Tuesday Recipes

I'm getting a late start today, but at least I'm here! In the meantime, here are today's six recipes to try out. Enjoy!

GRILLED SAUSAGES, ONIONS AND PEPPERS

Doesn’t the sound of this make your mouth water? It makes mine, and I’m a vegetarian! (Guess I could use vegetarian sausages.) This delectable recipe comes from Sam Sifton in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Sam wrote, “There is no more reliable guest at a cookout than sausage, roasted over the open fire. But before you grill the meat, get some peppers and onions soft and dark and fragrant in the heat, and use these as a bed on which to serve the links. Italian sausage works beautifully here, as do hot links and bratwurst. If cooking brats, think about simmering them first in beer and onions, then finishing them on the fire.” Yield: 6 servings; Time: 40 minutes.

This recipe was featured in “Mixed Grill, the American Way” and can be found online by clicking here.

Ingredients

1 pound sweet peppers (green, red and yellow, if available) seeded and cut into eighths

2 large yellow onions, peeled and cut into large coins

3 to 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, more to taste

1/4 teaspoon salt, more to taste

2 pounds sweet or hot Italian sausages, or bratwurst or other fresh sausage

Preparation

Build a fire in your grill, leaving one side free of coals. When coals are covered with gray ash and the temperature is medium (you can hold your hand 5 inches above the coals for 5 to 7 seconds), you are ready to cook. (For a gas grill, turn all burners to high, lower cover and heat for 15 minutes, then turn burners to medium.)

Meanwhile, toss peppers and onions with oil and sprinkle with salt. Lightly prick sausages all over so that they do not burst.

Put peppers and onions in a grill basket or directly on the grill, turning occasionally until they are softened and dark at the edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Move them to the side of the grill without coals.

Place the sausages on the hot side of the grill, cover and cook, turning occasionally until they are cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes.

Transfer the peppers and onions to a platter and top with the sausages. Drizzle with olive oil and serve.

EAST COAST GRILL’S CORNBREAD

This also comes from Sam Sifton in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Sam wrote, “This corn bread, adapted from the one developed by Chris Schlesinger and served at his East Coast Grill in Cambridge, Mass., is lofty and sweet, crusty and cakelike, moist and ethereal. As Sam Sifton said in the 2012 article that accompanied the recipe, it is ‘the corn bread to become a child’s favorite, to become the only corn bread that matters. All else is not corn bread.’” Yield: 6 to 8 servings; Time: 1 hour 15 minutes.

This was featured in “The Corn Bread Matters Most”, and can be viewed online here.

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup yellow cornmeal

3/4 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon baking powder

2 large eggs

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/4 cup melted butter

2 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly oil a 9-inch cast-iron skillet and put it in the oven to heat up.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt and baking powder. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk and oil. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients, add the melted butter and the corn and stir together until just mixed.

Remove the hot cast-iron pan from the oven and pour into it the batter, then give the pan a smack on the countertop to even it out. Return pan to oven and bake, approximately 1 hour, until the corn bread is browned on top and a toothpick or a thin knife inserted into the top comes out clean.

THE ULTIMATE VEGGIE BURGER

This comes from Melissa Clark, also in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Melissa wrote, “You make a veggie burger because you want the hamburger experience without the meat. This one delivers. It’s got a firm, beefy texture that takes on the char and smoke of the grill, but is adaptable enough to cook inside on your stove. The enemy of a veggie burger is mushiness, which stems from a high moisture content. To combat that, the very watery ingredients – mushrooms, tofu, beans and beets – are roasted to both dehydrate them somewhat and intensify their flavors. Yes, the ingredient list here is long; you need a diverse lot to make a good veggie burger. And each one adds something in terms of flavor and/or texture. Garnish this any way you like, and don’t forget to toast the buns.” Yield: 6 burger.

This was featured in “The Ultimate Veggie Burger”, and can be found online here.

Also, there are two guides that went with this recipe that you might want to check out. The first is “How to Cook Beans”, and the second is “How to Grill”. Enjoy!

Ingredients

4 ounces extra-firm tofu, drained

Olive oil

1/2 pound cremini mushrooms, trimmed and sliced

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, more as needed

Black pepper, as needed

1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, drained

1 medium beet, peeled and coarsely grated (3/4 cup)

3/4 cup tamari almonds or cashews

1/3 cup panko bread crumbs

2 ounces Cotija cheese or queso blanco, crumbled or grated (about 1/2 cup)

2 large eggs

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

2 scallions, sliced

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

3/4 teaspoon dulce pimentón or sweet smoked paprika

4 ounces tempeh, crumbled

1/2 cup cooked brown rice

Preparation

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Slice tofu into 1/4-inch-thick slabs and pat dry with paper towel. Arrange tofu on one half of a rimmed baking sheet; brush both sides with oil. Spread mushrooms on the other half of the baking sheet; toss with 2 tablespoons oil and salt and pepper.

On a second rimmed baking sheet, toss beans and grated beet with 1 tablespoon oil and salt and pepper, then spread the mixture into one layer.

Transfer both baking sheets to the oven. Roast bean-beet mixture, tossing occasionally, until beans begin to split and beets are tender and golden, about 15 minutes. Roast mushrooms and tofu until golden and most of the liquid has evaporated, about 25 minutes. Let everything cool.

Place nuts in a food processor and pulse until coarsely ground. Add cooled bean-beet mixture, mushrooms, tofu, panko, cheese, eggs, mayonnaise, scallion, garlic, pimentón and 3/4 teaspoon salt. Pulse until ingredients are just combined. Pulse in tempeh and rice but do not overprocess. You want small chunks, not a smooth mixture. Scrape mixture into a bowl and chill at least 2 hours or up to 5 days (you can also freeze the burger mix).

When you are ready to make the burgers, divide mixture into 6 equal portions and form each portion into a patty about 1 inch thick. Return to the fridge until just before grilling. They grill better when they start out cold.

Heat the grill. Cook the burgers over a low fire until they are charred on both sides and firm when you press on them, 4 to 6 minutes per side. If they start to burn before they firm up, move them to the sides of the grill to finish cooking over indirect heat. Alternatively, you can cook these on a grill pan or in a skillet over low heat.

EGG WITH GRITS AND MUSHROOMS

This recipe and the next two are from the May 2016 issue of Runner’s World. The recipes begin, “If eggs aren’t a staple in your diet, they should be. One of the purest forms of protein, they contain brain-benefiting choline and muscle-repairing leucine. Each of these quick-and-easy snacks offers more than eight grams of protein, more than eight grams of carbohydrates, and about 200 calories, to help you recover after a run. And while you may have been cautious about eggs due to their high cholesterol content (200 mg), recent U.S. dietary guidelines lifted the 300 mg daily limit, citing research that has shown dietary cholesterol doesn’t increase the risk of heart disease. “Most people can safely have one egg a day,” says Tara Collingwood, R.D.N., C.S.S.D, official nutritionist for runDisney. And be sure to eat the whole package: The yolk carries much of the egg’s protein, all of its fat-soluble vitamins, and the antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin—important for keeping your vision healthy so you can clearly see that finish line.”

All three can be found by clicking here.

This recipe begins, “Stay perky. Shiitake mushrooms are a good source of B vitamins, which help create energy from carbs.”

Ingredients

1/4 cup instant grits

1/4 tsp. minced garlic

3 sliced medium shiitake mushroom caps

1/4 cup low sodium vegetable broth

1 large egg

Salt

Pepper

Instructions

Combine 1/4 cup instant grits in a bowl with 1/4 tsp. minced garlic. Microwave with water, according to package directions. Saute 3 sliced medium shiitake mushroom caps in pan with 1/4 cup low-sodium vegetable broth over medium-high heat until most liquid is absorbed, stirring occasionally.

Fry 1 large egg sunny-side up over low to medium heat in a small nonstick pan with spray oil. Combine grits with mushrooms and egg. Season with black pepper and salt.

SWEET BERRY OMELET

This recipe begins, “Protect your ticker. Berries, high in antioxidants, are good for your heart. Research found that women who ate 1 1/2-plus cups of berries weekly had a lower risk of heart attack.” That alone is a great reason to fix this!

Ingredients

1 large egg

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

3/4 cup blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries

1 1/2 Tbsp. part-skim ricotta

1 Tbsp. chopped pecans

Cinnamon

Instructions

Mix 1 large egg with 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract in small bowl. Cook omelet over medium heat in a nonstick pan with spray oil. Pan-fry 3/4 cup blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries over medium-high heat, in another pan coated with spray oil, until fruit begins to cook. Top omelet with 1 1/2 Tbsp. part-skim ricotta, 1 Tbsp. chopped pecans, and fruit. Dust with cinnamon.

HUMMUS DEVILED EGG

This recipe begins, “Cure the cold. Lemons are an excellent source of immunity-boosting vitamin C.”

Ingredients

1 large egg

1 tsp. store-bought hummus

1 tsp. lemon juice

1/8 tsp. lemon zest

Chopped parsley

Pepper

6 whole-grain crackers

Instructions

Slice 1 large shelled and hard-boiled egg lengthwise, and remove yolk. Place yolk in a bowl with 1 tsp. store-bought hummus and 1 tsp. lemon juice. Mash with a fork, mixing in 1/8 tsp. lemon zest. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and black pepper to taste. Serve with six whole-grain crackers.