This is a hearty main dish salad, the over-the-top filled with everything kind of salad that has always been a mainstay of vegetarian restaurants. It particularly reminds me of late 70’s Health Food places (like “Greener Pastures” or “Great American Health Bar”).
Archive for August 4th, 2011
Honey Mustard Vinaigrette Health Food Super Salad
August 4, 2011Suzy Cohen’s Moroccan Salmon
August 4, 2011
Salmon simmered in a spicy tomato sauce with fresh tomatoes, olives and chick peas. This easy but different fish course comes from Suzy Cohen. “Great for Friday night dinners,” she wrote on the recipe, “A real crowd pleaser!”
Parshat Devarim, Shabbat Chazon
August 4, 2011
In Devarim, Moshe begins a repetition of the Torah, recounting prior events, including the incident with the meraglim (spies) who spoke against Eretz Yisrael(see Shelach). When I was talking about the parsha with my children, my son remembered that only two of the twelve meraglim–Calev and Yehoshua–said that the land was good and could be conquered. Of their generation of B’nei Yisrael, only Calev and Yehoshua would enter Eretz Yisrael.
The Best Black Bean Chili
August 4, 2011When I told Chanie that I was making black bean chili, she responded ” Whats your black bean chili recipe? always interested in a good chili….” I described how I made my chili, but I was left with a lingering feeling of guilt for holding out on her a bit.
The recipe I posted is how I usually make chili nowadays: canned beans, canned tomatoes, and seasonings. I have a similar recipe that I make for a crowd with canned small red beans, canned tomatoes (or salsa), tomato paste and seasonings. Both these recipes are easy and good.
But . . . . But, there is a vegetarian chili that is superior that I should really share with you.
It comes from Margaret Fox, an icon in the Northern California food scene. She was famous for her black bean chili, and the recipe appeared in her late 80’s cookbook Morning Food (reprinted in paperback in a revised version in 2006). It is classic Margaret Fox: unpretentious food with unexpectedly complex flavor. Foodie trivia: when Julia Child visited the restaurant, she ordered the black bean chili.
It is much more time consuming than my easy chili recipes, but most of that time is passive, waiting for the dried beans to cook. The active cooking time is not so great.
What makes this chili superior? First, it relies on dried rather than canned beans. Second, it calls for using whole cumin seeds and for toasting the cumin seeds and dried oregano to bring out their flavor. There is also a judicious use of sauteed vegetables and seasonings. These details require more effort than just dumping together canned beans and tomatoes, but there is a big flavor payoff.
Pragmatic Attic 