Thursday, February 17, 2011

Black-Eyed Peas and Chart with Soba Noodles

2.15.11
I would definitely make this recipe again, so here are the directions so you can try it too! It's from the Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker book from Robin Robertson. If your black-eyed peas get really soft like mine did, the pea and chard mixture would also make a good sandwich spread. Serves 6.

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
1 lrg carrot, halved lengthwise and cut on diagonal into 1/4 in. slices
2 shallots, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 c slow cooked or two cans black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
1 c vegetable stock
salt and pepper
1 bunch Swiss chard, leaves cut away from thick stems
one 8-ounce package soba noodles

Directions

1. Heat oil in med size skillet over med heat. Add carrot, shallots and garlic, cover and cook until softened, about 5 min.
2. Transfer carrot mixture to a slow cooker. Add black-eyed peas and stock, season with salt and pepper, cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
3. Cut Swiss chard stems into 1/4 in. slices and steam in steamer basket for about 5 min. Cut chard leaves into 1/2 in. wide strips and add to steamer until tender, about 4 min.
4. Drain and stir into slow cooker. Taste to adjust seasonings.
5. Cook soba noodles according to package directions. Drain well. Serve topped with pea and chard mixture.

Slow Cookin' It: Valentine's Day

2.14.11

For Valentine's Day Patrick and I made a deal: I would make dinner and he would make dessert. Things got complicated when I had a evening meeting, so I decided to use the slow cooker. This Mac & Cheese Florentine is actually dairy free. The sauce was a blend of raw cashews, white beans, fresh lemon juice and spices. Add spinach, elbows and bread crumbs and we had a tasty dinner. But dessert took the cake, I mean, torte. Patrick made this wonderful Chocolate Raspberry Torte with a recipe from Cook's Illustrated. It was delicious.