Bean and Green Tacos

Only rarely do I let a day go by without planning my meals. I can’t even remember the last time it happened, really. I wake up and think about what I’ll have for breakfast, then what kind of lunch supplements that, and what kind of dinner I’ll have ingredients and time for. Some days start out with a grand plan that turns out even grander in its realization, and on those rare shining days, I feel like I have this life thing figured out.

Most days start with a grand plan that I whittle down to essentials over the course of the day, and maybe instead of the crackly-skinned roast chicken, kale soufflés, and plum clafoutis dinner I’d imagined, I’ll just braise one piece of chicken with some kale and garlic and eat a fresh plum for dessert. But some days, more often than I’d like, I get home too late and too tired to really cook, but hungry. I have such an effective mental block against ordering delivery food that I always fix my meals at home. So even though all I want to do is watch one of my neglected Netflix dvds while dinner miraculously appears, I end up digging through the cupboards and refrigerator for a leftover pita, some wilted chives, cheese, and whatever else needs to be used up. Fortunately, I’ve taken to preparing some quick dinner staples ahead of time so my future self won’t look so pathetic trying to make a pita-za with floppy herbs and a nub of old brie (not that I’ve ever done that).

Today was a perfect example of that tired but hungry but too stubborn to order takeout quick meal. I got in at 6:30 after walking around all day (in heels – what was I thinking?) I needed to start dinner pretty much immediately as I’d long since burned through my hearty breakfast, and I was too tired to shop for the elaborate meal I’d been planning all day. So I put on some Dexy’s Midnight Runners for energy, opened the refrigerator and took out the leftover black beans, sautéed greens, corn tortillas, and salsa, and made some bean & green tacos. Because I’d prepared all of the components a few days ago, I had a nice warm dinner ready in about 10 minutes, which is as close to miraculous as it gets.

They’re vegan and full of vegetables, which makes me feel virtuous after a breakfast of bacon-laced migas, and they’re tasty enough to qualify for a grand-plan dinner sometime. Now if you’ll excuse me, that Netflix isn’t going to watch itself.

Bean & Green Tacos (makes 2, serves 1, easily multiplied)

• 2 corn tortillas
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 6 Tbs black beans (see recipe below)
• 4 Tbs sautéed greens (see recipe below)
• 2 Tbs salsa (I used peach & tomato salsa from a jar)

Heat a small skillet on high. When hot, add 1 tsp olive oil and swirl to distribute. Place a tortilla in the skillet and cook without moving until slightly puffed, about 2 minutes. Turn over and spread half with 3 Tbs black beans, 2 Tbs greens, and 1 Tbs salsa. Cook 2 minutes, remove to plate and fold the bare half over the filling. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Eat carefully.

Black Bean Filling

• 1/2 pound dry black beans
• water
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 1/4 medium onion, diced
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped
• 1 lime’s juice
• salt to taste

Put the beans in a pot, cover with water by 1 inch. Bring to a boil, cook 1 minute, then turn off heat and soak 1 hour. Add enough water to cover by 1 inch, then return to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook until tender, 1-2 more hours. In another pot, heat olive oil on medium, add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly browned. Add cumin and garlic and cook about 2 minutes. Stir in black beans and simmer 10 minutes. Stir in cilantro and lime juice and salt to taste. Makes about 4 cups of beans, can be made ahead, keeps about 1 week.

Sautéed Greens with Garlic

• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• salt to taste
• 4 cups lightly packed washed greens (I used a mixture of mustard, dandelion, and collard)
• 1/4 cup water

Heat the oil on low, add garlic and red pepper and cook gently a few minutes, just until garlic starts turning transparent. Turn heat to medium, sprinkle garlic with a little salt and begin stirring in greens a handful at a time. The heat will wilt the greens and make room for each addition. When all the greens are added, pour in the water, cover the pot, and let steam for 3 minutes, then turn off the heat.

Cold Sesame Noodles

Oh man, are these noodles ever a life-saver. Sometimes I get busy and don’t realize what time it is, and then I look at the clock and it’s been 10 hours since breakfast and I have to leave to meet friends in 20 minutes. By then I’m really hungry and need to eat immediately, but I don’t want to have complete junk food from a 24-hour Dunkin Donuts. Times like these, I put some water on to boil for my super-fast Cold Sesame Noodles. They’re modeled after a favorite picture-menu Chinese restaurant dish and are quite adaptable. They can feature any shredded vegetable I have on hand, or just be a veg-less starchfest. I made a batch last night, and they’re so quick that I was able to have dinner, put on shoes, and make it to the movies on time.

This is my Presto Pasta Night dinner-of-the-week, hosted by Ruth at Once Upon a Feast.

Cold Sesame Noodles (serves 1 as a main dish or 2 as a side. Easily multiplied for a crowd.)

• 1 bundle soba noodles

Sauce:

• 4 Tbs peanut butter
• 3 Tbs rice wine vinegar
• 1 Tbs sesame oil
• 1 Tbs soy sauce
• 1 tsp Sriracha pepper sauce (optional)
• 2 tsp fresh ginger, minced or grated on a microplane
• 1 tsp fresh garlic, minced or grated on a microplane

Optional vegetables:

• 1 c leafy greens, shredded (I used broccoli rabe, but nappa cabbage and bok choi are also great)
• 1/4 c carrot, julienned or grated
• 1/4 c bean sprouts
• 2 scallions, chopped (can use chives or ramps, too!)
• 1 Tbs cilantro
• 1/4 c cucumber, julienned
• 2 Tbs chopped peanuts
• 1 Tbs sesame seed

Put a quart of salted water on to boil. It goes faster if the pot is covered.

While the water is heating, make the sauce. Put all the ingredients in a bowl and stir slowly until combined. Get the vegetables ready, and the water should be ready by this time, too.

When the water comes to a boil, put in the soba and boil about 3 minutes. If you’re using leafy greens, throw them into the noodle water at this point. The leaves get just enough heat to turn their brightest green. Drain noodles and greens and place in your favorite noodle bowl. Top with sauce and other vegetables and toss to combine.

Asparagus, Ramps and Bacon Mini-Frittatas

The city is quiet and grey with rain today. As much as I miss the sun we had last week, I’m also excited to put on rubber boots and take a walk through the first good spring rain. After my walk, I’ll slog into the kitchen tired and happy, ready for a simple dinner made with some of the first good spring produce. These warm and fluffy mini-frittatas need only 5 minutes of actual work, which is that much nicer for being done next to a preheating oven.

A frittata is an Italian baked omelet, and it’s very much like a crustless quiche. It can be filled with any variety of vegetable, meat, and cheese, and baked in a pie plate, cake pan, or cast iron skillet. Muffin cups frittatas have the advantage of baking quicker than their big brothers. This version uses fresh green vegetables to keep the taste light and seasonal, and bacon and smoked paprika for depth and warmth.

If nothing else, these little frittatas are a good excuse to use the oven on a rainy spring day. Serve with a green salad and a good book.

Asparagus, Ramps, and Bacon Mini-Frittatas

• 6 spears asparagus
• 2 slices bacon (I used Niman Ranch dry-cured bacon)
• 6 ramps
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• Salt
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika, also called pimentón de la vera (I used the agridulce, or bittersweet, variety)

First, preheat the oven to 350. If your bacon is raw, place it on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake until crisp, about 20 minutes. If your bacon is left over from Sunday brunch like mine, re-crisp it for about 5 minutes. Let bacon cool, then chop into 1/4-inch bits. (If you’re short on time, you can cook the bacon at the same time as the asparagus, on the same baking sheet if you don’t mind bacon-flavored asparagus. Just keep an eye on your bacon so it doesn’t burn, and flip it over after 10 minutes. It will need less cooking time at this temperature.)

To prepare the asparagus: Turn the oven up to 425. Using a vegetable peeler, remove the skin from the bottom 4 inches of each stalk, starting just above where the skin turns purple. You’ll need to pull the strands of skin off your peeler a few times. This gets rid of the stringy skin that interferes with asparagus enjoyment. Once peeled, you can see the woody white parts at the bottom. Snap these off. You can also remove the still-green ends of other stalks if they look tough. Asparagus bottoms break easily at the joint between the edible and inedible parts, so there’s no guesswork. Place the asparagus on an unlined baking sheet and toss with salt and pepper and 1tbs olive oil. Roast 20 minutes, remove and turn the oven down to 325. (I roasted a bundle of asparagus and reserved what I didn’t need for this recipe.) Cut the asparagus into 1-inch pieces.

Trim the roots from the ramps, rinse under cold water, and slip off the slimy skin covering the stems and bulbs. Mince the stems and bulbs, and make a chiffonade of the leaves (stack all the leaves together, and slice into 1/8-inch ribbons).

Make the custard: Whisk the eggs in a large liquid measuring cup (or a bowl) until foamy and uniform – don’t leave any yolk streaks or blobs of white. Slowly pour in the milk while whisking.

Assemble the frittatas: Lightly oil 6 1/4-cup muffin cups. Divide the asparagus, ramps, and bacon evenly amongst cups, and sprinkle each with a tiny bit of smoked paprika and a few grains of salt. Pour the custard into the cups, leaving 1/4-inch space at the top (a measuring cup with a spout makes this easier).

Bake at 325 about 15 minutes, until set. I recommend using an oven thermometer to determine the temperature. My oven, the loveable trickster, always gets 50° hotter than it says it is, and the left side is even hotter than the right. If they’re cooked too long, the frittatas will be rubbery, but you can prevent that even with the most tempermental oven simply by checking them every 5 minutes and turning if, say, the frittatas in the back are cooking faster than the ones in the front. Let cool 5 minutes, then run a dull knife around the edge of each frittata and turn them out of their cups onto a cutting board. Serves 2 as a main dish. Leftovers make a great breakfast, either on their own or as the filling in an english muffin sandwich. Frittatas can be rewarmed by heating 3 minutes per side in a nonstick skillet on the stove or in a toaster oven. Microwaves will make them rubbery, but if you’re hungry enough, you might not mind.