Miso Soup with Vegetables

I don't know what the season is like where you live, but here in Seattle fall has definitely arrived.  There is that indistinguishable chill in the air, yellow leaves are strewn across the yard, and I woke up this morning with a cold.  My body is apparently not holding up with the change of seasons (and busy schedule!) as well as I would like.

Today, say no to your to-do list.  Instead, say yes to fuzzy socks, lying on the couch, a warm cup of tea (or this if you're feeling like me), and being present while eating miso soup.  

This soup is easy-to-make and combines the medicinal benefits of sea vegetables and miso.  Since miso is a living food, boiling it will destroy its beneficial enzymes, which is why the recipe calls for adding it in at the very end.  This recipe calls for wakame, which is a thin piece of seaweed that can be found fresh or dried.  It's different from nori (the dry, brittle sheets of seaweed used for sushi rolls), but you could also substitute nori if that's what you have on hand. I also added in ginger, mushrooms, and cilantro for extra flavor.  This is the perfect soup to battle a cold, fill a hungry belly, or warm you up at the end of a chilly fall day. 

Miso Soup with Vegetables
Adapted from Clean Food: A Seasonal Guide to Eating Close to the Source by Terry Walters.
Serves 4

6 cups water
3 carrots, sliced thinly into matchsticks 
12 ounces extra firm silken tofu, diced

4 fresh shiitake mushrooms

2 Tablespoons fresh chopped ginger to taste

3 inch strip wakame, broken into small pieces
dash of tamari or shoyu
1/4 cup miso

4 green onion, chopped

Fresh cilantro leaves 
In large pot over high heat bring water to boil. Add carrots, tofu, mushrooms, ginger, wakami, and tamari, reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

In separate bowl, dissolve miso in 1/3 cup water. Ladle soup into individual bowls and stir 1 generous tablespoon of dissolved miso into each serving. Top with chopped scallions and cilantro and serve.

Roasted Broccoli with Sesame Miso Dressing

Sometime soon I plan to stop talking about this. But until then you'll just have to hear about it.  I mean, I have to tell somebody and everyone else in my life is sick of hearing it.  Guess who got to meet Brandi Carlile this week.

Yep, that would be me.

If you don't know who Brandi Carlile is that has to change right now.  She's an amazing singer/songwriter originally from the Seattle area.  If you haven't heard her music before you need to.  Seriously.  Like right now.  Her new album will also be released on May 3rd and she's performing at a bunch of places around Seattle to celebrate.  Check out her website for more details.    

So here's where I'm going to geek out about this again.  I've been a huge fan of hers for years and have always told people that one day I planned to meet her.  I didn't know how, but I knew it would happen.

The nonprofit organization I used to work for had their annual fundraising event this week and through some of their connections they were able to get Brandi Carlile to perform at their auction.  Their event manager, quite aware of my obsession, texted me as soon as Brandi was confirmed.  Apparently I was the first person to be notified.  I'm just that cool.

And the rest is history.  They had an amazing event and raised over $345,000 to benefit women and girls in the Seattle area.  Brandi gave an awesome performance.  And, at the end of the night, I got to meet her.  And she hugged me.  Twice.  Just sayin.

So, how does roasted broccoli relate to Brandi Carlile?  Quite frankly, it doesn't.  But I figured I had to move on from gushing about her eventually so I might as well follow it with something that you're interested in.

Do you like broccoli?  No?  Hmm, then maybe I should just keep talking about Brandi.

Even if you're not a big broccoli fan, I have a feeling you might like this recipe.  The salty and sweet combination from the miso and agave bring out the best of broccoli's qualities.  Roasting it adds a nice flavor as well, but you could easily steam it instead.  If you wanted, you could even eat the broccoli raw and use the sauce for dipping.

Do you eat your broccoli stalks?  If you don't, you're missing out.  Broccoli florets are great, but I think the stalks are sweeter and even more delicious.  To use them in this recipe, cut the florets from the stalk then simply peel or chop off the outer tough layer of the stalk.  Chop the peeled stalk into pieces and roast with the florets.  They are also delicious raw so I wouldn't blame you if they never even made it to the oven.

Roasted Broccoli with Sesame Miso Sauce
Serves 6

6 cups broccoli florets and stems, chopped
4 Tablespoons white miso paste
2 Tablespoon agave syrup
2 Tablespoon rice vinegar
4 Tablespoons water
3 Tablespoons sesame seeds for topping

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Lay broccoli flat on a sheet pan and roast for 20 minutes, turning at least once.
Mix miso paste, agave, rice vinegar, and water together.  When broccoli has finished roasting, either drizzle or toss dressing with the broccoli.  Top with a sprinkling of sesame seeds.

Green Bean and Potato Salad with Miso Dressing

I had one goal for myself in 2011:  to go the entire year without any new injuries or physical ailments.  I figured that after last year my injury karma had to get better, right?  My 2010 was consumed by a gall stone diagnosis, shin splints from a running injury in 2008, a sprained ankle, and then a shoulder injury in August that I'm still healing from.  I thought things were looking up.

Then a couple of weeks ago I went to spinning class and strapped my shoe too tight on the bike.  I didin't even know that you could do that, but apparently if you do it bruises your foot pretty bad.  It also doesn't help when you continue to work out on it.  Duh.  Injury #1.

And then four days ago I started having a splitting headache on one side of my head.  Physical issue #2.  The not-so-fun part of this one is that my doctors still have no clue what's going on.

This caused me to take a long, good look at my life recently and figure it out myself.  It's not a pretty picture:  creating too many commitments for myself, getting less than 8 hours of sleep per night, staring at the computer for very long periods of time without taking a break, starting to drink caffeinated tea again, and choosing to ignore my body when it's trying to tell me something.  My self-care report card is definitely a D right now.  No wonder I have a weird headache that my doctor's never heard of. 

What I love about life is that the lessons that we need to learn always arise right in front of us.  I needed a good reminder about taking care of my body and sometimes it takes a swift kick in the behind (or a splitting headache) to make one pay attention.  I'm listening now.

Maybe you're working on taking care of your own body or you're just looking for a tasty meal option.  This salad is it.  This recipe came from  The Conscious Cook: Delicious Meatless Recipes That Will Change The Way You Eat by Tal Ronnen.  I love this cookbook because it has beautiful photographs, loads of great information, and very inspiring recipes. (Including how to make your own vegan cheese.  Amazing!)

At first I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy the miso-potato-green bean combination, but I was definitely impressed.  I'm also not usually a big fan of arugula and I actually thought about substituting spinach instead, but the slight bitterness of the arugula really complements the flavors well.  This is a perfect side salad with dinner and it makes a wonderful light lunch on a rainy spring afternoon.   In the spirit of self-care and listening to my body, I didn't even think twice about having seconds. 

Yields: 4 servings (enough for about 2 people)
From The Conscious Cook: Delicious Meatless Recipes That Will Change The Way You Eat by Tal Ronnen

2 tablespoons yellow miso paste
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon agave nectar
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 shallot, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon minced fresh chives
1 1/2 cups baby arugula
8 ounces fingerling potatoes, boiled for 15 minutes, then sliced into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
8 ounces of green beans, blanched in boiling water for 1 minute

Place the miso paste, vinegar, agave, salt, pepper, shalot, garlic, mustard, lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon water in a food processor and pulse to combine.  With the motor running, slowly add the oil in a thin stream until the vinaigrette is emulsified.  Fold in the chives.

Place the arugula, potatoes, and beans in a large bowl, drizzle with the vinaigrette and toss to coat.