Category Archives: Winter

Pear, Goat Cheese and Prosciutto Panini

Posted on by — No Comments ↓

Panini are the upscale Italian cousins to the average Joe grilled cheese sandwich, and these panini, made with pear and prosciutto are a perfect match with creamy soups. Feel free to mix up the cheese; I like to add a generous grind of pepper on top of the pears before topping too. You can use any type of pear you like, but Anjou pear’s sweet, citrusy tang pairs well with the goat cheese. If your pears don’t yield slightly to a squeeze, ripen them on the counter for a few days.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:38]

Crispy Mashed Potato Cakes

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

I’ve always wanted a potato cake recipe like this, and I spent some time perfecting it. Would it be better to coat the mashed potato cakes in panko? I wondered. It turned out to be too much trouble, and didn’t make the cakes that much crispier. What if I sprinkled cheese on the outside to make a crisp, savory crust? Nope. That didn’t add as much punch as I’d expected. This straightforward recipe — it takes just a few minutes to pull together if you have leftover mashed potatoes on hand — yielded the best results, and will be a potato pancake I go back to again and again. I hope you do, too.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:142]

Peanut-Sweet Potato Soup

Posted on by — No Comments ↓

Strangely enough, peanuts and sweet potatoes make a great pair. Between the warm fall hues of this sweet potato soup and the crisp, bright flavors of the Fennel-Apple Salad accompanying it (get the recipe in the Nourish Weekly Menus archive), this meal is truly a feast for the senses.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:144]

Swiss Chard with Grated Garlic

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

This chard recipe is my new go-to green dish. I can literally go from picking chard from the garden to getting this on the table in under 10 minutes. And don’t let the humble ingredients list fool you … these greens are loaded with flavor. I recommend zipping and chopping the greens, then giving them a good rinse in a big bowl of cold water and spinning or straining them dry. A Microplane zester works best for this dish because it grates the garlic so finely as to make almost a paste. If you don’t have a Microplane zester, use the finest grater you have and cook a tad longer.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:68]

Caramelized Sunchokes with Meyer Lemon Zest & Parsley

Posted on by — 4 Comments ↓

Sunchokes (a k a Jerusalem artichokes, from the Italian name, girasole articiocco) are one of those items you’re more likely to find at the farmers’ market than at the grocery store. These homely little tubers of the sunflower resemble ginger root and can be eaten raw or cooked. Raw, they have a mild, faintly nutty flavor and crunchy texture; try them julienned or sliced paper thin. Cooking deepens their nutty character. Sunchokes have a thin skin, so don’t bother peeling them–just give them a gentle scrub with a vegetable brush. With a sprinkling of lemon zest and parsley, this side dish pairs well with roast chicken or pan-seared fish.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:22]

 

Improvised Lentil Soup with Bacon & Juniper Berries

Posted on by — No Comments ↓

Several things conspired to make this lentil soup–an overabundance of bacon in the fridge, some leftover juniper berries and a yen for soup on the chilly evening. Lentils and pork are a classic combination, and after consulting Niki Segnit’s The Flavor Thesaurus, I found that juniper berries (which I don’t use often) also have an affinity with pork. Deglazing the pan with a splash of sherry deepens the flavor while the juniper berries lend a bright counterpoint.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:171]

Shaved Celeriac, Radish and Pecorino Salad with Pomegranates

Posted on by — 3 Comments ↓

This simple dish is based on a winter salad served at London’s Bocca di Lupo and featuring celeriac (celery root) as the star ingredient. Get out your mandolin or Japanese slicer to shave the veggies and cheese, or use a very sharp knife to cut them paper-thin. If you don’t have white truffle oil on hand, substitute your best, most flavorful olive oil. The salad will taste just as fresh, if not quite as earthy.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:174]

Warm Brussels Sprouts Slaw with Bacon

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

This recipe is inspired by British chef Nigel Slater’s book, Tender, Volume I, A Cook and His Vegetable Patch. Slater calls for blanching the whole Brussels sprouts before sauteing them in the bacon fat. Shredding the Brussels sprouts allows you to skip that step and yields a slaw-like side dish that’s great with roast beef, pork or fish. Juniper berries have an astringent quality that’s a nice counterpoint to the earthy sprouts and smoky bacon. If you don’t have them on hand, substitute a splash of gin (which is made from juniper berries) or, in a pinch, a squeeze of lemon. I like to season this dish with flaky Maldon salt, which comes from the town of Maldon, not far from where my husband’s family live in Essex.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:77]

Rustic Blood Orange Marmalade

Posted on by — 1 Comment ↓

By Ginny Mahar

Chock-full of tender bits of candied peel, this bittersweet blood orange marmalade recipe, adapted from A Passion for Preserves by Frederica Langeland, has a fruit-forward flavor, and is wonderful spread on toasted English muffins or crisp baguette.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:13]

Ginny MaharFood writer and cooking instructor Ginny Mahar currently resides in Missoula, Montana. Read about her mission to bring people back to the table on her blog, www.thesundaydinnerrevival.com.

Meyer Lemon Ricotta Scones

Posted on by — 1 Comment ↓

The combination of whole wheat pastry flour, seasonal Meyer lemon and ricotta yields moist scones with a tender crumb. Grating the cold butter makes it easy to cut into the dry ingredients. This not-too-sweet treat works for breakfast or a snack.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:195]