Rice Patties with Tahini Sauce

This is classic hippie food.

  

Recipes from The Expanding Light Cookbook: Vegetarian Favorites from California’s Premier Yoga Retreat.

Rice Patties

(adaptations in italic)

(makes 9-10 patties)

Cook 1 cup white or brown basmati rice (rinsed 3 times) I used leftover brown basmati and wild rice mix) 

Rice should be sticky. Set aside.

Sauté until onions are golden:

2 tbsp canola oil

1 cup onions, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

Add and sauté:

1 ½ cups mushrooms, sliced

Set aside.

In a bowl, mix:

2 tbsp fresh parsley, minced (I used ½ tbsp dried), 1 tsp dried dill weed, 1 tsp salt (I used Spike seasoning), ¼ cup sunflower seeds, roasted (I toasted mine, not sure if it’s the same thing) 

Add:

Sautéed vegetables and rice to the bowl and mix well. (My mixture was not wet or sticky AT ALL, maybe because I used leftover rice. So I added 1 beaten egg, about ½ cup breadcrumbs and ¼ cup of flour. This made it a sticky mixture.) 

Form into patties and place on an oiled baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown and crisp. I flipped mine half way through and turned on the broiler for the last 2 minutes.

 (The rice patty before baking) 

 (I had a corner space left on the baking sheet so I added 4 tofu sticks: cover both sides with Bragg Liquid Aminos, spread mild chili sauce on top, and sprinkle with garlic powder—not gourmet, but a quick and easy protein.)  

One of the suggested pairings for the patties was Tahini Sauce. I’ve been eyeing this recipe for a while and decided to finally make it.

 Tahini Sauce 

Sautee in a pot until onions are golden:

3 tbsp canola oil

1 small onion, minced

2 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and grated

Add:

1/3 cup raw tahini (I don’t think mine was raw)

1/3 cup plus 2 tbsp water

2 tbsp tamari or Bragg Liquid Aminos

1 tbsp maple syrup

¼ tsp black pepper

Stir and simmer for 5 minutes. Blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Add salt to taste. Before serving, add ¼ fresh parsley or dill, minced (I used dried)

This sauce is delicious. I could eat it straight out of the pot, like soup.

Note: You can make the patties and sauce ahead of time and keep them in the refrigerator.

Whole Wheat Oatmeal and Toasted Sesame Bread

Whole Wheat Oatmeal and Toasted Sesame Bread (for Bread Machine)

1 - ½ cups lukewarm water
2 tbsp powdered milk
1 - ½ tsp salt
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp blackstrap molasses
2 tbsp oil (or margarine or butter)
3 - 1/3 cups whole wheat flour
1/3 cup quick cooking oatmeal
1 - ¾ tsp yeast

Add ingredient: ¼ cup toasted sesame seeds (click link for directions)

- Measure ingredients in the order listed into bread making pan.
- Secure baking pan into machine.
- Select GRAIN setting (or your machine’s equivalent).
- Add sesame seeds when Add Ingredient beeps (if your machine does not have this, it is when the ingredients are first thoroughly mixed. Make sure the mixture is still going when you put the seeds in. OR you can add them with the rest of the ingredients, before yeast).

 I enjoyed a slice post-workout today with a yummy Fruit and Yogurt Smoothie:

Fruit and Yogurt Smoothie

½ cup orange juice
½ cup vanilla yogurt
½ frozen banana
¼ frozen blueberries
3 frozen strawberries

Serves 1

Process in a blender until smooth. 

Mushrooms and Pasta in Wine Sauce

Mushrooms and Pasta in Wine Sauce

Serves 2

Ingredients:

8oz Whole Wheat Rotini Pasta
4 cups mixed mushrooms, chop if needed (I used oyster, shiitake, and button)
½ cup dry white cooking wine
½ cup chicken stock
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
½ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp dried basil
¼ tsp dried sage
a less than 1/4 tsp salt
1/16 tsp black pepper
Parmesan cheese and dried parsley for garnish

Bring pot of water to boil for pasta, cook according to package directions.

Meanwhile, prepare mushrooms (clean and chop if needed so they are mostly the same size). Mix chicken stock and white wine, reserve a ¼ cup. Sautee garlic in olive oil, 1 minute. Add mushrooms and stock, wine mix. Simmer and cover for 10 minutes.

In a small sauce pan, melt butter. Add flour to melted butter, whisk thoroughly. Add salt, pepper, oregano, basil, and sage. Slowly add ¼ cup of reserved stock and wine. Whisk thoroughly until thickened. Slowly add flour mixture to mushrooms. Whisk well, until thicken. Add sauce to pasta, top with parmesan cheese and parsley.

This dish really hit the spot. I love savory dishes.

Weekend Baking

I did more baking than usual this weekend:

 

1. Simple and easy pumpkin pancakes from Kath Eats. Not your typical white flour pancake, but delicous! I used a whole egg instead of egg whites. They were tasty with vanilla yogurt and a drizzle of maple syrup.

2. Vegan pumpkin muffins from Vegweb. This is the only pumpkin recipe I use–they come out perfect every time (I used my own cooked pumpkin).

3. Quick Whole Wheat and Molasses Bread. It must be good because it’s already half gone (which is why there’s no picture)!

4. Lastly, Vegan Chocolate Chip Spelt Cookies (I can’t find the camera, so no pictures) …

. . . So instead, here is a pretty, local purple potato:

Loaded Pasta (I.E. Hidden Veggies)

Loaded Pasta (I.E. Hidden Veggies)

Whole grain pasta for 2 (I used a kamut linguine that was garlic and parsley flavored)
1 can or jar favorite tomato sauce
1 small onion, chopped
2 tsp olive oil
½ zucchini, diced
½ carrot, peeled and sliced
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/3 cup tofu, crumbled
2 handfuls of spinach, washed and stems removed
1 tbsp ketchup (if you need more tomato flavor)
Parmesan cheese
Water, if needed

Cook the onion in oil in sauce pan, 2 minutes. Add carrots, zucchini, and garlic, cook for another 2 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare spinach. Add tomato sauce, spinach and tofu. Add water, if needed, a little at a time. Simmer until veggies are soft.

Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions.

Puree the sauce with hand blender or, for a smoother sauce, let cool and then puree in a blender, reheat.

Top with parmesan cheese.
 

Oatmeal and A Pizza Compromise

First, the oatmeal:

I started the day with this beautiful bowl of oatmeal, whipped Kath style. I’m so glad I found her blog, just for this technique! Extra toppings were hemp seeds, flax, and a drizzle of maple syrup. I try not to buy bananas too often (not local, obviously) even though I love them and buy organic–I do have some frozen, but not sure if it would work in this recipe.

The Pizza:

I love pizza, and since I haven’t had one in awhile and had leftover cooked ground beef, I decided to make one for dinner. I already had a frozen half whole wheat crust made from a previous batch (I always make 2 and freeze 1) so it was a quick and easy dinner. This pizza was a compromise: the hubby loves regular meaty pizza, I love veggie pizza. So I didn’t put on as many veggies this time. The other toppings were 4 sliced button mushrooms, ½ a zucchini, and about a cup shredded mozzarella.

I was going to make a side veggie to go with the pizza, but I knew I’d eat two slices regardless, and 2 slices of pizza is more than enough food for me.

Anything I make that involves dough, I like to call “rustic”, it lets you off the hook (of perfection that is!), but this is one of the best looking pizza crusts I’ve ever made.

For the Love of Chickpeas

Every since I saw this recipe at Kalyn’s Kitchen, I’ve been eager to make to it. At first I put it off because I couldn’t find any cilantro. Tonight I could wait no longer and made it anyway, substituting dried parsley. I also used regular chili powder. It was delicious, but how could it not be, it contains two of my favorites–ground beef and chickpeas. I’ll definitely make this again, especially if I get my hands on some cilantro.

For a snack today, I had one kiwi and 2 Chocolate Date Nut Balls–I like these, but the hubby doesn’t (I think it’s because he knows there are dates in them).

Chocolate Date Nut Balls
(you can find many versions of this online, this is mine)

1 ½ cups walnuts or pecans (or a mixture)
Pinch of salt
12-14 pitted, chopped honey dates
1/3 unsweetened cocoa powder
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp maple syrup
¼ cup chocolate chips

Chop ¼ cup of the nuts and set aside. Process the rest of the nuts and salt in a food processor (with the S blade) until finely ground. Add the dates and process until the mixture sticks together. Add cocoa powder, vanilla, and maple syrup and process until evenly mixed.

Put the mixture in a bowl with reserved chopped nuts and chocolate chips. Mix with hands. Form into 1 inch balls (they are crumbly, so don’t be picky with making them perfect), and store in container in the refrigerator or freezer.

Welcome

I love good food. My skills as a cook are not the best, but I am improving. I believe in the philosophy behind Intuitive Eating. I eat healthy most of the time, but I don’t diet, count calories, or stress out over food.

I started this journey over at my other blog, Bliss and Beauty, where I write about intuitive eating, body-image, happiness, and life in general. I will still be writing about those things there.

Intutitive Kitchen will be about healthy food–and sometimes mac and cheese and chocolate.