Thursday, February 25, 2010

Balsamic-Dressed Roasted Beets

A simple sweet-and-sour dressing complements earthy roasted beets. Its bright flavors make this dish a fitting accompaniment for roasted meats.

  • 3 medium beets (about 1 1/4 pounds)
  • 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
  • 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 tablespoon sugar
  • 1/2 star anise
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400°.

Leave root and 1 inch of stem on beets; scrub with a brush. Wrap beets in foil. Bake at 400° for 1 hour or until tender. Cool beets to room temperature. Peel and cut each beet into 8 wedges.

Combine juice, vinegar, sugar, and star anise in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Cook until reduced by half. Discard star anise. Combine beets, vinegar mixture, salt, and pepper; toss well.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1/2 cup)

Adapted from Cooking Light

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Ten Minute Tasty Asparagus and Brown Rice

I made this with brown rice, but you could certainly substitute other grains. I suspect quinoa or millet would make nice substitutes (or even a short whole-grain pasta?). Seeking out the pre-cooked brown rice in the freezer section helps shave quite a lot of time in this recipe, but feel free to go from scratch with your favorite rice. Use two cans of chickpeas/garbanzo beans if you love them like I do - one can if you're only a general enthusiast.

  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 or 2 14-ounce cans of chickpeas, drained
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 bunch asparagus, cut into 1-inch segments
  • 3 cups pre-cooked brown rice
  • 1 cup almond slivers, toasted
  • fine grain sea salt
Tahini Dressing
  • 1 garlic clove, smashed and chopped
  • 1/4 cup tahini
  • zest of one lemon
  • scant 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons hot water
  • scant 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt

If you're using frozen rice (did I just say that?), heat it on its own in a pot or per package instructions.

Make the dressing by whisking together the garlic, tahini, lemon zest and juice, and olive oil. Add the hot water to thin a bit and then the salt. Set aside.

Add a couple glugs of olive oil (roughly 3 tablespoons) to a big skillet over medium-high heat. Swirl the oil around to coat the pan, then add the chickpeas and sprinkling of salt. Let the beans saute there for a couple minutes (I like to try to get some crusty color on them). Be careful, they seem to hiss and pop more then other beans over high heat. Add the garlic and onions. Stir for a minute. Stir in the asparagus with another pinch or two of salt, cover with a lid for a minute or two to steam - just until the asparagus brightens and softens up just a bit. Uncover and stir in the rice and almond slivers, reserving a few almonds for garnish. Taste and add more salt if needed (likely). Serve family-style in a big bowl drizzled with a few tablespoons of the tahini dressing, let each person add more dressing to their tastes.

Serves 4-6.

from 101 Cookbooks

Pan-fried Chickpea Salad

You can add all sorts of things to this salad depending on the season - sliced green beans, asparagus, or broccoli florets (all blanched) might be good choices. Or simply add a bit of sauteed spinach. I almost opted out of the curry approach at the last minute, seduced by some vibrant broccoli I picked up along with the leeks at the market. I was thinking that a lemony-broccoli pesto would be a great dressing in place of the curried yogurt. Or how about a version of this salad using Thai curry paste instead of Indian curry powder? In this scenario I might skim some of the coconut cream off the top of a can of coconut milk and use that in place of the yogurt - again thinning it with warm water, coconut water, or broth. If I'm going to make this an entire one-pan meal I might through in some tofu or black lentils for that little extra boost of protein.

If you are pinched for time, you can certainly skip the browning of the chickpeas - just skip adding any leeks altogether and add the chopped garlic and the lemon zest to the yogurt dressing. The only ingredient I would add to this version the next time around would be a handful of toasted, slivered almonds. Just a hint of sweetness, toasty nut flavor, and lots of crunch. You can use canned chickpeas, but chickpeas cooked from dried beans are infinitely better tasting, and the texture much better.

  • 1 tablespoon clarified butter, olive oil, or coconut oil
  • 2 cups cooked chickpeas (garbanzo beans), pat them completely dry with clean dish towel
  • 1 cup chopped leeks
  • 1 medium clove of garlic, minced
  • zest of one lemon
  • 1/3 cup plain yogurt (I typically use low-fat Greek)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Indian-style curry powder (or to taste)
  • scant 1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
  • 1 or 2 tablespoons warm water
  • 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 1/2 cup red onion or red spring onions, chopped

Heat the cooking oil in a large skillet and add the chickpeas. Saute over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until they start getting a bit golden in color. Stir in the leeks and cook until the chickpeas are more golden and the leeks have browned a bit as well, roughly 7 - 10 minutes total. At the last minute stir in the garlic and the lemon zest. Remove from heat, and set aside.

While the chickpeas cool (I like to serve this salad at room temperature), make the yogurt dressing by combining the yogurt, curry powder, and salt in a small bowl. If you need to thin it out a bit, particularly if you are using Greek yogurt, whisk in warm water a tablespoon at a time. Taste, adjust, and set aside.

When you are ready to serve the salad, toss the chickpea mixture with most of the cilantro and most of the chopped red onion. Add about 1/2 of the yogurt dressing and toss again. If you like more dressing, keep adding until you are pleased. Serve on a platter sprinkled with the remaining onions and cilantro.

Serves 4 as a side.

from 101 Cookbooks

Couscous with Chick-Peas and Tomatoes

Offer this healthful Moroccan grain dish as a main course or as an accompaniment to roasted chicken.

  • 1 1/2 cups canned chicken broth
  • 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
  • 1 cup whole wheat couscous
  • 1/2 cup diced tomato
  • 1/2 cup drained canned chick-peas (garbanzo beans)
  • 1/4 cup golden raisins
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried basil, crumbled
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled
  • pine nuts

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter small baking dish. Bring chicken broth and butter to boil in heavy medium saucepan. Add couscous. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer until couscous is tender and has absorbed all liquid, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomato, chick-peas, raisins, cinnamon, basil and thyme. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer mixture to baking dish. Cover and cook until heated through, about 15 minutes.

yield: Serves 4

adapted from Epicurious

Monday, February 8, 2010

Spicy Lamb Kofte

  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 cup flat leaf parsley leaves
  • 1 1/4 tsp aleppo pepper* or 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1 tsp ground allspice
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 2 lbs ground lamb

In a food processor, pulse the onion and garlic until finely chopped. Add the parsley, aleppo pepper, allspice, salt, cinnamon and cumin. Pulse until combined. Add the lamb and pulse just until well mixed.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Divide the lamb mixture into 12 portions. Form each portion into a ball, then roll into a cigar shape. Place the sausages onto a baking sheet sprayed with non stick cooking spray.

Lamb Kofte can be grilled or broiled also. Skewer each sausage, then grill or broil 5-8 minutes, turning occasionally, until done.

Bake the kofte for 20 minutes, turn over, and cook another 10 minutes.

Serve your kofte with pita bread, hummus, chopped tomatoes and chopped onions. Rice pilaf is also a nice side dish with the kofte.

*Aleppo pepper is a mild, bright red pepper with a fruity, balanced flavor. Aleppo pepper can be found in Middle Eastern stores.