October Bratwurst Stew

Somehow I seem to accumulate bratwurst. Family members always give me their leftover packages from picnics. Now I know I have a strong German family history, but I had never actually eaten a bratwurst until I made this stew. I had to do something with them before they turned into freezer-burned mystery sausages, and it being Octoberfest time of year, I thought I would cook them somehow.

After much searching I found a reasonable recipe from Better Homes and Gardens called Loaded Bratwurst Stew. I am sure most everyone has found a recipe that looks good, but something is wrong with it. Either you don't have an ingredient, or something is on your dietary no-eat list, or you don't see the value of buying an ingredient that you will have no use for after using only a small amount. This recipe is adapted from the BHG recipe, but lots of changes have been made based upon what I can eat and what I had in the pantry. It tastes even better the second day. The moral of this recipe - mess around with what you find and you might create something delicious!

October Bratwurst Stew
2 14.5-ounce cans of fat-free low-sodium chicken broth
2 pounds uncooked regular bratwurst
1 softball sized savoy cabbage, chopped (about 4 cups)
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1/4 cup uncooked hulless barley (or use pearled)
1/4 cup roasted sweet red peppers (drained from a jar that is vinegar based), chopped
1 heaping tablespoon of Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon celery seed
Shredded Swiss cheese

Place the barley, chopped red peppers and cabbage in a slow cooker. Combine broth, mustard, vinegar and seasonings and pour over top. In a skillet, cook bratwurst until cooked through and a nice brown color. Remove from skillet. Slice bratwurst into small 1/4-1/2 inch pieces and place over top of cabbage in slow cooker. Drain all but a teaspoon of grease from the skillet and brown onions until a nice golden brown. Remove onions and any crispy bits from skillet and place on top of brats in slow cooker. Cook on low for 7 hours or on high for 3-5 hours. Mix well and serve with shredded Swiss cheese on top.

Spicy Beef Chili

My mother used to make chili often, but I have no idea what her recipe was. It's all lost now, and that is a sad thing. But back then when she was alive and I was young her chili didn't impress me at all. It had big scary looking beans in a rather smooth meat sauce and a flavor that was not exactly memorable. Now I crave something spicy and beefy and chili is the obvious choice. Since I don't have my mom's recipe to tinker with, I made my own. The beans are too valuable nutritionally to take away, so I did some fancy footwork to make them less obtrusive.

Spicy Beef Chili

2 pounds Ground beef
1 medium Onion chopped
3 cloves Garlic minced
1 can (4 oz) Mild green chiles diced
1 can (28 oz) Crushed tomatoes
1 can (8 oz) Tomato sauce
1 tablespoon Ground cumin

3 tablespoons mixed ground chiles:

    2 teaspoons Ground Ancho pepper;
    2 teaspoons Ground Anaheim pepper;
    2 teaspoons Ground Chipotle pepper; 
    1/4 teaspoon Ground Cayenne pepper;

    or

    3 tablespoons your favorite chili powder
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1 tablespoon Canola Oil
1 can (16 oz) Pinto beans drained
 

Rinse and drain pinto beans and pulse once or twice in a food processor to break them up. Set beans aside. Saute onion in canola oil until just golden. Add minced garlic and continue to saute for one minute and remove from pot. Brown ground beef in pot and drain fat. Combine all ingredients back into pot and allow to heat for an hour. Serve with shredded cheddar cheese and bread, or Cincinnati-style with cheese and onions over spaghetti. You can also serve it on brown rice. Garnish with sour cream if desired.

Turkish Red Lentil Soup

(Kırmızı Mercimek Çorbası)
My daughter Mira and I are exploring many new meatless dishes for our "Meatless Monday" adventures. I have been trying to approach the day with more creativity than the usual weekday - to honor our new way of eating here at home. We have been keeping company with whole grain, lean meat and healthy fats simply because our low budget food choices were taking a toll on us all. At this point, the extra expense is paying for our long term health. The beauty of Turkish food is that it already uses these healthy ingredients, and is delicious. This soup is lick-the-bowl good and healthy too. What more can you ask for on a cold winter evening?

Turkish Red Lentil Soup
2 onions, finely chopped
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 cup red lentils, washed and picked over
1 carrot, grated
1 stalk celery, sliced thinly
1/2 cup whole grain coarse bulgur
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
32 ounces vegetarian broth
3 cups water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper mixed with 1 tablespoon olive oil
Dried mint to garnish

In a heavy pot, saute onion, carrot and celery in olive oil until golden. Add paprika, cumin, lentils and bulgur and continue to saute for a few minutes. Add tomato paste, water and broth and simmer for about 30-45 minutes until thick and lentils are soft. Using an immersion blender, puree to a creamy consistency, letting the bulgur wheat provide a bit of texture. Add lemon juice, salt and drizzle some cayenne oil on the top with a sprinkle of dried mint.

Tuscan Kale and White Bean Soup

Meatless Monday is a worldwide initiative to help people improve their health my cutting out meat for one day a week. As someone who has been hard at work overhauling her diet into something less refined and lower in saturated fat, the idea was something I was very interested in. The only problem - I adore meat and usually find anything other than a double cheese pizza or gooey grilled cheese as being meatless purgatory.

The rumors are true - I was the kid with the poodle who secretly ate all my vegetables. Beans had to be pulverized into creamy hummus before I would even look at them. And forget green beans - they squeaked when I chewed them. Yick! So how to do this? How to eat vegetarian and not feel punished? That my friends is the big question. If you are going to work hard and give up the unhealthy food, you need to be sure that each meal is spectacular and doesn't taste like a compromise. Into the kitchen I went, stocked with beans and veggies. With spoon in hand and full of trepidation, I took a bite. What's this? It tastes...delicious! Can you believe it??? I actually had seconds. Yes, Karen, the hater of the vegetable world has eaten beans and enjoyed them. Maybe you will too.

Tuscan Kale and White Bean Soup
5 cups kale, washed, ribs removed
2 cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 large sweet onion, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
1 carrot, sliced into thin disks
5 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups vegetarian broth (or three 14.5 cans of Swanson's Vegetarian Vegetable)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Bunch kale and shred into 1/2 inch slices and set aside. Heat oil in a large pot or dutch oven. Saute onions, carrots and celery until softened and onions are barely translucent. Add garlic and saute for 5-10 seconds until fragrant. Be sure not to overcook the garlic. Add broth, kale, beans and seasonings and cook on low for about 30 minutes. Serve with crusty whole grain bread.

Beef Barley Stew

I always feel like I am taking a step back into the past when I cook beef stew. Stews cooked on the hearth while family members were busily doing their work. They fed a whole family and felt warm inside. And they are pretty humble - both in cost and looks. It's like walking back a couple of centuries.  The warm hearty stew is very adaptable. You can use hulless barley or pearl barley, bison or beef, and change the veggies all about to something you like or whatever you have on hand. And cooking for an extended period of time is delicious.

Beef Barley Stew
2 lbs cubed beef or bison
2 1/2 cups beef stock
1/2 cup hulless barley
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon Worchestershire sauce
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon sweet pakrika
fresh ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 tablespoon cornstarch

Combine beef, vegetables, bay leaves, stock, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper in a covered heavy pot and bring to a boil. Turn down heat and allow to cook on low heat for three hours or in a Crock Pot for about 8 hours. Prior to serving, bring to a boil and mix cornstarch with about two tablespoons of water and pour into stew to thicken. Add mustard and paprika and additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a nice chunk of crusty bread.

Hulless barley will be chewier than pearl barley, and will require at least two hours to fully cook. Don't worry, the stew doesn't mind!

Sausage and Spinach Soup

We recently held a Soup and Chili Cook-Off at work. While I did not submit any entries, I made certain to sample the tastiest looking soups. There were two entries that I couldn't resist having a full bowl of. This soup is adapted from one of them, a soup created by my co-worker Betty.

I have added a few ingredients to Betty's soup. When I first tasted it I couldn't help but think it was Wedding Soup with a punch. I decided to add a few of my favorite ingredients from Wedding Soup, along with some extra punch. I thought about adding pastina too, but then decided to save the carbs for something else! Feel free to dump in the pasta. Betty was one of the contest winners tied for first place!

Sausage and Spinach Soup
2 quarts of chicken broth
1 cup chopped onion
1 10-ounce package of frozen chopped spinach
1 pound hot Italian sausage
2 teaspoons fennel seed
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 large eggs, beaten
Parmesan cheese

Defrost spinach and squeeze out extra liquid. Brown hot sausage in a skillet until cooked through and drain well. Combine sausage, broth, spinach, fennel and red pepper flakes in a pot and bring to a boil. Slowly drizzle egg into soup while stirring well. Reduce heat and simmer. Serve with Parmesan sprinkled on top.