Last weekend it was time to reach into my vegetable crisper, pull out the lingering produce and use things up. I try not to buy more than what I need for recipe testing, but sometimes my imagination gets ahead of me and I soon find myself with a pile-up of vegetables that never made it into a recipe. I am sure this happens all the time with those of you who receive weekly CSA allotments. You have barely made a crack in one shipment when the next one comes in.
These are the more-than-a-week-old vegetables that ended up on my counter: a red cabbage, a couple of red bell peppers, a bunch of beets with greens, about a pound of carrots, a bag of brussels sprouts and a fennel bulb. A disparate range but I knew I would find homes for them. I opened some of my favorite cookbooks to get some inspiration, and right away I came upon a simple, comforting rice and leeks recipe in Diane Kochilas’s latest cookbook, “Ikaria: Lessons on Food, Life, and Longevity From the Greek Island Where People Forget to Die.”
That dish and similar rice and bulgur dishes made with cabbage and with spinach are popular vegan mainstays during Eastern Orthodox Lent, a period of fasting which this year begins on Feb. 23. The vegetables are cooked in olive oil (abundant oil in Greece, adequate in my kitchen) along with onion and garlic, then rice or bulgur is added along with chopped fresh herbs (dill and parsley are typical) and water (you could also use stock). The mixture is simmered until both vegetables and grains are very soft, which is the way Greeks like their rice, says Diane. I too appreciated the comforting nature of these wholesome, sustaining dishes, and also their simplicity and the ease with which I put them together.
Red Cabbage and Black Rice, Greek Style : A comforting, light Greek Lenten meal.
Greek Bulgur With Brussels Sprouts : A lemony mix of fluffy bulgur and tender brussels sprouts.
Fennel Rice : A simple Greek Lenten dish that can be a main dish or a side.
Beet Greens Bulgur With Carrots and Tomatoes : This hearty vegan grain and vegetable dish brings together bulgur and greens, a classic Greek combo.
Red Pepper Rice, Bulgur or Freekeh With Saffron and Chile : A mildly spicy, and pretty, Lenten vegetable rice.
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