Date Squares

Dates are by far my favorite fruit.  I have trouble understanding why they aren’t everyone’s.  These date and oat bars are great as on the go breakfast or a delicious sugary snack.

Filling

1 cup dates, pitted and chopped

½ tbsp coconut oil

¼ cup water

1 tbsp orange juice

Layers

½ cup gluten free oats

1/3 cup buckwheat

1/3 cup coconut oil

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tbsp date sugar or brown sugar

Combine all the filling ingredients in a bowl and microwave 2 or 3 minutes, stirring intermittently.  Mash the date mush with a fork until somewhat smooth.

In another bowl, mix the oat crust ingredients.  Brown sugar is a nice touch, but if you have the time, I suggest making some date sugar. I mean at this point you already have dates and what’s the harm in having some extra unrefined sugar around the house?  To do this cut the dates in half and put them on a baking sheet in the oven at about 150°F for an hour or so, until they are rock hard and totally dehydrated.  In a powerful blender, turn the dates into dust! Sweet!

In a bread pan, spread half the oat mix across the bottom. Be sure to oil the pan well, the bottom layer has a tendency to burn.  Another alternative is to put parchment paper down if you have it.  It works best to use a fork to try to smash out the oats into a thin layer.  Using that same essential fork, spread the date filling evenly on top.  Finally add the remaining oats sprinkled across the top.

Bake at 350°F for about 30 minutes.  Let it cool for little while before trying to cut these, or it’s a mess!  This is another situation where parchment paper has proven somewhat useful, just pulling the whole thing out intact and leaving a clean pan below. So magical.

Black Bean Burgers

Homemade Black Bean Burgers. So simple. Sooo good. Certainly cheaper than buying giant bags of veggie burgers from Costco and I’m thinking probably less than a pound of hamburger meat.

1 can black beans

½ bell pepper, any color

½ red onion

2 cloves garlic or garlic scapes if you happen to be so lucky as to come across them

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

½ tsp salt

½ jalapeño pepper

2 roasted green chilies

¼ cup corn meal

Wash and drain the beans then smash aggressively with a fork. The alternative is to puree with a hand blender but make sure it doesn’t get clogged. After they are somewhat creamy, try to drain them again to remove as much moisture as possible.

Chop and add all the veggies and spices and mix well. To prevent from bean mush going between the bars on the grill, I prefer to bake these for about 20 minutes at around 400 degrees.

I’ve been adding ¼ cup or so of hominy to this recipe, and I haven’t noticed any adverse effects thus far. Once upon a time I had hominy hash at one of my favorite brunch locations, Root Down. I don’t know that I’ve ever had hominy before but I fell in love.  So when I saw a 12 pound can in Costco for something like 4 dollars, I had to have it. I made one measly attempt at recreating the hash and was forever disappointed. Turns out my beloved magic white kernels were bland with an unappealing texture… and I had 11.75 pounds left. Accordingly, I froze what remained and have tried to find some excuse to use it in whatever I could. Well six months later I only have about 11 pounds, so I’m certainly making progress.

Garbage Plates

Hailing from the more rural areas of Upstate New York, I’ve become accustomed to enjoying only the best of the worst foods. I say this because the region seems to have an affinity for hot dogs and fine cuisine containing an excess of mayonnaise. Rochester in particular is home to one of the most unique dishes, the Garbage Plate. Traditionally this is an underlayment of your choice of home fries, baked beans, or macaroni salad, then two hot dogs (or hamburgers, sausage, etc.). Atop lies an awkwardly spicy sauce whose secret ingredient is supposedly grill scrapings. The Garbage Plate even earned a short spot on Food Network, although I can’t remember the show.

Uncomfortable with the idea of saying goodbye to Garbage Plates when leaving meat behind, in an attempt to live more sustainably, amongst other reasons, I needed to try to recreate this dish. The result was a delicious and not terribly unhealthy high protein meal that honestly, doesn’t taste much like a Garbage Plate. I’m continuously evolving this recipe to more accurately mimic its flavor. In this current state, its still quite good and gives me the same feeling as if I had ate 6 hot dogs, which is what I think I was ultimately seeking.

Generally I throw random spices in, but for the purpose of writing a recipe, I will assign values. First, the sauce:

1 chopped white onion

3 cloves garlic

2 or 3 cups of diced tofu, pan fried

1 can of tomato paste, no preference of can size

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp chili powder

¼ tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp cloves

¼ tsp allspice

¼ tsp NM green chili powder, if you have it (that’s kind of a stretch)

I cook in cast iron, so pans are usually pre-oiled, but I suggest sautéing the onion and garlic in oil until soft. Add all remaining ingredients, except tofu.  Keep it simmering for 20 minutes or so, preferably with a lid. Adding water will improve the consistency I think and help it stay moist while cooking. Add in cooked tofu late, just before you are ready to go.

I personally like Garbage Plates with baked beans and potatoes, but feel free to chose whatever sides suit you. Half and half spreading the plate with your sides, then put a (veggie) burger or dog on top and smother with the sauce. Adding some fresh onions and mustard is traditional, and I think excessive ketchup really perfects it. Pairs well with stale white processed bread and a watery-light ale.