Tag Archives: dinner

Blood Orange Roasted Tofu and Asparagus

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Spring is here!!! Which means asparagus is super cheap at the market. I dug and dug all over the internet for an asparagus recipe that wasn’t the same old same and came across this recipe from Eating Well. I loved that it had some of the asian flavors already in the recipe, but I thought it would be fun to add even more by upping the miso and swapping rice vinegar for balsamic. I had a blood orange in the fridge that I wanted to use up and it was SO amazing in this recipe. I don’t even know if I would make it with a regular navel orange.

Blood_orange_roasted_asparagus_and_tofu

Blood Orange Roasted Asparagus and Tofu

Ingredients

juice from one blood orange
16 oz. extra firm tofu, cut into 1/2 inch-1 inch cubes
1 1/2 lbs. asparagus, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
3 1/2 T. red miso
2 T. extra virgin olive oil
3 T. rice vinegar
1/4 cup fresh basil, finely sliced
2-3 teaspoons blood orange zest
salt and fresh ground white pepper, to taste
chili flakes, to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 450° Fahrenheit.

2. In a large bowl whisk together 1/2 the olive oil, 1/2 the rice vinegar, and 1/2 the miso. Then add the tofu to the bowl and stir until generously coated.

3. Line cookie sheet with foil and spread the tofu out evenly on top of the foil. Roast the tofu for 15-18 minutes.

4. While the tofu is cooking whisk the remaining olive oil, miso, and rice vinegar with the blood orange zest and blood orange juice.

5. Once the tofu has cooked for 15-18 minutes mix in the asparagus and roast for another 10 minutes, or until the tofu is golden brown and the asparagus is tender.

6. Remove the asparagus and tofu from the oven, place in a large bowl and pour the sauce over it, then add the fresh basil. Stir it all together until evenly coated. Add salt, ground white pepper and chili pepper flakes until desired flavor.

 

Creamy Potato and Kale Soup with Parmesan Garlic Toasts

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creamy potato and kale soup

Yum…I can’t wait to eat the leftover soup!!!

Soup Recipe

Serves 6 as entree.

1 bunch of kale, rinsed, stems removed and chopped
5 medium potatoes, rinsed and cubed
1/2 cup half and half or cream (optional)
5 cups vegetable or chicken broth
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 smallish-medium onion, peeled and chopped
1 leek, rinsed, tough green parts removed, halved lengthwise and sliced into 1/4 inch pieces
1-2 teaspoons fresh thyme
1 teaspoon dried sage
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 pound italian sausage (optional)

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a medium sized soup pot and add onions and leeks (set aside 1/4 cup). Cook until tender and slightly translucent.

2. Add garlic for a couple of minutes, then spices, and broth. Bring to a boil and then add potatoes. Simmer for 20 minutes.

3. Add kale and simmer for another 10 minutes.

4. In a saute pan cook the italian sausage along with the remaining 1/4 cup of leeks until golden. Drain on paper towel and cover with foil to keep warm.

5. Add half and half or cream and then puree contents with an immersion blender until desired consistency

6. Ladle soup into soup bowls and garnish with the italian sausage and parmesan garlic toasts.

Toast Recipe

Baguette or artisan bread, sliced into 12 1/2 inch slices
olive oil
1 head of garlic
parmesan cheese, grated
dried basil
chili pepper flakes

Instructions

1. Cut off top of garlic head and drizzle with olive oil, wrap in foil and roast in the oven for about 30 minutes at 400°F.

2. Brush toasts with olive oil.

3. Remove garlic from foil and allow to cool. Once cooled enough to handle press the cloves out of the garlic and smash them into the bread toasts until evenly covered, about one clove per toast.

4. Add cheese, and sprinkle chili pepper flakes and dried basil.

5. Broil toasts a few minutes until edges are golden brown and cheese has melted.

 

Caramelized Brussels Sprouts with Pecans

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caramelized brussels sprouts with toasted pecans

caramelized brussels sprouts with toasted pecans

My first experience with a brussels sprout was steamed with a giant spoonful of mayo….YUCK!!! No wonder it took me nearly 20 years to try brussels sprouts again. Thankfully our organics to you shipment had brussels sprouts in it last winter, so I was forced to find a recipe. And now brussels sprouts are a regular occurrence in our house and we’ve turned plenty of friends into brussels sprout fans. This is one recipe that can get the pickiest eater begging for more brussels sprouts.

Recipe

Serves 3-4 as a side dish.

1 1/2 tablespoon butter or olive oil
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
15 brussel sprouts, sliced into thin ribbons
1/3 cup chopped, toasted pecans
1 garlic clove, minced
sea salt, to taste
dash chili pepper flakes

Instructions

1. Melt butter (or heat olive oil) in a large saute pan and add brussel sprouts and garlic. Saute until bright green then add the brown sugar, stir and let caramelize for a few minutes then toss in the toasted pecans and season with sea salt and chili pepper flakes.

Makes a great side dish for grilled salmon, steak or pork tenderloin. This would also make a great Thanksgiving or Christmas side dish…it’s delicious and it cooks so quickly!!!

Apple Potato Soup

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apple potato soup

An apple a day keeps the doctor away! Homemade apple and potato soup with fresh thyme.

Recipe

Serves 4. 

2 apples, peeled, cored and diced, plus 1/2 an apple sliced into thin wedges
2 celery stalks, chopped in to 1/4 inch slices
1 small-medium onion, diced
1 leek (minus the tough greens), sliced thinly
5 small potatoes, peeled, and diced
2 1/2 cups milk
2 cups chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper
crème fraîche or sour cream

Instructions

1. In a large saute pan combine leek, onion, apple, celery and olive oil over medium-low heat until tender, probably 15 minutes or so.

2. In a large soup pot combine milk and potatoes. Bring to a slow boil, careful to not scorch the milk and cook for about 20 minutes until the potatoes are tender.

3. While the potatoes are cooking add chicken broth, bay leaf and thyme to the apple mixture and simmer for about 20 minutes.

4. Remove the bay leaf and combine all ingredients in the large soup pot and use a Cuisinart Hand Blender to blend all the ingredients until smooth. You could also blend the soup in batches in your blender or food processor. Our Oster Blender does an awesome job with soups, but clean up is so much quicker with the Cuisinart, so inevitably the Cuisinart Hand Blender has been getting way more action lately.

5. You might need to add a little more chicken broth or milk to achieve desired consistency ours was pretty thick. Add salt and pepper to taste.

5. Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with a dollop of crème fraîche or sour cream, a couple of apple slices and a sprinkling of thyme.

We served ours with baked brie, a whole wheat baguette and a dried cranberry, feta and candied pumpkin seed salad.

 

Salad…Who Eats Salad???

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In our attempt to not waste as much food, Steve and I have started eating more salads…which is a good thing right? Packed with vitamins…and if we didn’t pile on the cheese they’d probably be considered healthy too.

beet_green_bean_goat_cheese_salad

Yep, Steve will eat beets!!! And he doesn’t gag when I serve them anymore.

Recipe

2 servings as entree or 4 servings as a side.

3 beets
1 big handful of green beans, trimmed
1 bag of organic salad mix
goat cheese (about 1-1 1/2 oz. per person)
2 green onions, diced
1 shallot, finely minced
1-2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed with a garlic press
1/4 cup EVOO
1/4 cup red wine vinegar, plus some to drizzle on beets (takes away some of the earthiness that some people can’t stand)
1/2 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon stone ground mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Rinse your beets well before adding them to a large pot of boiling water. Boil the beets until they are fork tender, this could take anywhere from 25 minutes to an hour (maybe more) depending on the size and freshness of your beets.

2. While your beets are boiling prepare a second smaller pot of boiling water. In this pot you will add your green beans. Boil them for 2-3 minutes until bright green then strain them and add them to an ice bath to stop the cooking process.

3. Once your green beans are cooled cut them into 1-1 1/2 inch segments and set aside.

4. Once your beets are tender, strain them in the sink. I’ll usually run a little cold water over them and put a handful of ice cubes on them to speed up the cooling process. Once they have cooled you can peel them and dice them up.

5. Drizzle your beets with a little red wine vinegar while you prepare the dressing.

6. To make the dressing combine EVOO, red wine vinegar, mustard, honey, minced garlic, and minced shallot in a small bowl and whisk until blended.

7. Toss the beets in a tablespoon or two of the dressing.

8. In a large bowl toss the salad greens, green beans and dressing until covered, then serve the salad greens on small plates and top with the beets and goat cheese. Garnish with some of the diced green onion.

 

 

 

Roasted Acorn Squash Rigatoni with Arugula, Italian Sausage and Parmesan

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I’m on a squash kick right now, so this recipe was right up my alley. The acorn squash lends the rigatoni a subtle sweetness that is balanced by the savory flavors of the sausage and arugula; the toasted pumpkin seeds give it just enough nuttiness to round it out. I’ve seen recipes similar to this one all over then net, ours is adapted from Lesley Elliott’s recipe at Five O’Clock Food.

roasted acorn squash rigatoni with arugula, italian sausage and parmesan

roasted acorn squash rigatoni with arugula, italian sausage and parmesan

Recipe

1 acorn squash, quartered and seeded
olive oil
1/2 pound Italian sausage (spicy or sweet)
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced (or roast a whole head of garlic with your squash and throw in the roasted cloves near the end)
1/4 cup dry white wine (we used Pinot Grigio)
2 large handfuls of arugula (kale would also be good, but I like the spiciness of arugula)
2 cups chicken broth
3 cups rigatoni pasta
Grated parmesan
Bob’s Red Mill Pumpkin Seeds toasted
1 teaspoon chili pepper flakes
Fresh ground sea salt and black pepper

Makes 4 servings.

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.

2. Arrange squash on a foil lined baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 45 minutes or until tender. Once finished roasting, allow to cool, and cut into cubes.

3. Boil salted water for your rigatoni and cook to al dente.

4. While your water is boiling cook the Italian sausage in a medium sauté pan until browned, about 10 minutes, then transfer to a paper towel lined plate.

5. In the same pan add 1 tablespoon olive oil and onions. Once the onions are softened add the garlic and stir. Add the white wine and reduce until nearly gone. Then add the chicken broth and reduce until about 1/3 is left, this takes a while. While the broth is reducing stir the arugula into the drained pasta to allow it to wilt.

6. After the broth is reduced add the squash, chili pepper flakes, and sausage to the pan, stir, and remove from heat. Combine rigatoni and squash mixture. Serve up and garnish with toasted pumpkin seeds and grated parmesan. I even stirred in about 1/3 cup of parmesan before serving to make it extra cheesy.

Notes: Next time I will omit the 4 cloves of minced garlic and I will roast an entire head of garlic with the squash and use some of that instead. Love roasted garlic, YUM!

We probably should have had a salad with this one, but we decided on baked baby bellas instead.

First of all, I am a total sucker for cookbooks, but if you’re also on a squash kick…get this book. It has so many amazing fall recipes!

Spicy Fennel and Kabocha Soup with Spiced Candied Pumpkin Seeds

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Spicy Fennel and Kabocha Soup

Spicy Fennel and Kabocha Soup with Spiced Candied Pumpkin Seeds

With the first rain of the season upon us, and my cold in full swing, Steve and I decided to stay in and make a gigantic pot of soup.  And we had nearly everything for this spicy fennel and kabocha soup from Suzanne Goin in our kitchen, and what we didn’t have we were able to improvise. I’m posting her original recipe with notes in “( )” of the changes we made.

Recipe makes 6 generous servings.

Soup

2 pounds Kabocha squash (we used one whole kabocha)

2 medium bulbs of fennel

4 Tablespoons of EVOO

2 teaspoons fennel seeds

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter (we only had 2 T. so we used 2 T. EVOO as well)

2 cups sliced onion (we chopped  ½ medium red onion and one full medium white onion)

1 Tablespoon Thyme leaves (gathered from our garden and supplemented by our spice cabinet)

2 chiles de arbol (we substituted 1 minced cowhorn pepper from our garden)

1 bay leaf

3/4 cup sherry

10 cups chicken stock (we used 2 32 oz. boxes of organic chicken broth instead)

1/4 cup crème fraîche (since the crème fraîche isn’t getting mixed into the soup we substituted sour cream)

candied pumpkin seeds

Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

Pumpkin Seeds

1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds (we used ground cumin seeds and just toasted them for a couple minutes in the toaster oven)

2 teaspoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1 teaspoon honey

Pinches of cinnamon, paprika, and cayenne

Fresh ground sea salt

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit

2. Candy your pumpkin seeds. First toast the ground cumin seed in the toaster oven for a couple minutes. Melt the butter in a small pan, add the cumin, add the pumpkin seeds, sugar, spices and sea salt, stirring constantly until they are golden brown. Let cool for a minute and stir in the honey. Arrange on a piece of parchment until ready to use.

3. Prep your squash by halving, seeding and peeling it (place squash cut side down and use a sharp knife). Cut your squash into 1 inch thick slices.

4. Prep your fennel by rinsing it well, removing tough stalks and base, halving lengthwise and cutting into ½ inch thick slices.

5. Arrange fennel and squash on large baking sheet, drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with fresh ground sea salt and pepper. Roast uncovered in oven for 35 minutes until tender and slightly golden.

6. Toast fennel seeds in a small pan over medium heat for a couple minutes, until slightly browned and they aroma becomes more pungent. The original calls for grinding your seeds in a mortar and pestle, we just threw them in a coffee grinder that we only use for spices and nuts….worked like a charm!

7. Heat your large soup pot on high heat for two minutes and add the butter. Once it begins to foam add your chopped onion, minced pepper (or chiles if you used them), fennel seeds, thyme, bay leaf and fresh ground pepper (we used our Simply Calphalon Nonstick 5-Quart Pot and worked beautifully).The original recipe called for chicken stock (which is unsalted), but since we used chicken broth (salted) we omitted the 1 teaspoon salt you would normally add at this point. Reduce heat to medium-high, and stir continually until onions are tender and translucent…about 10 minutes.

8. Add your fennel and squash to the mix. Turn the heat up high and add the sherry. Continue to stir and allow the sherry to reduce for a couple minutes. At this point you can add your chicken broth or stock, turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer for another 20 minutes or so.

9. According to Suzanne’s recipe you should separate the solids from the liquids, retaining both, and blend the soup in three batches, so a third of the solids with a 1/2 cup of the liquids. Make sure to remove the bay leaf. We did this her way, but next time we will just pour (or ladle) it into the food processor in batches, no need to separate. We ended up with the perfect amount of liquids to solids, so no leftover liquids like when you do it her way.

10. Combine the batches of soup and make any flavor adjustments. Pour into bowls and garnish with crème fraiche or sour cream and the candied pumpkin seeds.

I think this soup would also be awesome garnished with some crispy pancetta.

You could also easily make this a vegetarian, gluten free, dairy free soup by substituting EVOO for the butter, vegetable broth for the chicken stock and omitting the crème fraîche/sour cream. You could even make it vegan by substituting brown sugar for the honey on the pumpkin seeds.

We ate ours with toasted, sliced baguette spread with goat cheese.

Tomato Fennel Tart

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Tomato Fennel Tart

Tomato Fennel Tart

Tomatoes are taking over our lives!!! Our garden is spilling over, they’re arriving in our Organics to You shipments, and the farmers are selling the most amazing heirlooms right now. We’re eating tomatoes for breakfast, lunch and dinner and we’re getting creative with these juicy little suckers. This tomato fennel tart, inspired by a recipe from Sunset Magazine (Nov 2005) put a smallish dent in our ever growing tomato supply and allowed us to put the fennel from Organics to You to use too. As an added benefit this tart is perfect topped with a sunny-side up egg for breakfast.

Recipe

1 disk Cheese Pastry Dough (or if you’re lazy, one pre-made pie crust sprinkled with ½ cup shredded gruyere cheese)

1 head of fennel rinsed and sliced crosswise in to ¼ inch slices (discard the base and the green stalks)

7 shallots, peeled and sliced in to ¼ inch slices

½ cup chopped Italian parsley (or curly if you prefer the taste), plus one tablespoon for garnish

1 cup shredded parmesan

20 cherry tomatoes, rinsed and halved

Instructions

1. If you made your Cheese Pastry Dough roll it out so it’s atleast 12 inches diameter and transfer to your tart pan. If you’re using a pre-made pie crust simply unroll and transfer to your tart pan. Trim off any overhanging dough, poke holes in bottom of crust, cover with plastic wrap and put crust in the freezer for 30 minutes while you cook the fennel and shallots.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

3. Heat medium sized frying pan on medium-low heat and add olive oil, fennel, and shallots. Stir frequently till fennel and shallots are a caramel colored brown, approximately 30 minutes.

4. Sprinkle veggie mix with 1/2 cup parsley, add salt and pepper to taste and remove from heat.

5. Pull your crust out of the freezer and bake in oven for 20 minutes. If you are using a pre-made crust sprinkle the crust with the gruyere before baking for 20 minutes.

6. Once crust is golden brown remove from the oven, layer the parmesan cheese on the bottom of the crust, then the fennel/shallot mix, and finally add the sliced cherry tomatoes.

7. Bake in the oven till cheese is golden brown, approx. 10 to 15 minutes.

8. Garnish by sprinkling with remaining Italian parsley.

Steve and I had leftovers, so for breakfast we added a sunny-side up egg to the top of the reheated tart and it was delicious!!!

Tomato Fennel Tart with Sunny-Side Up Egg

Breakfast: Tomato Fennel Tart with sunny-side up egg

This tart is excellent served with a simple arugula salad tossed in a homemade lemon vinaigrette.

Peruvian Ceviche

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My favorite restaurant here in Portland is Andina, a family owned Peruvian restaurant in the heart of the Pearl District. And they have their ceviche recipe dialed down. Here is my re-creation of this Latin American favorite based on the recipe I found on myrecipes.com.

Ceviche

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds firm white fish (mahimahi, ono, bass etc.), bay scallops, or prawns (if using fish or prawns chop into pieces approx.. the size of your thumbnail)

½ small-medium red onion, halved and sliced super thin (use your mandolin if you have one)

juice from 8-9 limes

½ cup cilantro finely chopped

1 habanero, seeded and minced; a jalapeno, seeded and minced, would also work well

½ teaspoon sea salt

1 sweet potato or yam (boiled and cut in to 1″ slices , peel if you like)

1-2 corn on the cob (grilled in the husk); once cooked remove husks and you can either break the cobs in half or slice the kernels off and serve in a bowl

1 head Butter or Boston lettuce

½ cup to ¾ cup Aji Amarillo Sauce

Serves 4.

Directions

1. Combine seafood, red onion, habanero, salt and lime juice in a medium size bowl. Stir well and let sit for 20 minutes covered in the refrigerator. Stir well after 10 minutes to make sure the seafood is thoroughly “cooked.”

2. Just before serving stir in the cilantro.

3. My favorite way of serving this dish is family style, with the ceviche in a medium sized bowl and the sweet potato, corn, butter lettuce on a platter, and the aji Amarillo sauce on the side in a small dish with a spoon that people can pass around and take what they want.

Aji Amarillo Sauce

Ingredients

2 T. Aji Amarillo paste (can be purchased at Dashen Latino Grocery on NE Glisan)

2 green onions (chopped)

Juice from 2 limes

1 T. ketchup

¼ c. sour cream

½ cup mayonnaise

salt and pepper (to taste)

Directions

1.  Combine all ingredients in food processor and blend until smooth. Sauce may be refrigerated before use and can be made in advance.

Lasagna is for Lovers

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With fall just around the corner it’s time to cozy up with some comfort food and a glass of big, hearty red wine. Here is my favorite lasagna recipe… and for you health nuts it’s vegetarian and gluten free.This recipe is based on one I found at Gluten-free Goddess. This recipe is incredibly forgiving and can make the most inept cook look like a culinary rockstar.

Ingredients

4 cups of your favorite marinara sauce (approx. 1 ½ jars) or make your own

1 box of uncooked lasagna noodles (I prefer the gluten free brown rice noodles for their heartiness)

4 heaping cups of homemade roasted vegetables, cube before roasting (broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, onion, garlic, eggplant, and red bell peppers all work well in this recipe. I usually use a blend of all the above or whatever is in the fridge)

3-4 garlic cloves, minced

16 oz. ricotta cheese

½ cup shredded mozzarella

1 cup grated parmesan

1 8 oz. log of goat cheese, cut into slices

1 or 2 dashes of nutmeg

1 ½ T. fresh basil, minced

1 T. fresh Italian parsley, minced

 Instructions

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit

2.  In large mixing bowl mix egg, ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, nutmeg, garlic, basil, and parsley

3.  Prepare 9 x 13 inch baking dish by covering the bottom with approximately ½- ¾ cup marinara sauce.

4.  Layer 3 lasagna noodles over the marinara.

5. Spread ½ cheese mixture evenly over lasagna noodles

6. Spoon a layer of roasted vegetables over the cheese and spread evenly.

7. Layer 3-4 more lasagna noodles and cover with marinara (approx. 1 cup) and follow with the remaining roasted veg and cheese blend.

8. Layer the remaining lasagna noodles and press down with a large spatula. Cover with remaining marinara sauce. And finally lay the sliced goat cheese on top.

9. Bake uncovered for 50-60 minutes on the middle rack.

10. Let stand for a couple minutes before serving.

Tip: Make sure your noodles are completely covered in sauce, so you don’t end up with tough edges.

Cozy up and enjoy!!!