The end of 'Vegetable Main Dishes'

It's time to wrap up this cookbook. I have learned that I really only divide up the recipes by week for the sake of shopping for ingredients, and I rarely cook ( and clearly don't blog) weekly!!

So...what to do. I feel like giving up on the blogging stuff. Do I just cook, and toss the books? I have already started my third book, and so far, not a single hit. But as a look back on some of the yummy recipes I have taken the time to cook and photograph, (especially that Kale and Sweet Potato Soup!) I am motivated to type on.

Here we go.

WEEK 8 -

Thai Veggie Curry and Green Pea Curry -
Made the same day, a day that I also happened to have my cousins over for dinner. They overwhelmingly chose the Thai Curry. I'm going to blame the coconut milk. I really can't get enough coconut milk these days!

Ravioli Nudi -
Naked Ravioli? How exciting! Not. I ended up frying the Spinach batter into little veggie pancakes, and saved the day.

Basmati Rice Salad -
potatoes, rice, and cauliflower? Way too much white food.

Spring Vegetable Paella -
What makes a rice dish Paella? Besides the cute little skillet, I'd think it has to be the saffron. I've spent some time hunting down those precious little crocus threads, and if I'm going to make Paella, I'm using them! this dish called for Tumeric. Yes, it is yellow. No, it is not the same. Not my favorite Paella recipe, I think I could do better.

Roasted Veggies with Aioli -
It seems a little silly to me, roasting all these gorgeous, healthy veggies, and then dipping them in Mayonnaise. Luckily, my kids preferred to eat those delicious veggies as is. Thanks to this recipe, my kids will now eat hard-boiled eggs. And I suppose that is the answer, right there. I keep doing this because every recipe is another chance for my family to discover a new food, seasoned and cooked a new way. This recipe ( minus aioli) was a big hit, and I will definitely be serving a platter of roasted veggies and eggs again soon!

Three Cheese Pizza -
with Caramelized onions and pimientos? Yes. this pizza was great. the mix of sweet onions and savory goat cheese ( substituted for Bleu) was terrific! I made this, along with the Roasted Pepper Pizza and the Spinach and Artichoke Pizza as an appetizer for a party. It was a fun change of pace from the usual chips and dips.

WEEK 9 -

Eggplant and Potato Curry -
"This is too sour!" and that's the end of that.

Penne Salad with Eggplant -
A bit of a surprise, as the eggplant melted down and became so soft, it was almost like a sauce.

Eggplant Sandwiches with Tarragon Sauce -
Eggplant! Eggplant! Eggplant! Yes, it's a lot of Eggplant. But these 'sandwiches' make it all worth it!! I think I would serve these again as smaller bite- size pieces, they would make a fabulous appetizer. They were kind of awkward to eat on a plate. AAANNDD... I fried them without burning them! Just when I thought we were going to be a fry-free kitchen!

Carrot and Bean Soup -
Very basic soup, my kids prefer noodles to beans. I just gave them broth and veggies with their grilled cheeses.

WEEK 10 -

Linguine with Peanut Sauce - 
I loved getting to practice my knife-skills with this recipe. Chopping, thinly slicing and julienning. But it was more pleasing to the eyes than to the tastebuds, I spiced mine up with a little sriracha.

GadoGado -
My second attempt at GadoGado, and while the kids are happy to eat a tray of blanched veggies, they aren't the least bit interested in the peanut sauce. I did, however, make this as an appetizer for a lunch with girlfriends, and they loved it!

Veggie Biryani -
The go-to dish when we eat at Indian Restaurants, my kids enjoyed this one.

Asian Vegetable Noodle Soup - This didn't have much flavor, but I actually thawed out the leftovers tonight, and it was the perfect thing for my sore throat. And I can't taste anything anyway, so that works out, in a weird way. The most exciting part of this soup was the cute little traditional bowls and spoons I served it with. The kids love that.

WEEK 11 -

Corn Pudding -
This was good, but what you see missing is all we ate. I hate wasting food. :(

Corn Chowder -
Delicious!

 Black Bean Soup -
NOT Delicious

Potato Cheese Soup -
Also, not delicious. My mom's potato soup is amazing, I will stick to her recipe!

Corn and Black Bean Quesadilla - 

 I was surprised to see this disappear! Yum.

Bean and Rice Salad -
This recipe made Bren decide he maybe DID like kidney beans after all. He has asked me to make this again.

Here's a list of the recipes I didn't make:
Mushroom Kabobs - Mushrooms aren't popular in this house
Veggie Sandwich -  just basic
Escabeche with Polenta - not gonna eat it.
Potato Pizza - WAY too much white.

Here's a list of the recipes I did make, but lost the pictures for. If I find them, I'll post them!
Asparagus Baked Eggs - sooo cute! I need to pick a bigger loaf of bread, with softer crust, but I'd try this recipe again!
Sweet and Sour Soup - I don't really remember this, which isn't a good sign.
Endive Salad - B liked the Potato Apple cakes that went with this, but I didn't think they were very good.
Pan Bagnat - Sadly, I made these sandwiches, wrapped them and refridgerated them like the directions said, and then left for vacation. the stuffing was tasty though!
Cesar Salad - interesting to make cesar dressing from scratch, but it was too egg-y.
Spinach Salad - Not a winner.
Eggplant Salad - I just don't like lentils.
Pepper Jack and Spinach Pizza - too spicy for the fan, but good
Grilled Cheese - FABULOUS!! the kids called them pizza grilled cheeses.
Baba Ghanouj - it burns! yuck!
Mushroom Potato Salad - strange. but not terrible.
Grilled Veggie Sandwich - I made this while camping, soo good! It also re-introduced pesto to our dinners, which we have used often since!


Done and Done!!

Weeks 4-7

March 26?? That was quite awhile ago! I'm going to blame the LOS ANGELES KINGS WINNING THE STANLEY CUP!!! It's ruled our house for the last few months!! B and I are pretty much life-long Kings fans, and actually met playing in a game organized for Kings fans!! Parties, parades, the whole thing has beed a dream come true, easily the fourth best day of our lives!!

But this isn't hockey blog, so I'll move on. I have actually cooked almost through week ten, but I'll wait and blog those when I finish. Going all the way back to... week 4!

Kale and White Bean Stew- yum. This stew called for Sausage, which I left out. It's a very hearty stew, tangy from the tomatoes, and the Kale is good. Only I ate it though, so I probably won't make it again. There are so many amazing soups in the world, there just isn't time for repeating mediocre ones! Behind the stew are the Mushroom and Spinach puffs from Cookshelf Vegetarian. I'd make them a third time!

Spaghetti with Escarole - I couldn't find escarole, I used spinach, since I always have that in the house. Minus the bacon and anchovy paste, there just wasn't anything left worth eating. 

Cheddar Cheese Grits with Spicy Black Beans - I was really looking forward to enjoying grits. And I did. Unfortunately, I was the only one. I plan to keep trying though! The chicken and broccoli were, as always, a success. I think they'd eat that every night. *sigh*

Hoppin' John - We are NOT from the South. Born and Raised in So Cal, there is a serious lack of exposure to southern food and culture. It's like trying to find a good Mexican Restaurant in Spain. You have to know somebody who knows somebody, who takes you down some creepy back alley, and you fear for your life. Luckily, in Spain, that dark alley DID lead to an amazing Mexican restaurant!! These Southern inspired recipes, not-so-lucky. My black-eyed peas were crunchy, and the whole thing was REALLY salty. I look forward to trying these dishes again, but perhaps made by professionals!

My exploration into the world of "greens", besides romaine and iceberg, has not been a failure though! The whole family has been open-minded about eating them, and that equals success! Speaking of successes...

Island Kale and Sweet Potato Soup! - The first recipe to be added to my own personal recipe book, this Soup was AMAZING, and I want some right now, while I type this!! I LOVED the coconut milk. It was a wonderful, sweet, comforting surprise on a cold, rainy night! I skipped the rice, the soup is too good!

On that happy note, on to week 5!

Squash and Bean Stew - not bad, but not good either. I don't know where the pic went.

Butternut Squash Couscous - Not good. I just didn't care for the mix of beans and squash. Looked pretty, though.

Penne with Squash and Ham - Surprise! We have a winner! I went ahead and used the Black Forest Ham in this dish, since I knew my husband would eat it. It was the first time the kids and I ever really had ham in a dish (I grew up in a culture that kept Kosher, and even though my family cheated now and then, I still have never really developed a habit of cooking or eating pork.) it was delicious! B actually ate the frozen leftovers for dinner tonight, so I would make this again!

Spinach risotto - Great! Risottos seem to be a continuing success in this family. I skipped the mushrooms in this one though. And frankly, there just aren't a whole lot of veggies in risotto. I'll keep trying...

I also made a vegetable noodle soup. The notes said to make it however you want, so I don't really see any reason to keep the recipe!

WEEK 6!!


Pumpkin Lasagne - The flavor of this was ok, but it was TOO MUCH. too much food, too much sweet, too much pumpkin, too much mush. It was like a dessert for dinner, and I think there could be a healthier way to make this dish.

Ribollita - the recipe for this soup was also in Cookshelf Vegetarian, and I preferred that version.

Green Minestrone - this soup was nice, simple, clean, ok. Not much to say about it, so I don't think it'll make the list!!

Five Flavors Salad - A nice salad, it's described as being "all our favorite flavors in one!" well, I'm not sure how the potatoes and cocktail onions count as favorite flavors. I'm also not a big fan of walnuts, and spinach doesn't really have much of a flavor. B thought the dressing was also too sour. Not bad, but not good enough to stay!

Chard Calzone - WONDERFUL! All of us enjoyed these flavorful little pizza pockets! I switched the ricotta to marscapone, since we aren't fans of ricotta. I also used the pizza dough recipe from Cookshelf Vegetarian. VERY GOOD!!

WEEK 7!!

Shepherd's pie - I just happened to make this the same day as the Scottish Festival, so it fit in quite nice!! I really enjoyed it, the kids just ate the veggies ( they aren't a fan of mashed potatoes) and B thought it was ok. Big mistake though, using PURPLE cabbage! It just made it such an odd color. I'll stick to green for next time!

Orecchiette with Broccoli - became tiny bow tie with Broccoli. The kids ate it, minus the sauce, and B thought it was ok. Ultimately, nothing really spectacular.

Baked polenta - grits just aren't a hit in this house. Add mushrooms, and forget it!

Broccoli Rabe Frittata - I played it safe and just used regular broccoli, but still, no one was impressed. They ate it, but I prefer the Bok Choy and Asparagus Frittata from earlier.

Lastly, Rigatoni with Cauliflower - What a surprise, my family picked around the cauliflower. I really can't complain though, if the only veggies my family won't eat seem to be Potatoes, Cauliflower and Mushrooms!!  The raisins in the sauce reminded me of Port, it was surprisingly nice.

Next blog should be up soon, as I am nearly finished with the next few weeks of recipes! With the exception of the Kale and Sweet Potato Soup, I'm still waiting for that magical recipe that makes it worth it...

Book 2, Week 1, 2, & 3!

Vegetable Stir Fry - Basic, Fresh, Colorful, and Delicious!! Everyone loved this, except the radishes. This recipe also introduced us to Bok Choy, which has become a staple in our household!

Tabbouleh with Tuna - Remember when I said there'd be meat this time? Well...here you go. I made this Tabbouleh without the tuna, my family was NOT going to eat that. Turns out, they didn't eat it anyway. I have a basic tabbouleh recipe I prefer. There was just TOO much in this.

Fettuccine with Cherry Tomatoes and Watercress - I cut WAY back on the Watercress, It was "too spicy" and I used Spaghetti because that is what I had in the Pantry. A very basic recipe, My husband liked it! My kids prefer their pasta with butter, salt, and pepper.

Asparagus and Bok Choy Frittata - I don't know what happened to my picture, but it was yummy! It's possible my family ate it all, before I had a chance to take it! I also made this recipe for a Women's Brunch, and it was a big hit!

Swiss Chard Stew - I don't have a picture of this either. I thought it was tasty and different, no one else would try it.

From left to right, Brie Raclette - the kids just ate the broccoli, I love brie, but this was too much just for me.
Linguine with Eggplant and Mushroom sauce - Best use of eggplant yet! Good thing it was good, cuz I had to eat it for three meals, the rest of the family wouldn't touch it. they missed out.
Mushroom Pizzas - I used my basic Pizza dough recipe from bookshelf Vegetarian, then covered it with the mushroom sauce. It was tasty! The kids preferred the basic cheese pizza.

Spinach and Artichoke Bread Pudding - wow, yum! not particularly healthy, but quite tasty! I think it got a little crispier than it's supposed to be. I would use this recipe again for a brunch, but not for the family.

At the Top - Mushroom Fried Rice. I cut WAY back on the mushrooms it called for, as I can't get my family to eat mushrooms! But They LOVE fried rice, so the rest of the recipe was a success!

At the Bottom- Stir-fried Veggies with Cashews. Again, the Fam picked around the Mushrooms, but liked the Broccoli and Cashews!

Spaghettini with Onions, Scallions and Garlic, and Spaghetti with Escarole and Bacon are being skipped, as I just don't think they can beat plain spaghetti for us!

5 Veggie stir-fry with Lentils - They described this recipe as sounding " more like punishment than treat, but it is surprisingly delicious" and it was ! I would definitely make this again. I really love stir-frying, the veggies come out perfect, and my family usually eats them!

Fettuccine with mushroom and goat cheese - Not good, but in it's defense, I used feta instead of a creamy goat cheese. I think I'm just tired of pasta.

Oat Cakes with Horseradish sauce and spinach- the oat cakes where a surprise hit ( I told them they were veggie pancakes!) but the spinach was yucky, I'd rather eat it fresh, and only I enjoyed the horseradish sauce. I don't usually keep horseradish in the house, but this recipe reminded me how much I liked it. I used to put it on my baked potato when we had steak dinners as a kid.

Last, but certainly NOT least, Kale and Sweet Potato Soup! What a yummy surprise on a cold, rainy night! I LOVED the coconut milk, it reminds me of Tom Ka from Toi, my favorite Thai restaurant! Sweet and spicy, It was absolutely Delicious!

Something new for 2012!

I've started my second cookbook! I'm excited! There have already been some hits and misses, but with a cart full of fresh new recipes, ideas, and food, I'm ready to go!!

My new book is "Quick from Scratch: Vegetable Main Dishes" published by Food & Wine Magazine. My Mother-in-Law has been handing me down some of her cookbooks, (she has also published her own little cookbook of family recipes!) and this is the one I picked first.

It's pretty short, and NOT a vegetarian cookbook, but since my goal is to get my family eating MORE vegetables, not ONLY vegetables ( for now!), I figured I'd give it a try!

Once again, I went through the entire book, matched recipes together, and made weekly shopping lists. My recipes will be listed by week, though I don't always get all the recipes made in a week. I also don't blog every week! I just squeeze them in when I have time. I hope you enjoy cooking and reading!

The End of an Era...

Ok, not really. But this post is actually pretty monumental for me. I'm not one for finishing what I start, I've always been kind of a commitment-phobe, and I don't think I've ever been successful at completing a New Year's Resolution!

So here it is, my final Blog post about the "Cookshelf Vegetarian". My sweet friend Darlene gave me this book 6 years ago, and I am happy to say I've actually cooked my way through this cookbook. I have mixed emotions about it. I want so desperately to think it was amazing, but as I flip through the pages, I think there are less and less recipes I would make again. I admit it could be because of my lack of proper training, but so many recipes were a disappointment. And the ones that I did like, I think I could improve.

Nonetheless, the experience has been amazing, and I am bound and determined to continue my cookbook adventures. I've already got "Cook from Scratch: Vegetarian Main Dishes" by Food & Wine Magazine Queued up and ready to start, it is a hand-me-down from my Mother-in-law, Elaine. I am also hoping to pick up a Vegan cookbook by Real Food Daily and try that one with my newly-Vegan-and-loving-it cousin Jacki!

My husband just walked in and I told him I was finishing up this book blog. I said "can you believe I made all that food?" he showed me his "gut" ( he's tall and thin, hence, the quotes) and said " you mean all of THIS food?!?!"Haha, yes, all that food.

Here are my final "Cookshelf Vegetarian" recipes. Thanks to any and everyone who's followed along! I hope I have inspired you to try something new, and EAT YOUR VEGGIES!!

Roasted Bell Pepper Tart: Tarts have been a surprise hit with my family, and this one continued the trend. I do wish they were a healthier way to eat veggies, but they are delicious. I especially enjoyed the saltiness of the olive crust.

Here are two recipes, the Mushroom and Spinach puffs are the triangles in the front, and the the back one is a Vegetable Strudel. Everyone liked the spinach and mushroom puff, especially my husband, which is always a nice surprise! No go on the Strudel, though. It just didn't have as much flavor as the spinach one.

Next, Vegetable hot pot. The potato crust was delicious. The veggies and broth, just eh. I really feel like this whole book just needed more spice!

Veggie Toad in a Hole? sounds strange. Those crazy English names. I don't think this came out quite the way it was supposed to, but it was delicious. The veggies were yummy and cooked well, and the crust was tasty too!

I used to work for a catering company and restaurant. One of the chefs who was sympathetic to my Vegetarianism ( the other chefs used to chase me through the kitchen with GIANT dead fish, or sneak meat into my salads!) made me an amazing Mac and Cheese with Blue cheese. It was so delicious. When I saw this recipe for Pear and Walnut Spaghetti, I knew my family wouldn't be eating it, but I had to try it. The kids called it stinky pasta. It was sadly not NEARLY as good as that Mac and Cheese from so long ago.

Cabbage Stirfry. Surprisingly delicious! No one else would try it. Apparently Cabbage and Cauliflower are just NOT on the list. But I liked it. Kind of reminded me of a warm, fresh sauerkraut.

This pear and Cabbage Salad was nice. Just nice, nothing fancy. I liked the dressing. It was much less sour than all the other dressings they've had it in this cookbook.

Leek souffle : a sad disappointment after the yumminess that was the mushroom soufflé!

Gado Gado, or "Mix-Mix" ( thanks, Wikipedia) was a lovely tray of Blanched Veggies and peanut sauce. I switched the cauliflower to Broccoli, and it was a hit!! I have had better peanut same though ( Toi on Sunset....you are just the BEST) My family could live without the cabbage and bean sprouts, but I could leave the broccoli, carrots and green beans out, and the kids would've snacked all day.

And that is THAT!!!