Have you just been dying to try some organic nopales, but feel a bit hesitant about cooking up a cactus leaf? Fear not! It’ll be easier than you think. This remarkable vegetable is loved for its lemony flavor and soft texture. Nopales have been used to improve digestion and metabolism, are praised for their high vitamin and mineral content, and can even be juiced raw into your next green drink.

For your basic nopales asados, just slice off the edges of the leaf and, to the best of your ability, each of the thorns. Nopales hold a lot of water, which make the cooked vegetable have a uniquely slimy texture. While not unpleasant, the sliminess can be mitigated by cutting small slits into the leaf, before pan-roasting over medium heat until toasty brown on both sides. Once done, cut the nopales into strips for some tacos, or dice them up to add to salsas, salads or anything!

Dal Chowder with Salsa

This simple recipe was inspired by a coworker who had had a dental surgery and asked me to prepare her a soft, nourishing soup. I invented this recipe, at work, with minimal cooking facilities and limited time, using ingredients on hand. This recipe became my favorite quick soup! To download an easy-to-print PDF of this recipe, click here.

Makes six servings.

4 cups water

1 cup red lentils, thoroughly rinsed and drained

1 tablespoon oil

½ cup tomato salsa

1 teaspoon fresh ginger root, minced

1 cup corn kernels, frozen and thawed or freshly scraped from an ear of a corn

Juice of ½ lemon

Salt to taste

Bring the water to a boil in a pot. Add the lentils and simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes.

Heat the oil in a frying pan and add the salsa, ginger, and corn. Stir-fry for a few minutes to combine the flavors. Add this mixture to the cooking lentils and simmer together for 10 minutes more. Add the lemon juice and salt to taste. Serve hot with rice, tortillas, or bread.

–Shanta Sacharoff

 By Shanta Nimbark Sacharoff

The joy of cooking and sharing food outdoors should not be experienced only by carnivores, even though cookout generally evokes a vision of a chunk of meat on an open fire.  Vegetarians around the world enjoy open air cooking, some working in the field and others while traveling or on pilgrimages. During the busy seasons, farmers bring their meals to the field out of necessity. Many cultures have rituals of cooking and sharing new crops outdoors to celebrate the bounty.

Urban dwellers like us also like to eat outdoors for pleasure.  It is our way of bringing the country to the city.  Cooking out can also be collaborative – a welcome change from an isolating kitchen where the host cooks most of the food. For a printable PDF of this guide, click here.

Here are some tips to make your cookout successful:

1. Pick a spot that is sheltered from heavy wind.
2. Plan a varied menu with colorful, hearty dishes.
3. Include plenty of beverages such as juice, soda, water and of course, a thermos of chai and/or coffee.
4. Be familiar ahead of time with your grill, charcoal, or whatever cooking medium you plan to use.
5. Make rice, pasta and salad dishes ahead of time.
6. Bring a ball, Frisbee or some other outdoor activity to keep everyone warm and busy.
7. Don’t forget to bring a blanket, a ground cloth, and any necessary utensils.
8. Remember, grilled food is very hot! Be careful when cooking and serving it. Bring some kitchen gloves and tongs.
9. Pack a spray water bottle and plenty of trash bags, so that you can leave the site as clean for the next group.

Here are some food items for your picnic basket that you  can find  in at Other Avenues, followed by three Middle Eastern recipes that are perfect companion for a cookout.

• A large variety of juices, juice soda and root beer
• Organic wine, organic and micro brewery local beer
• Soy deli cold cuts, such as soy “salami,” baked tofu,  tofu dogs, soy and tempeh burgers
• A wonderful selection of local and imported cheeses
• Freshly baked bread and gluten-free baked goods
• Crackers and chips

Tabbouli

Tabbouli can be made ahead of time and be refrigerated for up to a week.

1½ cup bulgur (cracked wheat)

4 – 5 cups warm water

A large bunch curly parsley, minced after removing twigs (equaling 2 cups after chopping)

1 cup fresh mint leaves, minced after removing stems

1 bunch of scallions, chopped, with some of the green tops

1 large cucumber, peeled and finely chopped in cubes (about 1 to 1½  cups)

½  cup very small chunks of red bell pepper or a  fresh tomato

Dressing:

4 tablespoons olive oil

4 tablespoons lemon or lime juice, freshly squeezed

¼ teaspoon oregano, dried or fresh and minced

½ teaspoon salt or to taste

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Soak the bulgur in warm water for ½ hour. Wash and drain parsley and mint thoroughly. Using a wide bladed knife or a food processor, chop the leaves briefly, being careful not to puree. Prepare the rest of the vegetables as listed. Set the leaves and vegetables in a large bowl.

Drain the soaked bulgur completely by using a cheese cloth. Or take a handful of bulgur at a time and squeeze most of the water out.  Add bulgur to the bowl of vegetables and mix well.

Blend together the dressing ingredients in a jar or a small bowl. Add desired amount of dressing to the bowl of tabbouli and mix thoroughly but gently. Serve right away or chill to serve later.

Makes about six to eight half-cup servings

Gluten-free Tabbouli

Since bulgur is a wheat product, here is a gluten-free option made with rice and quinoa.

¾  cup basmati rice, rinsed and drained thoroughly

¾  cup white quinoa, rinsed and drained thoroughly

1½  cups water

For Dressing:

Same list of ingredients as listed above for traditional tabbouli.

Boil the water and add the drained rice and quinoa.  Cover and simmer the grains over a moderate heat for 15 minutes. Cool the cooked grains thoroughly by spreading them out on a platter. Set the plate aside. Prepare the vegetables as described in the recipe above and mix them with the cooked grains. Add the desired amount of dressing and serve or chill for the future use.

Makes about six to eight half-cup servings

Veggie Kebabs

For Marinade:

¼ cup balsamic vinegar, or rice vinegar for a milder flavor

½ cup olive oil, or peanut oil if using rice vinegar

¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

4–6 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons fresh, minced herbs, such as oregano, basil, and thyme

Salt or soy sauce to taste

Freshly ground pepper to taste

For Kebabs:

2 zucchini, cut into 1-inch slices or into long thick strips

2 gold-bar squash, cut into 1-inch slices or into long thick strips

2–3 yellow-fin or red potatoes, washed and cut into thin slices

1 or 2 Japanese eggplants, unpeeled, cut into thick slices or long strips

12 large mushrooms, cleaned and trimmed

12 cherry tomatoes

16–20 oz. firm tofu, drained, dried, and cut into 1-inch cubes

Whisk all of the ingredients in the list of marinade except for the salt or soy sauce. Place the marinade in a large mixing bowl. Wash and cut the vegetables as listed and add them to the bowl along with the tofu.  Set the bowl aside for at least an hour or overnight in the refrigerator.

Prepare your grilling apparatus ready. Thread the vegetables onto skewers. Place the loaded skewers on a platter. Just before grilling, baste the vegetables liberally with the marinade. Save the leftover marinade. Wear oven mitts to handle the kebabs. As the vegetables cook, turn them frequently so that all sides cook evenly on the grill.  Serve hot with remaining marinade.

Makes approximately 12 servings

Baba Ghanoush (Grilled Eggplants with  Sesame Paste Dressing)

1 pound Japanese eggplants, 4 to 6 (preferred), washed and dried (keep them whole)

or 1 large global  eggplant, washed and dried whole

Dressing:

3 tablespoons toasted or raw tahini (sesame seed paste)

2 tablespoons water

¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 teaspoon honey or sugar

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons or more olive oil

1 tablespoon parsley leaves, chopped finely

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Small Japanese eggplants are preferred for this recipe because they have less or no seeds.

Make the dressing ahead of time by whisking all the ingredients in the list except for the parsley.  Transfer the dressing into a jar and  refrigerate until ready to take with you. Refrigerate the parsley separately and take it along.  Pack the whole eggplants in your picnic basket.

At the cookout spot, roast the eggplant directly over the flame (or over charcoal amber), holding them with an oven mitt, two at a time. Turn them frequently, while roasting to allow the skin to blister  and crack. When the flash seems to have softened completely, remove each eggplant from fire. Place the hot eggplants on a cutting board. Allow them to cool so that you can handle them. Remove all of the charred skin using your fingertips. Mash the pulp using a knife and fork.  Place the eggplant pulp in a mixing bowl.  Add the dressing in, a few tablespoons at a time until a creamy pulp is formed.  (Save leftover dressing – if any -for later use).  Garnish baba ghanooj with parsley leaves and serve it with bread or pasta.

Makes eight to ten servings

Copyright Shanta Nimbark Sacharoff 2017

Healthy Harvest Native American Recipes

When November arrives we start thinking about the Thanksgiving holiday, a celebration of food-sharing with family and friends, and giving thanks to nature for an abundance of healthy food.  In the US, this harvest festival is said to have originated when early Europeans shared food with Native Americans. Historic accounts of this event, when it took place and what foods were shared, have been debated, but traditionally Thanksgiving is focused on turkey with seasonal trimmings.

It is ironic that Native American ‘Indians’ have been associated with images of hunters and killers, when their diets were predominantly plant-based. In fact nearly half of all plants grown in the world today were first cultivated by Native Americans. Historic accounts show that Native Americans traditionally hunted only when necessary, and did not hunt to sell until encouraged by the European traders. Native Americans honored Mother Earth and respected all of her creatures. Their respect for life and their sustainable farming practices promoted good health among their people.

Health-conscious Native American chefs and nutritionists are urging Native Americans  to return to their ancestral plant-based diet to reclaim their health. These professionals have outlined new guidelines and developed recipes based on traditional healthy staples in order to combat illnesses that are linked to over consumption of meat and processed foods now so prevalent in the Native American diet. Below are two recipes with a Native American theme that use local and seasonal ingredients, and a touch of spice. Happy Thanksgiving!! Happy Cooking!!

Three Sisters Entrée   

I have always liked the name of this entrée, ‘three sisters,’ because in my family, we three girls were  inseparable. We supported each other like the corn, beans and squash in Native American folktales. In addition to being grown interdependently, corn, beans and squash complement each other nutritionally. Corn provides complex carbohydrates, beans contribute high levels of complementary protein to the corn, and squash offers generous amounts of vitamin A and potassium.

There are many ways to cook the three sisters together. Some possibilities are to puree the cooked squash with corn to make a creamy soup with dots of cooked beans; to layer cooked squash and beans, top them with corn polenta, and bake them together as a casserole; or to halve and stuff the squash and bake as described below.

Ingredients:

1 each small butternut, kabocha and acorn squash (or any combination of 2-3 hard-shelled squashes)

3 tablespoons olive oil

½ cup chopped onion

12 to 15 thin strips of red or green bell pepper

1½ cups frozen and thawed or freshly scraped corn kernels

1½ cups freshly cooked or canned kidney beans or pinto beans

1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Optional: ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese or vegan option for topping

Using a sharp knife cut each squash in half lengthwise. Remove the fibers and seeds and rinse the squash. Arrange the squash halves in a vegetable steamer with the open sides down. If necessary, cook them in batches so as not to crowd them. Steam the squash for about 20 minutes or until most of the inner meat is cooked but the shells are still intact.  Some squashes will take longer to cook than others, so check each of them often after the first 15 minutes so they are not overdone. Cool the cooked squash for ½ hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a frying pan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil and sauté the onion for several minutes until limp. Add the pepper strips and stir fry for a few minutes more. Add the corn  and the beans, and stir fry for five minutes more. Transfer the cooked vegetables to a mixing bowl and set them aside.

Next, using a spoon and a paring knife, scoop the squash meat from the rind, being careful not to break the shells. Cut or mash the squash meat into small pieces and add it to the bowl of stir-fried vegetables. Add the oregano, cilantro, salt and pepper. Mix well.

Rub the remaining oil on the insides of the squash shells, and on the outer surfaces. Stuff the shells with the vegetable mixture and arrange the ‘bowls’ in two shallow casseroles or on cookie sheets that are lined with a small amount of water.  Bake 30 minutes or longer, until the squash smells fragrant and turns golden brown on the edges. Top each with the optional cheese or vegan topping. Serve with your favorite hot sauce, or the mole sauce described in the recipe below.

Mole Poblano
The word “mole” means “concoction” in the Aztec language, and reflects its origin with Native Meso-Americans, before it was popularized in Mexican cuisine. Most likely the original sauce was made with chilies alone and later was embellished with other ingredients. The dried chilies that give this mole its distinctive earthy flavor are known by various names in different locations. This can make it confusing to select chilies for mole, but you can safely use many types of dry chilies, as long as at least some of them are dark and thick such as Mulato, Ancho or Pasilla (also known as Negro) chilies.

There are many ways to make Mole Poblano, and a wide variety of possible ingredients.  Making Mole Poblano is time-consuming, but if you are used to making masala mixes and chutneys, this recipe will be a delightful addition to your ‘from scratch’ list.

Ingredients:

3 to 4 dried Guajillo chiles

3 to 4 dried Mulato or Ancho chiles

3 tablespoons olive oil

¼ cup each sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds (shelled and raw) and almonds (whole and raw)

1 medium onion, diced small

2 to 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

¼ cup chopped fresh or canned tomatoes or tomato sauce

1 tortilla cut into small pieces

3 ounces (1 disc) Mexican chocolate (sold in Hispanic markets in rounds), cut into chunks

5 to 6 cups very hot water

Salt and pepper to taste

Wearing disposable gloves, break open each chili and remove the stem, ribs and seeds. Turn the fan on above the stove or open a nearby window to let the spicy air of roasting peppers out of the kitchen. Heat a tablespoon of oil in a heavy skillet and pan-roast the chilies. Cook only a few chilies at a time, pressing them with a spatula and turning them with tongs to be sure they roast evenly. Do not burn them. The chilies are done when their skins start to blister. Place the roasted chilies in a bowl, add 2 cups of hot water, cover, and set aside.

Clean and dry the skillet before toasting the seeds and the nuts. Heat the skillet and toast the sesame seeds for only a few minutes. As soon as they start to turn color and smell fragrant, transfer to a platter. Next, toast the pumpkin seeds in the same hot skillet. They will swell and start popping in two minutes. Add them to the platter with the sesame seeds. Toast the almonds last. They will take a little longer, but as soon as dark spots begin to form, transfer them to the platter. Next, using an electric spice grinder, a clean coffee mill, or a blender, grind the seeds and nuts, in small batches to create a ground meal. Set aside.

Heat the rest of the oil in the skillet and cook the onions for a few minutes until translucent. Add the garlic and stir fry for a minute. Add the tomatoes and salt and stir fry for a few more minutes. Add the tortilla pieces, and cook the mixture for an additional two minutes. Then transfer the contents of the skillet to the jar of a blender.  Add two cups of hot water and blend until smooth. Transfer this mixture into a saucepan and place over very low heat and cook uncovered for 15 minutes, stirring frequently, while working on the next step.

Place the soaked chilies and their water into the jar of the blender. Blend at a medium speed for 5 minutes. Add a cup of warm water and puree at high speed for 5 minutes. Turn off the blender but keep the lid on for 10 minutes to let the mixture settle. Next, put the chilies into a strainer with large holes. Press the chilies with the back of a spoon to dislodge any fibers and seeds. Add the resulting strained chili liquid to the mixture in the saucepan and discard what is left in the strainer.

Add the chocolate chunks to the hot mixture and stir until they melt and dissolve. Then, add the meal of nuts and seeds to the pot. Mix the mixture well so it’s evenly blended.  Break up any lumps. Add a cup of water and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring frequently so the mixture doesn’t stick to the pot. Remove from heat, and allow the Mole to sit at room temperature for an hour.

Then, blend again at high speed for 5 minutes until the mixture is thoroughly smooth. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Serve the Mole with Three Sisters’ entrée  above, or as a sauce for rice and beans or tamales. Leftover Mole can be refrigerated for a week, or transferred to small containers and frozen for a few months.