Lemon Corn Quinoa

A lovely salad that works as a side dish for omnivores and an entree for vegetarians (easily vegan-izable). Can be served warm or eaten straight from the fridge.

Ingredients Step
4 ears of corn Cut off kernels into a very large bowl.
zest of 2 lemons (1 T.)
juice of 1 lemon (2 T.)
4 T. butter, melted
1 T. honey
½ t. salt
¼ t. pepper
Whisk together.
1 c. raw quinoa, washed
2 c. water
Bring water and quinoa to a boil, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. Then remove the lid, move the saucepan from the heat, place a towel on top of the pan to collect additional steam, and replace the lid. Let sit 5 minutes. (Try to not overcook the quinoa!)
4 scallions, sliced thin
½ c. mint, chopped
Add.
Season to taste (salt, pepper, lemon juice).

I explained how I cook with quinoa on the Broccoli Spoon Salad recipe.

Lemon Shake-ups

I've been really into lemon shake-ups this summer. They're simple and delicious -- but you've really got to shake them. The ice isn't optional, and the sugar can't be cut back too much.

Ingredients Step
ice cubes
½ lemon, washed
scant ¼ c. sugar
6 oz. water
Place ice in container with lid. Squeeze lemon into it, then drop in rind. Add sugar and a splash of water. Shake! Pour into glass and top with water to taste.

Raspberry Lemonade

This beautifully pink recipe works particularly well in late May/early June, when there are still some end-of-season lemons and the raspberry bushes are laden with harvest. I wouldn't recommend sourcing this recipe in a grocery store trip; it'd probably be both excessively expensive and not nearly as tasty as when a neighborhood/friend group is drowning in lemons and raspberries.

If you start with 1¾ c. fresh-squeezed lemon juice (5-12 lemons), you will get 7 cups of lemonade. Alternative ratios are below recipe.

Ingredients Step
lemons that will produce 1¾ c. juice (5-12) Roll lemons. Then squeeze into a large liquid measuring cup until you have 1¾ c. lemon juice. (If you have an alternate amount of juice, scale everything else accordingly — see ratio below recipe.)
2 c. raspberries (8 oz., or half a metal camping bowl)
½ c. lemon juice
Puree in blender, then strain through a sieve into a bowl. Discard solids (the seeds).
1¼ c. lemon juice
1 c. white sugar
5 c. water
raspberry-lemon juice
Combine in a pitcher that can hold at least 8 cups. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Taste and adjust as needed (remembering there will be ice).
Serve over ice, possibly with a sprig of mint. Sugar rims are nice; salt rims are not (even after yardwork).

The scaling ratio is: For each ¼ c. lemon juice, use ¼ c. raspberries, ⅛ c. sugar, and ⅔-¾ c. water. Each root unit makes a single serving (8 oz. lemonade plus ice yields a 12-16 oz. serving).

Source: Once Upon a Chef

French Toast

A basic but solid French toast recipe. The original recipe had a picture boasting heart-shaped food!

Ingredients Step
2 eggs
⅛ c. milk
1 T. sugar
½ t. cinnamon
dash nutmeg
¼ t. vanilla
Whisk well, then pour into a shallow dish.
egg mixture
5 slices bread
Fry in buttered skillet, flipping when needed.

Source: FoodNetwork

Pull-Apart Seitan Chicken

The best seitan recipe I've made. Works acceptably alone, or even better in chicken noodle/chicken rice soup or as bbq chicken. Tastes best if browned in some oil before using. If you're making soup, you can re-use the seitan boiling broth as its base.

Don't overtax your food processor's motor. You may need a new one if you make this recipe often....

To make a nice seitan, the broth must NOT be too hot. The technique below sets a "skin" first — otherwise you get seitan brains.

Makes 4 pounds, so you'll probably use it for 2-3 recipes. The weight/volume ratio is 2 c. shredded to 8 oz. weight. It freezes well after being pulled apart.

Ingredients Step
2 c. water
1 T. olive oil
2 t. apple cider vinegar
1½ t. salt (truly)
2 t. onion powder
1 t. garlic powder
½ t. pepper
⅛ t. turmeric (for color)
Whiz together in food processor.
¼ c. nutritional yeast
½ c. pea protein powder (aka pea isolate aka pea flour — nothing but "yellow peas" on label)
Process until smooth, about 30 seconds.
1½ c. vital wheat gluten Pulse in, until incorporated. Then process on low about 5 minutes. Give your motor a break as needed!
10 c. chicken-y vegetable broth (can stretch with water)
8 bay leaves
Bring broth to a boil in a large pan.
4 9" double-layered squares of cheesecloth
twine
Divide the dough into 4 pieces, trying not to overhandle it. Roll each into an 8-inch roll, fold in half, give a twist, and pull to 6-inches. Wrap in cheesecloth, snugly but not tightly, and tie with twine. If you have loose cheesecloths threads, try to keep them away from the seitan-touching edge. Leave a wee bit of slack in the wrap so the seitan can plump up (be able to pull the cheesecloth away by about ½ inch once wrapped). Let them rest until all bundles are prepared.
After the broth is at a low boil, lower the heat so it isn't boiling at all (but is still very hot). Add the seitan bundles, which will cause another drop in temperature. Bring the heat up slightly and let the seitan cook for 20 minutes in that hot broth without boiling. Then raise the heat to achieve a low boil, and let the seitan cook for 45 more minutes, lid ajar. Turn the bundles every ~15 minutes.
Turn off the heat. Cool completely in broth to room temperature, either on the stove or in a cool place. (Likely this takes an hour or more.)
Pull apart.

Source: Isa Chandra's Post Punk Kitchen