Recipes and Stories from a Zen Retreat Center: The Blue Heron Ranch Cookbook

Acknowledgments 8Preface 9Introduction 11Menus for Family Gatherings/Retreats 13Food and Supply List 16Our Arrival 19Vegetarian Dinners 23My Favorite Tomato Sauce 24Grandma Elizabeth’s Polenta 25Lasagna from Enrico’s Family 26Lasagna Layering 27Matilija Manicotti 28Pizza with Goat Cheese 29Seasoned Rice 30Blue Heron Beans 31Adzuki Beans and Rice 32Black Bean Enchiladas 33Ojai Chili 34Sauteed Vegetables with Rice 35Special Vegetables with Almonds 36Vincenzo’s Risotto 37Carrots and Tofu 39Lentils and Mint 40Curried Lentils 41California Split Pea Dahl 42Pucci’s Potato and Egg Curry 43Sunday Stuffed Potatoes 44Spinach and Anaheim Chilies 46Baked Eggplant 47Saturday Market Quiche 48Garden Vegetable Quiche 49Fish and Chicken Dinners 51Kobun’s Rice Balls 53Miso Pine Salmon 54Escolar 55Millennium Paella 56Chicken with Chard and Noodles 58Francis’s Chicken and Curry 59Westport Pineapple Chicken 60Apple-Baked Chicken 61November Stuffing 63The Floods 65Soups and Stews 69—VegetarianSimply Miso Soup 70Rainy Day Tofu Soup 71Blue Heron Ranch Potato Leek Soup 72Cross-Country Lentil Soup 73Garbanzo Soup with Tomato 74Winter Minestrone 75—Chicken and FishSouthwest Chicken Stew 76San Francisco Chicken Stew 77Blue Heron Chicken Stew 78Rainy Day Chicken Noodle Soup 79Ojai Bouillabaisse 81—ChilledSummer Borsch 82Avocado and Cucumber Soup 83Marica’s Gazpacho 84Poor Man’s Gazpacho 84Yogurt Soup 86Our Teepee 89Salads and Dressings 93Frankie ’s Salad Dressing 94Blue Heron Salad Dressing 95Baby Green Salad 96Sackets Harbor Summer Salad 97Santa Barbara Salad Variation 97Cool Cucumber Salad 98Potato and Bell Pepper Salad 99Mixed Bean Salad 100Rice Salad 101My Roasted Red Bell Peppers 102Goat Cheese Salad 103Cloved Fruit Compote 104Two Fruit Salads 105Raita Salad 106Fire 109Breads and Muffins 113Whole Wheat Bread 114Rosemary Corn Bread 117Garlic Bread 118Tortillas from South America 119Naan from India 119Banana Bread 120Weiner Sisters’ Popovers 122Golden Scones 123Marica’s Biscuits 124Quick Ginger Molasses Muffins 125Breakfast 127Sunday Pancakes 128Hearty Breakfast Crepes 129Delectable French Toast 130Birthday Waffles 131Sesshin Oatmeal 132Early Morning Rice Cream 133Home-Baked Granola 134Home Schooling 137Puddings and Custards 141Black Bear Apricot Pudding 142Andrei’s Favorite Bread Pudding 144Brown Rice Custard 145Coconut Rice Pudding 146Mexican Rice Pudding 146Mocha Mousse 147Zabaglione Cassis 148Pies 151Two Delicious Pie Crusts 152Blue Heron Apple Pie 153Blueberry Peach Pie 154Persian Mulberry Peach Pie 155Genevieve ’s Lemon Meringue Pie 157Mitzi’s Chocolate Pecan Pie 158Autumn Pumpkin Pie 159Apple Crunch 160Living Off the Grid 163Cookies 167Cardamom Cookies 168Blue Heron Chocolate Chip Cookies 169Genevieve ’s Butter Walnut Cookies 170Cakes 173Aunt Ev’s Cardamom Bundt Cake 174Lemon Cranberry Bundt Cake 175Chocolate Marble Bundt Cake 176Chocolate Apple Sauce Cake 177Birthday Coconut Cake 179Persian Mulberry Cake with Goat Cheese 180June Apricot Cake 181Pear Upside-Down Cake 182Meyer Lemon Half-Pound Cake 183Carob Coconut Brownies 184Tiramochamisu or Tiramintmisu Cake 185Vincenzo and Kana’s Wedding Cake 186Wedding Cake Filling and Icing 187Our Zen Center 189Sauces 193Ginger Honey Sauce 194Matilija Tamari Sauce 194Ojai Lemon Sauce 195Green Enchilada Sauce 196Pesto Lemon Sauce 197Mushroom Garlic Sauce 198Marinated Ginger 199Desert Hummus Sauce 200Festive Cranberry Sauce 202Frankie ’s Hot Fudge on Ice Cream 203Drinks 205Robin’s Chai 206Teepee Hot Cider 2074th of July Lemonade 208Christine ’s Punch 209Honey Almond Chai 210In Remembrance of Andrei 213Index 217