Homeplate Homestyle: Winter Warmups
PHOTO BY RON FLAVIANO
ELECTRONIC IMAGE VIA LEIGH & OLLIE
Classic Reuben Sandwich served with dill pickle spears
West African Peanut Soup with black eyed peas, sweet potatoes and collards.
Classic Reuben Sandwich
African Peanut Soup
Recipe by Helga Wengler
Recipe by Stephanie Warner Shaw
INGREDIENTS Rye bread
INGREDIENTS 1 large red onion (chopped) 1 tablespoon olive oil 1½ tablespoon ginger (freshly grated) 1 tablespoon garlic (minced) 1 teaspoon cumin 6 cups vegetable broth 2 small yams (cut into 1 inch cubes, about 2 cups) 1 15.5 oz can black-eyed peas (drained, not rinsed) ½ cup tomato paste ½ cup peanut butter* 2 cups collard greens (wash well, remove stem)
Sauerkraut, well drained Corned beef, thinly sliced Swiss cheese, sliced 2 tablespoons Thousand Island dressing Softened butter PREPARATION • Spread the inner sides of the bread with a thin layer of Thousand Island dressing. • Place one slice of Swiss cheese on bread. • Layer a generous amount of corned beef onto the cheese. • Spread about one to two tablespoons of sauerkraut over the corned beef into a thin layer. Cover sauerkraut with another piece of Swiss cheese. Cover with bread. • Spread the outer sides of the sandwich with the softened butter. • Grill over medium heat until golden on each side. Serve warm with crunchy dill pickles. ABOUT HELGA WENGLER – Helga Wengler is a native of Frankfurt, Germany. She learned to cook from her mother and loves to share her knowledge and expertise. She and her husband, Wolfgang, are very active in the community and also enjoy spending time with their daughters and grandchildren. Helga can be seen cooking on “Valley Spotlight” (4 p.m., Sunday on WBCB). Visit metromonthly.net for this recipe and more!
PHOTO BY RON FLAVIANO FOR METRO MONTHLY AND HOMEPLATE
Stovetop Meatloaf served with mushroom gravy, mashed potatoes and purple cabbage
Stovetop Meatloaf (Hackbraten) Recipe by Helga Wengler INGREDIENTS 2 pounds ground chuck 1 pound ground pork 1 medium onion (approximately 1 cup chopped) Salt Pepper ¼ teaspoon curry powder 2 eggs 2-3 dashes of Maagi seasoning (optional) 3 slices rye bread or day-old kaiser rolls. Breadcrumbs 2 bullion cubes 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 can mushrooms Flour PREPARATION • Combine and mix meats in a large bowl. • Add salt, pepper, curry and Maagi. • Put bread in a bowl with warm water and soak for 5 minutes. Crumble bread into meat mixture (leave bread a little wet). Mix well. • Form two loaves, then roll in breadcrumbs.
20 FEBRUARY/MARCH 2021 METRO MONTHLY
• Take 2 tablespoons olive oil and brown the two loaves in a stovetop Dutch oven. Brown on both sides. If there’s too much fat in pan, remove excess but reserve for later. • Add 2 cups of water to pan. Add 2 bullion cubes. Cover pan and bring to boil, then turn down to low heat. Cook for 1.5 hours in Dutch oven. Turn meatloaves once. • After the meatloaves are done, remove to platter and cover with foil. Makes 2 loaves.
Mushroom Gravy If the remaining liquid in the pan has cooked down, add some water. • Add 2 tablespoons flour a small bowl. Mix in water to cream consistency. Add to pan. • Mix thoroughly with whisk. Add seasoning to taste, then strain into bowl. • Drain mushrooms, then add to pan. Add gravy to heat it through. • Serve with mashed potatoes or spaetzle. Watch Helga prepare this recipe on the Homeplate YouTube Channel. Search “Homeplate – Kitchen Witch – Meatloaf”
PREPARATION • Heat onion, olive oil, ginger, garlic and cumin in large pot until onion is translucent. Cook for approximately 5 minutes on low heat. • Add the vegetable broth, yams and blackeyed peas, bring soup to a boil, return to low heat, and cook for 10 minutes. • Place the tomato paste, peanut butter and 1½-2 cups of broth from soup in a heat safe bowl and mix together. Add the peanut butter mixture and the collards to the soup. Let cook for 5 minutes. *Notes: I used creamy peanut butter, but feel free to use a chunky peanut butter. You can serve this soup over brown rice and top with chopped peanuts. Most recipes also include red pepper flakes. If you plan on making the recipe ahead of time, I would wait until right before serving to add the collards. Add the greens, cook for 5-7 minutes or until hot, and serve. By doing this you lose less of the greens’ nutritional value. Nutritional Note: Collards are low in calories, can help lower cholesterol and are high in Vitamin A and Vitamin K. Make sure you don’t cook them so long that they lose all their nutritional value.
