Meatless Monday

I realize that today isn't Monday, but recently I've embraced the concept of meatless Monday or serving one meatless meal a week. In addition to being healthy, it's also good for the environment. This week I served Spicy Red Lentils and Brown Rice garnished with cilantro and yogurt. Lentils and dried beans are high in protein and a good source of Vitamins A and B, iron and phosphorus and brown rice is a whole grain.

I purchased red lentils in bulk at a wholesale Italian market in Chicago on a recent trip. Red lentils are sometimes called Egyptian lentils and keep well for as long as a year. Easily cooked in less than 30 minutes, they form a puree.

To cook the rice I used my rice cooker. This is an appliance I haven't used much because the excess starch needs to be rinsed away. I've always felt this would also wash away the vitamins added to enrich the rice. With brown rice there is no need to rinse away excess starch because of the bran coating. My rice was perfectly steamed to be serve with the spicy lentils and I cooked enough for a second meal.

Showcase Minnesota

Today I appeared on Showcase Minnesota on KARE. Here is the link.
http://www.showcaseminnesota.com/show/client_article.aspx?storyid=827115

I was interviewed by Rob Hudson who makes it easy for me. In addition to Cranberry Walnut Tarts and Chocolate Zucchini Bread, I also baked Banana Walnut Bars. As soon as the show is finished everyone heads to the studio to try the foods. In December I'll be preparing Foods to Take to Friends.

Here's the Banana Bar recipe. The frosting tastes like Brown Sugar Fudge.


Banana Bars with Brown Sugar Frosting

My husband eats a banana every day, but sometimes we have too many ripe ones. Needless to say, I bake a lot of banana bars and banana bread! When the bananas are very ripe, I don’t bother to mash them but simply cut them into chunks, add them to the batter, and let the mixer do its job.

Makes 36 bars

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 medium)
1 cup chopped walnuts

Frosting
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup whipping cream or milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts

Heat oven to 350°F with oven rack in middle. Grease and flour a 15 x 10 x 1-inch jellyroll pan.
Mix flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
Beat butter and sugar in bowl of a heavy-duty mixer on Medium speed until creamy, scraping down sides of bowl once or twice. Add sour cream, vanilla, and eggs and mix well. Add bananas and beat until mashed. Add flour mixture, and beat on Low just until flour disappears. Stir in walnuts.
Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake 22 to 26 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. The cake should spring back when touched lightly with a finger. Cool completely on wire cooling rack before frosting.

Frosting
Heat brown sugar, butter, and cream in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it comes to a boil. Continue stirring and boil 30 seconds. Remove from heat and add powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
Spread frosting on bars immediately as frosting sets up quickly. Sprinkle with chopped walnuts. Cut into bars.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

There are certain times of year when Minnesota has weather very different from the rest of the country. For instance, now we have already had our first snowfall (small and melted already!) and other places people are still harvesting from their vegetable gardens. For all the others, here's a recipe for Chocolate Zucchini Bread. Of course, you don't have to grow zucchini, you can buy it too!

Chocolate Zucchini Bread


Zucchini is so easy to grow that every gardener has lots more than they can use. Baking zucchini bread is a great way to use extra quantities, and adding chocolate improves the flavor for non-zucchini enthusiasts. I shred the squash in my food processor, but it can be grated by hand.

MAKES 2 LOAVES (12 to 16 slices)

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3 eggs, beaten
2 cups grated zucchini (2 medium zucchini)
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350°F with oven rack in middle. Grease with shortening and flour the bottom and part-way up sides of two 9 x 5-inch loaf pans.
Combine flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in center of the flour by pushing ingredients out toward sides of bowl.
Combine sugar, oil, chocolate, vanilla, and eggs in a large bowl and whisk until smooth.
Pour chocolate mixture into flour mixture, and stir only until flour is evenly moistened even though batter is not smooth. Stir in zucchini and chocolate chips. Divide batter between the two prepared pans, and smooth the tops.
Bake 36 to 42 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out dry. The edges of the bread may be pulling away from pan sides.
Cool on wire cooling rack 10 minutes. Run a spatula around sides of pans to loosen bread. Place rack over the bread and invert so bread falls onto the rack. Remove pan and turn top side up. The bread must cool before it can be sliced, and it slices better the second day.

BAKER’S NOTE: When grating the zucchini by hand, absorb extra moisture by placing the shredded squash between paper towels.
SECRET TO SUCCESS: If the level of the batter isn’t the same in both pans, one of the pans will bake quicker than the other. Take a quick peek after 30 minutes to check the doneness.