Tasty Tuesday

White Bean Chili with Jalapeno Bulgar

     I'm back baby! I have been so incredibly busy the past few months. So many great stories and adventures. Maybe I'll post a few photos of said adventures here in the next few months. I'm happy to say that I'm embarking on a new chapter in my life and I'm very excited (as well as a littler nervous). I look forward to sharing with all of you. In the meantime. Here is something I cooked up quite a while ago and just now got around to posting. This is a great recipe if you have a crowd or you don't mind a lot of leftovers. Enjoy it with beer. 

This recipe is adapted from Real Simple

• 1 cup of bulgar wheat
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 teaspoon of cumin
• 1 teaspoon of chili powder
• salt and pepper
• 1 14 ounce can of diced tomatoes
• 2 14 ounce cans of cannellini beans (or any white bean)
• 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
• green onions
• 2 jalapenos, chopped.

1. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Add the bulgar wheat, cover and let simmer for 10-15 minutes. Be careful it cooks very quickly. 
2. Add oil to a large pot, over medium heat, add the onion and bell pepper. Cook until tender.
3. Add the garlic, all the spices, salt and pepper to taste, and cook for about a minute or until you can smell the garlic.
4. Add the tomatoes (including the liquid) along with 1 1/2 cup of water. Bring to a boil. Add the white beans and simmer until the chili is thick. This will take about 10-15 minutes.
5. Stir the lemon juice, green onion, a little oil, and salt and pepper to the bulgar wheat.
6. Place a little bulgar wheat in a bowl and add the chili on top. 
7. Enjoy with beer.

Bulgar wheat with green onion

White bean chili

A delicious home brew!

Take care of yourself and each other...

Tasty Tuesday! (Special Edition)

Vegan Eggplant Parmesan

     Whoa...it has been a while. No excuses. It's just good to be back. I'm bringing you a special edition Tasty Tuesday post to celebrate my return to blogging. This is one of those recipes where I just happened to have all the ingredients on hand already and this was a perfect opportunity to use a tomato sauce I made from last year's tomato harvest. You can find the recipe for the tomato sauce here. Anyway, this is a vegan take on an old favorite, cobbled together from a couple of different recipes, and I was very surprised by how great it tasted. I hope you enjoy!

Modified from The Fat Free Vegan Kitchen

• 1 large eggplant, sliced 1/4 inch thick
• panko bread crumbs, or bread crumbs with Italian seasoning
• olive oil
• Tomato sauce (see recipe) or store bought will work
• Vegan cheese sauce (see recipe below)

1. In a shallow baking dish, salt the eggplant slices, and place them under a broiler for 3-4 minutes. This will remove any moisture from the eggplant.
2. Layer the eggplant, overlapping each piece. Sprinkle just a little more olive oil over the eggplant. Cover the first layer of eggplant with bread crumbs, ladle tomato sauce over the bread crumbs, and then add a layer of cheese sauce. 
3. Repeat the process until you are all out of eggplant.
4. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees and bake, uncovered, for about 20 minutes or until eggplant is tender.

Vegan cheese sauce modified from Ohsheglows

1. 3/4 cup to 1 cup almond or soy milk
2. 1 tbsp of flour
3. 6 tbsp of nutritional yeast (you can find this in any natural food store or the health food aisle. 
4. pinch of onion powder
5. pinch of garlic powder
6. salt and pepper

• Pour milk into a sauce pan over low-medium heat, add the flour, and whisk until no clumps are left.
• Add the nutritional yeast, and whisk. If the sauce starts to become too thick, add a little more milk.
• Add the onion and garlic powder and stir.
• Add salt and pepper to taste.

Take care of yourself and each other...

Tasty Tuesday!

Herbed Polenta with Beans and Bok Choy

     I haven't written a "Tasty Tuesday" post in a while. That doesn't mean that I haven't been preparing a lot of food lately. I have a nice back log of posts that will be appearing shortly. I've been spending most of my time finishing up various projects and training for my second half-marathon which will be coming up this Sunday, May 6th. I'll keep you posted on the outcome but in the meantime, enjoy this recipe I found over at Fat Free Vegan!

• 1 cup of Polenta (corn grits)
• 1 small onion
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 8 ounces of mushrooms (your choice), sliced
• 1/4 cup of vegetable broth
• baby bok choy (about 3-4), sliced
• 1 can of cannelloni beans
• 1 teaspoon of basil
• salt and pepper to taste
• balsamic vinegar

1. Make the polenta according to the package directions. The usual ratio is 1 cup of polenta to 3 cups of water. While cooking the polenta, stir continuously until the water has evaporated and the mixture is thick. You may need to transfer the mixture to a baking sheet and place it under a broiler for a few minutes. Once the mixture is hardened, cut into cubes.
2. In a large skillet, saute the onions until soft. Add the garlic, bell pepper, mushrooms, and just a bit of salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat stirring occasionally to prevent burning. Add the vegetable broth, bok choy, beans, and basil. Stir to mix the ingredients and then cover. Cook until the bok choy is soft but still bright green. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Drizzle a little balsamic vinegar on the polenta cubes. Serve the vegetable mixture on top of the polenta.

Baby Bok Choy and polenta

Let those vegetables cook

Transfer the polenta to a baking sheet and place under a broiler

Take care of yourself and each other...

Red Shoe Shuffle 5K (UPDATE)

     The first Ronald McDonald House of Baltimore "Red Shoe Shuffle" was held yesterday morning and it was a great success. A total of $105,000 was raised by participants and sponsors. Can you believe that??? Incredible! It was a real honor to take part.

     The day started very early for me. I woke up at 5:30 after a terrible night's sleep and had a bit of orange juice, toast, and peanut butter. I've been training for a half-marathon, coming up May 6th, so I wasn't worried about the length of the day's race. I just planned to go out, do my best, and have a good time.

     I arrived very early to the event (perhaps too early) but I had to find parking, pick up my race packet, and warm up so I wanted to give myself enough time. In the race packet I received a great free race shirt made by Under Armour, some red shoe laces, a bracelet, and all kinds of coupons. The day started off a little overcast but quickly cleared up and became perfect running weather. As the race began I found myself close to the front and I tried to have a slightly faster pace than I use in my distance running. I have to admit that it was a great site to see so many people running through the streets of Baltimore and when we got the opportunity to run past Camden Yards it made the experience even better. Oh, and seeing the Raven's Cheerleaders cheering for us was a nice touch as well.

     Honestly, I began to hit the wall somewhere after the 2 mile mark. This was a true sign that I was running out of my comfort zone and I even thought about stopping and walking. But then I said, "Quiet brain or I'll stab you with a Q-tip!" And, I kept running.

     I came across the finish line at 25:27 which is about the same time as the first 5K I ever competed in. At least I'm maintaining. All in all I had a great time and it was such an honor to give money to a great cause. Volunteering or donating to charity can be such a valuable use of time or money and I recommend it to anyone, especially to those who feel too inwardly focused. Help others and you will help yourself. I promise.

I would like to give a special shout-out to my new shoes. Brooks PureFlow!

Take care of yourself and each other...

What's Brad Drinking Today?

     After a much needed break from a very stressful week I'm sitting on my front porch and having a Rogue Scotch Ale and I'm enjoying it in my Lexington Avenue Brewery glass. This is a great Scotch Ale but not my favorite. That title belongs to Dark Horse Brewing Company's Scotty Karate Scotch Ale. Sitting on my front porch, looking at my blooming Weeping Cherry Tree, and drinking a good beer...not a bad way to start a Friday evening.

Take care of yourself and each other...