Monday Goodies Recipes

I can feel the excitement of spring coming. I hear people talking about what seeds they are buying and what they will be doing once it warms up a little. But, for now we have to look longingly out the window with a great cup of soup.
Enjoy this recipes to warm you up this week.


Mediterranean Lentil Soup

1 onion
1 carrot
2 T. olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 c. brown lentils
2 cloves garlic
2 dried chili peppers
2 qts. water
1/2 tsp. cumin seed
1 tsp. fennel seed
1 c. diced, canned tomatoes
1 c. cooked rice
Lemon juice or red wine vinegar
Extra-virgin olive oil
Minced parsley

Place chili peppers in water to reconstitute. Peel the onion and carrot and cut into small dice. Sauté them in the olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat, seasoned with salt and pepper, cooking until they are tender. Meanwhile, carefully pick through the lentils, removing any small stones or debris. Rinse the lentils thoroughly in cold water.

Wrap garlic and reconstituted chili peppers in a cheesecloth sack, add it to the soup pot. Add the lentils and the water. Bring to a boil and simmer until the brown lentils are very soft, 45 minutes to one hour.

While the soup is cooking, toast the cumin and fennel seeds in a skillet over high heat for a minute or two, until their aroma is released. Pound them in a mortar. Chop parsley leaves (or pull some from your freezer from last summer's garden!).

When the soup is done, take out the cheesecloth sack and squeeze any broth back into the soup. Stir in tomatoes and rice (I just stole some rice from my Spanish concoction above). Add the ground spices and taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper, if necessary, and a dash of lemon juice or red wine vinegar. Serve garnished with a dribble of extra-virgin olive oil and a sprinkling of the chopped parsley.

*Food sources: Parsley (what we grew and froze last summer), Tomatoes (what we canned and traded for from the summer), Onion/carrot (Winter Farmers' Market), Chili peppers (Dried from summer), Brown Lentils (From Slow Food Ark of Taste, purchased at Terra Madre in October).





Mangia! Mangia! Pasta

12 oz. dried pasta
Salt
Olive Oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 lb. Fresh mushrooms (can find shitake mushrooms right now), sliced
12 oz. Green Beans, sliced
Parmesan Style Cheese

Boil pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

Pour a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet. Sauté garlic in olive oil for 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add green beans and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Finally, add mushrooms and sauté mixture until mushrooms are soft.

Add pasta to skillet, and sauté mixture together until pasta is hot. Adjust seasonings. Serve immediately with grated cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.

*Food Sources: Pasta (DeCio Pasta from Farmers' Market in Scottsdale, AZ), Mushrooms (Winter Farmers' Market), Garlic (purchased from a farm in Orange County i August and have hanging in the basement), Green Beans (you already know these are frozen from our CSA this summer), Cheese (Traders' Point Creamery)