I Made Swisschard-akopita

Good Day,

Last night I scrambled to make a good impression on all my new classmates by bringing a delicious dish to a potluck reading. My original plan was to make dumplings (which I have never done before, but always admired Sarah for) but none of my New Mexico grocery stores had the dumpling dough. I ended up leaving with Phyllo dough, and made a last minute switch to do Swisschard-akopita which worked out great!

As a kid I really hated Quiche and I think this would be a good option for any Quiche haters out there if you're looking to little by little get over your Quiche disgust (for me it's the texture! Barf!) Because this is densely packed with greens the eggyness just fades away. Also if you have pie crust phobia this dish might be a good alternative.

Spanakopita is a traditional savory greek pastry, which traditionally probably isn't so good for you (tons-o-butter+cheese), and the greeks normally eat it as a little snack for that reason. With slight modifications I think this dish is filling healthy and great with just a salad as green and hearty meal. I read somewhere that during high holidays the greeks often make this without any dairy, which I would also like to try, and for any Vegans out there would be a great option!




I got home and took a look at a recipe...Below is the recipe, and my modifications:

Ina Garten's Spinach Pie
2 yellow onions (I used 2 red onion, which made things nice and sweet)
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 teaspoons salt (I actually omitted this because cheese is so salty)
2 teaspoons pepper
3 (10 ounce) packages of frozen chopped spinach defrosted (I used 1 large bunch of colored brights Swiss Chard which I bought raw)
6 eggs
2 teaspoons nutmeg
6 cloves garlic minced (the recipe did not call for any garlic, but I love it)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese (I think I used slightly less)
3 Tablespoons dry bread crumbs (Omitted)
1/2 pound good feta
1/2 cup pine nuts (I used chopped walnuts)
1/4 pound butter for the phyllo dough (I used a 1/4 cup of olive oil instead and it worked great)
6 sheets phyllo dough, defrosted (I used 8)

Preheat Oven to 375 degrees

1) Chop 2 onions and saute them in 1 TBS olive oil until translucent and a bit brown, 8-10 minutes, and set them aside to cool a bit, add ground pepper.

2) Cook down your chopped greens in a TBS of olive oil. I used Swiss Chard and it worked wonderfully. Do not over cook them as they will spend ample time in the oven, just cook them down enough to where they are a bit tender, but their cores are still crunchy. 6-8 minutes or so. This made me think I'd like to make this with Kale or even Mustard greens at some point, and it seems like a good way to introduce your children to exotic greens that they normally wouldn't tolerate. If you are using the frozen spinach drain as much water as possible from it.

3) Combine your greens (cooked, or defrosted and drained) with the onions, 6 eggs (beaten), nutmeg, parmesan, minced garlic, feta, and nuts (pine, walnuts, or both!)

4) grease a pie pan, or any pan really, but i find the rounder the pan the better the top looks when you fold it over. gently handle the Phyllo dough, unrolling it, and placing the first sheet in the pan. Let the edges of the phyllo dough hang over the pan. Then gently brush on olive oil (with a brush, or your fingers) covering the whole bottom of the pan where the Phyllo Dough touches working your way out to the edges of the dough that hangs. Continue layering phyllo dough 6 sheets deep brushing olive oil on each layer.

5) Once you have 6 layers in your pan go ahead and pour your filling in. Depending on the size of you pan you may have enough filling for 2 pies.

6) lift the edges of the phyllo dough up and over the filling (It's okay if it doesn't cover the filling completely you can put 2 extra sheets on top to seal your pie.)

7) bake in the oven for an hour. You could bake it for 45 minutes if you're short on time, but the full hour really lets all the flavors set, and gives you a pie you can cut well.

8)Let the pie cool at room temp before serving, and refrigerate leftovers they are great cold or warmed up!



Opa!

I made that olive oil granola that everyone is talking about!

Ever since this granola recipe was published in the NY Times a few weeks ago I feel like I can't read a food blog without coming across a wild endorsement. My interest was already piqued when I read that the recipe contained one of my favorite flavor combos, savory and sweet. I have never seen a granola recipe call for kosher salt before, and I was intrigued. I finally decided to make it on a Sunday morning 2 weekends ago, and I have been enjoying is ever since. I actually just polished off the last of it this morning. Time to make more !




This is the original recipe with my notes/substitutions:

(The ingredients are pretty flexible. As long as you've got the right balance of oats/sweeteners/oil, you can really add pretty much anything.)

3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1 1/2 cups raw pistachios, hulled (Omitted)

1 cup raw pumpkin seeds, hulled (Only used about 1/2 a cup)

1 cup coconut chips (Omitted)

3/4 cup pure maple syrup

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar (Used a bit less.)

1 teaspoon kosher salt (I actually found the saltiness too subtle. But I REALLY like salt. If you also really like salt, I recommend adding another teaspoon. )

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I recommend adding extra if not using cardamom.)

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom (Omitted)

3/4 cup chopped dried apricots (Omitted)

ADDED:
Blanched whole almonds (1/2 cup)
Sunflower Seeds (1/2 cup)
Sesame Seeds (1/4 cup)
1/2 cup ground flaxseed (1/2 cup)
Dried cranberries (1/2 cup)


Fresh ricotta, for serving (optional)

Fresh berries, for serving (optional).

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a large bowl, combine oats, your selection of nuts, maple syrup, olive oil, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon and cardamom (if using). Spread mixture on a rimmed baking sheet in an even layer and bake for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until golden brown and well toasted.

2. Transfer granola to a large bowl and add apricots (if using), tossing to combine. Serve with ricotta and fruit, if desired.


I think I understand why people are so crazy over the granola. As the Times article says, the olive oil gives the granola a unique, somewhat bitter and fruity flavor. The salt adds a nice layer of flavor as well. After the sweetness hits, that's when the salt comes through, creating a really interesting combination.

The only problem for me is that the unique flavor of the granola was somewhat overwhelmed when I combined this with yogurt - all I could really taste was the sweetness, and those other layers of flavor sort of disappeared. I think this granola might be best straight up by the handful. Of course, I didn't get a chance to try this with ricotta and berries like the author suggests, but perhaps that's another solution that would compliment the granola instead of overwhelming it. Something to keep in mind for the next batch.




Enjoying some granola at work, as I am known to do.

I made Salmon and that pesto pea rice that Alena made!

Greetings from Albuquerque!

I wanted to share my easy salmon marinade with everyone, and I decided to take Alena up on her suggestion to pair her pesto peas and rice dish with fish Alena's and I'm certainly glad I did!

Grocery List for The Marinade

2 pieces of 6 ounce Salmon (Sockeye is more fishy, Atlantic is mild and buttery) I know there is an on going debate about Farm raised Salmon, and wild caught etc. but no judgement here, just eat what you're comfortable with.

2 TBS Soy Sauce
2 TBS Tequila Lime Hot sauce (We picked this up in Austin, TX at the Tears of Joy Hot Sauce Shop Super delicious stuff! If you don't have that, use whatever hot sauce you have laying around. I highly recommend Tequila Lime hot sauce for fish marinades. It's also an important Southwest flavor, and it's unique to that area.)
6 TBS Olive Oil
2-4 TBS Balsamic Vinegrette
pinch of Salt and pinch of pepper
the juice of half a lemon
3 cloves crushed/chopped garlic
2 TBS Honey

Mix all the ingredients above into a bowl, and put your fish filets skin side up meat side down into the marinade. (Remember the longer your fish sits in these flavors the better, but usually 30-45 minutes is fine.) This marinade also works well on Tuna steaks!







Put the fish and marinade in the fridge while you whip up your side dish. I followed Alena's recipe exactly, except as well as peas I put in some nice, meaty, fresh shiitake mushrooms. I sauteed the mushrooms in a little bit of butter and added at the same time as the peas.



While the rice is setting, before you add the peas and mushrooms, take your fish out of the fridge, and put it in your oven on Broil for about 15-20 minutes. (Depending on how thick your fish cut is.) Make sure you remove the fish from the marinade when placing it on your broil pan. Do not drizzle any juices over your fish it will produce it's own in the oven!

Once your fish is done broiling, go ahead and serve this up! I highly recommend eating this meal with a lovely glass of white wine, preferably a Riesling!

Enjoy!

I made Arborio Rice with Spinach-Basil Pesto and Peas!

So here I go with another "lazy risotto". Ain't no shame in it!

This is another dish I cooked up on a sleepy weeknight when I also really did not have too much food in the house. But this just proves that you can cook up something fast and tasty with what you got around.

First, I made a spinach-basil pesto. I used:

-Equal proportions spinach + basil (I used about 1/2 a bag of baby spinach and some basil leaves from my sad little basil plant*
-Some walnuts
-1 or 2 cloves garlic
-juice of 1 lemon
-olive oil
-salt+pepper

*Since I did not have enough fresh basil, I supplemented my pesto with some jarred pesto from Trader Joe's, which I like to keep on hand for moments just like this! Again, ain't no shame in it. I used the hand blender! (Sarah's fave technique.)

Then I cooked up some arborio rice in the same fashion as my lazy risotto. While that cooked, I looked around my kitchen for other elements to add to the dish. I came up with some frozen peas and Parmesan cheese and decided that they would go nicely with the pesto.

I sauteed the peas in a pan for just a few minutes to thaw them and get the moisture out. If you have fresh peas, even better, but frozen will do the job admirably. Just make sure not to throw them in the pot with the rice as it cooks - even though this will defrost and cook them, by the time the rice is done, they'll be overcooked and mushy. Mushy peas are not cool. I know they are a popular thing in England, but I don't get it.

Once your rice is done and has a nice chew to it, (about 12 minutes, maybe), take it off the heat and stir in the peas, some grated parm and the pesto - add gradually to your liking. Top with some more Parmesan cheese. (Also delicious I bet: ricotta or goat cheese.)

The peas add a nice sweetness to the rice and all the salty pesto and cheese. Fresh tomatoes would be tasty as well, although they would alter the all-green theme of the dish.

This dish was a tasty and satisfying light dinner. I think it would also make a great side dish paired with fish or shrimp or even just a really good salad. I brought the leftovers to work for lunch the next day and was very happy.

I made Tangy Cabbage Salad and Peach Crisp!

I went to the greenmarket on Saturday with a vague idea of 'slaw' in my head and I bought a cabbage (as well as numerous other non-slaw vegetables). I found this "Tangy Shredded Cabbage Salad" recipe on Smitten Kitchen, which she "adapted from Ruta Kahate via SFGate.com, 6/8/07". It's very simple and tasty; I think it would be good at a picnic.

Below is the original recipe with my notes. I also added diced kohlrabi and chick peas because I had them on hand and I thought they'd blend well. I bought kohlrabi last week because it looked interesting and then didn't know what to do with it, but I found a recipe similar to this one using kohlrabi instead of cabbage, so I threw it in. It added a nice crunch to this dish.


2 cups shredded green cabbage (The recipe suggests using the large holes of a grater. I used one at first but found that it took a really long time and I resorted to finely chopping the cabbage with a knife. Maybe your box grater is better than mine though...)
1 small serrano chile, minced (I used a jalapeno)
2 TBS lemon juice
1 Tsp salt
1/2 Tsp sugar
1 TBS canola oil
1/2 Tsp mustard seeds

In a medium bowl, toss together the cabbage, chile, lemon juice, salt and sugar. Taste and adjust the seasoning. You are looking for a well-balanced, sweet and sour taste.

Heat the oil in a small skillet or butter warmer over high heat. When the oil begins to smoke, add the mustard seeds, covering the pan with a lid or splatter screen. When seeds top popping, immediately pour the oil over the cabbage salad and toss well. Let the salad sit for at least 15 minutes before serving, to allow the flavors to blossom.

Serve cold or at room temperature.

*******

Now onto peach crisp!

Peach crisp is great for summer when you want a fruit dessert, but don't feel like committing to making pie crust. You can also use nectarines, or other stone fruit. In the fall and winter you can use apples and I highly recommend it. This is the recipe my mom uses, and she would always make this in the summer when we vacationed in Vermont. She lessens the amount of sugar (to about 1 cup) and butter (8-10 TBS) and so do I.

1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 cup flour
12 TBS butter
6 to 8 peaches, about 3 pounds
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
grated rind of 1 lemon
juice of 1/2 lemon


Preheat oven to 375. Combine the sugar, flour, and butter in a mixing bowl and mix well with the fingers. Set aside. Peel and quarter peaches. Cut into thin slices. Blend cinnamon and nutmeg and sprinkle over peaches. Sprinkle with lemon rind. Add lemon juice and toss to blend. Arrangethe slices in a not too shallow baking dish. Cover with the butter and sugar mixture, smoothing it over. Place the dish in the oven. Bake for one hour.

I made Fancy Lunch for Frances!

Today I had Frances over for lunch. I decided to make something really beautiful and refreshing and summery and that we would eat it in the new alternate dining area in our apartment, since our new layout has doubled our common space. Frances was the first guest to eat at this table.



I found two recipes I liked: Chilled Mango and Cucumber Soup, from Gourmet Magazine (by way of Epicurious) and Lemon-scented Quinoa Salad from www.101cookbooks.com.

Here they are, annotated of course:

Chilled Mango and Cucumber Soup:

Ingredients:

2 mangoes, peeled and pitted (2 pounds total)
2 seedless cucumbers (usually plastic-wrapped; 1 1/2 pounds total)
3 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice, or to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Finely chop 1 mango and 1 cucumber and set aside. Coarsely chop remaining mango and cucumber and purée with 1/4 cup water (I used No-Chicken Broth instead) in a blender until almost smooth. Transfer to a bowl and stir in finely chopped mango and cucumber, onion, lime juice, and 2 cups cold water (again, broth). Place bowl in a larger bowl of ice and cold water and stir until cool.

Just before serving, stir in cilantro and 1 1/4 teaspoons salt.

Soup can also be chilled in the refrigerator until cold, but it will take about 2 hours.

I garnished the soup with sliced avocado, a dollop of Greek yogurt, and a few thinly sliced scallions. AND, just to be crazy, instead of just throwing on some fresh cilantro, I made a little cilantro oil by putting it in the blender with olive oil. It was very pretty. Just look:

And now for the salad:

Lemon-scented Quinoa Salad

1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1 can garbanzo beans, or dried equivalent
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 red onion, chopped

Tahini Dressing:
1 garlic clove, smashed and chopped
1/4 cup tahini
Zest of one lemon
scant 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons hot water
scant 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt

Rinse the quinoa in a fine-meshed strainer. In a medium saucepan heat the quinoa and water until boiling. Reduce heat and simmer until water is absorbed and quinoa fluffs up, about 15 minutes. Quinoa is done when you can see the curlique in each grain, and it is tender with a bit of pop to each bite. Drain any extra water and set aside.

While the quinoa is cooking make the dressing. Whisk together the garlic, tahini, lemon zest and juice, and olive oil. Add the hot water to thin a bit and then the salt.

Toss the cooked quinoa, beans, cilantro, red onion, and half of the dressing. Add more dressing if you like and season with more salt to taste. Serve garnished with a bit of cilantro.

Serves 4.

I changed a couple of things here. Cooked the quinoa in No-Chicken Broth instead of water and added maybe 1/2 tsp turmeric. Pan fried the chickpeas a little bit with one clove of garlic. Added some Bragg's to the dressing to give it a little more flavor. Also threw some scallions and pine nuts on top.

It was a nice hearty compliment to the fruity soup.

This is what it looked like all laid out on the table:


These are two very simple but delicious dishes that would be easy to take to a picnic or barbeque.

I made pickles!

Last week at the Carroll Street Farmers Market I saw some really cute Kirby cucumbers (a.k.a. pickle cucumbers) and I decided to embrace my inner "Little House on the Prairie" and give pickling a shot. It took a trip to the Food Coop to get all the needed spices for the pickling mix, but it was surprisingly easy. Preserving foods sometimes makes me worry a bit that I'll give myself botulism/something equally bad, but as long as you follow the recipe, you should be fine! If you're really worried, get yourself a courageous friend to taste them first.

This recipe is from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian. I don't really have any notes since pickling novices such as myself should not futz with recipes.


Three-Day Pickles

Mark says you can also use carrots, radishes, celery, fennel, pearl onions, cauliflower, peppers, turnips, summer squash, eggplant, peaches, or beets.

2 pounds Kirby cucumbers
6 TBS salt
2 cups white or white wine vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup Pickling spice (see below)

1. Wash the cucumbers well, scrub them if they're spiny, and cut lengthwise into halves or quarters or slice. Put the cucumbers in a colander and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of the salt; toss well.
2. Let sit in the sink or a bowl for about 2 hours. Rinse the cukes and pat dry with paper towels; put in a nonmetal bowl.
3. Put the remaining 1/4 cup salt, the vinegar, sugar, and pickling spice, along with 2 cups water, in a pot over high heat. Bring to a boil, then let cool for about 5 minutes. Pour the mix over thecukes and let cool to room temperature. (Add more vinegar or water if the cucumbers are not covered.)
4. Transfer the cucumbers and pickling liquid to airtight jars or containers; store in the fridge for at least 3 days or longer for stronger pickles. They will keep in their pickling liquid for up to 3 weeks.

Pickling spice

2 3-inch cinnamon sticks
10 bay leaves
2 small hot dried red chiles or 1 TBS hot red pepper flakes, or to taste
1/4 cup mustard seeds
2 TBS allspice berries
2 Tsp whole cloves
2 TBS black peppercorns
2 TBS coriander seeds
2 Tsp cardamom seeds
2 TBS dill seeds

1. Break the cinnamon sticks, bay leaves, and chiles into pieces.
2. Roughly chop (or crush with a heavy skillet) all the other ingredients, leaving most of the seeds whole.
3. Stir to combine the spices and store in a tightly sealed container for several months.

Ceviche

Last night I had Martha and KC over for dinner and I made ceviche, rice and beans, and a tomato and basil salad. I bought a pound and a half of fresh, headless shrimp and one big slab of Chilean Sea Bass. It took about 2 hours to clean and prep the shrimp and fish. Then about another 30 minutes or so to squeeze 6 lemons, 6 oranges, and about 8 limes. It takes a lot of time but it's definitely worth it. After I cleaned and cut the shrimp and fish I threw them in a bowl with all of the citrus juice. While these were soaking I cut up 1 red bell pepper, 1 orange pepper, 2 jalapenos and half a red onion. I add all of this to the bowl with the seafood, covered it with saran wrap, and put it in the fridge and marinated it for 3 hours. No cooking required - the citrus juice "cooks" the seafood. The beans and rice were the typical kind but I added salt and chili powder and the salad came from my back yard! Fresh basil and 3 kinds of tomatoes that I picked 3 hours before dinner, plus I added small cubes of mozzarella. All that plus some avocado for a garnish, great white wine that KC brought, lots of Corona with lime, and plum tart with vanilla ice cream from Martha, made a great dinner.

I WENT ZUCCHINI CRAZY!!!

Recently, on a drive through the country with my mom, I picked up a whole bunch of zucchini at a roadside farm stand. They were all just so enormous and fresh and impressive looking, I couldn't resist buying way too many. And then I had to figure out what to do with all that zucchini. Fortunately, this was not a bad problem to have, because zucchinis are very versatile vegetables. I made Buttermilk Summer Squash Soup, Zucchini Pasta, AND Zucchini Muffins.

I'll start with the soup. I found this recipe on www.101cookbooks.com, which I have been using a lot lately. It was pretty simple, and the result was quite delicious. Here it is copied and pasted, with minimal commentary--I actually stuck to the recipe for once. You might think it strange to use buttermilk in soup, but this is actually something I learned from my mother, who makes a similar zucchini soup on Christmas, except hers is seasoned with curry.

Buttermilk Summer Squash Soup

a generous splash of olive oil or (3T.) knob of butter
3 large shallots, chopped (I used more--I always go crazy with shallots.)
a couple pinches of fine-grain sea salt
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
3-inch sprig of rosemary
1 1/2 pounds yellow or green summer squash, cut into 1/2-inch thick slices/chunks (used both)
3/4 pound potatoes, un-peeled, cut into 1/4-inch thick pieces
3 medium cloves garlic, chopped
3 cups lightly flavored vegetable stock or water (used No-Chicken broth here)
2/3 cup buttermilk

garnish with: fresh herbs, toasted almonds, a generous drizzle of olive oil/ melted butter, and/or some crumbled feta

Heat olive oil/butter in large thick-bottomed pan over medium heat. Stir in the shallots, salt, red pepper flakes, and rosemary. Saute until shallots are tender - a couple minutes. Stir in the squash and potatoes, and cook until the squash starts to get a bit tender - a few minutes. Stir in the garlic, remove the sprig of rosemary, and then add the stock (or water) to the pot. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer, stirring occasionally until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. (Pay attention to this last detail. I think I blended my veggies before the potatoes were soft enough... Didn't end up being a big deal, just made for a more textured soup.)

Puree with a hand blender. If you like a silkier soup feel free to pour the soup through a strainer. Slowly whisk in the buttermilk, taste, and adjust the seasoning - adding more salt if needed. I like this soup topped with a bit of crumbled feta, some toasted almonds, a drizzle of olive oil, and a small pinch of red pepper - but it's perfectly good straight with no fuss on top. (I garnished with feta and scallions! YUM.)

Serves 6 - 8.

Ok now on to the pasta. I kind of made this up. Not even really a recipe. Just julienned a bunch of zucchini, sauteed them in some olive oil with garlic, tossed them with some pasta and some homemade sauce--Mama Vallese's recipe of course. Didn't take any pics. But try it! A fun way to dress up your pasta. Bet it would be good with pesto too.

And now, last but not least: the muffins.

I am not much of a baker. But these were so easy! The recipe is from www.simplyrecipes.com. Literally the first thing that came up when I googled "zucchini muffins" but it was perfect--they came out moist, perfectly risen, not too sweet.


Zucchini Muffins


Ingredients

• 3 cups grated fresh zucchini
• 2/3 cup melted unsalted butter
• 1 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• Pinch salt
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 cup walnuts (optional)
• 1 cup raisins or dried cranberries (optional)

You don't need a mixer for this recipe.

1 Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Mix in the grated zucchini and then the melted butter. Sprinkle baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix in. In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add these dry ingredients to the zucchini mixture. Fold in the walnuts and dried raisins or cranberries if using.

2 Coat each muffin cup in your muffin pan with a little butter or vegetable oil spray. Use a spoon to distribute the muffin dough equally among the cups, filling the cups up completely. Bake on the middle rack until muffins are golden brown, and the top of the muffins bounce back when you press on them, about 25 to 30 minutes. Test with a long toothpick or a thin bamboo skewer to make sure the center of the muffins are done. Set on wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. Remove muffins from the tin let cool another 20 minutes.

I made Lemony Chickpea Stirfry!

Lately I just want to drench everything in lemon juice. It just makes everything taste better, right? Maybe it's because it's summer and I crave things that taste citrusy and fresh. Regardless, I was in a lemony mood the other day, and I found this recipe on 101cookbooks.com. This was delicious and very easy to make. Don't be dissuaded by my lengthy tofu tangeant.

Ok here it is, with copious comments:

Lemony Chickpea Stirfry

2 tablespoon ghee or extra-virgin olive oil (I used the latter.)
fine grain sea salt (I used a couple Tbs of Bragg's instead.)
1 small onion or a couple shallots, sliced
1 cup cooked chickpeas (canned is fine, if you don't want to cook up a pot of dried chickpeas)
8 ounces extra-firm tofu
1 cup of chopped kale
2 small zucchini, chopped
zest and juice of 1/2 a lemon
I added: garlic, soy sauce

Heat 1 tablespoon of the ghee/olive oil In a large skillet over medium-high heat and stir in a big pinch of salt, the onion, and chickpeas. Saute until the chickpeas are deeply golden and crusty. Stir in the tofu and cook just until the tofu is heated through, just a minute or so.

Ok extended interruption: I cooked the tofu separately to get it golden brown and crispy. I'll share my method with you because--don't want to brag but can't lie--I've been really good at cooking perfect tofu lately.

The first thing is to get as much water out of that tofu. I used a method mentioned in the blog before: wrapping the tofu in a paper towel and piling a few heavy books on time. Sounds crazy, but it works. Leave it like that for a little while, maybe 20 min. Meanwhile, heat some olive oil in the pan. Add a couple minced cloves of garlic. The heat should be high. Then unwrap the tofu, pat it dry, and cut into small cubes. Throw them in the pan, making sure each piece has its own surface area. Splash on some soy sauce. Sprinkling on a little nutritional yeast also helps it get crispy, but it will come out fine without it. Let a sizzle a little, then check a couple pieces. When they're brown on the bottom, stir it up so another side cooks. Don't drive yourself crazy flipping every little piece. Just keep stirring them around--every side doesn't have to be exactly the same. Keep sizzling and stirring until it looks golden brown and perfect. DONE. Set aside in a bowl. Now back to the rest of the recipe...

Stir in the kale and cook for one minute more. Remove everything from the skillet onto a large plate and set aside. In the same skillet heat the remaining tablespoon of ghee/olive oil, add the zucchini and saute until it starts to take on a bit of color, two or three minutes. Add the chickpea mixture back to the skillet, and remove from heat. (Now add the tofu.)Stir in the lemon juice and zest, taste, and season with a bit more salt if needed. Turn out onto a platter and serve family style.