Quinoa, breakfast of champions

In past holiday seasons, I usually find myself 5 lbs. heavier by January 2. This year, it was 5 lbs. less! I spent my Christmas week eating vegan in the early part and then home cooking at my grandfather’s, and this is usually simple dishes, eaten family style — which is often small portions for me. Of course, during this period, I also indulged in my sister‘s peanut butter cupcakes, two morning buns from Tartine Bakery, cookies… But overall, I was good.

The morning after Christmas, my friend and I created this wonderful dish for breakfast, to kick off our road trip up the California coast to beautiful Mendocino. It was in part inspired by Yotam Ottolenghi, who’s spread in the January issue of Food & Wine magazine so enthralled me that I had to make one of his salads the previous week (when that is available online, I will update the post with the link). I jokingly called this dish the Breakfast of Champions — very low in fat, chockfull of protein, and very flavorful.

Note, You can substitute the red quinoa with gold or black, but you may have to modify the amount of water. I added 2 cups to start and then a 1/2 cup at a time. You can also substitute chickpeas with other beans.

Red quinoa, chickpeas, and pomegranate pilaf
Makes 6 servings

1 tbsp olive oil
3/4 cup yellow onion, diced
1 small garlic clove, diced
1 serrano chili, about 2 inches, diced (adjust to your taste)
1 teaspoon aleppo chili (or substitute paprika or other mild ground chili)
1 1/2 cup red quinoa
1 can chickpeas (14-16 oz)
3 cups water
2 stalks scallions, finely chopped
1/4 cup mint, chopped (when ready to use)
Seeds of 1 pomegranate

In a large sauce pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and gently sautee until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add garlic, serrano, and aleppo chili and thoroughly mix together.

Add the quinoa and stir to evenly cover the grains with the spice mixture. Add 2 cups of the water, making sure you evenly spread out the quinoa so it is submerged under the water. Lower heat and cook covered for 8-10 minutes, checking halfway through to make sure all the water hasn’t been absorbed. When water is mostly absorbed, add another half cup of water and the chickpeas and even out the mixture again, cover, and continue cooking. Keep checking, adding water as needed. If you need more than 3 cups total, just continue to add 1/2 cup at a time until cooked.

When ready, stir in the scallions, mint, and pomegranate seeds. Serve. Excellent as a cold dish as well.

Close up view of pilaf

Quinoa pilaf, served with fresh avocado, sliced jalapenos, and a squeeze of lime

Tags: easy, mediterranean, quinoa, vegan

Zucchini and mint soup

We’re going into the cold season in San Francisco (summer), yet beautiful vegetables are simply abundant. Whereas I used to make salads in the summer in Boston, I have taken to making soups now. This zucchini and mint soup is easy, light, and delicious. I use water because a stock will cover up the pure flavor of the zucchini and the mint. Serves about three as mains; 4-6 as starters.

Ingredients
4-5 baby zucchinis, quartered lengthwise and diced
1/2 medium onion, diced
1-2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp olive oil
About 2 cups water
Loose handful of mint
Salt and pepper to taste

In a pot large enough to sautee zucchini easily, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and sautee until onions become translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Add zucchini and cook, stirring often, ensuring even cooking. When it zucchini starts to soften, add enough water to just cover zucchini. Cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat. Using a hand blender, puree soup into rough texture, leaving some chunks. If using blender, roughly puree half. Place back in soup pot. Roughly tear mint and stir in.

You can serve this at room temperature. Add a dollop of creme fraiche if readily available.

Tags: mint, vegan, zucchini

Quick and easy chicken phở

This one’s for Beena. My quick version of chicken phở isn’t by any means authentic but it has a very clean flavour that I happen to like, and can be prepared in about an hour. I like my phở with minimal condiments, though chilis are an absolute essential! This makes about 4 servings as a main, with some chicken left over.

Ingredients

For the broth:
1 whole chicken, 4-5 lbs. (organic, free range preferred for better flavour)
1 stalk lemongrass, cut into 4-in lengths
1 whole medium onion
3-in length of ginger, cut in half lengthwise
Salt to taste
2 whole star anise *
1 tsp black or Szechuan peppercorns *
4-5 whole cloves *
1/2 stick cinnamon *
(*Note, it’s OK to substitute Chinese Five Spice, which includes fennel as the fifth spice — I add 1 tsp to start and check for flavour later, adding incremental 1/2 tsp if needed)

Putting it all together – amount depends on your preference:
1 lb. flat rice stick noodle
Green onions thinly chopped
Cilantro chopped
Chilis (whole or crushed if using Thai chilis, sliced for larger jalapenos)
Thinly sliced onions
Whole mint or Thai basil leaves
Bean sprouts
Lime wedges
Siracha, hoisin, and fish sauce optional

In a large pot, place cleaned, whole chicken in enough water to immerse it, add broth ingredients, cover, and bring to boil over medium heat. Lower heat at this point so the chicken stays tender. Turn chicken over after 30 minutes for even cooking. Skim as much fat and other bits as necessary. Chicken is ready when leg tears apart easily when pulled. Remove chicken and let cool. Lower heat on broth to a simmer, and continue to skim off anything that surfaces.

While chicken is cooling, prepare your condiments and noodles. Soak rice noodles in warm water and set aside.

When chicken is cool, put 4 cups of water in a pot to a boil (this is for the noodles). Gently tear chicken apart and shred chicken breasts and thighs. You can include whole drumsticks and wings in soup, or reserve for another meal. Remove skin if preferred.

To serve, drain noodles of warm water and re-soak quickly with boiling water. Drain and portion noodles into deep bowls, about 1 cup per person. Ladle broth over noodles — be generous — and add chicken and condiments to your preference. Myself, I like to add scallions, cilantro, chilis, and a dash of fish sauce before adding the broth.

Enjoy! (Maybe I’ll add photos later)

Tags: chicken, noodles, vietnamese

Easiest tomato soup ever

I look forward to this time of the year, when tomatoes begin to come into season. It’s still a little early yet, but I couldn’t resist getting a mix of vine ripe, cherry, and heirloom tomatoes I saw at the market. This is a super easy recipe for a room temperature/chilled summer soup. It takes literally 15 minutes and comes in under 100 calories per serving. All you need are delicious tomatoes, an excellent balsamic vinegar, and a food processor.

Chantal’s Easy Tomato Soup
Total time: 15 minutes
Servings: 3

Ingredients
2.5 lbs ripe tomatoes
1 tbsp good extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp very good balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

In a pot large, bring enough water to cover tomatoes to a boil. While water is heating, lightly cut X marks on bottom of tomatoes — this will make peeling very easy. Once water boils, add tomatoes and let cook for 1 minute. Remove and run cool water over tomatoes. Peel skin, quarter, and squeeze out seeds. Place tomatoes in food processor with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper and puree. Taste for balance and seasoning. If needed, add more olive oil and/or balsamic. Serve as is.

You can also dress this soup up with garnishes, including diced avocados, crab meat, a chiffonade of basil, a dollop of creme fraiche, etc. For an extra bite, add a de-seeded jalapeno to the tomatoes before pureeing.

Tags: easy, summer, tomato, vegan