Sometimes, when you’ve been at the coop for 8 hours, staring at the same product that you’ve been staring at for years, it can be really hard to figure out what you are going to eat for dinner and how you are ever going to walk out that door to go home.

Generally, a walk through the produce section will help break you away from zoning out at the mac and cheese. Right now, for the first time I’ve ever seen, we have galangal. I will warn you that the galangal root is very hard, and you should use a good knife or grater; I found that grating in a twisting motion helped, but really, watch out for grated knuckles on this one. However, it is totally worth the amazing aroma that you will be hit with. It’s not as peppery as ginger, and really flowery. So, having a primary flavor motivation and knowing that I had some stir fry sauce left over from the last trip to Fubon, I knew stir fry with rice was my dinner. I got 2 serranno peppers, a bit of ginger, an onion, some mushrooms, a carrot and a bunch of the sweet baby broccolini.

So… stir fry…. galangal…. what to pair it with? Maybe some sake? Or an IPA? Oh, but wait, we have the Ginger Pale Ale from Trade Routes Brewing! I had not been so enthralled with it recently, but decided it was the perfect beverage to accompany this dinner. The ginger is pretty mild and its a bit of a sour pale (I mean, really, a bit, but something I tend to like).

So, I got myself out the door of the co-op!

Once home, I started some rice, chopped the onion and some garlic and then grated the galangal (and my knuckle) and started cooking them in some coconut oil. The knuckle grating convinced me that I would do a better job of flavoring this stir-fry if I opened the beer now. It was a nice inspiration to get the dinner finished. I then grated the ginger and chopped the mushrooms and peppers and threw them into the pan. I poured the stir fry sauce in (I’m sure you have your own favorite way of seasoning stir-frys, but if not, Soy Vay Veri Veri Teriyaki is really good). Then I chopped the carrot and the broccolini and threw them in the pan, gave a stir, added some cumin, and covered it for  just 2 minutes. By then the rice was done! All ya gotta do now is pour the beer into a nice tall glass, put the rice in a bowl and top it off with those delicious veggies!

Dinner, with a perfectly matched beer. Ta da!

Ingredients:

• 2 quarts chicken broth
• 1 turkey carcass, all meat removed
• 1 onion, halved, plus 1 onion, minced
• 1 carrot, halved lengthwise, plus 1 carrot, minced
• 1 whole stalk celery, plus 1 more stalk, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 cups dark turkey meat
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 carrot, minced
• 1 stalk celery, minced
• 3 cups leftover cooked Thanksgiving side vegetables (Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, green beans)
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves

Directions:

Put chicken broth, turkey, onion halves, carrot halves, 1 celery stalk, and 1 bay leaf in a large stock pot. Bring to a boil, then simmer about 1 1/2 hours. Finely dice the remaining onion, carrot and celery and reserve.

Dice the turkey meat. Make sure meat pieces are no larger than the size of a soup spoon. (If preparing soup the next day, be sure to store leftover turkey meat in an airtight container before placing it in the refrigerator, top with 1 or 2 ladles full of broth to keep meat moist.)

Before straining broth, remove large bones and carcass with tongs. Strain the broth through a sieve, covered with wet cheese cloth. Discard the solids. Transfer broth to a bowl set in a bath of ice water, which will cool the broth quickly and help keep it fresher longer. This can be done the night before and stored in the refrigerator until the next day.

In a large soup pot, heat garlic cloves in the olive oil. Allow to brown slightly and add minced carrots, celery, and onion. Sweat over medium-low heat until softened, about 7 or 8 minutes.

Dice the leftover vegetables (like your Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, and green beans). Add the chopped sage to the soup pot along with the turkey broth and the remaining bay leaf. Bring to a simmer. When simmering, add all the leftover veggies, except the sweet potatoes, and diced turkey meat to the soup. Bring it back up to a simmer. Finally, add the sweet potatoes to the center, and gently push them down. Turn the heat off and cover. Allow to sit and steam for 5 to 7 minutes.

Let simmer for 5 more minutes and serve.

This recipe was designed for me to eat some really healthy food while my schedule is super hectic with finals and work commitments.

Ingredients:

1 large beet (check ‘em out right now… they’re huge!)
1 russet potato
1 carrot (we’ve got some amazing heirloom varieties in right now)
1 yellow onion
1 parsnip
1 head of garlic
1 can of garbonzo beans
salt, pepper, thyme, paprika

Directions:

Chop the onion and saute it in some olice oil at medium low heat.  While that’s going bust up the head of garlic and peel the cloves, and chop roughly.  Add some salt to the onions.  When the onions are cooked down some, add the garlic.

Then, chop all of your root vegetables into small pieces.  I may have said this in a previous recipe, but the secret to great borscht is a variety of root vegetables.  The secret to bummus soup is that it’s really just borscht with garbonzo beans thrown in.  When you’re done chopping your veggies the onion/garlic combo should be looking pretty good.

Dump all of the roots in and add enough water to cover the roots and turn the heat up to medium.  If you’ve got vegetable stock hanging out, use that instead of water, but I normally don’t so feel free to not.

Cover the pot.  Cook until roots are soft.  Add pepper and paprika and thyme to taste.  Turn off the heat.

Bust out your potato masher (don’t have one?  You can get one at the co-op now!)  and do some mashing and mixing, but don’t go crazy.  It’s nice to still have some chunks in there, and you’re not making mashed potatoes.  Add the drained can of garbonzo beans.  Mix it all up!

Ta-Da!

That is how you turn Bummus into a meal.

Everyone knows about the great, healthful properties of garlic, right?  Especially at the Co-op!  Along with helping to fight colds, and boost cardiovascular health, garlic can also regulate blood sugar levels.  Its antibacterial properties are so strong that it was used to help fight gangrene during World Wars I and II.  And it has high enough vitamin C to help prevent scurvy, for those of you (like me) who aren’t as fond of citrus as you should be.  All of these wonderful facts were found on the wikipedia page for garlic, which has a huge amount more to say than I will bore you with.

Anyway, you know how as winter is finally ending (hard to believe now, but it will be here in the blink of an eye), and you’re starting to get out of the house more and find yourself less than prepared clothing-wise and inevitably wind up with an early spring/late winter cold?  Get ready now, by putting this recipe for tamari garlic together, which will be ready in three months.  You’ll be able to eat the garlic raw, as its flavor will mellow in the three month sitting time in the tamari and honey mixture.  And, the tamari-honey blend will make a great marinade for tempeh, or whatever else you’d want to throw it on.

Here’s the recipe:

Garlic Honey Tamari

Ingredients:

• 1 cup peeled garlic cloves, chopped in half
• 2 cups tamari
• 1 cup honey

Directions:

• Put everything together in a quart mason jar, mix it up, and put it in the regrigerator.
• Let it sit for three months.

After this time, the raw garlic flavor mellows and has a wonderful taste.

The shelf life is about one year.

After Thanksgiving every year I can’t help but think what a shame it is that pie pumpkins are named pie pumpkins, when they are really just a sweet, delicious squash and present myriad non-pie possibilities, both sweet and savory.  There is nothing quite as cozy as warming up the house with some baking this time of year, and I love everything from simple pumpkin muffins to decadent cheesecake.

But my favorite thing to do with pumpkins is super simple:

Curried Pumpkin Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 onion
• 1 pumpkin
• 1 can of coconut milk
• Red curry paste, to taste (about 1 heaping tablespoon).  I love the one  made in Oregon, and available at the Co-op, from Thai and True.

Directions:

• Cut the pumpkin in half, scoop out all the seeds and guts, and bake at 350 degrees until soft, about 45-60 minutes, depending on the size.
• Saute the onion, and put it in a blender with the flesh of the roasted pumpkin.
• Add the coconut milk and enough water to blend smoothly, or until it is your preferred consistency.
• Put the mixture into a pot to heat it up and add your salt and curry paste.

This soup is creamy and spicy and so beautiful it glows!  If you would like some other inspiring ideas about what to do with pumpkins, check out this website for a bunch more recipes to get you cooking!

Ingredients:

• 9″ pie crust
• 2 1/4 cups small pecan halves
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup large pecan halves

Directions:

Place 2 cups of the small pecan halves on a cookie shet and toast in a 350 degree oven for 8-12 minutes, stirring the pecans once during the baking time, until the pecans are toasted and fragrant.  Let them cool completely, and then chop them coarsely.

If you can’t find small pecan halves, use 2 cups of coarsely broken pecans.  But be sure to watch these closely during the toasting process because these can burn more easily.

If you’re using a frozen pie shell, preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Make sure to keep your frozen pie crust in the freezer until you’re ready to bake.  When you’re ready, line your pie crust with foil and pie weights or dried beans for weight.  Bake the pie shell until set, about 5 or 6 minutes.  Remove the foil and weights and bake for 2-3 more minutes longer until the crust is just beginning to brown in the edges.

As soon as the pie crust comes out of the oven, lower the temperature to 300 degrees.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a medium saucepan.  Remove from heat; mix in sugars and salt with a wire whisk until butter is absorbed.  Beat in eggs, one at a time, then beat in corn syrup and vanilla.

Place saucepan over very low heat.  Cook and stir constantly with the whisk until mixture is hot and looks shiny, about 6-7 minutes.  You have to stir constantly so the mixture cooks evenly and the eggs don’t scramble on the bottom of the pan.  Remove from heat and strain into a large bowl, so as to remove any egg chunks, then stir in the cooled, toasted pecans.

Pour pecan mixture into the hot pie crust.  Put the large pecan halves on top of the filling in a decorative pattern.

Bake the pie until the center feels soft when touched with your finger, and moves slightly when the pie is gently jiggled, which should be around 40-55 minutes.  You may need to cover the edges of the crust with foil to prevent them from burning in the baking process.

Transfer pie wo a wire rack and let it cool completely, at least 5 hours.

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

• 2 packages of Mori-Nu Silken Tofu
• 1 bag of dark chocolate chips
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup (or, to taste)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Arrowhead Mills pie crust, either graham or chocolate

Possible Additions:

• coffee
• peanut butter
• hazelnut butter
• toasted nuts
• mint Newman O’s (as topping)

Directions:

• Melt chocolate chips.  The best way to do this is probably with a double boiler so you don’t burn the chocolate.  Don’t have a double boiler?  All you have to do is bring a sauce pan of water to boil, and find a bowl that will sit snugly on top of the sauce pan that you can put the chips in.  The heat from the steam will melt the chocolate chips, and not burn them.
• Combine the tofu, melted chocolate, vanilla, and maple syrup in a food processor or a blender, and blend until smooth.  If you were wanting to spice this recipe up a bit with some of the additions, now’s the time to add those in.
• Pour the blended ingredients into your pie crust.  If you’re adding toppings to your pie, now is the time for that to happen.
• Put the pie on a flat surface in your refrigerator, and let sit until you’re ready to eat it.

Ingredients:

• 4 Cornish game hens
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 lemon, quartered
• 4 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 24 cloves garlic
• 1/3 cup white wine
• 1/3 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 4 sprigs fresh rosemary, for garnish

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
• Rub hens with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil.  Lightly season hens with salt and pepper.  Place 1 lemon wedge and 1 sprig of rosemary in the cavity of each hen.  Arrange in a large, heavy roasting pan, and arrange garlif cloves around the hens.  Roast in preheated oven for 25 minutes.
• Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees.  In a mixing bowl, whisk together wine, chicken broth, and remaining 2 tablespoons of oil.  Pour this mixture over the hens.
• Continue roasting about 25 minutes longer, or until the hens are golden brown and the juices run clear.  Baste with pan juices every 10 minutes.
• Transfer hens to a platter, pouring any cavity juices into the roasting pan.  Tent hens with aluminum foil to keep warm.  Transfer pan juices and garlic cloves to a medium saucepan and boil until the liquids reduce to a sauce-like consistency, about 6 minutes.  Cut the hens in half lengthwise and arrange on plates.  Pour sauce over top of the hens, and serve.

Ingredients:

1 can (15oz.) cranberry jelly
1 clove mashed garlic
3 minced green onions
2 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger
1 tablespoon dry mustard
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons freshly grated orange peel
1/2 cup coconut cream
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 pkg. (1lb. 10oz.) Tofurky Roast
1 can (22oz.) yams packed in syrup & drained

Directions:

Put cranberry jelly into a medium sized bowl. Mix in all the remaining ingredients, set aside.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove thawed roast from plastic wrap. Place roast in the sauce mixture, turn until coated. Place roast on a large piece of foil. Arrange yams around roast. Pour remaining sauce over all. Wrap roast in the foil & place in a shallow baking pan. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove roast from foil. Slice into serving pieces. Place a piece of roast on a plate, surround with yams and drizzle remaining sauce over all.