Meatless March

I once read about a funny, bot-generated list of the opening lines of blog posts, in which the blog authors had offered sincere excuses for why it had been so long since they last blogged. So I'm just going to move on without apology, acknowledging that the Earth's various environmental crises haven't somehow resolved themselves in the past six months. Therefore, you might still need motivation to eat less meat, because raising animals for food is environmentally problematic , and you want to be part of the solution. Oink Going forward, I will be offering you my thoughts on foods and recipes that are not only vegetarian and sometimes vegan, but also gluten-free. "Freedom" is an inspirational word, but achieving freedom from gluten is difficult and, frankly, often sad. Take cinnamon rolls, for example. Remember how I used to make cinnamon rolls that I described as GOOOOOOOOOOOOD ? I tried to make a non-yeast version with gluten-free (GF) flour to enjoy on Christma...

I always jump at the chance to make a dish that contains carbs, veggies, and protein all in one package, and " Spaghetti With Cauliflower, Almonds, Tomatoes and Chickpeas " (NYT Cooking; subscription required) fit the bill. There are still big, deep red, lusciously juicy tomatoes available from the farmers market, so I used two large fresh ones rather than canned, and it turned out perfectly. I used orange cauliflower just for kicks, and I bought my almonds pre-blanched and -skinned, which I highly recommend. The whole dog-and-pony show, including chopping, and heating water, took about 40 minutes - doable on a weeknight for me. With it being Vegan Vednesday, I ate mine with a sprinkling of salt rather than cheese. Tomatoes and garlic Finished product. I used tricolor pasta rather than spaghetti. Vegan Vednesday went well yesterday. I have honed my slow-cooker overnight oatmeal recipe to the point that Emma asked for seconds: Overnight Steel-Cut Oatme...

I had some random leftover food items in my kitchen today, so I decided to make up my own recipe. I had one leek, not quite a pint of cherry tomatoes, one small tomato, some kalamata olives, and some white wine that I was trying not to drink because I have been wearing the same size of jeans for a decade and they fit last spring but now it is fall and they don't fit anymore, so I've been cutting back on sugar and booze. I did a Google search on these ingredients and came up with a Washington Post recipe for " Tomato and Leek Sauce ," which I modified as below: Pasta with Tomato and Leek Sauce  SERVINGS: 4 - 6   INGREDIENTS   3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil  1 thinly sliced, cleaned leek (white and light-green parts)  1/2 cup pitted, chopped kalamata olives  2 cloves garlic, minced  2 sprigs thyme  1 pound coarsely chopped tomatoes, or cherry tomatoes  Generous sprinkle of black pepper  8 ounces any shape of pasta...

There are a lot of winners--both meatless and meaty--in the cookbook "Pasta Sauces," by Christine McFadden (Parragon Publishing, 2004). Tonight I made the Sun-Dried Tomato and Goat Cheese sauce, and served it on penne. It was yummy, and easy. I forgot to add the basil at the end, but still delicious.  I served the pasta with Carrots du Amour, which is our slight variation on a recipe by Julia Child's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking." Julie does not call it Carrots du Amour. We started calling it that years ago when a friend solicited recipes to impress a date for whom he was cooking dinner, and we recommended this one: Carrots du Amour (about 4 servings) 1.5 lb carrots 1 c water (note that if you increase the amount of carrots, do NOT increase the water proportionately! Stick with one cup) 2T sugar 1.5T butter Salt Peel the carrots and cut them into 2-3" chunks. Put carrot pieces in a 2- to 3-quart saucepan with wa...