The evenings here in Brooklyn have been crisp and breezy; a reminder that fall is just around the corner. This soup is perfect for these last weeks of summer because you can enjoy it hot or cold. It is delicious served with a crisp tortilla layered high with sauteed eggplant, tomato and goat cheese. Thanks to Jack Bishop, author of A Year in the Vegetarian Kitchen for this and so many other tasty recipes, including the crisp tortilla one I just mentioned.
Ingredients:
- 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 1/2 pounds yellow summer squash, chopped
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 tablespoon gingerroot
- 3 medium garlic cloves, minced
- 2 teaspoons curry powder (I had a red curry spice mix which I added to the original curry in give the soup some heat)
- 6 cups vegetable broth
- 8 ounces starchy potato (either 1 large or 2-3 smaller ones)
- salt
- 1/2 cup packed fresh cilantro leaves
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Directions:
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the squash and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 8-10 minutes. Stir in the ginger, garlic, and curry powder and cook until just fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the broth, potato, and salt to taste and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the potato is very tender, about 25 minutes.
- Puree the soup in batches in a blender (or use an immersion blender) until very smooth. Adjust the seasonings. Transfer the soup to an airtight container, cover, and refrigerate until well chilled, at least several hours (unless you want to have the soup hot!). The soup can be refrigerated for several days.
- When you are ready to serve the soup, puree the cilantro, lime juice, and remaining 3 tablespoons oil in a blender until smooth. Add salt to taste.
- Taste the chilled soup and adjust the seasonings, adding salt as needed. Ladle the soup into small bowls. Drizzle some cilantro puree over each bowl and serve.
If you want to use up a bunch of your root vegetables but don’t feel like turning on the oven, this is the perfect dish. You can make it in under 10 minutes, and can pretty much use any vegetables you want. The two key tools here are a mandoline and a mini food processor (You can use a blender, too). To make this salad a meal, serve it with the second recipe below, Quick Sesame Peanut Noodles.
Here are the vegetables I used:
- 1 harukei turnip
- 1 red beet
- 1 medium zucchini
- 1 medium yellow summer squash
Other vegetables you can substitute are: carrots, kohlrabi, any other type of beet…
Use a mandoline to thinly slice all of the vegetables and combine in a large bowl. Then, make the dressing:
Dressing Ingredients:
- 1 clove of garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 teaspoon of fresh ginger, roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon honey or sugar
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
Directions:
- Place ginger and garlic in mini food processor and process for a few seconds. Scrape down sides if necessary.
- Add vinegar, soy sauce and honey in food processor and blend for another 30 seconds or so.
- Slowly drizzle in oils. I use the itty-bitty hole at the top of the mini-prep so that I can continue to process while adding the oils.
- Pour dressing over salad and combine. Serve immediately.
Bonus Recipe: Quick Sesame Peanut Noodles
Ingredients:
- Banh Pho Noodles (wide, flat rice noodles–I used about 1/3 of the package of the very wide kind, like the type of noodle in Pad Thai)
- a handful or two of raw unsalted peanuts
- 1 teaspoon tahini
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1-2 tablespoons of scallion, roughly chopped
Directions:
- Cook noodles according to package directions. I put mine in boiling water for about 6 minutes and then drained. Then I returned them to the pot.
- Blend noodles, tahini and soy sauce in a food processor for a 1-2 minutes, scraping down sides as necessary.
- Place peanut mixture in a bowl with 2-3 tablespoons warm water. Stir to combine.
- Pour mixture over noodles and add the scallions.
- Heat up the noodles over medium-low heat for 2-3 minutes, and serve immediately.
I guess it was inevitable: A Brooklyn blogger writes about pizza. In my opinion, a slice of pizza and a green salad is the perfect meal. Why not pile the greens on top of the pizza? For the dough, you can use store-bought or make your own. Our bread maker has a pizza dough setting which makes dough better than I ever could. I recommend using a pizza stone. Put it in the oven when you start preheating it.
Note: Don’t confuse this “salad pizza” with a “pizza salad”, which I hope to experiment with one day soon!
Ingredients:
The Pizza
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 red onion, diced
- 1 summer squash, sliced thin (I used a mandoline)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/8 tsp dried oregano
- 1/8 tsp dried basil
- 1/8 tsp dried thyme
- pizza dough of your choice
- 4-8 ounces quality mozzarella cheese, shredded (how cheesy do you like your pizza?)
- pizza sauce of your choice
The Salad
- 4 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 2 tsp red wine vinegar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 4 leaves of fresh basil, roughly chopped
Directions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees and place pizza stone in the oven.
- Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to a skillet. Saute squash, onions, garlic, oregano, basil, and thyme for 8-10 minutes over medium heat. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Meanwhile, prepare your dough, depending on the type you have. Sprinkle half of the cheese on the dough. Spread the tomato sauce on top, and then layer the squash mixture. Add the second layer of cheese. Place pizza in oven, and cook for 12-15 minutes.
- While the pizza cooks, whisk together tsp red wine vinegar, 1/4 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil until combined. Toss with the lettuce and tomatoes. (You can add some fresh mild cheese here as well)
- Take pizza out of the oven when the cheese starts to turn light brown in a few places. Add chopped fresh basil on top, and allow to cool for 5 minutes.
- Pile the greens on top of the salad…Slice, and enjoy!
It seems as if the zucchini in my fridge were multiplying overnight. This Mediterranean recipe
comes from Mark Bittman’s How To Cook Everything Vegetarian. It is a great spin on ratatouille, and helps to solve the problem of the multiplying zucchini.
Ingredients:
- 1 medium or 2 small eggplants
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 medium zucchini, roughly chopped
- 1 small onion, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 medium tomato, cored and roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 cup minced parsley leaves for garnish
Directions:
- Trim the eggplant and cut it into 1-inch cubes. (If the eggplant is large, soft, or especially seedy, sprinkle the cubes with salt, put them in a colander, and let them sit for at least 30 minutes, preferably 60. Rinse, drain, and pat dry.)
- Put 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When hot, add the eggplant, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden, about 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and drain on paper towels.
- Put the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in the pan and add the zucchini. Cook, stirring occasionally, until just starting to wilt, about 2 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and cook and stir for another minute or two, until soft. Add the tomato and thyme and cook for another minute, until the tomato just starts to wilt and release its juice. Remove from the heat, stir in the lemon juice, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Put the eggplant in a salad bowl and add the vegetables and dressing from the pan. Stir to combine. Cool to room temperature and taste and adjust the seasoning, garnish, and serve. (Or prepare the salad to this point, cover, and refrigerate for up to 2 days; garnish just before serving either cold or room temperature).
fresh from brooklyn 