roasted pear salad

I love this salad. It is one of the easiest and yet most elegant things I have ever made. It barely requires a recipe, is a cinch to make for a crowd, and belongs in your recipe box. It has a tangy sweetness, and when served with a nice blue cheese it really is out of this world. Make. It. Now. And share it with friends. Please. We don't need to be greedy here.



The original recipe comes from Susan Spungen, champion of simply elegant dining. Her recipe calls for seckel pears - the itty bitty ones - but I prefer bosc or bartlett pears, as they do not get too mushy when baked. You can use just about any kind of blue cheese - I prefer a gorgonzola, either mountain or dolce, depending on how I feel that day - and you could leave it out altogether and still have a great salad.

And as a little aside, I must share a little story of my history with pear. I never used to like them, and think I was traumatized by those kindergarten snack times when we had canned pear halves that Teacher Connie made to look like little bunnies. They had cottage cheese tails, raisin eyes, sliced almond ears and little licorice whiskers. They were kind of cute. And I hated them. I would not eat them, and must have gone hungry on those days, but could not deal with the texture of any of those components. If anything, I ate the licorice and left the rest. Any of you who know me well know that I still will not eat cottage cheese and have a tenuous relationship with raisins. It took me nearly 20 years to come to terms with pears, which I now enjoy, and I think this recipe, which I first made a few years ago, aided in my conversion!



Roasted Pear Salad
serves 4

2 pears, bosc or bartlett, halved and cored
1 or 2 shallots, thinly sliced
1 to 2 tbsp good balsamic vinegar
1 to 2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper

mixed greens or arugula
1/3 cup toasted walnuts

2 slices whole wheat bread, crusts removed, halved and toasted
1/4 lb blue cheese, preferably gorgonzola

Vinaigrette
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp dijon mustard
salt and pepper

Cut each pear half into two or three wedges, lengthwise, and arrange in single layer, along with the sliced shallots, on a sheet pan. Drizzle with oil and vinegar, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and stir to coat. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or so until shallots are very soft and pears are cooked through (i usually stick a paring knife in one to test - if the knife comes out easily, pears are done!) Set aside to cool.

Whisk together the vinaigrette ingredients.

To assemble salad: plate a handful of arugula/mixed greens (I prefer the peppery contrast the arugula provides to the sweetness of the pears). Top with 1/4 of the pear mixture. Sprinkle with toasted walnuts, drizzle with vinaigrette. Serve a slice of wheat toast topped with gorgonzola on the side. Enjoy!

- e

red chard

we often have kale as a side dish but lately have been expanding our repertoire of dark leafy greens. they're super good for you and easy to prepare and you can add any flavors you want while sauteeing to make them fit perfectly with any meal.

this red chard that we made recently was cooked with a splash of dressing that we made a ton of the night before. the recipe we based it on comes from the tassajara cookbook (which is gorgeous and has a million things i want to make when picnic season is upon us). it's called wa-fu dressing and the recipe* is:

1/2 c. tamari
1/4 c. sugar
3/4 c. rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
combine all ingredients in a bowl and chill before using

but we were missing sugar (of all things...) so kris worked his magic and did a little less rice vinegar and replaced the rest with mirin. it added a nice sweetness and was delicious!

so! to make your chard taste like wa fu (or faux fu in our case), remove your chard from the stem and tear into pieces and wash well. heat a little oil in a pan and add the chard (in batches if you need to) until it starts to wilt. add 1/4 - 1/2 cup (depending on how much chard you have) and sautee for about 10 minutes until nice and tender.
combine all in a bowl and mix well. chill before using.

*we cut this in half and still had tons. you could probably third or quarter it if you're in the mood for some math and eyeballing.

-d

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

If you happen to live on the East Coast, you are probably covered in snow at the moment, dreaming of summertime and tropical getaways and fruity drinks with cute little umbrellas. And cursing winter in general. Since I was not prepared to invest in a team of huskies, I am stayed in today, admiring the white stuff from the comfort of my apartment and dreaming of something different. Namely, cookies. I don't know what it is this winter - ahem - that has inspired this cookie-baking zeal, but I am fairly certain that I could eat a cookie - or five - every day until they have to remove me from my apartment with a crane. So this morning, while watching news reports of the snow and subsequent school cancellations, I started scheming. What kind of cookies would I make? What did I have on hand to make said cookies with (because going outside, even around the corner, was just not an option today)? I decided I wanted something classic but substantial. Oatmeal raisin? Chocolate chip? Something with nuts? In the end, I decided on these - a little oatmeal chocolate chip goodness. Wholesome and yet a touch decadent. Not too sweet, with a delightful interplay of cinnamon and chocolate. And just perfect with a cup of tea on a wintry New England day. Yum.


Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
yields about 24 cookies

1 stick unsalted butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powed
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups oatmeal
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup toasted walnuts (optional)

Beat together butter and sugars until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, then vanilla, mixing well after each addition.

Add flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt (you can sift these together, if you like) and mix well. Add in oatmeal, choco chips and walnuts (if using) and mix until just incorporated.

Drop by the heaping teaspoonful onto baking sheets and bake for 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool for a minute on baking sheets before transferring to baking racks to cool completely. Enjoy!

- e

southeast asian rice and tofu soup

Friends of mine gave me one of the Moosewood cookbooks for my birthday, and it has loads of soup recipes. Two hundred seventy-five plus recipes. And since it was quite cold here in Boston last week, I felt the need to make some soup. But with so many choices, I was not sure which soup to make! I settled on this one, a light, warming soup with just a hint of spice. Very restorative, super healthy, quite tasty. In making it again, I would add an extra chili, because I would have liked extra spice. Also, f you would like the soup a bit thicker, I recommend adding a bit more than the recommended 1/3 cup of rice.





Southeast Asian Rice and Tofu Soup
from the Moosewood Restaurant Daily Special

Spice Paste

3 fresh lemongrass stalks
1 small piece of ginger root
1 fresh chili (seeds removed for a milder spice)
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 cup chopped onions or shallots
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp salt

Trim the root ends and tops of the lemongrass, leaving a 5-to-6 inch stalk. Remove any tough outer layers and chop the inner stem into very small pieces. Peel the ginger and thinly slice. Combine all of the spice paste ingredients in a food processor or blender and puree until quite smooth. If necessary, add about a tablespoon of water to facilitate blending. Set aside.

Soup

1 cup thinly slices onions
1 tbsp canola or vegetable oil
1/3 cup raw white rice, such as basmati
6 cups basic vegetable stock (see recipe below)
1/2 cup green beans, topped (I also added snow peas, because, why not!)
1 cup thinly sliced red bell peppers
8 ounces tofu, cut in small cubes
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup coconut milk (optional, but highly recommended!)

In soup pot, saute onions in the oil over medium heat until translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the spice paste and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in rice and stock and bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add the green beans, snow peas, peppers, tofu, lime juice and salt, and simmer for about 5 minutes (I like my veggies crunchy!). Finish with coconut milk and cilantro. Serve, sprinkled with extra cilantro, if desired. Enjoy!

Basic Light Vegetable Stock

10 cups water
2 medium onions, quartered
4 medium carrots, peeled, roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves, unpeeled and smashed
2 large potatoes
2 celery stalks, coarsely chopped
2 fresh parsley springs
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp whole peppercorns

Wash the veg well, removing any soil or sand. Combine all ingredients in a large soup pot, cover, and bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 45 minutes. When the vegetables are quite soft and have lost their bright colors, the stock is done.

Strain stock through large colander or sieve, pressing out as much liquid as possible. Stock can be refrigerated for 4 days, or frozen for up to 6 months.


- e

farro salad with artichoke hearts

Farro is an ancient grain, a variety of wheat cultivated for thousands of years. It grows wild in the Fertile Crescent region of the Middle East, and the earliest evidence of domesticated farro (also known as emmer wheat) dates to 7700 BC. I love it for its versatility and nuttiness. If you cannot find farro, barley can be substituted

This salad is super simple, very tasty, and keeps quite well - so you can make a big batch and take it for lunch!


Farro Salad with Artichoke Hearts
from Williams-Sonoma's Eatwell

1 1/4 cups semi-pearled farro
1/4 cup oil-packed sundried tomatoes
1 jar (14 oz) artichoke hearts (i purchased mine at the italian deli around the corner - Salumeria Italiana; they cure their own, and are absolutely delicious!)
6 tbsp red wine vinegar
3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted

Rinse farro and put in saucepan with 2 1/2 cups water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until grains are tender and water is absorbed, about 25 minutes.

Drain tomatoes and julienne. Drain, rinse, and quarter artichokes. (You can substitute oil from either the tomatoes or artichokes for some of the oil in the dressing!)

In a large bowl, whisk together vinegar and olive oil. Add cooked farro, sundried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, onion, parsley and pine nuts. Mix well. Season generously with salt and pepper and serve. Enjoy!

- e

quinoa for jill

jill requested a quinoa recipe and i have been meaning to post one for her for weeks. it took me long enough but, at last, here you go my dear.

i came up with this recipe with jill in mind. she likes chickpeas. she likes spinach. and she likes chickpeas and spinach together. she wants more tofu ideas. i have also heard that the grocery stores of lincoln, nebraska tend to lack in the exciting ingredient department. so, keeping all these things in mind, a perfectly jilly (i think) quinoa was born.

quinoa with spicy chickpeas, spinach and tofu
ingredients:
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 bunch spinach
1 shallot (or onion), chopped
extra firm tofu, well drained and dried
soy sauce
olive oil
smoked paprika
chili powder
cayenne pepper
salt

combine the quinoa and water in a pot and bring to a boil. reduce heat, cover and simmer 10-15 minutes until water is absorbed.

heat a drizzle of olive oil in a pan and add the chickpeas. season with salt, paprika, chili powder and cayenne to your liking. cook over medium-high heat until chickpeas start to get brown and cunchy on the outside.

while your chickpeas are cooking, heat a little more oil in another pot and add shallots and a pinch of salt. cook a few minutes until soft and fragrant. add spinach and cook until just wilted.

when the chickpeas are done move them into a bowl and use the same pan to cook the tofu (no need to rinse, the spices are good!). slice tofu into 1/4 - 1/2 inch slabs. cook over high heat in the pan with a little oil and a splash of soy sauce. cook a few minutes on each side until they get browned and a little crusty. remove from heat, let cool a minute then cut into bite sized pieces.
place everything in a bowl over quinoa, adjust seasoning with more salt if you want and enjoy!

-d

pecan crusted tofu

a few days ago kris mentioned that one of the few things he misses about eating meat is a pecan crusted chicken sandwich that he got from some (no longer in existence) place in boston. it was perfect timing as we had just recently made a miso-tahini breaded tofu that i thought needed a little something extra. pecans to the rescue! we put the tofu on sandwiches (cause that was half the point) with this bread from smitten kitchen (which is wonderful and you should all run off and make some now). the tofu would be equally tasty on it's own or perhaps as a salad topping. i don't know if it satisfied kris's craving, but it was a success nonetheless.



pecan crusted tofu
ingredients:
miso (about 1 heaping tablespoon)
tahini (about 1 heaping tablespoon)
water
extra firm tofu, sliced into 1/2 inch(ish) slabs
pecans (maybe about a cup)
olive oil

either by hand or in a food processor, finely chop the pecans (careful not to make them too powdery, you still want some little chunks). place in a shallow bowl.

in another shallow bowl, mix together equal parts miso and tahini. add a splash of water to thin it out so it is about the consistency of mustard.

heat a pan with a thin layer of olive oil over medium heat. spread a layer of the miso-tahini mixture on one side of the tofu (i found that using a butterknife is easiest). place miso side down in the pecans, spread the other side and flip to coat.

cook on each side for a few minutes until browned. after both sides are cooked place on a baking sheet in the oven for a few minutes more to bake the tofu through a little more.

-d