Crocktober: Vegan French Market Soup and a Holiday Shopping Hint

 I might have lied when I said that crock pot marinara was the easiest crock pot recipe I would be sharing with you this Crocktober. The only real effort involved with this soup is remembering to rinse and soak the beans ahead of time. (And no, this post doesn't end with a list of things I want for Christmas).

Traditional French Market Soup involves a ham hock, but I made it once with the hock, and didn't feel like it added all that much, so this time I skipped it. But, you can add a smoked hock if you want to, or even thick-cut bacon. The traditional method also tells you to soak your beans overnight in a dutch oven, which sounds like a very bad idea for those of us with cast-iron dutch ovens, but if you want to do it by the book you can find a recipe here.

...But you're here to read my version (right?) so here it is:

Ingredients:

about 8 oz. canned tomatoes (I used diced, without any added herbs or garlic)

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Salt, and a hefty pinch ground black pepper

Fresh thyme, for garnish (optional)

1 cup mixed dried beans (1/2 of 1 lb "16 bean soup" package; mine also had a little barley in it)

1/2 clove garlic, minced (I know 1/2 seems weird, but 1 is too much)

1/2 large onion, chopped

1 dried chili pepper or fresh pepper, diced

1 quart water

Directions:

1. Sort and thoroughly rinse the beans. Soak in plenty of water in the fridge overnight or for up to 24 hours, changing the water at least once in this time. When you're setting up your crock pot, rinse them one more time before they go in.

2. Place everything but the thyme in a crock pot, and cook on low for 8-10 hours. Turn to high to cook for another 3 hours or so, or as needed until beans are tender. (Mine cooked for 8 hours on low, plus about four hours on high. Basically forever. Plan accordingly). Garnish with thyme, and serve with butter and a crusty bread, if you want.

I am grateful for the timing of Crocktober. I just started an internship on Wednesdays at a museum in Center City, which involves kind of a weird commute and often draining days, but being in crocking mode has made it so easy to come up with yummy dinners that I can have basically ready by the time I get home.

Making your own bean mix is easy, inexpensive, and actually makes a super-cute gift. Just combine 1  lb. of each of the following (or your own variation):

dried navy beans

dried pinto beans

dried great northern beans

dried green split peas

dried yellow split peas

dried black-eyed peas

dried brown lentils

dried baby lima beans

dried large lima beans

dried black beans

dried red beans

dried soybeans

pearled barley

                    ... Yep, that will make you about 13 pounds of bean soup mix.

BUT! Packaged in ball mason jars with a recipe printed on a pretty card or tag, its quite visually pleasing. This mix will fill 14 2-cup jars, which around the holidays is nice to have on hand for coworkers, family friends, or teachers, and according to my math comes out under $1.10 worth of beans per jar. If you want to go all out - maybe for a housewarming gift, joint holiday present, or even a wedding gift for a special couple in your life - you could make a nice gift package with the jar of beans, printed recipe, bag of dried chilies and a crock pot. Perhaps with a gift card to a bakery? Voila!

Crock pots vary widely in size and in price, but from all of my internet sleuthing it seems that the only real difference between the cheap ones and the pricey ones is the option to pre-set cooking times rather than relying on a switch. This recipe fits perfectly in a 2-quart crock, which you can easily get for $20 or less. (I know because I got mine from the Home Depot website for $18.) And don't get all nervous if your intended recipient isn't much of a cook. This recipe is so stupidly-easy-yet-delicious-in-its-simplicity that it will appeal to cooks and non-cooks alike. Also my mantra for holiday shopping this year is "thoughtful but cheap," so this idea is definitely appealing!

Lentil & Pumpkin Chili, or The Triumphant Autumnal Return of Guerilla Kitchen

As the first day of Fall, this turned out to be the perfect pumpkin-themed day for the triumphant return of Guerilla Kitchen. If you can say that a two-week hiatus warrants a triumphant return. Whatever. Anyway, I love anything with pumpkins in it, which is just another reason why Fall is my very most favorite season of the year. Apparently that cranky lady Irene has created the specter of a pumpkin shortage here on the east coast, but I intend to enjoy them while they last.

 Ingredients:

1/4 large onion of any color, chopped

1 clove garlic, smashed

1/4 green bell pepper, chopped, and/or 1 medium carrot, chopped

1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes (with or without green chiles)

1 14.5 oz can vegetable broth

3/4 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 tsp salt

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 pinch allspice

1/4 tsp cumin

1/2 cup dry brown lentils, rinsed and sorted

Olive oil

Fresh cilantro leaves for topping, cleaned and torn (optional)

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan, saute onions, pepper and garlic in olive oil until soft.

2. Add all remaining ingredients, and stir. Cover and simmer until lentils are soft - about 90 minutes, give or take.

3. Serve and top with fresh cilantro, if desired.

I realized at that just-too-late moment that I forgot to pick up a green pepper in my shopping trip yesterday, so I subbed in carrots, which might make first impressions of this dish more of a "stew" than a "chili," but a rose by any other name, and all of that. If you find yourself in the same position, or if you're just feeling adventurous, I think the earthiness of some chopped mushrooms would also be delicious.

Overall this was a super yummy chili, and though I don't think that the pumpkin flavor was as pronounced as I might have hoped, I think it has a nice balance. To do it over again, though, I think I would skip the cilantro, since its brightness somewhat overpowered said pumpkin.

Between the tomato and the pumpkin, this might as well be called "antioxidant chili," but that doesn't sound so appetizing. And it is. So that would be unfortunate.

Quote of the Day: Only the knife knows what goes on in the heart of a pumpkin. ~ Simone Schwartz-Bart

Clark Park Farmer's Market at 43rd & Baltimore, Philadelphia

One of the best things about where we live is our close proximity to the Clark Park Farmer's Market. Five short blocks away (through a very sweet neighborhood, I might add) is the perfect place to score some local produce, dairy, and yes, Amish baked goods. Vendors accept vouchers from local food assistance programs, and some, like Landisdale Farms from Jonestown PA, travel over 100 miles to be here each week.

Detail of a photo (C) Conrad Erb

This market is year-round, but I have to admit that in this particularly harsh and snowy Philadelphia winter, we haven't made it down since the fall. It takes place on Saturdays throughout the year, and also on Thursday afternoons from May through November. There is also a funky flea market that takes place inside the park itself (the farmer's market is on the edge) on certain Saturdays, but it wasn't in action today.

On this visit, I was hoping to score some local goat cheese for whole-grain pasta shells with goat cheese and walnuts that I will be making this week, but I didn't get lucky with that one. Still, there was plenty of local, organic, "raw" dairy present, among many other treasures. One guy was even selling beautiful hand-thrown ceramics.

I can't be sure, but I get the sense that though it's a year-round market, the true summer produce boom has not yet begun. Greens, asparagus, onions and spring garlic are plentiful though, and I got in on a little bit of the action.

Two yellow onions, one red onion, a fab-looking bean soup mix, hot salsa from Landisdale Farms, and some dried chilies.

There is no doubt that we'll become more frequent customers as the season goes on. I can't wait to get my hands on some fresh summer tomatoes!

Quote of the Day: "It's bizarre that the produce manager is more important to my children's health than the pediatrician." ~ Meryl Streep