Every Sunday we try to make something in the slow cooker that we can eat a few days for lunch. Most weeks this is some type of bean dish since beans are cheap, versatile, and delicious. This week, with the beginning of tomatillo season, we decided to start this tomatillo chili over night and in the morning we were greeted with delicious smells and the promise of a few good lunches to look forward to.

Slow Cooker Tomatillo Chili

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed
• 1 cup textured vegetable protein (TVP)
• 1 pound tomatillos, husked, washed, and diced
• 2 medium yellow onions, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium jalapenos, diced (seeded if you prefer less heat)
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 2 whole dried chipotle peppers
• 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
• 1/2 cup diced cilantro
• 6 cups water
• Salt to taste

Preparation

1. Combine all of the above ingredients in a slow cooker. Cover and set the slow cooker to high heat.
2. Cook until beans are soft, 6-8 hours.

Note: This recipe does not require soaked beans. However, if you use soaked beans reduce cooking time to 2 or 3 hours.

These enchiladas pair a tangy tomatillo filling with a sweet ripe tomato ranchero style sauce.

Tomatillo Enchiladas with fresh Ranchero Sauce

Ingredients

• 1 Pound tomatillos, diced
• 29 ounces cooked pinto beans
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced and divided
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped and divided
• 1 large green bell pepper, diced
• 2 small serrano peppers or one medium jalapeno, minced
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin, divided
• 2 pounds ripe tomatoes, diced
• 1 dried chipotle, halved
• 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
• 12 fresh corn tortillas
•  1/2 cup cilantro, minced and divided
• 1 medium ripe avocado, sliced

Preparation

1. To start the sauce saute 3/4 of the onion and 1/2 the minced garlic in 1 tablespoon oil. Add bell pepper, minced serrano, and 1/2 a teaspoon ground cumin and cook until the peppers have softened. Add tomatoes and half of the chopped cilantro and allow the sauce to come to a simmer over medium heat. Season with salt to taste. Continue to simmer, stirring occasionally while you prepare the filling.
2. In a medium pot heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat and saute the remaining onion and garlic. Add tomatillos, pinto beans, oregano, dried chipotle, and 1/2 a teaspoon cumin. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally to prevent burning. Cook until the tomatillos have softened, about 10 minutes. Remove the chipotle from the filling and season with salt to taste.
3.  Fill tortillas with about 1/4 of the tomatillo mixture and roll tightly and arrange in a large baking dish. When the dish is full of tortillas top with the ranchero sauce covering evenly. Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes.
4. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Top with remaining cilantro and avocado slices. Serve warm.

Baby onions aren't the only babies in season right now!

This summer promises to bring a bumper crop of babies! One friend specifically asked us at Coseppi Kitchen to post some recipe ideas that can be made ahead of time and frozen so that when the baby craziness happens they will have some things prepared. So, with hours to spare before her due date we would like to present Green Tomato and Summer Squash Enchiladas, Veggie Mac Casserole, and Tofu Pesto Lasagna.

We hope that expanding families everywhere will find these dishes delicious and nutritious and that they pair well with hard-boiled or fried fresh backyard eggs.

This lasagna achieves nutrient density with fresh seasonal vegetables and without the heavy, cheesy, saltiness might be associated with other lasagnas.  It also uses zucchini “noodles” in place of pasta and finely chopped eggplant in place of ground beef. If you freeze this dish, allow the lasagna to thaw completely at room temperature then reheat, covered, at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15-20 minutes.

Tofu Pesto Lasagna

Ingredients

• 3 pounds zucchini, you will want large zucchini, washed and sliced with a vegetable peeler into wide “lasagna noodles”
• 1 pound eggplant, peeled and finely diced in a food processer
• 28 ounces stewed tomatoes, unsweetened
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 3 cloves ogarlic, minced and divided
• ½ large white onion, diced and divided
• ½ cup water
• 14 ounces extra firm tofu, cubed
• ½ cup whole raw almonds, divided
• 2 cups packed fresh basil
• 6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
• salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

1. To prepare the marinara sauce, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet. Sauté onions and 1/3 of the minced garlic over medium heat until the onions are tender and slightly browned, about 5 minutes.
2. Add the processed eggplant to the sauté and continue cooking for a minute. Add stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, balsamic vinegar, and water. Turn to low heat and allow to simmer until the eggplant is thoroughly softened and most of the liquid has reduced.
3. While the sauce is simmering prepare the pesto. Combine tofu, basil, 4 tablespoons olive oil, lemon juice, and one clove of garlic in a large blender or food processor until it is smooth and creamy.
4. When the sauce is ready it is time to assemble the lasagna. Spread ½ a cup of sauce on the bottom of a large glass (Pyrex) baking dish. Create an even layer of zucchini noodles on top of the sauce using 1/3 of the zucchini noodles. Add the tofu pesto in an even layer over the zucchini and layer another 1/3 of the zucchini noodles on top of the pesto. Spread another cup of the sauce on top of the zucchini, followed by the remainder of the noodles. Top it off with the rest of the sauce and bake in the oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes.
5. While the lasagna is cooking prepare the topping. Combine ¼ cup of almonds, nutritional yeast, and a pinch of salt in a food processor until it is uniformly ground.
6. After the lasagna has cooked, allow it cool for 10 minutes then sprinkle the topping on top in a uniform layer. Serve warm.

I do not believe that I have ever had a vegan mac and “cheese” that tastes like the original, but that does not mean that they are not also good. This recipe creates a savory sauce with mushrooms, nutritional yeast, and Peruvian Aji Amarillo and ups the nutritional ante with fresh broccoli and quinoa.

Veggie Mac Casserole

Ingredients

• 2 cups gluten-free or whole wheat elbow pasta, cooked according to directions
• 1/4 cup qunioa, cooked according to directions
• 2 tablespoons butter or butter alternative
• 4 ounces baby portobello mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large white onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 cups broccoli florets, chopped
• 1 pound winter squash, cooked and mashed
• 3/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1 1/2 cup unsweetened soy milk
• 1 tablespoon Aji Amarillo
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• Salt to taste

Preparation

1. Heat butter in a large skillet. Add mushrooms and saute until they have expressed liquid. Add onion and garlic to saute and continue cooking until onions are tender, about two minutes.
2. Stir broccoli into the saute. Cover and reduce heat to low allowing broccoli to steam until bright green and tender, about three minutes.
3. Stir cooked quinoa and pasta into the vegetables and set aside.
4. To make the sauce, combine squash, nutritional yeast, paprika, soy milk, Aji Amarillo, soy sauce, and balsamic vinegar  in a blender and combine until smooth. Season with salt to taste.
5. Pour sauce over vegetable saute and noodles and return to heat until the sauce begins to bubble.
6. Bake in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Cooked Butternut Squash

There are two good methods to use to cook hard winter squash variates like acorn squash, butternut squash, pumpkins, and kabocha. Incidentally, like soft skinned so called “summer squash”, winter squash also grows in the warmer months of the year but its skin gives it a longer shelf life so it is typically stored and eaten in the fall and winter. But, I digress.

The two methods I recommend are:

1. Peel the squash and with a sharp knife, carefully cut it in half, remove the seeds, and microwave the in a covered glass pie dish on high with about ½ and inch of water for 5-10 minutes, or until very soft. This works well when you are working with a small squash and feeling impatient.

2. Bake the squash halved, seeded, and unpeeled at 400°F for 20-30 minutes. Allow the squash to cool until it can be comfortably handled then scoop the baked pulp out of the skin with a spoon. This works well for larger squashes and, since the first method involves adding water, recipes that you don’t want to be excessively moist.

This recipe is inspired by a salad by Bryce Gilmore, owner of of Austin’s own Barely Swine. The abundant savory roasted vegetables along with a butter-based dressing make it a very satisfying entree salad.

Carrots and fennel ready for roasting

Ingredients

Salad:

• 1 pound young carrots, washed and halved
• 2 medium fennel bulbs, cut into wedges
• 5 cups baby arugula
• olive oil cooking spray
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon salt

Dressing:

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoon toasted sunflower seeds, divided
• 2 tablespoon toasted pumpkin seeds, divided
• salt to taste

Preparation

1. Spray a large cookie sheet with olive oil and arrange the carrots and fennel on the sheet for roasting.
2. Spray the vegetables liberally with olive oil and sprinkle with minced garlic, paprika, and salt.
3. Place the vegetables in the oven to roast at 350 degrees until vegetables are tender and fragrant, about 20 minutes.
4. While the vegetables are cooking prepare the dressing. Melt butter in a small skillet and cook over medium heat until slightly brown with a nutty fragrance.  Transfer the browned butter to a blender and combine with balsamic vinegar and one tablespoon of sunflower and pumpkin seeds. Season with salt to taste and set aside.
5. When the vegetables are finished roasting, remove from the oven and allow to cool for five to ten minutes. Assemble the salad by arranging a serving of vegetables over 1/2 to 1 cup of arugula, drizzle with dressing, and top with a sprinkle of the remaining sunflower and pumpkin seeds.

Roasted Carrot and Fennel Salad

This pie can easily be made gluten free by using a gluten-free crust and preparing the crumble with pecan meal.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup brown sugar, divided
• 1 tablespoon corn starch
• 2 cups green tomatoes, diced
• 1 1/2 cups fresh peaches, diced
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 cup butter or butter alternative
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 prepared 9-inch pie crust, defrosted if applicable

These are fantastic. Really.

Green Tomato Enchiladas (Photo:Gabriel Hasser)

Ingredients

• 2 large green tomatoes, diced
• 2 medium yellow squash, diced
• 4 large cloves garlic, minced and divided
• 1 large white onion, diced and divided
• 2 medium purple or green bell peppers, diced
• 1 cup textured vegetable protein, re-hydrated
• 15 ounces cooked pinto beans
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Mexican oregano, divided
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 20 fresh corn tortillas
• 8 large dried guajillo chilis
• 2 dried chipotle peppers
• 2 ripe red tomatoes, diced
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
• 3/4 cup vegetable broth
• Salt to taste
• 1 cup shredded Monterrey jack cheese or cheese substitute (optional)

Preparation

Sauce:

1. Boil dried guajillo and chipotle peppers in a pot of water until softened, about 10 minutes.
2. Drain the water and, when the peppers are cool enough to handle, remove the steams.
3. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet. Fry the softened peppers for a minute on each side on high heat until fragrant. Remove from heat.  Leave the leftover oil in the skillet and remove from heat.
4. Transfer peppers to a blender. Add broth and puree until smooth.
5. Reheat oil in the skillet and saute bell pepper, 1/2 of the diced white onion, half of the minced garlic, diced tomatoes, and 1/2 tablespoon Mexican oregano until the onions are soft. Add pepper puree and continue cooking for another minute or two.  Season with salt to taste and set aside.

Filling:

1. Heat one tablespoon of oil in a large skillet. Saute the remaining onion, garlic, tomatoes, and squash until the squash begins to soften, about two minutes.
2. Add remaining oregano, cumin, textured vegetable protein, and pinto beans to the vegetable saute. Cook for an additional two minutes and season with salt to taste.

Baking:

1. Coat a large baking pan with cooking spray. Add 1/2 a cup of the prepared enchilada sauce to the bottom of the pan and spread evenly.
2. Fill corn tortillas with about a 1/2 cup of filling and roll tightly. Pack the pan densely with rolled enchiladas then top with the remaining enchilada sauce and cheese.
3. Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit until the sauce bubbles and the cheese is thoroughly melted, about 20 minutes.
4. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes before serving.

Green Tomato Feast

I was wrong and I take back everything I said about green tomatoes that might have been construed as disparaging. After further experimentation I have decided that I love them! They are crisp, versatile, slightly tart globes of eating joy, and I am deeply sorry for my previous ignorance. I have found that I like them so much that I decided to try to put them in everything – and I mean everything.

Our latest green tomato recipes might be a good starting point for anyone who believes that they may be summoned to Kitchen Stadium. As a starter, one could recreate our Three Bean Green Tomato Salad with green tomatoes, fresh dragon tongue, green, and kidney beans, and a refreshing lemon dressing. This course could be followed by a fresh and flavorful Green Tomato Gazpacho or Green Tomato Pesto on buttery sourdough toast. For a main course why not try some flavor packed Green Tomato Enchiladas or a more delicate Green Tomato Pizza. For your final trick whip up a quick Spiced Green Tomato and Peach Pie – it works, really!