Bulgarian-Style Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers

Dear faithful readers: Happy New Year! If you still visit my blog after months of inactivity, it must be because you truly enjoy healthy cooking. Or, most likely, we are close friends or family. One of my most loyal supporters is my sister-in-law Julie, who visits my blog nearly every day despite my shameful lack of updates. Julie, c'est en pensant à toi que je publie la recette d'aujourd'hui. May your daily visit be a pleasant surprise!

Today's recipe is for vegetarian stuffed peppers. It is incredibly tasty and easy to make. In the past few months, I have had the pleasure to be introduced to Bulgarian cuisine and its amazing flavours. This is my first attempt at re-creating what can possibly be classified as the tastiest meal I ever had.


Bulgarian-Style Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers

Peppers

• 4 bell peppers
• 6 eggs
• 2 cups good feta cheese, crumbled (I used Krinos feta cheese made of cow and goat's milk)
  
• Black pepper, to taste

Yogurt sauce

• 2 cups plain yogurt
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• Drizzle of olive oil
• Pinch of salt
• Parsley to taste

Preheat the oven at 375 F. With a paring knife, remove the stem of each pepper and discard the seeds. Place in a ceramic baking pan, ready for stuffing. Whisk together the eggs and the crumbled cheese to obtain the desired consistency. Sprinkle some black pepper.


Stuff each pepper with the egg & cheese mixture. Make more of the mixture if necessary to fill the peppers to the top.


Bake in the oven for one hour, covered by a lid or foil. Remove the cover and continue baking for 15-20 minutes to obtain nice golden tops. You want to ensure that the peppers are well cooked, tender and juicy, but they should still keep as whole. The egg mixture will expand and firm up nicely.


Meanwhile, combine the yogurt with the garlic, olive oil, salt and parsley in bowl and set aside.


To serve, carefully place one pepper per plate and gently cut lengthwise to reveal the delicious egg mixture. Enjoy with (a lot of) yogurt sauce and a piece of rye bread.

Roasted Portobello Mushroom Dip

I was raised vegetarian. Needless to say, I love vegetables. I don't care too much for fennel and its licorice taste but other than that, veggies and I share a lifelong love story. That's right. They love me, too.

Mushrooms are without doubt one of my favourite vegetables. I love how their taste and texture change drastically when they're cooked, and how the result is unfailingly juicy and fragrant.

Roasted Portobello Mushroom Dip

2 tbsp olive oil + 1 tsp
1 lb Portobello mushrooms, cleaned
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 8 ounce package cream cheese, at room temperature
1 tsp onion powder
Chopped parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425 F. Place mushrooms on baking sheet. In small bowl, combine 2 tbsp of olive oil, minced garlic and some chopped parsley. Pour mixture evenly over mushrooms and bake for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, saute onions in 1 tsp olive oil until tender. Let mushrooms and onions cool for a few minutes. Combine and puree in a food processor until almost smooth.

In mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, onion powder and pureed mushroom mixture. Add salt, pepper and parsley to taste.

Serve with pita chips, crackers, or veggies. Enjoy!

Banana-Buckwheat Pancakes

Perhaps I should have named this blog Craving Whole Grains. I do secretly wish I was an artisan baker, so I could promote the virtues of whole grains one loaf at a time. Sigh.

Back to reality, you've probably noticed that I only use grains and flours that are unrefined in the recipes I make, for highest nutritional value. Pancakes are no exception. The key to fluffy whole grain pancakes is to gently fold egg whites that have been previously beaten to peaks into the batter.

The taste of buckwheat flour in pancakes or crepes can be rather overpowering if it's not combined with other flours. I personally like the nutty, almost bitter taste of plain buckwheat crepes or galettes de sarrasin, as my mom makes them, but it's safe to say that it's an acquired taste. Plus, the result tends to be savoury rather than sweet.

This recipe calls for equal parts of buckwheat and whole-wheat pastry flours, so you benefit from the added nutrition without compromising flavour. Buckwheat is high in vitamin B, vitamin E and minerals.


Banana-Buckwheat Pancakes
(Adapted from Conscious Cuisine by Cary Neff)

• 1/4 cup buckwheat flour
• 1/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/8 tsp sea salt
• 1 large egg
• 3/4 tsp canola oil
• 3/4 tsp honey
• 1/2 cup milk (or soy milk)
• 2 large egg whites
• 1/2 cup diced banana (about 1 medium)
• 1 pinch ground cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp freshly grated lemon zest
• 3/4 tsp fresh lemon juice

Sift the flours, baking powder and salt into a medium mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, oil, honey and milk. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the egg mixture. Stir until moistened.


With an electric mixer, whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter. Fold in the bananas, cinnamon, lemon zest and lemon juice until just combined.


Heat a griddle or non-stick pan over medium heat and coat with cooking spray. Spoon batter by 1/4 cups onto the griddle. Cook until bubbles appear and edges begin to look dry. The bottoms should be golden brown. Turn the pancakes over. They will rise and the middles will become light and fluffy. Cook for a minute longer, until they are golden brown.


Yields about 8-10 small pancakes. Serve topped with walnuts and pure maple syrup, or fruit compote.

Pan-Roasted Cauliflower with Pecans and Raisins

Some days, cooking is just about getting food on my plate quickly. But when I have more time on my hands, I like to jazz up the veggie side dishes I tend to resort to. There's only so much steamed cauliflower or broccoli you can eat before it gets truly boring.

This recipe for pan-roasted cauliflower is so delectable that it deserves a place in your holiday menu. It is somewhat time consuming, but well worth the effort. Trust me!


Pan-Roasted Cauliflower with Pecans and Raisins
Adapted from Food & Wine

2 tbsp raisins
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 head cauliflower, cut into florets (4 cups)
1 tsp cane sugar
1 large can diced tomatoes with their juices
Pinch of crushed red pepper
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped pecans
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 1/2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 350°. In a small bowl, cover the raisins with water. Let stand until softened, about 10 minutes. Drain.

Meanwhile, in a large ovenproof skillet, heat the oil. Add the cauliflower and cane sugar and cook over moderately low heat, stirring, until the cauliflower starts to soften, about 10 minutes.


Raise the heat to moderate and cook until the cauliflower is lightly browned, about 5 minutes longer. Stir in the tomatoes and crushed red pepper, season with salt and black pepper and cook another 5 minutes.


Add the raisins, the pecans and the chopped garlic to the cauliflower. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake for about 30 minutes, until the cauliflower is very tender. Stir in the cilantro and lemon juice and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Serve the cauliflower warm.

Serves 6.

Pumpkin Cranberry Bran Muffins

In my kitchen, the sweet aroma of freshly baked muffins.

In my stereo, the music of Elliott Smith, Beth Gibbons or Bon Iver.

On my nightstand, L'Étranger by Albert Camus.

Autumn resonates nicely with pumpkin patches, apple orchards, vibrant-coloured trees and the return of scarves and mittens. I always find this season bittersweet and nostalgic, in a beautiful way.

Make a cup of tea and treat yourself to a taste of the season. The molasses and the bran give these healthy, spiced muffins their dark and rich colour. Enjoy.


Pumpkin Cranberry Bran Muffins
Adapted from Delicious Living

1 cup pumpkin purée*
3/4 cup wheat bran
2 eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup molasses
1/3 cup sucanat or natural cane sugar
1 tsp grated orange rind
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
1-1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1-1/2 cups dried cranberries
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds

Preheat oven to 400°F.

In large mixing bowl, combine pumpkin purée, wheat bran, eggs, buttermilk, molasses, sucanat or cane sugar, orange rind and grated ginger. Whisk together.

In separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.

Stir dry ingredients into wet, mixing well. Add cranberries to mixture and stir.


Fill cups of a nonstick muffin pan and sprinkle each muffin with pumpkin seeds. Bake approximately 20-22 minutes, until tops are golden and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan.


To Purée Pumpkin:
Cut pumpkin into large chunks. Place chunks in a steamer, and steam for 30 to 45 minutes. Remove from steamer and scrape pulp away from skin. Whip with beater or purée in food processor.