This luncheon meal served at our recent retreat uses all four bowls. It also includes a food offering for the local spirits and land deities (not shown yet) that will go on the handle of the cleaning spatula and be collected midway through the meal or after seconds. Part of the water we wash our bowls with is also part of our offering. This meal has a Native American theme with a Wild Rice and Hazelnut Salad with Citrus Dressing; a Pozole, Tofu, and Poblano Pepper Soup; Avocado Slices; and Corn Chips with Lime Quarters. The two smallest bowls went with the soup and should have had sliced red radishes. The hazelnuts and fennel were never found for the salad, but it was still very good. I used to make this Wild Rice Salad for our holiday potlucks we had with the Buddha Master. It is a dish that requires so many different ingredients you need to make it for a large group.
Wild Rice & Hazelnuts with Citrus Vinaigrette Dressing
Wild Rice
1 Cup Wild rice
1 1/2 Cup Water
1 Tsp Olive Oil
Pinch Salt
Salad
1 small diced fennel bulb (celery will do) or chopped baby kale
1/2 Cup golden raisins, currents, dried cranberries, apricots, or cherries
2 Apples, crisp, chopped, toss in lemon juice
1 Orange
1 Cup Hazelnuts
Citrus Vinaigrette Dressing:
1/2 Cup Fresh orange juice
2 Orange, zest only
8 Tsp Lemon juice
2 Tsp Balsamic vinegar
1/2 Tsp Salt
1/2 Tsp Crushed fennel seeds
2 Tbsp Hazelnut or avocado oil
10 Tbsp Olive oil
2 Tbsp Fennel leaves, chopped
2 Tbsp Parsley leaves, chopped
Wild Rice: Gently rinse wild rice under cold water. Drain well. Place wild rice, cold water, a pinch of salt, and olive oil in Pressure Cooker. Close lid and pressure cook on High Pressure using Manual/Pressure Cook button for 15 minutes; then Full Natural Release (~10 mins). Turn off heat. Open the lid carefully. Drain in colander. Or simmer following alternative below. May take 45-60 minutes until tender.
Salad: Remove zest from oranges and set aside for dressing. Combine rice with fennel bulb/celery or kale and dried fruit rinsed in warm water and then soaked in the juice of an orange. Add before serving diced crisp apples (toss in lemon juice to keep from darkening)
If hazelnuts are raw, toast in oven at 350 degrees until golden brown and fragrant. Be careful, as they easily burn. Cool a few minutes and rub with towel to remove most of the skins and coarsely chop. Add to salad at last minute to keep crisp or serve as side dish if anyone has nut allergies.
Citrus Vinaigrette Dressing: Mix salad dressing ingredients.
Toss salad with Dressing and serve.
WILD RICE ALTERNATIVE: Rinse and soak wild rice in water for ½ hour. Drain. Add fresh water, salt and bring to a boil. Use 5:1 ratio of water to rice. Cook, covered, at a simmer until the grains are swollen and tender, but still chewy—about 30-35 minutes. Pour cooked rice into a colander and let drain.
Pozole, Tofu, and Poblano Pepper Soup with Avocado Slices, Corn Chips, and Lime
Roasted Vegetables
1 bunch cilantro stems
1/2 white onion, wedges, if allowed
2 garlic cloves, whole, if allowed
2 pounds tomatillos or canned green salsa
3 large poblano chiles
1 jalapeño
1 lime, plus wedges for serving, if you like
4 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt
Kale
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt
1/2 white onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 bunch lacinato kale, stemmed and chopped into bite-size pieces OR
8 ounces, chopped hardy greens
Hominy
2 (15-ounce) cans white or yellow hominy, drained
4 cups store-bought or homemade vegetable broth or water
1 pound firm tofu, cubed (optional)
Accouterments or Salad
2 to 3 cups shredded green cabbage (Optional)
2 to 4 radishes, thinly sliced
1 bunch cilantro leaves
Sour cream
Sliced avocado (optional)
Corn Chips (optional)
Heat oven to 475 degrees.
Roasted Vegetables: Prepare the soup: Separate the cilantro leaves and tender stems from the thicker stems. Place the thicker stems on a large sheet pan and refrigerate the remaining until ready to serve the soup.
Peel the onion, if using. Cut half into rough wedges and place on the sheet pan; finely dice the rest and set aside. Peel the garlic cloves,, if using; place half whole cloves on the sheet pan, then mince the remaining cloves and set aside. Quarter, the tomatillos; halve, seed and stem the poblanos and jalapeño; and halve the lime; add all to the pan.
Drizzle the contents of the pan with a hearty amount of olive oil and a very generous tablespoon of salt. Toss together until well coated. Roast until the vegetables are well-browned yet there is still plenty of liquid in the pan, 25 to 30 minutes.
Kale: While vegetables are roasting, heat a large pot over medium. Add 3 tablespoons of olive oil, the diced onion and a generous pinch of salt. Turn down to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and fragrant, 7 to 9 minutes. Stir in the minced garlic, cumin and oregano, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes to open up the flavors, then stir in the chopped kale. Cover and adjust the heat to low, stirring occasionally to cook down a bit; continue cooking while you tend to the roasted vegetables.
Take the roasted vegetables out of the oven and immediately transfer the poblano chiles to a bowl, cover with a plate and set aside to steam.
Let the remaining roasted vegetables cool for 5 minutes. Remove the lime halves and squeeze the juices and pulp onto the roasted vegetables; discard the peels. Using tongs, transfer the vegetables to a food processor.
Carefully pour and scrape the juices and any roasty bits from the sheet pan into the pot and stir into the kale mixture.
Hominy: With the vent on the food processor lid open to allow the steam to escape, pulse the vegetables until combined yet still chunky, then scrape into the pot. Turn the heat to medium-high. Add the hominy, tofu, if using, and broth, and salt to taste. Stir well to combine and bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat.
While the pozole comes to a simmer, peel off the clear outer skins of the poblanos and discard. Roughly chop the poblanos and add to the soup. Let simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, until the flavors have melded. Taste and adjust salt; don’t be shy here — salt will help pull all the flavors out and balance the acidity from all the tomatillos.
Accouterments or Salad: Toss salad of cabbage, radishes, queso fresco or sour cream, and the cilantro leaves. Add avocado and more lime, if you like. Some or all of these ingredients may also be used as a garnish to top the stew. For Oryoki they may be served separately in the smaller bowls.
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