Roasted Eggplant Noodle Salad

Yet another recipe I found on Orangette, but changed it a bit.

Dressing Ingredients:

7 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
7 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 Tbsp sugar
2.5 tsp salt
Pinch of red pepper flakes
8-10 scallions, thinly sliced into rounds
1 lb spaghetti or Chinese egg noodles
1 Tbsp fresh minced ginger
3 Tbsp chopped cilantro leaves

Veggies:

1 1b firm, shiny Japanese or Chinese eggplants (or just plain old eggplants if you can't find them)
1 cup snow peas, trimmed

1. Combine all the dressing ingredients (except the spaghetti) and stir until the sugar is dissolved.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
3. Dice the eggplants (not finely, just nice and chunky), put on a cookie sheet, pour olive oil over eggplant, then bake for 20-30 minutes.
4. Bring large pot of water to a boil and cook the snow peas for 30 seconds; use a slotted spoon to remove from pot and rinse under cold water.
5. Add noodles to the same large pot of boiling water and cook according to package instructions. When done, drain and combine with half the dressing and toss.
6. Add in eggplant and snow peas and the remaining half of the dressing. Stir to combine and enjoy!

Red Lentil & Couscous Soup

I found this recipe on Saveur.com, but altered it quite a bit because the original version was a little bland for me. My version is heartier and tastier, if I don't say so myself...

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp unsalted butter
3/4 tsp cumin seeds
3-4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 medium red onion, chopped
1.5 Tbsp tomato paste
1 28 oz can whole peeled tomatoes, chopped (with juice)
4 cups veggie broth
1 cup red lentils
1/3 cup couscous
Salt & Pepper

Method:

1. Melt butter in a large soup pan over medium heat. Add cumin, garlic, and onions.  Cook until onions are soft.
2. Increase heat to high and add tomato paste. Stir frequently for several minutes until color darkens.
3. Add chopped tomatoes and cook another several minutes.
4. Add tomato juice, veggie broth, lentils, couscous and 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until lentils are tender and soup is thick (30-40 minutes). Season with salt & pepper.

You can also make chile-mint butter to top the soup off with. Just take 3 Tbsps of butter and melt in a small saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in a couple of fresh mint leaves or 1 Tbsp dried mint leaves as well as 1/2 tsp paprika. Drizzle over individual bowls of soup.

Cream of Crab Soup

I found this recipe on the New York Times website and made a few changes to perfect it to my liking.  I added more Old Bay, substituted light cream for the originally called for half and half, and sprinkled in some parsley flakes. Hope you find it to your liking.

Ingredients:

1 medium onion, minced (I used a red one)
3 Tbsps butter
3 Tbsps flour
1 pint clam juice
1 to 1.5 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
Ground pepper & salt (I didn't use salt--it didn't need it)
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 pint light cream
1 pound crab meat
Parsley flakes--as much as you want

Method:

1. Saute onion in butter until soft.
2. Stir in flour and gradually whisk in clam juice.
3. Add Old Bay, S&P, wine, and light cream.
4. Simmer about 15 mins until soup gets thick.
5. Add crab meat and heat through--don't boil.
6. Serve with bread smeared with Kerrygold butter.