Instant Pot Black-Eyed Or Yellow-Eyed Peas With Corn And Greens

Easy One-Pot New Year's Day Recipe for Good Luck.

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Happy New Year
It wouldn't be New Year's without a lucky black-eyed pea recipe. This year's recipe is as simple as it gets and is made in an Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker. 

I have a confession to make. This year I'm taking a big risk and making yellow-eyed peas from Rancho Gordo but of course you can make this with traditional black-eyed peas.

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Black-Eyed (or Yellow-Eyed) Peas with Corn and Greens
Vegan, Gluten and Dairy Free
[makes 6 servings]

Requires an Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker
Allow soaking time - either overnight or 2 hours in hot water.

Ingredients
1 cup black or yellow-eyed peas
2 1/2 cups rich broth (or hot water and a Rapunzel vegan bouillon cube)
1 cup diced onions
1 cup diced celery
1 cup frozen corn
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 cloves minced or pressed garlic
4 cups packed sliced kale or other greens
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste

Directions
Examine the peas for rocks or dirt and then rinse well. You can either soak them overnight or place them in the Instant Pot covered with water (2 inches over the peas) and bring to a boil using the saute button. Let the peas boil for a few minutes, then cover and let sit in the hot water for 2 hours.

After they are soaked properly, rinse with fresh water. Place the peas back in the Instant Pot with the broth or a Rapunzel bouillon cube dissolved in hot water. 

Add the onions, celery, corn, black pepper and garlic and stir. Place the greens on top and drizzle the oil over the entire mixture.

Secure the pressure cooker top making sure that the quick release switch is in the closed position. Push the manual button and set for 3 minutes at high pressure.

When it's done, hit the off button on the lower right and let the pressure come down naturally. When complete, open the cover and tilt so that the steam comes out the back and away from your face.

Add salt to taste and adjust the seasoning. If you used the bouillon cube, it will already have some salt so taste the broth first.

Serve over rice, quinoa, or pasta or just enjoy as is as a brothy stew.

Happy New Year and may 2016 bring you lots of luck, joy, and good health!
Joanne

Basil Tomato Soup With Corn & Cavatelli PastaFreeze A Big Batch For Winter

Yellow tomatoes make a delightful soup.

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Yellow Tomatoes

I picked up a yellow tomato plant at the farmer's market this spring. Unfortunately I don't remember the name of the strain, but it grew the biggest, most beautiful, low-acid, tomatoes I've ever experienced. Some of them were a pound and a half! I am definitely going to save its seeds so that I can grow them again next year. Since they are late producers, I'm still harvesting them, even though it's early October.

Since I've already canned dozens of jars of red tomatoes, I thought I'd make and freeze lots of soup so that we could enjoy it this winter. (If you are going to freeze this soup, do so without the corn or pasta. It will take up less freezer space and you can add the corn and cooked pasta when you use it.) It's also a very versatile soup so add any veggies and grain you desire. Or for protein, add some beans or peas. The combinations are endless. This may become one of your favorite soups - it's certainly becoming one of mine.

I developed this recipe using a combination of yellow tomatoes and pink brandywines that are also late producers and are low in acid. You can make this soup with any tomato, but it's best when you use ones that are pulpy, not watery.

Heirloom yellow and pink brandywine tomatoes

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Basil Tomato Soup

Vegan, Dairy Free, Gluten Free with gluten-free pasta

[makes about 8 cups]

Requirements

Hand Immersion Blender

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 1/2 cups diced onion

1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 pound new potatoes, peeled and chopped

2 carrots, peeled and sliced

4 to 5 pounds tomatoes, quartered (8 cups)

4 cups vegetable broth

1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1/4 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste

2 tablespoons lemon juice, as needed

1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil

1 1/2 cups corn kernels (if frozen, thaw)

4 ounces dry pasta or more (cavatelli or shells)

Directions

Add oil to a large soup pot. Cook the onion and red bell pepper on medium-low heat until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. 

Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about a minute. Stir in the potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, broth, bay leaf, salt and pepper.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are soft and the tomatoes are falling apart. I do not remove the skin or seeds because the immersion blender crushes them up pretty well, but if you want, you can pull out the skins with a long fork during the time it's simmering.

While the soup is simmering, prepare pasta according to directions. Drain and set aside.

Remove the bay leaf. Using an immersion blender, blend the soup until smooth. I prefer an immersion blender rather than a high speed blender, because the immersion blender leaves the soup thicker. If you have to use a blender, don't over process.

Blend until smooth with an immersion blender

Adjust salt and pepper and add lemon juice until it reaches the desired acidity. Stir in the fresh basil.

If you are going to freeze this soup for later, let cool and put in a freezer-safe jar. Allow room at the top as it will expand.

To serve, stir in the corn and cooked pasta. Top with additional fresh basil.

Enjoy!

Results Of This Year's Corn CropFresh Corn, Tomato And Cucumber Salad

Fresh corn makes a great salad topping.

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Corn
I love corn. I love everything about it. I love to eat it raw, right off the cob. I love throwing it into soups, salads, muffins, well - you name it. But the thing I love the most is growing it. This year was our second crop and we actually harvested it on time at the peak of its tenderness (lessons learned from last year!)

Having grown up in apartments in New York City, where one is lucky to have a flower pot of parsley on the fire escape, the very thought of having enough land to grow such an enormous vegetable still blows my mind. My corn stands proudly in the entry to our little farm - a monument to a more sane life. 

Me and my daughter, Linda, playing in the corn.

Last year we planted 35 seeds and got about 48 ears of corn. This year I planted 65 seeds which yielded about 85 ears (hard to keep track as I kept eating them before accurately counting.) It looks like for each seed planted, I have gotten 1.3 to 1.4 times the ears of corn. If you google "how many ears of corn do you get from a plant", most experts say 1 to 2 ears. So my yield might be on the low side, but since it's heirloom corn, not GMO, it's naturally bred for flavor and sweetness, not high production.

Extra tender, midseason bicolor corn from Johnny's seeds.
We planted the end of May and harvested the end of August.

With all of this corn, we obviously had to freeze most of it. To freeze corn, see last year's post on Freezing Summer Corn for Winter Pleasure.

Sometimes corn can get lost when tossed in a salad so I often like to use it in a layered salad where it happily sits on top. I brought this salad to a pot luck last week where I was able to use the cucumbers, tomatoes, corn, and basil from my garden. Corn goes incredibly well with tomatoes, so you will be seeing them together in future recipes - stay tuned!

Drizzle this salad with a simple vinaigrette or your favorite dressing.

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Fresh Corn, Tomato, and Cucumber Salad
Raw Vegan, Dairy and Gluten Free
[makes 6 servings]

Ingredients
For the salad:
1 large English or other cucumber, peeled and sliced
1 large yellow heirloom tomato
1 large red heirloom tomato
Kernels from 1 large ear of non-GMO corn
2 tablespoons finely diced red onion
Handfull chopped fresh basil, chopped
Salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the vinaigrette dressing:
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons balsamic or red wine vinegar
1 large clove garlic, pressed
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Layer the bottom of a salad bowl with the sliced cucumbers.

Slice the tomatoes and place in a colander to drain. If they are particularly juicy, lay them on paper towels. Once they are fairly dry, place them over the cucumbers. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and some of the basil.

Mix the corn kernels with the red onion and place over the tomatoes. Sprinkle with more basil and seasoning.

Cover and refrigerate until you serve. Right before serving, stir or shake the vinaigrette well and drizzle the amount desired evenly over the salad.

Enjoy!

Chili-Chipotle Corn MuffinsVegan And Gluten Free

Gluten free muffin with corn, diced green chili and Daiya cheese.

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A Great Side Dish
You don't usually think of a muffin as a side dish but perhaps you should. It is, after all, a grain and can carry with it some other goodies. In this case, whole kernel corn, diced green chiles and Daiya vegan "cheese." It makes a great side dish for a morning tofu or egg scramble or a raw fruit salad. And when accompanying a big green salad, it makes the perfect lunch. 

To ensure that you are avoiding GMO corn, always select organic corn kernels and corn meal for this recipe.

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Chili-Chipotle Corn Muffins
Vegan, Gluten and Dairy Free
[makes 12 muffins]

Requires a muffin pan and best with an electric hand beater. 

Ingredients
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil plus some for the pan
2 tablespoons ground flaxseeds
6 tablespoons room temperature water
3/4 cups organic cornmeal
1 cup Bob's Red Mill's gluten free all purpose baking flour
2 tablespoons organic cane sugar
2 packets stevia
1 tablespoon aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground chipotle chili, or to taste
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk or other non-dairy milk
1 cup frozen organic corn, defrosted
1 (4.5 ounce) can diced green chiles
1/2 cup Daiya pepper jack style shreds

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a 12-muffin pan with some olive oil or, if you prefer, Earth Balance, and set aside.

Prepare flaxseed eggs. Stir the ground flaxseeds in water vigorously with a fork in a large bowl. Set aside while preparing the dry ingredients, stirring occasionally while it thickens.

In a medium bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, stevia, baking powder, salt, and ground chipotle.

Add the olive oil and milk to the flaxseed eggs. Blend with an electric hand beater until smooth. 

Add the dry ingredients and blend until well combined. It will look a bit dry but completely moistened. It it's too dry, add a touch more milk.

Fold in the corn, green chiles, and Daiya shreds. 

Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin cups and bake until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the center of the muffins, about 20 minutes.

Before baking

After baking

Remove from the oven and cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Release the muffins and serve warm. 

All corn muffins tend to get a bit dry the next day. To moisten them up, slice the muffin horizontally, warm them in your toaster oven, and slather them with Kite Hill vegan cream cheese or Earth Balance. So yummy!

Enjoy them for lunch together with a nice raw salad.

Nutritional Information
Per muffin: 153 calories, 7 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 304 mg omega-3 and 635 mg omega-6 essential fatty acids*, 3 g protein, 22 g carbohydrates, 2 g dietary fiber, and 226 mg sodium.

Freezing Summer Corn For Winter PleasureLessons Learned From Growing Corn

Growing corn is fun. Eating it all winter is fabulous!

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Growing Corn
This year we made our first serious attempt at growing corn. It was fascinating - you could almost stand there and watch them get taller. As you can see in the picture above, they grew about 12 feet tall. 

I love corn and I especially love knowing exactly what I am eating. I know that our corn is organic and non-GMO so we have no worries there. 

I would like to say our first corn crop was a complete success but we could have done things a bit better. Here's what we learned in case you want to give it a try next year.

Lessons Learned
#1 - As you can see from the above picture, I definitely placed them too close together. I planted about 35 plants in a 4' x 8' raised bed. I think half as many would have been better. They still would have been close enough to wind pollinate but not be so close to block out the sun and create a cozy nest for pests.

Tassels hold the pollen which falls down upon the corn silks

The pollinated corn silks turn into kernels of corn

#2 - Speaking of pests, we learned that aphids love corn so keep an eye out for that. Hose them off and spray with insecticidal soap.

#3 - One positive thing I learned is that you don't have to hand pollinate corn if you have enough of them. The wind will do it for you. So many people on the web show videos of gardeners painstakingly hand fertilizing each corn silk. It looked like too much work for me so I let nature take its course. Thirty-five crowded corn plants managed to produce 48 ears of pretty nice corn so that was good enough for me.

#4 - Test a cob each week to check for ripeness. We let ours go too long and they were a bit tough. Thankfully they will still be good in soups and chowders. But next year we will definitely pick them earlier.

#5 - Be careful where you plant them or they could shade other parts of your vegetable garden. My strawberry patch was so happy yesterday after we harvested the corn. They haven't seen the sun in weeks!

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Freezing Corn
I thought the best and easiest way to save the corn for winter would be to freeze it since we don't have a pressure canner. Here's how to do it. 

Shuck the corn. Remove the outer leaves and silks. Here's a great blog post from a midwesterner that gives some good tips on how to clean corn. 

After you have cleaned all your corn, bring a large pot of water to a boil and fill a large bowl with ice water.

Blanch the corn in boiling water for 4 minutes. Do not set the timer until the water comes back up to a boil.

Submerge the cooked corn in ice water.

Dry the corn by placing the cooled corn on towels.

Remove kernels from the corn. My husband has a trick for this. He breaks the corn in half and cuts it while on its side. This prevents the kernels from flying all over the kitchen.

Place in freezer bags. I generally like using our vacuum sealer but to make it easy, I just used 1 quart zip-lock bags. After placing about 2 cups of corn kernels in each bag, I gently moved the kernels around until they separated.

Remove the air and spread out the corn in a thin layer. I was able to fill 12 one-quart freezer bags with 2 cups of corn in each one. So my 48 ears of corn yielded 24 cups of corn kernels. Not bad for 35 seeds!

Date the bags and freeze.

Need some ideas for all your garden produce? For more than 150 healthy recipes and gorgeous photographs, check out my eBook, Health Begins in the Kitchen.