You may cook this soup either in a pressure cooker or in a regular pot. You will need to have a pressure cooker that has at least a 7-quart capacity; for smaller cookers, cut the recipe in half or in thirds. Also, if you're using a jiggle-top pressure cooker, add one teaspoon of oil to prevent foaming.
2 medium onions, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons whole cumin
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon canola oil (necessary for tempering the spices)
2 teaspoons ginger paste or 1 tablespoon finely minced fresh ginger
2 teaspoons finely minced garlic
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
8 cups water
3 cups dried yellow split peas, picked over and rinsed
1-2 tablespoons mild curry powder (to taste)
Salt to taste (optional)
1 bunch kale
Spray a large pressure cooker or pot with cooking spray and sauté the onions for about 5 minutes. When they are becoming translucent, push them to one side and pour the cumin and mustard seeds directly onto the bottom of the pot. Pour the canola oil over the seeds and stir them lightly. As soon as the seeds begin to pop, mix them in with the onions. Add the ginger and garlic, and cook for one more minute. Add the sweet potatoes, water, split peas and curry powder. Stir well.
If using a pressure cooker, seal the cooker and bring it up to high pressure. Cook at high pressure for 8 minutes; then remove from the heat and allow the pressure to come down naturally.
If you're cooking it in a regular pot, cover the pot and simmer until the split peas are tender and beginning to break down, about an hour. Stir regularly to make sure that the split peas don't stick to the bottom of the pan, and add water if necessary.
While the soup is cooking, wash the kale and remove and discard the tough central rib. Chop the leaves coarsely. When the split peas are cooked, add the kale to the pot, season to taste with salt, and add additional water if the soup is too thick. Cover the pot. For kale that retains some crunch, simply leave the pot covered for 5 or 10 minutes without heating, allowing the kale to cook in the heat of the soup. For kale that is more tender, you may return the pot to low heat for 10 minutes.
J’s Autumn Lasagna_______________________________________________________
2 delicata squash
3 turnips
2 Tinkyada brand packages of Organic Lasagne noodles (gluten-free)
2 bulbs of fennel
Fresh (if at all possible) herbs: rosemary, thyme, sage, oregano, basil, and parsley
Olive oil
Splash of white wine vinegar
Chickpea miso
1 package tempeh
3 cloves fresh garlic
½ teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and pepper
Bragg’s
Squirt of lemon juice
Squirt of balsamic vinegar
1 ½ cup of cashew cream
Some nutritional yeast
Splash of soymilk
1 package shredded mozzarella mix Daiya non-dairy cheese
Method: Prepare your vegetable layers using the instructions detailed below. To cook the gluten-free lasagna noodles: basically, bring water in a pot to a boil, add the noodles, turn off the heat, and let sit with a lid on for 10 minutes ONLY. Do NOT overcook the noodles. Immediately take from the burner, drain, and lay the noodles on a tray lined with parchment paper to ensure noodles’ are separate and intact. Overcooked noodles are stuck together and rip and then the whole thing just isn’t as pretty. It tastes the same, but come on – let’s be in it to win in, right? Once all the layers are prepared and the noodles are done and your sauce is done, get out your casserole dish and here’s the order: sauce, noodles, squash, turnips/fennel, tempeh crumbles, kale, sauce (spread with a spatula to ensure evenness), noodles, sauce (spread), squash, turnips/fennel, tempeh crumbles, kale, sauce, noodle, sauce, daiya cheese (1/2 a package), and bake at 400 for 30 minutes or until squash looks done and the daiya is melted and desired crispy edge action is achieved.
Delicata squash layer: peel them, half them, clean them of seeds, cut into thin orange-slice –sized crescent pieces (it should look kinda like cantaloupe pieces). Saute in a large pan and add the sage (finely chopped), a splash of white wine vinegar, no chicken broth until half covered to the top of the squash, 1 teaspoon of chickpea miso, bring to a boil, cover and simmer on low heat until barely tender (remember: it’s going to bake, also). Turn off and drain the liquid into something to store it in because you’re going to add it to the fennel/turnip mixture. Set squash aside.
Turnip layer: clean the turnips, cut off the ends, and chop them into very thin circular disks (think scalloped potato -style), wash the fennel bulbs, cut off the ends, and shave into small thin long pieces. Saute some finely chopped garlic in a pan with some olive oil, then add the fennel, and then the turnips. Cook for about 5 minutes, and then add the liquid/no chicken broth that you drained from the squash, and salt and pepper to taste. Put a lid on it and continue to cook on medium heat until barely tender. Turn off heat and set aside.
Kale layer: Wash and de-rib the kale (separate leaves from the stalk), and lightly wilt the kale on medium heat for a couple minutes with a little bit of balsamic vinegar and Bragg’s in a pan using the lid so it doesn't dry out and stirring intermittently. Turn off the heat and set aside.
Tempeh sausage crumble layer: this is totally easy and brilliant. Take a grater and literally grate the tempeh on the largest grate size you have available. Fry in a pan with olive oil, and ½ teaspoon each of basil, oregano, garlic powder, thyme, sage, and fennel seed. Add a couple squirts of Bragg’s, and salt and pepper to taste. Turn off and set aside.
Sauce: It’s basically the same as the alfredo sauce in the fettuccine alfredo last week. But to re-fresh your memory: Melt ½ a cube of earth balance on low heat with 1 teaspoon each of parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme. Add 1-2 cups cashew cream, a squirt of balsamic vinegar, a splash of bragg’s, and some white wine (it cooks off, it leaves flavor behind, you add a bit more – like a ¼ cup, it cooks off, etc. until desired taste is achieved). Salt and pepper to taste. To thicken – add nutritional yeast. To thin – add a splash of soy milk. Keep stirring and seasoning until you’re happy with it.
****L and V loved the yellow split pea soup and they loved the lasagna, but they really loved my day thirteen shepherd's pie:
Jessica's Simple Shepherd's Pie____________________________________________________________
4 large yukon gold potatoes
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk at room temp
3-4 tablespoons earth balance
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
dashes of fresh black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons garlic powder or approx. 5 cloves of fresh diced garlic
fresh chives or some parsley (can be dried) for garnish on top
2 medium to large onions
olive oil
1 teaspoon sage
1 tablespoon basil
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon thyme
2 teaspoons thyme
4 large carrots, chopped
4 celery stalks, chopped
1 bag frozen peas
About 4-6 cups chopped mushrooms (depends on how much of a mushroom fan you are - I am, big time) for the veggie mix and the gravy
1 head cauliflower
4 small to medium zucchinis
4 cups vegetable broth
1/4 cup corn starch
1/2 cup dry white wine or cooking sherry
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
Gravy: In a small bowl, mix the corn starch and vegetable broth until dissolved and set aside. Preheat a small pot and saute a chopped onion until translucent, then add mushrooms, approx 4 cloves of garlic or analogous amount of powder, 2 t thyme, 1 t sage, salt and pepper, then add the wine, bring to a boil, and let reduce for about 5 minutes. Add the broth/starch mixture and nutritional yeast (add more nut yeast if it's too runny), and lower heat, simmering for about 15 minutes, stirring often.
Veggie Mix: Chop an onion and add to a heated pan with some olive oil. Once translucent, add 1 T each of basil, oregano, thyme, and garlic. Saute for a moment, and then add your chopped vegetables in this order: carrots, celery, peas, mushrooms, zucchini, & cauliflower - you could also do green beans, kale, potato, broccoli, etc. Use your imagination and favorites. Once everything is seasoned and not overcooked (remember - it's going to bake, also), add gravy and stir until combined thoroughly.
Mashed Potatoes: Wash, half, and boil the potatoes in a pot of water until fork tender. Drain and give a brief initial mash, and then add the 3/4 T earth/vegan smart balance, 1 t salt, pepper, 1 T garlic powder, and 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk, and mash until desired consistency.
Method: In a large baking casserole dish, after mixing the gravy and veggie mix together, spoon the mixture into the dish, and top with the mashed pototoes (smoothed out) and a garnish of fresh chives and/or parsley. Bake at 350 for 30 to 45 minutes uncovered, let sit for a moment, and serve.
Big thanks again, of course, to Isa Chandra Moskowitz, and her Post Punk Kitchen recipes for savory mushroom gravy and fluffy mashed potatoes, which served as a foundation for invention of these recipes in my head:
http://www.theppk.com/2010/10/savory-mushroom-gravy/
http://www.theppk.com/2010/10/fluffy-mashed-potatoes/
Now I'm hungry,
JRW
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