Jeweled Millet with Mixed Herb Salad and Citrus-Basil Viniagrette

I've been on a blogging hiatus since November. I was working two jobs (and still am, but with reduced hours), trying to craft as many Christmas presents as humanly possible while working 60+ hours a week, and honestly my cooking was reduced to whatever was fast and cheap. There was much pasta and red sauce, and veggie delight subs from Subway, to be had. It was not a blog-worthy or particularly fun time!

But happily I can say, after a rejuvenating vacation in New England, I'm back and so thrilled to be in the kitchen again. And honestly, to be in California! Divine, locally grown produce year round ... ample sunshine ... no salty slush to ruin your shoes every time you leave the house ... Of course I do always miss the snow and autumn and the beauty of New England, but I'm learning to appreciate Southern California as well!

Vegan Bean and Sweet Potato Chili

Some dishes are easier to veganize than others, and this vegan bean and sweet potato chili is a great example of a recipe where no love is lost by eliminating meat.

Green Herb Risotto with Savory Mushrooms

Spring is finally here, and with it, an abundance of fresh green veggies and herbs. Living in Southern California means there isn't exactly a dearth of fresh produce in the winter, but with spring comes those tender green morsels that potatoes and squash just can't compete with. 

Freshly shelled sweet green peas!

When I saw this recipe for Green Risotto on Serious Eats, I knew I had to make it. Fresh herbs and spinach are pureed and added to creamy rice, then topped with savory sauteed mushrooms.

Thanksgiving Spectacular: Spatchcocked Turkey and More

I had a practice Thanksgiving this past weekend, and decided to try a new method of cooking the turkey: Spatchocking! I guess you could also call it "butterflied" turkey, but isn't Spatchcocked so much more fun?

Hearty Beef and Bean Chili with Cornbread

The weather is finally cooling down a bit in Los Angeles (though it's supposed to be back in the 80's by Sunday!), which has left me frantically cooking as many warm-weather dishes as possible before it heats up again. 

Miscellaneous Food Stuffs

Sometimes, I make something or eat something that is really, really good - but I wasn't planning on blogging about it. I often manage to snap a picture or two, and I wanted to share with you some of the tasty morsels I've had but haven't written a full blog post about.

Chopped: Lamb Shoulder Neck Slices, Horseradish, and Peach-Strawberry Shrub

After watching Chopped on the Food Network for about 4 hours in our hotel on Saturday night, Nate and I decided to have our very own CHOPPED competition at home.

Nate chose the ingredients for me, and he did NOT make things easy.

Lamb neck shoulder slices - a tough, fatty cut of lamb with barely any edible meat on it

Horseradish - raw horseradish root,very bitter and lacking the finesse of prepared horseradish

Peach-Strawberry Shrub - a syrup made from equal parts of sugar, fruit, and vinegar. It's very tart and very sweet.

We decided to not put a time limit on the meal, since it was my first challenge.

I immediately knew that I wanted to used the shrub in a viniagrette, and I decided to do a roasted fingerling potato salad. I tossed some fingerling potatoes in olive oil, salt, and pepper, then put them on a baking sheet and into a 425 degree oven. They were in the oven for about 30 minutes, and I shook the pan half way through so they wouldn't burn.

In the meantime, I had to deal with the other ingredients. The first thing that came to mind for the horseradish was making a horseradish-dijon mustard cream sauce for the lamb. I seasoned the lamb with salt and pepper and seared it in olive oil, then removed it from the pan. I sauteed some garlic cloves and a sliced shallot, then removed those from the pan as well.

While the lamb was browning, I made a viniagrette for the potato salad from the shrub, olive oil, salt, pepper, thinly sliced shallots, and chopped fresh parsley.

Back to the lamb: I added 2 TBSP of butter to the pan and let it melt, then sprinkled over 2 TBSP of flour, letting the flour cook for about 3 minutes. I gradually whisked in about 1 cup of whole milk, then added 2 TBSP dijon mustard, 2 TBSP grated horseradish, about 1/3 cup of a strong IPA (beer), 1 tsp red wine vinegar, salt & pepper, and about 1 TBSP fresh thyme leaves.

I had to make a beurre manié because the sauce wasn't thickening up enough (I think my proportion of liquid to flour was off in the beginning). After I added it, the mixture thickened to the perfect consistency. I added the lamb, garlic, and shallots back into the pan with the sauce and covered it, took the potatoes out of the oven and reduced the temperature to 325, then put the lamb in the oven.

I tossed the potatoes in a bowl with the vinaigrette, then put the bowl in the fridge.

The lamb cooked for about 35 minutes, and then the meal was ready to serve.

THE RESULTS:

The best part of the meal was the potato salad. The shrub vinaigrette was tart, a little sweet, and had a nice fresh flavor from the parsley. The potatoes were firm yet creamy and the whole salad was a nice bright way to cut through the heaviness of the lamb and cream sauce.

The cream sauce was good, but the horseradish flavor was surprisingly tame after it had cooked. The trouble with fresh horseradish is that it is more bitter than the prepared kind, so using enough of the fresh root to get that hot kick, you end up adding a lot of extra bitterness to the dish, which I wanted to avoid. So, the sauce was perfectly edible, but could have used some extra zing.

The lamb neck shoulder slices were surprisingly edible when we could find bits of meat among the gristle, bone, and fat. If we made this dish again I would not choose lamb unless it was an actual chop. The lamb neck shoulder slices are clearly meant to be stewed and cooked low and slow, but this being a CHOPPED challenge we really didn't have the time for that!

All in all, it was a fun experience and we plan on doing it once a week, to help keep my culinary skills sharp!

The best part is that we actually really loved the potato salad, so now I have a new dish I can add to my repertoire.

Borscht

Borscht.

Is there any natural food more violently colorful than Borscht?

This is only my second time making Borscht. I made it last year after my friend Malina visited. Malina speaks Russian and has spent a lot of time in Russia, so we went to a restaurant called Traktir, which specializes in authentic eastern european cuisine.

The Borscht was AMAZING. Savory, lighty sweet, and tangy, garnished with sour cream and fresh, aromatic dill.

We eat a lot of beets anyway, so Borscht is the perfect addition to my repertoire of recipes for the sweet, earthy root vegetable. There are an infinite number of ways to make this dish — every region has its own method of preparation, including a Polish version that uses parsnips instead of beets.

This recipe is the result of research, experimentation, and taste-testing. Use it as a guide, and but adjust it to make a Borscht that is truly your own.

Borscht
Scroll to bottom for full recipe

The star of this dish is, obviously, beets.

Grate the beets, and julienne one. Grate two carrots, slice an onion, chop three cloves of garlic, and peel and cut a celery root into large chunks.

Celery root sort of looks like a tumor that has been cut in half, only to reveal a fetal twin

Slice the sausage. Heat about 2 TBSP olive oil in a large soup pot (omit if using pork or beef sausage).

Brown the sausage on all sides. 

Remove from pan. 

Add carrots, beets, garlic, onions, celery root, and 1/2 tsp of caraway seeds to the pan. Cook for ten minutes, or until softened. 

Add 2 T tomato paste, 1 T paprika and a bay leaf to the pan and cook for two minutes.

Pour in 6 cups of beef broth and 1/2 can of diced tomatoes.

Taste the broth and season with salt, pepper, and red wine vinegar until broth is well balanced and slighty tangy. 

Shred the cabbage...

Then add to the pan.

Cover the pan and cook until the cabbage is tender. Remove the celery root and bay leaf. Taste again and adjust seasonings.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream and chopped fresh dill.

Full Recipe
Borscht

3 Beets
2 Carrots
1 Celery Root
1 lb Cabbage
1 Yellow Onion
3 Cloves of Garlic
1 Package of smoked sausage beef, pork, chicken, or turkey!)
1/2 can of diced tomatoes
2 TBSP tomato paste
6 cups fat-free beef broth
1 bay leaf
1 TBSP Paprika
1/2 tsp caraway or fennel seeds
1-3 TBSP Red wine vinegar
Salt and Pepper
Fat Free Sour Cream
Dill, for garnish

Peel the beets and grate 2 of them on the largest side of a box grater. Julienne the remaining beet (this adds another dimension of texture to the dish).

Peel and grate the carrots.

Peel the celery root, then cut in large chunks. This will just be used to flavor the broth, then discarded before eating.

Cut the onion into slices.

Roughly chop 3 cloves of garlic.

Shred the cabbage.

Cut the sausage into 1/2" thick medallions. Heat 2 TBSP olive oil in a large soup pot, and brown the sausage on both sides. Removed from pot.

Add garlic, onion, carrot, caraway seeds, beet and celery root to pan. Cook ten minutes, or until softened.

Add tomatoe puree and paprika. Cook about two minutes.

Add diced tomatoes, broth, and bay leaf.

Bring to a boil and taste broth. Add salt, pepper, and vinegar to taste. The broth should be savory, lightly sweet, and have a slight tang from the vinegar.

Add the cabbage and cook until all vegetables are tender.

Remove celery root and bay leaf. Taste again and adjust seasoning.

Serve with a dollop of sour creap and some chopped fresh dill. Can also be served chilled.

Chicken with Castelvetrano Olives, Lemon, and Tomato

This Chicken with olives, lemon, tomatoes, and onions was absolutely heavenly. The original recipe is called "Chicken That Fancies Itself Spanish With Lemons, Onions, and Olives" and I found it on a wonderful blog called Food 52. I figured if Nate can be in Spain enjoying the food, I could try to make some Spanish-style cuisine for myself! 

I made some alterations to the recipe to make it a little healthier, and as usual you can play around with the ingredients until you get something you like (for instance, the olives aren't entirely necessary if you don't like them).

This is a perfect fall and winter recipe, but the tart lemon makes it taste fresh enough that it's suitable for the warmer months too.

Chicken with Castelvetrano Olives, Lemon, and Tomato

 Prepare all of your ingredients ahead of time, because once you start cooking, you won't really be able to stop!

You'll need to pit the olives. Good luck!

Friendly tip: BUY PITTED OLIVES. I learned this the hard way.

 You'll need lemon zest for the stew, and grated cheese for the breading on the chicken. I used Manchego, though any hard cheese would really be fine.

You will need 6 peeled, roughly chopped cloves of garlic, 1 large yellow onion cut into hearty slices, about 3/4 c pitted olives, the zest of 1 lemon, the juice of two lemons, 1 cup of white wine, 1 can of diced tomatoes, and 1 bay leaf.

My mother gave me some saffron, which you can see soaking in the wine...

The original recipe called for a whole 4 pound chicken, cut into pieces, but I just used 2 lbs of chicken thighs.You could leave the skin on if you aren't watching your diet, and I am sure it would be DELICIOUS! However, I chose to remove the skin — it's really easy to do with chicken thighs.

Pat the thighs dry after you removed the skin. Add 3/4 cup whole wheat flour, 1 T paprika, and 1/4 c grated Manchego to a plastic bag. Season the chicken with salt and pepper, then place in bag and shake until completely covered in a light coating of the flour mixture. You will need to do this in batches.

While you are doing this, heat about 3 T olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium high heat. After coating the chicken, add it to the pan in batches, making sure both sides get well browned. Again, do this in batches. If you overcrowd the pan the chicken will start to steam and won't get crispy. This is especially important if you are using skinless chicken.

Juicy, crispy chicken.

Remove chicken from the pan and set aside. Add the sliced onions, garlic, olives, lemon juice, and bay leaf to the pan, scraping up any brown bits with a wooden spoon.

Once the sun goes down, so does the quality of my photography. Need better lighting!!

Add about 1/2 T of smoked paprika and just a pinch of cinnamon. Season with salt and pepper.

Cook until the vegetables are getting soft and the lemon juice has reduced by half. Then add the can of tomatoes and the cup of wine.

As I mentioned, my darling mother recently gifted me some saffron. I used but three threads of saffron for this dish, soaking them in the wine before adding to the dish. Apparently this helps release the flavor. The taste was subtle and the spice gave off a honey-like aroma, though it tasted quite bitter on its own before it was added to the dish. If you have some on hand I would definitely use it, as it added a nice layer of complexity to the broth.

Now bring this mixture to a boil, then add the chicken back in.

Cover it, and place in a 425 degree oven. Cook for about 30 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.

Serve with plenty of the delicious broth, and garnish with cilantro.

Blurry but delicious. 

Full Recipe

Chicken with Castelvetrano Olives, Lemon, and Tomato

About 2 lbs bone-in chicken thighs, skinned

3/4 c whole wheat flour

1/4 c grated Manchego cheese

1 T paprika

Salt and Pepper

1 large yellow onion, cut into hearty slices

6 cloves of garlic, chopped

2 lemons, juiced

zest of 1 lemon

3 threads of saffron, soaked in:

1 cup of dry white wine (such as sauvignon blanc)

1 can diced tomatoes

1/2 T paprika

1 pinch cinnamon

1 bay leaf

Salt and Pepper

Cilantro, for garnish

Preheat oven to 425°

Pat the chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. Combine flour, paprika, and grated cheese. Dredge chicken in flour mixture until thoroughly coated, or add to bag and shake to coat. 

Heat about 3 T of olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium high heat. Brown chicken in batches, then set aside. 

Add onion, garlic, olives, lemon juice, bay leaf, and cinnamon to the pan. (Note: the dish is quite acidic. If you aren't overly fond of the tart lemon flavor, use the juice of only 1 lemon and an equal amount of chicken broth). Make sure to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Season with salt and pepper.

Cook until onions are soft and liquid has reduced by half. Add wine and tomatoes, bring to a boil. Add chicken to pan, cover, and place in oven. Cook 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Garnish with cilantro. 

White Pizza with Zucchini, Summer Squash, and Manchego

The last couple of weeks has seen the return of summer squash and zucchini to the farmer's market. I always get excited when something new comes into season, so I brought home several bright yellow summer squash and some light green, dappled Ishtar zucchini as well.

Come Friday night they were still sitting in the vegetable crisper. Now, Friday night is pizza night for Nate and me, a tradition carried on from his family — and suddenly I had an idea. White pizza with summer squash and zucchini, sprinkled with thyme and layered with Monterrey Jack, Parmesan, and Manchego cheese. Many white pizzas use ricotta in the place of tomato sauce; I used a drizzle of olive oil to keep things lighter, though ricotta could certainly be used if you're not trying to watch your girlish figure. The results were delicious and much more satisfying than a frozen pizza.

White Pizza with Zucchini, Summer Squash, and Manchego

Thyme, Manchego Cheese, and Garlic

You can use any combination of cheese that you like for the pizza. I used Manchego, a sharp and salty Spanish sheep's milk cheese. 

Shave the cheese into hearty curls.

The other two cheeses I used were Parmesan, which I had on hand, and Monterrey Jack. I used to only use mozzarella cheese on pizza, but Monterrey Jack is supremely melty and creamy and works just as well. 

Parmesan

Monterrey Jack

Wash the zucchini and summer squash well. I peeled them almost entirely, but left some of the skin on for color.

Peel the vegetables into thin ribbons, using a vegetable peeler or mandolin. 

Roll out the dough. I made mine from scratch, but used my bread machine for the mixing and kneading. It's so easy and so cheap to make the dough at home this way (the best part is that I found my bread machine in the alley behind my apartment!). You can get good pre-made pizza dough at the supermarket if you don't have time to make it at home. For this recipe, I only used half of the dough and rolled it out very thin.

Brush 1 TBSP olive oil over the crust, then sprinkle with 4 minced cloves of garlic, about 2 teaspoons of chopped fresh thyme, salt and pepper.

Now, spread the Parmesan and Monterrey Jack cheese over the crust...

add the zucchini and summer squash...

and top the pizza with the Manchego curls.

Pop into a 500 degree oven for about 7 minutes, being careful not to burn the crust.

The result is a pizza that is fresh and savory with a crispy yet chewy crust.

YUM!

The Best Meatloaf Ever — With Roasted Purple Carrots

I never thought I would choose to start my blog with something like a recipe for meatloaf. Growing up I hated meatloaf, and I haven't had it in years, or made it...ever. But it all makes sense when you hear why I chose to make it: 90% lean ground beef was REDUCED FOR QUICK SALE at the grocery store, priced right at $1/lb. $1 for a dinner for two, with leftovers for at least two lunches, is an unbeatable deal...but what to make? I almost always choose ground turkey over ground beef, and often chickpeas over turkey, so I wasn't sure what to do. But fate had it's own plans and tonight I stumbled across what may or may not be...

The Best Meatloaf Ever! with Roasted Organic Purple Carrots on the side

(Scroll past photos for full recipe. Meatloaf recipe adapted from Cooking Light)

What makes this meatloaf the best ever? It is a wonderfully crumbly, moist loaf full of savory umami flavors and a lovely contrasting sweetness from the carrots and the glaze.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

First, prep the carrots. You will need 1 bunch of (preferably purple!) carrots.

How are purple carrots different from regular carrots, you ask?

Well...they're prettier, for one!

Remove the tops from the carrots.

Purple carrots have a thicker skin than regular carrots - almost like the skin of a beet. They're a lot... hairier, too. Peel off any bits that are covered in fuzzy roots, and give all of the carrots a good scrub to remove any dirt.

Set two fully peeled carrots aside for the meatloaf. Then, cut the carrots into even pieces - about three inches long by a half inch wide.

Toss the carrots in a small roasting pan with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil, a teaspoon of chopped fresh thyme, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Set aside.

Ready for the oven!

Add a heaping half cup of breadcrumbs to the loaf pan you will be using for the meatloaf, and put it in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown. Watch carefully to make sure it doesn't burn.

Dice two slices of bacon (to make it easier, cut the slices so they are half as long, then stack). Place in saute pan and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until fat has rendered out and meat is becoming crispy.  Dice the two carrots you set aside and add them to the pan. Add one half of a diced yellow onion, and three minced cloves of garlic.

Season with pepper and just a wee pinch of salt. Saute for 8-10 minutes, or until carrots are soft. Add 1 TBSP tomato paste and raise heat to medium-high. Cook 1-2 minutes, then add about 1/2 cup wine and deglaze the pan. I used Sauvignon Blanc, which was probably whack, but it ended up tasting good so who cares! Cook until liquid has evaporated and turn off the heat.

In the meantime, remove the toasted breadcrumbs from the oven and place them in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Add 1/4 C milk, 1 lightly beaten egg, 2 TBSP chopped fresh parsley, and 1 TBSP chopped fresh thyme.

Add 1 LB ground beef, bacon/onion/carrot mixture, 1/2 tsp dried basil (fresh if you have it on hand), salt and pepper.

Mix lightly — you want the mixture to be fully combined, but NOT stirred into a mush. A picture would be helpful here, no? Yeah. well....I forgot to take one. It's a lot easier to remember to take pictures of pretty purple carrots than a bowl of raw meat. 

Loosely place the ground beef mixture into a non-stick loaf pan. Don't smash it down and pack it in! Keep the mixture loose and light in the pan for optimal texture once it's been cooked. 

Prepare a glaze. I sort of wung it (winged it?!?) and mixed about 1/3 C organic ketchup, 2 TBSP brown sugar, 1/4 tsp dried mustard, and 1 TBSP balsamic vinegar, but feel free to play around with the flavors until you get something tangy, savory, and sweet. 

Spread glaze evenly over meatloaf.

Then place meatloaf, and roasting pan of carrots, into the oven.

Cook for 35 minutes, turning carrots half way. 

Add 1/4 cup of water to the carrots, cover, and cook both dishes for 10-15 more minutes, or until carrots are tender. 

Let the meatloaf sit for about 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with the roasted purple carrots and a handful of mixed baby greens (I used a spicy mix of two kinds of organic baby kale and wild arugula.) 

Now ENJOY what is, in my mind, the BEST MEATLOAF EVER!

Full Recipes

For the Meatloaf:

1/2 C bread crumbs, heaping

2 slices of bacon, diced

2 carrots, diced

1/2 large yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 TBSP tomato paste

1/2 C wine

1/4 C milk

1 egg, lightly beaten

2 TBSP chopped fresh parsley

1 TBSP chopped fresh thyme

1/2 tsp dried basil

1 LB 90% lean ground beef

Salt and Pepper, to taste

glaze:

1/3 C organic ketchup 

2 TBSP brown sugar 

1/4 tsp dried mustard

1 TBSP balsamic vinegar

For the carrots:

1 bunch purple carrots

1 tsp chopped fresh thyme

1 TBSP olive oil

1/4 C water

Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 F. 

Place 1/2 C breadcrumbs into a loaf pan and place in oven. Cook 8-10 minutes or until golden brown and remove from oven. Set aside.

Add diced bacon to medium saute pan. Cook over medium heat until fat is rendered out and meat is getting crispy at the edges. Add diced carrots to the pan and cook 1-2 minutes, then add onion and garlic. Season with pepper and a tiny bit of salt, then saute 8-10 minutes, or until carrots are soft. Add 1 TBSP tomato paste and raise heat. Cook 1-2 minute, then add 1/2 C wine and deglaze pan. Continue cooking until all liquid is absorbed, then remove pan from heat.

In a medium mixing bowl, add toasted breadcrumbs, 1/4 C milk, 1 lightly beaten egg, parsley, thyme, basil, the sauteed mixture, and 1 lb ground beef. Season with salt and pepper. Mix gently until combined. The key is to keep the mixture light, not dense and sticky. 

Place beef mixture into loaf pan. 

Create a glaze by mixing 1/3 C organic ketchup, 2 TBSP brown sugar, 1/4 tsp dried mustard, and 1 TBSP balsamic vinegar in a dish, then spread over meatloaf.

In the meantime, cut washed and peeled carrots into evenly sized sticks about 3 inches long by 1/2 inch wide. Toss in a small roasting pan with 1 TBSP olive oil, 1 tsp thyme, salt, and pepper. 

Bake meatloaf 45-50 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 160 F. Let sit 10 minutes before slicing. 

Cook carrots for 35 minutes, add 1/4 cup water, then cover and cook until tender, about 10 more minutes.

Serve with mixed baby greens.