SWEET AND SOUR CABBAGE WITH KIDNEY BEANS

SWEET AND SOUR CABBAGE WITH KIDNEY BEANS

Quick and Easy. Serves 2. Can be doubled, tripled, etc., as needed.

This is adapted from Donna Klein’s Vegan Italiano.

1 medium onion (about 4 or 5 ounces)
1/2 lb cabbage, finely shredded
12 cup vegetable stock (homemade if you have it)
1 cup cooked red kidney beans (I like the dark red), drained (or use half a can, drained)
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar (I use Eden brand)
1 Tbsp turbinado sugar
a few grinds of fresh black pepper
salt to taste

Put the onion together with 1/4 cup water or so in a skillet over medium-high heat and
cook until onions soften, stirring the while (about 4 or 5 minutes). Add the cabbage and the stock, bring to the boil on high, then reduce to a simmer and cover, stirring now and then, for
around 12 to 15 minutes or until the cabbage is tender. It shouldn’t be mushy.

Remove the lid and, if necessary, return to high heat in order to evaporate any excess liquid.

Now add the beans together with the remaining ingredients, stirring until the beans are hot and there is no liquid remaining. This will take a couple of minutes only.

Taste for seasonings and serve over rice, polenta, or grain of your choice. It also tastes remarkably good chilled, so any leftovers make a handy salad dish without further ado. Reheats nicely too!

TOMATO CABBAGE SOUP

I make this soup fat-free (although die-hards are welcome to sautee the onions in a couple of Tbsp of oil if they must) and simmer for a bit longer than the stipulated time, since I think the longer these things cook the nicer they are. But for a Quick Fix soup, the time stated here is the one to follow.

TOMATO CABBAAGE SOUP (QUICK AND EASY FIX)

This recipe is easy and can be quickly made - It’s slightly adapted from Sarah Kramer’s _La Dolce Vegan_.

1 small red onion, minced
1/2 tsp caraway seeds
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp paprika, or to taste (we added a little more)
1 -14 oz can diced tomatoes
2-1/2 cups vegetable stock
2 cups cabbage, very finely chopped
1/4 tsp ground black pepper or to taste
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp maple syrup
salt, if you use it, to taste

Put all ingredients, except for the vinegar and maple syrup, into a soup pan and bring to the boil. Cover with a lid and reduce the heat so that the soup ingredients simmer gently. After around 20 minutes, Stir in the vinegar and syrup. Salt if you like.

There ya go - a tasty, nutritious, easy soup that will serve a couple of hungry people or twice as many for a first course only.

Serve with a nice hunk of homemade wholewheat sourdough bread.

Can be kept in the fridge for a few days, but not recommended for freezing :( Definitely a keeper!!

CABBAGE & POTATO SOUP

I made this for our evening meal - it is deliciously creamy without being sinful! We like that :)

CREAMY CABBAGE AND POTATO SOUP
(Low Fat)

Serves 4, but can easily be doubled.

2 cups good vegetable stock, homemade preferred
1 cup cabbage, shredded
8 oz. potato, peeled and diced
1/2 cup chopped leeks (a mild onion also works well - I’ve tried both)
1 tsp Dijon mustard
3/4 tsp vegan worcestershire sauce (read the label - no anchovies)
1/4 tsp caraway seeds
1-1/2 cups soymilk (I used light soymilk, but you could go all out and use regular)
1-1/2 Tbsp cornstarch and enough water to dissolve
freshly ground black pepper to taste
salt to taste if needed (much will depend on your veg stock)
dash tabasco sauce (if you dislike it, skip it, but it gives a lovely little tang)
Garnish: a little fresh chopped chive or parsley or herb of choice.

Heat the stock over medium-high heat and add the vegetables. Reduce heat and simmer until tender.

Add the Dijon mustard, worcestershire sauce, caraway seeds, stir well and simmer a few more minutes to blend all flavours. The result may be thick, so watch that it doesn’t burn or catch on the bottom of the pan.

Remove soup from heat. Take half the soup from the pan and puree in a blender with some of the soymilk. Return puree to pan and stir well with the remaining soup. Add the remaining soymilk and the cornstarch mix. Bring the soup back to the simmer and stir carefully until heated through and thickened by the cornstarch. Taste and add the tabasco and salt (if used) and pepper and give one last stir for luck!

Garnish and serve.

BORSCHT (Russian Beet and Cabbage Soup)

It is the long simmering which makes this simple recipe especially good. It can also be served chilled, of course. Although borscht (of which this is a version) is not usually pureed, this makes it extra special and suitable for family or dinner party fare. Surprisingly, this also freezes well.

BORSCHT (Russian Beet and Cabbage Soup)

750 g (1-1/2 lb) raw beet/beetroot, peeled and diced OR same of cooked*
1 small cabbage, thinly sliced
1/2 small carrot, chopped
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 onions, chopped
1.5 litres (2-1/2 pints or 6 US cups) vegetable stock (homemade if you
have it)
sea salt to taste (depending on the salitiness of your stock)
freshly ground black pepper
1-1/2 Tbsp vinegar (taste carefully as you add it)
vegan yoghurt or vegan sour 'creme' for garnish
grated cucumber for garnish

Put all the vegetables in a large pan and add the stock. Bring to the
boil and simmer for 2 hours. (You could also do this in a crockpot or slow
cooker.)

Put the soup in a blender in batches, season with salt and pepper and
add a Tbsp of vinegar, then another half Tbsp depending on your taste. Reheat
gently, garnish with the 'creme' and grated cucumber. Serves 6.

*If you are lazy like me, you may want to boil beets up one day - to use
for another dish - and reserve the amount of beets needed for this soup.
In that case, I like to boil the beets in their skins and then plunge them into
cold water. That way the skins just slip off - far less trouble and less
mess. Then you can add the cooked beets to the other ingredients as above.
The soup is good either way.

Enjoy!

WALNUT & CABBAGE STIR-FRY

This looks lovely and tastes absolutely delicious. I'd like my cabbage like this from now on, please!

WALNUT & CABBAGE STIR-FRY

This is a good light meal or an excellent side dish to a regular meal. It does work without the walnut oil, but I really recommend you try it with! Lovely lovely lovely.

12 ounces red cabbage, very thinly shredded
12 ounces white cabbage, very thinly shredded
4 Tbsp oil (your choice)*
1 Tbsp walnut oil
2-3 garlic cloves, crushed and chopped
7-8 green/spring onions, chopped
225 g / 8 ounces firm tofu, cut into cubes
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
3-1/2 ounces walnut halves
2 tsp Dijon justard
2 tsp caraway seeds
salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat the oils together in a heavy skillet and addd the cabbage, garlic, green onions and tofu, stirring for about 5 minutes.

Now add the walnuts, lemon juice, Dijon mustard and salt and pepper and cook until the cabbage is tender, around 5 minutes.

Sprinkle with the caraway seeds and serve.

*NOTE: This recipe has more oil than I usually use, so I used half the amount shown. It is still a little higher than I like, but makes a lovely 'special occasion' dish.