Sweet & Sour Red Cabbage with Feta (and Tofu)

Please don't laugh at this title and ingredient list. It's basically an Eastern / Central European - inspired sweet and sour red cabbage dish, bulked up with tofu, and garnished with Balkan seasonings and feta. You don't really taste the tofu, and could omit it to make this a side dish, or replace it with chicken if you're not concerned about mixing meat and dairy. It was surprisingly good, and I'll be making it again.

Sweet & Sour Red Cabbage with Feta (and Tofu)

1 lb firm tofu
2 tbsp canola oil, divided
1 large onion
1 small head red cabbage
1/2 cup grapefruit juice
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp honey -- optional. (I added this and found it too sweet.)
6 dried tomatoes, soaked, drained, and diced
4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
1/2 tsp dried dill
1 large pinch fennel seeds

Drain the tofu and cube it. Heat 1 tbsp oil over high heat in a large frying pan. Add the tofu and brown lightly on one or two sides only (it will keep browning as you add other ingredients), about 8 minutes. Meanwhile, dice the onion, and core and dice the cabbage. Add the onion and cabbage to the tofu, along with remaining 1 tbsp oil, and continue to cook over high heat, stirring occasionally.

After about 8 minutes, when the vegetables have begun to wilt, add the grapefruit juice, vinegar, fennel seeds, and dried tomatoes. Continue to cook over high heat until just about all of the liquid has evaporated and the cabbage and onions are tender, 10-15 minutes.

Turn off the heat. Add the dill and feta; mix well. You can reserve some feta for garnish.

Serves 4 (with nothing else) or 6 (as part of a larger meal).

Yemenite Flatbread (Lachuch)

This is the first time I've ever made lachuch/lechuch/lahoh, a Yemenite flatbread that's sort of like injera. While this is likely not the most authentic recipe around -- cobbled together from several other sites -- it is definitely delicious. Still needs some tweaking; the batter was not as runny as I hoped, causing thicker breads that didn't cook quite evenly, but I couldn't resist posting it now anyway.* Eat with soup or stew, wrapped around tomato salad, with Yemeni fenugreek dip (not that I know how to make that), with za'atar, or with a drizzle of honey.

Lachuch
2 cups white flour
2 cups warm water (next time I will experiment with 3 cups water)
1 heaping tbsp active dry yeast
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt

Combine warm water and yeast in a large bowl until the yeast begins to dissolve. Mix in other ingredients together well, until creamy. Cover loosely and let rise in a warm-ish place for two hours.

After two hours, the batter should have at least doubled in volume. Stir it several times to deflate.

Very, very lightly grease a cold frying pan. Scoop about 1/3 cup batter into the pan, and then place it over medium heat. When the top of the bread is pocked with bubbles that pop and do not close and has taken on a cooked look, and the bottom is golden brown, use a spatula to lift the bread onto a clean kitchen towel to cool. Turn off the heat and either allow the pan to cool or run it under cool water to cool it off -- this is very important. (When I experimentally did not do this, the bread did not bubble correctly.) Repeat until you have used up all the batter.

Makes about 6-8 breads.

*I have now (3/28) determined that 2.75 cups of water is TOO MUCH!

Spicy Sweet Potato-Black Bean Soup

This is a favorite of my spouse. It is rich-tasting, full of warm spices, and very delicious, although not particularly attractive. I've made two big batches in the past two weeks, to take advantage of the last cold weather of the season.

If you have any leftover beans lying around -- e.g., half a can of refried beans -- just dump them in.

Spicy Sweet Potato-Black Bean Soup

2 large sweet potatoes/yams, peeled and diced
2 cans reduced-sodium black beans, well rinsed
1 medium or large onion, chopped roughly
4 cloves garlic, diced (or not; it'll just get pureed anyway)
1 tbsp olive or canola oil
3 tbsp cumin
3 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
1/2 tsp Sriracha (or to taste)
1 pinch dried oregano
(1-2 tbsp honey -- depends on the sweetness of the sweet potatoes)
Water -- lots
salt & pepper to taste

In a large soup pot, cook the onions in the olive oil over medium heat while you are peeling and dicing up the sweet potatoes, about 5 minutes, adding the garlic in the last 2 minutes. Add the sweet potatoes and beans; add about 8 cups of water (until the vegetables are covered), and bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, add the remaining ingredients except the honey. Boil until the sweet potatoes are very soft, 30-45 minutes, adding water if it runs low. Puree using an immersion blender. Taste, and add honey if you think it is necessary. Thin with more water if you'd like a thinner texture.

Serves at least 5.