Poor Man's Paella

I hadn't used the saffron that I purchased at the Indian market yet, so I figured I'd try to make some paella.  It's winter and my pantry was kind of bare, but I figured I could make a poor man's paella with an onion, some frozen peas, baby carrots, and canned diced tomatoes.  Paella is a spanish rice dish, not mexican, and it is traditionally made with seafood and veggies  To me paella is more like a risotto than rice found in a mexican restaurant.  Looking up traditional paella recipes, I wasn't too far from the bullseye with what I had on hand.  I simmered the onion then added the carrots and shortly 1 cup of brown basmati rice.  About 30 minutes after the rice the tomatoes and peas were added.  Although I prefer to use fresh veggies, sometimes canned or frozen is the best way to get organic veggies out of season.  I like to have different varieties of canned tomatoes in the pantry just in case.  Muir Glen is a great brand.  And frozen peas are a surprise comfort food for me- growing up my mom had a canned vegetable with every meal she attempted to cook- and while I was all smiles when it was french cut green bean night, I refused to eat more than a fork full of canned peas.  At a friends house years later I discovered how delicious frozen peas were and I went through a couple of weeks where I ate nothing but frozen peas for dinner.  Weird, I know.  Anyway, enjoy this paella base recipe with whatever veggies you have around.  (And, I know calling it poor man's paella is kind of contradictory when the saffron could cost more than anything else in the dish- so sub 1/2 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp tumeric if you don't have saffron hanging around.)

Poor Man's Paella

1 onion sliced

3/4 cup carrots chopped

4 strands saffron

2 cloves garlic

1 cup long grain rice (I used brown basmati)

3 cups water/veggie broth

1 can of diced tomatoes (Muir Glen no salt added)

1.5 cups of organic frozen peas

cayenne and salt to taste

Saute onion in a little olive oil on medium high heat, after 3 minutes, add carrots.  Chop, press, or mince garlic and in a mortar and pestle combine with saffron threads.  Add to carrots and onions.  Add the rice and for about 2 minutes before adding the liquid*, toss with veggies to toast the rice.  Add the liquid and stir and reduce heat to medium.  Stir every few minutes and after 30 minutes from when the liquid was added, add the rest of the veggies.  Stir often for 10 more minutes and serve!  

* You may need to add more liquid if the rice is looking dry or the veggies start to stick to the bottom of the pan.  Add liquid in half cup increments if needed.  

Bring Your Lunch!

In high school I would sometimes forget to pack my lunch.  I was just vegetarian at the time, so I usually had a slice of cheese on a hamburger bun with lettuce, mustard, and pretzels all smashed together complete with a side of fries.  Grossss!  (But at the time it wasn't too awful of a punishment for forgetting to bring my lunch.)  Working in a burger restaurant/bar currently I feel like I have to come up with silly combinations (like the cheese/mustard/pretzel sammie) when I forget to bring my lunch.  I'm sure the high school me would drool at the possible combinations available to me now, but the current me is sick of the non-organic and not-so-fresh/healthy combos I create when I don't bring food with me to work.  I've also just started massage school (YAY!) so I have looong days ahead of me of starting class at 9am and working til 1am.  

Tuesday was my first day of a school/work double.  I started the morning with my three glasses of spring water, then had a coconut water/cacao/chia seed/strawberry smoothie that I blended up to drink during the first part of class.  (Tip- 16oz bottles (maybe from kombucha) work well to transport smoothies!)  The night before I had made my temperature neutral foods for the day: coconut curry soup, quinoa kale crunch, and hummus and veggies.  I also threw in some Gone gluten free crackers, So Delicious coconut milk yogurt, a larabar, and an apple.  

I have access to a fridge at work, but I didn't know if I would at school, so I needed foods that could be enjoyed at any temperature.  Also, I'm trying to avoid the microwave, (and I didn't know if one would be available), so I knew a raw soup was in the works.  Raw soups can be very satisfying.  I pumped this one full of warming herbs, so even though it was room temperature I was nice and toasty eating it.  This recipe is super flexible- have fun experiment with the spice amounts/thickness/ and serving temperature.  

Raw Coconut Curry Soup

4 ribs celery

2-4 cloves garlic

two handfuls of chopped/baby carrots

lemongrass

red pepper flakes/cayenne/jalapeno

ginger

tumeric

coriander/cilantro

basil/holy basil

juice from 1 lemon/lime

1-2 thai coconuts, add meat first then slowly add water, determining desired thickness.

Option: raw cashews blended in

Blend in any order in a good blender/food processor.  I am in love with my Vitamix.  I had a lot of coarse dried spices/seeds so I first blended those into a powder/paste before adding the veggies/coconut.  I really suggest checking out lemongrass and holy basil if you haven't yet.  Lemongrass is such a crisp, citrus-y taste.  Holy basil is also called tulsi and traditionally it is used in teas, as well as a spice for food.  

To pair with my super warming soup, I wanted a protein packed accompaniment that provided a lot of crunch.  Quinoa is the beefiest of all grains with 18 amino acids and a high protein content.  Quinoa is crunchier than pasta or rice, but the real crunch in the recipe comes from walnuts and red onions.  Any kale, as long as its shredded and de-stemmed is perfect with the quinoa.  And again, this is a temperature neutral dish.  It's great cold, room temperature or warmed.  

Quinoa Kale Crunch

2 cups of cooked quinoa (about 1 cup uncooked)

1 bunch of kale shredded, de stemmed

1 red onion chopped

1 cup of raw walnuts chopped and soaked.

juice from 1 lemon

2 tbs olive oil

sea salt

black pepper

After shredding and de stemming the kale, cover with the juice of one lemon, 1 tsp of salt and massage for about a minute, softening the kale.  Add the quinoa (cooled to room temperature), and the rest of the ingredients.  Pack in containers for lunch! 

Hummus and veggies may be my favorite snack, and keeping with the theme of this post- its temperature neutral (some places serve hummus warm, cool, or room temperature).  I have a recipe here for roasted red pepper and jalapeno hummus.  This hummus was made with black sesame seeds and black beans with roasted garlic and jalapenos.  I've already mentioned before that I cheat and use organic canned beans from the major chain grocery, but 4 cups of cooked beans, or two cans is a good base, unless you're making hummus for an army or a baby shower.  Making your hummus at home is easy.  You can invest in pre-mixed tahini, but I find that a big jar of sesame seeds from the asian section is more economical.  Grind about 1/2 cup to 1 cup of those in the food processor, then add 4 cups of beans, making sure at least 2 cups (one can) of those are chickpeas.  Lemon juice, cumin, garlic (raw or roasted), salt, and cayenne are stars in the hummus walk of fame.  Roasted peppers or onions, fresh cilantro or parsley, or subbing half the chickpeas for cashews, kidneys, or black beans are great additions.  This is your hummus- get creative and start tasting and making :)