Grilled Vegetables

Last week, the weather cooled down slightly. The summer sun is so hot that we took advantage of this temporary cool down. We grilled some corn and vegetables and spent the afternoon in the backyard. It rained for a couple of hours in the morning while we went to the grocery store and picked up fresh and beautiful vegetables. We came home, my husband set up the grill, while I made a quick marinade and prepared the vegetables.  I generally make a tandoori style marinade, however this time I decided to keep it simple, given the warm weather. And the result was excellent. The best part was that I didn't marinate the vegetables for more than 30-40 mins while the grill was being set up and it didn't mask the natural flavors and sweetness of the vegetables. It was so delicious that we definitely ate a lot of vegetables that afternoon. I can't wait for the next cool down.

Ingredients
1 small yellow onion, finely diced (almost minced)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp oil
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
1 zuccini, sliced
1 red onion, diced
small button mushrooms, whole (1-1.5 inches in diameter)
salt to taste
pepper to taste
lime

Method
I tried to dice and slice the vegetables into similar size large pieces about 1.5 to 2 inch cubes so that they could easily be skewered. In a large bowl, mix together the minced onion, garlic and oil. Then add some salt and pepper and the vegetables and mix them all so that they are coated with the onion and garlic mixture. Adjust the salt and pepper, mix again and let this sit for about 30 minutes. Then thread the vegetables onto the skewers. Once all the skewers are prepared, cook them on the grill for about 20 minutes. Keep rotating the vegetables so that they don't get burnt. Grill till they are cooked through and slightly charred. Take the remainder of the minced onion and garlic mixture from the marinade, place it on a piece of aluminium foil and let it cook on the grill as well. Cook this till the onion is soft.  Squeeze lime juice onto the vegetables and then top them with the grilled minced onion and garlic mixture. The result is lip smackingly delicious. 

Tips
If you make small pieces, the vegetables will fall off the skewer as they cook. So make sure that the peices are large enough. If the weather is not conducive to grilling outside, you can also broil the vegetables or even bake them at about 350-375 F.

Minestrone Soup

This is a wonderful soup. My mom used to make it quite often, especially when Dad would travel. I understand beauty of this soup now that I am a Mom.  There are often times that I need to put a meal on the table which is wholesome but am too tired to make multiple dishes. By making just one dish, I am able to take care of all the nutritional facets, put something new on the table and since it is so delicious, it is a sure hit.

This soup has multiple vegetables, pasta and beans and is a complete meal by itself.  I make a large batch and enjoy it through the week. If you don't add the beans and pasta to it, then it is a very low fat (almost zero fat), high fiber, delicious snack or appetizer. Also, it is a forgiving recipe. Even if you don't have all the vegetables that the recipe calls for, as long as you have the basic carrots, onions, celery and tomatoes, you will be able to achieve the desired taste.

Ingredients
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 carrot, sliced
1 small onion, diced
1 celery stalk, sliced thinly
2-3 garlic cloved, finely diced or crushed
5-6 tomatoes/ 1 can of whole tomatoes - diced
a wedge of cabbage, thinly sliced (about 1/8th or less head of cabbage)
5-6 green beans, diced
1 zuccini, slit it into two lengthwise and then slice it thinly into semi circles
water/ broth
1 cup spinach leaves
1/4-1/2 cup white or cannelini beans cooked (can also use red beans)
2 cups cooked pasta (use small pasta is possible like shell or macaroni shape. In the pictures here, I used penne as that was the only pasta I had on hand)
parmesan cheese, to garnish (optional)
1 tsp Italian seasoning (optional)
salt to taste
pepper to taste

Method
In a deep vessel (deep enough for the soup to boil in), heat the oil. Add garlic and stir for a minute or two. Once you get the aroma of the garlic, add the onions. Then add the Italian seasoning if you are using it. As they soften, add the celery and the carrots. Cook this mixture till the vegetables are slightly softened. Next add the green beans and cook for a few minutes. This is the time to add the tomatoes. If using canned ones, add the tomatoes as well as the juice they are in. (If adding fresh ones, then let the tomatoes cook through by boiling them in the water/broth.) Then add enough water or broth (about 3-5 cups) to make this into a water consistency.  The soup base is not very thick. Then add the zuccini and cook. This cooks very fast. Then add the cabbage slices.  Once these are semi cooked, add the spinach leaves.

Once all the vegetables are added, add the beans and pasta. Cook the pasta separately per directions on the packet. Add the cooked pasta to the soup. Bring the mixture to a boil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with grated parmesan cheese.

Serve hot as a meal, a starter or an afternoon snack.

Tips
If you don't have italian seasoning, try adding just oregano and basil if possible. This makes it more flavorful. You can skip the seasoning alltogether. If you are starting with dry beans, soak them for 6-8 hours or overnight. Then either boil them till softened or pressure cook them. It is a good idea to add some salt to the beans while being cooked so that it gets absorbed in the beans and makes them flavorful. If you are using canned tomatoes, use whole tomatoes and then dice them into cubes. Whole canned tomatoes are more flavorful than diced ones. You can also add the dry pasta to the soup and boil it in the soup directly. If you are doing that, add it as soon as the broth/water is added and then add the zuccini and spinach. If you are using canned tomatoes and beans, then taste the soup before adding more salt, as canned foods already have salt added.  You can skip or do any combination of the beans, cabbage, spinach and zuccini and still get a great tasting soup.

Vegetarian Burrito- An Incredibly Flexible Recipe

This is one of those easy recipes that you can pull together with ready made, store bought ingredients or make most of them a day previously and put them together when you are ready to eat. Another great feature of this recipe is that it is very flexible. You can change many of the ingredients based on what you have in the pantry and your fridge. The main components are tortillas, rice, beans and you can add different vegetable and salsas and make it as decadent or as healthy you want. You will notice that a lot of ingredients in this recipe are optional or ones that can be substituted for something else.

 Ingredients (for 1 burrito)
1 large tortilla - whole wheat/ flour/ corn
2 tbsps cooked rice
2 tbsps cooked beans - red or black beans (can use canned or read tips)
1 tbsp fresh salsa
ready made salsas- to taste (optional)
hot sauce - to taste
avacado (can be used instead of guacamole- optional)
shredded cheese - mexican blend/mozarella/cheddar
sour cream (optional)
guacamole (optional)
pinch of cumin powder
bell pepper, sliced- green, red/orange/ yellow (optional)
onion, sliced (optional)
1 tsp oil
cilantro
salt, to taste

Method
In a pan heat the tsp of oil and once hot, add the sliced onion and cook till softened and light brown. Then add the sliced bell pepper and cook till the bell pepper is cooked through. Alternately you can also cook this on the grill for a smoky flavor.

Add a little oil (optional) in a pan and then add the cooked beans to the pan with a little water (about 2 tbsp). Then add the cumin powder to it and a little salt to flavor these beans. Set them aside. It is now time to assemble the burrito.

Warm up the tortilla. In the center, add the cooked rice. Top it with beans and then add the cooked onions and bell pepper mixture. Next add the salsas that you want. These can be fresh or store bought. Then add guacamole if you have some ready or avocado. It gives a nice decandent taste to the burrito and you can easily skip the sour cream. Then add a dollop of sour cream and sprinkle cheese on it. If you like your burrito hot, then add some hot sauce into the burrito itself. Sprinkle a little cilantro. Then fold the burrito to create a neat packet. A complete meal created in a matter of minutes.

Tips
You can use canned beans, which are pre-cooked. If you want to start from scratch, then soak the dry beans overnight and then cook the beans with water in a covered pan, by boiling it till the beans are softened. Or you can cook the soacked beans in a pressure cooker. It takes about 5-10 whistles in my cooker depending on how well the beans have been soaked and is much quicker than waiting for it to cook in the pan.
The grilled pepper and onions mixture is called Fajita and you can even grill these.  The grilled smoky flavor really flavors the burrito. This addition is optional.
Guacamole or just plain avacado adds a buttery rich taste and is a great substitution to the sour cream. The plus point is that avocado has healthy fat, rich in omega 3. You can also whip up some yogurt and use it instead of sour cream.
When you cook rice, add a little salt to flavor the rice and then you can mix in chooped cilantro into the warm rice which will impart a nice herby flavor to the rice. You can also squeeze some lime on it for additional flavor.
You can also use chapatis instead of tortillas.