers market right now!

I had this dish for the first time years ago when I lived in Charlottesville Virginia.  The combination seemed so odd but tasted so wonderful. I've since bumped up the heat and made the cheese optional.

This is very high in protein for vegetarians and so full flavored that everyone will enjoy this for brunch, lunch or a light supper with a green salad.  The combination of apples, onions and oregano is fabulous.  If you want, add a small handful of cheddar cheese to add to the richness of the dish.

SCRAMBLES EGGS WITH APPLES, ONIONS AND OREGANO (plus cheddar cheese if you like)

serves one and super easy to double or quadruple

•   3 eggs beaten
• 1 small apple, cored and cubes
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
• 1/2 tsp dry or fresh oregano or to taste
• olive oil
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes or 1/4 hot pepper, seeded and minced
• salt and pepper to taste

Start by heating up a non-stick skillet to medium to medium high.  Add a little olive oil to the pan and then add the onions, apples, oregano, red pepper and a sprinkle of salt.  Saute for about 5 minutes until the vegetables are just starting to soften.

Add the eggs and sprinkle with a bit of black pepper and cook for one minute.Turn off the heat and continue to cook, using the residual heat of the pan, until the eggs are done to your liking. This will take two to four minutes depending on how dry you like your eggs. (if adding cheddar cheese, do so as you turn the heat off so it has ample time to melt without cooking.)

This is excellent with a tossed salad and a glass of red wine!

Savory Chard Pie

This recipe is a standard go-to in our house. The flavors are beautiful and unique, the ingredients are healthy, and this dish is just as good when reheated later in the week.


You can almost always find chard year round. And this time of year your can find it at the Bloomington Winter Farmer's Market. It is grown all winter hydroponically by a local farmer and it is so amazing to cook with such wonderful and fresh local ingredients all year. The photo to the left is of the stems from rainbow chard which are incorporated into the pie. Nothing goes to waste here.

The original recipe for this dish was from Laura Calder. Her version uses bacon but it was quite easy to manipulate the recipe to make it vegetarian.

A couple of kitchen items will make this dish come together more easily: a 10 inch sping form pan, parchment paper, 1/2 lb. dry beans or pie weights.

Savory Chard Pie

• 1 pie crust (I cheat and use Pillsbury premade pie crusts)
• olive oil
• 2 shallots, minced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/2 lb swiss or rainbow chard
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup creme fraiche (easily found in the cheese section of Bloomingfoods east side)
• 4 oz gruyere cheese, grated
• a generous handfull of raisins
• a small handfull of pine nuts
• salt and black pepper

To start, blind bake the pie crust in a 10 inch spring form pan or deep pie plate (I prefer to use a spring form pan because it makes for a lovely presentation, but it will be delicious either way). HOW TO BLIND BAKE: Pre-heat the oven to 450.  Roll out the pie crust and place in the spring form pan, pressing the crust up the sides of the pan. Take a large piece of parchment paper and lay it over the pan. Then pour in pie weights or dry beans to cover the bottom of the pie.  This will keep the crust from rising up during baking. Then place in the heated oven for 10 minutes.  Remove the pan from the oven, lift out the parchement paper with the beans and then return the pan to the oven for three more minutes to allow the bottom of the crust to brown slightly. Remove from the oven and set aside until you are ready to bake the pie.

Reduce the oven temperature to 375.

Start by filling your sink with cold water. Add the chard, stems and all, and let them soak for a few minutes to loosen any dirt. Then pick up each leaf, grab the bottom of the stem in one hand, and use the other hand to pull the leaf from the stem. If the stem breaks off with the leaf, it's OK because it means that the stems are tender at that point.  Save the stems and put the  leaves back in the water to continue to soak.

In a saute pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallots, season with salt and pepper, and cook for about 3 mintues. Then add the garlic and cook for two more minutes, stirring often to keep the vegetables from browning too much. Remove the shallots and garlic to a large bowl.

Put the pan back on the heat over medium.  Add olive oil to the pan. Chop the chard stems into small pieces and add to the pan with salt and pepper. Put a lid on the pan and cook for 4 minutes.  While the chard stems are cooking, remove the leaves from the water and wring dry.  Chop the leaves coursely.  Then add the leaves to the pan, season again with salt and pepper, and cook for five minutes uncovered. The leave should be well wilted.  Remove the chard and add to the bowl with the shallots and garlic. (If there is water in the bottom of the pan, use a slotted spoon to remove the chard leaving the water behind.)

In a dry saute pan, add the pine nuts and toast over medium high heat, stirring often, until they start to brown.  Add them to the bowl with the chard. 

Now add the large handfull of raisins to the bowl as well and stir to combine. Then add the grated cheese and stir to combine. Now check for seasoning. You want this mixture of chard, raisins, pine nuts, shallots, garlic and cheese to be very flavorful at this point.

In a seperate bowl, combine the eggs and creme fraiche and beat until well combined. Season with salt and pepper.

Place the vegetable mixture into the pie crust.  This should fill the crust almost to the top. Then pour the egg and creme fraiche mixture over the top as evenly as possible. It will look as if it is about to overflow, but it should not...

Now place the pie in the heated oven and bake for 35 minutes, until set in the center.  I find that a couple of extra minutes in the oven does not hurt this dish at all.

Let cool slightly or serve at room temperature. This pie will serve six as a main course when served with a salad.

If there are left overs, it can be eaten cold and it is delicious. Or reheat in the microwave for 45 seconds to warm through.