During our time in quarantine, our love for cooking has been refreshed and renewed. Tricia has been exploring Paleo cooking, Sarah has been making recipes she’s always wanted to try, and Crystal is finding alternative ways to cook her favorite foods. We thought it would be fun to share our favorite comfort food recipes with you all, each with its own twist. We hope you give these meals a try and love them as much as we do! If you’d like to share one of your favorite recipes, send us an email at mmedept@pdx.edu.
Crystal's Mushroom Stroganoff
Sarah's Red Pepper Shakshuka
Tricia's Paleo Pizza
Crystal’s Mushroom Stroganoff
Inspired by https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/mushroom-stroganoff/
I like to play fast and loose with cooking as I view recipes more like guidelines. I found this awesome recipe and have modified it towards what I like, but I feel like I should warn you that most of the measurements below are probably not how I actually make this dish. I tend to only measure things when I bake unless I'm really unsure of how something will turn out.
Ingredients:
- 1 pound wide egg noodles
- 3 tablespoons butter, divided
- 1 small white onion, thinly sliced
- 6-8 cloves garlic, shredded (or minced)
- The original recipe calls for 4 cloves, but I believe that the amount of garlic you add to any recipe is measured with your heart, so for me, it's pretty much always double what anyone normally recommends
- 2 pounds mixed mushrooms (baby bella/cremini and white)
- Honestly, just do what you feel is right. I like doing 1 pound cremini and 1 pound white, but I've made it using all cremini. I also tend to use closer to 2.5 pounds. Because I like mushrooms.
- 1/2 - 2/3 cup dry white wine
- I use more mushrooms than the normal recipe calls for, so I tend to add more liquid to make more sauce. If you choose to add more wine, add more veggie stock.
- 1 1/2 - 1 2/3 cups veggie stock
- Depends on wine or how thick you want the sauce
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 3 1/2 tablespoons flour
- If you've increased the wine and/or veggie stock, you may need to add a little more flour if the sauce is too thin
- 3 small sprigs of fresh thyme (or 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme)
- I usually omit this because I don't like thyme and we have a no-thyme rule in my house (long story). But if I decide to add it, I always use fresh thyme.
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt or light sour cream
- Kosher salt and freshly-cracked black pepper
- optional toppings: freshly-grated Parmesan cheese, chopped fresh parsley, extra black pepper
Directions:
- Cook egg noodles al dente in boiling, generously salted water according to package instructions. (For optimal timing, add the egg noodles to the boiling water at the same time you add the veggie stock to the stroganoff.)
- Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter, garlic, and mushrooms, and stir to combine. Continue sautéing for an additional 5-7 minutes, until the mushrooms are cooked and tender. Add the white wine, and deglaze the pan by using a wooden spoon to scrape the brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Let the sauce simmer for 3 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, whisk together the veggie stock, Worcestershire, and flour until smooth. If you used more wine or veggie stock, start with the 3 1/2 tablespoons of flour. Pour the mixture into the pan, along with the thyme, and stir to combine. Let the mixture simmer for an additional 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until slightly thickened. If the mixture is still too then, whisk a little more flour with veggie stock and add to mixture, stirring well. Then, stir in the Greek yogurt (or sour cream) evenly into the sauce. Taste, and season with a generous pinch or two of salt and pepper as needed.
- Serve immediately over the egg noodles, garnished with your desired toppings.
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Sarah’s Red Pepper Shakshuka
Inspired by https://downshiftology.com/recipes/shakshuka/
I first tried many years ago Shakshuka when having dinner with CEE’s Office Coordinator, Sam Parsons. I was in love! A rich, hearty tomato sauce with the sauteed vegetable of your choice topped with a poached egg. I always serve mine over a grain, like couscous or quinoa, and with a flatbread for extremely important sauce scooping. This recipe is great because you can modify in so many different ways! You can opt-out of the eggs to make it vegan, or add in a meat option. I added Beyond Sausages to this variation for a bit of a heartier meal.
Ingredients:
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
- 4-6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp chili powder
- 1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes
- 2-4 large eggs
- 2 Beyond Sausages
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 small bunch fresh parsley, chopped
Directions:
- Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan on medium heat. Add the chopped bell pepper and onion and cook for 5 minutes or until the onion becomes translucent.
- Add garlic and spices and cook for an additional minute.
- Pour the can of tomatoes and juice into the pan and break down the tomatoes using a large spoon. Season with salt and pepper and bring the sauce to a simmer.
- While the sauce is cooking, slice and cook your Beyond Sausages till lightly browned. Mix into the tomato sauce.
- Use your large spoon to make small wells in the sauce and crack the eggs into each well. Cover the pan and cook for 5-8 minutes, or until the eggs are done to your liking.
- Garnish with chopped cilantro and parsley.
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Tricia’s Paleo Pizza
Inspired by https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/paleo-pizza-crust-grain-free-dairy-free/ & https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/paleo-pepperoni-pizza-with-veggies/
You won't even miss the cheese in this Paleo pizza! Topped with veggies and meats instead, using a from scratch, gluten-free crust, this pizza will fill you up without leaving your stomach with that 'heavy' feeling. If you are unfamilar with a Paleo way of cooking, the goals are to focus on unprocessed, healthy whole foods, like our ancestors in the Paleolithic times. The aim is dairy-free, gluten-free, and sugar-free (natural sugars like coconut palm, honey, and maple are okay). No one is stopping you though, if you would like to include cheese on this tasty crust, as is my son's preference. Therefore, you can customize to your heart's content. Each batch of dough can easily make two pizzas, as shown in the photo.
Pizza Dough (1 of 2)
Ingredients:
- ⅔ cup blanched almond flour
- ¾ cup tapioca flour (or arrowroot starch), plus 2-3 tbsp more for spreading/kneading dough
- 6 tbsp coconut flour, divided into three (first) and three (after adding egg)
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp italian seasoning blend
- ¾ tsp fine grain sea salt
- ⅓ cup water
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 1 tbsp raw apple cider vinegar
- 1 egg, room temperature, whisked
Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a large bowl, combine almond flour, tapioca, 3 tbsp of coconut flour, onion and garlic powder, italian seasoning, and salt. Stir to combine. In a small bowl, combine water, oil, and vinegar, then pour into dry mixture and stir with wooden spoon, until dough forms. Stir in whisked egg. Once there is a sticky mixture, slowly (one tbsp at a time) add in remaining coconut flour. Will still be a bit sticky, but spreadable. Sprinkle extra tapioca on parchment paper, transfer half of the dough to the sheet and sprinkle more. Top with another piece of parchment, then use a rolling pin to work the dough into whatever shape you'd like. Repeat the rolling process with remaining half of dough. Place parchment with dough onto a baking sheet and bake 10-15 min.
Pizza: Pepperoni & Veggie (2 of 2)
Ingredients:
- Pizza dough, baked
- Pepperoni slices, uncured
- Salami slices, uncured
- 1 med red onion, sliced thin
- 1 med green bell pepper, chopped
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
- 1 cup mushrooms, chopped
- 1 cup organic pizza sauce
- Sea salt and olive oil to saute veggies
Directions:
Prepare pizza dough, baked for 10-15 min at 450 degrees. Keep oven on. In large skillet, on med-high heat, saute veggies with olive oil and sea salt. Spread sauce over crust, leaving 1 inch border. Top evenly w/veggies and pepperoni, salami, or whatever you wish. Bake on 450 for 10 min.
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