on turnip greens

You know how I love any kind of greens - I found the most beautiful bunch of turnip greens yesterday, then realized I wasn't quite sure how to cook them.  I cook collards for at least an hour, but turnip greens are more like kale - a modest cooking time keeps the peppery flavor intact.

It was a good try, but definitely needed more fat (I only had lean ham and a few tablespoons of bacon grease) while cooking, and a cup or so of chicken stock, instead of 3 cups of water.  Live and learn.  Next time I'm going to try fatback and maybe chicken sausages, and follow this recipe, or this one.  I ended up dressing the greens with lemon, olive oil, and hot sauce .

The most important prep is to slice the greens, then wash throughly in a big bowl of water.  Mine looked clean, but after two rinses, there was a lot of sand and dirt in the bottom of the bowl.  Second is not to overcook the turnip greens - no more than 20 minutes for the entire bowl of chopped greens. (Collards are a different story - at least an hour with fatback).

eat your veggies soup ( and using up your veggies)

Spring is here, but a little too cold to put out new herb plants - though I found my fresh parsley and dill in a very overcrowded vegetable drawer, eureka!  My New England background scolded me to "use it up",  - and so this soup was born.  I had kale, parsley, baby potatoes, broccoli, celery, and onions, which always seem to get soft too fast in the dark cupboard.  All of the veggies were nice and fresh.

To my great surprise, it was really delicious, so this off-the-cuff recipe stays in my files - it's definitely a keeper!

This is a beautiful rhubarb plant - but did you know the leaves are poisonous? Trim the leaves off from the red stems and throw the leaves in the trash - I never even put them in the compost bin.  I caught Izzie about to pick some because she thought it was kale!

Eat your veggies soup

2-3 baby potatoes. halved
1 cup firmly packed kale, leaves only, torn
1/4 cup roughly chopped Italian parsley
1 medium onion, peeled and sliced
3/4 cup chopped broccoli, no stems
1/2 cup sliced celery
a few sprigs of dill
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon Better Than Bouillon roasted chicken base or bouillon cube.  

Place the vegetables, thyme, dill, and bouillon paste in a large saucepan.  Add water halfway up the pot.  Bring water to a boil, turn down, and cook for 15-20 minutes on medium.

Remove from heat and blend in blender, adding small amounts of water if needed.
Taste and add salt and pepper before serving.  

Let me know about your veggie drawer clean out recipes!

the last of the brussels sprouts

I'm always a little sad when the brussels sprout season is over - I do love them!  But on that sunny, warm day, I blanched them for barely 10 minutes (they were very small), drained them, and made a summery marinade:

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, pressed
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper
oregano - a pinch or two
a pinch of so of caraway seed
a generous sprinkling of crisp bacon

Makes two servings.

Happy Spring!

seared brussels sprouts with red onion, rosemary, and lemon

Another chilly, chilly day in Minnesota.  After a quick (very quick!) walk, I decided to clean the overloaded fridge.  Jams, jellies, soups, and a bag of brussels sprouts I had completely forgotten about.

Like Julia Child, I like my vegetables gently cooked until tender, rather than nearly raw.  After preparing them by trimming the stem and peeling off discolored leaves, I quartered them and added some slices of pretty red onion and a sprig of rosemary to the pot.  When they were just barely tender when poked with a fork, I drained them and did a quick sear in a little butter and oil - followed by a good squeeze of lemon juice and a sprinkle of salt.  Oh so good!


Seared Brussels Sprouts:

2 cups cleaned and quartered brussels sprouts (mine were quite large, if yours are smaller, you can cut them in half instead of quarters)
a large sprig of rosemary
several slices of red onion
water to just cover the sprouts

For the saute:
2 tablespoons olive oil
a pinch of thyme
2 pinches kosher salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
several squeezes of fresh lemon juice - about a tablespoon

Cook the sprouts in the water until just barely fork tender, then drain. 

Add the olive oil, thyme, and butter to a frying pan, then add the drained brussels sprouts and onion. Try to let them sear a little before gently stirring them with a large spoon and continuing to sear.  Just before you turn off the burner, add the squeezes of lemon juice and salt and stir gently.

Mound on a platter and serve immediately.  

roasted parsnip fries with parmesan

I've always loved parsnips , a root vegetable similar to carrots, but with an earthy, slightly sweet flavor that tastes like autumn to me.  They're a pretty cream color, and should be used when they are not too big or fat, as the larger ones often have a woody core when harvested, that has to be trimmed off.

I often peel and slice them, like carrots, and simmer in water until soft, then drained, mashed, and sprinkled with salt, pepper, nutmeg, and butter.  But when I saw this recipe from BBC Good Food, I was intrigued and decided to try the high-heat roasting method they used.  The recipe called for rolling them in a cornmeal and grated parmesan cheese mixture, and roasting at high heat, which I did, but they needed another ten minutes or so to brown up and soften - a perfect excuse to sprinkle more parmesan over them:) .  A delightful lunch for me, but also a perfect side dish at dinnertime.

Roasted Parsnip Fries

1 bag parsnips (mine was 20 ounces - about 8 parsnips), peeled and cut into fries
6 tablespoons olive oil

The cheese and cornmeal coating:
6 tablespoons fine cornmeal or polenta
1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese - plus a little more for sprinkling
   after you turn the fries
a few scrapings of nutmeg
a pinch of thyme
a few leaves of fresh rosemary

Preheat oven to 450F.
Spread the olive oil evenly over a cookie sheet.

Peel the parsnips, cutting each parsnip in half, then cutting each half into sticks.  When my grandchildren tried them tonight, they liked the fatter, wider ones, so next time I'll probably stick with that size. 

In a bowl, mix the parmesan and cornmeal, thyme, rosemary and nutmeg.

Bring a pot of salted water to a bowl, then place parsnip sticks into the boiling water and cook for 6-8 minutes, or until the parsnips are just tender.  Drain well.

Roll each parsnip fry in the cheese and cornmeal mixture and place on the oiled cookie sheet until all the fries are coated .  Sprinkle salt over the fries and slide into preheated oven.

Roast the fries for 15 minutes, then turn the fries over, sprinkle with a little more parmesan, and cook another 15 minutes.  Serve nice and hot - enjoy!

2014:  egg timbales with chopped herbs  
2015:   rainbow beet salad with oregano and lemon
2012: butternut squash muffins on a glowing day
2013:  rapini and rigatoni pasta with olive oil and hot pepper flakes  

rainbow chard, baby tomatoes and sorrel with red wine vinaigrette

Oh, my, life has been busy!  For months I've been searching for a place back in beloved New Hampshire, then, when that turned up nothing affordable, the Minneapolis area.  I move at the end of the month , yet again rooms filled with boxes.  But plenty of walks to take in the beauty of the season here, the flowering trees are truly stunningly beautiful.  A visit to Lake Nokomis, to watch the ducks and ducklings.  A visit to a community garden, picking rhubarb for stewing and sorrel for this light supper one night.  Oh, the colors and tastes of May!  Many walks with the new puppy, Maisie, take me outside more than usual - she has yet to get the whole potty training down pat. It reminds me of those days with my then-toddler children:)  And all those new friends I've made out here have made my days busier and full of good conversation and rambles - and good food.

Rainbow chard, tomatoes, and sorrel with red wine vinaigrette :

5 leaves (stems included) rainbow chard, roughly cut into 1-2 inch pieces
1-2 heaping cups baby yellow and red tomatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh sorrel, thinly sliced
about 1/2 cup water - more if needed
kosher salt and lots of freshly ground pepper

Place the olive oil and water in a stainless steel frying pan and heat.
Add the chard and tomatoes and cook, covered, until wilted.
Uncover and add the sorrel, cook until the chard stems are a little soft, and the tomatoes are just about to burst.
Drain, if necessary (I had no water left, but you might)

The vinaigrette:
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon good olive oil

Mix well and pour over the vegetables, toss gently.  Sprinkle with the salt and pepper, then the sorrel leaves and serve.
Serves two.


Have a wonderful week!

chunky ratatouille with rainbow peppers (and a little salsa)

When I was young, ratatouille was not an unknown - I ate it, but it often was made with too much olive oil, and the vegetables were limp and , to my eye, overcooked.  And then came Nouvelle Cuisine.  Somewhere I read a recipe for ratatouille during that time -  the vegetables were cooked quickly, and they stayed beautifully colorful.  From that time on I tinkered with the recipe, depending on the season.  Which brings me to my delight with those cello bags of small, colorful sweet peppers, which are almost always on hand.  Instead of using one large pepper , I thought it would be even prettier with a rainbow of color - orange, reds, yellows - the green of zucchini, the dusky skin of the eggplant.

And you see, I was right:

In under 45 minutes from start to finish I had at least 5 or 6 cups of ratatouille  - some into containers for the fridge, and some to give away to my neighbors, who are always interested in what I'm cooking.

The recipe:

Note:  I taste raw eggplant and usually can tell if it's going to be bitter.  Bitter eggplant is a disaster because there's no way to save it, you have to toss it.  That said, it's wise to slice the eggplant, sprinkle with kosher salt, and let sit 15 minutes.  Wash and pat dry before proceeding with the recipe.

1 medium firm eggplant, sliced (see above), cut into large dice
4 tablespoons good olive oil (I use California)
1 large white onion, chopped
4 smashed peeled garlic cloves
2 medium green zucchinis, washed, sliced into large dice
1/2 lb (which is half a bag) of rainbow mini peppers, trimmed of stems and seeded and sliced into fourths
1 medium can of diced tomatoes, include juices
1 cup small cherry tomatoes, whole
3 tablespoons Green Mountain Gringo salsa, medium heat
salt and pepper to taste
dried basil and oregano, or you can use fresh as well - I prefer dried.

In a large pot over medium heat, add the olive oil until sizzling.  Add the onions and garlic and stir for a few minutes, then add the chopped peppers.  Let the peppers sear a little before stirring them - I like the little bit of charring they pick up.

Add the canned tomatoes, salsa, herbs, eggplant, and zucchini and stir well. Then add the whole cherry tomatoes and gently stir in.  Let cook, half covered, on medium heat 15-20 minutes, then stir and taste the ratatouille.  There should be no undercooked pieces in the pot.  Take the pot off the burner, cover, and let sit half an hour before eating.  You can plate it or just put it in a bowl or serving dish.

Enjoy!

salads & sides: wilted rainbow chard with red wine vinegar

Christmas break is finally over - the grands headed back to school today.  It's been a noisy, happy vacation with the three of them around, but hard to find time to experiment in the kitchen without interruptions.  We got five inches of snow and plunging temperatures, but they are hardy little souls, enjoying cross-country skiing and sledding even with the chilly air.  The kitchen got a good workout, especially when my daughter got a hankering for Indian food :  she cooked up a dizzying array of unfamiliar dishes;  some I liked, some not as much, but always interesting, and the scent of curry and cumin and Indian bay was far more exotic than my usual thyme and garlic.

But my heart is really happy with simple dishes, so when I found the gorgeous but small bunch of rainbow chard in the vegetable drawer ( bought on the spur of the moment simply because it was so pretty and fresh) I was delighted.  Checking on Pinterest, I found this terrific simple chard recipe that was perfect for a late lunch.  And best of all, it took maybe 20 minutes from start to finish!  

Wilted Rainbow Chard with red wine vinegar

6 leaves fresh rainbow chard

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 onion, peeled and cut into slivers

1 clove garlic, peeled and cut into slivers

1/2 yellow pepper, cut into strips or dice

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

a little water - about 2 tablespoons

kosher salt & freshly ground pepper

Cut the stems off the chard , gather them together, and slice across no more than 1 inch.

Slice the leaves lengthwise, then across into 2 inch wide pieces.

Place olive oil in saucepan or skillet and add the sliced stems, garlic, onions, and pepper cooking for about 5 minutes, then add the red wine vinegar and water, then finally, the chopped leaves.  Keep the heat on medium, and gently toss the mixture until the leaves are wilted.  Add the salt and pepper and serve while hot.

This made 2 small servings - next time I'll buy twice as much chard because it was SO good!     Happy January!

wilted kale with garlic and kidney beans

How can it be October 27th already?  Autumn in Minneapolis is mild - most days I wear a vest as I walk around the neighborhoods, and the trees are very slowly turning color.  There have been a few chilly mornings, but no frost or bitter winds - quite a change from New Hampshire, when I would be rushing out to cover my herbs and flowers with a sheet on cold nights. 

And leaves might be falling, but in Minneapolis people keep their green lawns leaf free and tidy, while giant trucks vacuum up the side streets.  Pumpkins by the front doors, and still- blooming flowers make for a very pretty walk to the stores.

Since I'm home, I've been making more meals for the family:  hasty lunch box meals for the three grandchildren (2, 5, and 9) and healthy supper menus.  Izzie follows a mostly gluten-free diet, Frankie is picky, and Noah, the baby, tastes everything.  He's the one that chooses stinky French cheeses at the Co-op:)   When I made this kale last night, he ate some, then promptly finished off the rest on the platter.  I love it because it cooks so quickly but still retains its kale flavor, unlike spinach.  I added a handful or two of cooked kidney beans, because they pair so well together in my Portuguese kale soup.  

wilted kale with garlic and kidney beans

4 cups kale, torn from stems

1/2 cup water (more if needed)

1 peeled garlic clove

3/4 cup canned kidney beans, drained

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

a sprinkle of hot pepper flakes or hot sauce

Place the water in the pot, then add the rest of the ingredients.  Cover and cook on high heat just until wilted, stirring constantly.

Drain if needed, sprinkle with kosher salt,  and serve at once.

the wonderful veggie salad!

We had several very warm days last week, not as humid as New England, but muggy enough to curl up with a book in air conditioned splendor inside.  That kind of weather keeps me far away from the oven, even with air conditioning - all I can think about are fresh fruits and salads.  So when the memory of my Veggie Salad popped up in my thoughts, I sliced, diced, and chopped willingly , ending up with a very large bowl to tuck in the fridge.

You can use up all those summer vegetables that are so fresh right now:  green cabbage, spinach, scallions, parsley, and juicy tomatoes, which is definitely a bonus.   Fill a bowl and it's lunch.  Add a heaping tablespoon to your hamburger bun and top with a hot grilled burger.  Layer over a smoked turkey sandwich, or serve as a side to fresh fish or lobster. I love the versatility of this salad for just about any meal - even breakfast.  I often add cottage cheese to the vegetable mixture, which adds a little more heft to the salad, especially if that's all you're having.

In the past, I've used the shredding cone for my KitchenAid mixer, but a part has gone missing, so I sliced everything by hand.  I wasn't able to slice it as thinly as I prefer, but it was delicious as always - I love the oregano dressing, so I made twice as much.


Veggie Salad


2 cups shredded or thinly sliced fresh green cabbage
2 cups de-stemmed thinly sliced large-leaf spinach
1-2 cups chopped tomatoes or halved cherry tomatoes
6 scallions, sliced (both tops and bottoms)
4 tablespoons minced Italian parsley
1 cup cottage cheese (optional)

Place in a large bowl.


The dressing:
(you can easily double this if you like a lot of dressing)

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons good olive oil
1-2 teaspoons dried oregano 
kosher salt to taste
freshly ground pepper to taste

Toss the salad well before serving.  This keeps well in the fridge in a covered container.

                                        ********************

One of my neighbors offered me some somewhat wild pears from a tree she has tucked in the corner of her yard - so many pears some of the branches have broken.  Not a clue what to make when they're ripe - right now they are very hard.  Ideas?

Happy After-Labor-Day!  

butter-braised brussels sprouts with lemon and dill

A sunny, windy day , 9 degrees above zero.  A little interlude between snowstorms, though another 8 inches are in the future .  The path from the house to the car is hip high, and drifts lean against the windows and doors.  But it is the end of February, so the end is in sight, though mud season should be quite an adventure once it all melts!

Bustling in the kitchen while the roof is being shoveled - again - I rediscovered the brussels sprouts I bought several days ago, hiding behind the chicken and kale soup (which I am already tired of) and the bowl of roasted chicken stock (which should go immediately into the already full freezer).  Joy, oh joy!  Finally a vegetable I can get excited about again!  I also found half a plump cucumber, which I peeled, seeded, and cut into half moons.

The sprouts were trimmed and braised in butter and olive oil and finished with a quick squeeze of lemon and a sprinkle of fresh dill, salt and pepper and polished off for lunch.


Braised Brussels Sprouts with lemon and dill

2 cups brussels sprouts, trimmed and quartered
1 cup peeled, seeded cucumber, sliced into half moons (about 1/2 cucumber) optional
1 tablespoon good olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 cup water
kosher or sea salt
freshly cracked pepper
two squeezes of fresh lemon juice
1 heaping teaspoon chopped fresh dill


Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed saucepan on medium-low heat.  Add the olive oil, then the brussels sprouts and cucumber.  Cook ten minutes, stirring often, until the sprouts begin to sear. 
Turn heat to low and add the water.  Cover the pot and cook until the sprouts and cucumber are just tender when poked with a fork - it took me about 15 minutes.
Add salt, pepper, dill, and a few squeezes of lemon before serving.

Now, back to looking at sunny summer photos in Maine on Sass & Veracity - bliss!

 

baby spinach with blistered tomatoes

The wind is howling over this snowy landscape - it sounds like a freight train as the wind swoops and tickles the corners of the hill beside my house, and my neighbor's house.  I am missing the farmer's market in the summer , so full of life and good vegetables, good people - and warm sunshine.

Above all, I miss the summer tomatoes, bursting with color and flavor.  I look at the plastic box of tiny tomatoes and wonder what to do.

Then this - gently seared with a hint of basil, mild olive oil and a little sweet butter, tossed with a package of baby spinach.  It isn't July or August, but it's a hint of what's to come.

To make:

1 cup baby grape tomatoes
1 tablespoon mild olive oil
1 teaspoon unsalted butter
1/4 cup water (or more, if needed)
4 cups packed baby spinach, washed (no need to dry)
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
freshly ground pepper

Warm the olive oil and butter on medium heat.
Add the tomatoes and sear for 5 minutes.

Add the water, spinach, basil, salt, and pepper and cook uncovered on medium high heat until the liquid evaporates.

Serve with a smile and memories of summer.

a colorful January!

As I write this, a winter blizzard is moving into New England.  I am inland, so the snow reached here only four or five hours ago - and we have power!  When I measured the snow in the middle of the flat front yard, it was 8" - drifts were much more.

Thinking back over January, I realized I was changing my eating habits subtly - many more greens and vegetables, fewer sweets and, my downfall, tortilla chips with melted mozzarella, salsa, and sour cream.  I still have the chips and mozzarella, but the sour cream has disappeared.

And the colors !  Shining like a rainbow - which definitely puts a smile on my face and a spring in my step (as I go out to shovel:) From the top:  arugula with braised celery,warmed tomatoes with basil, mushrooms, and cubes of mozzarella;  smoked turkey sandwich with arugula and grated cheddar;  kale soup with orzo; asparagus with hardboiled eggs and parmesan;  green chard and shredded chicken soup;  homemade strawberry jam.   Hope you are all enjoying your winter!