Nutty Kale Slaw

The Recipe

1 bunch kale

1 Medium onion

1/3 c. cider vinegar

1/3 c. XV olive oil

1/3 c. natural peanut butter

1-3 tsp hot sauce

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 c. raw walnuts

Shred the kale into strips approximately ¼”. Halve the onion and slice thin. Use a mandolin for this if available.

In separate bowl add vinegar, olive oil, peanut butter, and hot sauce and whisk to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Combine mixture, kale, and onions and mix thoroughly. Cover and chill for at least one hour.

Toast walnuts and add to slaw just before serving.

The Story

We have been getting bunches and bunches of kale from our farm share this year. Love kale though we do, we are starting to tire of the few recipes we have and are dreaming up new ones. Andrew made this up, and now the kids ask for it every time we get kale.

The dressing gets a creamy texture from the peanut butter. We always have chunky peanut butter, so that adds additional interest. 

I can't tell you how well it keeps. We eat the whole bowl every time. I bet if you let it sit overnight, the kale will soften somewhat. If you end up with leftovers, let me know how they are! 

Blueberry Jam (no pectin)

The Recipe:


7 cups blueberries, divided
3 cups sugar
juice and finely grated zest of two lemons (need about 1/4 cup of juice)

Mash about 3 cups of blueberries in a much larger pot than you think you'll need. Add sugar, lemon juice and zest, and the remaining blueberries. Bring to a boil; turn down to medium heat and boil about 18-20 minutes, or until thickened. Keep stirring and take care not to let it burn on the bottom. Skim off any foam on top; pack into jars.

The Story:


Really, that's it.


I do this as a refrigerator jam, as I don't can. If you do can, I'm sure you have sources which can tell you how to do that safely.


We've picked 40 lb. of blueberries so far this season. I just realized that we ran out today; we've frozen or eaten everything (or baked, or jammed, or what have you.) We've just decided to go back out tomorrow and pick more. I get the feeling that I'll be making a lot of blueberry jam with frozen berries this winter!

Indian-style Eggplant

The Recipe

1 tsp. brown mustard seeds 3 T. veg oil or ghee 1 onion, sliced thinly lengthwise 2 in. piece of ginger, peeled and chopped very finely 4 long eggplants (often called "Chinese"), quartered and sliced into 1 in. chunks 1/2 tsp. turmeric 2 tsp. Sambhar Masala (see The Story) 1 14oz can diced tomatoes 1 or 2 hot chile peppers, chopped pretty darn finely 1 tsp. fresh ground black pepper salt to taste 1 cup or so water, veg stock or leftover bean cooking liquid

Heat oil in large pot; add mustard seeds. When they begin to pop, add the onion. Stir & fry for a minute or two, then add the ginger, and keep stirring until the onions brown nicely. Add the eggplant; stir to coat with oil and stirfry for 5 min. Add the turmeric and Sambhar Masala; fry for a minute until the kitchen smells heavenly. Add the tomatoes & your choice of liquid, the pepper, some salt, and the chile(s). Stir well; bring to boil, reduce to simmer, and let cook for a good half hour, until the eggplant is lovely soft and the chiles have made it spicy. Serve over brown basmati rice.

The Story

Was going to pick up the ingredients for dinner, but too expensive. I pretty much invented this out of what I had in the fridge. Nice hearty stewed dish. I served it with roasted cauliflower & sweet potatoes (cut into similarly-sized pieces, toss with oil and a few cumin seeds, roast at 375 until brown in spots, turning occasionally, about 30 minutes; dust with Garam Masala and you're all set.)

This is about as traditionally Indian as I am- not at all. But it's inspired by those flavors, and I did get some of the ingredients at the local Indo-Pak grocery. That's something, isn't it?

*Sambhar Masala is a spice blend, like curry powder and Garam Masala. I made my own from a recipe in a book. Here are some places if you want to make your own: IndiaCurry.com's Sambhar Masala or Food-India.com's Sambhar Masala. A quick Google search reveals, as expected, that there are as many versions of this as there are Indian cooks. I bet you could buy one from a quality spice vendor, too.

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

The Recipe

1/2 lb dry chickpeas, soaked & cooked (see The Story)
1 red pepper
2 cloves garlic, in large pieces
1/3 cup tahini
1/4 cup olive oil, more as needed
Juice of two lemons
1-2 tsp. salt (to taste)
1 tsp. ground cumin

Soak & cook the chickpeas; (they take 1 1/2-2 hrs.). Drain & cool; save 1/2 cup cooking liquid.

Roast the red pepper over the flames on your gas stove or alternately on the grill: Do Not Cut Up The Pepper! Roast whole, turning each time the skin is charred. Once the whole pepper is blackened, put in a lidded bowl for about 10 minutes to finish cooking and soften the skin. Slip the skin off with your fingers, then cut open the pepper from the top carefully- it will steam- and remove the seeds and ribs. If you can save any accumulated juices from the pepper, you'll be glad you did.

Add the chickpeas and garlic to the food processor. It will be pasty. Add the remaining ingredients in order, blending well. Last, add the pepper and let the machine run for a while to compeletly puree and blend the flavors. Add more olive oil or the cooking liquid if you want a more dip-like consistency; leave it more dry if you use it as a sandwich spread.

Makes more than you think it will, but that's good since it's tasty.

The Story

Tahini is a roasted sesame seed paste. My grocery store stocks it with the peanut butter. Make sure to stir it very, very well before measuring- it settles. Store the extra in the fridge until the next time you make hummus or baba ganouj.

Soak the chickpeas at least 4 hours and up to 10 hours. They take 1 1/2-2 hrs to cook: put in large pan with water to cover, bring to boil, reduce to simmer until tender. It's so easy- you weren't going to go the canned route, were you? :)

If you want a creamier, impress-your-guests texture, add lots of extra olive oil and keep the food processor running for a long time. If you're eating this for lunch for the next few days, maybe keep an eye on the fat content. (We eat this for lunch often, with pita bread and carrots.) Don't worry, there's plenty of flavor either way.

The bite of raw garlic becomes stronger the longer this sits in the fridge. Beware!

I know the cumin is non-traditional, but so is the pepper. I like cumin. Leave it out if you don't.

Roasted Garlic Baba Ghanouj

The Recipe:

1 med-large eggplant (1 1/4-1 1/2 lb)
1 head garlic
olive oil
1/3 cup tahini
juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. smoked paprika (or regular if it's what you got)
salt

Preheat oven to 350. Drizzle a little olive oil over the garlic- do not separate the cloves or remove the paper, we want this baby whole- and wrap in foil. Pierce the eggplant several times with a sharp knife. Roast both in a shallow dish- the garlic for 45 min.; the eggplant for about 1 hour or until tender through.

Let the garlic cool and remove the soft roasty cloves from the paper and drop in the food processor. Let the eggplant cool in the shallow dish (I use a pie plate). Some juice will accumulate- this isn't your friend, pour it off. Peel the eggplant, using a sharp knife to pull the skin away from the soft insides. Add the pulp to the food processor along with all the other ingredients. Puree until a lovely texture. Chill in the fridge at least 1 hour or probably overnight. Great with pita bread or pita chips for dipping.

The Story

Tahini is a sesame seed paste used in hummus. My grocery store stocks it with the peanut butter. Make sure to stir it very, very well before measuring- it settles. Store the extra in the fridge until the next time you make hummus.

If you don't wrap the garlic in foil, the outside cloves will brown which imparts a great flavor. However, they cross from golden brown to burned crispy in a short window of time- watch out. Also, in summer you can roast both the garlic and the eggplant on the grill outside; just keep an eye on the temperature to keep them from burning on the outside while still raw inside.

I usually see Baba Ghanouj made with raw garlic, fewer cloves. If you like the raw garlic bite, use 1 or 2 cloves only. The garlic flavor will increase the longer the dip rests in the fridge.

Best Granola So Far

The Recipe

6 cups rolled oats (old-fashioned, not instant!)
1 cup chopped almonds
1 cup wheat germ (in the back of the fridge, behind the milk)
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg (optional)
1/3 cup canola oil
2/3 cup maple syrup
1 cup dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 300. Mix together all ingredients except dried fruit. Spread out onto 2 cookie sheets. Bake for 35 minutes (total), stirring and turning twice during baking for even browning. Remove from oven and stir in cranberries. Let cool on the sheets, then pack into large jars ( you do save large jars, right? If not, a plastic bin will do.) Makes more than you think and less than you need.

The Story

The kids like granola so occasionally I buy it. Pre-made granola is tricky, however- for all its health-food connotations, it's often high in both fat and sugar. I bought a box a few weeks ago, and youngest complained that it was too sweet.

I'll let that sink in for a moment. A child complained that a breakfast cereal was too sweet. Way, way over the top.

Time to act! I'd made granola before but didn't like the specific recipes I'd found, so time to make my own. I started with the basic one in Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone and went from there. My recipe here is the best ratio of ingredients I've come up with so far.

You may be tempted to make a half recipe because this makes so much, but don't bother. First, you'll lose a bunch while it's cooling on the stovetop, because it smells so good with all that cinnamon- everyone walking through the kitchen will sneak a handful. Second, it's a great snack for after school. Third, it's a nice before bed nibble in lieu of dessert. The list goes on.

A word to the wise- granola (and this granola in particular) is pretty dense, so the first time you have a bowl for breakfast, pour half of what you normally take. Also, give the jar a shake before pouring. The loose flaxseed and wheat germ tend to sink to the bottom.

Ginger pecans

The Recipe:

5 cups pecan halves
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp water
2 tsp canola oil

Preheat oven to 325. Spread nuts evenly in two half-sheet pans (rimmed cookie sheets) and toast in oven until lightly brown, about 12 minutes, switching the pans halfway through. Meanwhile, combine the sugar, salt and ginger in a small bowl.

Mix the honey, water and oil with a silicone spatula or a wooden spoon in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until it boils. Add the pecans and stir over medium heat until the liquid has evaporated, about 3 or 4 minutes. Pour out into a large bowl and toss with the spiced sugar mixture. Spread out on parchment or silicone pan liners to cool. Try not to eat too many now, they really are better when cool.

The Story:

Easy and tasty; my favorite kind of food. These are a variation on a recipe from Martha Stewart's Hors D'Oeuvres Handbook- a very handy cookbook.

I saved jelly jars all year and have been filling them with these nuts to give away to co-workers and neighbors this holiday season. A nice change of pace from the ubiquitous plate of holiday cookies.

Vegetable Dal

The Recipe

1 cup brown lentils (see note)
1 T. canola oil
1/2 tsp brown mustard seeds
1/2 tsp. ajwain (very optional)
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 potato, diced
1 small green chile, seeds removed if you prefer
1/4 tsp ground tumeric
a handful (about 2 tbsp.) flaked coconut

Put lentils in small saucepan; cover with water by about 1 inch. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook about 30 min, until really tender. Don't bother to drain.

Heat oil in large skillet; add mustard seeds and ajwain, stir a couple of times, then add your onion, carrot, potato and celery. Cook until they start to brown. Add the lentils, tumeric and the chile to the skillet; stir and cook until the dal it the consistency you want, adding water if necessary. Salt at this point, then add the coconut, stir and serve.

The Story

I had intended to make a cabbage dal from a book, but my cabbage had disappeared! I guess it must have been tossed out by accident. Having to improvise, this is what I invented, and it was a hit. You could also probably do this with any other variety of lentil; just adjust the cooking time as needed. We like the dal pretty mushy but not quite pureed, but it's your dinner so make it how you want.

Goes really well with naan or any flatbread. Any good Indian cookbook has recipes to make whole-wheat versions at home. I serve this with an Indian vegetable dish too.

Ajwain is a Pakastani seed which, as Penzey's Spices puts it, helps "temper the effects of a legume-based diet." It's tasty, too. I doubt most folks have it hangin' around the spice cabinet though, and you won't miss it if it's not there. It adds an anise-like flavor and while I've no proof that it aids in, um, the digestion of beans- it doesn't hurt.

I've found plain frozen grated coconut in the Latin section of my grocery store. If you don't have it, the sweetened kind will do; since there's not very much, it adds a negligible amount of sweetness to the dish.

Apple Sauce

The Recipe:

2 1/2 lbs. apples (see The Story for ideas)
1 lemon
1/2 cup sugar
1 cinnamon stick or 1/2-2 tsp cinnamon

Peel, core, and chop apples. In non-reactive saucepan, mix the juice of the lemon (about 2 Tbsp) and the sugar with the apples; let sit until they exude at least 1/2 cup of juice, about 20 minutes. Add the cinnamon stick or your desired amount of cinnamon. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 20-40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove cinnamon stick and let cool. Keeps in the fridge for at least a week.

The Story:

In conversation recently, a friend commented that she didn't know how to make apple sauce. It's the easiest thing; everyone should know how to do it- especially this time of year, when Terhune and Battleview are loaded with fresh local apples.

This is based on Rose Levy Berenbaum's recipe in her book Rose's Celebrations. She likes hers very smooth and does not peel or core the apples first; instead, she uses fewer apples, cooks them longer and then puts the whole thing through a strainer. Not my favorite way, but if it is yours it's certainly easy to do.

Apple choice is pretty wide here. Any good eating or baking apple will do. I often combine types, getting some that do and some that don't hold their shape to create a variety of textures. Also, the more you cook and the smaller the chopped apples are, the softer the sauce will be, so if you like chunky sauce go short in time and big in chopped size. Macoun, Stayman Winesap and Ginger Gold all make a good sauce, especially when mixed together.

Start with less cinnamon than you think you'll want. You can always add more later. Oh, and that stick that you took out? If you'll be making some hot cider in the next day or two, just hang on to it and add it to the mug. (Of course you bought some cider when you went to the farm for the apples!)

A beautiful addition to this is about 1/2 cup dried cranberries, added when the sauce comes up to a boil. They add some color and a little textural interest too.

"Help! My Garden Is Exploding!" Tabbouleh Salad

The Recipe

1 cup bulgur wheat
2 cups water
1 cucumber
3 (large) - 6 (small) tomatoes
handful of chives OR 1/2 bunch scallions
1 can chickpeas, drained
bunch of flat-leaf/Italian parsley
bunch of mint
5 Tbsp. XV olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
S&P

Bring water to a boil; add bulgur. Bring back up to boil; reduce to low heat and simmer about 10-15 minutes, until water is absorbed and bulgur is tender. Turn out into bowl to cool, occasionally fluffing with a fork.

Remove some of the cucumber seeds. Chop cucumber and tomatoes either fine or medium, as you like it; set aside in a bowl. Finely chop parsley and mint; finely slice scallions or chives (I use a scissors for chives. Makes life easier.) Drain chick peas. Whisk olive oil, lemon juice and cayenne together in small bowl.

By now, the tomatoes and cukes have exuded a lot of juice; drain it off. The bulgur should have cooled, too. Toss all salad ingredients together gently, then pour dressing over and toss lightly again.

Let cool in refrigerator at least one hour before serving. Is good while still a little warmer than fridge temp, but is also fine when cold for lunch tomorrow.

Serves 4-6 as dinner, 8-10 as a side dish.

The Story

This is the first meal I ever made for my husband, who was just some guy I was dating at the time. It worked out great for me! I've changed it over the years, but he still seems to like it.

By "bunch", I mean the approximate amount of parsley sold in a grocery store bundle. If you're inclined to measure, you want at least 1/2 cup of each finely chopped herb; more is good, especially when the mint is taking over because you forgot that you should always plant mint in a pot, not in the ground.

The last time I made this, I used a combo of red and yellow tomatoes, and it looked very pretty. Use what you have. I don't like to peel my cucumbers, but this is up to you. The salad will still have lots of green color without it, if you should feel it necessary to peel.

The chickpeas add a small element of texture as well as nutrition. If you want, a cooked chicken breast can be substituted; chop it up and mix with an extra 1 Tbsp olive oil and 1 Tbsp lemon juice. Keep in the fridge while you prepare the rest of the salad, then toss in at the end. You can skip 'em both and just have a nice side salad.

In my grocery store, bulgur is both with the Latin American foods (Goya brand) and near the rice. You can use couscous if you can't find or don't like bulgur. Personally, I don't like couscous; but as always, it's your dinner and you should enjoy it.

How to grill corn

1. Shuck the corn.

2. Put corn ears directly on grill racks over med-low heat.

3. Turn a little bit every few minutes, and continue until corn is cooked all the way around and has some lovely brown grill marks.

Yes, you can go through the whole rigamarole of soaking the corn in the husk, grilling it, and then shucking it- but for goodness' sake, why? Who needs burned fingertips? The way I do it, you get a different flavor from the corn because of the caramelization of the sugars; a cross between popcorn and sweet corn. 'tis yummy and easy, the way I like food to be.

Butter if you must, but I don't bother with that either. It's nice to enjoy the simple flavor of fresh, in-season grilled corn.

Green and White Bean Salad

The Recipe:

1/2 to 3/4 lb. string beans; green, yellow, wax- whatever's fresh
1 can small white beans or cannelini beans, drained
1 Tbsp. white wine vinegar
2 Tbsp. XV Olive Oil
1 tsp. brown mustard
8 or 10 fresh sage leaves, shreded or chopped

Blanch string beans in boiling water for 1 min; rinse immediately in cold water. Toss with the drained white beans.

Whisk mustard and vinegar together; whisk in oil slowly to form emusion. Add sage and S&P to taste. Pour over beans and let chill in the fridge at least 1 hour, preferably 2 or 3.

The Story:

I make this all summer, as the bush beans and wax beans pour out of my garden. (Am making it for a picnic tonight, as a matter of fact.) It's easy, and barely needs a recipe, but I like the proportion of vinegar to oil to be higher than a classic vinagrette, so I keep track.

Some people like tomatoes in their bean salad, or some onion. Add what you'd like, but I prefer to leave it pretty simple. The fresh sage shines more that way.

The cut beans will darken at the edges as they sit in the dressing overnight. It's fine to eat that way but much less pretty.

Shrimp Coconut Curry OR Cauliflower Curry II

The Recipe:

2 tsp. oil
1 tsp. brown mustard seeds
1 med. onion, cut into strips
1/4 tsp. ground fenugreek
3/4 tsp. black pepper
2 tsp. curry powder
5 cloves garlic
1 tsp. grated ginger
2 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. tumeric
3/4 tsp. salt
1 hot chile pepper, seeded, ribs removed, & diced finely
1 can coconut milk
1 1/2 lb shrimp OR 1 head cauliflower and 1/2 cup frozen peas OR fill-in-your-own

Heat oil in large saucepan over med-hi heat. Add mustard seeds &; onion; saute 5 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, curry, black pepper, & fenugreek; stir 30 sec. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer for at least 10 minutes to allow flavors to blend, longer if you can.

Shrimp: Bring sauce up to boil; add peeled, deveined shrimp & cook 2 min.

Cauliflower: Bring sauce up to boil; add cauliflower florets. Simmer until cooked through, maybe 5-8 minutes, then throw in the peas for 1 minute.

Serve both options over hot basmati rice. Feeds 4 for dinner with some leftovers for lunch tomorrow. If using just the shrimp, there will be a lot of extra sauce.

The Story:

I've been on an Indian food kick for, oh, maybe two years now. I take out Indian cookbooks from the library obsessively and make all sorts of exotic dishes. I found a recipe for a Shrimp coconut curry in one book, but I didn't have half of the ingredients, so I shut the book and made up my own. This is the result.

Now my husband has decided he's lost his taste for shrimp, but will eat it occasionally. I was going to make this one day with some steamed cauliflower on the side (sprinkled with a little Garam Masala- yum!) but the shrimp was still in the freezer. I asked the family if they'd prefer I try to make the dish with the cauliflower instead of the shrimp and got a resounding "Yes!" So, I rarely make any shrimp any more. I bet this would be good with any good classic Indian combo or mix of vegetables like boiled potatoes, carrots, peas, maybe some spinach- the possiblities are endless.

I tried this with low-fat coconut milk once and it just seemed bland to me, but it's your choice.

Nicole's Ravioli

The Recipe:

SoyBoy brand tofu ravioli or regular fresh or frozen ravioli, cook to package directions, in a separate pan, saute ½ c of pine nuts/pignoli with approx. 3 Tablespoons pumpkin oil (Wegman’s is one brand, adds a unique nutty flavor) or olive oil, 1 – 2 crushed garlic cloves and ¼ c. chopped fresh rosemary until pine nuts are browned. You could throw in a veggie like broccoli crowns, chopped spinach, or zucchini. Add salt and pepper, toss on pasta.

The Story:

My dear friend, the artist Nicole Maynard, sent this to me to include here. We're going to visit her this weekend, so I wanted to put it up here in her honor. Per Nicole: "This is quick, yummy, and appears impressively gourmet. I made it for a friend who then made it for her husband and it has risen to a regular position in their rotation of dinner ideas."

I bet it would be pretty with spinach and red pepper strips as the veggie, maybe some fresh basil if in season.

Cauliflower Curry

The Recipe:

1 Tbsp. canola oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tsp curry powder
1/4 tsp tumeric
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup red lentils
1 head of cauliflower
1/2 can Muir Glen Fire Roasted Diced tomatoes (or your favorite, of course)
1 hot pepper
2 Tbsp. canola oil
1 Tbsp. whole cumin seeds OR 2 tsp. ground
1 Tbsp. minced fresh ginger
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
Basmati rice or long grain if it's all you have

Heat 1 Tbsp oil in 3 qt or larger pan over med-hi heat; add onion. Cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes or until beginning to brown. Add curry & tumeric; stir for 10 sec. then add 2 cups of water and the lentils. Bring to a boil, cover & simmer for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut the cauliflower into florets & chop up your chile pepper, removing the seeds & ribs unless you want a really hot curry. (Now's a good time to start your basmati rice too- probably cook about 1 to 1 1/2 cups of it.)

After the 15 minutes, add the cauliflower, chile and tomatoes to lentils. Bring back up to a boil, turn to med-low, cover and cook about 8-10 minutes or until the cauliflower is how you like it- don't overcook.

Heat the last 2 Tbsp. of oil in a small skillet over med-high heat. Add the whole cumin seeds if using; stir 10 sec, then add the ginger & garlic. Cook 1 min, stirring a lot, then toss in the cayenne, stir once, and immediately add mixture to the curry. Stir in, add the lemon juice and the cilantro. Taste for salt and serve over your hot rice.

Makes dinner for 4.

The Story:

We're trying to eat less meat, and this is one of the easy and delicious dishes we've found to meet that goal. We have it so often that the kids occasionally ask for a break from it.

Watch the heat level if you're serving to delicate pallettes.

I've used different lentils occasionally, such as urad dal, and it works fine but is a little different. Use what you want.

This is based on one I found online a long time ago, but I changed it so drastically it's a completely different dish now. Recipes are sometimes just a starting point.

Black Bean Salad

The Recipe:

1 can black beans, drained & rinsed- save the can as a measuring device
1 red pepper, diced small
3 or 4 scallions, sliced very thinly, white and as much green as is good
1 can (see? I told you to save the can to measure!) frozen corn kernels, defrosted or not
1 jalapeno, seeded & ribs removed, minced finely
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped finely, or to taste
juice of 1 lime
2 T. olive oil or corn oil
1/4 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. cumin

Lightly mix the beans, red pepper, jalapeno, cilantro and the frozen corn kernels in a lidded bowl. Whisk the lime juice, oil and spices; pour dressing over the salad, toss lightly. Let sit 1 hour in the fridge for flavors to meld and corn to defrost.

Makes enough for a side dish for 4 with leftovers for lunch, or a meal for 3. Easily doubled for a crowd.

The Story:

I made this up as a side dish years ago and we just love it. Very summery and really colorful. It's great as something to take to a picnic or a potluck, so you know there'll be something healthy.

If you don't like cilantro or you have to use up some leftover, whatever amount you want is fine, of course. It's your food and you get to play with it.

This will get progressively spicier as it sits; leftovers eaten as lunch the next day will be too hot for the kids.