California-style brussels sprouts with pistachio and pomegranate

This dish may look like Christmas, but the Washington Post ran it last year as part of a healthy Thanksgiving recipes article. Brussels sprouts are always welcome at my Thanksgiving table, and this is a beautiful way to serve them.

California-Style Brussels Sprouts with Pistachio and Pomegranate 
Adapted from a recipe by The Washington Post

2 lbs. fresh Brussels sprouts, bottoms trimmed off and sprouts halved
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup water (Note: The original recipe calls for 1 to 2 tbsp. and says it is optional, but I think that using more water was necessary)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 oz. fresh pomegranate arils (seeds)
1/2 cup roasted unsalted pistachios
Finely grated zest and freshly squeezed juice from 2 lemons (use about 2 tbsp. of zest and 1 tbsp. of juice)

1. Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the olive oil and the Brussels sprouts. Cook, stirring occasionally until the sprouts are a bright-green color and golden around the edges, about 10 minutes.  Add the water, cover, reduce heat to medium-low and cook until the water has evaporated, about 5 minutes until the sprouts are tender. Season the sprouts with salt and pepper.

2. Transfer the cooked sprouts to a serving platter and top with the pomegranate seeds, pistachios, lemon zest and lemon juice.

Butternut Squash, Roasted Tomato and Popped Black Bean Salad

It's easy to load a Thanksgiving table with carb-heavy dishes like stuffing, mashed potatoes and biscuits. I'm not at all opposed to that, however, I like to balance my table with a few vegetable sides as well. This recipe, which was recently featured in the Washington Post, strikes me as being perfect as a healthy Thanksgiving side. More importantly, it's quite delicious. I've made it twice--loved it both times. There's very little added fat and no added sugar in this dish of primarily roasted squash and cherry tomatoes (good cherry tomatoes are mostly out of season, although I have still seen some recently--if not available, you could just omit them and still have a great dish, or perhaps substitute something like chickpeas). I love the black beans, which take on a slightly crispy texture from being cooked in a dry pan until they crack open. The recipe comes from Anna Jones' A Modern Way to Cook: 150+ Vegetarian Recipes for Quick, Flavor-Packed Meals. Based on this recipe, I'm more than a little intrigued about what other delicious ideas she has.

Butternut Squash, Roasted Tomato and Popped Black Bean Salad

Adapted from A Modern Way to Cook: 150+ Vegetarian Recipes for Quick, Flavor-Packed Meals by Anna Jones, as appeared recently in The Washington Post

Note on deviations from original recipe: I peeled the squash, as I prefer it that way. I added the olive oil spray. The recipe gave the option of using liquefied coconut oil instead of olive oil. The recipe called for freshly ground seeds from 2 green cardamom pods, whereas I just used already ground cardamom. The recipe gave the option of using coconut yogurt instead of plain. Also, I used more yogurt--an entire single-serving container.

1 butternut squash (about 2 pounds total), peeled
Olive oil spray

2 tbsp. plus 1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

Salt, to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 tsp. plus 1 tsp. ground cardamom
1 3/4 oz. (a generous 1/2 cup) flaked unsweetened coconut

25-30 golden or red cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1/2-inch piece peeled fresh ginger root, finely grated (such as with a Microplane)

14 oz. can of black beans, drained and rinsed

5.3 oz. (single-serving container) nonfat plain Greek yogurt 

Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lime

1. Position oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 475 F.

2. Line two baking sheets with aluminum foil and spray with olive oil spray. Cut off the ends of the squash, then cut it half lengthwise. Scoop out and discard the seeds (I recently discovered that an ice cream scoop is the perfect tool for this). Cut the squash halves into 1/2-inch-thick slices and arrange them on the two prepared baking sheets. Drizzle the squash slices with 2 tbsp. of olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt, pepper and 1 tsp. of ground cardamom. Roast the squash for 25 to 35, minutes until blistered and golden, rotating the baking sheets top to bottom and front to back after the first 15 minutes. Spread the toasted coconut over the squash and return the baking sheets to the oven for an additional 5 minutes or so until the coconut is lightly toasted. Remove from oven and set aside. If you only have one oven, keep it on for step 3 (if you have two ovens, you can do step 3 concurrently with step 2).

3. In a medium bowl, add the cut cherry tomatoes with remaining tablespoon of olive oil, salt and pepper, to taste, and grated ginger and toss to coat the tomatoes. Spread the cherry tomatoes onto another baking sheet (lined with aluminum foil for easy cleanup) and arrange them all cut-side up. Roast in the oven for about 20 minutes until the tomatoes look a bit deflated. Remove from oven.

4. While the vegetables roast, dry the drained/rinsed black beans on paper towels. Heat a nonstick skillet or saucepan (I used a shallow 3 1/2 qt. saucepan) over medium heat. Add the beans and cook for about 12-15 minutes, stirring occasionally until the beans have dried out, cracked open and crisped.

5. In a small bowl, add the yogurt, lime zest, lime juice, remaining tsp. of cardamom and salt and pepper to taste and stir to combine.

6. Serve the salad on a platter as follows: spread the beans first in a single layer, top with roasted squash slices, then the tomatoes and drizzle the yogurt on top.

Thanksgiving Central

Vegan Southwestern Spelt and Squash Bowl

It finally feels like fall, and after a week of vacation in Southern California, we were desperate for some healthy eating. This vegan grain bowl foots the bill perfectly, composed of chewy spelt, roasted butternut squash, onion, sage, pepitas and a kick of smoky chipotle chili powder. That's this dish is vegan was basically accidental--it dawned on me while we were eating it that it contained no meat or dairy ingredients. That said, some crumbled queso fresco or feta cheese would be good here, as would some dried cranberries.

Vegan Southwestern Spelt and Squash Bowl

1 cup spelt berries
Salt, to taste
16-20 oz. butternut squash (peeled and seeded), cut into 3/4-inch cubes
4 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 large or 3 medium celery stalks, halved and diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
Seasoned salt, to taste
1 tbsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. or more chipotle chili powder
2 tbsp. fresh sage, minced
15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup roasted pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
Juice from 1 lime

1. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan with a lid. Rinse the spelt and add to the boiling water with a pinch of salt. Reduce heat to simmer, covered, until the berries are tender but still chewy, about 40 minutes. Drain any excess water.

2. Preheat oven to 475 F. Combing cut squash with 2 tbsp. olive oil and 1/2 tsp. kosher salt. Spread in an even layer on an aluminum-foil-lined baking sheet and roast for 15 minutes. Use a spatula to flip the squash cubes over and continue roasting until lightly browned, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven, allow to cool slightly, the use the spatula to remove from the foil.

3. In a large steep-sided saute pan, heat 2 tbsp. olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, celery and garlic, season with seasoned salt, cumin and chipotle chili pepper, and sauté until softened, about 8-10 minutes. Stir in the sage and black beans and cook another couple minutes until fragrant and heated. Stir in the roasted squash, cooked spelt, pumpkin seeds (pepitas) and lime juice and turn off the heat. Serve in large shallow bowls.

Fresh Tomato Lasagna

Let's talk about lasagna for a minute. It's pretty amazing, right? Warm layers of chewy pasta alternating with layers of tomato sauce and gooey cheese. My mouth just started watering. It's a wonderfully versatile dish that can easily be adapted to include meat (or not), other vegetables (like squash) or not. You can definitely have it your way.

And it tastes good just about any time of year--except, perhaps, when the mercury rises up for those sweltering summer days like we're having right now. Do you want your kitchen oven to be on for hours this time of year? I didn't think so. It's enough to make you want to kiss lasagna goodbye (temporarily, of course).

Except it's such a shame, since lasagna is loaded with ingredients that are really good right now, principally tomatoes, which are reaching their peak. It lends itself well to lighter cheeses like mozzarella and ricotta, which are also summers staples. When you consider the fact that lots of other summer vegetables and herbs can play nice in a lasagna, I think it's time to find a compromise that lets us enjoy this wonderful dish even in 90-degree-plus weather.

So I did something novel: I made lasagna with the oven turned off. That's right. This lasagna is not baked. The noodles are cooked, but that's it. Consider it a cross between a pasta salad and a traditional lasagna. And the results were really quite good. The fresh ricotta "melts" into the fresh vegetable ingredients to make a delicious fresh uncooked sauce that's still sturdy enough to hold the layers of noodles together.

I conceived this dish as my entry for this year's Washington Post tomato recipe contest; however, unfortunately, the Food section staff revealed last week that there will be no contest this year. I hope it comes back. It's one of my favorite features they do (if it does, you can be sure I'll enter this next year).

Some tips: be sure to use regular lasagna noodles, not the "no boil" kind. Since you aren't baking this lasagna, the no-boil noodles will not work. You could probably use regular ricotta in place of fresh ricotta, but I haven't tried it. I find that fresh ricotta, which I get at Whole Foods, is a little firmer, so the consistency might be different, but I don't think it would be a deal-breaker. You can always make your own ricotta too.

Fresh Tomato Lasagna
Serves 12

15 lasagna noodles (13-14 oz)
3 large tomatoes (28 oz), diced
1 medium cucumber (9 oz), peeled, seeded and diced
1/2 cup minced red onion, minced
1/2 cup pitted kalamatta olives, chopped
1 oz fresh basil (about 32 leaves), most of the leaves cut into thin ribbons, with about 8-10 of the smaller leaves set aside
3/4 cup fresh ricotta
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
16 oz. fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook the lasagna noodles according to package directions for al dente. Drain and set aside. Lay the noodles flat on an oiled baking sheet until ready to use.

2. In a large bowl, combine the diced tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, olive and basil ribbons. Add the ricotta, olive oil and vinegar and stir to combine until the ricotta is well mixed and the mixture is "saucy." Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

3. In a lightly oiled 9 X 13 baking dish, spread about 1/2 cup of the sauce on the bottom of the dish, then lay 3 noodles on top, followed by about 3/4 cup of sauce, a second layer of noodles, another 3/4 cup of sauce, half of the sliced mozzarella, a third layer of noodles, another 3/4 cup of sauce, a fourth layer of noodles, another 3/4 cup of sauce, a final fifth layer of noodles, the last 3/4 cup of sauce (portion the sauce evenly, you may use a little more or a little less than 3/4 cup each time), and the remaining half of the sliced mozzarella. Spread the whole basil leaves on top, drizzle with a little olive oil and finish with a sprinkle of freshly ground black pepper.

4. Chill the lasagna in a refrigerator for about an hour. Serve cold cut into single-serving portions. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator--this is really good the next day too.

Related

Sliced Fresh Tomato Salad

Roasted Tomato Yaki Udon

Roasted Ratatouille Pasta with Garlic and White Wine Sauce

Flatbread with Tomatoes, Chickpeas and Yogurt Sauce

Roasted Tomato Risotto

Cocktail: Tipsy Gazpacho

Lasagna, Bolognese Style

Summer Vegetable Lasagna

Butternut Squash, Goat Cheese and Sausage Lasagna

Spinach-Tomato Lasagna with Sausage

Roasted Tomato and Kale Pasta

This is the other dish I made with the tomatoes I roasted the other weekend. With the cheese, it's vegetarian; without, it's vegan. Either way, it's delicious and simple to prepare if you've pre-roasted the tomatoes. This is an ideal dish to share with friends and family and eat outside on your patio.

Roasted Tomato and Kale Pasta

Salt, to taste
1 lb. whole-wheat pasta (I used gobbetti, which looks like it's identical to cavatappi)
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 bunch lacinato kale, stems removed and discarded, leaves cut into 1 1/2 to 2-inch pieces (about 3 cups of leaves)
1 cup (or so) simple roasted tomatoes, from 3 lb. fresh tomatoes (see recipe below)
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 tsp. Aleppo pepper flakes
1 tbsp. fresh thyme leaves
Grated pecorino-romano cheese

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook pasta 1 minute less than package directions for al dente (pasta will finish cooking in the sauce). Reserve 3/4 cup pasta cooking water. Drain pasta and set aside.

2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over moderate heat (medium to medium-high). Add onion and garlic and sauté until softened, about 8 minutes. Add the kale and cook, stirring occasionally, until the kale wilts. Add the tomatoes, season with salt (to taste), pepper, Aleppo pepper and thyme, and stir to combine, then add the reserved pasta cooking water and stir. When the mixture boils, reduce heat to simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the cooked pasta and continue simmering another minute or two until the pasta is chewy but cooked through.

3. Serve pasta in shallow bowls with grated pecorino-romano cheese.

Simple Roasted Tomatoes

3 lb. fresh tomatoes, stem end removed, cut into 1 to 2 inch pieces
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, plus olive oil spray
Kosher salt, to taste

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Add the tomatoes to a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and toss to combine. Spray a 9 X 13 baking dish with olive oil. Spread the tomatoes in an even layer in the baking dish.

3. Bake the tomatoes until they have reduced significantly in size, look shrived and are starting to brown around the edges, about 3 to 3 1/2 hours. Stir every hour for the first couple hours, then more frequently, up to every 10 to 15 minutes when you hit the 3-hour mark, to prevent the tomatoes from burning.

4. When done, remove from the oven, allow to cool, then transfer to a container to store in the refrigerator or freezer until ready to use.

Middle Eastern Chips and Salsa

What does spring taste like? It's definitely green. Herbal. And maybe a little tart. Spring dishes celebrate all those fresh flavors that went missing during the winter months. This is one of those ideal dishes for tasting spring.

I created this dish as appetizer for a dinner party. My original concept was a marriage between two classic dishes that celebrate the union of bread and vegetables: fattoush, which is a Middle Eastern bread salad with vegetables and pita pieces, and bruschetta, an Italian dish that consists of garlic-rubbed toasted bread often served with a topping, such as fresh tomatoes and basil.

I planned on making a fattoush-like salad with finely chopped ingredients and serving atop wedges of toasted pita. But I backed out of this plan thinking that the vegetable topping, which is pretty moist, would soak the pita too much. So instead, I decided to serve the topping in a bowl next to the pitas and use the pitas as chips for dipping into the topping. And, duh, that's basically what chips and salsa is, the favorite free (usually) appetizer of great Mexican restaurants everywhere.

The spices are essential to this dish, especially the ground sumac berries, which give the salsa an earthy tartness. Za'atar, if you're not familiar with it, is a Middle Eastern spice blend. There's some variation among specific za'atar blends, but I recommend finding one with thyme, sumac and sesame seeds as prominent ingredients.

Middle Eastern Chips and Salsa

1 tsp. ground sumac
1 tsp. warm water
3 whole-wheat pitas
Olive oil spray
1 tbsp. za'atar spice blend
2 medium tomatoes
1/2 cucumber
3 tbsp. chopped fresh mint
3 scallions, green part only, finely chopped
1 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. honey
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
Salt, to taste

1. Combine the sumac and water in small bowl and set aside for about 10 minutes.

2. Preheat oven to 375 F. Cut pitas into fourths, then carefully separate the two layers, resulting in 24 quarter-round pieces. Place the pitas on a baking sheet with the rough side (i.e., the side the inner side) up. Spray the pitas with olive oil, then sprinkle with za'atar. Bake in the oven until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer the chips to a cooling rack.

3. Slice off the tops of the tomatoes and squeeze the juice and seeds out, then chop the tomatoes into a fine dice. Peel and seed the cucumber, and chop into a similarly sized dice. Combine the diced vegetables in a small bowl and add the mint, scallions. Whisk together the soaked sumac with the soaking liquid, lemon juice, honey, olive oil, garlic powder and salt. Combine with the vegetable mixture and toss to coat. Serve the salsa in a bowl next to a plate with the pita chips.

Balsamic Roasted Carrots with Za'atar

Observant readers may have noticed that Monday's salmon recipe came with a side of roasted carrots. Here's the recipe for them.

This is a simple recipe that makes use of za'atar, a Middle Eastern spice blend that contains ingredients such as thyme, sumac and sesame seeds (the specific ingredients of za'atar blends vary).

Baby carrots

This recipe calls for baby carrots. Note that "baby carrots" are young, full-size carrots and not the "baby-cut" snack carrots that have been peeled, cut and shaped into little stubs and bagged. They usually come with the green tops still attached. Smaller ones can be roasted whole; larger ones should be cut in half lengthwise.

Balsamic Roasted Carrots with Za'atar
Adapted from Balsamic Glazed Carrots by Cravings of a Lunatic

1 bunch baby carrots, tops removed, peeled if desired, larger carrots (at least 1/2-inch thick) cut in half lengthwise
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
6 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp. za'atar spice blend
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Place carrots in a large bowl, add the olive oil and vinegar and toss until the carrots are coated. Spread carrots on an aluminum-foil-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with za'atar.

3. Roast the carrots for 20 minutes, then stir a bit with a spatula. Roast another 5 to 15 minutes, depending on how done you want the carrots (be sure they do not burn). Remove from oven and serve warm sprinkled with fresh parsley.

Roasted Vegetable Risotto Primavera

Spring is finally here, and spring produce is already showing up in markets. Although there are joys year-round of eating seasonally, there's something about spring produce that fits the season so well. It's so green, so vibrant, so alive, after months of eating imported off-season produce and dried and canned goods during the winter.

I find risotto to be a particularly good vehicle for showing off spring produce, and I find I make the traditional dish of rice cooked in broth with vegetables and cheese most frequently from March to June.

I've shared several variations of pasta primavera, "primavera" meaning "spring" in Italian, usually denoting a dish made with seasonal spring vegetables like asparagus, peas and greens. The vegetables in this dish most closely resemble what I used in my first Pasta Primavera recipe, which was inspired by the primavera recipe in The New Basics Cookbook by Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins.

I treat the vegetables in different ways here. Most of them--the red pepper, broccoli, carrot and squash--are roasted in the oven until lightly browned around the edges. The onion is sautéed and cooked with the rice and the sugar snap peas are lightly blanched in the broth. Everything is combined in the end with a generous helping of finely grated pecorino-romano, the hard-cheese alternative to parmigiano-reggiano that's perfect for spring dishes.

Roasted Vegetable Risotto Primavera

Note: Carnaroli rice is an Italian rice similar to arborio. Both are popular choices for risotto. Carnaroli rice has a higher starch content than arborio rice, is a bit longer and has a firmer texture.

1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 head of broccoli, cut into small florets (about 1-inch across)

2-3 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice

1 yellow summer squash, cut into 1/2-inch dice

3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

6 cups vegetable or chicken broth (you can use a mixture and low-sodium or standard depending on your taste preference; for this dish I used 4 cups vegetable broth and 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth; if you use only vegetable broth, the dish will be vegetarian)

8 oz. sugar snap peas, peas larger than 1 inch cut in half

1 tbsp. unsalted butter

1 yellow onion, diced

1 1/2 cups carnaroli rice (may substitute arborio rice, see note above)

3/4 cup dry white wine (sauvignon blanc recommended)

2 oz. grated pecorino-romano cheese

Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste (recommend a generous "dash")

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

2 tbsp. freshly chopped dill

2 tbsp. freshly chopped chives

1. Preheat oven to 425 F.

2. Combine red pepper, broccoli, squash and carrot in a large bowl. Drizzle with 2 tbsp. of olive oil and salt and toss to coat. Spread vegetables in an even layer on baking sheet (line with aluminum foil for easier clean-up) and roast for 20-25 minutes until lightly browned. Stir the vegetables and continue roasting another 10 minutes until most vegetables are browned around the edges. Set aside while you make the risotto.

3. Heat vegetable broth in a large saucepan until boiling. Add the sugar snap peas and cook for 2-3 minutes until crisp-tender. Remove peas with a slotted spoon and set aside. Reduce the heat under the broth to the lowest setting.

4. Heat remaining tbsp. of olive oil and butter in Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until softened, about 8-10 minutes. Add rice and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly toasted, about 3-4 minutes. Add wine and stir to combine. Cook until the wine is absorbed by the rice (when running a spoon across the bottom of the pot leaves a dry space). Add 2 cups of chicken broth, stir to combine, and simmer over medium heat until the broth is absorbed. Then, continue adding broth by 1/2 cupfuls, stirring to combine, stirring occasionally as the mixture cooks and waiting between additions until the previous addition is absorbed by the rice. In total, this should take about 20-25 minutes. Taste the rice once about 5 cups of broth are incorporated, as it may be done before all the broth is used. The rice should be "al dente"--that is, cooked through but still a bit chewy.

5. Stir in the roasted vegetables, blanched sugar snap peas, pecorino-romano cheese, nutmeg, pepper, dill and chives. Serve in shallow bowls.

Cacio e Pepe Pasta

Is it just me or is "cacio e pepe," which is Italian for cheese and pepper, everywhere all of a sudden? While not a new dish, this simple combination of hard Italian cheeses--usually pecorino-romano but often also parmigiano-reggiano--combined with freshly ground pepper is really hot right now, popping up on recipe sites and restaurant menus. Mashable named it the "coolest pasta of 2016."

As simple as this dish sounds, there are some fundamentals to keep in mind to make it right. You're not just going to cook noodles and toss them with cheese, butter and pepper. There's a little more finesse involved. With cacio e pepe, you're actually making a cheese sauce, albeit a very simple one.

Although it's not listed in the ingredients for the recipe, the key ingredient in this dish is the pasta cooking water--hot (but no longer boiling) salty water saturated with starch sloughed off from the cooked pasta. In this dish, finely grated cheese is whisked into this hot water, which melts the cheese. The starch in the water acts as a stabilizing ingredient. According to Harold McGee in On Food and Cooking, starch coats the protein and fat components of the cheese and keeps them from coming back together. He also notes that when cheese are exposed to temperatures above their melting point, they tend to get clumpy. Since the melting point of pecorino and parmesan cheeses is about 180 F (and the boiling point of water is 212 F), you don't want to "cook" this sauce on a hot stove, but you also don't want that leftover pasta cooking water to sit around too long get cool, at which point it won't be warm enough to melt the cheese. That's what actually makes getting this dish just right a bit challenging--you want that sweet spot temperature that will make a the cheese melt into a smooth sauce. When I made it, I think my water may have been a bit too hot, as my sauce was a bit clumpy. This is the sort of dish that benefits from repeated experiences until you get it right.

Whether you put other ingredients in cacio e pepe pasta is up to you. Some insist that it needs nothing other than pasta, cheese and pepper (some even insist that it only be made with pecorino romano and not also parmesan). On the other hand, America's Test Kitchen's recipe includes cream and olive oil. I added some butter to my sauce to increase its richness and because butter and pasta just go together so well.

Cacio e Pepe Pasta
Adapted from multiple sources, particularly America's Test Kitchen

Note: I used a Microplane to finely grate the cheese. In addition to the ingredients below, you'll need to reserve about 1 1/2 cups of the hot pasta cooking water once the pasta is done cooking.

3 quarts water
1 tsp. salt (or more or less to taste)
1 lb. dried bucatini pasta
4 oz. finely grated pecorino-romano cheese
2 oz. finely grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
3 tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature
1-2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1. Place 2 oz. of the pecorino-romano and all of the parmigiano-reggiano cheese in a medium-size bowl.

2. Heat a large pot of salted water over high heat until boiling. Add the pasta and cook, according to package directions, until al dente. Working quickly, reserve 1 1/2 cups of the pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta in a colander and set aside in the large pot off the stove.

3. Slowly whisk 1 cup of the hot pasta cooking water into the medium-size bowl with the mixture of grated cheeses until they form a smooth sauce, then whisk in the butter and pepper. Pour the sauce over the pasta and stir to combine. Serve the pasta in shallow bowls topped with additional grated pecorino cheese and, if desired, more freshly ground pepper.

Lunching with Snowzilla: Making Due with What's on Hand

If you're like me and millions of other East Coast dwellers this weekend, you're snowed in. Restaurants, if you can walk to them, are probably closed. Markets are closed and completely wiped out of food anyway. In short, you gotta make do with what's in the fridge.

In the days leading up to this weekend's big storm, we stocked up as best we could, but I also view this as an opportunity to clean out and use up a few things that might have otherwise gone to waste.

Take today's lunch. Feeling like something other than a peanut butter & jelly sandwich, I looked through the fridge to see what odds and ends might yield a decent lunch. I found half a cucumber from a salad I made earlier in the week, some celery and scallions left over from kung pao chicken, half a block of feta cheese from last week's salad, my husband's mostly empty tub of hummus and a almost-empty jar of sundried tomatoes.

Together with a few new items--a fresh loaf of bread, a tub of arugula and a few other condiments and seasonings--I turned this motley crew of scraps into a delicious vegetarian lunch, a cucumber, hummus and feta sandwich and an arugula, celery and peanut salad, both of which were quite tasty.

Cucumber, Hummus and Feta Sandwich
Makes 2 sandwiches

4 slices whole-grain bread
2-4 tbsp. hummus
2-3 scallions, chopped
1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced
1/4 cup crumbed feta cheese
2 tbsp. sundried tomatoes, cut into small pieces
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Toast the bread, then spread two slices with a generous 1 to 2 tbsp. of hummus. Top with scallions, slices of cucumber, crumbled feta, sundried tomatoes and a sprinkle of freshly ground pepper--plus the other toasted slices of bread.

Arugula, Celery and Peanut Salad
Serves 2

2 cups arugula leaves
2-3 celery stalks, sliced at an angle into 1/8-inch thick slices
1/3 cup unsalted roasted peanuts, chopped
2-3 scallions, chopped
1/2 tsp. Aleppo pepper
1 tbsp. rice vinegar
1 tsp. honey
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Combine the arugula, celery, peanuts, scallion and Aleppo pepper in a large bowl. Whisk together the other ingredients, pour over the salad and toss to coat with the dressing.

Curry-Roasted Cauliflower and Celery Quinoa Bowl

Did you have a good Thanksgiving? We certainly did. We're also stuffed and desperately in need of some of those more virtuous dishes that are supposed to provide the balance in the balanced-diet. So before we march forth with Christmas cookies, holiday get-together cocktails and other assorted year-end treats, let's pause and have something healthy--yet still quite delicious.

If you've never had cauliflower roasted, I suggest you get yourself a head of the slightly bitter branch-like vegetable and preheat that oven. It's really good when cooked this way (see the related recipe links below for other roasted-cauliflower dishes). Here I've tossed it with curry and other seasonings and served it in a grain bowl with quinoa, spinach, dried cranberries and cashews.

Curry-Roasted Cauliflower and Celery Quinoa Bowl

2-3 cups baby spinach greens
1 head of cauliflower (I used orange "cheddar" cauliflower)
1 bunch of stalk celery (flavorful farmers market celery is recommended)
3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. curry powder
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
3/4 cup rainbow quinoa (may use other colors), rinsed
1 tbsp. unsalted butter
1/2 red onion, diced
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup water
1/3 cup cashews
1/3 cup dried cranberries
Juice from 1 lemon
1 tbsp. honey
Sriracha (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 425 F with two oven racks evenly spaced about 1/3 of the way from the top and bottom of the oven.

2. Place the spinach greens in a large bowl.

3. Remove the cauliflower core and discard it; cut the rest of the cauliflower into florets and transfer to a large bowl. Drizzle with 2 tbsp. of olive oil, curry powder, salt and pepper and toss to coat the florets. Spread florets in an even layer on a baking sheet.

4. Remove the celery stalks and cut off both ends (discard the ends). Cut the stalks on an angle into pieces about 1 1/2 inches long. Transfer to a large bowl, drizzle with 1 tbsp. olive, salt and pepper and toss to coat the celery pieces. Spread celery in an even layer on a baking sheet.

5. Roast the cauliflower and celery until lightly browned around the edges, about 30 minutes, stirring both after about 15 minutes. When they come out of the oven, immediately add to the bowl with the spinach, which will make the spinach wilt a bit.

6. While the vegetables roast, make the quinoa: Heat a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the quinoa and toast, stirring frequently, until the quinoa is fragrant and makes a popping sound almost continuously, about 5 minutes. Transfer quinoa to a bowl.

7. Add butter to saucepan and, when melted, add the onions and garlic. Season with a little salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are softened, about 5 minutes. Add the water and toasted quinoa and bring to a simmer. Cover the saucepan, reduce heat to low and cook for 18 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to sit covered for 5 to 10 minutes. Remove the lid and stir the quinoa.

8. Add the quinoa to the bowl with the spinach, cauliflower and celery. Add the cashews, dried cranberries, lemon juice and honey. Stir to combine all the ingredients. Serve in bowls topped with Sriracha, if desired.

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Green Bean Salad with Almonds and Quinoa

It's no secret that a traditional Thanksgiving dinner isn't exactly a paragon of healthy eating. There are a lot of carbs and a lot of fat. It's the only meal of the year where I literally go through pounds of butter.

While I'm not about to ditch all the traditional favorites--I believe that a rich Thanksgiving dinner can balance with normal healthy eating--that's not to say that a low-calorie side dish isn't welcome to the party.

Enter this Green Bean and Quinoa salad, adapted from a recipe I found from the Wandering Spice blog. This is simple, vegetarian side that adds a nice bright and green element to the Thanksgiving table.

Green Bean Salad with Almonds and Quinoa
Adapted from Quick Green Bean and Quinoa Salad with Toasted Almonds and Lemon-Yogurt Dressing by Wandering Spice

Note: You'll only need 1/3 cup of pre-cooked quinoa. I usually make a cup, use 1/3 for this recipe and save the rest for salads, as a base for stews, or mixed into brothy soups. You'll also end up with extra yogurt dressing, which is the perfect match with raw veggies.

1/3 cup cooked quinoa
400g (roughly a little more than 3/4 lb.) green beans, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
1/3 cup sliced almonds, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup Greek yogurt
1 tsp. lemon zest
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp. chopped fresh dill
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Prepare quinoa according to package instructions. Add 1/3 cup of the cooked quinoa to a large bowl; save the rest of the quinoa for other uses (see note above).

2. Place a steamer basket in a medium saucepan with 1 inch of water (make sure the bottom of the basket doesn't touch the water) and set over high heat to bring to a boil. Once the water boils, add the green beans and steam until they are tender, about 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the beans from the steamer and rinse with cold water until chilled. Transfer to the large bowl.

3. Toast the chopped almonds in a small frying pan over medium-low heat until they begin to brown, then remove from pan and add to the large bowl with the green beans and quinoa.

4. Combine the yogurt, lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, fresh dill, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Pour over the green beans and quinoa mixture and toss to combine. Serve immediately.

Kale, Smoked Gouda and Pecan Gratin

As I mentioned on Friday, it's easy to overlook vegetable sides when putting together a Thanksgiving meal that already consists of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, and cranberry sauce. But they are a welcome complement to those protein- and carb-rich dishes. That's not to suggest that every vegetable side has to be virtuously "healthy." Enter the gratin: a hot, bubbly, creamy irresistibly cheesy vegetable side. Gratins are easy and popular. They are often topped with cheese or bread crumbs, although for this one, I used a topping of finely chopped pecans, which go nicely with the smoky gouda cheese melted into the sauce.

Kale, Smoked Gouda and Pecan Gratin

12 oz. lacinato kale
Salt, to taste
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, cold
1 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 cup whole milk
1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
Dash of ground nutmeg
3/4 cup shredded smoked gouda cheese
3/4 cup pecan halves

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Cut the stems from the kale leaves. Chop the leaves into 2-inch wide pieces. Dice the stems.

3. Bring a large saucepan with two quarts of salted water to boil. Cook the kale leaves in the boiling water until tender, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from water and set aside to cool. Squeeze leaves to remove excess moisture and set aside in a large bowl.

4. Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the diced kale stems, onion, and garlic, season with salt and pepper and sauté until softened, about 8-10 minutes. Transfer onion mixture to the bowl with the kale leaves.

5. Return the sauté pan to medium heat. Add 1 tbsp. butter and, when melted, add the flour and whisk to combine. Cook, whisking constantly, until lightly browned, about a minute or two. Add the milk, mustard and nutmeg, whisk to combine and cook until the mixture bubbles and thickens. Reduce heat to medium-low and add the shredded cheese. Whisk until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth.

6. Pour cheese sauce over cooked vegetables in the large bowl and stir to combine. Transfer to a buttered 9 x 9 baking dish.

7. Pulse pecans in a food processor until ground into crumbs. Spread in an even layer on top of the kale mixture. Cut the remaining tbsp. of butter into small cubes and scatter across the top of the pecan topping.

8. Bake the gratin until the mixture bubbles, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool a bit before serving warm.

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Sweet Potatoes with Mole and Queso Fresco

Yes, there are three chiles in this recipe, but they are relatively mild, making this a wonderfully spicy but not hot Mexican-inspired side for Thanksgiving. Yet another example of how sweet potatoes work wonderfully in a savory preparation.

The mole sauce can be made in advance and stored in the fridge, which I would definitely recommend doing if you want to make this for Thanksgiving. Mole has a lot of ingredients, but it's not complicated.

Sweet Potatoes with Mole and Queso Fresco
Mole sauce adapted from multiple recipes, including Braised Chicken with Oaxacan Chocolate Mole Sauce, Food & Wine

2 ancho chiles, stems and seeds removed
1 guajillo chile, stems and seeds removed
3 lb. sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
Salt, to taste
1/4 cup almonds
3 tbsp. golden raisins
1/3 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/3 cup sesame seeds
1 star anise pod
1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
1/2 tsp. coriander seeds
2 cloves
12 black peppercorns
One cinnamon stick
3 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 yellow onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, smashed
6 oz. can tomato paste
6 oz. bittersweet chocolate
2 cups water
1 cup crumbled queso fresco

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Soak the chiles in hot water for 30 minutes while preparing other ingredients.

3. Combine the cubed sweet potatoes, olive oil and salt in a large bowl and toss to coat. Spread potatoes in an even layer on a baking sheet. Roast for 20 to 30 minutes until the potatoes are soft and very lightly browned.

4. In a 4-quart saucepan over medium-low heat, combine the sesame seeds, star anise, cumin, coriander, cloves, peppercorns and cinnamon stick. Toast, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Transfer mixture to a spice grinder and allow it to cool then grind the seeds and spices to a fine powder.

5. Return the 4-quart saucepan to the stove, add the vegetable oil and increase heat to medium. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the almonds, raisins and pumpkin seeds and cook for 2-3 minutes. Stir in the ground spice mixture, tomato paste and bittersweet chocolate, then add the chiles and water and stir until the ingredients are well combined. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes. Allow to cool, then puree the mixture using an immersion blender or transfer to a food processor and puree in batches. Transfer mole sauce to a container and store in the fridge until ready to use (reheat in the microwave as needed). Makes about 3 to 4 cups.

6. In a large bowl combine the roasted sweet potatoes with about 1 to 1 1/2 cups of mole sauce and stir to combine. Top with crumbled queso fresco and serve immediately.

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Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Pecans and Honey-Curry Yogurt

I've always liked Indian food, but I made a particular effort to get to know it better this year. In April, I wrote about D.C.'s Indian restaurant scene and, at at that time, although I didn't blog about it, I also experimented with cooking Indian dishes like Chicken Tikka Masala, Palak Paneer and Dal. I was struck by the quantity of spices that went into those dishes--tablespoons of things I've typically measured in portions of teaspoons--but that's what makes Indian food so intense.

Dial back that intensity a bit, but maintaining the flavor profile, and there's no reason Indian flavors can't make themselves at home on the Thanksgiving table. Although a lot of traditional Thanksgiving dishes can be bland, it's also an eclectic spread. And that eclecticism should make recipes flavored with curry, ginger, garlic, garam masala and the like at home with your typical stuffings, turkey and gravy. 

As far as what Indian cooking can be, this dish is very simple, making it an ideal Thanksgiving side. Basically, I took everybody's latest favorite vegetable, the Brussels sprout, and tossed it with yogurt flavored with honey and curry powder. It's simple, delicious and healthy. An easy vegetable side if you're looking to spice things up a bit. If you like this idea, stay tuned for another Indian-themed Thanksgiving dish coming later this month.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Pecans and Honey-Curry Yogurt

1 cup pecan halves
1 1/2 lb. Brussels sprouts, ends trimmed and large sprouts (those larger than about 3/4-inch) cut in half
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
2 tsp. honey
1 1/2 tsp. curry powder

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Spread pecans on a baking sheet in an even layer. Toast for 5-6 minutes until fragrant (be careful not to burn them). Remove from oven and allow to cool. Transfer to a cutting board and coarsely chop. Set aside.

2. Increase oven to 425 F. Combine Brussels sprouts, olive oil, salt and pepper in a large bowl and toss to coat. Spread sprouts in a single layer on a baking sheet, rotating any sprouts so the cut-side is down. Roast until the sprouts have softened and browned around the edges, about 20-25 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly.

3. In a small bowl, combine the yogurt, honey and curry powder. In a large bowl, combine the toasted pecans, roasted Brussels sprouts and curry-yogurt sauce and stir to coat the sprouts. Serve immediately.

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Corn-Leek Soup

Earlier this year, I shared a recipe for a "punchier" potato-leek soup, which was my attempt to make a more flavorful version of the classic soup. Potato-leek soup is lovely, but unfortunately, it can be rather bland.

There's a fantastic solution available during the late summer: ditch the potatoes and replace them with corn. Hence, corn-leek soup, which is fantastic. Corn is naturally somewhat creamy too, so there's no need to add any dairy to this recipe, which is built with carrots, shallots, garlic and, of course, corn and leeks.

I'd intended to use vegetable broth in this, but I forgot to buy it, so I just used water. And you know what? I didn't miss the broth at all. There are so many flavorful vegetables in this soup that it makes its own broth. This soup was good both hot just after I made it as well as cold the next day.

Corn-Leek Soup

2-3 leeks
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 shallots, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
6 ears of corn, shucked
6 cups water
Salt, to taste (at least 1 tsp. recommended)
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
Smoked paprika, to taste

1. Remove the green leaves from the leaves, leave the root end intact and slice them in half length-wise. Rinse them with water, separating the layers, to wash away any grit. Chop the light green and white parts into 1/4-inch pieces.

2. Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the leeks, carrot, shallot and garlic and sauté until softened, about 10-12 minutes.

3. Cut the kernels from the corn cobs. Do not discard the cobs. Add the corn kernels, corn cobs, water, salt, cayenne pepper and freshly ground pepper to the pot. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 25 minutes.

4. Turn off the heat. Remove and discard the corn cobs. Puree the soup with an immersion blender until smooth or, alternatively, puree in batches in a blender. Serve in shallow bowls sprinkled with chives and smoked paprika.

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Pasta with Quick-Cooked Tomato Sauce

It's hard to believe Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukin's The New Basics Cookbook is over 26 years old. The number one song in America when this book came out was Bobby Brown's "My Prerogative," his first (and only) #1 hit. Back then an "app" was something you ate before an entree and a "tweet" was a sound a bird made. Nobody bought music from Apple (unless you count the record companies). Cell phones wouldn't find in your bag, let along your pocket.

Well, you'll be chirping with delight if you make this easy tomato sauce for pasta. After my mother's spaghetti recipe, this was the second pasta dish I learned to cook when I was in high school, and it's still a hit today.

I made a couple of minor alterations. The original recipe calls for a mix of fresh and canned tomatoes, but since it's summer, I went with all fresh. I also substituted fresh basil for the recipe's flat-leaf parsley and upped the volume of fresh herbs, since fresh basil is so wonderful with tomatoes and, after a failed first attempt earlier this summer, I have a beautiful basil plant growing on my balcony now.

Pasta with Quick-Cooked Tomato Sauce
Adapted from Quick Cooked Tomato Sauce from The New Basics Cookbook by Julee Rosso & Sheila Lukins

Salt, to taste
1 lb. dried fettuccine pasta
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, divided
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
4 cups fresh tomatoes, cut into 1/2 to 1 inch pieces
1/4 cup tomato paste
Dash of grated nutmeg
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 yellow onion, cut into thin slivers
1/2 cup fresh basil, cut into thin ribbons (chiffonade)
Grated pecorino-romano cheese

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook the pasta according to package directions for al dente. Drain pasta and set aside.

2. Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook until softened, about 1 minute. Add the fresh tomatoes and tomato paste and stir to combine. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg and increase heat to medium-high until the mixture bubbles, then decrease heat to medium. Simmer until the tomatoes are tender and falling apart, about 10 to 15 minutes.

3. Preheat oven broiler with rack about 4-5 inches from the broiler. In a medium bowl, toss the slivered onion with 1/4 cup olive oil, salt and pepper. Spread onion mixture on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet in an even layer. Broil about 5-7 minutes, stirring every couple minutes, until the onions are lightly golden brown (be sure to stir to prevent onions from burning--some will still be quite browned around the edges, which is fine). Set onions aside.

4. Stir the pasta and fresh basil into the pasta sauce and turn off the heat. Serve the pasta in shallow bowls topped with some of the broiled onions and grated pecorino-romano cheese at the table.

Roasted Tomato Yaki Udon

Yaki Udon is a simple Japanese dish of fried udon noodles--those wide Japanese noodles that resemble linguine--usually served with a mixture of meat and vegetables. I thought it could be interesting to develop a version of Yaki Udon that uses tomatoes.

By now, a lot of you have probably heard of the so-called "fifth taste," umami. The term is Japanese and mean roughly "savory." Lots of Japanese dishes are loaded with umami flavor, which comes from foods high in glutamates like mushrooms, seaweed and certain types of fish. Dashi, for example, is a Japanese broth made from dried kombu seaweed and dried fish flakes known as bonito or katsuobushi. Dashi doesn't taste like much by itself, but the glutamate-rich broth is used to enhance the flavor of other ingredients (I've used it to poach salmon, for example).

Tomatoes, although not something we commonly associate with Japanese food, are also loaded with glutamates. This isn't so apparent with raw tomatoes, but when roasted, those savory notes really come through. I thought it would be interesting to make Yaki Udon using a roasted tomato sauce. A sort of "Japanese Spaghetti" if you will.

I roasted and pureed fresh tomatoes for this dish and then made a sauce with onions, scallions, garlic and shiitake mushrooms. Although spaghetti is commonly garnished with grated parmesan, I used black sesame seeds. Although it takes awhile to roast the tomatoes, this can be done ahead of time. Otherwise, the dish comes together quite quickly.

Roasted Tomato Yaki Udon

3 lb. ripe red tomatoes, cut into 1 to 2 inch chunks
4 tbsp. vegetable oil, divided
1/2 tsp. sea salt
10 oz. package dried udon noodles
1/2 yellow onion, diced
4-5 scallions chopped, white and light green parts separated from the green part
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 oz. shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and caps sliced into 1/4-inch slices
2 tbsp. low-sodium tamari (may use soy sauce)
1 tbsp. mirin
1 tbsp. toasted sesame oil
2-3 tbsp. black sesame seeds

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine tomatoes, 2 tbsp. vegetable oil and sea salt in a large bowl and toss to combine. Spread the tomatoes in an even layer in a 9 X 13 baking dish. Roast the tomatoes, stirring every 30 minutes, until the tomatoes have shriveled, browned a little around the edges and significantly reduced in volume, about 3 to 3 1/2 hours. Set aside to cool. Transfer tomatoes and any remaining juices to a food processor and pulse 5 to 6 times to make a chunky sauce. Store sauce in the refrigerator until ready to use.

2. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the udon noodles and cook until the noodles are al dente, about 4-6 minutes (may vary by noodle brand, consult package directions). Drain noodles and set aside.

3. Heat remaining 2 tbsp. of oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté until softened, about 2 minutes. Add the white and light green chopped scallions and the garlic and cook for about 1 minute, stirring frequently. Add the mushrooms and sauté until tender and their water has evaporated, about 4 minutes.

4. Add the noodles to the stir fry and stir to combine. Add the soy sauce and mirin (the liquid will help break up the noodles if they are sticking together). Stir to combine the noodles with the other ingredients and cook about 1-2 minutes. Add the roasted tomato sauce and the sesame oil, reduce heat to medium-low and cook just enough to reheat the tomatoes, 1-2 minutes. Add the sesame oil and chopped scallion greens and stir to combine.

5. Serve the noodles in bowls topped with a sprinkle of black sesame seeds.

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