Quesadilla

Last night we had quesadillas for dinner. Ebon suggested it after his nightly request for Pizza, and I thought it was a great idea!
I used the largest burrito tortillas which became problematic when trying to flip the quesadilla. The tortillas fit in our largest frying pan-barely, but trying to turn it over without spilling everything required using 2 plates. Even with my aids, I folded and spilled the tortilla and it's contents, respectively. As I said, it wasn't pretty, but it was delicious!

2 tortillas
3 green onions, chopped-white and green parts separated
1/2 red pepper, chopped (CSA)
2 medium tomatillos, chopped (CSA)
1/2 16oz can of black beans or ~1cup cooked
1-1.5 cups cheddar cheese shredded

Beet and Fennel Soup

I made Beet and Fennel Soup last night. I was the only one who ate it, but I thought it was really good.

I had some roasted beets and fennel that I needed to use up, so this recipe was perfect! The only modifications I made was to use the roasted beets, so the cooking time was much shorter, and I used yogurt because I didn't have kefir.

The beets made it sweet and I thought the fennel balanced the flavor very well. Unfortunately, since I was the only one who liked it, I probably won't be making it again.  Ebon's suggestion for using Fennel is a Leek and Fennel soup - next time!

Green Smoothie

I love me a good Green smoothie, generally, I use whatever I have on hand, but it usually starts with a frozen banana or two, orange juice and some kind of green - usually chard, spinach or kale.
After much experimenting, I do prefer kale, but if I use chard, i remove almost all of the stem/rib. Otherwise, I think it tastes too "earthy" and sometimes it can be a bit chewy/stringy/fibrous.

bunch of chard
2 frozen bananas
1/2 a peach
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
enough orange juice to get the blender going
few tablespoons of flax seeds.

Since we have Popsicle makers now, I'm going to have to come up with some good smoothies to make into pops!

I could also add yogurt to amp up the protein and calcium!

Rhubarb Walnut Muffins

Along with the Pumkin Carrot bread, I made some Rhubarb Walnut Muffins for our recent flight as snacks. I thought they turned out pretty well. Again, not the sweetest muffin, but I did not use the streusel topping to avoid extra crumbs while traveling. Also, the muffins were a little dry and therefore crumbly. I would like to try these again with a second attempt.

Pumpkin Carrot Applesauce Bread/Muffins

In preparation for a flight, I made Pumpkin Carrot Applesauce Bread to bring along as snacks.I used a muffin recipe, but didn't have enough muffin tins to make this and the Rhubarb muffins I was also planning on.
I had just recently purchased some glasslock containers that are oven safe, so I used the smallest ones to make mini breads. The larger breads didn't cook quite right, but the smaller ones turned out pretty well. It isn't super sweet, but tastes like pumpkin and carrot. I don't think I'll make these again.

Italian Vegetable Stew

I was inspired by this recipe to make a veggie soup/stew last night. My initial impetus for picking that recipe was to use up beyond stale bread, but I never ended up using the bread. I signed up for a meal swap with some other moms, so I jumped on the chance to use up as much stuff from our fridge/freezer as possible, and in return, we got a quiche, a zucchini pasta dish, and an eggplant with lentil dish.

I had to make enough for about 14-16 servings so I could split it up for the other families. I used our two largest pots and tried to split up the veggies as evenly as possible.

Olive oil
3 onions
12 cloves garlic
3 carrots
one white (haruki) turnip
one bunch of celery (from the garden)
2 white peppers (frozen)
one yellow pepper
one eggplant
about 6-8 cups of chopped tomatoes (I had these frozen)
a bit of cabbage ~ 1 cup
a few Baby Bella mushrooms
4-6 cups of water for each pot
2 tablespoons Korean Bullion for each pot
2 cups of cooked chickpeas
3 cups of cooked Lima beans
a bunch of Swiss chard for each pot chopped - including the stems (from the garden)
dried thyme
dried oregano
fresh parsley
salt and pepper to taste

I started with the onions, then added the garlic until they were soft/almost brown. Then I added the carrots, turnip, and celery and cooked until they were soft. Then I added the peppers and eggplant. I threw a bit of salt over the eggplant before stirring everything in. Finally, the cabbage, mushrooms, beans, and tomatoes were added. I added the water, herbs, and bullion, brought everything up to a boil and then reduced the heat and simmered until everything (mostly the eggplant) were soft.
At the end, I added the chard and their stems and stirred around until the leaves were just wilted.

When serving, I shaved in Parmesan to add to the taste and saltiness.

If I had potatoes, I would have added those, I would have liked one or two more carrots as well.

I thought it turned out well for throwing a bunch of stuff together!

Eggplant and Tofu in Garlic Sauce

I made Eggplant and Tofu in Garlic Sauce the other night, it was a little too long ago, and now I'm forgetting how it turned out. I do remember that I enjoyed it.

Eggplant, Potato, and Okra Sabji

I was way behind on cooking our CSA veggies, so I found this recipe to use up the okra and eggplant.

I followed the recipe pretty closely. It turned out pretty well, the flavors melded pretty well, but was a little bland overall - even with all the spices.
I could make it again to use up stuff, but I wouldn't go out and buy the ingredients to make this.