Red Pepper Sauce (fresher than roasted)

Developed Summer 2019

About 30 years ago, I first learned about spaghetti squash, and though it was fun, thought it was a horrible substitution for pasta with a traditional marinara. Everyone raved about it as a “healthier” substitute, and I thought I was crazy. Then, about 10 years ago, I had zucchini squash thinly sliced with a vegetable peeler and topped with roasted red pepper sauce and thought, “Ah, that is good and would be good with all kinds of mild squash.” 

Last summer I was inundated with squashes from my community farm share and decided to do some research on good red pepper sauces, borrowed from many, and finally settled on this. It is very forgiving and quite delicious. I’ve used it as a sauce for squash and regular pastas, drizzled on homemade hummus, as a base for red pepper soup, and with curries.  My favorite pasta with red pepper sauce combination follows the recipe. 

This recipe is very forgiving and can be modified without loss of deliciousness.

EQUIPMENT

Cutting board

Chef’s knife

Measuring cup

Zester, such as a microplane

Food Processor (or blender)

Rubber spatula or spoon

INGREDIENTS

3-4 roasted red peppers (about 2 cups) 

2-3 non-roasted jarred red peppers (about 1.5 cups)

1 fresh red pepper, seeded and cored

2T shallot or mild white onion

2 cloves garlic

1T capers

1 lemon, zest and juice

2T fresh basil or ½ T dried basil

½ t sea salt; ¼ t black pepper

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¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

 RECIPE

1.    Shake off the brine from the roasted and regular red peppers, rough chop them and toss them in the blender or food processor. (Rough chopping the ingredients helps ensure they are evenly distributed in your sauce.) 

2.    Peel and rough chop the onion and garlic then add to the peppers. 

3.    If you are using dried herbs, pulverize them by rubbing them between your palms as you add them to the peppers. This helps release their essential oils. 

4.    Add the remaining ingredients aside from the olive oil to the food processor. Blend until smooth. You may need to open the blender and scrape ingredients off the side of the container with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon.
Once the ingredients are fairly smooth, turn on the processor again and slowly blend in the olive oil.
The sauce is ready for use. It keeps well refrigerated in a tightly sealed container for 5 days or longer. 

My favorite pasta for this sauce:

Rigatoni with red pepper sauce and garlic, parsley, zucchini, mushrooms, capers, green olives, feta cheese. Any or all of these ingredients are optional; any hearty pasta will work. 

(serves 4-6 people)

·      Prepare the rigatoni as the package indicates while you make the sauce.

·      Quarter 8 oz (the standard package) of button mushrooms, cut the zucchini into ½ inch rounds and then in half-moons, mince ¼ cup of parsley leaves, and thinly slice 2-3 cloves of peeled garlic. 

·      Bring a sauté pan to temperature over medium heat. Once, it is hot, add about a tablespoon of olive oil to the pan. Then pop in 2-3 thinly sliced cloves of garlic. 

·      When the garlic begins to slightly brown, add the mushrooms and zucchini, a pinch of salt, and bring the temperature to low, stirring frequently until mushrooms and zucchini are cooked, about 5 minutes. 

·      Pour about 3 cups of the roasted red pepper sauce into the pot with the veggies and increase the heat to medium. Use more sauce if you feel like you need it. Add about a tablespoon of capers and ½ cup of olives sliced in half. If they have pimento, you can leave it – that is actually red pepper. The feta cheese can be crumbled and added now which will make the sauce creamy or as a garnish later.  Allow to simmer for 2-3 minutes, then take it off the heat. 

Cincinnati-Style Chili for Vegetarians and Vegans

I just LOVE Cincinnati chili. Skyline is the most well known, but Chili Time, Gold Star and even some taco shops made wonderful versions of this chili reminiscent of the Greek dish called pastitsio which features cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cocoa. I've tried a few recipes to develop a and this is the version I regularly make.  All ingredients come together in less than 15 minutes with very little slicing and dicing.  

Of course it would be delicious with  ground beef or ground turkey.  So, if you don't have a recipe and want a to give it a try, this is a good start. 

Here's a bit on the ground veggie protein or grain options.  My preferred choice is Yves' ground soy product which can be found in the refrigerator section of your grocery.  Boca's frozen product is another fine choice.  Dried TVP works decently, but isn't quite as pretty.  Finally if you prefer not to use soy-based products, you can use bulgar wheat instead.  

Makes 4 servings with 1 lb of spaghetti

Here are the amounts for your ground product: 

• 12 oz package veggie crumbles (I like Gardein the best)
• 1.5 cup of dry TVP mixed thoroughly with 1.25 cups of boiling water
• 3/4 cup of bulgar wheat; pour over 3/4 cup of boiling water, stir and allow to sit for 1 hr

INGREDIENTS

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 large sweet yellow onion, finely chopped (Vidalia or spanish is fine)

ground soy product or bulgar wheat (as above); or 12 oz ground beef or ground turkey

1-2 cloves of garlic, minced

1Tbsp chili powder

28-oz can of crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes or tomato sauce

1tsp allspice ** (or a mixture in equal parts of clove, cinnamon and nutmeg, which I prefer)

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 1/2 tsp unsweetened natural cocoa powder (you can use Dutch processed if that's what you have)

1 Tbsp worcestershire sauce (regular which has anchovy in it, Amy's vegan, or pick-a-peppa all are great options…you can even make your own and for a veggie version substitute Maggi sauce for fish sauce).

1 Tbsp cider vinegar

1/2-1 1/2 cups water

RECIPE

Heat a stock pot over medium high flame to temperature.  Once hot, add the oil, onion, ground soy product or bulgar wheat (hydrate that ahead of time), chili powder and garlic.  Stir to mix thoroughly and allow to cook until the "meat" is slightly browned which will take about 7-8 minutes.  You'll need to stir frequently to ensure  it doesn't burn. 

Now, add the tomato sauce and 1/2 cup of water, being certain to scrape the bottom of the pot to remove anything that might have stuck to the bottom.  Add the rest of the ingredients and stir thoroughly.  Once the chili comes to a boil, reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cook for 1 1/2 hours, stirring every 15-20 minutes and adding a bit of water if needed 1/2 cup at a time. 

Serve over piping hot spaghetti and allow everyone to top their chili with finely grated mild cheddar cheese, diced onion and/or kidney beans.  Traditional accompaniments of oyster crackers and tabasco sauce are great fun, too!  

________……..________

Here's a quick note about the allspice…  I don't use allspice, since I really don't bake and it would get

old before its time.  Instead, I mimic the taste with an equal amount of whole clove, freshly ground nutmeg and ground cinnamon. 

Measure out a teaspoon of cloves. Grind it up with a mortar and pestle or smash it between two sturdy spoons. Once the clove is ground, the volume will be somewhat less than 1/2 teaspoon, but that's okay. You'll have enough.

Pull out your microplane and a nutmeg seed. Grind out an amount of nutmeg equal to that of the ground cloves.  Please don't use old pre-ground nutmeg. That's no better than using tired old allspice.  

Now, eyeball measure out a similar amount of ground cinnamon or use the microplane and grate out the correct amount.  I go through cinnamon quickly, so keep both ground and stick on hand. 

Clockwise from 12:00 - nutmeg, clove, cinnamon

Mix the ground clove, cinnamon and nutmeg together and measure out a teaspoon for your chili.  

The leftover spice mix doesn't need to go to waste -- toss it on cereal, oatmeal, fruit and yogurt, or use to spice tea or coffee.  

It Ain't Your Father's Cincinnati Chili

Easy to make, you can create a delicious vegetarian version of Cincinnati chile while you boil water and cook your pasta.  This recipe will feed 4 very hungry people and may even yield left-overs.  It is delicious served with a dark green salad and basil vinaigrette dressing.

2T extra virgin olive oil
1 medium vidalia onion, diced
2 dried whole chili
6 gloves garlic, minced
1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
1 8-oz can tomato paste
28 oz water
1T ground cumin
2 t chili powder
1/2 t cayenne pepper
1 1/2 t teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1 t ground cinnamon
4 whole cloves
2 14-oz can black beans, well rinsed

1 box whole wheat spaghetti
pinch of sea salt

Optional Toppings:
sharp cheddar cheese
diced onion
sour cream
lime-coriander yogurt sauce

Bring a sauce pan or covered large sautee pan to medium heat.  Add the oil, onions and whole dried chili, and stir occasionally to keep the onions from browning.  When the onions are transparent, add the garlic, tomatoes and water.  Add the dried spices and then the chili paste, turn to a simmer.  Rinse and drain your beans and add them to the pot.

Bring a large pot of water to boil for your pasta.  Once at a rolling boil add a healthy pinch of sea salt and return to a full boil.  Add your pasta and cook just to al dente.

Allow the bean and sauce mixture to simmer gently until it reaches your desired thickness.

Put the drained pasta in the pot with the sauce, turn off the heat and allow it to sit for a couple of minutes so that the pasta absorbs the lovely flavor of the sauce.

Plate the pasta and enjoy with your favorite toppings.

Easy, Chick Pea and Artichoke Pasta

This I make often at the end of a work day.  It takes about 1/2 hour to cook and I've always got left overs for lunch later in the week.

INGREDIENTS
1T extra virgin olive oil
3-4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 14-oz can diced roasted tomatoes
1 t dried oregano
1 t fennel seed, crushed
zest of 1 lemon
1 14-oz can artichoke hearts in water, drained
1 14-oz can garbanzo beans
1 small can chopped clams (optional)
1 t crushed red pepper

Pasta of your choice.  I love whole wheat linguine with this one.

RECIPE
Heat oil over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the garlic.  Almost immediately, add tomato; then spices; then other ingredients. Cook pasta to near el dente.  Drain pasta and add it and 1 ladle full of pasta water (as necessary) to sauce/vegetables to simmer to desired thickness. Simmer for 1-2 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Top with gremolata (a blend of finely minced garlic, parsley and lemon zest) and/or a sprinkling of parmesan cheese.

My Favorite Yogurt Sauce

This is a very good sauce for spicy dishes...it replaces a dollop of sour cream and is more refreshing.

1 C plain or fat free yogurt (I only use organic dairy)

1 lime; zest and juice

1 tablespoon coriander seeds

1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves (optional)

pepper to taste

Place a metal sieve that can hold your yogurt over a bowl. Insert a cheesecloth, large flat coffee filter or a couple of paper towels over the sieve. Put the yogurt on top of the cloth to drain, refrigerated, for at least 1/2 hour.

Zest and juice a lime, making certain to strain out any seeds. With a mortar and pestle, grind the coriander seeds. The grindings don't have to be very fine; what you have the patience to do is okay. Mince the cilantro if you plan to add it.

Once the yogurt is strained (and anything really between unstrained and overnight is good depending on your preferred thickness and application), discard the residual liquid. Use a spoon or silicone spatula to transfer the thick yogurt to a bowl. Add your lime juice and spices and mix thoroughly. Add freshly ground pepper to the top and fold in.

Enjoy this on chili, Mexican rice, fish tacos, biryani, or any other dish that you would like a cooling influence.

Greek Variation (Tsatsiki)

Tsatsiki is often used as a condiment for gyros and other spicy Greek dishes, and includes:

1 cup yogurt

1/4 cup shredded cucumber, drained

1-2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/8 cup fresh mint leaves, minced

salt and pepper to taste

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

Indian Variation (Raita)

1/2 seeded, towel dried and diced cucumber

1/2 tablespoon toasted cumin seeds

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon minced cilantro leaves (mint or italian parsley are fine if you don't prefer cilantro)