This salad combines halved cherries and sliced fennel with a baked goat cheese round coated in sliced almonds. The recipe here isn’t really important; there are two key points I take from it.  1st, the combination of cherries and fennel rocks. And 2nd, the method for preparing the goat cheese is an delicious, healthier alternative to the typical fried goat cheese round you find on a restaurant salad. Other than these two points, you can play with this recipe any way you like. Any volume and variety of greens, cherries, and fennel will work for you here, or you could try other fruit and vegetable combinations. You could coat the goat cheese in finely chopped pecans instead of sliced almonds. And you can use any dressing that strikes your fancy. This time I used a mix I already had on hand made of raspberry balsamic vinegar, shallots, Dijon mustard, and olive oil. The tarragon in the original recipe goes well here though, so throw it in if you have it on hand. Enjoy!

After dinner at home one night last week, Jeff and I walked over to our neighborhood favorite, Watts Grocery, for dessert. It was a totally indulgent treat that made a weeknight feel special. I highly recommend trying a “dessert date.” The menu just switched over for the summer so all the options were new to us. We picked out a cheesecake with berry sauce, lemon curd, and a pecan crust. Of course it was absolutely divine.

Later that week I found myself searching through my dessert recipes, looking for something to make for a lunch for friends. I stumbled upon a Fine Cooking clipping for blueberry lemon bars and was reminded of the cheesecake. The flavor profiles are similar, with oats standing in for the pecans and the condensed milk mixture acting as a lemon curd.  These bars are cold, rich, and creamy without feeling too heavy, which makes them a perfect summer dessert in my book. One word of warning as the 4th of July weekend begins – the recipe states that these bars shouldn’t be kept out of the fridge for more than a few hours, so they may not be the right treat for a beach barbecue. Save them for a time when you are sticking closer to home.

Printable version of Blueberry Streusel Bars with Lemon

Blueberry Streusel Bars with Lemon-Cream Filling
Makes 24 bars

8 oz. (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
13 ½ oz. (3 cups) all-purpose flour
1 ½ cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 1/3 cups packed light brown sugar
1 tsp. table salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1 large egg, separated
1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk
½ cup fresh lemon juice
2 ½ cups (13 oz) fresh blueberries, washed and drained on paper towels, at room temperature

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F. Line a 9×13-inch metal baking pan with foil, leaving an overhang to lift the bars out of the pan. Grease bottom and sides of pan/foil.
Combine flour, oats, salt, sugar, and baking powder in a large bowl. Cut the butter into the flour mixture with your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Reserve 2 cups of this mixture for the topping. Add the egg white into the remaining mixture and stir with a spatula to combine. Press the mixture into the prepared baking pan. It helps to use the flat side of a measuring cup or spatula to even the mixture out. Bake until top of crust begins to form a dry top, 10-12 minutes.
Meanwhile, whisk the condensed milk, lemon juice, and egg yolk together. Let the mixture stand for 5 minutes to thicken.
Remove baking pan from the oven and sprinkle the blueberries evenly over the hot crust. Drop spoonfuls of the lemon mixture over the blueberries and then gently smooth with a spatula to even out the lemon layer. The lemon mixture does not need to perfectly cover the crust. Bake for about 7-8 minutes, until the lemon mixture starts to form a shiny skin.
Sprinkle the reserved topping over the bars, pressing the streusel between your fingers into small lumps as you sprinkle.
Bake until the filling is bubbling at the edges and the topping is brown, about 25-30 minutes. Let the bars cool in the cool and then store in the refrigerator until ready to cut and serve.

From Fine Cooking

I have fond food memories of arepas, which I grew up eating at festivals and street fairs in South Florida. I realize that some of you weren’t so lucky and may not even know what an arepa is. Typically, it’s a small cornmeal cake, thicker than a tortilla, which is stuffed with fillings. It can be served sandwich-style as a snack or eaten as a meal. My understanding is that arepas are a Venezuelan dish which are also popular in other Latin American countries. The arepas of my childhood were sweet and dense.  Sometimes the dough itself was studded with corn kernels, and they were filled with a melted, salty white cheese similar to mozzarella. However, I’ve learned since then that there are many ways to prepare arepas; they are often filled with shredded meat and topped with an avocado sauce called guasacaca, which has a taste profile similar to guacamole. I ate them this way in Puerto Rico 8 years ago and thought I’d found my own foodie heaven.

For many years it never occurred to me to make arepas, though I often dreamed of them – my area of NC has some great Mexican food but it’s not yet a mecca for South American cuisine. However, after seeing recipes for them in food magazines and blogs, I decided to try my hand at making my own arepas. I found them to be much easier than I had imagined. The hardest part is finding the right corn flour for the dough. Locally, I found Harina PAN, which is reputed to be the best brand of arepa flour, at Compare Foods, a traditional grocery store that also stocks a wide range of Latin American foods. The process for the arepa dough itself couldn’t be easier; you stir the flour together with some water or milk and a touch of salt (there’s a recipe on the back of the bag, or use the one below) and let it sit to absorb the liquid. Then you pat the dough into rounds and cook them in a hot skillet until they are crispy on the outside. The arepas can be sliced down the middle to make a pocket and stuffed, or you can make your arepas fairly thin and top them with your fillings.

The first time I cooked these, we had them with ground beef, black beans, tomatoes, queso fresco, avocado, and guasacaca. The second time, I used a chuck roast and the recipe below to make shredded beef, which I think is easier to eat inside these pockets. The guasacaca is totally flexible; throw in more or less garlic if you like, or add more jalapeno for more heat, more vinegar for more tang. I’ve included recipes for arepas, shredded beef barbacoa, and guasacaca below, but if you make these yourself, be sure to experiment a bit with the fillings until you find a combination you like.

Printable version of Arepas with Beef Barbacoa

Arepas
Serves 4-6

2 ½ cups water or milk, lukewarm
2 cups harina pan (white arepa flour)
1 tsp. kosher salt
vegetable oil or Pam spray

Combine water or milk, harina pan, and salt in large bowl. Stir until well-combined and let sit at least 10 minutes.
Preheat oven to 250°F. Roll dough into balls and pat flat into discs that are about ½- inch thick and 3 inches in diameter. Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Spray with cooking spray or cover surface with just enough vegetable oil to coat. Add arepas to pan and cook each side until golden brown, about 12 minutes total. Place the finished arepas on a baking sheet and keep warm in the oven until ready to serve. Split each arepa in half lengthwise and fill with barbacoa, cheese, guasacaca, and any other fillings of your choice.

Beef Barbacoa
Serves 10

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
2 – 2 ½ lb chuck roast, trimmed
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 cup beef broth
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tbsp. fresh lime juice

Preheat oven to 300°F. Combine first 5 ingredients in a small bowl; rub mixture evenly over all sides of roast. Pour olive oil into bottom of large, oven-safe Dutch oven. Heat over medium-high heat until very hot. Add beef to pan and sear on all sides, about 6-8 minutes total. Add garlic and broth to pan. Cover and bake in oven for about 3 hours, or until very tender. Cool to room temperature and shred beef. Can be covered and kept in fridge overnight or used right away. (If your beef is grass-fed it should not produce much fat and can be used immediately. If not, you may wish to chill the beef and skim the fat off the top.)
Return beef to a skillet or pan; bring to simmer over medium-high heat. Simmer 3 minutes, or until liquid is evaporated. Stir in lime juice and cook for another 5 minutes, or until beef begins to brown in spots. Serve immediately.

Adapted from Cooking Light

Guasacaca
Makes about 1 ½ cups

1 avocado, pitted and peeled
½ small onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
½ jalapeno, diced
1 tsp salt
black pepper to taste
handful cilantro, cleaned and removed from stems
3 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1/3-1/2 cup olive oil

Combine all ingredients except olive oil in a food processor or blender. Puree until smooth, then add olive oil in a steady stream until mixture has your desired texture. Add less olive oil for a thicker sauce and more oil for a thinner sauce. Can keep in fridge for several days.

I spent most of my life thinking a beef burger was the only kind of burger. And while you can still find me chowing down on a (local, grass-fed) beef burger at BCBB, some of my favorite meals in town are “veggie” burgers.  I’m not talking about fake meat, soy-based burgers here; bean burgers are much more my style. My obsession began with the lentil sliders at The Federal. Topped with guacamole and curry mayo, they will rock your world. Then I found the black bean burger, smothered with sauteed onions and mushrooms, at Alivia’s. Up until recently, Jeff has been lukewarm on veggie burgers. But when we were in Salt Lake City this spring, we ate at Sage’s Cafe. We split the “Guac-and-Roll”, a burger made of cashews, almonds, and chickpeas and topped with tahini, pesto, and guacamole. He downed it in minutes and I had to fight for 3 measly bites. After that trip, he agreed that maybe all burgers don’t need to be made of beef.

Of course, I took that comment as an invitation to start creating my own veggie burger. I thought it would take a couple of tries and some experimentation to hit on a combo that worked. Turns out, the first recipe I picked was perfect exactly as written. I will be making this burger again and again this summer; maybe I’ll even convert some more meat lovers along the way. The farro keeps the burger moist and the herbs and crushed red pepper add intense hits of flavor. The recipe suggests serving the burgers with a roasted red pepper spread. I’m sure that would be great, but ours were perfectly delicious with honey mustard, avocado, tomato, and lettuce. Since the burgers themselves are a tad on the time-intensive side (though mostly hands-off time with the cooking of the beans and farro) I’d advise keeping your toppings simple and savoring the burger itself. Happy burger season!

Printable version of Black Bean Burgers

Black Bean Burgers
Serves 8

1/4 cups dried black beans, rinsed and picked over, then soaked for 4 hours and drained

3 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1/3 cup farro

1 small onion, finely diced

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 garlic clove, minced

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup coarse fresh bread crumbs

1/4 cup chopped basil

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Vegetable oil, for sautéing

8 toasted buns

In a saucepan, cover the beans with 2 inches of water. Simmer over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 1 hour; add water as needed to keep the beans covered by 2 inches. When the beans are tender, season them with salt and let stand for 5 minutes; drain.

Meanwhile, in a saucepan, heat 1/2 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add the farro and cook over moderately high heat, stirring, 2 minutes. Add 1 1/2 cups of water and a pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer until the grains are al dente, 30 minutes.

In a small skillet, heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the diced onion and cook over moderate heat until softened. Add the crushed red pepper and garlic and cook until fragrant, 2 minutes.

In a food processor, pulse all but 1/2 cup of the beans to a chunky puree; transfer to a bowl. Fold in the remaining 1/2 cup of beans, the farro, the onion mixture, eggs, bread crumbs, basil, cilantro, pepper and 1 teaspoon of salt. Form the mixture into 8 patties. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

In a large, nonstick skillet, heat 1/8 inch of vegetable oil. Add the burgers and cook over moderate heat, turning once, until browned and heated through, about 6 minutes. Transfer the burgers to the buns and serve.

From Food and Wine

A few weeks ago one of my best girlfriends flew in from California to pay us a visit during her spring break. We cooked together often when we lived together our senior year of college. Since she didn’t eat beef or gluten and I didn’t eat seafood we subsisted on a lot of chicken and pork.. Both of our tastes have changed since then, but we still have fun cooking and eating together. While she was here, I showed her my stack of clipped recipes, which has grown exponentially since college. We weeded through it and picked a pasta dish that incorporated some veggies I knew I’d get in my CSA box that week. I had a blast cooking with her and she got a kick out of seeing what goes on behind the scenes for the blog.

This recipe turned out to be a sleeper hit. At first glance it seemed similar to spring pastas I’d made before. But the vegetables and sauce had so much flavor and the lettuce, strange as it sounds, really worked.  In fact, I made another pasta with asparagus the following week and it paled in comparison to this one.

P.S. My friend becomes Dr. Robin this month! So proud of you, roomie!

Printable version of Pasta with Peas, Asparagus, Butter Lettuce, and Prosciutto

Pasta with Peas, Asparagus, Butter Lettuce, and Prosciutto
Serves 6-8

2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
½ lb. spring onions or green onions; white parts cut into ¼ inch thick slices, pale green parts cut into ½ inch thick slices, dark green parts discarded
2 tbsp. minced shallot
½ cup dry white wine
½ cup chicken broth
1 ½ lbs. asparagus, cut crosswise into ¾ inch pieces
2 cups shelled fresh peas (from about 2 lbs. peas in pods) or 2 cups frozen petite peas, thawed
1 lb. campanelle (trumpet-shaped pasta) or medium shell-shaped pasta
1 head of butter lettuce or Boston lettuce (about 6 oz.), cored, leaves cut into ¾ inch wide slices
1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
½ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
4 oz. thinly sliced prosciutto, cut crosswise into ½ inch wide strips

Melt butter with 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and shallot. Sprinkle with coarse salt and pepper. Sauté until tender (do not brown), about 8 minutes. Add wine; increase heat to medium-high and simmer until liquid is reduced to glaze, about 3 minutes. Add broth and bring to simmer; set aside.
Cook asparagus in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, 2 to 4 minutes, depending on thickness of asparagus. Using skimmer or slotted spoon, transfer to large bowl of ice water. Return water to boil. Add peas and cook until just tender, about 2 minutes. Using skimmer, transfer to bowl with asparagus. Drain vegetables.
Return water in pot to boil. Cook pasta until tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking liquid. Meanwhile, reheat onion mixture. Add lettuce and stir just until wilted, about 1 minute. Add drained asparagus and peas; stir until heated through. Add pasta, 1 cup Parmesan cheese, and parsley to skillet with vegetables; toss, adding reserved pasta cooking liquid by 1/4 cupfuls if dry. Season with salt and pepper.
Transfer pasta to large shallow bowl. Sprinkle prosciutto over; drizzle with olive oil. Serve, passing more cheese alongside.

From Bon Appétit

So I actually made this ugly but delicious dish in January. It was like a breath of fresh air back then, when the weather was cold and dreary but the first root vegetables were returning to the market. But I think it would be just as good, if not better, now that daylight savings time has blessed us with a light-filled supper hour. As brutal as losing an hour of sleep can be, living outside of Florida has taught me to appreciate that March day that announces the arrival of spring. The evening sunlight, along with recent 80 degree days, can sometimes fool my body into craving warm-weather food, like salad and grilled vegetables. Usually though, spring is a transitional eating period for me. I like to have meals that combine the best of warm, comforting winter food with the lighter flavors of spring. Using seasonal produce is a great way to make that transition and this dish does just that.

This recipe starts with spinach, still abundant in my market, which gets wilted and mixed with semolina flour, butter, and eggs to make a dumpling dough. To my tastebuds, semolina flour has a richer, nuttier flavor than all-purpose white flour. It is also quite yellow and imparts its color to whatever it is mixed with. But I’m sure you could substitute AP flour if you don’t want to have to purchase semolina. While the dumplings are steaming, braise a combination of your favorite root vegetables in a shallow saucepan. I used baby turnips, parsnips, carrots, and sunchokes. I bought the sunchokes on a whim and after getting them home I did a little research on preparing them. I discovered that they can cause digestive problems in some people. So while I used them in this braise, I told Jeff to avoid them. Personally, I really enjoyed them. Finally, the braised vegetables are mixed with sauteed mushrooms and a little crème fraiche (you can substitute sour cream) and topped with the dumplings. Don’t skip the crème fraiche here – we started eating without it and the dish was pretty lifeless. I immediately jumped up and scooped some into each of our bowls. It’s really the sauce here and the tang cuts the richness of the dumplings.

The original recipe is no longer online, but it’s from Bon Appetit several years ago. I’ve included my slightly adapted version below.

Printable version of Spinach Dumplings with Braised Root Vegetables and Mushrooms

Spinach Dumplings with Braised Root Vegetables and Mushrooms
Serves 6

For Dumplings:
9 oz. fresh spinach
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. water
9 tbsp. butter, cut into ½-inch chunks
1 ½ tsp. salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup semolina flour (pasta flour; about 3 oz)
3 large eggs
1 ½ cups grated Parmesan cheese

For Vegetables and Mushrooms:
2 tbsp. butter, divided
¾ cup (or more) vegetable broth
2 lbs. assorted root vegetables (such as turnips, sunchokes, carrots, and parsnips), peeled, cut into ½-to ¾-inch cubes (about 4 ½ cups)
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 lb. assorted mushrooms, halved if large, thinly sliced
¾ cup crème fraiche or sour cream

For dumplings:
Rinse spinach; drain, leaving some moisture clinging to leaves. Toss spinach in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until wilted, about 3 minutes. Drain; cool. Squeeze spinach dry and chop (there will be about ½ cup chopped spinach).
Spray rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray. Bring 1 cup plus 2 tbsp. water, butter, and salt to a boil in heavy medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring to melt butter. Add flour and semolina; stir until thick paste forms, about 1 minute. Transfer mixture to large bowl. Using electric mixer, add eggs 1 at a time, beating to blend after each addition. Fold in spinach and cheese. Using damp hands, roll generous 1 tbsp. dough into oval; transfer to prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough.
Spray steamer rack with nonstick spray. Set rack over large skillet or pot of simmering water (do not allow rack to touch water) and cover. Working in batches, steam dumplings until cooked through, adding more water to skillet as needed, about 35 minutes per batch. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Cool, cover, and refrigerate. Steam chilled dumplings in covered pan 10 minutes to rewarm before serving.)

For vegetables and mushrooms:
Melt 1 tbsp. butter in ¾ cup broth in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add root vegetables, cover, and cook until vegetables are tender, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Cool in liquid.
Melt remaining 1 tbsp. butter with oil in another heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and cook until tender and beginning to brown, about 8 minutes. Combine mushroom and vegetable mixture; stir in crème fraiche. Serve in bowls with vegetable dumplings on top.

Adapted only slightly from Bon Appétit

I made some modifications to the original recipe. I’ve posted my version below, but here’s a link to the original. The major change I made was to swap the dried porcini mushrooms for extra fresh mushrooms. Though I do realize that the soaking liquid from the porcinis was intended to flavor the sauce in the pot pie, I prefer the flavor and texture of fresh mushrooms over dried. Luckily, this substitution worked out in my favor as there was plenty of depth in the filling without the porcinis.

One change I would not advise is omitting the gouda. Per usual, I left the cheese off Jeff’s serving. He went back for seconds from a ramekin that had the cheese and was shocked by how much flavor it added. Even though it seems like a small sprinkle of cheese, you can really taste the gouda in the finished product. It helps add zip to the rich flavor of the filling.

That’s three savory recipes in a row around here. I think we all deserve something sweet next time, don’t you?

Printable Version of Mushroom and Lentil Pot Pies with Gouda Biscuit Topping

Mushroom and Lentil Pot Pies with Gouda Biscuit Topping
Serves 4

½ cup brown lentils
2 tbsp. olive oil
8 oz. sliced wild mushrooms
1 small onion, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 tsp. chopped fresh sage
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
3 cups vegetable broth
1 small russet potato, peeled and cut into ½-inch chunks
1 ½ tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
6 tbsp. yellow cornmeal
1 ¼ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
4 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, diced
½ cup buttermilk
3 oz. coarsely grated Gouda cheese

Combine 3 cups cold water, lentils, and ¼ tsp salt in medium saucepan. Bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until lentils are tender, about 30 minutes. Drain lentils.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until beginning to brown. Add onion, carrot, celery, and sage. Sauté another few minutes, until vegetables take on some color. Add garlic and sauté briefly (30 seconds or so) before adding the flour. Stir mixture constantly for one minute. Add 3 cups broth, potato, soy sauce, and tomato paste. Cover skillet, turn heat down, and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes.

While filling is cooking, combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl. Add butter and cut in gently with your fingers until well combined. Add buttermilk and mix gently with a fork until combined. Divide dough into four pieces and pat gently into ½-inch thick rounds with your hands.

Add lentils and season generously with salt and pepper. Divide filling evenly among large ramekins. Place one biscuit round on top of filling in each ramekin and sprinkle the biscuit with cheese. Place ramekins on baking sheet and bake for about 30 minutes.

Adapted from Bon Appétit

Growing up I didn’t like eggs. Actually I didn’t like breakfast food in general and could usually be found groggily heating up leftovers prior to my dreaded  7 AM departure for school. I blame my dislike of breakfast on persistent motion sickness. Rides to school and early morning plane flights (which seem unrealistically frequent in my memory – probably due to how torturous I found them) were always plagued with nausea. Thus anything I’d eaten that morning became associated with feeling poorly and voila, a food phobia was born.

Luckily, I’ve grown out of all my childhood food dislikes with only one big exception: seafood. Sorry fish-lovers but I don’t see that one changing anytime soon. But I will eat eggs any time of day now and actually rely on them regularly as a non-meat source of protein. These egg cups are a mismash of a recipe from this cookbook for baked eggs and this recipe from Cooking Light. The method is what’s important here; you can put any combination of cooked, slightly liquid-y vegetables over toasted bread in an ovenproof cup, break an egg over it, bake it, and get the same basic result. Getting the egg cooked properly is the trickiest part. In the photo above the white looks like it’s not completely set, but I assure you it was. It’s easy to overcook the yolk trying to get the white completely opaque. It helps to poke the white gently with a fork. If the fork comes out with runny white on it you need to cook it longer but if it comes out clean or with chunks of white, you’re golden.

Personally this version of the recipe is my favorite combination and uses ingredients we have available pretty much through the winter: beets and sweet potatoes. I’ve also made a delicious version with mustard greens, mushrooms, and red wine. Experimentation is encouraged here.

Printable version of Egg Cups

Egg Cups
Serves 2

1 large or 2-3 small beets, cleaned and trimmed
1 tbsp. olive oil
½ cup chopped onion
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cubed
1 medium white potato, peeled and cubed
2 tsp. minced fresh sage
3 tbsp. white wine
1 large chunk of bread, cubed and toasted
2-4 eggs
salt and pepper

Place beets in a small baking dish and cover with water. Cover the top of the dish with foil and roast at 350°F until tender when pierced with a fork (time depends entirely on size but you’re looking at about an hour here). When beets are done, remove pan from oven and let cool. Remove beets from water, peel, and cut into small chunks.

Heat olive oil in a nonstick sauté pan or cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Add onions and potato to skillet. Cook until potatoes are nicely browned and tender, about 20 minutes. Add beet and sage to potato mixture; season generously with salt and pepper. Cook over medium for 3 more minutes. Add wine to pan and stir 1-2 minutes, or until liquid has partially evaporated.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Divide bread cubes between two large 2-cup ramekins. Divide potato-beet mixture between ramekins. Make well in center of potato mixture, crack one or two eggs into the well. Bake until eggs are done to your liking – about 13-15 minutes.

Inspired by Vegetarian Suppers from Deborah Madison’s Kitchen and Cooking Light

(Christmas Cookies 2010: Coconut-Cream Cheese Pinwheels, Pistachio and Cherry Mexican Wedding Cakes, Grasshopper Squares, Chocolate-Dipped Shortbread, Sugar Cookies)

20 dozen cookies later I was more than ready for something savory. I finally hit on this successful recipe for wild rice chowder right before we left for a 10 day trip to Florida. But now that we’re home I’m back in the cooking groove and am happy to report that I’ve already discovered a few more delicious recipes to share with you in the coming weeks.

This soup reminds me of a more healthful (though admittedly slightly less delicious) version of a wild rice and mushroom soup my mom has made for many years. I made a few modifications, most notably streamlining the cooking process to allow the rice to cook in the same pot as the vegetables. I also made some swaps and additions based on the vegetables I had on hand. This recipe is adaptable like that and you can easily switch out anything that doesn’t suit your particular tastes.

I’m looking forward to a wonderful 2011 and hope you are too. I will see you again soon… promise!

P.S. This cookbook is an absolute treat for vegetarians and quasi-tarians (my invented term for myself) alike. I highly recommend it!

Printable version of Wild Rice Chowder

Wild Rice Chowder
Serves 6

2 tbsp. olive oil
½ onion, chopped
1 leek, halved lengthwise, cleaned, and sliced thinly
2 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
2 parsnips, peeled and cut into chunks
3 celery stalks, cut into chunks
1 Yukon Gold potato, peeled and cut into chunks
1 bulb fennel, thinly sliced
8 oz mushrooms, quartered
2 tbsp. flour
¾ cup wild rice
6 cups vegetable stock
1 quarter head green cabbage, sliced
½ cup whole milk or cream

Heat olive oil over medium in large stockpot. Add all vegetables (onion through mushrooms). Sauté for about 5 minutes, until beginning to brown. Add flour, 1 tsp. salt, and ½ tsp. pepper. Stir constantly for about 1 minute. Add rice and vegetable stock. Bring to a simmer, then turn heat to low and cover pot. Simmer for about 20 minutes, then add cabbage. Simmer 10 minutes more, until rice and vegetables are tender. Add milk/cream and additional salt and pepper to taste.

Adapted from Vegetarian Suppers from Deborah Madison’s Kitchen

November is my second favorite month, sliding in just behind October mostly because of the fact that I can’t resist the cuteness of Halloween costumes. But as you can imagine I also love Thanksgiving. A holiday that revolves around food, family, and pumpkin – what’s not to like? So I love November too. It’s still fall, at least in our climate, so I try to spend the month relishing the crisp air, crunchy leaves, and waning daylight.

I saw this recipe a few years ago in Bon Appetit and was totally intrigued. I love every ingredient in it: winter squash, spinach, wild rice, potatoes, mushrooms, and goat cheese. Swoon. I have no idea why I never got around to making in until recently.

The author suggested this would make a great vegetarian entrée for Thanksgiving. Since there wasn’t a photo in the magazine, it was hard for me to imagine it as an appropriate substitute for turkey. But now that I’ve made it I’ve seen firsthand how beautiful it is. This dish would be perfect for Thanksgiving. But it’s also perfect as a complete meal on a cool fall evening. It provides that hearty comfort food you’re looking for this time of year while remaining vegetarian and chock-full of lots of nutrition. I’ve modified the proportions of some of the ingredients but the basic premise of this recipe remains true to the original, minus a red wine sauce that I found to be simply superfluous. Enjoy.

Printable version of Stuffed Acorn Squash with Wild Rice and Mushrooms

Stuffed Acorn Squash with Wild Rice and Mushrooms
Serves 4

2 cups vegetable broth
½ cup wild rice
5 tbsp. butter
2 large acorn squash, halved, seeded
1 lb. russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 2-inch pieces
¼ cup milk
1 tbsp. chopped fresh sage
2 oz. fresh goat cheese, crumbled, room temperature
½ lb. assorted wild mushrooms, sliced
½ lb. fresh spinach

Bring chicken broth, rice, and 1 tbsp. butter to boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low. Partially cover; simmer until tender and some of rice is split, about 45 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350F. Trim ½-inch off rounded side of squash to flatten. Place squash halves, cut side down, on a rimmed baking sheet and roast until tender, about 45 minutes.
Place potatoes in medium saucepan. Cover with cold water. Sprinkle with salt. Bring potatoes to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain, mash. Bring 2 tbsp. butter, milk, and sage just to simmer in small saucepan (or in glass measuring cup in microwave), stirring to melt butter. Add mixture and goat cheese to potatoes; mash to blend. Season with salt and pepper.
Melt 1 tbsp. butter in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until soft, stirring often, about 8 minutes. Stir mushrooms into potatoes. Arrange squash halves, cut side up, on baking sheets. Divide potato-mushroom mixture among squash halves (about 1 cup each).
Preheat oven to 400F. Place stuffed squash in oven and bake until heated through, about 15 minutes. Bring rice back to a boil. Keep warm.
Melt 1 tbsp. butter in large skillet over medium heat. Add spinach and stir just until spinach wilts, about 3 minutes. Drain any excess liquid. Season with salt and pepper.
Divide spinach among four plates, arranging in center of plate. Divide rice among plates, placing atop spinach. Place squash half atop rice on each plate, pressing to nestle.

Adapted slightly from Bon Appétit