Asiago Sage Potato Gratin

This must be the week for comfort food. And this is definitely the food for comfort. I wanted to use up the rest of the fresh asiago cheese I used for the pasta, and this was a great dish. The nutmeg is a lovely addition, and the sage and asiago make a perfect complement to each other.



Asiago Sage Potato Gratin
2 tbsp butter
1/2 c onions, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp flour
2 bay leaves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp white pepper
2 c soymilk
1 c asiago cheese, freshly grated
1 c breadcrumbs
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp white pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/4 tsp rubbed sage
2 1/2 lbs idaho potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/8" thick

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a saucepan, melt butter. Add onions, and saute until golden. Add garlic, flour, bay leaves, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Cook for 1 minute, stirring continuously. Slowly add soymilk, and bring to boil. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit for 5 minutes.
In a small bowl, combine, cheese, breadcrumbs, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, and oil.
Remove bay leaves from milk mixture, and add sage, stirring well.
Layer 1/2 of the potatoes in the bottom of a well-oiled baking dish. Pour half of milk mixture over potatoes, and sprinkle half of the breadcrumb mixture on top. Repeat layers. Cover with foil.
Place into oven, and bake for an hour, or until potatoes are cooked. Allow to rest a few minutes after removing from the oven.
Serve and enjoy!

Oatmeal Cookie Granola
To me, this tastes exactly like an oatmeal cookie. It's got the oats, the vanilla, and the spices. Unlike my Gingersnap Granola, this one is definitely a sweeter granola. When you get that craving for something sweet, this is a perfect stand-in for a fat-loaded cookie.
This is also one of those blog posts when you wish you could attach a "scratch and sniff" section to it, because this smells simply divine while cooking.




Oatmeal Cookie Granola
4 c oats (or any combination of grains to equal 4 cups)
1/3 c flax seed (optional)
1/2 c brown sugar, packed
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
4 T butter
1/3 c honey
4 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine oats, flax, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large bowl. In a small saucepan, melt butter and add honey. Once it starts to simmer, remove from heat and quickly stir in extract. Mix well, and pour over dry mixture. Mix to coat thoroughly, and place on a greased cookie sheet. Place into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, until done. Allow to cool, and store in an airtight container.
*Note - granola nuggets form better if you stir the granola as little as possible while baking, and don't stir it at all while it's cooling.

Creamy Asiago, Artichoke, and Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta
Some days you just need a comfort food. The sun isn't out, there's a chill in the air, and all you want to do is eat something warm and creamy. That's where this guy comes in:



Creamy Asiago, Artichoke, and Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta
1/2 lb farfalle pasta, prepared*
1 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c onion, diced
1/2 c red pepper, diced
3/4 c sundried tomatoes, packed in oil, minced
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (or more if desired)
1 (14oz) can artichoke hearts, diced
1 tsp flour
1 c Soymilk
1/2 c asiago cheese, shredded
1/2 c basil, chopped
3 green onions, sliced

Prepare pasta according to directions. In large pot, heat olive oil. Add garlic, onion, and red pepper, and saute until onions are translucent. Add sundried tomatoes, and saute an additional 3 minutes. Add pepper flakes, artichoke hearts, and flour, and saute 3 more minutes. Add Soymilk and cheese, and simmer until thicker. Remove from heat, add basil and green onions. Stir well, toss with pasta and serve.
Enjoy!

*if desired, 1/2 c from pasta cooking water can be used to thin sauce down once finished.

Polenta CrackersI love these crackers. They're nutty, flavorful, and are a perfect accompaniment to dips and spreads. Also, by simply changing the spices, you can make these to suit your tastes.


Polenta Crackers
1 1/2 c boiling water
3/4 c polenta meal or cornmeal
1 tsp mixed herbs (for these, I used an onion and garlic seasoning blend)
1/2 tsp salt
2 T soy margarine

Bring water to a boil. Add polenta and herbs, and cook until creamy. Remove from heat, and add salt and margarine. On a well-oiled cookie sheet, spread out batter until thin. Score into pieces with a sharp knife. Bake in a 350 degree oven 20-25 minutes, until crispy and brown. Cool and serve.

Greek Potatoes

I'm not really a sweets* person. I'm not crazy about cake or cookies or pie. But dangle something salty or carb-y in front of me, and you've got yourself a deal. These potatoes are the quintessential comfort food. They are baked to perfection, and the lemon mixture thickens up to a lovely coating for the potatoes. Of course the aroma while these are cooking is amazing.



Greek Potatoes
This recipe is courtesy of Moosewood Cookbooks

6 medium-size potatoes, cut into large cubes (about 3lb)
1/2 c fresh lemon juice
1/3 c vegetable oil
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 1/2 tsp oregano
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 c hot water

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Combine potatoes - garlic in a baking dish, lightly sprayed with cooking oil. Pour hot water over and place into an oven. Bake an hour and a half, stirring every 20 minutes to prevent sticking. Add water if necessary. During the last 30 minutes of baking, allow water to evaporate. If desired, place under a broiler when finished baking to crisp up the potatoes. Serve and enjoy.

*Unless it's dark chocolate. If so, all bets are off.

Cranberry Upside-Down Gingerbread Cake

To celebrate "Monkey Love Day" today, I thought I'd take things to a sweeter side. It's also part of the "ARF/5-A-Day Round-up." (ARF stands for Antioxidant Rich Food)

This cake has just the right amount of sweetness, and not an overwhelming amount of spice. It's perfect if you don't want to do the normal decadence that's associated with this day.



Cranberry Upside-Down Gingerbread Cake
Topping
1/2 c brown sugar, packed
1/4 c butter, melted
8 oz whole cranberry sauce
1 (8 oz) can pineapple chunks, drained

Cake
1 1/3 c flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 c brown sugar, packed
1/2 c butter, softened
1/2 c dark molasses
1/2 c boiling water
1 egg, slightly beaten

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a 9" pie pan or square pan with cooking spray. Melt butter, and combine with brown sugar. Spread on bottom of pan. Arrange pineapple slices on top of sugar mixture. In small saucepan, warm cranberry sauce until . Drizzle sauce over pineapples.
In a bowl, combine all dry ingredients and stir well. Add remaining cake ingredients and blend well. Pour batter on top of fruit mixture, and place into oven. Bake 45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Serve warm and enjoy.

Lentils with Bulgur Wheat and Carmelized Onions

This is one of the very few recipes that I haven't altered in some way. In this recipe, it's really the carmelized onions that do it for me. The overall spices of the lentils and bulgur are very mellow, and you almost just catch a taste of them, which allows the deep flavor of the carmelized onions to round out the flavor. I can't say this is a recipe that will be made on a weekly or biweekly basis, but the flavors are interesting enough to make it again.



Lentils with Bulgur Wheat and Carmelized Onions
1 cup dry green lentils, rinsed
3 cups water
1 cup bulgur wheat
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large yellow onions, finely chopped
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Pinch grated nutmeg
Pinch allspice
3 large onions, thinly sliced
1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped parsley

In a medium pot, combine the lentils and water. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, cover, and simmer until still firm and almost done, 15 to 18 minutes. Add the bulgur wheat and 1/2 teaspoon salt, cover, and remove from the heat. Let sit until the bulgur is tender and the water is absorbed, 20 to 25 minutes, adding more water is the wheat seems dry.

In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onions and cook, stirring, until very soft, 5 minutes.

Add the garlic, cumin, cinnamon, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, black pepper, nutmeg, and allspice, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the lentil and bulgur wheat mixture and stir well to combine. Remove from the heat.

In a large skillet, heat the remaining tablespoon of olive over medium heat. Add the sliced onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until caramelized to a very dark brown color, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Transfer the lentil and bulgur wheat mixture to a platter and top with the caramelized onions. Sprinkle with chopped parsley, to taste. Serve either hot or at room temperature.