Doenjang Jjigae

Adapted from Kimchi Chronicles, serves 6-8
Date made: 2/8/2012

1/2 c "Umma paste"
1/2 lb stew beef, cut in 1/2-in chunks
1 lb firm tofu, cut in 1/4-in chunks (I just used the lines that the box it came in imprinted in the tofu)
~2 1/2 lbs potatoes, roughly chopped
2 medium yellow onions, roughly chopped
1 medium zucchini (2 cups), roughly chopped
2 cups sliced carrots
8 cups water
1/3 c doenjang
2 Tbsp sesame oil
steamed white rice

Heat sesame oil in soup pot over medium heat.  Add beef, season with salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned on all sides.
Add water and bring to a boil, skimming off any foam that rises to the surface.  Stir in doenjang and Umma paste and cook at a rolling boil for 10 minutes.
Add potatoes, onions, zucchini, carrots, and tofu.  Cover the pot and cook at a boil until potatoes are fork tender, about 20 minutes.
Serve with steamed white rice and enjoy!

This soup can be made in a million different ways -- with meat, without meat, with seafood, etc.  Just make sure that you add the doenjang... and if you don't make the "Umma paste" at least add in gochujang and/or gochugaru!

Also, epic failure on my part, you should also serve this with kimchi, if you have it.  I unfortunately did not have any on hand when I made this.

Pickled Beets and Shredded Carrots

Adapted from Simply in Season, serves 2-4
Date made: 4/20/2011

2 c beets*
1 c carrots, shredded*
1/3 c white wine vinegar
1/3 c brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c beet juice (see below)

Scrub beets and leave on tails and 2-3 in of tops.  Place beets in pot and add water half-way up to beets.  Boil until fork-tender, 20-30 minutes.
Drain and set aside beet juice.  Run cold water over hot beets while sliding off skins with hands, and dice into small pieces.
Combine remaining ingredients except for the carrots into pot.  Add beets and bring to a boil.  Boil for 5 minutes and allow the sugar to dissolve.
Add carrots and allow to cool.  Keep refrigerated.

Shredded Beet Salad

Adapted from Simply in Season, serves 4
Date made: ???

8-10 small/medium red beets, boiled, peeled, and shredded*
2-3 carrots, shredded
3-4 celery stalks, chopped finely
1/2 head of lettuce, roughly chopped*
balsamic vinegar
olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
pepper to taste

Combine beets and carrots and toss with balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and salt and pepper.  Combine with lettuce when ready to serve.


Like I said, I'm not a big beet eater, but it's slowly growing on me.

Gołąbki

Adapted from my mommy's recipe, Gather and another food blogger, 6-8 servings
Date made: 1/19/2011

1 large head of cabbage*
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground pork
2 c cooked Cajun brown rice*
2 eggs
3 garlic cloves, minced
2  10 oz cans condensed tomato soup
1 14 oz can tomato sauce
3 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
3 ribs of celery, peeled and finely chopped
1 bell pepper, finely chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
thyme, salt, pepper, parsley to taste, other seasonings can be used as desired.

Core cabbage and place in boiling water.  Peel the leaves as they get soft and remove from the pot and set aside.
Saute onion in oil or butter until translucent.  Mix half of the onion with ground beef, pork, one egg, one cup of rice, and two garlic cloves.  Add about 1-2 tsp each of the seasonings.
Mix other half of onion with bell pepper, celery, carrot, the remaining rice, garlic, and one egg.  Again, add about 1-2 tsp each of the seasonings.
Take a cabbage leaf and cut off the thick stem.  Place a spoonful of filling in the middle of a leaf, fold the left and right sides over, and starting at the end closest to you, roll the cabbage up (see referenced recipes for photos).
Repeat until you have used all the mixture up.
Mix together two cans of tomato soup and tomato sauce.  Add 3 bay leaves and salt and pepper to taste.
Place cabbage rolls seam side down into crockpot and pour tomato soup/sauce mixture over the rolls.  Cook on low for 8-10 hours.

Jason and I had made a Russian version (Голубцы - golubtsy) of this dish a while ago, but it it was my first time making this Polish version that my family has been eating at reunions, parties, etc. for years.  My friends have been doing a "family dinner night" where every other Wednesday evening someone hosts the group for dinner.  The veggie version was for the vegetarian in our group.  Since I had gotten a huge head of cabbage from Hollygrove Market and Farm the week prior, I figured I'd try my hand at this and also make cabbage noodles.  All-in-all it turned out okay -- it was pretty underseasoned, but that was my fault since I'm pretty timid when it comes to seasoning my food.

Crockpot Vegetable Lentil Soup

From me!, serves 6-8

Date made: 1/11/2011

3 medium Idaho potatoes, cut 1/2-in pieces

4 carrots, cut in 1/2-in pieces

4 small-medium beets with stems, cut in 1/2-in pieces*

1 green onion, chopped*

1/2 medium onion, chopped

1 1/2 c lentils

3 c chicken broth

water

2 bay leaves

cumin, celery salt, salt, and pepper to taste

Combine ingredients in crock pot. Fill to min fill line with water, and cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 4-6 hours.

I've been sick over the last few days and a nice hot soup sounded really good after having that borscht last week. I threw together a bunch of vegetables I had left over, and I found some lentils in the pantry to go with it. Again, there were just enough beets that my non-beet palate wasn't overpowered, but it was hearty and tasty. I also ate it with some cornbread on the side.

Wild Rice Vegetable Bake

Adapted from "Simply in Season", serves 6-8

Date made: 1/4/2011

1 c Cajun brown rice*

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 c quick pearl barley

4 medium Idaho potatoes, peeled and cut in 1-in pieces

1 acorn squash, peeled, seeded, and cut in 1-in pieces*

3 carrots, peeled and cut in 1-in pieces

1 c apple juice

3 c chicken broth

4 c water

salt and pepper to taste

Boil rice in water for about 10 minutes.

Saute onion until tender. Mix with rice and pearl barley in 9x13 casserole dish.

Spread potatoes, squash, and carrots on top of grains and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Pour apple juice and chicken broth on top, and bake at 375°F for 1 hour.

This dish is pretty hearty, and the apple juice brings a fruity flavor without it being too sweet. The recipe in the cookbook calls for you to cover the casserole dish, which I forgot to do, so the veggies got a little dry. Other than that it was pretty good!

Au Gratin Cabbage

From "Simply in Season", serves 4

Date made: 1/4/2011

2 c cabbage, shredded

1 carrot, shredded

1 green onion, chopped*

1/2 c milk

1 egg

3 T goat cheddar cheese* (I just eyeballed it)

salt and pepper to taste

Saute vegetables until crisp-tender in frypan coated with cooking spray.

Transfer to greased 9x9 casserole dish (recipe says to use 1-quart baking dish)

Combine milk, egg, and cheese in small bowl.

Pour over vegetables, add salt and pepper, and and bake at 350°F for 25 minutes.

I would definitely double this recipe since it definitely didn't feel like it made enough. It was super tasty though, and I'll definitely try to make it again!

Winter Borscht

Adapted from "Simply in Season", serves 6-8

Date made: 1/4/2011

1 lb stewing beef

1/2 medium yellow onion

8 c water

4-5 medium Idaho potatoes

1/2 head cabbage, shredded

3-4 small/medium beets, including stems and greens, chopped*

2 carrots, diced

1/2 c quick pearl barley

2 bay leaves

2 T dried dill

1 green onion*

salt and pepper to taste

Brown onion and beef in oil in large soup pot over medium heat.

Add remaining ingredients, except for beet greens and and bring to boil, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.

Add beet greens and pearl barley and simmer until barley is cooked and meat is tender, about 10 minutes.

I'm honestly not a huge beet person, but my Russian-obsessed boyfriend is and thought the stew could use more beets. I thought it was just enough... to each their own. Nevertheless, it's nice and hearty and is a wonderful complement to a cold, wintry day!