Sunday, March 27, 2011

oriental green beans with peanut sauce.



This is a recipe that I got from my mom. I think it might be from one of her vegetarian cookbooks, but I'm not sure which one. Anyways, my mom made this once and I thought it was delicious. I've been making it ever since. 

the recipe
serves 4
1 10-ounce package frozen French-style green beans
2 tablespoons peanut butter
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon water
2 teaspoons honey
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Cook green beans according to package directions. While beans are cooking, combine remaining ingredients in a small bowl. Mix with a fork or wire whisk until well blended. When beans are finished cooking, drain them and place in a serving bowl. Spoon peanut sauce evenly over beans and serve right away. 

substitutions
This recipe also works well with snap peas instead of greens beans. That's what I used for the picture for this entry. I also don't usually have ground ginger, so I just eliminate that item.

great with
Serving the green beans over some brown rice is delicious. I also usually like to have a Morningstar Farms chicken pattie with this recipe.

the review
I may be slightly biased since I'm a sucker for anything that has peanut butter in it, but I love this recipe. All the ingredients in the peanut sauce combine so well for an incredibly flavorful topping. I absolutely love it. It's also so easy to make. While this does keep and reheat pretty well, it's definitely best when it's first made. Enjoy!

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

sweetcorn cakes.





This is another fine recipe from The Best-Ever Vegetarian Cookbook. I was excited to try this one because of the simple but flavorful ingredients that I saw listed in the recipe.

the recipe
serves 4
1 large cob sweetcorn
3/4 cup plain flour
1 egg
a little milk
salt and freshly ground black pepper
shredded fresh basil leaves, to garnish

1. Pull the husks and silk away from the corn, then hold the cob upright on a board and cut downwards with a heavy knife to strip off the kernels. Put the kernels in a pan of boiling water and cook for 3 minutes after the water has returned to the boil, then drain and rinse under the cold tap to cool quickly.
2. Put the flour into a bowl and break the egg into a well in the middle. Start stirring with a fork, adding a little milk to make a soft dropping consistency. Stir in the drained corn and season with salt and pepper.
3. Heat some oil in a wide frying pan and drop a tablespoon of batter into the center. Cook, one at a time, over a low heat and turn as soon as the top is set. Drain on kitchen paper and keep warm while cooking the remaining fritters. The mixture should make at least 8 sweetcorn cakes

substitutions
Half a bag of frozen corn for the cob of sweetcorn
Didn't have any fresh basil leaves

great with
I had a serving of the sweetcorn cakes with an Amy's California Veggie Burger (love those!) along with some grilled tomatoes, which were sliced and then seasoned with salt, pepper and oregano.

the review
This is similar to a corn souffle, just served in a different way. I really liked this recipe. The flavor is good, but not too overwhelming. Definitely a simple food, but really good. I can't wait to try this with an actual cob of sweetcorn instead of just half a bag of sub-par frozen corn. I will definitely be trying this recipe again once the weather gets warmer, once corn is in season.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

broccoli and cauliflower gratin.







This is a recipe that I was really excited to try. It's from a wonderful cookbook that one of my close friends gave me for Christmas. The book is The Best-Ever Vegetarian Cookbook and it's basically become my bible. I highly recommend it. You'll see a lot of recipes from this book--I'll always let you know when that's the case.


the recipe
Serves 4
1 small cauliflower
1 small head broccoli
1/2 cup natural yogurt
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 tsp wholegrain mustard
2 tbsp wholemeal breadcrumbs
salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Break the cauliflower and broccoli into florets and cook in lightly salted boiling water for about 8-10 minutes, until just tender. Drain well and transfer to flameproof dish.
2. Mix together the yogurt, grated cheese and mustard, then season the mixture with salt and pepper and spoon over the cauliflower and broccoli.
3. Preheat the grill to moderately hot. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the top of the vegetables and grill until golden brown. Serve hot.

substitutions
As you'll find out, I don't always have the ingredients that I need, so I make my fair share of substitutions. I still try to stick pretty close to the recipe.

Honey vanilla Greek yogurt instead of natural yogurt
Honey mustard instead of wholegrain mustard

great with
I made this with a delicious Amy's California Veggie Burger, which was topped with a slice of provolone cheese, some spring mix and a little bit of honey mustard.

the review
This has a really good flavor. Having yogurt in the recipe is a really good idea and makes the broccoli and cauliflower really creamy. As you can tell from my substitutions, I added my fair share of honey flavor to the recipe, but I actually really liked it. My problems with this recipe were: I boiled the vegetables for a little too long and then I didn't let the dish bake long enough. So I'll definitely be trying this recipe again, but I'll be making sure I'm more mindful of how long I'm letting things boil and bake. Since those problems were clearly my own fault, I definitely recommend this recipe. It's a good twist on au gratin vegetables. This also saved and reheated really well.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

pear walnut salad.


Thought I'd start the recipes going with something easy. I've had several salads and restaurants with pear in them and I absolutely love the flavor. The following recipe is my personal favorite combination for a salad.

the recipe
Spring mix greens
Pear
Walnuts
Mozzarella cheese
Raspberry vinaigrette dressing


1. Begin with bed of fresh spring mix greens.
2. Slice pear into small, bite-sized pieces, using about a half a pear for each salad serving. Top greens with pear pieces.
3. Add walnuts, mozzarella cheese and dressing as you wish.


great with
Pretty much anything. I especially love it before a plate of pasta or with a veggie burger.


the review
This is probably my favorite salad combination. It's ridiculously easy to make and it has several healthy, tasty components. And of course, a salad goes great with so many meals. The fruity flavors in this one make it great for spring and summer.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

the white plate.

I am a lifelong vegetarian. My parents raised me that way and with the exception of an ill-fated Thanksgiving turkey incident, I have remained a vegetarian for my entire life. When I was younger, I was very picky, and being a vegetarian just made that even harder. Now, I'm 23 years old and I love cooking and trying new foods. And these days, vegetarians are so lucky. There are so many more options than there used to be.

This blog will serve as a story. It will be the story of a kitchen and what comes out of it. I love cooking. By no means do I consider myself an expert on the subject. I just consider it a hobby of mine. This will allow me to document the recipes that I try and hopefully, will reach other vegetarians and give them some new ideas that they can use in their kitchens.

My goals with this blog are to provide recipes for healthy, affordable meals. This is something that I think is important and try to do in my everyday life. I have no doubt that I will make mistakes--just ask the bottle of olive oil that I broke all over my kitchen floor two days ago--but that's all part of the learning curve.

So why is this called The White Plate? I like simplicity and streamlined design. My background in art probably has something to do with that. I have white plates in my kitchen.

And let's not forget, food always looks good on a white plate.