Healthy Creamy Spinach Dip

This dip is an old favorite which I have made a number of times, most recently yesterday for a superbowl party we went to.  It is always a hit, and people are usually pretty surprised to hear that it really is actually relatively healthy.  It doesn't taste fatty and over-the-top, but it also doesn't taste like it's made with tofu and low-fat dairy products, which it is.  Unlike a greasier spinach dip, this one is still delicious but won't give you that same weighed-down feeling from all the fat... particularly helpful for a party like the super bowl where you end up mindlessly muching away throughout the game.  This dip comes from one of my favorite cookbooks, Entertaining for a Veggie Planet, which has a variety of really great vegetarian dips in addition to other great recipes.

It's healthy enough, in fact, that the picture above is from my lunch today (the recipe makes a pretty large amount... what else am I going to do with all those leftovers?).  I used a smaller bowl that I made last year to hold the dip and then served it on one of my plates.  I actually made this bowl as a glaze test; since the color in glazes is an actual chemical reaction, you won't know how two glazes will interact until you test it out (and it will be different depending which glaze is applied on top).  Rather than just making test tiles to do tests, I made a whole set of smaller bowls and tried out different glaze combinations, some with drips like this one, some with the glazes overlapped.  It was fun to see how they turned out and they were much more useful than a test tile would have been!

What treats did you make or eat for the superbowl?  What are your favorite dip recipes?

Healthy Creamy Spinach Dip

 Ingredients:

• 10 oz box thawed frozen chopped spinach (or you can use 10 oz chopped fresh spinach)
• 1 cup finely chopped red onion - about 2/3 of a medium onion
• 1/2 cup low fat small curd cottage cheese
• 1-2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/2 cups firm tofu (about 2/3 of a 16 oz container)
• 1/4 cup reduced fat sour cream (or regular)
• 2 tablespoons light mayonnaise (or regular)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice (I use the kind from a squeeze bottle, but if you prefer to juice a fresh lemon this is about 1/2 lemon's worth)
• 1/2 teaspoon table sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 - 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• sesame seeds for garnish (optional - I didn't do this)

Fully defrost the frozen spinach (I used the microwave b/c I forgot to defrost in advance, and it turned out fine), then place in a fine colander and press out as much of the liquid as possible with the back of a spoon or a spatula.  In a medium to large bowl, combine the spinach, onion, cottage cheese, and garlic and mix well to combine.

Cut the tofu into slices and lay out on a clean dishtowel, then fold it over (or place another dishtowel on top) and press to remove liquid.  Chop the tofu into cubes and transfer to a food processor or blender.  Add the remaining ingredients and process or blend until smooth.  Add the tofu mixture to the spinach mixture and stir gently to combine.  Taste and adjust salt if needed and add pepper if desired.  Serve chilled or at room temp.  Best if eaten within 2-3 days.

Simple Hearty Lentil Stew with Potatoes and Spinach

I have been realizing that I tend to post on here about the more complicated (and usually less healthy) recipes that I make, but I don't always put up the day-to-day staples that we eat all the time.  I am a huge proponent of eating solid, healthy meals on a regular basis which don't take hours of prep time, so I am going to make more of an effort to share some of the simpler meals we eat, too.  These recipes aren't necessarily sexy or exciting, but they are simpler to prepare and often create plenty of leftovers that you can eat in a pinch when you just don't feel like cooking at all... I keep a few servings in the fridge but often stash most or all of the leftovers in the freezer to eat more than a few days later.  I hope that these more basic types of recipes won't be totally boring to folks.  These lentils fit solidly in the basics category - the recipe is flexible to what you happen to have on hand, they cook up pretty quickly and with minimal prep and make a big batch which keeps well.  They are hearty and delicious and can stand on their own or are great served with bread, brown rice, or a side of salad or veggies.

On a related note, I realized that I have a lot of gluten-free and vegan recipes up here, not because I purposefully follow either of those diets but I guess just because I love to cook beans and lentils and other things that happen to fit in those two categories.  I have gone back and added gluten-free and vegan tags to past posts, so if you are looking for recipes in those categories feel free to poke around!

A note on the bowl the soup is in - this is a pot that I made after college when I was playing around more with surface decoration.  I have made a number of pots with this kind of line decoration around the middle, made by holding a textured or pointed object on the surface of the pot while turning the wheel.  In this case I used a plastic fork and slowly moved it up and down to give the design some movement - I like how it turned out!  This bowl is a bit on the small side but still a much-used and well-loved one in our house.

Hearty Lentil Stew with Potatoes and Spinach

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 1 lb bag lentils, rinsed/looked over to make sure no foreign objects
• 6-8 cups water
• 2 medium potatoes, chopped
• box of frozen spinach, defrosted if possible (or bunch of fresh spinach, rinsed, if you prefer/have on hand - or this works well with Kale as well)
• salt/pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a medium to large pot, add onions and saute for 3-5 minutes on medium-high heat, until onions begin to brown.  Add herbs (note - you could substitute 2 teaspoons of an herb mix such as italian herbs or herbes de provence if you prefer), and saute for another 1 minute.  Add the lentils and water and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  You can chop the potatoes while the lentils simmer; I left the skins on but you could peel if you prefer.  Add potatoes when chopped and simmer for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the spinach and raise heat to return to a simmer, then lower heat again and cook until lentils are fully cooked, another 10-15 minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Note: you could cook this in a slow-cooker if you started the onions/herbs on the stovetop and then transferred to the slow-cooker, but it would take significantly longer to cook.  It would probably turn out well if left to cook all day on low, however (maybe add spinach in the last hour to half hour).


So... what are your favorite kinds of basic everyday meals?  And do you enjoy my little pottery updates or are they distracting from the recipes?

Thrifty Finds and a Charity Craft Project

Last weekend I hit up a few local thrift shops to try to find some sheets that I could repurpose.  The buttons above are actually from a trip a few weeks ago to a flea market in Brooklyn when we were up visiting friends... but they are super cute so I wanted to share them with you too.  I decided that I will collect buttons so it was totally justified to buy them with no particular project in mind, right?

Anyways, back to the sheets.  I am really excited to be participating in Craft Hope's project to make safe birthing kits for Haiti - where you provide practical supplies to assist in the birth, like hand sanitizer and a plastic sheet, but also a receiving blanket, tote bag, and small stuffed animal.  I wanted to make sure that I had enough materials to make a good number (hopefully 7 or 8 kits), and I figured sheets or pillowcases would give good material to reuse in making the receiving blankets in particular.

The sheet selection at both places I went wasn't that great, but I found some really good pillowcases (and very affordable, too)!  I am figuring that I can use two pillowcases cut open to make a good sized receiving blanket.  I was hoping to find some flannel ones to make one side nice and snuggly, but no luck, so I may make some blankets with just the pillowcases and others using other fabrics and see what works best.  I don't want them to be too insubstantial but also not so heavy, so you could still swaddle a baby in it.

The one large sheet that I liked that I did find was this fun ocean print.  It is actually a pretty heavy weight and kind of stiff so I am thinking I will use that to make the tote bags for this project.  The tablecloth on the left I just picked up because I thought it was cute, and it is for me to keep not for this project (at least for now)... I will probably just use it as a tablecloth but may use it as fabric at some time in the future.

What projects are you up to?  Have you ever done a charity craft project?  This is my first and I am very excited!

Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili

I really love black beans (I may have mentioned this), and I think that black beans and sweet potatoes are an amazing flavor combination.  So this chili makes a natural pairing - I am almost surprised that I didn't come up with this a lot sooner than this year.  I had made chili with sweet potato or winter squash in it before, but usually multi-bean chilis with a lot of other stuff going on to distract you.  This version keep the focus on the black beans and the sweet potatoes, and it is earthy with hints of smoky sweetness.  It is moderately spicy, hot enough to be interesting but not so hot that it should make anyone squeamish.  I have made this chili several times this winter and finally remembered to write the recipe down, so I feel like it is already an old favorite and really overdue for posting here (especially considering the number of friends that have asked for the recipe).

I also realized that, since all our everyday plates/bowls/mugs are pretty much pots that I made, I am frequently posting pottery photos along with my recipes but rarely say anything about it.  So I may start highlighting some of the pots, too, and giving a bit of a backstory.   This bowl is one that I made in college, when I was first experimenting with carving on my pots.  I really like the simple basketweave type hatching pattern that I made on this bowl, and how it subtly shows through the matte glaze.  There is actually a small matching plate so I kind of think of this as a soup and salad set.  The earthy beige/brown color of this glaze is a great match for hearty bean and lentil soups like this one.

Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili
Makes 4 quarts

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil (or less, if desired)
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground chipotle chilis (optional)
• 2-3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and finely chopped into ~1/2"-1" pieces
• One 28 oz can of diced tomatoes (or two 14 oz cans)
• 3 cans black beans, drained and rinsed, or 1 lb bag of dried black beans, cooked (not drained)
• 1/4 cup tomato paste (optional)

Like most soups, this soup is best if you let it simmer for several hours (or simmer for a while and then refrigerate and serve the next day).  If you have a slow cooker, it is easy to start this soup on the stovetop and then transfer it to the slow cooker to simmer away.  If you don't have a slow cooker, you can also easily make this on the stovetop and just simmer it there.  If you are going to transfer to a slowcooker, start the first step in a large skillet, but if you are planning to cook entirely on the stovetop, you can start in a large stockpot/soup pot.

Heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the onions and saute until soft.  Add the peppers, celery, garlic, herbs and spices, and saute for another 5-10 minutes, until onions are slightly browned and vegetables start to soften.  If cooking in a slow-cooker, transfer this mixture to the slow cooker and add the sweet potatoes, tomatoes, beans, and tomato paste.  If the herbs/spices are stuck to the pan when you transfer the mixture, add some water to the skillet to loosen and add to the slow cooker.  If cooking on the stove, just add the ingredients to the pan and stir to loosen anything that has gotten stuck to the pan.  Add water until it is chili consistency - 6-8 cups if you used drained canned beans, and 2-3 cups if you used cooked dried beans and added their cooking water (or whatever amount seems to get you to the right consistency.  Simmer for at least 1 hour, ideally 2-4 hours or longer (Note - 1 hour may not be sufficient in a slow cooker - 3-4 hours or longer in slow cooker is probably best).

Note on optional ingredients:

• The chipotle peppers add the slight smoky flavor and are really delicious.  If you don't have them though, you can make this without and just add a bit more chili powder.
• If you omit the tomato paste, this is more like a black bean soup than a full blown chili, but also very good.  This is actually what I did the last time I made the soup.