red cabbage braised with apples, bacon, maple, and ginger

i have a special reverence for cabbage. i'm not sure what it is, exactly, that has put cabbage on a pedestal for me, but it's certainly perched up high. it's one of the most beautiful vegetables of any season, and the density i always find surprising and impressive. plus, it just feels healthy. raw, cooked, fermented--i simply love cabbage.

the beauty above is from nash's organic farm. isn't it just so pretty? chopped and cooked for an hour with apples and a couple of strips of bacon, this cabbage was as spectacularly delicious as it was stately and gorgeous. the flavor is spicy and fruity, sweet and sour, and thoroughly perfect. i think it would be a lovely addition to a holiday meal.

chopped cabbage is almost as cool as the whole head. i'm always impressed by the intricate, wrinkled growth patterns, how the leaves nest into each other. neat!

red cabbage braised with maple and ginger
from molly stevens' all about braising

1 tsp olive oil or vegetable oil
2 slices bacon, chopped
1 1/2 Tbsp butter
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 tart apple, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
1 medium head red cabbage (about 1 3/4 lbs), quartered, cored, and sliced
1/4 apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp pure maple syrup

preheat oven to 300 degrees.

fry the bacon over medium heat in a large, deep, ovenproof braising pan with a tight-fitting lid until crisp, about 5 minutes. add 1 tsp oil if it seems necessary. remove bacon with slotted spoon and drain in paper towels.

add butter to the pan and stir in the sliced onion. season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring periodically, until soft, about 2 minutes. add apple and ginger and stir to combine. increase heat to medium-high and and add the cabbage, a few handfuls at a time, stirring to cook down until it all fits in the pan. cook about 6 minutes, stirring, until the cabbage begins to wilt. add the cider vinegar, syrup, and cooked bacon. stir to combine and let the liquid come to a boil.

cover the pan and put in oven. braise at a gentle simmer, stirring every 20 minutes, until the cabbage is tender, about 1 hour. serve warm or at room temperature.


sources:

bacon from skagit river ranch
cabbage from nash's organic produce
onion from willie green's organics
apple from collins family orchard

pear soup with blue cheese and bacon

it seems that one of the first things i get excited about when fall rolls around are savory fruit soups. i like the flavors, i like the blended texture, and soup feels so nourishing, especially when it's full of yummy fruit. this one is a pear soup with bacon and blue cheese. (the original recipe called for pancetta, to which i tend to say to-may-to, to-mah-to, primarily because i love the bacon of skagit river ranch so much.) 

the soup alone is delicious, but the bacon and blue cheese elevate it to a richer level. rich enough, really, that it's probably better off as a start to a meal than a main course. i'll type out the recipe as i made it, though should note that next time i'll probably add a little more stock to thin it out just a tad. 

pear soup with bacon and blue cheese

adapted from fiveandspice on food52.com

4 slices bacon, chopped into pieces

1/2 medium onion, chopped

1 small clove garlic, chopped

1/4 pound potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch cubes

1 small carrot, chopped

1/2 Tbsp maple syrup

2 bartlett pears, peeled, cored, and chopped into 1 inch chunks

1/4 tsp chopped fresh thyme

pinch of fresh grated nutmeg

1 1/2 + cups vegetable or chicken stock (i'd be hesitant to use store-bought chicken stock here--the salt level would probably overwhelm the pear)

couple of tablespoons of greek yogurt (original recipe calls for creme fraiche)

salt and pepper to taste

crumbled blue cheese

in a large soup pot, cook the bacon until crispy. remove with slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate. 

pour off all but about a tablespoon of the bacon fat and add a little olive oil to the pot and heat to medium/medium low. add the onion and cook until softened but not browned. stir in the garlic, potato, and carrot and cook, covered, about 10 minutes. add pear, syrup, thyme, and nutmeg and cook a few minutes, stirring, to coat the vegetables in the syrup mixture. 

add broth, bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer and cook, covered, until potatoes, carrots and pears are soft, about 15 minutes. 

blend until smooth. you can blend in batches in the blender, but this is where an immersion blender comes in really handy. 

sources:
bacon from skagit river ranch
pears from...um...crap, i can't remember! someone at the u district farmers market!
potatoes from olsen farms
onion and garlic from willie green's organics
chicken stock made from stokesberry chicken

roasted brussels sprouts with bacon and maple syrup

i'm no stranger to getting into a rut when it comes to cooking. as much as i enjoy both cooking and eating, i do sometimes get, well, bored. reason #2455 for eating with the seasons: it's exciting! when the weather changes and new crops start to show up on tables at the farmers market, it wakes me right up. welcome, fall, and every delightful fruit and veggie that comes with you!

i look forward to seeing brussels sprouts show up at the markets. to me, they are one of the world's perfect foods. they are adorable, they are packed with healthy goodness, and they have a delicious flavor that is aggressive enough to hold up to all kinds of ingredients and preparations. roasting is my favorite. we tried a  recipe for roasted sprouts with bacon and maple from boston.com this week, wondering if it would unseat our previous favorite, a dish of roasted sprouts with dijon and cream from edible seattle. it did not. still, even though the other recipe wins a spot at this year's thanksgiving table, these sprouts were absolutely delicious. it sounds a little strange, maple syrup on brussels sprouts, but trust me, bacon is the perfect bridge between the two. 

roasted brussels sprouts with bacon and maple syrup

from boston.com

2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved, small ones left whole

2 tablespoons olive oil 

2 tablespoons maple syrup 

3 slices of bacon, cut into1/2-inch pieces 

Salt and pepper, to taste 1.

preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

in large casserole dish, toss sprouts with olive oil, syrup, and salt and freshly ground pepper. (go easy on the salt, since the bacon will be salty.) sprinkle bacon over the top.

roast, stirring a time or two, 25-35 minutes, or until sprouts are caramelized and the bacon is crisp. 

sources:

bacon from skagit river ranch

sprouts from nash's organic produce

all-day baked beans with bacon, rum, and honey

i flew home to georgia last week to surprise my parents for their birthdays. i'd coordinated with my brother and cousin to arrive undetected and make a grand entrance, and, thanks to a flawless execution, they were, indeed, surprised. we had so much fun for the week.

during my visit, my favorite aunt jane made it clear that she USED TO enjoy reading my blog, but obviously i wasn't cooking anymore, because i hadn't updated the blog in SO long. but i have! so, aj, this one is for you!

i decided one cold, drizzly day not too long ago that i wanted a good ol' southern barbeque experience, but i didn't want to cook any meat. enter this recipe for baked beans from edible seattle, plus some cornbread and chopped cabbage slaw, and the meat was not missed at all.

IMPORTANT: these are called "all-day" because they cook, well, all day. seriously. 8 hours. don't think that you'll magically speed up the process, as i did, and ended up cooking them over two days. no, just take my word for it. they're going to cook all day.

the recipe is absolutely fantastic. i was skeptical at first, that the flavors were too mild and the results would be bland. i was wrong. so very wrong. they are rich, creamy, sticky, and perfect. they cook so long that the bacon melts away into the gooey sauce, which is pretty decadent. recipe makes 6 servings, and you'll be glad to have the leftovers.

all-day baked beans with bacon, rum, and honey
from edible seattle, march/april 2010

1/2 lb thick-cut bacon
1 lb red or red kidney beans, cooked until tender (this is roughly 6 cups, roughly 4 cans)
1/2 cup molasses
1/2 cup dark rum
2 Tbsp dijon mustard
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp salt
freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup honey (recipe calls for spicy honey, which i didn't have, but it would be great in these beans)

preheat oven to 325 degrees. in a bowl, mix the beans with molasses, rum, mustard, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper to taste.

chop the bacon and add it to the bottom of a dutch oven. pour the beans on top of the bacon, and add water to cover the beans to about twice their depth and cook, uncovered, for 2 hours. the liquid should barely simmering.

stir beans, and continue cooking, checking every half hour and stirring the caramelized bits back under (you can scrape the sticky bits from the sides, too), until all of the water is absorbed. (i was shy with the amount of water i added at the beginning, so i actually added water throughout the cooking process as the beans absorbed the liquid. worked out just fine.)

the recipe says the beans will cook 3 to 8 hours. as i said, mine cooked for a full 8, over the course of 2 days since i'd planned poorly. the beans will be done when the liquid is absorbed, the beans are plump and creamy, gooey and soft, and the top is caramelized.

stir in honey, season to taste with salt and pepper, and enjoy!

sources:
bacon from skagit river ranch
red beans from alvarez organic farm
honey from sweet as can bee honey farm

asparagus season kicks off with asparagus, arugula, and cream with fettuccine

asparagus! you and your gorgeous spears of spring! welcome back, old friend. let us waste no time. 

for the first asparagus of the season, i saw no need to get fancy. this is a simple asparagus and arugula pasta with a creamy sauce and a little bacon for fun. you can substitute another green for the arugula (spinach, etc), but the arugula brings a great peppery flavor to jazz up the sweet and grassy asparagus. leave off the bacon and substitute vegetable oil for a vegetarian version. also, though they aren't in the recipe below, when i do this again i'll add garlic and/or shallots, and possibly lemon juice or lemon zest. feel free to add them to yours!

asparagus and arugula pasta with cream
serves 2
(note: my cook times below are approximate. most important thing is to cook the veggies until the asparagus is cooked but crisp and the arugula is wilted, and they are both still nice and green.)

1/2 bunch skinny asparagus (about 1/2 lb)
1/2 bunch arugula (about 2 handfuls)
4 strips bacon
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 cup homemade chicken or vegetable stock
1 cup heavy cream
1/8 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for plating
salt and fresh cracked pepper 
enough fettuccine for 2

prep asparagus and arugula. remove woody ends from asparagus by bending the bottom of the stalk until it snaps off. it will know the right place to break. (this is a really satisfying task. i especially love the "pop" some of the thicker ones give.) chop into 2" long pieces.

for arugula, wash thoroughly, remove stems, and let soak in bowl of cold water for a few minutes to remove residual dirt and other matter. remove from water by hand (don't pour, or all the dirt comes with it!), and drain.

meanwhile, cook bacon in saute pan large enough to accommodate it. cook to desired crispness and remove from pan to drain on paper towels. pour off all but 1 Tbsp (reserve the rest in case you need a little more) of the bacon grease. (if not using bacon, or if bacon grease doesn't appeal, use veg oil or butter here.) heat it to medium and add the asparagus and saute , shaking pan, for about 2 minutes. add more oil if it gets too dry. add arugula to pan and cook, stirring or shaking, until slightly wilted but still bright green. add white wine to pan and cover for about 2 minutes to steam the vegetables. (watch the pan to make sure it doesn't cook too fast, and the asparagus stays crisp!)

cook fettuccine in large pot of boiling water and about a tablespoon of salt.

remove veggies from pan and reserve. add chicken or veg stock to pan and deglaze, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. let cook over medium heat until reduced by about half. stir in cream, parmesan cheese, and season to taste with salt and pepper. (overseasonning the sauce is a good idea here, since the veggies and pasta are unseasoned.) cook a couple of minutes longer to thicken sauce. 

toss sauce with hot pasta, and add vegetables. serve with crumbled bacon and fresh grated parmesan cheese and pepper.

sources: 
asparagus-- canales farm
arugula-- stoney plains organic farm 
bacon-- skagit river ranch 
chicken stock-- made from stokesberry sustainable farm chicken
fettuccine-- made from caity's eggs, woodring northwest 

bacon-wrapped vegetable gratins. not a diet food.

heh. i thought i was getting tired of root vegetables until i wrapped them in bacon. edible seattle's recipe maven jess thompson presented a recipe last january for winter root vegetable gratins as an idea for a super bowl snack. this past sunday, i took her up on it. uh, can i just say, YUM?

recipe here: bacon root vegetable gratins 

the recipe says to use a mini-muffin tin, but my vegetables were big, so i used the regular muffin tin. also, i trimmed the bacon to wrap around, which ended up being 6" or so lengths, rather than the 3" pieces the recipe calls for. i used an uber sharp cheddar-style cheese, and just sprinkled a little on each layer. the 2 Tbsp of cheese in each layer called for in the recipe has to be a misprint! toothpicks were to secure the bacon as i put the gratins together, but were removed before cooking.

baked 30 minutes, et voila...

... an incredibly decadent way to experience winter veggies! 

speaking of winter, rob and i are heading to sunny hawaii tomorrow for what is a well-earned vacation on his part, and an aren't-i-lucky-he-wants-me-to-come-too trip for yours truly. know what i'm looking forward to as much as anything else? FRUIT, that's what. juicy, drippy, tangy, sticky, tart, sweet, fruit. i'll be sure and get some pics. 

catch y'all a little later!

gnocchi with romanesco and bacon. tastes good, looks cool.

i go to the farmers market every week with a list and an open mind. i'm usually planning on a couple of recipes for the week, and the other nights are to be filled with a tbd market surprise. inevitably something new and strange makes it home with us.

one such market discovery is romanesco. this gorgeous vegetable which rob and i call the "fractal fruit," abandoning accuracy in favor of alliteration, is similar to cauliflower in texture and taste. its architecture of spirals built of spirals built of spirals is absolutely hypnotizing.

best of all, it can be carved into a seussian tree. oh, to live in a grove of these!

it's terrific roasted with plenty of olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper. it also makes a damn fine gnocchi sauce.

gnocchi with romanesco and bacon

serves 2

1/2 lb prepared gnocchi

1/2 head romanesco, chopped

1/2 cup white wine

1 cup chicken (or veg) broth

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 Tbsp grated parmesan cheese

3 slices of bacon, chopped

blanch romanesco for 5 minutes in boiling salted water. drain and reserve.

cook chopped bacon in skillet over medium heat to desired crispness, remove from pan and reserve. drain all but 1 Tbsp bacon fat from pan and return to heat. deglaze pan with wine, scraping up browned bits, and reduce 5 minutes. add broth and reduce 5-10 minutes. add cream and reduce slightly, stirring constantly, about 5 minutes.

add blanched romanesco to sauce and cover, cooking 10 minutes. stir in parmesan cheese and season with salt and pepper.

cook gnocchi in boiling salted water until it floats. drain, and pan fry gnocchi lightly in butter. (frying is optional-- my latest gnocchi batch is a little loose and needs this step to firm it up. plus, i like the texture of the fried bits.)

serve gnocchi with sauce, bacon, and grated parmesan cheese.

spectacular winter minestrone

one january day in college i got it in my head that i wanted to make minestrone. i didn't, however, have a recipe and wasn't sure what to do about that fact. (this was pre-internet-- for me, anyway.) when i arrived home from class that very afternoon i found the apartment complex monthly newsletter hanging on my doorknob. on page 3 was a recipe, presented by a corpulent, cartoon italian chef, for a warm and cozy escape from the january inclemency-- minestrone. sweet!

i headed out to the store immediately with my grocery list of fresh vegetables. carrots, celery, even a whole head of cabbage, for pete's sake-- i was thrilled to get home and make honest-to-god food out of these colorful raw ingredients.

sadly, the recipe was terrible. i wasn't savvy enough to realize it in advance, and was too new to cooking to know how to improve it. (now i know that 11 cups of water, chopped veg, and no seasoning does not a good soup make...) even worse, it was a bad recipe that made an ENORMOUS amount.

still, i've learned when the minestrone itch strikes, it must not be ignored. it can't be ignored. in fact, the universe wants you to have minestrone. i got a craving last weekend and this time i found a fantastic recipe. one thing that makes minestrone such a special soup is that it can always be made with what's in season, and this one, with winter veggies, is phenomenal.

i was able to get almost everything i needed from the stoney plains farm booth at the farmers market, including the cannellini beans. the bacon (the best in the world, as far as i'm concerned) is from skagit river ranch. the tomatoes and chicken stock came from my freezer.

winter minestrone

adapted from gourmet, january 2009

4 slices bacon, chopped

1 cup chopped onion (about 1/2 medium onion)

2 small carrots, chopped

2 small ribs celery, chopped with leaves

1/2 bunch kale

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp tomato paste

2 cups (or 14 oz can) diced or whole tomatoes

3-4 cups homemade chicken stock (or water)

1/2 small cabbage, chopped (about 2 cups)

1 rind from a parmesan wedge, about 2x2"

1 cup dried cannellini beans (or 1 14 oz can)

2 cups cooked ditalini pasta

if using dried beans:

sort beans and throw out non-bean material (rocks, sticks...). rinse, and soak overnight. drain, rinse, and cook in plenty of water, simmering until cooked, anywhere from 30 minutes to 1 hour. start checking them after 20 minutes to make sure they don't overcook. drain and set aside.

cook bacon, onions, carrots, and celery over medium heat in a heavy-bottom soup pot until bacon is cooked through. it won't be crispy. (i added no fat to this recipe at all-- the bacon was plenty.)

cut the stems off of the kale and chop. chop and reserve leaves. add kale stems to pot with garlic, and season with salt and pepper. cook, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes or so. (the original recipe calls for a 45 minute cook time here, but i was afraid to burn the garlic.)

push vegetables to one side of the pot and add tomato paste to the cleared area and cook, stirring, for about 2 minutes. (original recipe calls for a browning or caramelizing of the tomato paste, but i was unsure what that exactly meant, so i just cooked it for 2 minutes.)

stir in tomatoes with their juice and cook another 5 to 10 minutes, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot.

add chicken stock, parmesan rind, chopped kale leaves, and chopped cabbage. cover and simmer until greens are tender, about 40 minutes.

add beans to soup, taste, and season with salt and pepper. simmer about 10 minutes longer.

stir cooked ditalini pasta into each bowl and serve with a loaf of fresh bread.

this soup is a bona fide remedy for a cold and rainy day. it's hearty, incredibly flavorful, and the bacon makes it a true comfort dish.

i made my substitutions and tweaks, but you should definitely read the original recipe. it's the kind that you can make over and over, making your own personal improvements on it, until one day you've got a special family recipe that you'll teach your grandkids. seriously.

chanterelle mushroom feast!

i've learned over the last couple of years that when fall comes to the pacific northwest, saying you're going for a hike might be met with, "are you going mushroom hunting?" there are quite a few forageables in this part of the country, and a fair-sized population of people interested in finding them.

i've been intrigued by the idea of a mushroom-gathering expedition for a while now, but lacked two pieces of critical information: 1) where to go, and 2) what to look for. you have to go with someone experienced, and as i understand it, mushroom hunters who have their own trusty spot are reluctant to share such treasure with others. thankfully, i have a couple of friends who are clever enough to have recently gotten themselves invited on a hunt for chanterelles, and who also happen to be spectacular cooks.

dinner monday night with b and v was an incredible chanterelle feast. first up, the mushrooms were sauteed in sherry and mixed with a little creme fraiche, served on crostini. unreasonably delicious. next, we had them roasted with asparagus, cooked with bacon and tossed with boiled new potatoes, and made into a stroganoff-style sauce which was served on rare beef. there was so much amazingness on that table it was overwhelming. at the end of the night they sent us home with a couple of pounds of our very own chanterelles. awesome!

chanterelles are one of about 30 edible, forageable varieties in this part of the world. they are difficult to cultivate since their growth depends on a symbiotic relationship that takes place at the root level of certain trees. they are, as are all mushrooms i've learned from the most recent issue of edible seattle, actually the fruit of a larger organism called the mycelium that makes it's home in the soil. because they have to be hand picked from the forest floor, chanterelles are quite expensive. but if you know where and how to find them, you've got a goldmine on your hands.

so, what to do with my paper bag o' delicacies? i decided to stretch them as far as i could, and make several different dishes. first was homemade pappardelle with chanterelles in a creamy tomato sauce. i essentially followed a recipe for pappardelle with wild mushrooms, rosemary, and light tomato sauce from the summertime anytime cookbook by dana slatkin.

recipe here: pappardelle with wild mushrooms, rosemary, and light tomato sauce

it was... good, but not amazing. the pasta was good, the sauce was good, the mushrooms were good, but at the end of the day, it was pasta with mushrooms in a tomato sauce-- not the most exciting way to show off the flavor of such a coveted ingredient. the next night i changed direction.

on a back episode of top chef i was re-watching for the 3rd time tuesday morning, a chef made a gnocchi dish with lobster, bacon, corn, and chanterelle mushrooms. heck yeah! i'll just leave off the lobster, make up a sauce, and it'll be great! i had made a couple of pounds of gnocchi earlier in the month and frozen it for just such an occasion, so this would even be a relatively quick meal. it was uncomplicated and delicious! if it had been served to me at a restaurant, i'd have only been disappointed that there wasn't twice as much of it on the plate.

gnocchi with chanterelle mushrooms, corn, and bacon

(serves 2)

1 lb prepared gnocchi

2 slices bacon

1 ear fresh corn, kernels removed with a sharp knife

1/2 - 3/4 lb chanterelle mushrooms, cleaned and sliced, small ones left whole

1/2 yellow onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup chicken stock

1/2 cup white wine

pat of butter

olive oil

salt and pepper

cook bacon over medium heat and remove to drain on paper towels. crumble or cut into bits. drain off most of bacon grease and return pan to heat.

add mushrooms to pan. when they hit the heat, they will lose a lot of their liquid pretty quickly and cook down a bit in their own juices. when they are softened and golden, remove from pan and reserve, reserving also the mushroom liquid in a separate bowl to be used in the sauce later.

saute the onions and garlic in the same pan with some olive oil or butter. cook until onions are transluscent, or caramelize if you want. (i usually add the garlic at the last minute to sweat it but not risk burning). add corn to pan. cook a few minutes more until corn cooks through and the mixture begins to marry. it smells really good at this stage...

add white wine to pan and deglaze, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom. cook 2 minutes or so until the wine reduces and the mixture thickens. add chicken stock and cook a few minutes more, again, reducing and thickening. repeat with reserved mushroom liquid. stir in a pat of butter for added richness.

add mushrooms and crumbled bacon to the sauce and warm through. season to taste with salt and pepper.

serve on gnocchi. i boiled and pan fried mine in butter to give it a little texture. note: if using frozen gnocchi, do not thaw before cooking.

it's just dirt, it won't hurt anybody, but i don't like gritty meals and chanterelle mushrooms are filthy! to clean, remove the part of the stem that was underground and brush or scrape off as much of the rest of the dirt as possible. they're pretty robust, they can take it. wash under running water, paying attention to any trapped dirt in the gills. clean only just before use, though-- don't clean and store wet or they will, um, i don't know what they will do, but it might not be pretty. they will last several days in a paper bag in the fridge.

just a handful left! what to do tonight?