My Vegetarian Recipe of the Day

You can never have too many chili recipes to choose from when getting ready for the Super Bowl. And if you’re tired of plain old vegetarian chili recipes and feeling a bit adventurous, this one may be right up your alley. If you don’t want to use the espresso, you can substitute cocoa powder. This will give it more of a mole flavor. This is a pretty spicy recipe, so you may want to taste as you go along to find the right spice proportion for your tastes. I suppose you could serve this over chili dogs, but I think it’s probably better served alone. This recipe came from the January 2003 issue of Bon Appetit magazine.

1/2 cup olive oil
5 large onions, chopped
1/4 cup instant espresso powder
1/4 cup chili powder
1/4 cup ground cumin
1/4 cup dried oregano leaves
2 28-ounce cans crushed tomatoes with added puree
1/3 cup honey
6 large garlic cloves, minced
7 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed, drained
2 cups water
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 teaspoon chipotle chili powder or chili powder
Large pinch of ground cinnamon

Assorted toppings (choose as many as you like): sour cream, chopped fresh cilantro, chopped green onions, shredded cheese, sliced jalapeños, and shaved bittersweet chocolate

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté until tender, about 8 minutes. Mix in espresso powder, 1/4 cup chili powder, cumin, and oregano. Cook 1 minute. Mix in tomatoes, honey, and garlic. Bring to simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer 30 minutes. Add beans, 2 cups water, salt, chipotle chili powder, and cinnamon. Bring to boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered until mixture thickens slightly, stirring often, about 30 minutes. Season with salt. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cool slightly. Refrigerate uncovered until cold, then cover and refrigerate. Rewarm before serving.)

Place toppings in individual condiment bowls. Ladle chili into bowl and serve toppings alongside.

This is a slightly updated version of 7 Layer Dip from Food Network.  It’s slightly more complicated but still pretty easy.  My mother-in-law actually heats 7 Layer Dip in the oven to melt the cheese and serves it with rice as a tasty main dish.  You could also layer these ingredients over chips and pop them in the oven to make tasty nachos.  

Six Layer Dip 

2 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1(15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups lowfat shredded Cheddar
2 ripe avocados, preferably Hass
1 jalapeno, stemmed, finely chopped, (with seeds for more heat)
2 cups chopped romaine lettuce
1 1/2 cups nonfat yogurt, preferably Greek
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, leaves and some stems, roughly chopped, plus more for garnish
3 ripe medium tomatoes, diced
5 scallions (white and green), thinly sliced Baked tortilla chips, for dipping

On a cutting board, smash the garlic cloves, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of the salt, and, with the flat side of a large knife, mash and smear the mixture to a coarse paste. Put the garlic, beans, chili powder, water, and olive oil in the bowl of a food processor and blend until smooth. Spread in the bottom of a 2 quart casserole or gratin dish, or in individual sized dishes, as desired.Scatter the cheese over the beans. Halve and seed the avocados, then mash with the jalapeno and another teaspoon of salt in a small bowl. Spread a layer of the avocado over the cheese, and then scatter the lettuce on top.

Mix the yogurt with the cilantro and then spread over the lettuce. Add a layer of tomatoes and finally scatter the scallions on top. Chill until ready to serve. Garnish with a few cilantro sprigs and serve with baked chips.

Only have a few minutes to prepare something sweet for your Super Bowl party? This recipe from Food Network’s Paula Deen just takes five minutes and is delicious.

Peanut Butter Brownie Cupcakes

Peanut Butter Brownie Cupcakes Recipe courtesy Paula Deen
Show: Paula’s Home Cooking
Episode: Picnic in the Park

1 (18 1/2-ounce) package chewy fudge brownie mix (recommended: Duncan Hines)
1 (12-ounce) package peanut butter chips or 24 miniature peanut butter cups

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 24 regular muffin cups with paper cupcake liners.

Prepare the brownie mix according to package directions for cake-like brownies. Fill the cups half full with brownie batter. Place about 1 tablespoon peanut butter chips in the center of the batter, or press 1 peanut butter cup into the batter in each muffin cup until the batter meets the top edge of the peanut butter cup.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until the cupcakes are set. When they can be handled safely, remove them from the muffin tins and let cool completely on wire racks. Store in an airtight container.

** If you have a few extra minutes, you could always make your own brownies, rather than using a mix.

Yes, I know, it’s another chili recipe. But can you really ever have too many chili recipes? And this one is Chili Blanco, or a white chili, and for some reason it’s much harder to find a vegetarian recipe for that kind of chili. And you can make this ahead and turn it into excellent nachos for you Super Bowl munching pleasure. Just put it on some tortilla chips with some diced tomatoes, cilantro, jalapenos and melted cheese and voila!— the perfect snack.

Chili Blanco

1 pound small navy beans, rinsed and drained
8 cups water
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 large yellow onions, coarsely chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups Imagine Not Chicken broth (or some other kind of vegetable broth or stock)
1 large bay leaf
1 4 oz. can green chilis, chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup each: chopped green bell pepper, celery and julienne carrots
1 teaspoon each: cumin (or more, to taste) and fresh ground black pepper
1 cup grated jack cheese
1/2 cup cilantro, coarsely chopped

2 cups baked tortilla chips, coarsely crushed (you can leave this out if you’re making the chili for nachos)
5 green onions, sliced (white and green parts)
sour cream, optional

Place the beans in a large pot and cover with the 8 cups of water. Bring to a boil and cook for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let set, covered for 1 hour. Drain. Alternately, you can soak the beans overnight.

Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. When hot, sauté the onions until golden. Add the garlic and sauté 1-2 minutes, until garlic is translucent, but not browned.

Combine the beans, onions, broth, and bay leaf in a 6 quart pot. Bring to a low simmer, cover and cook until tender. Stir in green chilies and mash with a potato masher OR cool the mixture and puree it briefly in a blender or food processor. You want it to remain chunky, so don’t puree it too much. Season to taste with salt. When the beans are tender, sauté the bell pepper, celery, carrots, cumin and black pepper until just cooked. Stir into the beans after mashing. Add cheese and cilantro, stirring to blend. Serve garnished with green onions, chips and sour cream, if desired.

If you’re rooting for Da Bears next weekend, then there’s no better dish for you to serve than a Chicago-style Pizza. And, since it’s pizza, you can put whatever toppings on it that you like. If you want to try something a bit different than this recipe, you can find a great recipe for a stuffed Chicago-style pizza on fellow-blogger Andrea’s site.

For just the basics, use this recipe and add whatever toppings you find appealing.

Chicago-style Pizza

1 (.25 ounce) envelope rapid rise yeast
2 cups lukewarm water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup cornmeal
5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 pound sliced mozzarella cheese

1 can pizza sauce (or make your own)

Topping suggestions: Peppers, onions, pineapple, olives, spinach, zucchini, soy meat substitute

3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons olive oil

Place the water in a mixing bowl of a stand mixer. Sprinkle the yeast over the water, and let stand for 5 minutes to dissolve. Pour in the vegetable oil, olive oil, cornmeal and 3 cups of the flour. Mix with the beater for 10 minutes. Add the remaining flour, and switch from the beater to the dough hook. Mix for about 5 minutes. This can be done by hand, but the dough is very rich and moist. Pour the dough out onto a floured surface, and cover with a large bowl. Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. Punch down the dough, and let rise again. This time won’t take as long.

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F (245 degrees C).

Grease two 9 or 10 inch round cake pans. Divide the dough evenly between the two pans. Press the dough out so that it goes all the way up the sides of the pans. Lay the slices of mozzarella cheese onto the crusts like tile. Next put the pizza sauce over the mozzarella. This is the time to add your toppings. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the top, and drizzle with olive oil.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven, until the top is golden and gooey, and the crust a light golden brown.

I’m not waiting for the Super Bowl to make this chili. I’m planning to make it for dinner this week. Chocolate in chili? Sound absurd? Not at all. It gives the chili a nice depth that vegetarian chili can sometimes lack. I’ve never used semi-sweet chocolate pieces, opting instead for cocoa. If you prefer using cocoa, you can always just add a little extra oil.

This recipe comes from one of my favorite cookbooks, Moosewood Restaurant Celebrates. My first vegetarian cookbook was Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant, and I’ve bought several other Moosewood cookbooks since then. I highly recommend any of them. I like that they’re a bit chatty about the recipes. I also like that this particular cookbook arranges things by event. So, if you need a recipe for a birthday breakfast in bed, you can flip to that section and have a whole menu laid out for you.

Anyway, enough about the cookbook and on to the recipe.

Black Bean and Chocolate Chili

2 T. vegetable oil
1 1/2 c. chopped onions
4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 celery stalk, thinly sliced
1 small fresh chile, minced
1 T. ground cumin
2 t. dried oregano
1/2 t. ground cinnamon
pinch of ground cloves (I’m leaving those out, not being a huge clove fan)
1 t. ground coriander
1/2 t. ground black pepper
1/2 t. salt (I’ll probably use more like 1 t.)
1 1/2 c. chopped bell peppers
3 c. cooked or canned black beans (2- 14.5 oz. cans, rinsed and drained)
2 c. undrained crushed canned tomatoes (one 14.5 oz. can)
1 T. fresh lemon juice
1 T. soy sauce
1 1/2 oz semi-sweet chocolate, broken into small pieces (or you could use about a 1/4 c. chocolate chips)
chopped scallions

In a saucepan, warm the oil on medium heat. Add the onions ad garlic and saute until the onions become translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the celery and chile, cover, and cook for about 5 minutes.

Reduce the heat and stir in the spices and bell peppers. Cover and cook for 5 minutes, until the bell peppers begin to soften. Stir occasionally to keep the spices from burning. If needed, add a little juice from the canned tomatoes.

Add the black beans, tomatoes, lemon juice and soy sauce. Bring the chili to a simmer, cover, and cook for 5 to 10 minutes. Stir in the chocolate. When it is melted, adjust the salt, black pepper and lemon juice to taste.

Garnish with chopped scallions.

Tired of the same old french onion dip? This dip from the Food Network will add a little heat to your party.

Spicy Sour Cream Dip

1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 chipotle chile in adobo, chopped
1 teaspoon abobo sauce
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon salt

In a bowl, combine all the ingredients. Adjust the seasoning, to taste. Refrigerate, covered, until ready to serve. Serve with tortilla chips or veggies.

Do you need more than snacks to satisfy your hunger on Super Bowl Sunday? These sandwiches are plenty hardy. (Last year I posted a recipe for eggplant heros that would also be good.) This recipe is super easy, as it’s really more assembling than cooking.

Chicken Parmesan Hero Sandwich

2 jars marinara sauce
2 packages prepared soy chicken breaded patties (approx. 8 patties)
4 (12-inch-long) loaves Italian bread, halved lengthwise
1 lb mozzarella, thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Microwave or heat soy chicken patties according to directions on the box. Cut in half.

Arrange bottom halves of bread loaves on a large baking sheet and tops on another large baking sheet, all with cut sides up. Spread 1/4 cup marinara on each top and bottom. Divide soy chicken patties between bottom halves. Top each (open-faced) sandwich with 1/4 cup marinara and one fourth of mozzarella.

Bake open-faced sandwiches in lower third of oven until cheese melts, about 3 minutes. When cheese begins to melt, put tops of loaves in upper third of oven and bake until edges are golden, 3 to 4 minutes (watch tops closely; they burn easily). Put tops on bottoms to make sandwiches, then slice into serving pieces.

This recipe comes from a great cookbook: The Golden Door Cookbook. The Golden Door Cookbook is based on foods served at the Golden Door Spa in southern California. The recipes are interesting and unique and delicious. BUT they tend to be more gourmet. By that I mean that they usually have extensive ingredient lists and aren’t always the simplest recipes to make. This recipe is an exception to that. While it does have a fairly long ingredient list, it is pretty simple to assemble. If you like, the dip could be prepared alone and served with potato chips or some other “dipper”.

Potato Skins with Ricotta-Sundried Tomato Dip

Dip

2 T. sliced, soaked dry-packed sundried tomatoes (these are the sundried tomatoes that come in a bag, rather than packed in oil— see note on soaking at bottom of recipe*)
1 T. reserved tomato soaking water
3/4 cup low-fat ricotta cheese
1 T. minced shallots
1 T. balsamic vinegar
1 t. dried basil
1/4 t. freshly ground pepper

In a food processor, combine the tomatoes, reserved soaking water, ricotta, shallots, vinegar, basil and pepper and process until smooth. Transfer to a bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Let come to room temperature before serving.

*To rehydrate dry-packed sundried tomatoes, soak them in warm water to cover for 15 to 20 minutes. Drain and slice. Be sure to reserve 1 T. of the soaking water for the recipe.

Potato Skins

About 20 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
1 t. chili powder
1 t. ground cumin
1 t. paprika
1/2 t. celery salt
4 russet potatoes, scrubbed (a little over 2 1/2 lbs.)

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Spread the rosemary sprigs on a rimmed baking sheet.

In a small bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients, except the potatoes. Set aside.

Using a small, sharp knife, slice off a 1/4 inch thick slice from all four sides of each potato. (Save the peeled potatoes for another use.) Blot the cut sides of the potato skins dry with paper towels and arrange them, skin sides down, on the rosemary. Sprinkle the cut sides evenly with the spice mixture. Spray with vegetable oil spray, or brush with olive oil.

Bake for about 20 minutes, remove from the oven, and spray with the vegetable oil spray again (or brush again with olive oil). Return to the oven and continue baking for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are golden brown and beginning to puff. Serve with the dip.

For something a little different than chili, try this Louisiana alternative— gumbo. This recipe is adapted from a recipe by Emeril Lagasse, although I’m sure he wouldn’t want to claim it, though, without its animal ingredients.

8 cups vegetable broth or stock
1 1/2 cups olive oil
1 1/2 cups bleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 bay leaves
2 cups chopped yellow onions
1 cup chopped green bell peppers
1 cup chopped celery
one package, Boca Burger smoked sausage, half finely chopped, half cut crosswise into 1/4-inch thick slices (optional)
2 cans white beans
2 tablespoons chopped green onions or scallions
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Cooked rice, for serving

In a large, heavy pot or a Dutch oven over medium heat, combine the oil and flour. Cook, stirring constantly, until the roux is a dark, chocolate brown color, about 20 to 25 minutes. Add the salt, cayenne pepper, bay leaves, chopped onions, bell peppers, celery, chopped sausage and beans. Cook, stirring, until the vegetables are very soft, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the broth and stir until the roux mixture and broth are well combined. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour. Add the sliced sausage and cook another 15 minutes. Remove the bay leaves.

Stir in the green onions and parsley and serve the gumbo in individual soup or gumbo bowls over hot, steamed rice.

Quesadillas

Quesadillas can be pretty much anything you want them to be. You can saute some vegetables, or just melt some cheese (or vegan options) between a couple of tortillas. Add some guacamole, picante, or your personal favorite toppings, and you’re good to go. Here are two recipes from Food Network.

Grilled Green Chili Quesadillas

3 fresh chile peppers, such as poblanos—any variety may be used, according to your tolerance for heat
4 (12-inch) large flour tortillas
3 cups (3/4 pound brick) smoked cheddar (recommended: Cabot brand, shredded)
1 cup store bought salsa verde, available on chip and snack aisle or in Mexican food section
1 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Heat a grill pan over high heat. Place whole chiles on grill and char all over. about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and split chiles. Scrape away seeds with a spoon and slice.
Heat a large nonstick skillet or griddle over medium high heat. Char the tortilla and blister it on 1 side, 20 seconds, then flip tortilla. Cover half of the tortilla with cheese and chilies, then fold over. Press down gently with spatula. Cook quesadilla 15 seconds more on each side, transfer to a cutting board. Repeat. Pile up 2 completed quesadillas at a time and cut into 3 generous wedges. The yield will be 12 pieces from 4 quesadillas. Serve slices on a large platter with small dishes of salsa verde and sour cream for topping. Garnish the platter and toppings with chopped cilantro.

Wild Mushroom Quesadillas with Warm Black Bean Salsa

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan, plus some for drizzling
16 crimini mushroom caps, baby portobellos, with stems, trimmed and thinly sliced
12 shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced, stems discarded
Coarse black pepper and salt
1 tablespoon (a few sprigs) fresh thyme leaves, chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried
4 large flour tortillas, 12 inches in diameter
2 cups shredded sharp white cheddar
Salsa:
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 can black beans, drained
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, chopped
1/2 cup smoky barbecue sauce
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the oil and the sliced mushrooms to the hot skillet. Season mushrooms with black pepper, salt and thyme. Saute the mushrooms 10 minutes or, until dark and tender, then remove from heat. Transfer the mushrooms to a dish and return the skillet to the stove over medium heat.
Add another turn of extra-virgin olive oil to the skillet and add the onions, garlic and jalapeno pepper; saute for 2 or 3 minutes, then add beans and corn to the pan. Stir in chopped tomatoes and barbecue sauce, then season salsa with salt and pepper. Transfer warm salsa to a serving dish.

Heat a griddle pan or large nonstick skillet over medium to medium high heat. Add a drizzle of oil to the pan and 1 flour tortilla. Cook tortilla 1 minute, then turn it over. Sprinkle 1/2 cup sharp cheddar over 1/2 of the flour tortilla. Cover the cheese with 1/4 of the cooked sliced mushrooms. Fold the plain 1/2 of the tortilla over top of the filling and gently press down with a spatula. Cook the filled quesadilla 30 seconds to a minute longer on each side to lightly brown and crisp the quesadilla and melt the cheese. Remove the quesadilla to a large cutting board or transfer to a warm oven to hold, then repeat with remaining quesadilla ingredients.

Cut each quesadilla into wedges and serve with warm salsa for topping.