Two Avocado Recipes with Honey

Open-faced toasted avocado sandwich with honey and Parmesan

Two for one recipe day!  In the first, an open-faced toasted avocado sandwich with honey and Parmesan cheese, the honey serves as a garnish.  It offers a little bit sweetness to the salty Parmesan.  It couldn't be simpler.  In the second, the avocado is the garnish for a delicious lentil salad. It takes a bit more time to make than the sandwich, but is worth it!

Open-faced Toasted Avocado Sandwich
1 slice of good quality bread
1/2 avocado, cut into slices to fit the bread
1-2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon honey
salt and pepper to taste
Arrange the avocado slices on the bread.  If you have a large avocado, you might use less than one half.  Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese to cover the avocado and drizzle the honey all over.  Sprinkle a little salt and pepper on top.  Toast in a toaster oven for about a minute (maybe two) until the cheese is nicely browned.  Voila!  Serves one.

French Lentil Salad with Rhubarb & Honey

French Lentil Salad with Rhubarb and Honey
In this recipe, I used black "beluga" lentils.  French (Puy) lentils would also be good.  Both are smaller than brown lentils and hold their shape well for a salad.  Brown lentils will still work.  If you use them, watch them carefully while boiling to be sure they don't get too mushy.  Rhubarb is now ready in the garden and I tossed a few stalks into this salad.  I hope to post some other rhubarb recipes soon.

2 cups lentils
5 cups water
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon olive oil 
1 large onion, cut in 1/4 inch dice
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 stalks celery, cut in 1/4 inch dice
3 medium carrots, cut in 1/4 inch coins
3 rhubarb stalks, minced
1 head of garlic (about 4 or 5 cloves), each clove thinly sliced
another pinch of salt
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1-2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup olive oil
2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (if you have it)
1-2 avocados, sliced (for garnish)
salt and pepper to taste

Place the lentils in a large sauce pan, add the water and bay leaf and bring to a boil over high heat.  Once the water starts boiling, turn the heat down a bit to keep a steady simmer going.  Boil the lentils until they are just done--about 15-20 minutes, checking regularly after about 10 minutes.  The lentils should be soft yet firm--no crunchy bite, but still holding together (kind of like "al dente").

While the lentils are boiling, heat the 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large saute or frying pan over medium high heat and add the onions. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt.  As the onions begin to soften, add the celery, carrots and rhubarb, stirring well to coat with oil.  At this point, you might need to turn the heat to medium to keep the vegetables from burning.  When the celery, carrots, and rhubarb begin to soften and give off some juices (about 5 minutes or so), add the garlic and another sprinkling of salt.  Stir to distribute and continue cooking for another five minutes or so until the juices evaporate, the vegetables are tender (but still a bit crisp).  Remove from heat and set aside.

Make the dressing:  Combine the vinegar and honey. Drizzle in the olive oil while whisking to emulsify.

When the lentils are done, drain them well and place in a large bowl.  Add the cooked vegetables and toss.  Pour the dressing over all, gently tossing to distribute it well.  Taste the salad to see if it needs more salt and add if needed along with about 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper.  If serving right away, sprinkle parsley on top--but hold off if you're waiting for the lentils to cool to room temperature (or to be chilled in the fridge).

To serve, cut an avocado into thin slices.  Place one serving of the salad in a bowl and garnish with avocado slices.  Sprinkle a little more salt and pepper on top.  

Can be served hot, room temperature, or chilled.  Makes about 8 servings.
 

Lentil Salad with Delicious Honey Yogurt Basil Dressing

The dressing in this salad is, as the title proclaims, delicious and could be used for a variety of salads, especially a simple lettuce salad or even in a potato salad in place of mayonnaise.  It is from the July/August issue of Vegetarian Times.  I used it on this lovely lentil salad with cucumbers, red onions and celery.  The salad weeps a bit, so be sure to stir it well before serving.

For the salad:

2 cups cooked lentils

1 cup chopped cucumbers

2-3 stalks celery, chopped

1/2 cup finely diced red onion

Toss in a large bowl.

For the dressing:

1/2 cup nonfat Greek yogurt

2 tablespoons honey

2 teaspoons red wine vinegar (the original recipe calls for rice vinegar)

1 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves

Whirl the dressing ingredients in a small food processor until thoroughly blended and creamy.  (If you don't have a small food processor, then finely chop the basil and place all of the ingredients in a jar with a lid.  Vigorously shake until well blended!)

Pour the dressing over the salad, and add salt and pepper to taste.  Refrigerate the salad for a few hours to chill.  Stir well before serving and check again for seasoning--add a bit more salt and pepper if needed.  Just before serving, you could also add a handful of sunflower seeds or toasted and chopped walnuts or almonds.

Serves four generously if this is a main dish and easily 6 as a side dish.

Quinoa Salad (or Pilaf) and Bonus Recipe: Lentil Burgers!

I had dinner with my favorite 3-year-old and 1-year-old yesterday--Sam and his brother Bohdan.  They are a coupla busy guys!  Bohdan's new word is  "Uh-oh!" which comes in quite handy when a spoon or cup is dropped from the high chair.  I made this quinoa salad/pilaf and lentil burgers for dinner.  Can't say either of these two guys offered a ringing endorsement of them--but neither one of them spit them out.  Speaking of spitting, for "bessert" (Sam's favorite part of any meal!) we had watermelon and spit the seeds off the porch.   Sam & Bodhan's mom and dad liked the quinoa and burgers, so they make it on to the blog!

QUINOA SALAD or PILAF (you be the judge!)

This recipe is adapted from the May/June 2006 issue of Vegetarian Times.  I added the celery and red pepper--and honey, of course!  Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah) is a seed and provides a nice alternative to rice.  Here's a link to more information from and entity called the Quinoa Corporation.  You can play around with the ingredients here.  If you don't have a red pepper, mushrooms or zucchini would do--or skip the vegetables entirely and just use the herbs.

1 cup quinoa, rinsed well 

2 cups broth 

1 tablespoons olive oil

2-3 stalks celery, diced into 1/2 inch pieces

1 red pepper, diced into 1/2 inch pieces

2-3 spring onions (or scallions) sliced into 1/4 in rounds--including much of the green part.

1/4 cup parsley, finely chopped

1/4 cup olive oil

3 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons chopped mint.

1/2 cup shelled pistachios (unsalted if you can find them), chopped

   

In a large sauce pan over medium heat, toast the quinoa until it begins to brown and "pop" (about 3 to 5 minutes).  Add the broth to the pan, cover and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes until the quinoa absorbs the broth.  Transfer to a bowl and cool.

While quinoa is cooking, saute the celery and red pepper in 2 tablespoons olive oil until softened but still a bit crunchy.  Turn off heat, add spring onions and stir.  Add to cooled quinoa in bowl.

Add parsley, olive oil, lemon juice and mint to the bowl and toss to mix well.  Stir in nuts.  Taste and correct seasoning--may need some salt and pepper.  Let sit for 20 minutes for flavors to develop.  Serve at room temperature or refrigerate and serve chilled.  Makes at least 8 servings.

LENTIL-MUSHROOM BURGERS

There isn't a drop of honey in these burgers at all--but we've been eating these about once or twice a week.  Unlike many home made bean burgers, these actually hold up well in a burger bun.  The recipe comes from our vegan friend, Emily.  I've adapted it to our non-vegan tastes (but include the vegan directions below, too).  This recipe makes 8 burgers.

8 ounces mushrooms, washed and chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

3-5 cloves of garlic, chopped

4 cups cooked lentils, thoroughly drained and dry as you can get 'em (divided)

1/3 to 2/3 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 tablespoons soy sauce or (tamari)

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 egg*  (see vegan substitution below)

salt and pepper to taste

Saute the mushrooms in the olive oil until they are very soft and have released their juices--about 5 minutes or so.  Add the garlic and saute a few minutes longer.  In a food processor, add the mushroom mixture, 2 cups of the lentils, 1/3 cup oats, corn starch, tomato paste, soy sauce, paprika and oregano. Pulse 5-10 times to thoroughly combine and chop the ingredients.  Place the mixture in a bowl and add the remaining 2 cups of lentils and the egg.  Mix with hands to combine.  The mixture should be more sticky than crumbly. If it is too wet to hold the shape of a burger, add up to another 1/3 of oats--but no more.  The burgers will be sticky and a little messy to work with.

On a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, form mixture into 8 burgers about  2 1/2 or 3 inches wide and 1 inch thick (the size of an average burger).  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to one day.

Bake burgers in an oven preheated to 375 degrees for about 25 minutes.  If you want cheese lentil burgers, you can place cheese slices on top and broil for a few minutes.  You can also grill these burgers after you bake them--just a few minutes on each side to give them some grilled flavor.  

*VEGAN SUBSTITUTION:  In place of the egg, you can use 2 tablespoons chia seeds soaked in 3 tablespoons warm water.  Add these to the mixture when you pulse everything in the food processor. 

Soup and Muffins for a Snowy Day

I've been a shamefully neglectful blogger lately--I can barely lay claim to the title! But with this post, I can at least claim to have made a post every month in 2012.  Do I get a prize?  I do!  Some delicious curried butternut squash lentil soup and fluffy peanut butter muffins!  

Curried Butternut Squash & Red Lentil Soup
The inspiration for this recipe comes from a blog called Yummy Mummy Kitchen. I made just a few changes to the recipe--including using butternut squash puree instead of pumpkin.  We're still working our way through a bumper crop of butternut squashes that at this rate may just last until May!

2 tablespoons olive oil (or a neutral oil if you prefer)
1 small onion, chopped
1 small apple, peeled and chopped
2 teaspoons (or more, if you'd like) curry powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 cups red lentils
48 ounces (6 cups) vegetable broth
2 cups pureed butternut squash (or pumpkin--you could use a 15 ounce can)
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk (if you don't have coconut milk, you could use regular cow's milk or almond milk or  half-and-half or even some yogurt if you'd like)

Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, sprinkle with about 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, and saute until the onion softens.  Add the apple, a few more sprinkles of salt, and saute for about five minutes more until the apple softens as well.  Stir in the curry powder and cumin and cook until they're fragrant.  Stir in the lentils, coating with oil and spices, then add the broth, squash, honey and coconut. Bring to just a boil and then turn heat down to a simmer.  Simmer soup, uncovered, for about 30 minutes or so, until lentils are soft and soup thickens.  You can add fancy toppings if you'd like:  chopped cilantro, a tablespoon or two of some more coconut milk (or yogurt).  But it's pretty good just as it is.  This makes a big pot of soup--would serve 8 easily.

Peanut Butter Muffins
I expected the peanut butter to make these muffins heavy, but they're the lightest muffins I've ever made.  The original recipe comes from another blog, A Pinch of Yum, though I made a few changes to it as well.  The most significant is adding some baking soda to the batter to counteract the acidity of the honey.  I think that's what made them so light and fluffy.  I love that this recipe makes only 6 muffins.  It could easily be doubled, though!

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
3 tablespoons peanut butter
2 tablespoons canola oil
3 tablespoons honey
1 cup milk (could use almond or soy milk; I used skim)

Grease a 6-cup muffin tin and set aside. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.  In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, soda and salt.  In a smaller bowl, stir the peanut butter, oil and honey together until well blended.  Slowly add the milk to the peanut butter mixture and stir well until thoroughly combined.  Add the milk/peanut butter mixture to the dry ingredients and stir to combine using as few strokes as you can--you want the batter to be mixed together, but it's okay if there a few lumps.  Spoon the batter into the greased muffin tin and put in the oven, checking after 10 minutes--but will likely take 15 minutes for the tops to be dry and springy (and a toothpick inserted in the middle to come out clean).  Makes 6 muffins.

Lentil, Beet & Honey Salad

Two-for-one recipe day here at SteffesWood Apiary!  Robert has been busy cleaning up the garden this spring and planting peas, pak-choi and beets. The beets made me hungry for this salad, which is one of the best salads in the world--bar none!  It has lots of fabulous umami--a rich savoriness that makes this salad a meal on its own (especially if you're a beet fan).  It's adapted from Martha Stewart Living magazine

1 lb fresh beets, trimmed
1/2 cup water
1 3/4 teaspoons coarse salt, divided
olive oil
3/4 cup dried lentils (French green lentils are lovely, but plain brown ones also work--they may not need to cook as long, though)
1 1-inch knob of fresh ginger, sliced in 1/4 inch slices
3/4 teaspoon coarse salt, divided
1/2 cup red onions, minced
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons raspberry vinegar (or other flavored vinegar--truth be told, cider vinegar would be fine!)
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground ginger (or 1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger)
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
salt and pepper to taste
Lettuce (for serving--optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Place beets in dish with 1/2 cup water and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon coarse salt.  Cover with aluminum foil.  Bake until beets are tender, about 50 minutes.  When cool enough to handle, peel beets and toss with a little olive oil.  Chop beets into 1/2 inch pieces. (See note at the end of the recipe for an alternative way to prepare the beets.)

While beets are baking, place lentils and ginger slices in a sauce pan and cover with 1 inch of water.  Bring to a boil and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes.  Drain and discard ginger.  Stir in 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt.  In a small bowl, combine 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt with ginger, onion, vinegar and honey.  Steep for 15 minutes.  Stir in oil and coriander.  Pour onto warm lentils and toss to coat.  Stir in mint and cilantro.  Taste and season with salt and pepper.  Place beets on top of lentils. Serve on a bed of lettuce, if you'd like.

NOTE: A few years ago on a blistering mid-July day, Burgh Bees and Slow Food offered honey-based recipes at the Farmers@Firehouse Market in the Strip District and served this salad.  The Slow Food cook who prepared the salad couldn't bear to turn on her oven, so she grated the raw beets and put them in the salad--it was delicious.  Just sayin'!