I read somewhere recently that crafts and cooking are natural stress reducers. Now I know why I like to chop vegetables for hours. It takes just enough concentration to keep my brain off pressing issues (like what to write for the next The E List!), that my monkey mind takes a wee break. Crafts, not so much. When Martha Stewart Living came out twenty years ago I was newly married and enthusiastic about all things housewifely. I milk-painted unfinished wood furniture, spray-painted gourds gold, tried my hand at flower arranging. The results NEVER looked like the pictures. I quit crafts and never looked back, but I still love to cook. With so many upstart cooking classes on the Shoreline, I checked them out in the name of The E List. Here are some of the recipes we made.

White Gate Farm  www.whitegatefarm.net

Anne Gallagher Catering, 860-921-8304, annegallagher24@gmail.com

Watermelon Margheritas

2 Teaspoons sugar

1 Lime wedge

3 1/2 cups seeded White Gate Farm watermelon

1/2 cup Tequila

3 Tablsespoons lime juice

1 Tablespoon Triple Sec
Rub your glasses with lime juice and rim each glass with the 2 teaspoons of sugar. Combime watermelon, tequila, lime juice, triple sec. Serve with crushed ice, place small watermelon slice on edge of glass.

Black Bean Tartlets

Crust

2 1/2 cups all purpose unbleached flour

2 Teaspoon ground cumin

2 Teaspoon chili powder

2 Teaspoon paprika

1 Teaspoon salt

2 Sticks chilled unslated butter – cut into small pieces

1/4 cup + Iced water

Mix all dried ingredients together. In a food processor or bowl add butter and mix or pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add water a little at a time either pulsing if using food processor or mixing until mixture feels moist and starts to come together. Remove and form into disc being careful not to overmix and refrigerate until ready to use.

Filling

2 Cups dried black beans, placed in water overnight to soak

1-2 Red bell pepper, small dice

1 Bag frozen organic corn, or 2 ears fresh corn off the cob

1 Red onioin, small, diced

1 1/2 – 2 Cups Pepper Jack Cheese

Fresh cilantro

About 2 Scallions, chopped

Rinse soaked beans and cook in water until tender, salt at the end, remove, drain. In a skillet roast corn, remove. Saute red onion, jalapeno peppers, red pepper. When all is cool add everything together, add fresh chopped cilantro to taste, scallions, taste for seasoning, add pepper jack cheese, set aside.

Blind bake pie dough – preheat oven to 350 degrees

Mix couple of eggs for basting. Roll out dough and cut with biscuit cutter filling small muffin pans wtih discs. Place back in refrigerator to chill and firm up.

Quick Marinara Sauce

Marinara sauce is a quick sauce made with only garlic, red pepper, oregano and/or basil.

1/4 Cup extra virgin olive oil

8 Cloves garlic, peeled

3lbs ripe plum tomatoes, blanched, peeled, seeded. Or fresh farm tomatoes, cored and roughly chopped.

Salt

Crushed red pepper flakes

Fresh basil leaves, torn

Heat olive oil in saucepan, saute smashied garlic until lightly browned. Place tomatoes in pan, bring to a boil, season with salt, red pepper flakes. Low heat, let cook at a lively simmer until tomatoes start to break up. Stir with a spoon or whisk. Taste for seasoning again.

The Upstairs Kitchen www.theupstairskitchen.net

Menu by Emrys Tetu:  wellnesswithfood.com

Cabbage Apple Salad

1 Medium cabbage – quartered, cored, and chiffonaded

2 Apples, such as Gala – peeled, cored, and cut into tiny matchsticks

1-2 Cups raw almonds, chopped

1 Habanero, minced (optional)

Olive oil, to taste

Celtic sea salt, to taste

Freshly ground rainbow pepper to taste

Toss all ingredients together, using habanero sparingly and carefully. Be sure to wash your hands (and all surfaces that have touched the habanero) thoroughly after touching.

Sweet Potato Pie with Pecan Crust
4 Cups yams, cooked and pureed

1/2 cup maple syrup

3 Tablespoons kuzu dissolved in 1/4 cup coconut milk

1 Tablespoon melted coconut oil

1 Teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 Teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1 Teaspoon vanilla extract

2 Tablespoons agar flakes

1/2 cup water

In a food processor put yams, maple syrup, kuzu, coconut milk, spices and vanilla extract. Blend well. In a small pot over medium heat, bring agar and water to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and cook until agar is dissolved. Add agar mixture to the puree, blend for 1-2 minutes. Pour filling into prepared pecan crust (below). Foil edges to prevent burning. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 40 minutes, remove foil from edges and return to oven for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool (about 30 minutes).

Pecan Crust

2 Teaspoons melted coconut oil

2 Cups pecans, walnuts, or almonds

2 Tablespoons honey

2 Tablespoons sprouted spelt flour

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

To make the crust: Grind the nuts into a flour in a food processor. Add all other ingredients and process until a coarse dough forms. Gather into two balls and press each into an 8-inch cake pan. Make the crust as thin as possible. Chill 1 hour.
Kale and Sweet Potato Soup with Cumin and Lemon

Adapted from Anna Thomas’ Love Soup Recipe

2 Large leeks, white and light green parts, thoroughly washed and coarsely chopped

1 Large yellow onion, peeled and coarsely chopped

2 Tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for garnish

1 1/2 Teaspoons sea salt, plus more to taste

12 oz Sweet potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1/2 inch dice

1 Small Yukon Gold potato, scrubbed and cut into 1/2 inch dice

12 oz Russian kale, thick stems removed and leaves cut into 1 inch strips

4 Scallions, sliced

2/3 Cup chopped cilantro

Freshly ground rainbow pepper

2-2 1/2 Cups vegetable broth

1 Tablespoon cumin seeds

1-2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Cayenne

Heat olive oil in a nonstick pan over a medium flame; add the onion with a sprinkle of salt and start sauteing. When it is translucent and soft, add the leeks and keep cooking, stirring often until all the vegetables are golden, about 20 minutes.

Combine the potatoes and kale in a soup pot with 5 cups cold water and a teaspoon of salt, bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer 15 minutes.

Add the sauteed leeks and onion to the soup pot, along with the sliced scallions, cilantro, and a lot of freshly ground pepper. Add as much of vegetable broth as necessary to make the soup a nice hearty consistency — not as thick as a stew, but able to pour easily from a ladle. Simmer the soup gently, covered, for about 10 more minutes.

Lightly toast the cumin seeds in a dry pan just until they are fragrant and grind them in a mortar and pestle. Stir the cumin and a spoonful of lemon juice into the soup and taste. Add more salt, pepper, or lemon juice as needed, and finish with a pinch of cayenne.

Ladle the soup into warm bowls and garnish each portion with a swirl of olive oil.

Six Main www.sixmain.com

French Classics in the Raw, Rachel Carr

Bleu Cheese

2 Cups soaked cashews or macadamias

1 Tablespoon miso

1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast

1 Tablespoon coconut oil

Blend together in food processor until smooth.

Nicoise Salad
Tuna pate

1 Cup shredded carrot

1/2 cup soaked sunflower seeds

1/4 cup fresh parsley

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 Tablespoon tamari

1 Teaspoon dulse or kelp powder

Blend well until smooth. Dehydrate as a patty to make croquettes!