Tailgate Season!

Black Bean, Mango & Avocado Salad

And so it begins! This past weekend marked the first pre-season home game for DC United. Tailgating is a seasonal ritual for our Club Echa Panza, which proudly claims some fantastic cooks. Every tailgate boasts a worthy spread of grilled meats with a wide assortment of beers & other goodies. Anticipating that there would be protein options aplenty, this time around, I made a vegetarian salad. This black bean, mango & avocado salad is fantastic served taco style in a grilled tortilla & complements a wide array of grilled meats.

The Inspiration Board

Black Bean, Mango & Avocado Salad 

with Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette

ingredients:
1 can black beans
1 mango, sliced
1 avocado, diced
1 tomato, diced
1 bunch cilantro, coarsely chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1/2 lime, juiced + more to taste
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
salt & pepper, to taste
1 tsp honey (optional)

1. place the beans in a colander & rinse thoroughly, until the water runs clear. then place the beans in a large mixing bowl.

2. one trick to cutting up a mango is to be mindful of the pit, which is a flat-ish oblong shape in the center of fruit. holding the mango upright with the fat, stem side down, cut the mango into thirds in line with the oblong shape. you will have 2 thick outer pieces with lots of fruit, and one center piece with the pit and a rim of skin around the outer edges. see here for a pictorial. add diced mango to the beans.

3. as with the mango, cutting an avocado is made a lot simpler when mindful of the pit. I always cut the avocado lengthwise in half. the large center pit should slide right out, or you can use a small paring knife to ease it out or if feeling extra fancy a large santoku knife to tap the pit & remove it in one fell swooping motion. with the skin still in tact, I dice the fruit, then use a large spoon to scoop the fruit out of the skin. see here for a pictorial. add diced avocado to the beans & mangoes.

4. fold the chopped tomatoes gently into the beans, mangoes and avocados.

5. whisk together the cilantro, olive oil, cumin, lime juice, & spices. taste to adjust. the mangoes add a natural sweetness to this salad, but if the dressing is tasting a bit acidic, you may want to add a drizzle of honey (~1/2-1 tsp) to the dressing to round out the flavors. 

6. serve in warmed tortillas taco style & add some grilled chicken, shrimp or even steak should you feel so inclined. this is also delicious as an alternative to a 7 layer dip with tortilla chips. for a more complete meal, serve over coconut rice. 

Brown Bag Lunch: Soba Noodle Salad

Soba Noodles with 

Shrimp, Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Kale Chips & Onions

Remember the braised kabocha squash? The next day we threw together this soba noodle salad with shrimp which we cooked in the leftover kabocha braising liquids. This was a perfect reinvention of leftovers to bring to lunch the next day. A peanut sauce would work really well here in lieu of the braising liquids. Whole wheat spaghetti would also work in lieu of soba noodles, but I really like the nutty flavor & lighter texture of these Japanese buckwheat noodles.

ingredients:
1/2 large sweet potato (or leftover kabocha), diced
1/2 red onion, sliced
1 bunch kale, deveined & cut into bite-size ribbons
1.5 tbsp olive oil, divided

4 dashes of worchestire sauce

salt & pepper, to taste
1 bundle soba noodles (usually about 1/3 package)
2 thick pats of butter

~1.5 dozen fresh or frozen shrimp
1/2-3/4 cup braising liquids, or peanut sauce

cilantro & scallions, chopped (optional)
yield: 3 servings

1. preheat oven to 350F

2. line baking sheet with sweet potatoes & onions. sprinkle with olive oil, worchestire sauce and salt & pepper to taste. in a separate baking sheet, line with kale & sprinkle with olive oil and salt & pepper to taste. both should cook for about 20 minutes, although the kale make cook more quickly, depending on the size of the sweet potatoes. you will need to turn both about 1/2 way through to make sure everything cooks on both sides evenly.

3. bring large salted pot of water to boil. add soba noodles to a rigorous boil for 1-2 minutes, or until noodles soften. (warning: soba noodles cook much more quickly than regular pasta noodles.)

4. pour cooked noodles through a colander, and immediately run cold water over them to stop them from cooking. toss with sweet potatoes and kale.

5. melt butter in a non-stick or all-clad pan over low-medium heat & add shrimp. 

6. if using frozen, you can expect these to let out some liquid, which you will want to drain off. add the braising liquid from the kabocha (or peanut sauce, if using) & cook until shrimp turn pink. 

7. once shrimp have finished cooking, toss together with the soba noodles & vegetables. garnish with chopped cilantro & scallions.

Brown Bag Lunch: Tabouli Salad & Hummus

Quinoa Tabouli Salad with 
Hummus, Wheat Toast & Sliced Tomato

Quinoa Tabouli Salad

I am a sucker for tabouli salad, I always have been. When traveling far from home, I find tabouli to be a familiar taste & I find great comfort in this. This tabouli recipe uses quinoa, rather than bulgar or cracked wheat, as a base. Quinoa pumps up the protein & lends a distinctive texture.

ingredients:

1 cup quinoa
1.5 cups water
1 bunch fresh parsley, finely chopped
generous handful of cherry tomatoes, coarsely diced
4 scallions, diced
~12 fresh mint leaves, chopped (optional)
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 lemon, juiced (plus more to taste)
salt & pepper to taste

1. combine quinoa & water in a medium sized pot. add a pinch of salt. cook over low heat until water has absorbed & small white rings have formed around the quinoa grains.

2. once the quinoa has cooked, add in parsley, cherry tomatoes, scallions, mint, olive oil & lemon juice. stir to combine. 

Hummus

Have you ever made hummus that takes just as great as readymade supermarket varieties or restaurant offerings? I have not. I have been making homemade hummus over the course of the past 10 years, and I can. not. get. it. right. Anyone out there have any trade secrets? Below was my most recent approach.

ingredients:

1 can chickpeas

1 garlic clove, smashed to release the paper skin

just under 1/2 cup roasted tahini

just under 1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/4 cup water (plus more)

1/8 cup olive oil

1/4 tsp salt (plus more to taste)

pinch crushed red pepper flakes

yield: ~ 1.5 cups

1. in a food processor combine the chick peas, garlic, tahini, lemon juice, water, olive oil and salt & pepper.

2. add more water as needed in 1 tbsp increments, until you reach desired consistency.

note: one thing i have learned over the years is that using canned chickpeas as opposed to dried beans really helps achieve a smoother consistency hummus.

Brown Bag (vegan!) Lunch

Kale Salad with 

Red Kidney Beans, Pine Nuts & Tahini Dressing

{original recipe from your daily vegan}

I was steadfast in thinking that kale is a garnish, not something one would eat, until our friend Shannon shared this game-changing recipe with me. The amount of tahini in this recipe may appear to be too much, but you need a healthy dose of fats here to help digest the kale - the first time I made this recipe I was sparing, with regret.

ingredients:
1 bunch of kale, stems removed & chopped into bite size pieces
1 15 oz can red kidney beans, drained & rinsed
1/3 cup pine nuts
1/2 cup tahini
2 cloves garlic, minced
1.5 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 lemon, juiced
1/8 cup water, or more as needed
salt & pepper, to taste

1. wash the kale & dry it thoroughly with paper towels or a salad spinner (this part can be a pain, but is necessary as the dressing will not stick to wet leaves). 

2. remove large stems & tear apart the kale into bit sized pieces along the vein lines.

3. put kale into a large bowl. then mix in the kidney beans & pine nuts.

4. in a separate bowl, whisk together tahini, garlic, vinegar, lemon juice & water. add more water as necessary, a little bit at a time, to achieve a uniform, runny consistency. 

note: tahini tends to separate and you will need to mix to combine the oils with the solids on the bottom - consider this part a good arm toning exercise!

5. toss the dressing with the kale & let sit for at least 15 minutes before serving so the acids from the dressing can break down the kale a bit.

Brown Bag Lunch

Bulgar & Chickpea Salad with Feta & Dried Apricots

The bulgar and chickpea base curbs a carb craving in a healthy way & the sweetness of the apricots plays nicely against the tang of the feta. Embracing the spices of the season, this salad could make for a nice vegetarian-friendly offering at a holiday party. As a brown bag lunch option, this one is interesting and satisfying enough to eat three days in a row. 

ingredients:
1 cup bulgar
1 tbsp olive oil, divided
1/2 yellow pepper, diced
6 mini red onions, halved
1 can chickpeas, rinsed

1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp crushed red peppers
1/4 tsp cinnamon 
1 dash cloves

1.5 oz feta, crumbled
9 dried apricots, diced
handful parsley, minced
salt and pepper to taste
yield: 3 servings

1. combine 1 cup bulgar with 1.5 cups water, cook over low-medium heat until water is absorbed completely. transfer cooked bulgar to large bowl.

2. meanwhile, saute the yellow pepper & mini red onions in 1 tsp olive oil with a pinch of salt. add spices & cook until the yellow peppers begin to brown a bit, stir in the chickpeas & saute for an additional 1-2 minutes. 

3. combine cooked veggies & chickpeas with the bulgar, stir in feta, apricots & parsley.

Brown Bag Lunch

Pacific Salmon, Baby Potato, Green Bean & Leek Salad

When it comes to lunches, I aim to be heavy on proteins to keep me going through the afternoon. This usually comes in the form of eggs, beans, tuna, or whole grains. This time around I happened to have Wild Pacific canned salmon from Trader Joe's, resulting in a simple, luxurious upgrade to this nicoise-like salad. 

ingredients:

4 baby potatoes, white or red

1 can salmon

1/2-3/4 lb green beans

1 leek

3 tsp olive oil, divided

1 tsp white wine vinegar

salt & pepper to taste

optional: 1.5 tsp capers, handful black olives, asparagus in lieu of green beans, fresh chopped parsley, 2 hard boiled eggs, 1.5 tsp dijon mustard, fresh squeezed lemon juice 

yield: 2 servings

1. generously salt 4 cups of water and bring to a boil.

2. cut potatoes into large cubes, add to boiling water & cook until tender to the touch of a fork.

3. meanwhile, cut the ends off of the green beans & cut in 1/2. cut the leeks into coins.

4. add 2 tsp olive oil to a frying pan & add the green beans & leeks to warmed olive oil. add salt & pepper to taste & saute until leeks turn translucent. 

5. when potatoes finish cooking, drain water into a colander. add potatoes to a large mixing bowl. 

6. open and drain off excess liquid from canned salmon (depending on the quality, you may want to remove salmon skin and tiny bones) & add to potatoes. 

7. add 1 tsp olive oil & white wine vinegar & toss potatoes and salmon together. add sauteed green beans and leeks, stir together. add salt & pepper to taste. finish with a squeeze of lemon.

this salad is easy to customize to your liking. feel free to experiment with any of suggested optional ingredients. on the greens front, I tend to go for whatever is in season, in the spring this salad features asparagus rather than green beans. when salmon is not on the menu, I use canned tuna packed in olive oil. this salad (or some of these variations therein) is a staple in my brown bag lunch repertoire. 

Healthy & Refreshing

Thai-Inspired Shrimp & Cabbage Salad

In my book, this salad has it all -- crunch, tang & a touch of sweetness. Fresh mint, cilantro & chives keep every bite interesting. This salad provides a nice break from some of the rich flavors of the season. It is even better the next day for lunch, once the flavors have had a chance to sit together overnight. 

ingredients:

3 dozen medium sized shrimp (fresh or frozen)
handful peanuts
1.5 limes, juiced
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp honey
1.5 tsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp sriracha, more if you like it hot
1 bag shredded cabbage or 1/2 green cabbage finely shredded
2 carrots, cut into small rounds
1/2 orange pepper, diced
1/4 red onion, cut finely
2 handfuls green beans, diced
2 tbsp fresh mint, ribboned
handful cilantro and chives, chopped
yield: 4 main course servings

1. bring 4 cups water to a slow boil, salt generously

2. crush the peanuts with a mortar & pestle or pulse through a food processor for a couple of seconds (alternatively, a plastic sandwich bag and a rolling pin does the trick)

3. transfer crushed peanuts to a small to medium sized bowl. add lime juice, rice vinegar, honey, soy sauce & sriracha. whisk together and adjust to taste. a couple drops of fish sauce would go a long way here.

4. boil shrimp until cooked through. cooked shrimp are pink and float to the top of the pot. pour cooked shrimp in a colander to drain water, add slash of cold water to stop shrimp from cooking. if necessary, peel and de-vein shrimp. 

5. chop vegetables & fresh herbs. place in a large bowl.

6. add shrimp & peanut-lime dressing to the cabbage mixture. stir together until dressing evenly coats the salad. if you are finding it difficult to stir, feel free to add a glug of olive oil, a dash of salt, & a squeeze of lime.

Shrimp & Ragout

Cilantro Shrimp & Garbanzo Ragout

I like to keep frozen shrimp on hand for healthy, easy to pull together weeknight dinners. The leftover ragout pairs beautifully with a fried egg & 1 tbsp grated aged cheddar cheese for a satisfying breakfast in the morning. 

ingredients:
2 dozen medium sized shrimp (fresh or frozen)
2 tbsp olive oil, divided
1/2 sweet white onion
1/2 orange or red bell pepper
canned diced tomatoes
canned garbanzo beans (optional)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
worcestirshire sauce
black pepper to taste
crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
2 heaping cups of cilantro
1 garlic clove
1/2 lemon
salt & pepper to taste
yield: 3 servings

1. bring 4 cups water to slow boil, salt generously

2. meanwhile thinly slice onion and pepper

3. warm olive oil in pan over low heat, add onion & pepper, salt the vegetables & saute until onion turns opaque about 5-7 minutes, then add canned tomatoes, simmer & stir occasionally

4. boil shrimp until cooked through & then pour shrimp in colander to drain water, add slash of cold water to stop them from cooking, if necessary, peel and de-vein shrimp

5. add garbanzo beans to the tomato sauce (the garbanzo beans are optional, i like the texture they lend to the dish, but if that is not your thing the dish is just as good without them)

6. taste sauce and adjust to liking - tomatoes usually need to be brought down a notch in terms of acidity --  I added 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp paprika, 4 dashes of worcestirshire sauce & a couple grinds of black pepper. a few flakes of crushed red peppers for some heat would be great as well.

7. coarsely chop the cilantro & fold a generous handful into the tomato mixture

8. toss cooked shrimp in a medium sized bowl with 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 clove of minced garlic, juice from lemon & salt and black pepper to taste

9. serve shrimp over ragout & enjoy

Honey & Sriracha

Peanut-Lime Chicken with Broccoli & Three Onions

This is essentially an "everything but the kitchen sink" type recipe, one of those evenings when the contents of the fridge have long since developed a sense of loneliness. On this particular evening, I encountered a broccoli crown, 1/2 a package of chicken tenderloins, and some leftover peanuts from a recent tailgate. Three different types of onions and a lime complete the meal. 

ingredients:

handful of shelled peanuts
6 chicken breast tenderloins
1 tbsp oil (vegetable works best here, but olive oil works fine too)
1 tsp seasame oil
1/2 red onion
1 shallot
1 bunch green onions
1 crown broccoli
1 bunch cilantro
one garlic clove
1/2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp ginger
1 tbsp honey
sriracha
1 lime
black pepper to taste
salt to taste
yield: 2 servings

1. crush the peanuts with a mortar & pestle (or a food processor - alternatively a plastic sandwich bag and a rolling pin does the trick)

2. cut chicken breast into cubes

3. pour oil into the pan, warm to a low temperature, once oil warms a bit, add seasame oil

4. generously salt chicken, add a dash of black pepper, add chicken to pan and cook through until opaque

5. while chicken is cooking, chop vegetables & greens, reserve chopped cilantro

6. put aside cooked chicken with a slotted spoon

7. add chopped red onion, shallots and broccoli crowns into the pan with the chicken liquids, press garlic clove into the pan, stir over low heat

8. add soy sauce & ginger, continue to stir, add peanuts, honey & sriracha, continue to stir

9. as vegetables cook, they will release liquid, however if your pan looks dry, add a dash of worcestershire sauce and 1 tsp water

10. add green onions & cooked chicken

11. cover and let simmer for 10-15 minutes, add squeezed lime juice 1/2 through and continue to simmer

12. serve with rice, chopped cilantro & lime wedge 

13. pair with Titos Homemade Vodka from Austin, TX with a squeeze of lime & a soda water