Nuts & Seeds Egg Salad

I'm going to be eating vegan again after New Year's, and I had eggs in the fridge to use up this week. So this is my good-bye to eggs, I guess. I have an aversion to mayonnaise about 99% of the time, so this is mayo-free. I liked it - just remember that it's more of a salad than a sandwich spread!

Nuts & Seeds Egg Salad

- 5 eggs, hard-boiled and peeled

- 2 slices of lemon, one squeezed (zest too, if you like it) - hang on to the other
- 1/4 tsp. balsamic vinegar
- 2 tsp. white wine vinegar
- 1 tbs. olive oil
- 1/2 tsp. mustard (or more or less)

- 1 tbs. sunflower kernels
- 1 1/2 tsp. sesame seeds
- 1/2 tsp. poppy seeds

- 1 tsp. dried parsley
- pinch tarragon
- generous sprinkle paprika
- salt, pepper & red pepper flakes, to taste

- any other veggie add-ins you desire (I used a heaping tablespoon of finely chopped onions and half an avocado, diced to the same size as my egg pieces)

I hard-boil eggs by placing them in a pan of cold water that just covers them up, putting a lid on it, and bringing it to a boil. Once the water reaches a boil, turn off the burner and leave it there for fifteen minutes. Then run cold water over the eggs or place in an ice water bath until they've cooled.

Chop eggs how you like. I'm not a big yolk fan, so I only used one and a half of the yolks. Yeah, for five eggs.

Whisk together mustard, vinegar, olive oil, and lemon juice from one of the slices. Squish yolks into the dressing if you want (I did).

Dump seasonings/nuts over eggs/veggies, then pour over dressing. Fold to combine. It might not seem like you have enough of the dressing, but here's where you squeeze over the other lemon wedge.

Taste to see if it needs more salt (or even if you want more lemon).

I ate some immediately with Wasa Crispbread, but I'm guessing the flavors would intensify with a little time spent in the fridge.

mushroom risotto

My first food post!

This is what I made last night for my parents (my mom has cancer, so I make dinner over there occasionally - it's always an experiment since my cooking skills are fairly lacking), it fed four of us and there was some left over.

You need: butter (or your favorite substitute), olive oil, an onion, arborio rice (one cup), fresh mushrooms (I used two whole packages, one white mushrooms and one baby bella mushrooms), some sort of broth (several cups, at least four), seasonings to taste

Saute your choice amount of white onion in combination olive oil/butter. I used 3/4ths of a large onion, and 1/2 a stick of Smart Balance and a tablespoon olive oil. I let it cook for a few minutes, until it was all soft and translucent.

Before I started the onion, I heated several cups of water in the microwave and added two veggie bouillon cubes, two bay leaves, and four dried Shiitake mushrooms. Microwaved it another few minutes and then let it sit to steep. (The broth has to be hot when you add it to the rice.)

In a separate pan, melt a little butter or warm some olive oil with about a clove of chopped garlic. Add the mushrooms and let them cook down while you make the rice. It took me about half the time the rice did, so I just turned off the burner when the mushrooms were done.

When the onion is done, add a cup of the rice and cook (keep stirring) for about 3-4 minutes. Then a splash of white wine (optional), just enough that you can smell it, and then start adding your broth at the rate of about a half-cup to a cup at a time (keep stirring, don't stop yet). I just poured some in, let it cook in, and then added more. You want it to be almost entirely absorbed before you add the next cup, but it won't look like regular cooked rice. The constant stirring releases some of the starch so it gets creamy.

Keep adding broth and stirring it in until the rice is cooked. It will take, at the very least, twenty minutes. Both times I've made risotto, it's taken a lot more than twenty minutes. During this time, I added salt, pepper, a dash of chili powder, and some dried basil.

When the rice is cooked through and almost all the liquid has been absorbed, stir in the mushrooms and you're done!

I grated some parmesan on mine and also sprinkled just a little bit of crumbled goat cheese. My dad and I ate ours with some baby spinach that I wilted down with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. It cut the richness of the risotto just a bit.

Traditionally, butter and/or some cream are stirred in at the end, but this was certainly rich and creamy enough for me. Next time, I want to try using saffron.