But that being said, I have made a conscious effort to eat less meat products. I don’t eat beef, that’s been 15 years now, and I eat very little pork……sigh….I do love bacon. I can eat turkey ham, turkey dogs, even turkey burgers, but turkey bacon just ain’t bacon! So my meat consumption mostly comes from poultry, with seafood coming in second. I could eat pasta 3 or 4 days a week and be happy, no meat necessary, just make sure I have plenty of cheese! My problem comes from my less than enthusiastic interest in some vegetables, I like grains, I like beans, but I am a little picky about my veggies, but I have been trying.
This week I have been inspired by my friend Stella from The Witchy Kitchen she wrote a wonderful article over at her blog called The Rational Vegetarian,please stop by and read it! So Stella, thanks for being that little voice in my head when I am shopping, you have me thinking more about what I buy, organic and vegan are words that are in my vocabulary and shopping list, so this post is for you.
I have been wanting to make cranberry beans for some time now, my first purchase ended up getting moldy before I could use them…so sad. I thought for my first attempt at these beans, I would go with a classical approach. I started out by boiling the beans for about 30 minutes, I then sauteed them with Garlic, Olive Oil, and seasoned them only with Salt and Pepper. A rustic bowl of beans, and while I knew a little bacon would have really kicked them up, I stayed true on these beans, and was rewarded with a tasty satisfying dish.
Along with my Cranberry Beans, I also had found Brussels Sprouts on the stem at my farmer’s market and decided to give those babies a try. I again took the classic approach with my Brussels sprouts, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper, mix well and place in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes.
The spouts started to caramelize nicely and the roasted garlic added such a nice element to the dish, but these sprouts were inconsistent in size, and I found them to be a little more fibrous and tougher than regular Brussels Sprouts, but they were still delicious!
Next I moved on to a seasonal relish, I had purchased fresh cranberries at the Farmers Market in Collingswood, and I didn’t want to just make cranberry sauce with them, so I thought I make more of a relish or chutney with them. I used what I had on hand and was rewarded with a delicious Cranberry Chutney.
Cranberry Chutney
2 cups fresh Cranberries
1 apple diced
1 pear diced
1 cup golden raisins
1 cup pistachio’s or walnuts
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 lime
1 cup water
Add all of the ingredients in a sauce pan and bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes. Allow to cool and serve as an accompaniment with roasted vegetables or roasted meats. I even used it with my cranberry beans for a contrast in flavors!
I needed a little something for dessert, and I had a few acorn squash on hand, so that seemed like a perfect choice. I cut the squash in half , seeded and cleaned it (saving the seeds to roast later) I cut it into sections and tossed the squash with brown sugar and cinnamon. I would normally have added butter but I wanted to keep this vegan.
Candied Acorn Squash
1 acorn squash cleaned and cut into sections.
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup water
Toss the squash sections with the other ingredient in a bowl to coat well, transfer to a baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes or until the squash has nicely caramelized.
This squash was like eating candy, simple and delicious. I do have to say my wife was not happy with the texture, it was soft.
I was also quite surprised to find my precious once again at the farmers market, I stuffed them with Ricotta, you can find my original recipe here. You know I couldn’t resist them, it will be a long cold winter!
I hope you enjoyed my Meatless Monday, it is the responsible thing to do. I encourage everyone to go with out meat at least one day a week, 2 or 3 would even be better. Not only will it be better for you, but it will be better for this planet we call home.
Thanks for stopping by!
Dennis
A Canadian Foodie says
I am crazy about squash blossoms, too – so these caught my eye and won me over! Can't wait to try your recipe…. next year!
🙂
Valerie
Taylor says
The candied acorn squash looks delicious! Also you are making me crave brussel sprouts…gorgeous pictures!
grace says
i'll go ahead and say it–there's not a bean i don't like. also, my stars, that chutney is gorgeous. meat? who needs it! 🙂
Mo says
Everything looks so wonderful, Dennis! Especially the cranberry beans, which I've never had before. But I think I like all beans. I'm a bean fiend. 😉
Have you heard of Faith's Thanksgiving contest? Your cranberry chutney seems perfect for it, so you might want to enter it! http://allthroughtheyearcheer.wordpress.com/2010/11/02/thanksgiving-announcement-recipe-for-apple-pumpkin-breakfast-polenta/
🙂
ladymorgiana says
Oh I love your cranberry chutney recipe 🙂 Really want to try this one! Your beans look fantastic, but unfortunately my carnivore's stomach does not appreaciate the beans at all 😉 Anyway all looks fantastic as always 🙂
Healthy Mamma says
Wow, 81 comments, oh well, I'll give my thoughts nevertheless…
First, Omnivore totally sounds cool, nothin wrong with it! I honestly can say that I am right with you an the Vegetarian cusp/struggle thing. I have never liked red meat or any pork ( sorry about the bacon thing, and yes turkey bacon sucks) so that's been easy. I recently gave up chicken due to sanitary and humanitarian reasons and it was VERY surprisingly easier than I thought, don't miss it. Fish is why I could never be a vegetarian! Love it to bits!
Second, Yay for brussel sprouts, I just changed my attitued about them and now love them, especially carmalized.
Lastly, ( ramble city ) I recently took a trip to a local farm and saw Zucchini Blossoms for the Very First Time! I totally thought of you, took a picture and plan on blogging about them in your honor.
Mind you they are Phoenix, Az. zucchini and not as pretty as yours!
Cheers!
mr. pineapple man says
im gonna keep all these recipes for thanksgiving dinner!
Karen says
What a wonderful array of meatless dishes. They are all beautiful!
I recently tried cranberry beans for the first time and fell in love with them. Haven't seen them around here in weeks and weeks though.
Epicurean Vegan says
Everything looks WONDERFUL! And good for you for eating less meat–especially not eating beef. Thanks for the recipes!
mangiabella says
oh your precious look as delectable as ever!!! I'm with you Dennis, I don't eat much meat, but oh how I love me some BACON! and I eat pasta just about every two or three days (with oodles of CHEESE, but of course) – your candied squash looks absolutely divine, I'm so intrigued!
Tanantha @ I Just Love My Apron says
Seriously, your farmers market is awesome! It has so many produce and it still has blossoms! After that incident, I'm willing to give another shot to the blossoms. You know why? because of your pictures and recipes!
I've heard about cranberry beans but never get a chance to work on them. I like veggies, tho. I can eat veggies for weeks with out meat 🙂
Who doesn't Stella, right?! She's great!
ClassicKitchenTwist says
Looks great and I can't believe you're still finding squash blossoms!