Ahh the food conference …. my head is still spinning from all of the wonderful experiences I had. People have asked me what it was like at the conference and its still hard for me to fully describe. It was an environment where everyone was truly both always learning and teaching. It didn’t only happen at sessions - it happened over meals, conversations, the communal celebration of Chanukah and in quiet moments alone when people reflected  on their own personal food journeys.

I had the priviledge of sitting on a pannel and doing a cooking demo at the conference. On the panel Feeding the Masses: Successes and Challenges of Improving Institutional Food Systems I talk about the work that The Childrens Aid Society does to provide better food to the thousands of children they serve in New York city. I described my experiences helping develop programs, training educators, and teaching nutrition through hands on cooking to kids and parents in East Harlem and the Bronx (if you were not able to attend the panel and want to know more let me know). In the cooking demo entitled “Real Food for Your Real Life” we had Curried Red Lentil Soup, a wonderful Garlic “Ranch” Dressing (or dip), and Pumpkin Seed Pesto on the menu (see recipes below the jump).

Curried Red Lentil Soup
Serves: 8-10 servings

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 medium onions
2 medium parsnips or turnips (or one of each)
1 medium potato
3 stalks celery
2 medium carrots
3 cloves garlic
1 one-inch piece ginger, peeled
2 cups red lentils, rinsed and drained
8 cups vegetable stock or water
1 cup canned diced tomatoes in juice, or fresh tomatoes peeled and chopped
1 tablespoons cumin (or more to taste)
1 tablespoons coriander (or more to taste)
2 cinnamon sticks or 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 lemon
1 bunch flat leaf/Italian parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:
1. Cut onions, parsnip and/or turnip, carrots celery and potato into small pieces, about ¼ - ½ inch. Mince garlic.

2. Heat oil in large pot over medium heat. Add vegetables sauté until they begin to soften and lightly caramelize.

3. While vegetables are cooking zest the lemon with a zester or fine greater. Set zest aside in a small bowl. In a separate bowl squeeze the juice of the lemon and set aside.

4. Add ginger root, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, and lemon zest to the pot. Stir until evenly combined. You should be able to smell the spices cooking in the oil.

5. Add tomatoes, vegetable stock or water, and lentils; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium–low, cover, and simmer. (if not enough liquid add additional water). Cook until tomatoes and lentils have broken down and soup has come to a smooth consistency.

6. Season with salt, black pepper additional spices, and lemon juice to taste.

7. Garnish with chopped parsley

Note: this recipe makes a very large pot of soup - if you are not feeding a large crowd you can half the recipe or freeze a few portions of the soup. Its great to have individual portions of soup you can pull out of your freezer and take to work, or to have a batch of soup you can just warm up for dinner after a long day!

Creamy Garlic Ranch Dressing & Dip
Yield: 2 cups

Ingredients:
2 cups plain/unsweetened whole milk or low fat yogurt
1-2 cloves garlic – grated or finely minced
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar (white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or lemon juice may be substituted)
2 tablespoons dried or fresh dill
1 teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon salt

Procedure:
Combine all ingredients, initially adding only one clove of garlic. Taste, and adjust for seasoning, adding additional garlic, vinegar, dill, salt and pepper to taste.

This is a really satisfying (and healthy) dip. When you taste it, you wont believe that it is made with yogurt! they key is to taste as you go - and keep adjusting the seasoning until it tastes just right (after all some garlic cloves are HUGE other are tiny, some are extremely potent others barely have any flavor at all … so trust your tastebuds.

Pumpkinseed Pesto
Yield: 1 ½ cups

Ingredients:
4 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves, washed ( about 1 large bunch or 2 small bunches)
1-3 cloves garlic
¼ - ½ cup toasted pumpkinseeds
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:
1. In a blender, food processor, or medium bowl with an immersion blender, combine basil, 1 clove garlic, ¼ cup pumpkin seeds, and olive oil – blending until mixture has reached a slightly chunky paste-like consistency.

2. Taste and season with salt, and pepper, add additional garlic cloves and pumpkin seeds to taste. If pesto is too thick, thin with a bit of water.

3. Garnish with whole toasted pumpkin seeds

Delicious on almost anything - pasta, roasted vegetables, chicken, bread, drizzled in soups ….

ENJOY!

Other Recipes From Linda:

- Perfect Pomegranate Chicken (and Seitan) Part 1

- Perfect Pomegranate Chicken (and Seitan) Part 2