Meatless Monday & Unprocessed: Zuppa di Verdura & Ribollita

Years ago I was given a cookbook, The Flavors of Tuscany from a friend I has studied with in Florence with who was as much of a foodie as me.  One thing we both really enjoyed during our time was Ribollita which translated means re-boiled.  To the uninitiated that doesn't sound like much, but to those with a love of Tuscan fare as I do, it makes you swoon.  It brings to mind a thick and hearty vegetable and bread soups with gorgeous ribbons of cavolo nero.  Cut to last week when I was at the farmer's market, Zephyr Farms had gorgeous organic black kale.  Now gorgeous and kale are not two words I generally would put in the same sentence.  I am the first to admit, I'm so not a kale person.  While I love the idea of it, the look of it when it's fresh, I've just not been able to get over the flavor.  But when I saw the kale (or cavolo nero) at the market I was instantly reminded that the only time I have enjoyed it was when I was in Florence eating Ribollita.  At that moment I realized I had no other choice but to finally after more than 10 years attempt Ribollita.

The thing about Ribollita is that each person or restaurant's is just a bit different from the next.  The reason it is called reboiled is that you take leftover vegetable soup, "reboil" it on the stove and layer it with stale bread rubbed with garlic.  If you don't have stale bread just toast it up to get it all crispy, rub the cut side of a clove of garlic on the bread and let it soak up the delicious veggie soup.    Each ribollita is different because each person's vegetable soup  is made differently.  I went with the Flavors of Tuscany Zuppa di Verdura as everything I've ever made from this book has been a perfect reminder of my time in Tuscany.

Unprocessed: BUTTER!

Those of you that follow me on Twitter or are a friend on Facebook know that not too long ago I made butter from scratch.  Well without further ado, I wrote up how to make butter as my contribution to the October Unprocessed challenge and you can find it over at our fearless leader's blog Eating Rules.  Go ahead, check it out, read more about the challenge and learn how you too can make butter at home.

Enjoy!

Unprocessed: Homemade Roast Turkey Sandwich

When I embarked upon this unprocessed journey, one thing I knew I was going to have to figure out was sandwiches.  Now not the biggest deal, but as a sandwich is not something I'm good at planning for I knew it would take some advance thought and prep.  I'm a sandwich fan and am a fan of deli sandwiches, first because they are quick and easy but also because there is just something about a sandwich made for you by someone else.  It tastes better and if I'm not eating a deli sandwich I want one made by my father, the king of the sandwich.  You can ask my dad for sandwich thinking there is nothing good in the fridge and he will manage to put together something amazing.  The problem even with his sandwiches is that they are made with deli meat.  Well if you want to go the unprocessed route on eating virtually all deli meat is our of the question.  God only knows where the processed meat they try to pass off as turkey comes from, even if it does taste good.  So the only way I could think of to satisfy my sandwich cravings during this month and potentially moving forward is to make my own meats.  I started off with turkey.

Many people find the idea of roasting turkey or chicken a rather daunting prospect.  Well maybe not most foodies and cooks, but many of my friends.  They'd always be so surprised and impressed when I would roast a chicken for dinner.  I've roasted whole chickens and whole turkeys but never just a breast.  My one concern was for keeping the meat nice and moist.  I decided to achieve this by cooking it on a lower heat nice and slow.  Normally when I roast a chicken I bump up the heat at the end to get a nice crispy skin, but for this breast that wast the biggest concern, though I love the skin I just wanted nice juicy meat for my sandwich. 

Meatless Monday & Unprocessed: Potato and Leek Pizza

Well I'm into week 2 of my Unprocessed month and I did have one major cheat.  After a day of painting and movers finally bringing the last of my furniture from LA I broke and the boy and I tried a fish & chip shop around the corner from our house.  Now I felt bad enough about eating the fried food, but what was even worse is that the meal wasn't even that good.  The fish was far too greasy and the chips were mediocre.  The fact that my cheat was so unsatisfying has made it easier for me to stick to my unprocessed eating and even further proof why I am partaking in the challenge.  it's one thing to eat bad for you food if it's tasty and satisfying, no matter how guilty.  It's and entirely other thing when you feel bad after eating it.

This week's Meatless Monday recipe is actually a great healthier version of one of my favorite guilty pleasures, pizza!  For me it's a healthier options because it's not loaded with cheese and though I firmly believe in cheese on pizza, this one just doesn't need it.  It's packed with flavor from the slow cooked leeks, the infused oil and the bouquet garni I use when cooking the potatoes, not to mention the hearty whole wheat crust. 

Meatless Monday & Unprocessed: Jalapeno Red Cabbage Slaw

When I committed to doing Meatless Monday, I promised myself that I would do meatless meals, not just dishes.  But for the past week I was in LA finally packing up and moving the last of my bedroom up to Toronto.  This recipe is a little late in coming as a result of all of that too.  This slaw is awesome on it's own as a side dish to a tasty portobello burger or, on a day other than Monday, perched atop pulled pork like my Pomegranate Ancho Pulled Pork. 

It luckily works along with my commitment to eating only unprocessed foods for the month of October.  Andrew over at Eating Rules has assembled more than 300 people who have pledged to eat only unprocessed for up to 30 days.  There are some guidelines that you can tailor to you whether you want to be more stringent or a bit less.  I think they are great guidelines and I for one am going to do my best to stick within them.  I say right now that I don't think I'll have too tough of a time with this challenge as I make so much on my own anyway, but we shall see how the month progresses.  For more info on the Unprocessed challenge check out continue reading here, but also check out Andrew's blog which I will be guest posting too later in the month.