Mushroom Risotto With Peas

From here

Ingredients

• 6 to 7cups chicken, vegetable or garlic broth or stock, as needed
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• ½ cup finely chopped onion, or 2 shallots, minced
• ¾ to 1pound wild mushrooms, cleaned if necessary and torn or sliced into smaller pieces if thick (small wild mushrooms should be left whole, mushrooms like maitake can just be separated into small pieces)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves or chopped sage
• 1½ cups arborio or carnaroli rice
• ½ cup dry white wine, such as pinot grigio or sauvignon blanc
• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed (optional)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, or a mixture of Parmesan and Pecorino Romano

Instructions

1. Bring stock or broth to a simmer in a saucepan, with a ladle nearby. Make sure stock is well seasoned, and keep it simmering on the stove.
2. Heat oil in a wide, heavy nonstick skillet or saucepan over medium heat. Add onions or shallots and cook gently until just tender, 3 to 5 minutes.
3. Turn up heat and add mushrooms. Cook, stirring, until they begin to sweat, about 3 minutes, then add garlic and thyme or sage. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Season mushrooms with salt and pepper and continue to cook over medium heat until they are soft. Taste and adjust seasoning.
4. Add rice and stir until grains begin to crackle. Add wine and cook, stirring, until wine is no longer visible in pan. Stir in enough simmering stock to just cover the rice. The stock should bubble slowly. Cook, stirring often and vigorously, until stock is just about absorbed. Add another ladleful or two of stock and continue cooking, not too fast and not too slowly, stirring often and adding more stock when rice is almost dry, for 15 minutes.
5. Add peas, if using, and continue adding stock and stirring for another 10 minutes. Rice should be tender all the way through but still al dente. Taste now and adjust seasoning.
6. Add another ladleful or two of stock to rice. Stir in parsley and Parmesan, and remove from heat. Season with black pepper and serve right away in wide soup bowls or on plates.

Comments

• Requires a lot of chopping and stirring
• Go heavy on spices 

Broccoli Cheddar Nuggets

Ingredients

• 16 oz steamed and blended broccoli
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
• 1 teaspoon dry oregano
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 3 large eggs, whisked

Instructions

1. Blend the broccoli 
2. Mix the rest of the ingredients together
3. Add the blended broccoli to the mix and stir to mix
4. Ball the mix into two-tablespoon portions and place on a cookie sheet
5. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 mins, then flip and bake for another 15 minutes

Comments

Brussels Sprouts With Walnuts and Pomegranate

 

From here

Ingredients

• 1½ pounds brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• Kosher salt and black pepper
• ¼ cup roughly chopped walnuts
• 2 tablespoons pomegranate seeds, plus more to taste
• Pomegranate molasses, for drizzling (optional)
• Flaky salt, to serve

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, toss brussels sprouts with the olive oil. Season well with the salt and black pepper and toss again. Spread everything evenly on a sheet pan cut-side-down and roast until crisp and deeply golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes, flipping the sprouts halfway through to ensure even browning.
2. Meanwhile, toast the walnuts in a skillet over medium-low heat, stirring frequently to ensure they don’t burn, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. When the brussels sprouts are done roasting, toss them with the toasted walnuts and the pomegranate seeds. Drizzle with the pomegranate molasses (about 1 teaspoon or so), if using. Season with flaky salt.

Comments

• Could use more walnuts
• One pomegranate suffices for seeds

Gochujang Potato Stew

From here

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter or olive oil
• 1 large red onion, coarsely chopped
• Salt and black pepper
• 5 large garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
• 3 tablespoons gochujang, plus more to taste
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon honey or dark brown sugar
• 1 pound baby gold or fingerling potatoes, large ones halved
• 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini or butter beans, rinsed
• 1 large bunch Tuscan kale, stems and leaves chopped (6 packed cups)
• Cooked white rice, for serving
• Sour cream and chopped flat-leaf parsley (both optional), for serving

Instructions

1. Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high. Melt the butter and add the onion. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion starts to soften, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and gochujang, and stir until heated through and fragrant, just a few seconds.
   
2. Stir in the vegetable broth, soy sauce, honey, potatoes and beans. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil over high, then reduce the heat to medium-low to maintain a gentle boil. Cover and cook for 10 minutes, then add the kale. (It will seem like a lot at first but will wilt down considerably.) Tamping down the kale, continue gently boiling the covered stew, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are tender and the broth is thickened to your liking, 10 to 20 minutes. Taste the broth and add more salt, pepper and gochujang as desired.
3. Serve the stew alongside white rice and, for coolness against the heat, top with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of parsley, if using.

Comments

• Chop the potatoes finer
• More greens!

Baked Spanakopita Pasta With Greens and Feta

From here (mirror)

Ingredients

• Kosher salt and black pepper
• 4cups chopped spinach, Swiss chard or other mild greens (tough stems removed)
• 4cups chopped arugula, watercress or other peppery greens
• 1cup chopped fresh dill or parsley leaves and tender stems, or a combination
• 6scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced, whites and dark green parts separated
• 1pound tubular or curvy pasta, like rigatoni or fusilli
• 2tablespoons unsalted butter
• 4garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
• 8ounces cream cheese (1 cup), cut into ½-inch cubes
• 4ounces mozzarella, grated (1 cup)
• 4ounces crumbled feta (1 cup)

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Heat the oven to 450 degrees.
2. In a 3-quart/9-by-13-inch baking dish, toss the chopped spinach, arugula, herbs and scallion greens with 2 teaspoons salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Squeeze the mixture with your hands to wilt, then set aside.
3. Cook the pasta in the boiling water until 2 minutes shy of al dente; reserve 1 cup pasta water, then drain pasta and set aside. Return the pot to the stove.
4. Melt the butter in the pot over medium heat. Add the scallion whites, garlic and a pinch of salt, and sauté until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the cream cheese and pasta water and stir until smooth. Stir in the wilted greens, half the mozzarella and half the feta until combined. Stir in the pasta until combined. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.
5. Transfer the pasta to the baking dish, then top with remaining mozzarella and feta. Bake until the sauce has thickened and bubbly and the top has browned in spots, 10 to 15 minutes. If you like a crisper top, broil for a few minutes.

Comments

• Chop up the greens a bit before putting them in the pot, otherwise they'll bunch up together in clumps
• Buy already-crumbled feta instead of a block of feta to more easily sprinkle on top towards the end
• Goes well with: Pita chips, olives, other Mediterranean stuff 
• Step #2 is a bit strange; squeezing seems unnecessary, as is reusing the baking dish

Tomato Soup (Instant Pot)

From here

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 5 cloves garlic, diced
• 1 cup vegetable stock (250 ml)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon Italian herbs or dried basil
• 6 sun-dried tomatoes (in oil)
• 4 x 15 oz cans of whole Italian tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 cup thickened cream or sour cream
• To serve: croutons and Parmesan cheese

Instructions

• Turn the Instant Pot on and press the Saute button. Add two tablespoons of olive oil and onions and cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring a few times, until slightly translucent and browned. Now add the garlic and stir, cook for 1 minute.
• Pour in 1 cup of stock to deglaze the pot. Stir and scrape the bottom with a spatula to prevent a possible BURN error that might happen if anything is stuck. Press Cancel to stop the Saute process.
• Add the tomatoes and all the juices from the cans. Follow with the remaining ingredients except for cream. Stir through briefly and pop the lid on top.
• Secure the lid and press the Pressure Cook/Manual button. Adjust the time to 5 minutes, on HIGH pressure. The Instant Pot will take about 10-12 minutes to come to pressure and then the 5-minute countdown will begin. Once the timer is done allow the pressure to release naturally for 5 minutes and then use the quick release button/lever to let off the remaining pressure.
• Open the lid and stir the soup. Use an immersion stick blender to puree the soup. You can also use a food processor and puree the soup in batches, make sure to cool it slightly first.
• Finish the soup by stirring in the cream and tasting for salt. Serve with grated Parmesan cheese and croutons or grilled toast on the side. Cheese toasties are fabulous with tomato soup!

Comments

• Goes well with grilled cheese sandwiches

Palak Khichdi (Instant Pot)

From here 

Ingredients 

• 1 cup short-grain rice Ambe mor or Kali Jeera or similar variety
• ½ cup mung dal
• 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
• 4 cups water
• 1 to 3 small green chiles use more or less depending on the spice level
• 1 pound baby spinach
• 8 garlic cloves
• ½ inch ginger
• 3 tablespoons ghee plus more for serving
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 medium yellow onion finely diced
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• freshly ground pepper optional for serving

Instructions

1. Rinse rice and lentils and drain the water.
2. Add rice, lentils, water, and salt to the Instant Pot insert and pressure cook for 6 minutes followed by 5 minutes natural pressure release. If using a stovetop pressure cooker, cook for about 15 to 20 minutes or 3 whistles.
3. In a large pot bring 8 to 10 cups of water to boil. Add green chilies and baby spinach and blanch for 1 to 2 minutes or just until all the spinach wilts.
4. Take out the spinach and chilies and run cold water over them so the spinach stops cooking further. Drain out the water completely.
5. Add garlic cloves, ginger, and blanched spinach and chiles to a blender and make a smooth puree. Tip - If you do not like the fibers from the spinach make sure to puree well. I enjoy the fibers in the khichdi so I usually blend just for a minute.
6. In a large pot heat ghee (Tip - I dry the pot used for blanching spinach and use for making the khichdi). Add cumin seeds and allow them to sizzle, about 30 seconds. Add finely diced onions and cook for 4 to 5 mins.
7. Stir in garam masala, salt, and spinach puree. Then add the cooked rice and dal (from step 1 above) with more ghee and mix everything together.
8. Serve immediately with more ghee and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Comments

Onions seem pretty optional...