Buddha Bowl

Father's Day weekend was full of family and food (much of which I did not capture in photos as I was temporarily without technology!), but all of which were enjoyed in the moment and will likely be remade in the near future.

Old-fashioned date squares for Poppa, caramelized onion, mushroom and goat cheese quiche with shredded potato crust for brunch, and these "lick-your-bowl-of-every-ounce-of this-amazing-peanut sauce" Buddha Bowls for dinner with Mark and the kids.

I will have to take some step-by-step photos when the kids make this one a la "sous chef" summer.  There were a few steps, but all really simple to follow through and the end result was deeply satisfying.

It was a bit like a deconstructed rice roll in a bowl.  Delicious.
The original inspiration came from this recipe found here.

I simplified the preparations by roasting the tofu, broccoli, and chickpeas on one large sheet pan and skipping the pan frying of the tofu once it was baked.



Ingredients:

Block of firm tofu, pressed and cubed
Head of broccoli, rinsed, dried well and chopped in large florets
Large grated carrot
Chopped green onions
Chopped peanuts (optional)
Can of chickpeas, rinsed, drained and dried well

For the Sauce:
1/4 cup each soy sauce, natural, smooth peanut butter and real maple syrup
2 Tablespoons of toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon of chili-garlic hot sauce

Rice noodles, brown rice or basmati

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut your block of tofu in half length wise and place on a large dinner plate lined with a double thickness of paper towel.  Set another plate on top (I used a heavy pie plate) and set 4 heavy cans on top.  Allow your tofu to drain like this for an hour or longer if you can to get out as much water as possible.  This ensures a nice, crispy texture when roasted.  Once pressed, cube and set aside.

Wash, chop, and thoroughly dry your head of broccoli.  Set aside.

Drain, rinse, and dry your chickpeas.  I spread them out on a paper towel-lined dinner plate and rolled them around a bit. Set aside.

Measure your sauce ingredients into a mason jar or glass measuring cup and give a quick zip with the hand blender to make a creamy sauce.  If you don't have a hand blender, you could also whisk or shake your jar with a lid on to thoroughly combine your ingredients, but the blender produces a silky-smooth consistency.
Taste-test to see if you need more hot sauce or peanut butter (I think I used slightly more peanut butter in mine, and we like it spicy!).

Oil a large sheet pan.
In a large bowl, toss broccoli florets with olive oil, salt and pepper, and spread on one third of the pan.
In the same bowl, toss your chickpeas with olive oil, salt and pepper, and spread on the pan beside your broccoli.
Toss your tofu with olive oil, salt and pepper, spreading on the remaining third of the pan.  Everything can be close, but not overlapping, to ensure golden roasting (as opposed to steaming) of your ingredients.

Roast for about 25 minutes.  Check and leave in a bit longer if need be until everything is golden.

Meanwhile, prepare your rice or noodles according to the package directions.  I used rice stick-noodles, which only take about 6 minutes and should be drained, rinsed, and eaten right away to avoid becoming gummy (if your timing is off and your noodles are ready too soon, leave your drained, cooked noodles in the colander and rinse again with hot tap water just before serving to warm and loosen them up).

Build your bowl!  Noodles on the bottom with a drizzle of sauce.  Add your broccoli, chickpeas, and tofu. Top with grated carrot and green onions and another drizzle of sauce. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts if you like.

I'm already making future plans with this peanut sauce... nestled inside rice paper rolls... drizzled over roasted sweet potato chunks... dressing for cold, Asian noodle salad...

This just in.  Thanks Mark.  A photo of the quiche.  The little dill trees on top are from our garden.

I also tried a DIY Rosemary, Peppermint Shaving cream for Mark that turned out amazing!  You can find the recipe and step-by-step photos here.  I followed the instructions to the letter and spooned the whipped shave cream into a glass jar for a little homemade-with-love Father's Day gift.

If you like using natural, personal care items and enjoy experimenting a bit in the process, this was really simple to make, smells delicious, gives an amazing close shave, and leaves just a hint of a tingle behind with the peppermint oil!

Mark is usually pretty adventurous and willing to test out my lotions and potions (pit putty excluded!) and gave the shave cream a "make-again" rating.

Good Reads!

If you are headed to the library or bookstore this weekend and you love to eat, check out Fresh Made Simple, written by Lauren K. Stein and illustrated by Katie Eberts.

This is a beautiful cookbook with simple illustrated recipes using fresh, whole ingredients.

Perfect for low-key summer cooking with seasonal produce from your local farmer's market or your own garden.  Speaking of local markets, Herrle's opened last week (!!) and would be a great place to gather some produce until your own starts to sprout!

We have already had some rhubarb (pictured below), parsley, chives, and asparagus and anxiously await our later veggies and greens!

This cookbook is as much artwork as it is functional.  The recipes are creatively organized by texture "...smashed, roasted, stuffed, stacked..." and instructions are typed amongst watercolour illustrations.

The style is reminiscent of one of my favourite cookbooks, They Draw & Cook.

You kind of start flipping through it and either feel inspired to doodle or head to the market and start cooking!

If you enjoy simple meal prep with lots of room for variation with amounts, you will love this book.  If you appreciate art or love to doodle, you will love this book.  If you like to eat, you will love this book.

Dark Chocolate Almond Cookies

I think you could almost classify these cookies as whole foods.
Simply made with ground almonds, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and baking powder, these cookies can be enjoyed guilt-free.

If you are trying to cut down on your refined sugar and grains, this recipe offers a sweet treat to satisfy your sweet tooth with no refined sugar (if you make as per the original recipe re-posted here) or grains.

Some reviewers added a 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract, which I did as well, and one reviewer suggested pulling the cookies out at 11 minutes, topping with a small square of dark chocolate, and putting back in the oven for one minute to melt.  Yup.  Did that too.

The finished cookies have a slight crunch on the outside with a soft chewy center and the melty chocolate is right at home on top.

I would definitely make these again, possibly nestling a roasted almond on top while the chocolate is still warm.

Makes 12 cookies.

Butter Chicken

This butter chicken is super-quick to throw together and on my list of recipes for "Sous Chef Summer". (Stay tuned.)

I have decided I'm going to enlist my teenagers to learn some basic recipes this summer, because... well, it's time!

When they were barely toddling around they sat with me in the kitchen washing and peeling and cutting to keep them busy and out from underfoot during meal prep time.

These days everyone seems to show up in the kitchen just long enough to deposit their lunch containers and put in their requests for dinner. We need to shake things up.

When they finally leave the nest, I want them to be able to prepare something other than ramen noodles and PB and J!

Fingers crossed!  Check back in July to see how if my brainwave is coming to fruition.

For now you are going to have to throw this together yourselves.

Original inspiration found here.






1 lb of skinless, boneless chicken thighs cut into chunks ( I think I used about 8 to 10 thighs)

A large onion, diced

28 oz can of diced tomatoes (I give mine a quick zip with immersion blender as the family doesn't like big chunks of tomato in their sauce)

6 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped

2 inch piece of ginger grated

2 teaspoons each curry and garam masala

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tablespoon chili garlic hot sauce

A tablespoon or two of tomato paste

Salt and pepper to taste

Heavy cream or full fat coconut milk for a non-dairy version

Saute your onions and chopped chicken thighs in coconut oil until starting to brown.  No need to cook all the way through as the chicken will continue to simmer and cook later in the sauce.

Add your garlic and ginger and saute for a minute or two.

Add your spices and stir for one minute, followed by the can of tomatoes and their juice.

Stir in the tomato paste and chili-garlic hot sauce.

Simmer everything uncovered until chicken is cooked through and sauce is starting to thicken.  About 20 minutes.

Pour in some heavy cream (about half a cup) and stir.  Add salt and pepper to taste and more cream if you want a creamier sauce.

Full-fat coconut milk can be used for a non-dairy version that is slightly less rich, but still very tasty if you prefer not to use dairy.

Not traditional, but I often throw in a handful of spinach or chard for a nutrition boost.

Serve over basmati rice with fresh naan bread for scooping.

Leftovers reheat well for a quick lunch the next day.