White Beans with Broccoli Rabe and Lemon

Posted on March 16, 2015 by melsmosaic

Got around to making a recipe from my pile of them that I’ve been meaning to get to for awhile. This time I took a stab at White Beans with Broccoli Rabe and Lemon from Bon Appetit. It sounded interesting because you actually eat the lemon. Had to try it.

Ingredients

Servings: 4

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 small lemon, very thinly sliced, seeds removed
2 anchovy fillets packed in oil
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
½ bunch broccoli rabe, chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 15-oz. cans cannellini (white kidney) beans, rinsed
¼ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
Crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

-Ok, the first fun part of this was getting the broccoli rabe at the store. It was mixed in with every other one of the leafiest, darkest greens possible. It was also labeled by its non-normal name — rapini. Why must they have done this to me? I was about to fold and just use broccoli.

-Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium heat. Add lemon, anchovies, and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until lemon is softened and brown in spots and anchovies fall apart, about 5 minutes. Add broccoli rabe; season with salt and pepper and cook, tossing occasionally, until bright green and crisp-tender, about 5 minutes.

-Add beans and ½ cup water to pot. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until flavors have melded and liquid is reduced by half (you still want it to be saucy), about 5 minutes. In the middle of making it, I decided there was not nearly enough broccoli rabe in there, so added a ton more (that’s why below some stuff is bright green, some is less so). Mix in parsley and 2 Tbsp. Parmesan.

-Transfer to a platter, sprinkle with red pepper flakes, if desired, and top with more Parmesan.

This was quite good. The lemon was nice and soft and gave good zing to the dish. Definitely keeping the recipe.

Pasta Sauce on a Whim

Posted on February 26, 2015 by melsmosaic

Last Saturday was just cold, snowy and blah here in DC and all I wanted was some great pasta sauce. Why buy the stuff? Decided to grab a bunch of stuff and see what I could put together based on the rough research I did on cooking the stuff. Came up with the following ingredients (don’t have exact measurements on any of these):

-canned tomatoes
-onions
-olives
-garlic
-spices
-bay leaves
-fennel seed (almost forgot that one)
-red wine
-S&P
-olive oil

Threw them all in a pot and brought them to a boil then simmered them over medium heat for about 30+ minutes.

Final result was a delicious, chunky sauce with tons of flavor.

Served it over spaghetti squash with some seared shrimp.

Veggie Hybrid

Posted on February 18, 2015 by melsmosaic

You can rarely say no to samples when you to into grocery stores! So, when doing my weekly shopping at Trader Joe’s the other day they had these green leafy things out to lure you in. Hmmm…let’s investigate. They mentioned the name, sounded safe, took the bite, SOLD! They were sampling Kale Sprouts.

It’s essentially a hybrid between delicious kale and amazing Brussels sprouts…how can you go wrong? You’re getting great taste and all the (insert loads of info) health benefits in one bite! The official rundown on them per the package:

When pulled out of the bag, so cute!

Based on how they cooked them in the store (and tips on the back of the bag), I sauteed/steamed them. I also added garlic, of course. So, just put a bit of oil a pan, added garlic, tossed the kale sprouts in there for a bit, added some water then covered the pan and waited about 3 minutes. Then just sprinkled some lemon juice over top and some S&P. Voila! Delicious little ‘things’ — don’t know what else to call them. Give them a try if you see them in your local TJ’s.

Warm Brussels Sprouts Salad (Coles de Bruselas)

Posted on October 5, 2014 by melsmosaic

I was flipping through a recent copy of Shape magazine that my friend brought over because she saw a bunch of recipes that she figured I’d like. They did have several and this is the first one I’ve tried. A lot of oil and butter for Shape magazine and since I’m lactose intolerant I nixed the butter and I feel like a lot of the oil isn’t needed. I also left out the feta. The dish was very nice and provided great leftovers! I enjoyed it both hot and cold. You just can’t go wrong with Brussels sprouts.

Warm Brussels Sprouts Salad (Coles de Bruselas)

(note, I can’t find it on the site, but It was in the September or October version of the magazine (I’m thinking September))

Serves 6

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 15-25 minutes

Ingredients

2 tbsp butter (didn’t use it — I’m lactose intolerant)
1/4 cup vegetable oil (didn’t use nearly that much — no need for it!)
1 pound Brussels sprouts, halved though stem
1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp sherry vinegar (or whatever you have handy — I used tarragon vinegar — I wasn’t buying a new bottle for that small amount)
1 cup chopped shallots (about 4-6 shallots)
1 1/2 tsp whole grain mustard
1/4 bunch fresh thyme, leaves removed from stem and chopped
1 1/2 tsp honey
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup canned chick peas/garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 orange, zested and flesh cut into segments
1/2 red onion, sliced very thin
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
3 oz Feta, crumbled (optional)

Directions

1-First, I didn’t feel like chopping like chopping the shallots the night I made this, so I broke out the mini-prep! Have some fun with kitchen toys!!!

2-In large saute pan over low heat, melt butter into oil (I used a bit of oil and also sprayed the pan). Place Brussels sprouts in the pan, cut side down (that didn’t last too long). Turn the heat to medium-high. Cook until sprouts are brown and caramelized, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Transfer sprouts to a large bowl and season with 1/2 tsp of the salt.

3-In a medium bowl, mix remaining salt, vinegar, shallots, mustard, thyme, honey, and olive oil. Pour into the saute pan and bring to a simmer. Add beans and cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat.

4-Add orange zest and segments, red onion and pepper to the sprouts. Pour the hot vinaigrette-bean mixture on top of the sprouts and mix well to combine. Top with feta, if desired.

This was very good and I would definitely recommend making it!

Chaat (Black Chick Pea Salad)

Posted on September 30, 2014 by melsmosaic

I was going to an event recently and there was a food theme to it. I had to do some research and a friend gave me a great recipe for a Pakistan Black Chick Pea Salad, known there as Chaat (which also refers to many snacks). Check out the Wikipedia info on it. I’d had a bite of this salad from my friends’ fridge the weekend before and it was delicious so I had to get the recipe. It was awesome to get this and translate it because it came from his mom so he was getting the true, true specs while speaking to her in Urdu and bringing it to me while applying some of the thoughts they have in the Middle East that they still use while cooking here to preserve the food. I have brought it down to simple stuff (only took a couple things out).

Ingredients:

Two cups dry black chick peas/garbanzo beans

1/2 cup finely chopped yellow onion

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper or red pepper flakes

1 lemon

1 tomato, chopped

1 avocado, cut into small pieces

1/4 packet “Chat Masala” from an Indian Store

1 jalapeno, finely chopped

1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro

1 medium thin skinned potato with the skin removed after baking or microwaving

Go to a local Indian Store to get (two cups of dry) black chick peas. Rinse several times and then soak in a bowl of water overnight. In the morning, boil until they are the desired consistency and chewiness (about 1.5 hours in boiling water is needed after an overnight soak). If there is a time element, use regular Garbanzo beans/chick peas from a can in place of the black chick peas.

Directions:

While the boiling is taking place…

Bake potato (I nuked it for a couple minutes) and chop into small pieces.

Combine salt, pepper, red pepper, jalapeno pepper, and chat masala in a medium sized bowl.

Get out a second bowl and add the chick peas (once done), tomato, avocado, lemon juice, chopped cilantro. Mix together (hands work well to do this). Add the potato.

Mix the second mixture with the first mixture and adjust salt, pepper, red pepper, to taste and add lemon juice.

This salad was awesome! It can be enjoyed warm or cold, I prefer the latter. So fresh and so many flavors. Would be great for tailgaiting!!!

Asparagus Salad with Manchego and Almonds

Posted on June 26, 2014 by melsmosaic

As I continue going through some Cooking Light recipes, the next one I tried was an awesome asparagus salad. The proper title — Shaved Asparagus Salad with Manchego and Almonds. What was unique about this is that the asparagus is raw. I can count on less than one hand the amount of times I’ve eaten un-cooked asparagus. Game on! When I made this, I did not add the egg because of everything else I was making for dinner, I didn’t need that extra bit of protein/food.

Ingredients

1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons sherry vinegar (I used tarragon vinegar because I didn’t want to buy a fresh bottle of sherry vinegar just for this and that’s what I had on hand)
1 1/2 teaspoons walnut oil (again, didn’t want to buy something new, so used some sesame oil)
1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic (of course I used more than that!)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pound large asparagus
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
8 cups water
2 tablespoons white vinegar
4 large eggs
2 tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted
1 ounce Manchego cheese, shaved (about 1/4 cup)

Directions

Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk.
Using a sharp peeler, thinly peel asparagus to equal 3 cups asparagus ribbons. Add asparagus and parsley to bowl; toss gently to coat. *They make this sound SO easy. Not so much. With a carrot, yet, but with a smaller asparagus spear/stalk, not so much. After awhile on each one, I’d stop and just throw a larger piece in the bowl.
*THIS IS THE PART I DIDN’T DO* Combine 8 cups water and white vinegar in a large skillet; bring to a simmer. Break each egg into a custard cup, and pour each gently into pan. Cook 3 minutes or until desired degree of doneness. Remove eggs from pan using a slotted spoon.
Place about 2/3 cup asparagus mixture on each of 4 plates. Sprinkle each serving with 1 1/2 teaspoons almonds; top each serving with 1 egg. Sprinkle evenly with Manchego cheese. *I don’t get this fancy. I tossed everything in a bowl.

It was DELICIOUS! Crisp, fresh and some nice tang with all the flavors. Highly recommend it! I can’t decide if next time I’m going to try cutting the asparagus with a mandolin or V-slicer or cutting them in half and using the food processor with the proper blade. I just need to hope the hit the blade horizontally to slice properly. Though, I guess even if not, they’ll taste the same!

Refreshing Cucumber Salad

Posted on June 13, 2014 by melsmosaic

Summer is finally here (temperature-wise) which means quick, refreshing salads are what the menu calls for. Found a great one in a recent edition of Cooking Light that was super simple and delicious!

It was Cucumber, (Black) Olive and Mint Salad. I put Black in parentheses because the recipe calls for Greek olives which are a totally different taste from black olives!

Ingredients:

2 cups thinly sliced English cucumber (I just used a regular cuke)
1/4 cup chopped pitted kalamata olives
3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

The prep is real tough. Slice the cuke.

Then combine cucumber, olives, mint, lemon juice, olive oil, and pepper.

It tasted even better after it sat for a bit. It was served with pork tenderloin and quinoa. Would also be very nice for brunch paired with smoked salmon/lox.

Carrot Salad with Coriander and Pistachios

Posted on May 13, 2014 by melsmosaic

Was flipping through my Bon Appetit magazine the other day and came across a great sounding recipe that I had to test last Sunday. It was their Carrot Salad with Coriander Vinaigrette and Pistachios from the recent May issue. Perfect for a sunny day!

Ingredients:

¼ cup unsalted, shelled raw pistachios
¾ teaspoon coriander seeds (thought I had seeds and realized too late I didn’t, went ground)
½ garlic clove, finely grated (only half a clove?!?! — yeah right!)
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
⅓ cup olive oil
Kosher salt
1 pound carrots, peeled, julienned or coarsely grated (totally use the food processor with the right blade)
1 cup fresh cilantro leaves with tender stems (didn’t keep much of the stems on and chopped it a bit)

For ease, take those carrots to the food processor. Throw them down the tube and get them shredded quickly.

Preheat oven to 350°. Toast pistachios on a rimmed baking sheet, tossing occasionally, until golden brown, 6–8 minutes. Let cool; coarsely chop. Note: I normally just toast them on the stove, easier. And, second note, I had roasted ones to begin with so didn’t have to do anything — saved a step!

Toast coriander in a small dry skillet over medium heat, tossing often, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Let cool; coarsely chop. — this is where I just threw some ground coriander in the pan and toasted it, worked just as well!
Whisk garlic, lemon juice, red pepper flakes, and coriander in a large bowl, then whisk in oil; season with salt. Add carrots, toss, and let sit at least 30 minutes. I sort of threw all those ingredients on top of the carrots and stirred — it worked.

Toss with cilantro and pistachios just before serving.

(DO AHEAD: Salad (without cilantro and nuts) can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill.)

This was absolutely delicious! So quick and easy to make. Will be a great recipe for the summer for cookouts, BBQs, etc! And, it’s gluten and lactose free and vegetarian, so will work for many people.

Brussels Sprouts Actual

Posted on November 29, 2013 by melsmosaic

After testing a Brussels Sprouts recipe last week I opted for a standby for Thanksgiving dinner. It has veggies, fruit and nuts. Had made it a few times and it’s quick, easy and delicious and would be better for Turkey Day. What do you need? Can’t ask for many fewer basics:

-Brussels Sprouts
-Dried apricots, coarsely chopped (about 1/4 cup)
-Pistachios, coarsely chopped — if you even want to (about 1/3 cup)
-S&P
-olive oil

Have some fun getting those apricots ready.

Cut the Brussels Sprouts in half.

Blanch the Brussels Sprouts for 3 minutes and rinse.

Heat some olive oil in a pan, throw all ingredients (Brussels Sprouts, apricots, pistachios, S&P) on top.

Heat for about 5-7 minutes until nice and browned. Serve and enjoy. I love them and there sure weren’t many leftovers.

Brussels Sprouts Test

Posted on November 25, 2013 by melsmosaic

One of my contributions to Thanksgiving dinner is a brussels sprouts dish. So when I was attending a party last night, I took that as a test-run for a recipe I’d been eyeing. I was from a recent issue of Bon Appetit — Grilled Brussels Sprouts with Chanterelles. It looked simple yet complex so it had to be made!

Ingredients are pretty basic (and I of course made some substitutions):

1½ pounds brussels sprouts, trimmed, halved — they didn’t have any (whole ones) at the store so I grabbed the shaved ones at Trader Joe’s
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 ounces thick-cut bacon, sliced crosswise ¼” thick — went with prosciutto
12 ounces chanterelles or crimini (baby bella) mushrooms, halved or quartered if large — baby bellas at TJ’s, oh yeah
1 large shallot, chopped
4 cloves garlic thinly sliced
2 tablespoons dry Sherry — white wine because I had it
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

The recipe, as named, aims to have the brussels sprouts grilled but I didn’t have the option. So went with the alternative…5-8 minutes in a skillet over medium high heat. You take them out when done then cook the bacon (or prosciutto here) until crisp, then remove.

Throw the mushrooms in there, cook for a few minutes, the get the shallot and garlic going, t00.

Throw everything else in there, stir, salivate, taste, stir, taste some more to be sure everybody will be just as happy as you. Oh, then I guess share/serve. Great option for Turkey Day!