Summer Squash and Ricotta Galette

So a galette is really just a free-form pie with the edges folded partially over the pie filling.  They’re casual enough to make for yourself for lunch, but impressive enough to make for company.  The crust on this is made lighter with olive oil instead of butter and is a light and flakey crust.

I made this once for my friends, and then made it again a week later for SCL.  It’s definitely a great recipe.  Feel free to change up the filling with whatever seasonal veggies (or fruits!) you have on hand!

Summer Squash and Ricotta Galette

Serves 6

Adapted from Cooking Light magazine July 2012

For the crust:

• 1  2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup water

For the filling:

• 1 medium zucchini, sliced
• 1 medium summer squash, sliced
• 1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• pinch of salt
• 3/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 lemon, zested
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp water
• 1 large egg white
• 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, chiffonade

For the crust, combine flour, salt, and baking powder in a food processor; pulse to combine.  Combine olive oil with water and slowly add into the food processor until mixture becomes crumbly.  Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 1 minute.  Add additional flour if necessary to prevent dough from sticking.  Gently press dough into a 5 inch disk and wrap in plastic wrap.  Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Combine the sliced zucchini and squash in a bowl, drizzle with 1 Tbsp olive oil and the minced garlic, mix well.

In a separate bowl, mix the ricotta, Parmesan, thyme, lemon zest and juice, pepper, and egg.  In a small bowl, mix together the water and egg white.

If needed allow the dough to warm up for 10 minutes before unwrapping and rolling out.  When pliable, unwrap the dough and roll out on a lightly floured surface until you have a 14 inch circle.  Place the dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Spread the ricotta mixture over the center of the dough leaving a 2 inch border.  Arrange the zucchini and squash on the ricotta mixture.  Sprinkle with kosher salt.  Gently fold the pie’s border over the filling (it won’t cover very much of the filling).  Gently brush the top of the dough with the water-egg white wash.

Bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown.  Allow to cool for about 10 minutes.  Sprinkle with basil.

Strawberry Rhubarb Drop Scones

These scones were delicious, although “scone” might not be an accurate name for them.  Scones tend to be denser and these were very light and almost fluffy.  They’re also not very sweet, so if you like sweeter treats feel free to add more sugar.  But I thought these were just perfect with a bit of lemon honey butter, or a drizzle of plain honey.

Strawberry Rhubarb Drop Scones

Makes about 12 large scones

Adapted from The Kitchen Ninja

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 Tbsp (1/2 stick) butter, cold and cut into small pieces
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 cups mixture of finely chopped strawberries and rhubarb (about 8 large strawberries and 1 large rhubarb stalk)
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 cup buttermilk

In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.  Cut in the butter and olive oil until mixture has a sandy texture.  Mix in the fruit.

In another bowl, whisk together the egg, egg yolk, and buttermilk until well combined.  Pour into the large bowl and mix well.

Drop large spoonfuls (about 1/4 cup) of batter onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper.  Bake for about 20-22 minutes, until the edges begin to turn golden and the top is set.  Allow scones to cool completely on a wire rack.

Lemon Honey Butter

• 6 Tbsp butter, room temperature
• pinch of salt
• 2-3 Tbsp honey
• 1/4-1/2 lemon zested

Whisk all ingredients together.  Adjust sweetness to taste.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns

To go with the Sloppy Veggie Joes I wanted to make some whole wheat rolls.  While these take a while to make most of the time is just waiting for the dough to rise, the actual hands-on time is pretty minimal and easy.  They’re super delicious.  I love that they’re made with whole wheat, but they still taste soft and wholesome.  I might need to go eat one now…just talking about them gives me a craving.

Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns

Makes 24 buns

Adapted from My Kitchen Addiction

• 2 cups milk
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into chunks
• 1/2 cup honey
• 4 1/2 tsp (2 packets) active dry yeast
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups white whole wheat flour
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 4-5 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 Tbsp milk to brush on top of rolls

Combine the milk and butter in a microwaveable dish, microwave on high for about 1 minute, until the milk is warm but not hot and the butter has softened.

Transfer milk and butter to a large mixing bowl.  Stir in the honey and sprinkle the yeast on top of the liquids, stir to dissolve.  Add in the egg, white whole wheat flour, and the salt.  Use a wooden spoon to mix until a sticky, loose dough begins to form.  Gradually stir in the whole wheat flour until the dough thickens and starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead in the remaining whole wheat flour, adding just enough to keep the dough from sticking to your hands.  Knead for about 6-8 minutes until the dough is smooth and soft.

Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rise until it has doubled in size, about 2-3 hours, and the imprint of two fingers remains in the dough.  Punch down the dough and let it rise until it has doubled again, about another 2-3 hours.

After the second rise, punch down the dough and divide it into 6 sections.  Divide each section into 4 equal pieces (so you’ll have 24 rolls).  Roll each piece into a ball, place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, then flatten the ball with the palm of your hand.  Cover the rolls and let them rise again until puffy and an imprint remains when you lightly touch the sides of the rolls, about 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 425°F.  Brush the rolls lightly with the extra milk, then bake for about 11-13 minutes.  The rolls will be golden on top and sound hollow when lightly tapped.  Allow the rolls to cool on the pan for about 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.

Sloppy Veggie Joes

For Tuesday’s dinner I decided to try making vegetarian Sloppy Joes.  This was pretty challenging to get the right flavor without the flavor that the meat usually brings to the dish.  But I think I created something pretty close.

Sloppy Veggie Joes

Serves 15-20

Adapted from Rachael Ray

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 3 bell peppers, seeded and chopped
• 3 red onions, chopped
• 7 large garlic cloves, minced
• 3 cans kidney beans, drained, rinsed and partially mashed
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 4 vegan burgers, heated up and crumbled
• 1 Tbsp ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp ground coriander
• salt and pepper
• 3 cans diced fireroasted or crushed tomatoes
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp BBQ sauce
• 1 tsp mustard

Heat the oil in a large skillet.  Add bell peppers, onions, and garlic.  Saute until tender.  Mix in the beans and spices, season with salt and pepper.  Add in the remaining ingredients and let simmer for one hour.  Serve with whole wheat buns and dill pickles.

Blueberry Muffin Top Cookies

Mom and I went berry picking the other day.  We’ve been going berry picking for as long as I can remember.  Growing up we always went strawberry picking and sometimes raspberry picking.  While it wasn’t always my favorite activity due to the bugs and accidentally picking up gross berries, we would stop at a bakery on our way home and cool off with some delicious treats.  When we got home my amazing Mom would then make jam out of the fresh berries!  So after all these years, berry picking is one of my favorite traditions!

Recently the farm we go to started having blueberry picking!  Blueberry picking is probably the best berry to take kids to.  The plants are a perfect height for kids, there aren’t a lot of bugs and the likelihood of sticking your fingers into rotten fruit is pretty minimal since the blueberries can easily fall of the bush when they’re overripe.  Blueberry picking is super easy, which means that we came home with tons of delicious blueberries!  Besides eating them by the handful, I tried these soft, cakey cookies.  You can also make them with thawed frozen blueberries, so they’re good any time of the year.

Blueberry Muffin Top Cookies

Makes about 25 cookies

Adapted from Iowa Girl Eats

• 2 cups flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup salted butter, room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 lemon, zested
• 1 cup blueberries, thawed if frozen

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.  In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar.  Beat in the egg.  Add the milk, vanilla, and lemon zest until well combined.

Slowly stir in the dry ingredients until just combined.  Gently fold in the blueberries.

Use a cookie scoop and scoop the dough onto a greased cookie sheet.  Bake for 12-15 minutes or until slightly golden brown on the bottom.  Best served fully cooled.

Veggie Chili

This is probably the recipe I’m asked for the most.  It’s absolutely delicious and I don’t think I’ve ever made a different kind of chili.  Hard-core carnivores love this too.  I originally got this from Chris, Sister’s boyfriend, and I think he adapted it from a Moosewood cookbook.  Chili is super adaptable, so taste as you go and adjust it to your preferences.

I made this recently for an event that was being held at Seekers.  The same event had been held in the fall and it was such a hit that the organizer for the event wanted to have it again despite the warm weather.   Whether you make it now or save it for cooler weather, you’ll definitely want to keep this chili in mind!

Veggie Chili

Serves about 15 

• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 large zucchini (or summer squash), diced
• 1 large green bell pepper, chopped
• 1-2 Tbsp ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp ground coriander
• 2 Tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1-2 Tbsp parsley (I use the kind from the tubes)
• 1 1/2 cups veggie “beef” crumbles (optional)
• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn (my favorite part!)
• 2 large (28oz) cans diced tomatoes with juice
• 2 cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 3 cans black beans, drained and rinsed

In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium high heat.  Once the oil is hot, saute the onion, garlic, zucchini, and bell pepper until tender. Add the spices and mix well.  Stir in the “beef” crumbles and frozen corn.  In a large stew pot, combine tomatoes and beans.  Add in the sauteed and spiced vegetables.  Stir to combine.  Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for about one hour to allow the flavors to meld.  Adjust seasoning as needed.

Multigrain Bread

I really liked this bread.  It has a nutty, hearty flavor.  It’s full of good for you things like oats, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, and whole wheat flour.  Next time I’d do an egg wash on top so the sprinkle of oats and seeds sticks better.  This was delicious with freshly made blackberry jam!  The bread is hearty enough that you can cut pretty thin slices, so it’d be great for sandwiches as well!  Will definitely be making this again and again.

Multigrain Bread

Makes 1 loaf (about 12 slices)

Adapted from The Pastry Affair

• 2 cups bread flour
• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
• 2 Tbsp flax seeds
• 1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
• 1 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup (12oz) warm water
• 1 egg white for on top
• sprinkle of oats, sunflower seeds, and flax seeds for on top

In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients until combined.  Slowly add the water stirring with a wooden spoon until mixture forms a ball and pulls away from the sides.  Knead the dough for about 10 minutes until smooth and elastic.

Cover with plastic wrap or a clean dish towel and set in a warm place for about 2-3 hours, or until doubled in size.  Once doubled, punch down, shape into a log and place in a lightly greased 9″x5″ loaf pan.  Lightly brush the top with the egg white and then sprinkle some oats, and seeds over the top.  Preheat the oven to 375°F.  Cover again and let rise for about an hour until doubled in size.

Bake for about 40-45 minutes or until just beginning to brown and sounds hollow when tapped.

Balsamic Vinaigrette

I’ve decided I want to try making more of my own salad dressings.  Dressings aren’t that hard to make and the flavor combinations are really endless.  This is definitely my new go-to dressing.  And much cheaper than store bought dressing.

Balsamic Vinaigrette

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

Adapted from Happy Foody

• 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 6 Tbsp balsamic vinegar  (white balsamic also works)
• 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 Tbsp blue agave (or maple syrup or honey)
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 3 cloves garlic, grated
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 1 Tbsp dried oregano

Combine all the ingredients in a blender or magic bullet and mix until combined.

Kale and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

Mom and I made this for lunch the other day at the spur of the moment.  I saw a recipe for stuffed shells with kale and thought we could mix something up for stuffed peppers.  Dishes like this are a great way of using up some of the things you have in the fridge that you don’t have a plan for.  This used up some extra cheese and vegetables; stuffed peppers are super versatile and are a great opportunity to try new flavor combinations.

I would definitely make these again.  Maybe with even more kale in the peppers because the kale in the stuffing was my favorite part!  As you can see we steamed the whole bunch of kale and used half for the stuffed peppers and had the other half on the side.  Delicious!

Kale and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

Serves 4

Adapted from Pink Parsley

• 1/2 bunch kale, stems removed, chopped
• 3/4 cup quinoa
• 1 clove garlic, pressed
• 5 bell peppers, cored and halved
• 1 cup fat free cottage cheese
• 1 cup reduced fat mozzarella (plus more to sprinkle on top)
• 3 Tbsp shredded Parmesan
• 2 tsp Italian seasoning
• 2 Tbsp basil
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350°F.  In a large pot steam or saute the kale.  In a small pot, toast the quinoa then add 1 1/2 cups water, a sprinkle of salt and the pressed garlic; bring to a boil.  Simmer the quinoa until all the water has been absorbed.  Place the halved peppers cut side down on a greased baking sheet.  Place peppers in the oven for about 8 minutes, while finish making the filling.  In a large bowl, combine the remaining ingredients and stir to combine.  Mix in the kale and quinoa.  Take the peppers out of the oven, flip and fill.  Top with a little bit more mozzarella or parmesan, loosely cover with foil and return to the oven for about 20 minutes.  Serve immediately.

Turkey Meatballs

I was trying to decide what to make for my cousins who were coming over the other night.  The three of them are 8, 4 and 2 years old, and I was trying to think of something easy that would go well with the leftover Tomato, Basil, Mozzarella Pasta Salad and Roasted Green Bean, Mushroom and Barley Salad.  So I settled on Turkey Meatballs.  These were delicious!  The addition of zucchini keeps these really moist and with the garlic and seasonings they’re definitely not a bland boring meatball.  Two out of three youngsters loved them.  I put out BBQ sauce and ketchup, but I didn’t think these needed any sauce.

Turkey Meatballs

Makes about 25 (I forgot to count!)

Adapted from Iowa Girls Eat

• 1 zucchini, grated
• 1 large shallot, finely diced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 pkg ground turkey breast (I used 1.3lbs)
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 400°F.  Line a baking sheet with foil and place a wire rack on top, grease well with cooking spray.  Grate the zucchini, dice the shallot and mince the garlic.  Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well with your hands.  Roll the mixture into balls, about 1 Tbsp each.  Line the meatballs on the wire rack and bake for 12-14 minutes, cut one in half to make sure all the pink is gone before serving.