Tag Archives: dinner

by

Lentil-Mushroom Burgers

Tags: , , , , , , , ,
44

If you know me, in real life, it’s no secret that I L-O-V-E a burger. I’m pretty much into them at any time of the day and while beef burgers are queen–I love a veggie/legume burger too. I’m not talking the freezer-section kind (nothing wrong with those), I’m talking about the kind you can whip up at home and load with savory flavors.

In the last year I’ve fallen in love with the humble lentil (I make this Lemon-Lentil soup on the regular). Paired with mushrooms, this burger doesn’t give you the texture of meat (that’s okay though  it’s a veggie burg!) but, what it does have is a ton of fiber that really fills you up. Like, I’m-ready-for-bed-now-full. While talk of filling fiber may not be the sexiest thing ever, these burgers won’t leave you feeling like something is missing.

To ensure maximum flavor, I load these burgers with savory aromatics in the form of lots of sauteed onion and plenty of garlic. The mushrooms are sweated, then cooked to deep brown deliciousness. A few sun-dried tomatoes further punch up the flavor. There are lentils, breadcrumbs, and an egg to keep things together. I like to pan cook these burgers with a little grape seed oil, which has a high smoke point allowing you to get a super crispy crust on the outside of the lentil burger–which is key for texture and maximum deliciousness. I topped the burgers with sweet roasted tomatoes, caramelized onion*, a super easy avocado spread, as well as some spinach, grainy mustard, and a little swiss for good measure.

*Let your onions get some more caramel color–I was impatient and hungry for lunch…don’t be me.

Lentil-Mushroom Burgers

adapted from Cooking Light 

Makes 4 large burgers

I used dried brown lentils for this recipe. I cooked 1 cup dry, which yielded 2 cups cooked. You only need 1 cup for this recipe–but, you can use the remainders dressed with a little vinaigrette and some vegetables, they would make a really nice salad, or make soup, or another batch of burgers!

5 whole wheat hamburger buns

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, diced small

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 package (6ounces) cremini mushrooms, stems and caps chopped

3-4 sun-dried tomatoes

1 cup cooked brown lentils (method below)

1 egg

salt and pepper

grape seed oil, or preferred oil

roasted tomatoes

caramelized onions

avocado yogurt spread

spinach/swiss optional

Process 1 burger bun in a food processor to make crumbs. Set aside.

In a saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high and saute onion with a pinch of salt until soft and a few bits turn brown around the edges. Add the garlic, stir, and cook an additional 30-60 seconds. Scrape the onion mix into a bowl. Add another tablespoon of olive oil to the pan, heat it over high and add the mushrooms followed by a pinch of salt–let the mushrooms sweat–they will release a lot of liquid. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to cook until the liquid evaporates and the mushrooms turn deep golden brown. Scrape the mushroom mixture into the bowl with the onions–set aside to cool to room temp.

In the food processor add the sun dried tomatoes–process to mince, add the onion/mushroom mixture and process until mushrooms are finely diced. Add the lentils, process so that some of the lentils are pasty and some are still whole. Scrape the mixture into a mixing bowl and mix in the breadcrumbs, egg, a pinch of salt and pepper–to combine well. Allow the mixture to rest about 30 minutes in the refrigerator–this makes it easier to form the patties.

Divide the lentil mixture into four portions. Form each portion into a ball and flatten into a patty. Heat a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, add about 2 Tablespoons grape seed oil to the pan. Add the lentil patties and cook on each side until crisp and deeply golden–about 3-5 minutes per side depending on the heat of your pan. If using cheese, add the cheese to the patties after the first flip.

Serve on toasted buns with desired condiments.

Lentils 

1 cup dried lentils–rinsed and picked over for rocks and shriveled lentils

2 cups water

In a saucepan add the lentils and water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook covered for about 20 minutes or until lentils are tender. Drain if there is any remaining water.

Roasted Tomatoes

1 pint grape tomatoes

olive oil

salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400*F. Line a baking sheet with parchment and pierce the tomatoes with a knife and spread across the baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for about 15 minutes or until the tomatoes have slumped over and begun to caramelize.

Caramelized Onions

1 large onion, sliced

olive oil

salt

Heat a saute pan over low heat. Add a few teaspoons olive oil, onions, and a pinch of salt. Cook over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally until deep golden brown and sweet.

Avocado-Yogurt Spread

1 ripe avocado

3 Tablespoons plain greek yogurt

salt

juice of 1/2 lemon

Mash the all of the ingredients together in a bowl to form a smooth spread. Salt to taste.

 

 

by

Easy + Light Potato Soup

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
25

Happy 2013, y’all!

As always, I am striving for balance in the new year. After weeks of hearty meals and many cookies, I’m realistic enough to know that while a few weeks of lighter meals may be on the horizon–I’ll never give up dessert.

So, in an effort to find and maintain some balance, I made you this soup. Actually, I’ve made this soup 5 times in the last 3 weeks. It’s so dang good and filling! It’s the first potato soup I have ever made, myself. A lot of recipes call for cream or half-and-half, but when it comes to dinner, I struggle with the thought of consuming cups of either as part of a balanced meal. Instead, I subbed in reduced-fat milk, making the bulk of the soup with stock. There are some vegetables in there for good measure–and I bet you could sub some of the potatoes with cauliflower with great results. Even without the heavy dairy, this soup is creamy and satisfying. Topping the soup with some choice garnishes–bacon, green onions, and greek yogurt, in this case–make this simple potato soup a totally flavorful and filling meal.

Easy Potato Soup

Serves 4-6

I use reduced-fat milk in this recipe with great results, but to keep it from separating once it boils, I mix the cold milk with cornstarch to bind it. 

2-2.5 pounds potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/2-1/4 inch cubes

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 celery stalk, diced fine

1 carrot, diced fine

1/2 large onion or 1 small onion, diced fine

3 cloves garlic, minced

salt and pepper, to taste

4 cups stock (I like to use either vegetable or chicken)

2 cups reduced-fat milk (I used 2%)

1.5 Tablespoons cornstarch

Garnishes I’m into: crisp bacon, green onions or chives, cheese, sour cream or greek yogurt, roasted tomatoes, croutons.

Place the peeled and diced potatoes in a large bowl of cool water, to prevent from oxidizing. Set aside.

Measure out the milk and whisk in the cornstarch, to combine and dissolve completely. Set aside.

In a soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the celery, carrot, and onion, sprinkle lightly with salt and sweat until translucent and tender–about 3-5 minutes. Add the garlic, stir, and cook another minute. Drain and add the potatoes, followed by the stock. Bring the pot to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer–taste for seasoning, add salt and pepper if desired–and cook for about 15 minutes–or until the potatoes are very tender. Turn off the heat and using an immersion blender (or regular blender), blend the milk/cornstarch mixture into the soup. Continue to blend until the soup is smooth and creamy. Return to the heat and bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer to keep warm until ready to serve.

Garnish as desired.

by

Spicy Chickpea + Lentil Stew

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
23

This is one of those recipes I didn’t intend to post. The thing is, I cook a lot and most of our dinners don’t make it on the blog. It isn’t because they aren’t worth sharing, but really because I just can’t always get it together to write the recipe down and snap its photo before evening swoops in and steals all the light. This stew, however, came together so quickly that when it was done and tasted so dang good and there was still afternoon light aplenty, I had to share it.

Sometimes the stars just align for dinnertime-destiny.

This stew comes together quickly with a little chopping, sautéing  and a good 30 minutes of simmer time. The ingredients were things that I already had in the pantry–chickpeas, dried lentils, tomato sauce, harissa, stock, and spices–plus a few fresh aromatics. The turmeric lends a warm color and slight earthiness, plus it’s totally good for your brain. There’s a cilantro and yogurt garnish that lends a cool-fresh balance. Each bite is pleasantly spicy and aromatic. I rounded it out with some store-bought naan and some cauliflower I quickly steamed. It’s completely vegetarian and totally vegan if you nix the yogurt. It’s just a big bowl of filling awesomeness and warmth.

Spicy Chickpea + Lentil Stew

Adapted from Tasting Table

We happen to love spicy things in this house and Harissa is one of our newer favorites. It’s North African in origin and I like to use it in a variety of dishes. Use less if you are shy about the heat, you can always add more to taste. I use onion, shallot, AND garlic here. Mostly because I obsessively like to have a stock of all three at the ready. You could use any combination of edible alliums. If you just have chicken stock or even just water on hand, go ahead and use that in lieu of vegetable stock.  Do what you want, make it your own. 

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 medium carrots, diced small

1/2 medium red onion, diced small

1 large shallot, diced small

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons fresh, grated ginger (or 1 teaspoon dry, ground ginger)

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon curry powder

4 teaspoons Harissa

salt, to taste

1/2 cup dry lentils (I used brown)

1 can chickpeas (15.5oz), drained

1 cup low-sodium tomato sauce

3 cups low-sodium vegetable stock, plus more to thin if desired

plain greek yogurt and cilantro to garnish

In a large saucepan or pot, sauté carrot, onion, shallot, and garlic over medium heat until softened, about 10 minutes. Stir in the ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, cumin, curry powder, harissa, and a small pinch of salt. Continue to stir and cook about 1 minute until fragrant. Add the dry lentils and drained chickpeas to the pan with the tomato sauce and stock, stirring to lift any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Taste for salt, add more if desired. Bring the stew to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for about 30 minutes or until the lentils are tender and the stew has thickened. Add more stock or water if the stew becomes thicker than you like. Serve with chopped cilantro and a dollop of plain greek yogurt.

 

by

Black Bean Soup

Tags: , , , , , ,
18

There was a time in my life when I wasn’t a super fan of black beans.

I don’t know what I was thinking. In my defense, it was during my headstrong, misguided youth days…I really don’t think we should be held accountable for once being teens. It’s a confusing time, okay? and, now, we know better…right?

Anyway, memories of misguided youth aside, I am a big fan of black beans now and black bean soup is one of my current favorites. Starting with dried beans takes some time, so make this on a weekend. The pot of beans simmers for hours with a few, lightly charred aromatics and makes your house smell like savory magic. Such a humble bean packs SO MUCH FLAVOR. It’s just all about dried-bean-alchemy over here.

Black Bean Soup

I start with dried beans here, I think it really is worth the effort, but I bet you could adapt this with canned beans and have this soup in a fraction of the time. Dried beans can be fickle and depending on how old they are, they can take as little as 2 hours, up to 6 or more to become tender. If you want to go the OG route, and you forget to pre-soak your legumes the night before (I often do), just start an hour earlier and put your beans in a pot, boil, cover with a tight fitting lid, turn off that heat, and let it sit for an hour. Viola! Pre-soaked beans. Boom. This recipe is fine with languishing on the stove for hours, and reheats wonderfully as well. 

8 ounces dried black beans

water to cover

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 jalapeño, seeds and ribs removed (leave some in for some heat), and roughly chopped

1/2 onion, roughly chopped

1 small shallot, roughly chopped

3 garlic cloves, smashed

kosher salt, to taste

1-2 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable stock, to thin.

Garnishes: Avocado, cheese, sour cream, onions, tomatoes, radishes, cilantro, and crisp tortillas are all favorites.

The night before, place the beans in a bowl and cover with a few inches of water. In the morning drain the beans and set aside.

In the pot you would like to cook the soup in, heat olive oil over high heat, once the oil begins to shimmer, add the jalapeño, onion, and shallot, cook over high heat until some of the edges get dark brown and the vegetables begin to soften. Reduce the heat, add the garlic, and cook for 1 minute, stirring so as not to burn the garlic. Add the beans and enough water to cover by about 2 inches. Bring the beans to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour. Add salt to taste, and continue to simmer 1-3 more hours, checking water level (don’t let it boil off completely)–until beans are very tender.

Remove from heat and using an immersion blender (or a regular blender) blend the soup, adding stock to thin to desired consistency. Reheat to a simmer before serving. Garnish as desired.

 

by

Zucchini Boats – 3 Cheese and Roasted Tomato

Tags: , , , , , ,
23

While I love warm, sunshiney summer days…I am a total fool for drizzly, overcast, cool weather. I blame the foolishness on so many dry, cloudless years in the desert. This weekend was a welcome (to me!) respite from heat and humidity in Michigan. It was rainy and a little cool, there were clouds and a bit of thunder, and just the teensiest hint of fall in the air.

As a fool for cool, autumnal days, I always eagerly anticipate the change of the season as summer winds down. I (prematurely) switch my candles, bust out a pumpkin or two, and begin to bake and cook with fall in mind. This recipe takes the late summer bounty of zucchini and tomatoes, and pairs it with plenty of baked and bubbly cheese–making this dish a transition from fresh summer fare to baked, cheesy, comfort.

Zucchini Boats with 3 Cheeses and Roasted Tomatoes

Not only does this dish pair fresh, summer vegetables with a warm, casserole situation, it’s super easy and meatless main or side dish. PS, there’s a lot of cheese in this dish…I just like it that way. 

1 pint grape tomatoes, or other small tomatoes

3 medium zucchinis

salt/pepper

1/2 cup ricotta

1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated

1/2 cup grated mozzarella

1-2 teaspoons finely chopped basil

1 1/2 cups prepared marinara–homemade or storebought

Preheat oven to 400*F.

Spread tomatoes evenly on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake tomatoes in the oven for 15-20 minutes until tomatoes begin to burst, release juices, and start to caramelize around the bottom. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

In a medium bowl mix together ricotta, parmesan, mozzarella, and basil, season lightly with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Halve zucchinis, scrape out the seeds with a spoon creating a well–being sure to leave 1/4 inch or so of flesh around the edges, ends, and bottoms. Season zucchini boats with salt and pepper. Spread the marinara sauce evenly in a 9×13 inch baking dish. Nestle the zucchini boats into the sauce. Gently fold the cooled, roasted tomatoes into the cheese mixture. Generously fill each zucchini boat with the cheese and tomato filling. Bake in the 400*F oven for 20-30 minutes until zucchini become tender and the cheese is bubbling and starting to brown in spots. Remove from oven and cool 5 minutes before serving.

 

 

 

by

Tortilla Soup with Chiles + Charred Corn

Tags: , , , , , , ,
23

So, I know it’s still summer and we’re hot & sweaty everywhere, but…I wanted soup, so I made soup. I was perusing through Saveur’s Mexico issue and it just had me craving soup and Mexican flavors. Sometimes, I just have to do what feels right and sometimes what feels right is piping hot and spicy soup in August.

I think it’s fair to say many of us have had some variety of tortilla soup at one point or another…and, I bet some have been “meh” and some have been great. I happen to love tortilla soup because of all the garnishes–avocado, green onion, queso, tomatoes, crispy tortilla strips…mmm, yes. The soup itself blends the flavors of 4 chiles with chicken and charred corn–it’s broth-y and flavorful with bits of chicken, corn, and chiles speckled throughout. I’m sure if you’re not in the mood for soup now, in a few months you may be and I urge you to try this recipe. The chiles in the soup don’t immediately assault your taste buds, but leave that slow burn in the back of your throat. It’s the type that builds with each spoonful, delicious and lasting.

Tortilla Soup with Chiles and Charred Corn

Serves 4

When I make soups I just kind of go all in and wing it. I wrote down my ratios (for once), but just know that you can swap and change ingredients as desired–for both the soup and garnishes. Make it vegetarian, add other vegetables, use a different chile, go nuts…it’s your dinner! Note: I used the rendered chicken fat to cook the vegetables, you can use olive oil or other desired cooking oil if you’re not feeling the chicken. 

4 chicken thighs, bone-in and skin-on

2 ears of corn, husked and silks removed

1/2 large white onion, diced small

2 ribs of celery, diced small

1-2 poblano peppers, seeded, ribbed, and diced small

2 jalapenos, seeded, ribbed, and diced small

1 chipotle pepper in adobo, diced plus 1 Tablespoon of the adobo sauce

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

2 dried New Mexico chiles, ground in a spice grinder

4 cups low-sodium chicken stock

1 cup water

4 whole, canned tomatoes coarsely chopped plus 1/2 cup juices

5 sprigs cilantro

1 lime

salt to taste

3 corn tortillas cut into thin strips

oil for frying tortillas

Garnishes: Avocado, tomato, green onions, queso fresco, lime wedges–pretty much anything you like.

In a large pot (I used an enameled dutch oven) over medium-high heat, sear chicken thighs skin side down until crisp and golden and most of the fat has rendered into the pot. Remove chicken to a plate, and pour off all but 2 teaspoons of the chicken grease. Discard or save remaining grease.

Over a gas burner, on the grill, or under a broiler, char the ears of corn. Remove from heat source and set aside to cool.

Line a plate with paper towels. In a small skillet, heat about 1/4 inch of oil and fry tortilla strips in batches, draining on paper towels. Sprinkle lightly with salt while still warm. Set aside.

Cook the onions, celery, poblanos, and jalapenos in the pan with the chicken fat over medium-high until the edges of the vegetables take on some deep golden color and begin to soften. Add the ground, dried chiles, cumin, and the chipotle plus adobo. Add 4 cups of chicken stock, water, and tomatoes plus juice to the pot. Return the chicken thighs to the pot. Tie the cilantro sprig into a knot and add to the pot. Bring the soup to a boil, lower to a simmer and cook 20-25 minutes, until the chicken is done. Remove the chicken to a clean plate and cool enough to handle. Taste the broth and add salt if desired.

While the chicken cools, cut the corn off the ears–there will be corn shrapnel, beware. Shred the cooled chicken, discard skin, and add both the chicken and corn to the pot. Remove the cilantro knot, squeeze a whole lime into the soup and return the soup to a simmer–cook for 10 additional minutes. Serve with crispy tortilla strips and desired garnishes.

 

by

Recipe: Herbed Turkey Burgers with Goat Cheese and Cranberry Sauce

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
51

Guess what?

I pretty much make dinner 7 nights a week. For real. It’s not always fancy, or meaty, or exciting in the least. Sometimes it’s just whatever is wasting away in the crisper drawer combined with rice, sweet or regular potatoes, pasta, or tortillas. I just love a carb-y vehicle to drive the food home (in this case, home is my mouth).

I take the weekends as a cue to make something fun and exciting. I test out recipes I’ve had pinned, bookmarked, or have schemed up. A couple of weekends ago, it was rich and delicious chicken pot pie. The next weekend, fried chicken sandwiches with extra pickles. This past weekend, it was these amazeballs turkey burgers.

Yeah, man…they were amazeballs.  That wasn’t even a typo.

I mean, it’s a burger. We’re burger fanatics in this house. It doesn’t really matter what kind of patty it is…we’re totally into bean burgers, as well as the classic beef, and we’ve even been known to love a pork or chicken burger. Ground turkey is always a lean and easy to find option, but it can be dry and bland.

I try to jazz  up  turkey burgers with lots of herbs (sage & rosemary) and aromatics (onions & garlic), and ensure juiciness with a little greek yogurt. Then, there’s the bun and the toppings, which cannot be ignored. In this case it was my favorite Light Brioche bun, some soft goat cheese, lemony cranberry sauce, spinach (for some green), and some grainy mustard. It was pretty much Thanksgiving on a burger and it was love.

What kind of burger are you in love with?

Herbed Turkey Burgers with Goat Cheese and Cranberry Sauce

This burger is a meal in and of itself, but it’s totally appropriate to serve with a side of sweet potato fries.

Cranberry Sauce

12 ounces fresh or frozen cranberries

1/2-3/4 cup sugar (to taste)

zest of 1 lemon

juice of one lemon

3/4 cup water

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine all ingredients and cook until cranberries burst, give off their juice, and thicken (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat and strain through a fine mesh sieve if desired. Pour into a heatproof jar and allow to cool. Refrigerate. Will thicken as it cools.

Turkey Burger

1/2 medium onion, diced fine

1-2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon chopped, fresh sage

2 teaspoons minced, fresh rosemary

1 pound lean, ground turkey

1 egg

2 tablespoons greek yogurt

3 tablespoons panko breadcrumbs

salt and pepper to taste

goat cheese, grainy mustard, and spinach leaves to serve

In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, sweat onions and garlic. Once onions become translucent, add sage and rosemary and saute another minute. Do not brown or the garlic may burn. Set aside to cool.

In a large mixing bowl combine ground turkey, egg, yogurt, breadcrumbs, and cooled onion/herb mixture. Mix gently to combine. Divide meat into 4 sections and shape into patties (about 1/4-1/2 inch thick), making a shallow well in the center. Refrigerate patties for 20 minutes to firm up.

Heat a heavy skillet or grill pan over medium-high heat. Sprinkle patties liberally with salt and pepper, cook, flipping only once, for about 4 minutes on each side. Top with goat cheese, add a splash of water to the pan (1 tablespoon is good) and cover until liquid evaporates. This will soften the cheese, but not melt it since goat cheese doesn’t really melt. Place burgers on toasted buns with mustard and spinach, top with cranberry sauce.

Light Wheat Brioche Buns

I used King Arthur White Whole Wheat and regular whole wheat flour. You can use whatever you like or just use bread flour.

adapted from Smitten Kitchen

 

3/4 cup warm water

1/4 cup + 3 tablespoons warm milk

2 teaspoons dry yeast

2 tablespoons honey

1 large egg

1 1/2 cups bread flour

1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour

1/3 cup whole wheat flour

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

4 tablespoons butter, room temperature

poppy seeds or sesame seeds for sprinkling

1 egg + i tablespoon cream for egg wash

Measure out warm water and milk into a glass measuring cup. Stir in honey and then yeast. Allow to rest 5 minutes until foamy.

Lightly beat the egg in a small dish and set aside.

In a stand mixer, whisk together flours and salt. Rub butter into flour mixture with your fingertips. Mix in the yeast and water mixture, as well as the egg. Knead with the dough hook for 5 minutes. The dough will pull from the sides of the bowl and form a ball, the dough ball should be tacky to the touch. Rise, covered with plastic for 1-2 hours until doubled in bulk.

Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces and roll into balls. Place the dough portions on a parchemnet lined baking sheet and cover loosely, allow to rise another hour.

Preheat oven to 400F.

Whisk together egg and cream, brush the tops of the dough with egg wash and sprinkle with seeds. Bake buns in the center of the oven for 15 minutes. The buns should be golden brown and sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. Allow to cool on a cooling rack. Buns can be baked and frozen in a resealable plastic bag for use later.  Just defrost for 1-2 hours on the counter, or overnight in the refrigerator.

 

 

 

 

 

by

Recipe: White Bean Salad

Tags: , , , , , , , ,
15


Today, I have for you, a salad.

What the heck?

Indeed, a salad.

Yeah…sometimes…I gotta eat stuff that’s relatively good for me.

I can’t just eat cookies.

I want to, but I can’t.

Also, I just like to eat lots of different stuff.

That’s okay right?

This salad has been making weekly appearences in our dinner rotation.

It’s mighty tasty, bright, and fresh.

At it’s simplest it’s just white beans, a little onion, and a homemade vinaigrette. Sometimes I add basil, or parsley, or cilantro. Sometimes I add some Israeli couscous and it becomes a salad with carbs.

My favorite.

I’ve even added roasted red peppers and/or tomatoes.

Those are both lovely additions.

Basically, you can add whatever you fancy.

This salad is totally adaptable that way.

It’s nice as a side to some grilled protein or perfect for lunch. Sean loves this homely little salad. It actually shocked him how good it was. I like when I shock him with my humble cooking skills. Makes me feel like a champion.

I like that.

White Bean Salad

This time I added spinach to the mix. I suggest adding the spinach right before serving as the dressing will make it all wilt-y. I used a combination of lemon juice and cider vinegar for the acid part of the dressing. I just really like those two things and always have lemons and cider vinegar lying around. The dressing, like the salad, is totally adaptable to your taste. I like to grate the garlic and let it mingle with the acid so the raw edge is tamed a bit…or else you might just have highly corrosive garlicky dragon breath, as opposed to the regular kind of garlicky dragon breath.

1 can drained, rinsed white beans, such as cannelini or great northern

1/4 cup finely chopped onion (I used white, red or sweet are nice too)

1 small clove garlic

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1-2 teaspoons maple syrup or honey

1 tablespoon dijon mustard

salt and pepper to taste

3 tablespoons olive oil

2+ tablespoons fresh herbs, if you have them

1 cup washed, baby spinach leaves

Place beans and chopped onion in a medium bowl. Set aside and make the dressing

Grate garlic with a microplane or mince finely, place in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Add lemon, vinegar, maple syrup/honey, dijon, salt and pepper, and olive oil. Screw on lid and shake it up! Taste the dressing and adjust seasoning as necessary.

Pour the vinaigrette over the beans, mix well. Fold in the herbs (if using) and spinach leaves. Serve. If you don’t use the spinach or don’t add it in at this point this salad is wonderful after it has had time to chill in the refrigerator–anywhere from a few hours to 2-3 days.