The name isn’t mine – it came from Food52.com, from their contest last year. Fresh asparagus, pancetta (I used speck), leeks (I used shallots), orange and lemon zest, toasted pine nuts. Delish.

A couple of weeks ago we visited one of our favorite restaurants here in Orange County – Lucca. A very authentic, upscale Italian eatery in nearby Irvine. I can’t believe I haven’t written up the restaurant here on my blog, since we like it so much. Well, I’ll take photos next time we go there and write something about it then.

It was there that I ended up buying 4 ounces of both speck and a delicious domestic prosciutto. We sampled the imported prosciutto but it was very, very salty. Too much so for my tastes. So the speck won out. What is speck? It is a smoked prosciutto, from the Tyrol region of Italy (near or on the Austrian border). Until just a couple of years ago the FDA wouldn’t allow it to be imported. Period. This I learned from Joanne Weir, in one of the cooking classes she taught, when she talked about how much she loved cooking with speck and lardo. And I’d never had it until I sampled it at this Italian restaurant. What was really interesting, though, is that there are now U.S. producers making speck. So hooray. We don’t have to pay the import prices!

We entertained a large group of friends for dinner one night a couple of weeks ago, and I decided at the last minute to buy some really good-looking asparagus. I didn’t have a recipe with me when I saw the asparagus at the market, so ended up improvising with what I had on hand. This recipe was one I wanted to try anyway – from the cooking contest held by Food52 in 2011. I have two favorite asparagus recipes (Roasted Asparagus with Chile Butter and Crumbled Asparagus), but I make them several times each season and wanted to try something different. Hence I substituted shallots (for the leeks) and speck (for the pancetta). I used a whole lot less shallots than you’d use leeks, and the speck probably gave this dish a totally different flavor (from the smoky flavor). Nevertheless, it was tasty. I got everything done ahead of time, so all I had to do was cook the asparagus and add in the shallots, garlic (lots), orange and lemon zest and Italian parsley. I sprinkled the toasted pine nuts (also done ahead) on top just because it looks more attractive, I think. I am going to try this dish again with the leeks and pancetta. Below is the recipe exactly as written at Food52. My substitutions are in parentheses.

What I liked: the mixture of flavors – and textures. A great way to fix asparagus. Really liked the citrus zest in the dish.

What I didn’t like: With my slight alternations to the recipe, I’m not so sure speck is the right thing for asparagus, so as I mentioned, I’ll try it with pancetta next time. I think the smokiness of the meat overshadowed the subtle flavors in asparagus. It was still very good, though.

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This time of year there isn’t all that much variety in fresh vegetables. We went to our local farmer’s market the other day and about all I saw was broccoli, cauliflower, kale and Swiss chard, cabbage and potatoes. Well, there were salad vegetables of many varieties (including some cute little baby turnips that the produce guy told me I should use like fresh radishes, which I did). Asparagus has begun to show up, but it’s early days for that treat, and most of the stalks available are pencil thin. Not the kind I prefer to buy, and they were really expensive too. So I bought cauliflower and broccoli.

But I needed a new way to make cauliflower, so I did a little search around and found a roasted version using thick planks, or slices (including the root end to hold it together). I google searched for “cauliflower slices” and a recipe from the Seattle Times matched up with my idea of what it should be – roasted at high heat and seasoned with oil and balsamic vinegar, plus a bit of butter. And some thyme. It was altogether easy to make – it cooked completely in my little Breville Smart Oven that my DH bought me for Christmas. What a fun tool that’s been for heating small things, broiling things and in this case roasting a small pan of cauliflower. Would you believe me if I told you that I’ve not owned a toaster oven before? So far, I’m loving it.

So, you have to slice the head – remove any of those leafy tendrils and then slice 1/2 inch planks, leaving the root on to hold the pieces together. Meanwhile, heat your oven, or toaster oven if you have one that can accommodate this, to 400°. I lined my tray with foil (for easy cleanup) then added the butter, along with the oil and balsamic – heat in the oven while you slice up the cauliflower. Dip the slices into the mixture, bake for 15 minutes, turn them over and bake another 10 and they’re done. If you happen to have some fresh thyme in your garden, sprinkle that on top. I didn’t so I sprinkled a bit of dried thyme instead. It was fork-tender and just really tasty.

What I liked: how easy it was to make and how quick it was to bake. My little toaster oven heated up in about 5 minutes, and then it bakes for a total of 25 minutes. Definitely I’d make it again.

What I didn’t like: nada, nothing. Next time I might try to use fresh thyme if I have it, but that’s a very minor detail. I can’t say that it looks all that pretty, but cauliflower is what it is – kinda bland looking no matter what you do to it or with it.The balsamic gives it a roasted color at least.

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Check out the steam wafting up from those little grilling babies? An easy side dish for a weeknight meal, or for guests – although you will want to do the grilling at the last minute if at all possible.

Another winner of a recipe from Food52. And it was a winner of a contest at the website for the best Brussels sprouts recipe. Yes, they’re delicious. I know – the food blog police are going to come after me for over-using the word delicious. I need to write down a bunch of other adverbs to help me describe the taste of things. Let’s see . . . salty, succulent, good texture, bright with flavor . . . how’s that? They were all those thing as well.

First you simmer the whole Brussels in water (with a tiny slit in the root end) for exactly 5 minutes. Not a moment longer. Why? Because after they drain and cool, you’re going to grill them for awhile to get all that good blackened flavor all over them – and they cook sufficiently more on the grill. A bit of olive oil goes all over them, then they’re rolled or tossed in a simple mixture of pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, celery salt. You might be tempted to cut the sprouts in half, but don’t. They’ll take up too much room on the grill (well, at least they would on my indoor grill you see above in the photo) and they might fall apart more readily. So control the urge and just grill them whole. Takes about 12 minutes or so and then you sprinkle them with your choice of additions – lemon zest (yes, I did that one), Parmesan cheese (I did that one too, but most of it didn’t cling to the sprouts so what was the sense of wasting the cheese?) and/or bacon (I opted not to add this one). If you have any of the seasoning mixture you can toss the sprouts in that again after grilling them. I didn’t have any so they were ready to serve. There were 4 of us for dinner that night, and everyone slicked the plates clean. I’ll be making these again.

What I liked: how easy they were, and the seasoning mixture that clings to the outside edges. Oh, and the blackened pieces were so good! Definitely worth making.

What I didn’t like: well, the only thing I’ll mention is that I thought they were too salty. The original recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of kosher salt. With the addition of celery salt too, I thought it was too much. Next time I’ll leave out the kosher salt and see how it tastes. I’ve made a note of it in the recipe. But I’m sensitive to salt in lots of things. No one else at the table noticed.

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Oh, did I love this Polish rendition of braised cabbage! Nothing complicated – red onion, red cabbage, apples and a bunch of little things (including lemon juice, ketchup and brown sugar) to give it some zesty flavor. It needs to simmer, very slowly, for at least 2 hours, so do plan ahead, but it takes little time to put it together.

The recipe came from a new cookbook, one I put on my Amazon wish list a month or so ago, and one of my daughters bought it for me for Christmas. It was a really nice surprise to open the package. I’ve written a separate post about the cookbook, that gives a lengthy overview of the recipes, the stories and why you should buy Recipes Remembered: A Celebration of Survival.

So far, I’ve read about half the book. Each person remembered in the book is/was a survivor of the Holocaust. Their stories are so humbling to me. As a preface to each recipe or small group of recipes is a story about the person(s), interviewed directly, or written by adult children of the survivor(s). About how they escaped the death camps, how they met a spouse, about the DP camps in Italy, for instance. About how they managed the hard-scrabble life hiding in the depth of forests in Germany or Poland. As I sit here in my warm, comfortable kitchen, it’s hard for me to comprehend the horrors these Jewish families lived through.

This recipe was one I flagged right away, and it honors Helen Ptashnik (and her husband Henry Ptashnik) both from Stopnits (Stopnica), Poland. Their daughter tells the story about how they met in Israel at the end of the war. And about how Henry and his brother, as carpenters in one of the concentration camps, built a small hideaway in the barracks to hide some of the ill prisoners. Being ill and unable to work usually dealt a death sentence. The two brothers saved many lives. The Ptashniks actually met in Israel awhile after the war ended, and eventually emigrated to North America (I don’t know if they moved to Canada or the United States).

The Ptashnik’s daughter Meira Fleisch grew up with strong memories of this red cabbage side dish which graced many a holiday dining table. It’s a great recipe. And I’ve certainly made numerous renditions of braised cabbage over the years, but this one tops my list. There is nothing fancy or elegant about the dish – it’s just wonderful comfort food at its finest. It’s the additions that make it so good (honey, ketchup, brown sugar, tomato sauce, lemon juice). No doubt about it. And maybe it’s the long, slow cooking. It requires about 2 hours of very slow simmering. I was concerned that the cabbage would burn, but it didn’t. I used one of my Le Creuset Enameled Round Pots just because I knew it was going to sit on the stovetop for a long time. I did add just a little tiny bit of water about an hour into the cooking time. Make sure you put it on a very slow simmer setting. You could also bake this too – in a very low temp oven.

One of the interesting nugget of information I got from this cookbook is that many recipes of this era, from Holocaust survivors include ketchup. Why? Because it was something they had. Many food items these strong souls didn’t have, but ketchup was available. So it’s often included in recipes where you might think it odd.

What I liked: the subtle, mellow flavors of it all. I could have eaten an entire plate of it and forgotten the delicious Italian sausage I served alongside it. It was that good. Although the different ingredients (cabbage, onions and apples) are still visible, they all meld into one very flavorful whole. Also note that the dish, to serve 8-9 has just 2 T. of oil in it. You might be able to do it with less, even. So, very  healthy!

What I didn’t like: it’s not exactly the most beautiful of dishes – yes, it’s a purple cabbage color, but once it cooks awhile nearly every vegetable loses its vibrant color. Can’t be helped. So worth it, though.

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You know, of course, that we Americans, and particularly people from the American South, must eat black eyed peas on New Years’ Day, because it guarantees good luck in the new year. I had hoped to find some fresh black eyed peas, but alas, they’re very hard to come by in California. Perhaps they’re available everywhere in the South. Most years I haven’t paid much attention to the tradition, but I decided we needed to guarantee it for 2012! Instead of making hoppin’ John, a hot black eyed pea dish, I decided to make a cold salad. I went to Eat Your Books to see what recipes I had on my own bookshelves, and immediately went to Deborah Madison’s vegetarian cookbook, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone.

Even though I mostly followed Deborah Madison’s recipe, I made a couple of deviations. I added a slice of bacon to the beans as they were simmering to tenderness, but that’s optional. And fished it out once they were cooked since it was soggy. The bacon added some nice smoky flavor to the beans. Once drained I added in the tomato, feta, green onions, parsley and oregano. The dressing is a lemony one, and this is where I deviated. I did use lemon juice (our winter crop is in full swing right now), but I added twice as much lemon juice as called for. Beans just love acid. I learned this many years ago when making one of my favorites – and I didn’t name this salad – Paul Prudhomme did – it’s called The Best Bean Salad. In that salad (also a cold bean salad) you add a whole LOT of apple cider vinegar. In the write-up about the recipe Paul even said it’s not a typo, yes, it’s almost all vinegar and he explained something about the chemistry involved – beans have a natural affinity to acid – they soak it up and mellow it. That bean salad is so low in fat it’s almost non-existent. So, I knew it would work in this recipe as well. That’s why I added twice as much lemon juice, since I knew it would be fine, and it was. It also gives the salad a piquant taste.

If at all possible, let this salad chill overnight. If you can’t, then at least give it 4-6 hours. That gives the lemon juice time to be absorbed by the beans. The flavors do mingle so much better with time to sit.

What I liked: If you like bean salads, you’ll like everything about this. Not hard. Makes a bunch. If you cut down on the oil (which you probably could do easily enough) it could be low in fat too. The little bit of crunch (green onions) is good. I might even add some red bell pepper to it as well. Since I love feta cheese, it was a good addition.

What I didn’t like: not much, other than the chore of having to soak the beans overnight, and the hour or two of cooking (and cooling) them before you start making the salad. But nothing about it is hard, so I’m not complaining! It also makes a LOT – people don’t take huge portions of a bean salad, unless it’s the only thing they’re eating.

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You want something crunchy, salty and delicious? Here’s your ticket . . .

Haven’t we all made some version of roasted red potatoes? Cut up, rubbed with olive oil, sprinkled with S&P and baked at a really high oven temp with some rosemary. Well, these are just a bit different. There’s an easy four-step process to these: (1) simmering the very small potatoes in water until they’re almost done; (2) gently smashing them with a meat pounder to the flattened shape you see above, then (3) slathering them lightly with olive oil, baking at 450° for 30 minutes; and lastly (4) sprinkling with some salt and fresh rosemary that’s been whizzed up in a spice grinder. Not hard. The best part of these potatoes are the crusty edges. The more the merrier. If you want more crusty edges, smash the potatoes more (thinner). I had to include a few larger potatoes when I made them – you can see the one on the left front – it’s probably bigger than it should be and it’s much harder to smash them evenly when they’re larger. Those were still good, but not as good as the smaller ones, that’s all.

The recipe came from Phillis Carey, my favorite cooking instructor. She served these with a fantastic prime rib dinner at a class a week or so ago. But these potatoes. Oh, these potatoes. So, so good. I made them a few nights later and served them with a grilled pork tenderloin. Delish.

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This salad was one of several at our Thanksgiving buffet dinner. Everyone liked it, as far as I know. I thought it was wonderful. It could be the main dish of a vegetarian meal. The next day several of us dipped into the leftovers and enjoyed it all over again. The watercress, however, isn’t all that nice the next day if it’s left in the salad.

The dressing is easy – apple cider vinegar, honey, oil and salt and pepper. You do need to prepare a few fresh veggies – carrots, tomatoes, green onions, and add some dried cranberries, toasted pine nuts and toasted pumpkin seeds too. The wild rice does have to be cooked (using some vegetable stock, not just water) of course. Some of the dressing is tossed with the rice and allowed to sit for an hour before you finish prepping the entire salad for serving.

The recipe is another one from the Mitsitam Café. I told you about this a few days ago when I posted the recipe for Cedar-Planked, Fire Roasted Salmon. The recipe is also in the Museum’s cookbook, The Mitsitam Cafe Cookbook: Recipes from the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian. Worth making.

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A great side dish – with warm, comforting flavors from ground cumin and cayenne. Do serve it with a nice piece of grilled meat – even Tandoori chicken, which is what I used.

This dish I made a couple of months ago – before we went on our trip in late September. I served it alongside some Tandoori chicken. This stuff was really good – if you look closely at the photo above, you can see just one little piece of the caramelized onion – just about in the center, dark brown. Those onions are  what “make” this dish. You don’t want to prepare the dish without the onions – you’ll be clamoring for more onions – in fact when I make this again, I’ll probably make more onion, just because it’s that delicious.

There you can see the onions all by themselves. Really brown and scrumptious. Use a good, sturdy pan when you make them as they’ll burn easily otherwise.

The recipe came from Aarti Sequiera, of the Food Network. I followed her recipe exactly. Do give yourself ample time – this takes longer to prepare than you might think (she estimated 1 1/2 hours). Make a big batch, freeze the leftovers with the caramelized onions separated in a different plastic baggie inside the main one with the rice and lentils. Add the pine nuts as a garnish. And remember that lentils are really good for you. Use brown basmati rice if you have it. She served this as a meatless entrée, along with an eggplant salad, which I’ll also post soon.

What I liked: the overall flavor – a great backdrop for some delicious spicy grilled meat – chicken? fish? Even beef or pork. I was so glad I had leftovers as they made a side dish for another meal several days later. Next time I’d double it and freeze the leftovers in a couple of different packages.

What I didn’t like: nothing at all. Delish.

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We were invited to our son’s for dinner and I offered to bring a veggie. I had a 2-pound package of haricot verts, those lovely little tiny green beans, in my refrigerator. And I had some fresh corn (where in the world does that come from in mid-November, do you suppose?). I went to my online cookbook resource, Eat Your Books, and entered “green beans” and up came about 20+ recipes contained in my own cookbooks. The only thing the listings don’t tell me is what page the recipe is on, within each cookbook. It listed ingredients and I had nearly everything except shallots (for this recipe that I selected), so I did have to make a quick stop at the supermarket. I used this as my base recipe. It came from Sheila Lukins’ cookbook All Around the World Cookbook. The recipe’s origin is Martinique – or at least it was Sheila’s interpretation of something she ate in Martinique. The corn was my addition. And I altered the quantity of nearly everything else. I’d intended to serve it with lime wedges (as the recipe instructs) but I forgot them at home. They were fine without.

The beans have to be quick cooked in boiling water – and I stand over the stove after about 3 minutes, because I want the beans to be just right in texture – done past crunchy, but not mushy in any way at all. I pull out bean after bean to taste before I finally drain them. I plunged them into ice water to stop the cooking, dried them, then I cooked up the shallots and garlic in olive oil, chopped up the tomatoes and corn, and added the chicken broth. I had to add a bit more water to keep the mixture from burning, then I tossed it all together and served it at room temp. If you want to be more Martinique-authentic, don’t add the corn, but I really liked it that way!

What I liked: the corn (sweet), the shallots (which turn sweet when they’re gently cooked as these were), the garlic overlay (I love garlic in just about every way). Plus, I just love green beans in just about any way possible. It was altogether good and liked by everybody in attendance.

What I didn’t like: it did take a bit of time to make – the beans themselves and then the shallot-garlic stuff too. But it can be made several hours ahead, so it’s not all bad!

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Here you can see just the veggies
and the sausage the dressing contains.

OMGosh! Oh, my gracious was this dressing ever the cat’s meow. The be all, end all of dressings I’ve ever, ever had. I will be making this next week for our family’s Thanksgiving dinner. So, okay, what’s so different about it? Well, I’ll tell you that I have an Italian sausage dressing I’ve been making for a several years, but this one? Well, it’s going into #1 position. Part of it’s the vegetables (a lot of them). Part of it’s the moistness of it (it’s a relatively wet dressing) and another part of it is the gravy (oh-so tasty). And the fresh herbs. And the mushrooms (not exactly a common veggie in dressing). Oh, heck. It’s all of it put together as a whole. If I were a vegetarian, I’d gladly have this as my entrée (well, without the sausage, I suppose).

Several weeks ago my friend Cherrie and I went to a Phillis Carey class that was all about an Italian Thanksgiving menu. Everything in it was fantastic. The only thing I might not make is the pumpkin pie (a different take – and I’m just too hooked on the traditional Libby’s style Costco pumpkin pie). Otherwise I think I’ll be making the entire meal from this class (green beans with shallots, the artichoke Romano bruschetta, the Mascarpone mashed potatoes, the pancetta-butter basted turkey, and the gravy I’m writing up here, with the dressing.

It was several years ago I discovered how much I liked Italian sausage in my turkey dressing. And there’s been no turning back. I think my mother usually used Pepperidge Farms dry, packaged mix with her simple additions. And I made it the same way for many years, until I went to a cooking class and had some real, honest-to-goodness completely home made dressing, including the bread cubes. I had some with cornmeal one year. It was okay. But somehow cornbread didn’t fit in with my vision of a Thanksgiving dressing. But now, THIS one. Gosh. Made with fresh, torn bread cubes that are briefly baked in the oven. With oodles of veggies – onion, celery, including some of the green tops, leeks, and mushrooms. And the fresh herbs (sage, rosemary). And the Italian sausage, of course. Certainly there is ample bread in this dressing, but it’s almost more about the vegetables – of which there are lots – and the gravy. The gravy, the gravy. Pictured at right – you can see the little bit of cream added in at the end. Makes it so luscious. Back to the dressing – the one thing that’s a bit unusual in this dressing is the addition of EGGS. Phillis told us they’re not an absolute, but she thinks the dressing stays together better with them. So I’ll be adding those. So delicious.

So, if you’ve had any second thoughts about making your old standby, may I just suggest you try this one, okay? Read further below for the gravy write-up and recipe.

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Now then, the gravy. Not difficult, although there are two parts to it. You’ll make some really flavorful stock from what develops in the bottom of the turkey roasting pan. That part is essential! A part of it can be made while the turkey is roasting, and then once you’ve removed the turkey and it’s resting, all that good tasty broth is added to the pancetta flavored gravy mixture. It has to cook to just the right consistency and you’re done. The pancetta is part of what makes this – also the use of white wine in the gravy.

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