Those boxes of vegetable broth are super handy and all, but during soup and stew season, they can really make a dent in the ol’ pocketbook.

I do like to make my own vegetable broth at home (and when I do it from veggie scraps, it’s pretty much free!) I love the method I blogged about here, but it also requires a lot of stove-top time, which means I have to make it on a day when I know I’m going to be home for awhile.

I love my homemade veggie broth and I love my slow cooker. Why couldn’t the two work together for some easy hands-off cooking time? Well, as it turns out, they can! Hallelujah.

Making slow cooker vegetable broth couldn’t be easier. No, really. Here’s how to do it!

gather your vegetables

There are two ways to go about this: keep a bag for scraps in your freezer, or buy fresh veggies.

I like to keep a gallon-size bag in my freezer, and that’s where I stash clean onion skins, carrot sticks beginning to wilt, and the ends of celery. If I end up with some leftover parsley or other herbs, I might throw them in there as well. It doesn’t take long before that bag is bursting at the seams and it’s time to make some broth.

Another option is to go out and buy some carrots, celery, and onions. I find that about 1 pound of veggies = 4 cups of broth.

My freezer bag is usually about 3 pounds worth by the time it’s stuffed to the gills. So that’s a good 12 cups of broth each time I make a batch. Gotta love it.

cook the broth

Add veggies and water to your slow cooker. Again, we’re talking 4 cups of water per 1 pound of vegetables. If you don’t have a scale, 1 pound of carrots, onion, and celery is about 5 cups. But even if neither of these measurements are exact, no worries! This is a pretty forgiving formula.

So, veggies + water. Check. Now, throw in a few peppercorns and a couple of bay leaves and put the lid on the slow cooker.

Cook on low for 8-10 hours (or on high 4-5 hours). And leave it alone! If you keep stirring it, the slow cooker loses its heat (and your broth might get cloudy, which doesn’t necessarily affect the taste, but it’s not as pretty).

drain and strain

Your broth is done when it’s golden and the veggies are super tender. Remove the lid from the slow cooker and let the broth cool for a bit.

Use a wooden spoon to gently press on the veggies in the Crock Pot to release a little more flavor. And then it’s time to drain! Grab a large bowl and set a colander over the top. Make sure you’re near your kitchen sink! Now carefully pour the mixture into the colander and discard the cooked veggies.

You’re getting closer!

NOW set a fine-mesh sieve over another bowl (or rinse your slow cooker out to use that). And pour the broth over the sieve to get the last bit of sediment out.

Hey look at that! That’s some beautiful broth you have there.

At this point, you can add some salt. If I’m adding salt, I go for about 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt per 4 cups of broth. But usually I just leave my broth unsalted, adding salt to the recipe I’m using it in instead.

store your homemade vegetable broth

And now it’s time to store your broth! I store it in either mason jars or freezer bags, usually in 2-cup increments. It keeps for about 5 days in the fridge, for several months in the freezer.

Note that if you freeze your broth in mason jars, you should only use straight-sided jars and fill only to the fill line to allow for expansion. Otherwise, you may be looking at a cracked jar. No bueno!

To use the broth, I usually pull it out of the freezer and place it in the fridge to thaw 12-24 hours ahead of time.

When I’m desperate, I have tried to thaw broth on the stovetop or I stick the freezer bag in a bowl of hot water and I tell ya, it’s a pain. So I still do keep boxes on hand for last-minute broth needs, but I use it a lot less now. That’s still a ton of money saved!

(more…)

The post How to Make Vegetable Broth in the Slow Cooker appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

I guess you could say I’m a carb girl. Pasta, bread … why does it all have to be so delicious?! I’ve been working on losing weight, however, and most carbs don’t necessarily serve me well.

My doctor, who I’ve been working with on my diet, conceded my need for carbs and suggested I try working in grains with 5 grams of fiber or more per serving. Barley, steel-cut oats, sorghum berries, and, yep, farro make that list. Steel cut oats,  no problem. I’ve loved those for years. Barley, I do now and then. And then sorghum and farro – yeah, while I’d heard of both, I had yet to try them at home.

So I bought some farro, and I went on the hunt for a recipe. This One-Pan Farro with Tomatoes from the venerable Smitten Kitchen caught my eye pretty quickly. It’s a spin on the famous one-pot pasta with tomatoes, onions, and basil. And it was a delicious introduction to farro.

But while slicing up the onions, I couldn’t help but think about what would happen if I went another direction with this one-pot farro. Like, maybe oodles of onions. Cooked down to sweet caramelized perfection. A deglaze of white wine, a few pinches of fresh thyme, a little garlic … yep. I took this farro to French onion town and I never want to come back.

Farro is a grain somewhat like wheat, but it’s not – it’s its own plant, its own thing. It’s not gluten-free, though it is lower in gluten than many other grains. It’s high in fiber and high in protein (more than quinoa)! It’s really kind of glorious, health-wise.

Cooked, it sort of reminds me of a cross between brown rice and orzo al dente. It’s larger than a grain of rice – probably about twice the size – with a tender yet chewy texture that holds its shape when cooked.

Farro definitely has personality, but the taste itself is rather mild, taking on the flavors of whatever else you put in the dish.

This One-Pot French Onion Farro reminds me of a cross between French onion soup and a hearty risotto. It works equally well as a hearty side dish or a main dish. Alone, it makes for a satisfying dinner alongside, say, a lightly dressed green salad.

This dish does takes awhile from start to finish, but most of it is hands-off, so don’t be fooled – it’s remarkably easy. And if you plan ahead just a tad, it makes for a great weeknight meal. Heck, you could even caramelize and deglaze the onions the night before, stick the pot in the fridge, and then proceed the next evening for a faster meal.

Served out of the pot, this recipe is vegan – and perfectly delicious without the cheese that you usually find on French onion soup. What I like to do is make the crostini two ways – a few have melty Gruyere for my cheese-eating guy, and a few stay naked for me.

If carbs can taste this delectable and help me stay healthy, well, I’m all for it.

(more…)

The post One-Pot French Onion Farro appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Two weeks ago, I had a full line-up of Thanksgiving recipe ideas ready to create and share. Two weeks ago, our oven went haywire. The good: it now preheats in 2 minutes flat! The bad: it only runs at one temperature – 550 degrees!

Our research revealed that the circuit board went out, and would only cost a mere $500 to replace. So down the rabbit hole of acquiring new appliances we went. We had planned to replace the range at some point to accommodate our future kitchen remodel, after all … just, you know. Not quite yet.

We’re about one more week away from our new range installation (fingers crossed). So this span of ovenless time has had me scrambling a bit. I’d planned on developing a ton of Thanksgiving and Christmas recipes, but sure enough, most of them made use of the oven.

I decided to embrace the challenge, though. After all, aren’t our ovens already overloaded at Thanksgiving time?! Wouldn’t it be nice to make things on our stove tops or, better yet, our slow cookers?

Yup, it was finally time to try my hand at a Crock Pot stuffing recipe. It was something that had been on my mind for awhile. My mom’s been doing it for a couple of years now; Serious Eats sealed the deal.

Now, most stuffing recipes make use of copious amounts of butter, and darn if they aren’t delicious because of it. But because of my new dairy-free ways, I wanted to create a dairy-free stuffing recipe – but one that is tasty enough for everyone to enjoy. I thought about omitting the egg to make it a full-on vegan deal, but ultimately decided to leave the egg in. Next year, perhaps, I’ll tackle that one.

So instead of butter, we’ve got onions and a little celery, sauteed in olive oil. And then. And then! We have piles of fresh herbs. Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme (thank you, Simon and Garfunkel! Excellent thinking.)

Then we have sourdough bread, mostly … mixed in with some mild-mannered French.

This is a simple, straightforward, and pretty classic stuffing recipe. No fancy stuff, just great Artisan bread, veggie broth, fresh herbs, and a good stint in the Crock Pot.

Who needs ovens?!! Okay, we do. Desperately. But not for our stuffing!

A few tips for cooking stuffing in the Crock Pot

• Crock Pot stuffing cooks a little differently than oven-baked stuffing. It gets crisper around the edges (yum), and moister in the middle. You want to take care to not add too much broth, or things might end up too much on the soggy side.
• Watch it carefully toward the end of the cooking time – depending on your individual slow cooker, the edges could go from deliciously crunchy to burnt.
• I like to use my large, oval, 6-quart slow cooker for stuffing. More coveted stuffing edge to go around!

More Stuffing Recipes

• Vegan Buttery Herb Stuffing
• Wild Rice & Quinoa Gluten-Free Stuffing
• Cornbread Stuffing
• Vegan Herb Stuffing Recipe
• Chanterelle & Caramelized Onion Mushroom Stuffing

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Slow Cooker Sourdough & Fresh Herb Stuffing

This simple Crock Pot stuffing recipe stays moist in the middle and gets golden-crisp around the edges. Holiday perfection – plus, it’s vegetarian and dairy-free!

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 6 hours hours 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 6 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 10 cups sourdough bread cubes about 1 loaf bread (I like 3/4-inch cubes)
• 4 cups French bread cubes about 1/3 load bread
• 2 tablespoons olive oil + more for greasing the slow cooker
• 2 cups chopped yellow onion about 1 medium onion
• 1/2 cup chopped celery about 1 stalk
• 1 medium clove garlic minced
• 2 1/2 – 3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
• 1 tablespoon fresh chopped sage
• 2 teaspoons fresh chopped rosemary
• 1 teaspoon fresh chopped thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 large egg
• More fresh herbs for topping if desired

Equipment:

• 4- quart or larger slow cooker

Instructions

• Grease the bottom and sides of the Crock Pot with olive oil.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spread bread cubes onto two rimmed cooking sheets and bake, stirring once, until crisp, about 10 minutes. You can also dry the bread cubes out without using the oven. Just cut the bread into chunks and let it sit at room temperature for 24-48 hours, until hard. Add the bread cubes to the slow cooker.
• Set a large saute pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add the olive oil, then the onion and celery. Saute until tender and lightly browned, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Remove from heat and add the broth, stirring to scrap up any remaining brown bits of onion.
• Let the broth mixture cool to room temperature. Add the parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper, and egg. Beat with a whisk until blended.
• Pour the broth and veggie mixture over the bread crumbs. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to gently stir until evenly distributed. Add additional broth, 1/4 cup at a time, until the bread is almost entirely soaked and is no longer crunchy, but not so much that there is broth pooled at the bottom of the slow cooker. The bottom of the slow cooker should still be relatively dry.
• Cook on low for 4-6 hours, until the edges are golden brown.
• Top with fresh herbs before serving, if desired.

Notes

Dairy option:

Sub butter for the olive oil, if desired.

The post Slow Cooker Sourdough Herb Stuffing appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Table of Contents

• The Story Behind the Recipe
• How to Make It
• More Yummy Vegetarian Soup Recipes

• Jump to the Full, Printable Recipe
• Read Comments & Reviews

The Story Behind the Recipe

Growing up, soup was just something that came from a Campbell’s can. In fact, when my mom would whip up a homemade soup (which she occasionally did and did well), I would be all suspicious. That’s not real soup, Mom!

Well, things have changed, and canned soup is a rare exception in our house. I just really like making soup from scratch. And when I need a soup that’s as convenient as canned, it’s as easy as dipping into the freezer, where I keep extra batches and leftovers (psst: This Bean without Bacon Soup freezes very well!).

There are a couple of canned varieties I do miss, though – not just because we hardly ever eat the canned stuff, but also because I’m a vegetarian. First on the list? Bean with Bacon Condensed Soup. Oh man. Smoky, a little thick, tastes like home. I don’t remember ever seeing an actual piece of bacon in there, but it was still delicious.

The lack of actual bacon pieces, however, kind of can mean it lends itself well to a homemade vegetarian version. Right?! Thanks to smoked paprika and fresh rosemary, this Bean without Bacon Soup tastes plenty smoky.

How to Make It

This is a super duper simple soup to whip up. First, a little saute for the veggies – with both butter and olive oil (a bit of both gives the final soup a little more oomph, but you can skip the butter for a vegan version and still be plenty happy). And then some garlic, spices, broth, beans, and a bit of a simmer. Puree for a thickened, full-bodied soup without roux or cream (did I mention this is a pretty healthy soup, all told?) – and then stir in a few more beans for texture.

Voila. Who needs cans and bacon? Not us, man! Not us.

More Yummy Vegetarian Soup Recipes

• 5-Ingredient Roasted Carrot Ginger Soup – so easy and full of so much flavor.
• Creamy Tomato Soup – so much better than canned!
• Simple Lentil Vegetable Soup – a seriously satisfying bowlful.
• 25-Minute Comforting Vegetable Soup – love how quickly this one comes together.
• Slow-Cooker 5-Ingredient Thai Butternut Squash Soup – this might just be my easiest soup recipe ever.
• Chickpea & Rice Soup – even chicken lovers love this one.

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Bean without Bacon Soup

A homemade vegetarian version of the popular canned bean with bacon soup. You won’t miss the bacon – promise!

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter or substitute 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 medium onion diced (about 1 cup)
• 2 medium carrots diced (about 1/2 cup)
• 4 medium cloves garlic minced
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth*
• 3 cups + 1 1/2 cups cooked great northern or cannellini beans or 3 [15-ounce] cans, drained and rinsed, divided
• Additional salt and pepper to taste
• Additional olive oil smoked paprika, and/or chopped fresh rosemary for garnish, if desired
•  

Instructions

• Heat the olive oil and butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Once the butter has melted, add the onions and carrots and saute, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, smoked paprika, rosemary, salt, and pepper, and cook, stirring, for another minute. Add the broth and 3 cups (or 2 cans) of beans. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the veggies are tender and the soup has reduced a bit, 15-20 minutes.
• Remove from heat and let cool for a couple of minutes until safe to handle. Using an immersion blender or working in batches with a blender, puree the soup. Return to the pan and return to medium-low heat.
• Add the remaining 1 1/2 cups (or 1 can) beans. Stir to combine. Return to a simmer until the beans are heated through.
• Taste and add additional salt and pepper if desired.
• Ladle into bowls and drizzle with olive oil, a dusting of smoked paprika, and/or a few chopped fresh rosemary leaves, if desired.
• Soup keeps refrigerated in an airtight container for 2-3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.

The post Bean without Bacon Soup (Vegetarian Bean with Bacon Soup) appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

This summer, we’ve been branching out with tacos. Oh yeah, gettin’ all fancy up here on the Kitchen Treaty grill.

Okay, I totally know tacos aren’t fancy. What I do know, though, is that they can be delicious. And easy! Gotta love delicious and easy.

This grilled tofu tacos recipe does require a little planning-ahead time – about two hours for marinating in a fresh lime juice, cumin, and smoked paprika blend. But then they come together lickety split. Slice up the cabbage and onions, toss lightly with lemon juice, a little olive oil, and salt and pepper. Slice up some avocado, and grill the tortillas.

Yep, grill the tortillas! It’s such an easy way to warm them so they’re nice and soft and pliable – plus, the grill is already on, so why not? I remove the flour tortillas from the package, place them on a dinner plate, and cover with a damp towel. Then just lay them on a grill heated medium-high, and cook for 1-2 minutes on either side until slightly browned and warmed through.

Then back on the plate they go, covered by the towel, until it’s time to assemble your tacos.

Chicken for the carnivore, tofu for the vegetarian. We’ve got this one dish two ways thing down.

Grab a tortilla, add some avo, sliced tofu, and sweet onion slaw. You can use any sweet onions you want, by the way – being from the Pacific Northwest, I’m partial to Walla Walla. But Vidalia or Texas sweets would work just fine, too. And purple cabbage would be pretty, if you wanted to go with that particular twist. Here, we had a giant head of green cabbage from our CSA and I was bound and determined to use that sucker down to the last leaf. This recipe helped!

Super simple grilled tacos, and no cooking indoors. Summer meal perfection.

(more…)

The post Grilled Tofu Tacos with Walla Walla Sweet Onion Slaw appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

There are tons of foods that are thought to bring those that feast upon them good luck and great fortune in the coming year, but this year, I thought maybe I’d try making a little bit of my own luck.

I mean, these Easy Brussels Sprouts Pita Pizzas feature a round shape to represent coins, the color green for money and luck, and deliciousness for, well, um … deliciousness.

These easy individual pizzas also represent, for me, more of what I’d like to keep doing with the recipes I create in 2014: keep it simple and seasonal, and, most importantly, keep it real. And I mean “real” in a couple of ways – I want to use even more whole, real foods in my kitchen, for one. But I’m not going to be all frou-frou about it. I also just want to make sure I come up with recipes that are realistic and relatively easy for busy home cooks – just like myself – to whip on up. No shaved truffles or croquembouche in 2014, I don’t think. I mean, I wouldn’t know what to do with either of those things, anyway. I didn’t even know how to spell croquembouche. Thanks, Google!

So! About these (hopefully) lucky little pizzas. Baked up on pita breads, the “crusts” for these pizzas couldn’t be any easier if they tried. And with just a handful of ingredients, they come together in a flash. From fridge to oven in under 10 minutes.

I love Brussels sprouts, so when I realized I didn’t have any recipes with Brussels yet on Kitchen Treaty, I was stunned. And I possibly even wanted to cry a little. But I’m thrilled that this recipe is the first featuring them, as they’re actually one of my favorite veggies – and I’ve gotta say, I am actually a little bit in love with these pizzas.

And so, some lucky – and delicious – green pizzas for Near Year’s – with a little bacon love for the meat-eaters, to boot.

Happy 2014!

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Easy Brussels Sprouts Pita Pizzas with Optional Bacon

Assemble these delectable little pita pizzas in under 10 minutes. The shredded Brussels sprouts roast to perfection, and they're the perfect partner for a light sprinkling of melty mozzarella, sweet onions, and the touch of heat from crushed red pepper flakes.

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 8 minutes minutes

Total Time 18 minutes minutes

Servings 4 pizzas

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 4 pita breads
• 1/4 cup olive oil + a little more for drizzling
• 3 medium cloves garlic minced (about 1 tablespoon)
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese can sub vegan cheese
• 1/2 small sweet onion sliced
• 1/2 pound Brussels sprouts
• 1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes to taste
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

If adding bacon:

• 1 slice bacon cooked, drained, and crumbled, per pita pizza

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
• In a medium bowl, mix the 1/4 cup olive oil with the minced garlic.
• Place pitas on a baking sheet. Brush the top of each pita with a little of the olive oil garlic mixture.
• Lay onions on pitas, then sprinkle each with 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella.
• Slice the stem end off of the Brussels sprouts and peel off the outer layer or two of leaves. Rinse and dry. Thinly slice sprouts from end to top. Add to bowl with remaining olive oil and garlic, and toss well.
• Divide Brussels sprouts between each pizza. Pile loosely to about 1/2 inch of the edge of the pitas.
• Top individual pizzas with crumbled bacon, if using.
• Sprinkle with red pepper flakes, along with a generous pinch of kosher salt (use a light hand with the salt on those with bacon), and freshly ground black pepper.
• Drizzle each lightly with about another teaspoon of olive oil.
• Bake for 8 - 10 minutes until pitas are golden brown and getting crisp around the edges, the cheese is melted, and the shredded Brussels are tender.
• Cut into quarters and serve.

Notes

Assemble these delectable little pita pizzas in under 10 minutes. The shredded Brussels sprouts roast to perfection, and they're the perfect partner for a light sprinkling of melty mozzarella, sweet onions, and the touch of heat from crushed red pepper flakes.

The post Easy Brussels Sprouts Pita Pizzas with Optional Bacon appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Table of Contents

• The Story Behind the Recipe
• Salsa Verde Ingredients
• Adaptations/Variations
• How to Make Salsa Verde
• More Salsa Recipes

• Jump to the Full, Printable Recipe
• Read Comments & Reviews

The Story Behind the Recipe

I’ve always been a fan of Mexican salsa verde – you know, that green, tangy, incredible salsa? But I don’t know that I could consider myself a true fan because, truthfully, I had no idea what went into it. I’ll be honest – I thought it was probably green tomatoes.

So it was a bit of an epiphany when I received a bunch of tomatillos in my CSA box and I thought, gee, those might make a nice salsa. A little bit of research, and I forehead-bopped. It’s not green tomatoes that make up salsa verde, sillyhead! It’s freakin’ tomatillos!

I also discovered pretty quickly that tomatillo salsa is kind of more of a method than a recipe. And it is SO easy to make, guys! Seriously. So. Easy.

Salsa Verde Ingredients

• Tomatillos – You’ll want a pound. Remove the husks and rinse them.
• Jalapeño peppers – You can also go with another, milder pepper like anaheim or poblano.
• Garlic
• Onion – I like a sweet onion for crisp oniony taste that’s not overpowering.
• Salt

Adaptations/Variations

• Zip it up (and add to the green) by adding a handful of fresh chopped cilantro.
• A pinch of cumin adds a bit of smoky flavor.
• Chopped cucumber adds a crisp, interesting bite.
• Add diced ripe avocado for avocado salsa verde.

How to Make Salsa Verde

Here’s what you do: You throw the peeled tomatillos and a pepper or two of your choice on a cookie sheet and place them under the broiler until most of the sides are black.

Peel the skin off the pepper, then throw the whole lot in a food processor along with a clove of garlic and a pinch of salt.

Add to a bowl, stir in some chopped onion and maybe some lime juice or cilantro, and voila! Salsa verde!

More Salsa Recipes

• Strawberry Jalapeno Salsa
• Pineapple, Corn, & Kale Salsa
• Easy Cherry Tomato Pico de Gallo

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How to Make Salsa Verde

Tangy, full-of-flavor salsa verde is so easy to make! I find it to be more of a method than a recipe … start with the base ingredients, then play around and make it your own!

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Calories 22kcal

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 1 pound tomatillos husks removed and rinsed
• 1 – 2 jalapeno peppers can also use poblano or anaheim
• 1 medium clove garlic peeled
• 1/2 small sweet onion about 1/2 cup; walla walla, vidalia, or another sweet onion will work
• Pinch kosher salt plus more to taste

Optional additions

• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• Handful chopped fresh cilantro
• Pinch ground cumin

Instructions

• Place tomatillos and peppers on a baking sheet and broil on high, turning occasionally, until charred black on most sides, about 5 – 7 minutes. Remove from heat and as soon as the peppers are cool to the touch, peel the pepper and remove the stem. You may also want to remove some of the seeds depending on your pepper and the level of heat you prefer.
• Scrape roasted tomatillos, peeled peppers, and any flavorful juices into a food processor. Add garlic. Whir until pureed.
• Pour into a medium bowl and stir on the onion and any other optional additions. Add a pinch of salt and taste; add more salt if desired.
• Keeps refrigerated in an airtight container for 3-4 days.

Nutrition

Serving: 2tablespoons | Calories: 22kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 0.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 1mg | Potassium: 170mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 84IU | Vitamin C: 9mg | Calcium: 7mg | Iron: 0.4mg

The post How to Make Salsa Verde appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Gobs of my recipes call for vegetable broth. Even, say, soup that could have chicken in it. The main reason is obvious: most of what I make starts out vegetarian, the meat added later to only a portion for my resident carnivore.

So, a few years ago, I started saving my veggie and herb scraps and freezing them in a gallon freezer bag. When the bag is packed to the brim, I brew up a big old pot of vegetable broth concentrate. Then I freeze it in measured portions and take it out as I need it, adding water and sometimes salt and, voila: veggie broth!

What is vegetable broth made of?

My homemade vegetable broth recipe always contains the following foundation vegetables:

• Carrots
• Celery
• Onion

Other vegetables that work well in vegetable broth:

• Shallots
• Mushrooms
• Parsnips
• Turnips
• Rutabagas
• Leeks
• Scallions
• Parsley leaves & stems
• Sage
• Thyme
• Rosemary

In addition, my vegetable broth contains:

• Water
• Salt
• Bay leaves
• Peppercorns

To get a gallon-bag full, I just throw my scraps in a designated bag and once it’s full, I make some broth! I peel an onion – the peel goes in the bag (after washing). I chop off the ends of a bunch of celery – into the bag. A couple of carrots languish in the bottom of the produce drawer. I stick them in the bag before they go bad. You get the drift.

Not only do I save a ton of money by making my own vegetable broth from my discards, it adds such a wonderful depth of flavor to dishes that I never quite get from store-bought broth. And I love being able to control the amount of salt that goes into a final recipe.

(more…)

The post How to Make Vegetable Broth from Scraps appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Welcome to the inaugural post on Kitchen Treaty! My aim is to show that vegetarians and meat-eaters can live together – and happily, too. Over the years, I’ve developed an arsenal of easy recipes that please meat-eaters and veggies alike. I’m looking forward to sharing them here!

French Onion Soup. My first “gotcha” dish when I became a vegetarian some 12 years ago. It’s onion soup! A veggie! No meat! Silly me. Traditional french onion soup is made with beef broth. This one isn’t (unless you add some to the meat side), but you don’t miss it.

Instead, after cooking a huge amount of onions down into wonderful brown caramelized goodness, you add rich vegetable stock and, of course, a few other ingredients. Simmer for a good long while, then take some of the good stuff and add it to a new pot. This is where you’ll add the meatballs for yourself or your loving (and appreciative) carnivore. (more…)

The post French Onion Soup with Optional Meatballs appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

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I’m going to tell you a little vegetarian secret. Chicken broth is the absolute bane of the vegetarian’s existence. Chicken broth and anchovies. Man, it’s like butternut squash soup and pasta puttanesca and traditional Thanksgiving stuffing are their Trojan horse. The dishes look vegetarian, but nuh uh – gotcha!

I get that these vegetarian-unfriendly ingredients add flavor to a dish. But luckily for us non-meat-seeking missiles, so does a flavorful homemade vegetable broth. And a little Parmesan Reggiano. And fresh-picked herbs. And just having really really good ingredients to begin with.

Often when I serve a big holiday meal at my place, I keep stealth meat out of the sides, and leave the meat to the, you know, actual meat dish. That way, vegetarians (okay, me) get plenty to choose from, and the carnivores are content, too.

For Thanksgiving this year, we brined our turkey in peppercorns, sage, brown sugar, and salt, then my guy deep-fried it to a perfect golden brown. While our guests oohed and ahhed over my guy’s triumph, I don’t think they missed that the stuffing didn’t have chicken broth.

Or maybe they were just polite.

Well, I think it’s delicious – and I’d be willing to bet you will, too.

More Stuffing Recipes

• Vegan Buttery Herb Stuffing
• Cornbread Stuffing
• Wild Rice & Quinoa Gluten-Free Stuffing
• Crock Pot Sourdough Herb Stuffing

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Vegetarian Caramelized Onion & Chanterelle Mushroom Stuffing

This simple vegetarian stuffing recipe is made special with a handful of sourdough bread thrown into the mix, caramelized onions, and delicately-delicious chanterelle mushrooms.

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Cook Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 10 -12

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 12 cups french bread cut into 3/4 inch cubes
• 4 cups sourdough bread cut into 3/4 inch cubes
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter plus more for buttering baking pan
• 2 large onions cut in half and sliced thinly (about 5-6 cups raw)
• 1 teaspoon salt + more to taste
• A few grinds of black pepper
• 1 1/2 cups about 1/3 pound chopped chanterelle mushrooms
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/2 cup chopped parsley
• 2 teaspoons fresh chopped thyme or 1 teaspoon dried
• 2 teaspoons fresh chopped sage or 1 teaspoon dried
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 egg

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and butter a 9×13 inch baking pan.
• Spread bread cubes on two rimmed cookie sheets and bake for about 10-12 minutes, stirring once, until they begin to turn golden brown and are fairly dry and crisp. Remove from oven and set aside.
• In a large saute pan over medium heat, melt butter.
• Add onions, 1 teaspoon salt and a couple grounds of fresh ground pepper. Cook on medium-low for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and well-browned (caramelized).
• Increase heat to medium and add the celery and mushrooms to the pan. Stirring frequently, saute until tender, about four minutes.
• Add sage, thyme, and parsley, and stir for another minute.
• Add a cup of the broth, gently stirring until much of the bits of onion have come off of bottom of the pan.
• Set aside and let onion and broth mixture cool to room temperature.
• In a large bowl, beat the egg.
• Stir in the onion/broth mixture and the rest of the broth.
• Add the bread, and toss to coat evenly.
• Pour into the prepared baking pan and press the top gently.
• Bake uncovered for 40 – 50 minutes or until browned and crisp on top.

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