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November in the kitchen – Roast Bussels Sprouts with Cannellini Bean Mash
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November in the kitchen – Roast Bussels Sprouts with Cannellini Bean Mash

Roast Brussels sprouts are a classic side dish for Thansksgiving. Roasting gives them a sweetness that is totally different from the way they taste cooked any other way. This recipe will convert even Brussels sprout haters. The Cannellini Mash could be a stand in for mashed potatoes, or add some pureed winter squash for a seasonal touch. I’m taking this to Full Plate Thursday (this week on a Tuesday) at Miz Helen’s Country Cottage.

The sprouts and mash are a vegan/vegetarian/gluten free meal by themselves. Add a salad on the side and the dinner menu is full.

In my omnivore family, I’m going to serve it with lemon chicken. Everything can go into the oven at the same temperature, making an easy dinner for one oven when you are busy.

There a lot of recipes out there for roast Brussels sprouts. The discussion centers around whether to preboil them before roasting. I have tried them multiple ways (this being a favorite winter vegetable for my family and friends) and have come up with a version which works best for us. My ideal sprout has a creamy center and crisp, brown outside leaves with a definite crunch. In order to have that creamy center without completely burnt leaves, I’ve found I need to precook them very briefly.

Roast Brussels Sprouts

Roast Brussels Sprouts

Roast Brussels sprouts

  • 4 cups of Brussels sprouts – trimmed and halved if large
  • Kosher Salt
  • Olive oil – about 2 tablespoons
  1. Preheat your oven to 425 F.
  2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add about 1 tablespoon of salt
  3. Add the Brussels sprouts, bring back to the boil, lower the heat and cook for 2 minutes.
  4. Strain and run cold water over them to cool slightly and stop cooking.
  5. Toss with olive oil and salt.
  6. Spread onto a parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer. Include any leaves that have fallen off.
  7. Bake for 40 minutes until the outsides are crisp.
Cannellini Bean Mash

Cannellini Bean Mash – ready to assemble

Cannellini Bean Mash

  • 2 cans of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
  • ¼ cup of roast garlic cloves or 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 cup of roast winter squash or pumpkin (canned ok)
  • 1 cup of coconut water or vegetable stock
  • 2 tablespoons of olive oil (or butter)
  • grated zest of 1/2 lemon
  • Salt, pepper and cayenne to taste
  1. Roast a small piece of banana squash at 425 F until soft and brown, about 40 minutes.
  2. Cool slightly, scoop out the flesh and add it to your food processor or blender.
  3. Drain and rinse 2 cans of cannellini beans.
  4. Combine with the garlic and squash in the processor.
  5. Puree until smooth, adding the coconut water or stock to thin. This should be the consistency of mashed potatoes.
  6. Pour the contents into a saucepan and heat on medium until hot, lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes to blend the flavors.
  7. Add the olive oil and grate some fresh lemon rind into the pan.
  8. Taste for salt, add fresh ground pepper, and cayenne pepper for punch.

Once you start on this, I can imagine all kinds of additons…goat cheese, parmesan, substitute another vegetable for the squash (cooked parsnips or celery root?) or leave it out all together. In that case it would be more hummusy.

Lemon Chicken with Roast Brussels Sprouts and Cannellini Bean Mash

Lemon Chicken with Roast Brussels Sprouts and Cannellini Bean Mash

The chicken took an hour and fifteen minutes to cook, perfect timing for the rest of the meal. Including prep time, it took me an hour and a half to get dinner on the table. Not bad since much of it there was nothing to do, just waiting while things were roasting in the oven. It left me with time for a relaxed glass of wine and a chat with my husband. It’s his birthday tomorrow, I’ll be making his favorite, Pasta Puttanesca.

Everyone have a love filled, fun, and delicious Thanksgiving!

November in the kitchen – Cream of Tomato Soup with Crispy Grilled Cheese Croutons
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November in the kitchen – Cream of Tomato Soup with Crispy Grilled Cheese Croutons

Do you have a favorite comfort food? Maybe a food that you crave when things feel a bit overwhelming? Or, when you are under the weather, not actually sick, just not feeling quite right? Mine is tomato soup and grilled cheese. I take a warm mug to bed and watch reruns of “The Good Wife”. The next day, my world is much improved.

This is the best cream of tomato soup I have ever tasted, bar none! The grilled cheese croutons are a great additon (but it doesn’t need much). The croutons are crisp on the outside, but become soft and cheesy on the inside as they soak up the soup. It’s the perfect combination of textures and flavors. What can beat tomatoes and cheese? You could also make grilled cheese sandwiches and simply dunk them in the soup. All excellent!

Originally the recipe was adapted from America’s Test Kitchen Cookbook. It came to me from the archives of the blog Smitten Kitchen. It would be difficult to improve on it.

Cream of Tomato Soup

  • 2 – 28 oz. cans of whole Roma tomatoes packed in juice
  • 1 ½ tablespoon of dark brown sugar
  • 4 tablespoons of melted butter
  • 4 large shallots, minced (about ½ cup)
  • 1 tablespoon of tomato paste
  • 1/8 teaspoon of ground allspice
  • 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
  • 1 ¾ cups of chicken or vegetable stock
  • ½ cup of heavy cream
  • 2 tablespoons of brandy
  • Salt and cayenne pepper as needed
  1. Adjust your oven rack to the upper-middle position and pre-heat to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil.
  2. Place a strainer over a large bowl. Open the cans of tomatoes and, using your hands, gently squeeze each tomato open over the strainer. You want to remove the seeds without crushing the tomato. Lay each tomato on the foil lined baking sheet.
  3. Pour the rest of the juice into the strainer and push the juices through. Clean the bottom of the strainer into the bowl. You should have just the seeds left inside the strainer.
  4. Sprinkle the tomatoes with the brown sugar and bake until the liquid has evaporated. It took about 30 minutes in my oven. You are concentrating the flavor of the tomatoes.
  5. When finished, remove from the oven and let cool.
  6. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the shallots, tomato paste, and allspice. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the shallots are soft. Stir it occasionally; it will take about 10 minutes.
  7. Add the flour and stir well to mix with the contents of the skillet. To cook the flour and remove the raw taste, stir for 30 seconds to a minute. You don’t want the flour to burn.
  8. Add the chicken or vegetable stock gradually, whisking or stirring constantly.
  9. Stir in the tomato juice and roast tomatoes.
  10. Cover, bring to a boil, and reduce the heat to a simmer for about 10 minutes.
  11. At this point you can either blend it smooth (be careful to vent the top and fill your blender only half full) or use an immersion blender directly in the pot.
  12. When smooth, add the cream, reheat for a minute, and then add the brandy.

Taste for salt and a bit of spice, I didn’t think it needed any.

Crispy Grilled Cheese

Crispy Grilled Cheese

Crispy Grilled Cheese Croutons

  • 4 slices of sandwich bread, crusts removed
  • 1 ¼ cup of grated cheddar cheese
  • 2 tablespoons of butter
  1. Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat.
  2. Butter one side of each slice of bread.
  3. Brush the hot skillet with any remaining butter.
  4. Sprinkle two small piles of cheese directly on to the skillet, about 2 tablespoons. Spread them to the approximate size of your bread. Place a slice of bread (buttered side down) on top of each pile.
  5. Put about ½ cup of cheese on top of each slice in the pan, cover with the second slice of bread (buttered side up).
  6. Brown the first side, and then remove the bread to a plate.
  7. Sprinkle another 2 tablespoons of cheese into two piles in the skillet.
  8. Carefully slide the bread, other side down, on top of the cheese and brown the second side. The cheese in the middle should have started to melt.
  9. Remove the bread to the plate and cool slightly.
  10. When cool, cut into cubes.
  11. Top the hot soup with the croutons; or eat the crisp grilled sandwiches as they are, dipping them into the soup.
Cream of Tomato Soup with Crispy Grilled Cheese Croutons

Cream of Tomato Soup with Crispy Grilled Cheese Croutons

Crispy Grilled Cheese Croutons

Crispy Grilled Cheese Croutons

Cream of tomato soup with grilled cheese

Ready for “The Good Wife”

What is your favorite comfort food?

I’m taking this to Fiesta Friday #43 to party with Angie and friends from the Novice Gardener. This time of year we are all in need of a little comfort.

Fiesta Friday

 

November in the kitchen – slow simmered beef stew
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November in the kitchen – slow simmered beef stew

Slow Simmered Beef Stew

This recipe could be the answer to “what’s for dinner” when you have a busy afternoon (holiday shopping?), but want something warming and filling. There will be wonderful smells when you walk into your kitchen at the end of the day. It cooks for 5 hours completely unattended. Try it; the results are delicious and good enough for company. The original idea came from a cookbook (mine now well-used, stained, and tattered) called Cold-Weather Cooking by Sarah Leah Chase. She was one of the co-authors of the Silver Palate Good Times Cookbook. She lives in Nantucket and the recipe is perfect for stormy, cold evenings.

Quick and easy beef stew

Slow Simmered Beef Stew

Slow Simmered Beef Stew (6-8 servings)

You will need:

  • 2 ½ to 4 lbs. of lean beef stew meat, cut into 1 – 1 ½ inch cubes
  • 6-8 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks the size as the meat
  • 6-8 shallots, peeled and left whole
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
  • 1 tablespoon herbs de Provence
  • 2 teaspoons freshly ground pepper
  • 2 ½ cups of spicy vegetable juice (use regular if you prefer it less spicy)
  • ½ cup of hearty red wine
  • 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard
  • 2 tablespoons of light brown sugar
  • 3 ½ tablespoons of tapioca, I used Minute Tapioca
Slow cooked beef stew

preparation for slow cooked beef stew

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  1. Preheat your oven to 275 degrees F
  2. In a large mixing bowl combine the beef with all the vegetables. Season with the garlic and herbs. No, you don’t need to pre-brown the meat! I know, I didn’t believe it either but I’ve made this many times and it works.
  3. In a small bowl whisk together the vegetable juice, wine, mustard, brown sugar, and tapioca, making sure to dissolve the sugar and tapioca. Add this mixture to the meat and vegetables, stir to blend well.
  4. Transfer the stew to a large casserole or Dutch oven. Cover tightly and cook 5 hours without opening the lid or disturbing. You can serve this directly or refrigerate overnight and reheat the next day.

Use your imagination as far as vegetables. I used carrots and shallots this time. In the past, I’ve added turnips, potatoes, parsnips, boiling onions, kohlrabi, and elephant garlic. Use this recipe as your canvas for what you find at the market or in your garden.

I served this with a simple mash of parsnips and potatoes (about half potatoes and half parsnips), flavored with a bit of butter, a couple of tablespoons of cream, and some horseradish for a punch.

If you have some, serve the pickled mustard seeds on the side. I did and it was a good counterpoint to the richness of the meat.

Easy Beef Stew

Easy Beef Stew with Potato/Parsnip and Horseradish mash

Add a salad freshly gathered from the garden, you have an easy weeknight dinner which feels much fancier than it is.

Note: I would not transfer this recipe to a slow cooker, it will have far too much liquid. Slow cooker recipes need an entirely different formula for success. Also, please check your tapioca label if you need this recipe to be gluten free, not all of them are. Minute Tapioca is gluten free.

November in the kitchen – Polenta with Mushrooms and Easy Roast Chicken Breasts
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November in the kitchen – Polenta with Mushrooms and Easy Roast Chicken Breasts

We are up on the North Coast for a few days and it feels like fall. The rain and cooler weather has given rise to lots of mushrooms. I wish I knew more about identifying them. I’m afraid I would poison us all if I were to pick and cook any! Last year, because of the terrible drought we’ve been having in California, there were hardly any. I wouldn’t eat this one but it sure is beautiful.

Northcoast mushroom

North coast mushroom probably a toadstool

What I will eat is these lovely porcini and chanterelles found in a local store. Now, what to do with them? There is some polenta in the pantry, and some dried porcini mushrooms, also a jar of Michael Chiarello’s Fennel Spice Rub that I made last year. The market had some lovely boneless chicken breast with the skin still on (I think cooking them with the skin results in far more flavor, don’t you?). The menu was made!

Mushrooms - porcini and chanterelles

Porcini and Chanterelles

When I first read the recipe for “Fennel Spice Rub” in Michael Chiarello’s cookbook “Casual Cooking”, I knew I would love it. It has that wonderful combination of fennel, pepper, and cardamom. I added my favorite to the mix, cumin. I have used it with multiple recipes…chicken, turkey, and roast veggies. It has always resulted in a standout dish. It’s also easy to make and is a wonderful holiday gift. I have friends who specifically request it each year.

You will find the recipe for the rub at the end of this post.

Sunset at Seaside Beach

Sunset at Seaside Beach

After a lovely romp on the beach with the dogs, it was time to start preparing the meal.

Porcini Polenta with Sautéed Mushrooms (serves 4)

  • 1 cup of polenta
  • 1 tablespoons of dried porcini mushrooms
  • 1 ½ teaspoons of salt
  • 4 tablespoons of butter, divided
  • ½ cup of finely grated parmesan
  • 3 cups of roughly sliced fresh mushrooms (I used one large porcini and a dozen chanterelles 
  1. Mix the polenta with the dried mushrooms.
  2. Bring 4 cups of water and the salt to a boil in a heavy saucepan. While whisking, slowly add the polenta mix to the water. Bring back to the boil, put the lid on slightly ajar, and turn the heat down to simmer.
  3. As the polenta starts to thicken, thoroughly stir the sides and bottom of the pan every 5 minutes. Cook for 35-40 minutes total.
  4. When done, stir in 2 tablespoons of butter and the Parmesan cheese. Add more salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.
Polenta

Polenta

Mushrooms browned in butter

  1. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a skillet on medium-high heat.
  2. Add the sliced mushrooms, sprinkle with salt and sauté until browned and cooked through. Don’t crowd the pan, as they will start to steam. You may need to do this in two batches.

While the polenta was cooking, I started the chicken.

Chicken breasts with Fennel Spice Rub

  • 4 chicken breasts, skin on
  • 4 tablespoons fennel spice rub (recipe below)
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil
  1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F
  2. If your skillet isn’t oven proof or won’t hold the 4 breasts without crowding, place a baking sheet or pan in the oven to heat.
  3. Rub each chicken breast with 1 tablespoon of fennel spice rub.
  4. Heat the olive oil on medium-high heat in a large skillet until you see it shimmer
  5. Add the chicken breasts, skin side down. You may need to do this in two batches, don’t crowd the pan.
  6. Brown the skin side, then turn the chicken and brown the other side. Brown any additional breasts if you need to do this in batches. Remove the first breasts to a plate.
  7. When all are browned, put them in the oven to bake for 20 minutes. Check for doneness. Let sit for 5 minutes before slicing and serving.
chicken breasts

Chicken breasts with fennel spice rub

Browned chicken breasts

Browned chicken breasts

All that was needed was a salad of arugula, simply dressed with lemon and olive oil.

Polenta with mushrooms and roast chicken breasts

Polenta with mushrooms and roast chicken breasts

What’s missing? Oh, yes, the wine! We have a new favorite, this Australian Shiraz.

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Fennel Spice Rub

  • 1 cup fennel seeds
  • 3 tablespoons cumin seeds (my addition)
  • 3 tablespoons coriander seeds
  • 2 tablespoons white peppercorns
  • 3 tablespoons kosher salt

 Directions:

  1. Put the fennel seeds coriander seeds, cumin seeds, and peppercorns in a heavy pan over medium heat. Watch carefully, tossing frequently so the seeds toast evenly.
  2. When light brown and fragrant, pour the seeds onto a plate to cool. They must be cool before grinding, or they will gum up the blades of your blender
  3. Pour the seeds into a blender and add the salt. Blend to a fine powder, shaking the blender container occasionally to redistribute the seeds.
  4. Store in a tightly sealed glass jar in a cool, dry place, or freeze.

Cheers!

This turned out so well that I will be taking it to the party on Friday to be with Angie and her friends at The Novice Gardener for Fiesta Friday #42. Come visit and sample all the great food.

fiesta-friday-badge-button-i-party

Also posted at Full Plate Thursdays and Showcase Your Talent Thursday.

November in the kitchen – everything-but-the-kitchen-sink salad
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November in the kitchen – everything-but-the-kitchen-sink salad

Leftovers can be a life saver as far as dinner is concerned. It was a busy day on Monday and I hadn’t had much time to even think about what to serve for dinner. In addition, the ladies were pleading for a walk. How could I resist those faces? Dinner would have to wait.

Australian Shepards

Quinn and Casey, the Aussie ladies

Enter leftovers, clean-out-the-fridge and everything-but-the-kitchen-sink salad.

When I stuck my head in the cold box, I found…leftover farro, some cold chicken, a bit of cheddar cheese, last of a jar of pickled green beans, a few pomegranate seeds, and half each of an avocado and red onion.

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I also found half of a butternut squash, the rest had been used in the pumpkin humus.

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I decided to roast the butternut squash to give the salad a bit of temperature variation. Combined with the cheese and avocado, it would give the salad a creamy and buttery texture and flavor. The green beans would add a tart note. I had just purchased a package of Trader Joe’s Candied Pecans, there’s the sweet and crunchy note.

Trader Joe's Candied Pecans

  1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees F. Cube the butternut squash, toss with a tablespoon or so of olive oil and some kosher salt. Roast for 40 minutes or until brown and tender. Cool slightly.
  2. Cut the cheese into small cubes.
  3. Slice the onion and avocado.
  4. Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces.
  5. While the butternut squash is still warm, toss everything together with some greens (I used arugula and baby kale from the garden) and add a splash of vinaigrette.

Toss gently…ta da! Fanfare!

Assembled salad.

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This type of dinner is actually one of my husband’s favorites. Leftovers have always spurred my creativity. He fell in love with me over my Brie omelet (just a small picked over slice remaining from a cheese platter earlier that week). The saddest thing about these dinners are that they are rarely repeated, I never have the exact same leftovers waiting in the fridge.

Do you have a favorite clean out the fridge creation?