White Bean Burgers

The New York Times had this recipe in their well column. It sounds delicious. I'm a big fan of black bean burgers, so am excited to give this one a try.

Tomato Tortilla Soup

I got this recipe from from Ellie Kreiger's cookbook, The Food You Crave. It can also be found on The Food Network website. I like my soup to be a little thicker, so I added in a few corn tortillas (cut into strips) while cooking the onions. You can also just add in a handful of tortilla chips instead. You blend it all together in the end, so it doesn't really matter how small or big they are. I also leave out the jalapeno and just add hot sauce to my bowl.

Tomato Tortilla Soup

Prep Time: 25 min
Cook Time: 28 min
Level:Easy
Serves:4 servings, serving size: 2 cups

Ingredients

* 2 (6-inch) corn tortillas (or you can just use chips instead)
* 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon canola oil
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 small onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
* 3 cloves garlic, minced (about 1 tablespoon)
* 1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
* 1 teaspoon ground cumin
* 3/4 teaspoon dried oregano
* 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
* 2 (14.5-ounce) cans no salt added diced tomatoes. with juice
* 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
* 1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Brush both sides of each tortilla with oil, using 1 tablespoon of the oil. Cut the tortillas in half, then cut each half into 1/4-inch wide strips. Arrange the strips on a baking sheet, sprinkle with the salt, and bake until crisp and golden, about 12 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

Heat the remaining 1 teaspoons of oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft and translucent. Add the garlic, jalapeno, cumin, and oregano and cook for 1 minute more. Add the broth and tomatoes, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 10 minutes. Stir in lime juice.

Remove the pan from the heat and puree with an immersion blender or in 2 batches in a regular blender until the soup lightens in color but chunks of tomato remain, about 30 seconds. Serve the soup topped with the tortilla strips, a dollop of sour cream, and a sprinkle of cilantro.

Per Serving:

Calories 270; Total Fat 10g (Sat Fat 2g, Mono Fat 3.5g, Poly Fat 2g); Protein 9g; Carb 36g; Fiber 4g; Cholesterol 8mg; Sodium 335mg

Ethiopian-Style Chickpea Stew

I made this for dinner tonight and I loved it. It was so flavorful, filling and very easy to make. We ate it as a stew, but I also think it would be very good served over rice. I found it on the Whole Foods Market website.

Ethiopian-Style Chickpea Stew

Serves 6

Ingredients

1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon ground fenugreek (optional)
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 medium red onion, chopped
1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 quart vegetable broth
1 pound red potatoes, cut into 1-inch chunks
4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
Flatbread

Method

Preheat oven to 450°F. Stir together paprika, salt, allspice, black pepper, cardamom, cloves, coriander, cayenne, fenugreek (if using) and ginger in a small bowl; set spice mixture aside.

Toss chickpeas with a tablespoon of the oil in a large bowl then arrange on a large baking sheet in a single layer. Roast chickpeas, stirring occasionally, until somewhat dried out and just golden brown, 16 to 18 minutes; set aside.

Meanwhile, heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add garlic, onions and chopped ginger and cook, stirring occasionally, until very soft and golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in reserved spice mixture and continue cooking, stirring constantly, until spices are toasted and very fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomato sauce and cook 2 minutes more.

Stir in broth, potatoes, carrots and reserved chickpeas and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until potatoes and carrots are just tender, about 20 minutes. Uncover pot and simmer until stew is thickened and potatoes and carrots are very tender, about 25 minutes more. Ladle stew into bowls and serve with flatbread on the side.

Nutrition

Per serving (about 18oz/499g-wt.): 420 calories (80 from fat), 9g total fat, 1.5g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 1600mg sodium, 72g total carbohydrate (11g dietary fiber, 5g sugar), 13g protein

Some News and A Link

Michael Pollan has a new book: Rules To Eat By

And my sister wanted me to post this link. I know this blog is about eating less meat, but when we do eat meat why not eat sustainably raised healthy stuff. Chris Wong posted this link on her blog for a hog farm in UT. Finally a good source of pork.