A Delicious Sunday

I spent a lot of time in the kitchen yesterday. I guess it's kinda like therapy for me.

I had a few bananas that were too ripe for our liking. So naturally, I made banana bread. I've tried a lot of different recipes, some vegan, some not. I avoid baking with butter at all costs. I figure if I'm baking, I might as well try to be healthy. So I found a low fat version in Veganomicon. It sounded good but of course I had to tweak it a little. For one, I used whole wheat flour, which you would never know. I also added an extra banana, vanilla and instead of applesauce, I used some soy milk. It actually came out pretty good. I think because I subbed the ap flour with ww flour, i should have used a little bit less than it called for. But otherwise, the taste is great, it's moist, and kinda healthy. We ate half a loaf yesterday.

I also made Cornmeal Anise Biscotti. These are one of my favorites, also based on a recipe, but with a bunch of tweaking. I love the flavor of anise, and the cornmeal adds a great crumbly texture and flavor. These are not vegan (they call for 3 eggs), but they are low fat because there is no butter and only 2 tablespoons of oil. Hubby likes these a lot, he also took some to work for his coworkers.

For dinner I made Absorption Pasta with Chickpeas Tomatoes and Asparagus. Another winner. Hubby actually used the word 'delicious', which he rarely uses to describe my meals. I don't think it's the most popular method of cooking pasta, but its a great way to achieve a creamy, saucy pasta dish without adding fats like butter, cream or lots of cheese. The creaminess is created from the starch of the pasta, and the more you stir, the creamier it becomes. It's almost like cooking risotto, but with pasta. When using this technique, you only add enough liquid to the skillet for the pasta to absorb, and it then creates a sauce. That's right, this is a one pot meal, that takes 30 minutes or less.

It's best to use a shaped pasta like penne, shells, or in my case orecchiette. And you can certainly use any type of bean or vegetable. Here's the recipe.

Skillet Orecchiette with Tomatoes, Chickpeas and Asparagus

Ingredients:

● 2 tbsp. olive oil
● 1/2 small onion, chopped
● 2 cloves garlic, minced
● 2 1/2 cups Orecchette (or any other shaped pasta)
● 2 cups Vegetable stock
● 1 cup water
● 1/2 can chickpeas (rinsed and drained)
● 1 can cherry tomatoes (separate juice from tomatoes)
● 6 spears asparagus, cut 1/2 inch pieces
Grana Padano (or any kind of parm cheese), salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat and saute onions until slightly browned. Add garlic and cook 30 seconds.
Add pasta and stir to coat with oil and onions. Pour in broth, water and juice from tomatoes, bring to a boil. Stir and add chickpeas.
Lower heat slightly and cook stirring frequently (make sure pasta doesn't stick to pan) until pasta is just about done, about 15 minutes. Add asparagus and tomatoes to skillet. Using kitchen shears, cut tomatoes in half, and continue to cook until done.
Stir in a few tablespoons of cheese, and season with salt and pepper.

I served this with garlic cheese toasts (slice baguette, rub with garlic, shmeare a little butter and top with grated cheese. Toast until cheese melts) and a salad with my homemade vinagrette. Very good, easy Sunday meal.