Culinary Experimentation: Roasted Winter Veggies and Cous Cous Salad

One of my new year's resolutions was to experiment with new recipes and new ingredients. Tonight was one of my first culinary experiments of the new year. I did some pan-roasted winter veggies and a cous cous salad--sounds classy, right? Surprisingly, both of these are pretty simple.

These are great vegetarian meals that make use of some ingredients I have little to no experience with, including: cous cous (a Mediterranean pasta that looks like pasta and rice had tiny tiny babies), parsnips (like a milder, white carrot), and golden beets (I opted for golden over normal ruby beets because I heard a rumor that they are sweeter). Though I'm not a vegetarian, I tend to not buy meat when I'm at school to save money. Also, when you're cooking for one, sometimes meat doesn't keep in the fridge long enough to eat it all. So I'm always looking for some meat-free recipes to make at school, and these are a couple of winners!

On to the experiments...

Pan-Roasted Winter Vegetables

Ingredients:
1 large parsnip
3 golden beets
8-9 red potatoes
About a dozen baby carrots
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Directions:
1. Give the carrots and potatoes a good wash. Cut each carrot in half lengthwise (careful with the knife!) and each potato into fourths. Toss them onto a lined sheet pan and proceed to the more exotic root vegetables...

Holy beets!

2. Peel the parsnip and beets. As you whip out that knife to chop them up, be advised: these are some tough little veggies. Use extra caution as you try to get all the pieces about equal sizes. Add them to your pan.

How pretty are those colors?

3. Season generously with salt and pepper, and coat with a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Toss everything together with your hands and pop in a 400 degree oven for 45-60 minutes. Make sure to check up on them every so often and give them a stir. You'll know they're ready to go when everybody starts to get a little color and are fork-tender.

Warning: this will make your house smell very cozy. 

Cous Cous Salad

Ingredients:
1 box of cous cous
3/4 cup lemon juice
Olive oil
2 chicken bouillon cubes
3/4 cup chopped basil
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 tbsp chopped thyme
1/4 cup of craisins
Salt and pepper

Directions:
1. Prepare the cous cous according to box directions. For the whole box, I used two cups of water and an equal amount of bouillon cubes. Also add in 1/4 cup lemon juice and a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Once the cous cous is cooked, let it stand while you prepare the dressing.
2. For the dressing, combine all your herbs, 1/2 cup lemon juice, 1/2 cup of olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.
3. Mix thoroughly and pour over the cous cous. Add in the craisins last (for a little color and sweetness) and toss well. This salad can be served warm, room temp, or cold.

The perfect side for the veggies...or anything, really.

Both of these experiments turned out delicious. And pretty inexpensive, too. In the spirit of experimentation and science and data and all that, I ran the numbers on how much these dishes cost per serving (assuming that I always have salt and pepper, olive oil, and lemon juice on hand...which I do). The results? $1.12 per serving for the roasted veggies, $1.16 for the cous cous salad. That's college-budget friendly!

So get creative with some new recipes in the new year! Feel free to leave any scientific discoveries in the comments.

BAM! Sausage and White Bean Soup

This soup was inspired by the man himself, Emeril Lagasse. The original recipe, courtesy of the Food Network, can be found here. I used the recipe as a benchmark, but simplified it somewhat. The result is an easy-to-make, healthy winter meal.

Winter is, of course, the perfect time of the year for soup. And soup has the added perk of only getting better the longer it sits in the refrigerator: perfect for a college student like myself. Throw in some crusty bread with that bad boy, and man, are you in hog heaven.

So let's get down to business...

Ingredients:
1 white or yellow onion, chopped
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 package pre-cooked Johnsonville chicken sausage (I used the apple kind--delish)
1 can white beans
1 bay leaf
1 spring fresh thyme
Water
5 chicken bouillon cubes or 4 cups chicken stock
Salt and pepper to taste
A pinch of cayenne (in the absence of cayenne, I subbed Creole seasoning)

Directions:
1. Sweat down the onion in a stock pot on medium heat with a little olive oil for 5-7 minutes, or until the pieces are just beginning to become translucent. Add a little salt and pepper.
2. Add in the garlic and cook together for about a minute.
3. Chop up those snausages any size you want and add 'em in, allowing to heat together with the onions and garlic for a minute or so.

4. Add in the beans, bay leaf and thyme sprig. Remember to remove those herbs before serving.

5. If you are using chicken stock, add in 4 cups with 1 1/2 cups of water. If you're a broke college student (like me), throw in 5 1/2 cups of water with 5 chicken bouillon cubes. Add seasonings.
6. Give the whole thing a good stir and turn up the heat. Bring to boil then reduce to simmer for 2 1/2 to 3 hours.
7. Once it's done, adjust the seasonings and serve with crusty bread. Mmmm.

The thing I like about this soup recipe in particular is that it is so simple. You only have to chop 1 onion and some sausage, essentially throw everything in a pot, and ignore it for 3 hours. Very college-friendly. And pretty healthy, too!

P.S. This soup goes awesome in a bread bowl!

Back to School with Roasted Veggie Crepes

Finally back at school for one final semester! I apologize for the long absence...the end of last semester was crazy and then I was home for a month-long break. But now I'm back to cooking up a storm in my college kitchen.

So everyone is familiar with crepes: crispy, buttery, thin French pancakes filled with sugar or Nutella or something else sweet and delicious. But crepes aren't just for dessert--I discovered this while studying abroad in southern France. Savory crepes are a popular meal, featuring whole-wheat crepes filled with veggies and cheese. My take on a savory crepe was inspired by a creperie in downtown Cincinnati called It's Just Crepes (http://itsjustcrepes.com/). One of my favorite lunches during my summer internship was a crepe full of sauteed veggies, goat cheese, and a balsamic dressing. My version of this follows below:

Ingredients:
1 eggplant
1 red bell pepper
2 zucchini
Goat cheese
Balsamic vinegar
2 eggs
1/2 cup flour
1/4 tsp melted butter
2/3 to 3/4 cup milk (eyeball it)

Directions:
Roasted Veggie Mix
1. Chop the eggplant, bell pepper, and zucchini (or any mix of vegetables you prefer) so that the pieces are similarly sized.
2. Toss with a generous glug of olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.
3. Roast in a 400 degree oven for 20-30 minutes, or until veggies are fork-tender and the skins of the peppers are puckered.

(I've started using that Reynold's pan-lining paper, the one that's foil on one side and parchment paper on the other. If you're like me, you love to cook but hate doing the dishes!)

Crepes
1. Whisk the eggs, milk, butter, and flour together in a bowl until smooth with minimal lumps. If it's too thick, add a touch more milk.
2. Heat a large skillet on medium heat. Butter the skillet very well and pour in a small amount of the batter. Take the skillet by the handle and swirl it around until the batter is spread evenly throughout the skillet. You want it to be a thin layer--that's what makes it a crepe and not a pancake.
3. The crepe is ready to flip when the edges start to curl up and a peek on the underside reveals a sort of golden web pattern (that's because of the butter). The easiest way to flip this guy is to take a spatula in one hand and the skillet handle in the other, and meet in the middle.

4. Once you've flipped it, place your roasted veggies on one half of the crepe, along with a few dabs of goat cheese. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar.

5. Fold the crepe in half in the pan and gently transfer it to a plate. Voila! A little taste of France.

I love crepes like this because it's a fairly nutritious meal that's very straightforward to make, with very simple ingredients. I hope it becomes one of your favorites!