I cook with wine…

Oh, lentils, how I love thee! Tasty, quick-cooking, versatile and supremely healthy, lentils are the perfect food for a cold January evening. They are a great source of fiber, which can lower cholesterol, and are high in protein. Lentils are rich in essential vitamins, stabilize blood sugar and are good for your heart. And there are only 230 calories per cup! This flavorful soup helps them shine, while bitter arugula balances the smokiness.

Ingredients:

1 ½ cup lentils

3 cups water

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 teaspoons cumin

2+ teaspoons smoked paprika

1 red onion, diced

5 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 can diced tomatoes

1 pound baby arugula leaves

3 cups vegetable broth or water

2 dried ancho chiles

Directions:

Put lentils and water in a large soup pot. Bring to boiling, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for approximately 30 minutes (depending on lentils), or until soft. Once cooked, add arugula, whole dried ancho chile peppers, and broth/water to lentils. Simmer for approximately 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a pan, then toss in the cumin and paprika. Sauté spices at medium heat until fragrant but not burned, approximately 30 seconds. Add onions and garlic; stir until coated with spices. Sauté aromatics until translucent. Afterward, mix in the tomatoes and sauté until heated through and bubbling.

Remove ancho chiles from soup pot. Remove tops from chiles and chop the rest into small bits. Add back to soup. Stir in the tomato mixture and add salt and pepper to taste, plus more smoked paprika if you deem it necessary (I had to up it a bit last night, although it would have been fine as is). Enjoy!

If you’re anything like me, many of your fondest childhood memories involve time spent in the kitchen. One of my favorite times was our annual meatball-making day. My mother, grandmother and I would all form a rather efficient assembly line in the kitchen, which would quickly morph into a reenactment of that famed I Love Lucy episode once the meatballs were cooked. Mommom, as she is known, led the pack with her taste buds and general cooking genius. As a result, there is a tradition, but no formal recipe. She gave me the “recipe” just as I will give it to you – a vague list of ingredients with the instructions to “fry a bit up and taste for yourself!” I hope you can gather some friends or family together, and have an equally happy time – trust me, the results are worth it!

Meatballs

Ingredients:

Lean ground beef and/or pork

Green peppers, chopped

Onions, diced

Salt and pepper

Parmesan cheese, grated

Garlic, fresh and powdered

Bread crumbs with Italian seasoning

Eggs (2 – 3 for a large batch)

Directions:

Mix ingredients together; test for taste by frying a bit in a pan. Adjust if necessary. Form into balls. Broil on a cookie sheet until top is brown, flip. Broil until done.

Chunky Spaghetti Sauce

Ingredients:

Olive oil

Fresh Italian parsley

Green peppers, chopped

Onions, diced

Garlic, chopped

Whole canned plum tomatoes

Italian seasoning (dried basil, oregano, marjoram, thyme, sage or your preferred combination thereof)

Salt and pepper

Directions:

Sauté peppers, onions, garlic and parsley in olive oil until cooked. Add tomatoes and seasoning and bring to a simmer. Simmer for several hours. Taste, adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve with cooked pasta and meatballs.

This recipe was really delicious, really healthy, and really turned into a big mess. I’ve been fairly lucky in my history as a home chef and have had few significant mishaps. This one, however, was a doozy. Basically, I learned that if you take a very hot substance which is mostly liquid with a few solids, like in this tomato soup, and overfill the blender even a little, it will explode everywhere. And I mean everywhere. I’ve included a picture but even it doesn’t do justice to the hilarious bit of kitchen chaos I experienced that night. Ah well, live and learn. I hope you enjoy the recipe, at least.

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon cumin

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 red onion, diced

9-10 small to medium-sized tomatoes (I used Roma, but any flavorful variety will do), peeled, seeded and diced (reserve as much juice as possible)

2 cups water

Salt and pepper

1 bunch cilantro

½ cup pine nuts

Zest and juice of one lime

½+ cup olive oil

Directions:

Heat tablespoon of olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in cumin and heat until fragrant, about one minute. Add onions and sauté until translucent. Add tomatoes, salt, pepper and water, bring to a boil then simmer for about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine the cilantro, pine nuts, lime zest, lime juice and olive oil in a food processor and puree until smooth. Add more olive oil if necessary.

Let tomato mixture cool, and then, working in very small batches, puree in a blender. Pour soup into bowls and add swirls of pesto, plus cilantro sprigs for garnish, if desired. A dollop of sour cream or crème fraiche would also go well, if you’re feeling fancy.

Also, if you have extra pesto, which you most likely will, I would mix it with some brown rice, fresh corn, diced tomatoes, avocado chunks and cooked chicken for a salad you can bring to work – delish!