This is a very flavorful, “umami” packed dish, and is great as an accompaniment to robust dishes like grilled steak, or milder dishes such as a white fish or chicken as a contrast item. You could add orange juice to the miso for a sweeter range of flavor. You can also add radishes to the dish. Blanch for only a few seconds if they are spicy, then add in with the turnips. Roasting radishes produces juicy colorful chunks that are very mildly spicy. A quick sauté of the greens makes a perfect bed for the turnips. If you don’t have the greens, skip that part of the recipe.
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Roasting the tomatoes with a little sugar before making the glaze intensifies the tomato flavor, and brings out their fruitiness. The glaze is closer to a jam than ketchup, and can be used on cauliflower, squash, fish, chicken, or pork and beef. Add a dollop to braises or a stew of squash, onions, and eggplant.
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This is the basic technique for spaghetti squash. Using spaghetti squash typically entails two cooking steps. The first is where the squash is actually cooked, and the next is where the “spaghetti” part gets seasoned in a secondary cooking with other ingredients. This is the technique for the primary step, where the squash is cooked and separated into the strands that give the squash its name. From here, you can do all sorts of things to season the squash. Just remember not to over-cook it, and give it lots of room in the pan and minimal moisture to keep it from getting mushy. Also, I find using an oil sprayer really helps ensure an even coat of oil without having really soggy spots or dry spots, which can affect the end results.
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This is a nice little appetizer/hors d’oeuvre thing that is simple yet is full of flavor. They can be prepared well in advance, and then just popped into the oven when needed. The compound butter would be great packed under shrimp shells or around shrimp in a small roasting pan, and would combine well with the radishes. With a cold crisp white wine and a salad this would be a nice supper on a warm evening.
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Pesto is a wonderful complement to roasted cauliflower. This recipe calls for thin shreds of carrots added to the pesto for a little hit of crunch and sweetness, but the recipe is great without the shreds if you do not have the time to prep the carrot shreds. Whatever nuts you use in the pesto would be the nuts to use to garnish this dish.
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“Condiment”? Well, it isn’t a pesto, nor is it a “salsa verde”. If you look up the word you will find this fits perfectly, as this mélange is something to give a particular flavor to, or to complement a dish. Here, the cilantro acts as a foil to the earthy sweet flavor of the roasted cauliflower, and the carrots help to point up the sweetness and adds a textural counterpoint.
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The carrot top “pesto” isn’t really that pesto-ish to my mind as there is no garlic in it, or basil, but there you have it. Roasting the carrots on sprigs of oregano will give them a lighter aroma and flavor than chopping the herbs and putting it all over the carrots, and this way the more delicate topping will come through without interference. Serving these carrots on sautéed spinach will point up the sweetness of the carrots, but is entirely optional as the carrots are fine on their own.
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Inspired by a Caprese Salad crossed with a favorite salsa where everything is charred a little. There are a couple variations listed, so this is like two recipes in one.
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This is a substantial salad that could serve as a light supper, and is about the interplay of the sweet, fruity, and acid, and soft components of the peppers, onions, and tomatoes in contrast with the crunchy, salty, slightly fatty roast pancetta wheel. Red Oak leaf lettuce is perfect for the bed. If you do not want to make the basil oil, substitute basil shreds and just use olive oil and balsamic vinegar. In lieu of pancetta, you could use buffalo mozzarella or goat cheese rounds. See Chef’s Notes for ideas.
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Here is a basic “recipe” I use a lot, especially in the summer; this is for “roasted” onions. It is more of a technique than a recipe, as it only calls for onions and flame, really. These onions are a key ingredient to my dark vegetable stock as they lend a depth of flavor, deep color, and the pectin helps to produce a density or viscosity to the stock that is usually derived from animal products. I use these onions in braises, soups, and salsas. Tossed with a little vinegar (red-wine or balsamic) then placed on toasts they make a nice quick appetizer. They elevate roasted peppers. These onions find their way into eggs, pastas, and sandwiches. Good for pizza, too. Grill a few and keep them in a sealed box in the refrigerator. They last 4-5 days.
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Another iteration of “Honey Lacquered Cauliflower”. This one is quite easy and gives a subtler variation to pan cooking it. It also yields a beautiful golden color, which orange cauliflower could accentuate. Marinating time is important to the success of this dish, so plan a little ahead so there is at least a half hour for marinating.
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This dish is great as a combination of two recipes, but the chicken is quite good without the stuffing, and the stuffing makes a nice side dish on its own, as well. Lemon infused olive oil is available at gourmet shops, better grocery stores, and you can find some locally made at various farmer’s markets. Agrumato is an excellent commercial brand and Colline di Santa Cruz is produced in the Santa Cruz area by Valencia Creek Farms. You can even make something that approaches it on your own by infusing oil with just the peel, but it is worth the money to have a bottle of this on hand.
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The flavors of this dish showcase the sweet and nutty flavor cauliflower possesses, which is best brought out by roasting. The idea of marinating vegetables may seem odd, but many are quite receptive to marinades. Although the flavors work fine with any color cauliflower, a white or yellow cauliflower will pick up a lovely color from the saffron and Pimenton de la Vera used in the marinade.
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Here, cauliflower gets treated the way meat is often cooked in restaurants-started in a pan to brown and finished in the oven. Faster than roasting with deeper browning outside while the inside stays firmer. It is then “dressed” with ingredients long associated with Sicilian cooking-capers and chili flakes, and some vinegar.
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This is a variation on the Quickle theme. The “pickling” solution is heated to infuse it with the flavors of the herbs and spices, and then is poured over the roasted beets so it is absorbed as the beets cool. Tarragon is a great flavor to go with beets, and the other spices are there to enhance this marriage.
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Vaguely Middle-Eastern and Indian in influence, this is a colorful dish with surprising flavors. Remember, peeling purple carrots may render them simply orange, so use a scrub brush or wash cloth to gently clean the outside of these carrots and remove any hairy rootlets. Roasting the carrots deepens the flavor, as well as the color, which adds to the contrast with the sharp mustard.
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The fresh rich flavor of the cooked down tomatoes is a nice counterpoint to the smokey, earthy flavor of the broccoli, and the sweetness of the tomato plays well with the sweetness the broccoli develops in the oven. This makes a nice side dish, but also can be used as a pasta sauce, pizza topping, or mixed with grains.
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This is a riff on part of a recipe from “Eleven Madison Avenue” that caught my eye. I like to play with vegetables in the kitchen, treating them as one might a piece of protein like a roast or steak. Here carrots get to be the roast. I like how such a simple recipe can yield complex flavors, and how the flavors can vary by merely cooking the carrots longer. This recipe will work with any carrot, as long as you adjust the recipe to accommodate the size of the carrots. This was made using bunched Chantenay carrots that averaged 6 inches long and 1½ inches at the widest part of the crown. Although the cooking time is lengthy, once the carrots are in the oven there is nothing to do to them. You could also cook these ahead of time and reheat them later, although the texture will be a little different.
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INGREDIENTS:
2-3 medium to large Fennel bulbs, stalks removed and halved through the root with the width, 1 frond reserved if you wish
½ large brown onion, peeled and cut through the root
Vegetable stock or water as needed (Around 1 cup)
1 tablespoon sugar or honey
1 tablespoon butter, cut into pea sized bits
Salt and pepper to taste
½ teaspoon fresh thyme
Olive oil as needed
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This is not so much a recipe as it is a technique. Use just enough oil to lightly coat the peppers. Some recipes tell you to put the peppers into a plastic bag, but I am not sold on that idea, so I use a steel bowl and a pot lid, or find a plate or other bowl to fit. These peppers, once roasted, store well in the refrigerator for 4-5 days, or freeze beautifully for months. Use these as is for garnishing things, or use them as a base for other dishes. I have cooked these over an open gas burner (can be messy!), under the broiler, even in the sink with a propane torch, but my favorite way is on a grill.
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This is a riff on a dish I found in “Vegetables A to Z” by Elizabeth Schneider. The result is sublime. I find it interesting to note the changes in flavor as I eat the different colors of the leek, from the white to the palest green to the more uniform green. Try these as a starter or have as a side with roast chicken, salmon, or braised beef.
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This dish is great as a side or as a base to stack things like cooked greens and grains on. I like to use a rack to cook these on so they can crisp on both sides, but if you don’t have a rack, just use a well oiled piece of foil on a sheet pan.
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INGREDIENTS:
1 head of cauliflower or Romanesco 2-3 cloves of garlic, peeled and coarsely minced Lemon juice from half a lemon Olive oil Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper Parmesan cheeseContinue reading »
This is the basic method for cooking winter squash either to eat as is, or to prep it for something else, like soup or as a ravioli or tortellini filling. This works for most winter squash, with the only variation being the times, which will change based on thickness of the squash.
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Gremolata is the traditional topping for osso bucco made of lemon zest, garlic, and parsley all chopped finely and mixed. I like to riff on that, varying the herbs and adding breadcrumbs or nuts. I also think that summer squash is always enhanced by dry cooking methods such as roasting.
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