I made this sweet potato side dish for a class I taught in Guatemala to a dozen youth group kids. They were skeptical (to say the least) about the chile powder, at first, but embraced it wholeheartedly after I dubbed them “food adventurers.”
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After much agonizing, I’ve come to think of this dish as a naked gratin and close cousin to pommes Anna. I used a mixture of rutabaga, kohlrabi and sunchokes (also called Jerusalem artichokes) in lieu of potatoes, and it was out of this world. The sunchokes, especially, gave it an amazing nutty earthiness. If you can find a pound or so of those, I highly recommend using them. But go with whatever root veggies suit your fancy. One other embellishment I loved … smoked sea salt. Not necessary by any means, but fun if you want to give it a little something extra.
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I’ve been wanting to do a kale salad for a long time, and this is the one I wanted to make. Rubbing breaks down the cells and softens the kale, yet leaves all of its meaty taste.
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1 teaspoon tamari sauce
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon honey, liquified
2 tablespoons minced scallions
4 packed cups Tuscan kale (also called dinosaur or black kale), zipped, cleaned and torn into bite-sized pieces
1 cup julienned radicchio
1 cup cilantro leaves
coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 avocado, cubed
1 cup toasted, unsweetened coconut chips
Shake together the oil, lime juice, tamari sauce, cider vinegar, honey and scallions in a tight-sealing jar.
Place the kale in a large bowl and rub a handful at a time between your palms as if you were warming your hands together. You’ll feel the kale “soften” after 15 seconds or so. Then grab another bunch and do the same thing until you’ve rubbed all of the kale.
Toss the kale, radicchio, cilantro a generous pinch of salt and pepper together in the bowl and pour dressing over top. Toss well to thoroughly coat and top with avocado and coconut chips.
Serves 2
This zippy, velvety and comforting pumpkin soup, adapted from Everyday Thai Cooking (Tuttle Publishing) exemplifies Katie Chin’s easy approach to Thai cuisine. It uses ingredients that you can find in many supermarkets, and if you can’t find ’em, Katie has suggestions for simple substitutions. “Thais often use pumpkins to make desserts or delicious savory soups like this one,” Katie says. “The heat from the spices is a great contrast to the sweet pumpkin in this seasonal soup. You may substitute the pumpkin with any kind of winter squash.” I found it works just as beautifully with butternut squash. Check out Katie’s blog, The Sweet and Sour Chronicles.
2 tablespoons coconut oil, Canola or other high-heat cooking oil
1/4 cup finely chopped shallot
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
2 fresh hot red or green chiles, preferably Thai chiles, thinly sliced (seeded, if you prefer less heat)
1 clove garlic, chopped
4 cups peeled and diced pumpkin
3 cups chicken stock
1 cup regular or light coconut milk
2 stalks lemongrass, cut into 2-inch pieces and bruised (you can substitute grated zest of 1 lemon or lime)
1 teaspoon palm or brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons fish sauce (nam pla)
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
Fresh Thai or Italian basil leaves, for garnish
Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir-fry shallot, coriander, cumin, turmeric, chiles and garlic until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add pumpkin, stock, coconut milk, lemongrass, sugar and salt, stirring to combine. Bring to a boil. Cook until the pumpkin softens, about 8-10 minutes. Quickly stir in fish sauce and lime juice.
Transfer a blender, or using an immersion blender, blend the soup to a smooth or slightly chunky consistency, as desired. Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with basil leaves. Serve immediately.
Serves 4-6
This brown rice porridge is inspired by Chef Louis Maldonado of Spoonbar here in Healdsburg, and most recently of Top Chef fame. He turned me on to rice porridge. It’s one of the staples on his menu that he changes up with the seasons and the whims of the farmers that supply him. It’s also a traditional dish across a number of different cultures, from Korea to Vietnam, and is often eaten as breakfast (which I can now personally vouch for as being a very good idea). On a recent cold, cold night when my family was dropping sick one by one, I conjured this version up to bring comfort to us all. It takes awhile to cook (you can shave off about half the time if you use a pressure cooker), but it’s one of those dishes that calls to you from the fridge all week long, so make a double batch and consider it time well invested.
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This Thanksgiving, Mom requested butternut squash soup and grilled cheese. I made enough to freeze for easy meals in December, and I’m glad I did … this soup may be simple, but it’s gooood.
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I was lucky enough to nab a leg of organic, sustainably-raised lamb from Montana’s Willow Spring Ranch at Shelton’s Market for this and was rewarded with succulent, juicy meat spiked through with Moroccan spice. To find a source for grass-fed lamb (and other meats) near you for your Easter meal, check out Eat Wild. Serve this with quinoa, mixed greens, sliced black olives, thick slices of orange, thinly sliced fennel and red onion tossed with the dressing from this salad here.
5 garlic cloves
1/2 medium onion
1 small lemon, trimmed of top and bottom, quartered and seeded
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 cup pomegranate syrup (or 1/2 orange juice and 1/2 honey)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
5-6 pound boneless leg of lamb, trimmed of excess fat
Puree garlic through olive oil in a blender or food processor. Stir in salt. Lay lamb in a shallow dish or roasting pan and carefully pierce deeply all over with a paring knife. Slather on the marinade, pushing into the holes, then coat all over with any remaining marinade. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 325. Transfer lamb to a Dutch oven, cover and roast for 3-1/2 to 4 hours, until lamb is fork tender. Let rest for 20 minutes, then pull apart into large chunks to serve.
Serves 8
Ribollita is a classic Italian recipe that puts day-old bread to delicious use. Not only is this soup easy and flavorful and light and hearty all at the same time … it’s even better made the day before and reheated.
2-½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 cup carrots, sliced
1 cup onion, chopped
½ cup celery, sliced
3 sprigs thyme
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups chipped Swiss chard
3 cups chopped kale
3 cups water
3 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock
¼ cup tomato puree
1 teaspoon sugar
sea salt
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (19-ounce) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
12 ounces day-old Italian or French bread, torn into 1-inch pieces
Heat 1-1/2 teaspoons oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add carrots and next 4 ingredients (through garlic) and cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until onion is tender. Add chard and next 8 ingredients (through tomatoes) and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes.
Place 1/3 cup beans in a bowl and mash with a fork until fairly smooth. Add mashed beans, remaining beans, and bread to soup. Cook 5 minutes until heated through. Ladle soup into bowls. Drizzle remaining 2 tablespoons oil over top of soup.
Serves 8
If you rifled through the Campbell’s soup labels I collected as a kid, you’d notice a heavy concentration of Beef and Barley Stew labels. It was my favorite soup. By far. Now, though, I’ve moved so far away from processed foods that it (sadly) just tastes salty and gummy to me. I’ve been meaning to concoct a homemade replacement for years, but somehow have never gotten around to it. Early in the new year, though, I had a pot of beef stock leftover from the holidays, some stew meat and carrots from my CSA, and an expanding enthusiasm for kohlrabi. It was time. If you can’t find kohlrabi, substitute potatoes, or another root vegetable like turnips or rutabaga.
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Take that name to mean anything you please … whether you make this soup out of chicken stock, turkey stock or vegetable stock, you can bet it’ll be scrumptious. What elevates this above a standard chicken (turkey … veggie) noodle soup are the copious amounts of carrots and celery, the beefy lentils, and the fun little topping of sauteed root veggies and sausage. PS – you can make this vegetarian and still have a super hearty soup.
1 quart chicken, turkey or veggie stock
1 onion, peeled and sliced lengthwise into 1/2-inch wedges
6 medium carrots, peeled and cut on a bias into 1-inch pieces
5 celery stalks, cut on a bias into 1-inch pieces
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 turnips, peeled and cut into a 1/2-inch dice (want to see a video of how to dice? Click here)
1 rutabaga, peeled and cut into a 1/2-inch dice
6 ounces loose Italian pork or chicken sausage
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1-1/2 cups sprouted lentils (or regular green lentils cooked until just tender)
2 cups cooked farfalle pasta (cooked 2 minutes less than instructed cooking time)
1 cup shredded chicken or turkey (optional)
In a large pot, bring stock, onion, carrots and celery up to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
While stock is simmering, heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat and swirl to coat. Add turnips, rutabaga and sausage to the pan and toss to coat with olive oil. Saute, turning occasionally and breaking up the sausage with a stiff spatula, for 12-15 minutes, until vegetables are browned on the outside and tender throughout. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Add the lentils, pasta and turkey to the soup pot and simmer for 3 minutes.
Serve each bowl of soup topped with a generous heap of root veggies and sausage.
Serves 6-8
Note: It’s super easy to make this soup vegetarian, and with the pasta and lentils, it’s still quite hearty. Just use veggie broth and omit the sausage and shredded meat.
