Arugula Pesto Wheat Berries

3 cups cooked wheat berries*
3 medium garlic cloves
2/3 cup pine nuts (or sliced almonds), toasted (divided)
3 cups loosely packed arugula leaves
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
2 big pinches salt
1 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup black Kalamata olives, chopped
4-6 oz seitan, (optional), chopped and pan-fried into crispy bits in a bit of oil
a bit of shaved Parmesan as garnish

1) Place the wheat berries in a large mixing bowl and set them aside so they can come up to room temperature if you've had them in the refrigerator.
2) In the meantime, make the arugula pesto by combining the garlic, 1/2 cup of the pine nuts, most of the arugula, Parmesan, salt and lemon juice in a food processor. Pulse a few times, and then begin to drizzle the olive oil into the mixture while continuing to pulse until the pesto is smooth. Taste, and adjust if needed with more salt or lemon juice.
3) Pour about half of the pesto over the wheat berries, add the seitan if you are using it, the reserved arugula, and about 1/4-1/2 cup of hot water (or reserved water from cooking the wheat berries). Toss until everything is well-coated. Add more pesto a bit at a time until the wheat berries are dressed to your liking.
4) Arrange on a platter and top with the olives, remaining pine nuts and a bit of shaved Parmesan.

* To cook wheat berries: Combine 2 cups wheat berries, 6 cups water and 2 tsp salt in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, covered, until plump and chewy (and a few of the berries split open), about an hour or so. The berries will stay al dente, and the only way to be sure they're done is to taste a few. Drain and set aside.

Review: This had an interesting taste. I can't quite say if I liked it. I do believe it would have been better with some veggies added, instead of just wheat berries and pesto.

Veggie-Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

1 small yellow sweet pepper, cut into bite-sized strips
1 small red onion, chopped
1 medium zucchini, coarsely shredded
1 carrot, coarsely shredded
1 stalk celery, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 to 3 Tbs olive oil
1 Tbs snipped fresh basil
1 Tbs lemon juice
1 5oz pkg fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup fine dry bread crumbs
1/2 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
4 4-5 inch portobello mushroom caps, stems removed
4 slices provolone cheese

1) Preheat oven to 425F. Line 15x10x1 inch baking pan with foil. In 12-inch skillet, cook and stir sweet pepper, onion, zucchini, carrot, celery and garlic in hot oil over medium-high heat 4 minutes. Stir in basil, lemon juice and 1/4 tsp each salt and ground black pepper. Top with spinach; cover. Cook for 2 minutes or until spinach is wilted. Remove from heat. Stir crumbs and half of the Parmesan cheese into spinach mixture; set aside.
2) Remove gills from mushrooms, if desired. Arrange mushrooms, stemmed side up, on prepared pan. Top each with slice of provolone cheese. Divide spinach mixture among mushroom caps. Bake 15 minutes (mushrooms will water out slightly). Top with remaining Parmesan. Bake 2 minutes more or until heated through.

Review: This recipe was provided by a co-worker of mine, who handed it to me saying "I don't know if you cook or not . . . " So, yes Earl, you could say I cook. ;) This was an awesome dish, though it takes twice as long to prepare as to cook. Mike took one look at the recipe and decided to tweak it - provolone cheese on bottom AND top. Therefore, I took a pic before putting the cheese on top (and prior to baking) and a post baking pic. Mmmm.

Autumn Vegetable Tagine

1 cup dried chickpeas, rinsed and drained
2 Tbs olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cubed (3 1/2 cups)
1 lb collard greens, coarsely chopped (8 cups)
1 lb plum tomatoes, seeded and coarsely chopped (2 cups)
1 Tbs harissa, or sriracha sauce and 1/4 tsp of ground cumin and ground coriander
1 10-oz pkg whole-wheat couscous
2 Tbs chopped cilantro

1) Combine chickpeas and 4 cups water in pressure cooker; bring to a boil. Lock lid in place. Bring to high pressure over high heat. Reduce heat, and cook 2 minutes. Release pressure using automatic pressure release, or carefully transfer cooker to sink, and run cool water over rim of lid. Remove lid, tilting away from you to let steam escape. Rinse and drain chickpeas. Set aside.
2) Heat oil in pressure cooker over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; saute 3 minutes, or until onion is soft. Add chickpeas and 3 cups water. Lock lid in place. Bring to high pressure over high heat. Reduce heat, and cook 15 minutes. Release pressure using automatic pressure release, or transfer cooker to sink, and run cool water over rim of lid. Remove lid, tilting away from you to let steam escape.
3) Stir in squash and collard greens. Lock lid in place. Bring to high pressure over high heat. Reduce heat, and cook 5 minutes. Release pressure using automatic pressure release, or transfer cooker to sink, and run cool water over rim of lid. Remove lid, tilting away from you to let steam escape. Stir in tomatoes; cover, and let stand 5 minutes. Stir in harissa. Season with salt and pepper, if desired.
4) Meanwhile, prepare couscous according to package directions. Fluff with fork. Serve tagine over couscous. Sprinkle with cilantro.

Review: I still don't have a pressure cooker. So, I used a can of chickpeas and shaved quite a bit of time off the cooking process. I also learned that if you're using canned chickpeas, they should go in after the squash is mostly cooked, as they turned into mush by cooking for so long. It took about 15 minutes for the squash to become edible. I then added (because neither harissa, nor sriracha sauce exist in Pocatello) chili garlic sauce with cumin and coriander added, which is my understanding of what harissa is. And, chili garlic sauce is easily found in any Asian food aisle. It was super yummy and I want to use that particular ingredient more often. And, for any Costco members - the produce area now carries diced up butternut squash. I had unfortunately already bought a squash when I found that, and it takes a good 15 minutes to dice up a butternut squash. I also used bulgur instead of couscous. But, this is an awesome autumn dish and I ended up with 6 good sized servings. Wow.

Southwestern Salad

2 Tbs olive oil
juice of 1 lime
1/4 tsp salt
pinch of black pepper
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp chili powder
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
15 1/2 oz can of small white beans, rinsed and drained
15 1/2 oz can of black beans, rinsed and drained
1 tomato, finely chopped
2 Tbs finely chopped red onion

1) In a large bowl, whisk together olive oil, lime juice, salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder. This is the salad dressing.
2) Add the rest of the ingredients to the dressing and toss.

Review: This was a fairly basic salad. The original recipe didn't call for black beans, but it made so little food that I decided to add to the dish. I also added a bit more cumin, because Mike and I believe that cumin is usually under utilized. Mmmm.

Spanish Wheat Berry Salad

6 Tbs olive oil
1 1/2 cups wheat berries, rinsed and drained
1 Tbs sherry vinegar
1 Tbs lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup chopped toasted almonds
1/4 cup chopped shallots
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup (1 oz) shaved manchego cheese or Pecorino Romano cheese, optional

1) Heat 1 Tbs oil in 6qt pressure cooker over medium-high heat. Add wheat berries, and saute 5 minutes, or until toasted. Add 4 1/2 cups water. Lock lid in place. Bring to high pressure over high heat. Reduce heat, and cook 30 minutes. Release pressure using automatic pressure release, or carefully transfer cooker to sink, and run cool water over rim of lid. Remove lid, tilting away from you to let steam escape. Drain wheat berries.
2) Whisk together remaining 5 Tbs oil, vinegar, lemon juice and garlic in large bowl. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Add wheat berries, bell pepper, almonds, shallots and parsley, and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Sprinkle with cheese, if using.

Review: I lack sherry vinegar and manchego cheese, and I lack a pressure cooker. So, I tweaked the recipe, cooking the wheat berries on high heat, lid on the pot for half an hour and it worked. For the vinegar, I used 1 1/2 tsp of sherry and 1 1/2 tsp of white wine vinegar. I can't find sherry vinegar in town and looked on amazon to find it's super expensive. Bummer. This recipe came out just fine, despite the many things I lack. Parmesan cheese is probably better than manchego, anyway. ;) And, because of this recipe, Mike has decided wheat berries are his new favorite thing and I have to find more recipes. Can do! Also, do be warned that wheat berries contain MASSIVE amounts of fiber.

Double Mushroom & Marsala Cream Fettuccine

3 cups vegetable stock
1 oz dried porcini mushrooms
salt and pepper
1 lb fettuccine pasta
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 lb cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 Tbs thinly sliced fresh sage or 2 tsp dried sage
1/2 cup marsala wine
1/2 cup heavy cream (eyeball it)
1 cup grated pecorino-romano cheese, plus more to taste

1) In a medium sacuepan, combine the stock and porcinis and let steep over low heat.
2) Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt it, add the pasta and cook until al dente. Drain.
3) While the pasta is working, in a large skillet, heat the oil, 4 turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. Add the creminis and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 8 minutes; season with salt, pepper and the sage. Stir in the marsala and cook for 1 minute.
4) Using a slotted spoon, remove the porcinis. Strain the stock and reserve 2 cups. Finely chop the porcinis and add to the cremini mixture; stir in the reserved stock. Stir in the cream and cook until thickened, about 10 minutes. Add the pasta and cheese and toss.

Review: Oh, this was so yummy! The sauce got deliciously thick, though I initially feared it would be really runny. Because it was so thick, I didn't add the cheese to the sauce, but simply used it to top each dish for additional flavor. Mmmm

Mashed Rutabagas With Salsa Verde

Mashed Rutabaga:
1 1/2 tsp olive oil
1 medium leek, white and pale green parts chopped
4 cups trimmed, peeled and diced rutabaga (2 lb)
1 cup vegetable broth
Salsa Verde:
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 cup tightly packed flat leaf parsley (leaves and stems)
8 pitted green olives
2 Tbs drained capers
2 Tbs lemon juice
3 Tbs olive oil

1) To make Mashed Rutabagas: Heat oil in large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add leek, and saute 5 minutes, or until softened. Stir in rutabaga, vegetable broth and 1 cup water. Partially cover pan, and braise vegetables 35 minutes, or until very tender.
2) To make Salsa Verde: Mince garlic in food processor. Add parsley, olives, capers and lemon juice, and process until finely chopped. Add oil, and process to blend. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Transfer to bowl.
3) Transfer rutabaga mixture to food processor in batches, and blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. To serve, spoon portion of warm Mashed Rutabagas onto each plate and top with scant 1 Tbs Salsa Verde.

Review: Oh, yum. The mashed rutabagas were exactly as I expected. However, the salsa verde was AMAZING. I seriously want to make the salsa verde again and use it like pesto. Mmmmm. By the way, I didn't use the lemon juice. I served this as a side to some frozen Lightlife Stuffers - fake chicken stuffed with cheese and fake ham.