Black Eyed Pea Soup

We took this to a church luncheon and it was a hit! So easy, too.
It is from "Twelve Months of Monastery Soups". A great cookbook that my friend Carla gave me years ago, and it is still one of my favorites. I use potatoes instead of a turnip just because I always have potatoes.

Serves 6 (I always double this as it is yummy the next day, too!)
1/4 C Olive Oil
2 onions, chopped
3/4 potatoes, chopped
1 C Black eyed peas or 1 15 oz can
7 C vegetarian broth
2/3 C rice
salt and pepper to taste
1 bay leaf
6 T lemon juice (important!)
pinch cumin
1/3 C fresh parsley minced

1. Pour olive oil into a soup pot and saute the onions for 2 or 3 minutes, or until they are golden.
2. Add the potatoes, black eyed peas, broth, rice, salt, pepper, and bay leaf and bring the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat to low-medium, cover the pot, and simmer the soup slowly for 45 minutes, or until the peas are cooked.
3. Add the lemon juice and the cumin and stir the soup well. Allow it to sit, covered for 5 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and serve hot. Sprinkle some fresh parsley on top of each serving.

Spinach-and-Orange Salad with Almonds and Honey-Sesame Dressing

This salad is really all about the dressing! I used clementine oranges instead of large oranges, they worked great. The dressing was used for dipping and even on the brown rice. We served this at Jessica and Eric's baby shower....

Ingredients:
Serves 4

Salad
* 1/4 cup slivered almonds
* 5 oz. baby spinach (6 cups)
* 2 large oranges, peeled and sectioned
* 1 Tbs. sesame seeds
*
Honey-Sesame Dressing
* 1/4 cup honey
* 2 Tbs. rice vinegar
* 2 Tbs. low-sodium soy sauce
* 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
* 3 Tbs. vegetable oil
* 1 Tbs. dark sesame oil


The Asian-flavored dressing for this salad also makes a great dip for raw veggies, spring rolls, and dumplings.
Directions

1. To make Salad: Toast almonds in dry skillet over medium heat 2 to 3 minutes, or until light brown. Cool.
2. Arrange spinach on a platter, and top with orange sections and almonds.
3. To make Honey-Sesame Dressing: Blend honey, vinegar, soy sauce, and red pepper flakes in food processor. Pour in vegetable oil and sesame oil, and blend until smooth. Drizzle 1/4 cup Honey-Sesame Dressing over salad, and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Pumpkin Muffins

Carly and Dolly brought these to a Halloween party at the barn. I reduced the sugar in this version.

2 C sugar
1 C oil
3 eggs
2 C canned pumpkin
3 C flour
1/2 t salt
1/2 t baking powder
1 t cloves
1 t cinnamon
1 t nutmeg
1 t baking soda

Add oil to sugar in mixing bowl until blended. Add eggs and set aside. Take cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, salt and baking powder, mix into flour. Stir pumpkin into sugar mixture then mix in dry ingredients. Blend into a creamy batter.
Bake 350• for 25 minutes.

Olivada with Crostini

We used Italian bread and toasted it lightly. It was delicious. I also added extra garlic!

2 1/2 C drained pitted black olives ( two 6 oz cans)
1 garlic clove, minced or pressed
2 T pine nuts
1-2 T extra-virgin olive oil
* You can also use Greek or Italian Olives for a stronger flavor, just more expensive.

Coarsely chop half of the olives and set them aside. In a food processor or blender, whirl the remaining olives with garlic, pine nuts, and 1 T of olive oil until mixture is somewhat smooth (it's okay if some of the pine nuts remain whole). If the mixture is too stiff, add the remaining T of olive oil. Stir in the chopped olives.
Covered and refrigerated, Olivada will keep for about a week. Serve at room temperature.

I actually did all of the olives in the food processor, half first then added the rest of the whole olives and blended lightly.

Chick Pea and Artichoke Heart Stew

I served this for our season premiere party of "Glee". It is yummmmmmy and we all agreed the smell was almost as good as the taste! We also had "Olivada" on toast.

Serves 4-6 Takes about 25 m

4 C Vegetarian Stock
2 medium onions, chopped (@ 1 1/2 C)
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed ( I used more )
2 T olive oil
1 t turmeric
4 Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into small cubes (@ 4 C)
1 sprig fresh rosemary ( 1 t dried )
5 leaves fresh sage, minced ( 1/2 t dried) I used the dried version of both of these.
1/2 C pureed winter squash or sweet potatoes *I used a 4.5 oz jar of pureed squash baby food
2 cans chick peas drained
1 14 oz can quartered and drained artichoke hearts
salt and pepper to taste
Optional
lemon wedges and grated Pecorino or Parmesan cheese

In a saucepan, bring the stock to a simmer. While the water heats, saute the onions and garlic in the oil for about 8m until soft. Stir in the turmeric and paprika, saute for a minute. Add the potatoes, rosemary, sage and the onion mixture to the stock. Cook for about 12 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. Stir in the pureed squash, and add the chick peas and artichoke hearts. Remove the rosemary sprig, add salt and pepper to taste and return to a simmer.
Serve with lemon wedges and top with cheese if you wish.

Sugar and Spice Bacon

1C Brown Sugar
1/2 -1 tsp ground red (cayenne) pepper
2 lb sliced smoked bacon

Heat oven to 400ºF. In small bowl combine sugar and red pepper. Sprinkle over both sides of bacon. Place slices on two foil lined baking sheets. Bake 10-15 minutes, turning often until brown and crisp. Drain on paper towels.

Chewy Molasses-Spice Cookies

From Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia
Yields: Makes 36
Total Time: 1 hr 30 min
Prep Time: 25 min

2 cup(s) all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
1 1/2 teaspoon(s) baking soda
1 teaspoon(s) ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon(s) ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon(s) salt
1 1/2 cup(s) sugar
3/4 cup(s) (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg
1/4 cup(s) molasses
Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. In a shallow bowl, place 1/2 cup sugar; set aside.
With an electric mixer, beat butter and remaining cup of sugar until combined. Beat in egg and then molasses until combined. Reduce speed to low; gradually mix in dry ingredients, just until a dough forms.
Pinch off and roll dough into balls, each equal to 1 tablespoon. Roll balls in reserved sugar to coat.
Arrange balls on baking sheets, about 3 inches apart. Bake, one sheet at a time, until edges of cookies are just firm, 10 to 15 minutes (cookies can be baked two sheets at a time, but they will not crackle uniformly). Cool 1 minute on baking sheets; transfer to racks to cool completely. Store in an airtight container up to 4 days.