Asparagus Breakfast Casserole

The best way I can think to describe this dish is as a savory French toast.  It has a deep, buttery and delicious flavor that highlights the freshness of just-in-season asparagus spears and creamy havarti cheese.  I served this for brunch this morning along with a lovely coffee cake (to be posted another day) and it was definitely a success.

You can substitute any combination of cheese and vegetable here - the recipe that inspired me featured broccoli and cheddar, which is of course a classic combination.  I wanted to go with something spring-y, since we're just starting to get gorgeous spring produce at the farmers market.  Enter crisp and beautiful thin asparagus spears.  I thought havarti would suit asparagus a bit better than cheddar would, but gruyere would also be excellent for a nuttier flavor.  The point is there's a world of variety here.  This comes together very easily and it tastes fantastic.

Asparagus Breakfast Casserole

adapted from The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper

serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

4 slices whole wheat bread, cut into bite-size cubes

3 large eggs

1/4 cup skim milk

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 cup grated havarti cheese

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons sugar

1 small bunch thin asparagus spears, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 and butter an 8 x 8 baking dish.  Cover the bottom of the dish generously with the bread cubes.

2.  In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, butter, cheese, salt and sugar.  Mix until combined.  Stir in the asparagus, and pour the mixture over the bread.

3.  Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes.  Remove the foil and bake another 10 minutes until golden brown on top.  Serve hot.

Enjoy!

Moroccan Green Bean Tagine

Tonight our culinary journey takes us to Morocco!  This is a spicy (as in spice-y, not as in hot) and rich vegetable dish that will absolutely stun you with the way it manages to be complex and simple at the same time.  You'll need to raid the spice cupboard for this one, so be prepared!

I know this looks a lot like a green bean dish I made a few weeks ago, but it's actually quite different.  It's all about the spices - allspice, chile powder, garam masala, basil, and paprika all together?  Who's have thought they could combine so naturally.  They mingle and get lost in one another to the point where I think you'd be hard pressed to identify the individual spices if you didn't make it yourself.   The flavor is finished off with a tangy red wine vinegar glaze.

This would be gorgeous over cous cous or even rice, but I chose to go the traditional Moroccan route and scoop it up with flat bread (I used pita because it was what I had on hand) - no bed of grains needed! 

Moroccan Green Bean Tagine

adapted from The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper

serves 3

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 pound green beans, trimmed

1 medium onion, coarsely chopped

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/4 teaspoon chile powder

1 teaspoon garam masala

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 tablespoon sweet paprika

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

3 tablespoons dry red or white wine

one 15-oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes

water as needed

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Heat oil over medium-high in a large, straight-sided saute pan.  Add green beans and onions, and season with salt and pepper.  Saute for about 10 minutes, until vegetables are browning.  Stir in garlic and all the spices (allspice through paprika); cook until fragrant, no more than one minute.

2.  Pour in the vinegar and wine, and boil, scraping the bottom of the pan to get up any browned bits.  When the liquid is completely gone, stir in tomatoes and their juices.  The green beans should be just barely covered in liquid - you will need to add some water to accomplish this.  Bring to a bare simmer and cover; cook, removing lid to stir occasionally, for 10 minutes or until beans are tender.

3.  Remove the cover and raise heat to a rapid boil.  Cook off excess liquid, stirring often to protect the beans from burning.  Cook until the sauce is thick and rich.  Season as necessary and serve.

Enjoy!

Carrot Leek Soup

Cool weather = soup weather.  It's a pretty simple equation.  This soup is a particularly tasty and hearty one - a smooth mixture of carrot, potato, and leek, with just a hint of yummy spice and zesty lemon juice to push it over the top into fantastic territory. 

Grab a hunk of bread, whip up this budget-friendly meal, and tuck in.

And a word to the wise - when attempting to thinly slice multiple carrots, the slicer blade on your food processor is your best friend.

Carrot Leek Soup

adapted from The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper

serves 3-4

INGREDIENTS:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 leeks, white and light green parts only, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

pinch of nutmeg

1/2 pound carrots, thinly sliced

2 small or 1 medium potato of your choice, peeled and cubed

2 cups low sodium vegetable broth

salt and pepper to taste

juice of 1/2 lemon

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Film the bottom of a soup pot or Dutch oven with the oil and heat over medium heat.  Add leeks, garlic, and nutmeg, and cook, stirring often, until soft.  Try not to brown the leeks and garlic.  (Reduce heat if necessary).

2.  Stir in carrots, potato, and broth.  Top up with water to just cover all the veggies.  Bring to a boil, then partially cover the pot and let simmer for 15 minutes, or until veggies are fork tender. 

3.  Puree the soup with an immersion blender, or in batches in a blender or food processor, until smooth.  Season with salt and pepper and stir in the lemon juice.  Serve.

Enjoy!

South of France Tomato Soup

It's not quite tomato season yet, but we can give ourselves a sneak preview with good quality canned tomatoes. If you prefer to hold off on making this until you can get some beautiful fresh tomatoes, by all means, please be my guest!

This is another variation on tomato soup, that oh-so-varied meal. This one is more brothy and elegant than your typical tomato soup. It features a delightful mix of dried herbs, so hit up your storecupboard for this recipe. Normally I'm not a huge fan of dried herbs, but it's important that you use them here, however tempted you may be to go to your herb garden instead. Trust me.

Serve this alongside a grown-up version of grilled cheese with a mild but interesting cheese of your choice - I went with Manchego, which is far from French, but it worked nicely.

South of France Tomato Soup
adapted from The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper
serves 3

INGREDIENTS:

1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
EVOO
1 medium onion, finely chopped
salt and fresh-ground black pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
2 tablespoons tomato paste
3 tablespoons dry white wine
14 oz. can of whole tomatoes with their liquid, crushed
12 oz. low sodium vegetable or chicken broth + 4 oz. water
pinch of ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a small bowl, combine basil, fennel, oregano, and thyme, and crush them together until fragrant. Set aside.

2. Film the bottom of a soup pot or Dutch oven with EVOO and heat over medium-high heat. Add onion, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring frequently, until browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in the dried herb mixture and garlic, and cook about 30 seconds, until fragrant.

3. Stir in tomato paste, then add wine and tomatoes. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes. Pour in broth and water, and bring to a boil again. Reduce heat to a bare simmer, and put a tight lid on the pot. Cook for 18 minutes. Stir in cinnamon, test for seasoning, and serve.

Nothing fancy, but it's wholesome and just different enough to keep things interesting. Enjoy!

Garlic Rosemary Bean Salad

I have really grown to appreciate beans in recent months. Partially for their versatility, and partially for how inexpensive they are for a Main Ingredient. The beans themselves come in all sorts of varieties, and you can buy them dried or canned with similar success. They're incredibly good for you, and they are pretty tasty too.

We had a potluck luncheon at work today and this bean salad was my contribution. It's meant to be served warm, but I served it at room temperature and it was really delicious. There were many more decadent dishes on the table, and my beans went somewhat ignored, I'm sorry to say. But those who knew what was good for them (literally) tried it and I received compliments from those noble few.

It seems like there is an insane amount of garlic in this salad, but take my word for it - you want the garlic. You need the garlic. And if you have rosemary growing in your garden (or your front deck, if you're like me and don't have the luxury of a garden) this is a great use for it.

Feel free to substitute the bean(s) of your choice, but I'd recommend that at least half of them be white beans.

Garlic Rosemary Bean Salad
adapted from The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper
serves 6 as a side dish

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 slice crusty bread, preferably whole grain
3 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
5 large garlic cloves, crushed with a pinch of salt and coarse chopped
1/4 cup good quality EVOO
2 springs fresh rosemary, leaves coarsely chopped
one 15-ounce can white beans, drained and rinsed
one 15-ounce can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
additional salt and pepper to taste

1. Start with the topping - coarsely grind the bread into bread crumbs using a food processor. Toast in a large skillet or saute pan over medium heat until the crumbs are lightly browned, stirring often. Transfer to a small bowl to cool. When cooled, add parmesan and pepper, and stir to combine.

2. In the same pan, heat the EVOO and garlic gently over low heat for about 1 minute, stirring frequently. Add the rosemary and cook for another minute or so, stirring frequently. Be careful not to burn the garlic.

3. When garlic is fragrant and beginning to soften, gently add the drained beans. Toss very gently with a spatula or spoon, coating the beans with the oil, garlic and rosemary. Be careful not to squish any of the beans. Cook until warmed through, about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Pour the bean mixture into a casserole or other serving dish, and sprinkle with the bread crumb mixture. Serve warm or room temperature.

This could be a main dish over a bed of greens, or a side dish alongside fish, chicken, or just about anything. It's simple and delicious. Enjoy!

Pasta with Greek Cinnamon-Tomato Sauce

It was abnormally hot in Southern California today, and unfortunately most of the recipes I had chosen for this week were of the slaving-over-a-hot-stove variety. Needless to say, they didn't sound too appealing. Then I remembered a recipe I've been meaning to make, in fact, meant to make last week, but had abandoned for no apparent reason. And while it still involved a hot stove, it involved virtually no slaving. It was easy, quick, and incredibly rewarding.

This is not your typical pasta-with-tomato-sauce, folks. This one is filled with bold spices that make you think of the Greek Isles, even if you've never been (as I haven't, sadly). The cinnamon pops out at you, and the oregano serves as a lovely mellow backdrop for it. The garlic and red pepper flakes create a gentle hum of spice in the back of your mouth. And if you opt to include the goat cheese, there is a whole extra layer of creamy deliciousness in each bite.

And an ingredient note - I highly recommend using tomato paste in a tube. It just makes way more sense. Whoever invented it, I salute you.

So no matter how hot it is, just suffer for a few minutes in the kitchen to make this dish. Or if you live near the coast like we do, open the window and let in the ocean breeze to cool you off, and imagine you are, in fact, on those Greek Isles. Sigh...

Pasta with Greek Cinnamon-Tomato Sauce
adapted from The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper
serves 3+

INGREDIENTS:

salt
2 tablespoons EVOO
1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
fresh ground pepper
2 teaspoons tomato paste
3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup dry white wine
one 14.5 oz. can no salt added diced tomatoes (w/ juice)
1/2 lb. short hollow whole wheat pasta (elbows, cavatappi, penne)
2 oz. fresh goat cheese, crumbled (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

2. While the pot is warming up, coat the bottom of a straight-sided saute pan with the EVOO and heat over medium-high heat. Add onions, parsley, and generous amount of salt and pepper. Saute the onions until they are just turning golden brown. Stir in tomato paste, garlic, oregano, cinnamon, and red pepper flakes. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add wine and cook for another minute.

3. Add the diced tomatoes and juices, and smush them with a potato masher or similar implement. Raise heat to medium high and cook the sauce for 8 minutes, or until thickened. Turn off heat and cover the pan.

4. Cook pasta until just al dente, according to package directions. Drain and add the pasta to the sauce over medium-high heat. Toss to incorporate with the sauce, and cook for a minute or so to let the sauce permeate the noodles. Serve with goat cheese, if using, and stir in to melt.

Absolutely delicious, and yet another way to keep pasta interesting. Enjoy!

Chicken Curry with Gentle Spices

Tonight I made curry from scratch for the very first time. Sure, I've made it with store bought sauces or pastes before. But tonight I made the curry paste myself, the sauce myself, and voila - curry. The recipe came from the Splendid Table, and it was aptly named. The spices are indeed gentle. Subtle; understated; coy, if you will.

To be honest, I think I prefer my curry with a bit more kick. But this dish reminded me of the Anglicized version of curry I grew up with. Curry is quite different in England than in the US. And I can't speak for what it's like in India or any other Asian country, as I've never traveled to that part of the world. But different is not necessarily a bad thing. This is a comforting version of curry. It won't make you sweat, it will just make you feel well-fed and well taken care of.

Chicken Curry with Gentle Spices
adapted from the Splendid Table's "How to Eat Supper"
serves 3

INGREDIENTS:

Curry paste:
1/2 large onion, cut in half
3 large garlic cloves
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
generous pinch of freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 medium-large ripe tomato
1 jalapeno, stemmed and seeded
1/4 cup water

Chicken
vegetable oil
1 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 tablespoons water
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a food processor, puree one of the onion halves with the remaining curry paste ingredients. Set aside.

2. Thinly slice the remaining onion half. Film the bottom of a straight-sized saute pan with vegetable oil, and heat it over medium-high heat. Add the slices onion, and saute until it begins to color. Add the curry paste, reduce heat to medium, and saute for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon or spatula, until the oil separates from the curry paste.

3. Stir 1/3 cup of the yogurt into the curry sauce and simmer, stirring and scraping up the curry paste from the bottom of the pan, until yogurt thickens and reduces significantly, about 8 to 10 minutes.

4. Stir in the chicken, remaining yogurt and water. Bring to a slow simmer. Cook, uncovered, for 6-8 minutes, until chicken is cooked through.

5. Remove chicken pieces with a slotted spoon and set aside in a serving dish. Raise heat until sauce is boiling. Boil it down until it is so thickened that oil begins to separate again, about 4-5 minutes. Taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper if needed. Serve the chicken topped with the curry sauce.

We had ours over a bed of brown rice. I think this is the perfect solution when you might be craving Indian or Thai food but you're not in the mood for a lot of spice. You can always spice it up more intensely with a second jalapeno, or an even hotter pepper. But then you'd have to change the name, and where's the fun in that?

Enjoy!

Rustic Jam Shortbread Tart

One hurdle I have yet to overcome in my quest to become a great cook is home made pastry. I love to bake, and I'm pretty good at it if you must know. But pie crust and tart shells are something I have yet to attempt. Maybe it's easy. Maybe if I try it I'll find that I'm a natural. But I have found the recipe that is a baby-step on the way to home made pastry. A tart crust that's actually a cookie? Now that sounds like something I can do. And Lynne Rossetto Kasper, the author of this recipe, promises that if you learn to make this shortbread crust, "any pie crust will fall at your feet." So I had to try this one.

This tart is just begging to be eaten with a cup of tea. It's the perfect middle ground between a cookie and a pie. It's very thin, it crumbles in your mouth, it tastes lemony and almondy and all-around heavenly. I made this for my mother-in-law, who is coming over tomorrow, but I can't promise there will be any left tomorrow....

One note - make sure you use good quality jam. No rubbishy stuff. No "jelly." The jam is the star of the show, so make it good. I used a blackberry preserves from Fresh & Easy that my parents gave us for our anniversary. It's perfect. The author recommends tart cherry or wild blueberry jam. I'm willing to try it with every type of jam under the sun, if it means I get to make this and eat it again.

Rustic Jam Shortbread Tart
from The Splendid Table's "How to Eat Supper"
makes one 9-inch tart

INGREDIENTS:

zest of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup whole almonds
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (I used white whole wheat)
1/4 cup sugar
generous pinch of salt
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 6 chunks
1 large egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
3/4 cup good quality jam

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 400. Butter a 9-inch round silver-colored cake or tart pan.

2. Turn on the food processor and then drop in the lemon zest and almonds, and grind them fine. Stop the machine, scrape down the sides, and add the flour, sugar, salt, butter, egg yolk, and almond extract. Pulse until all ingredients are blended and starting to come together in small clumps that look like clusters of peas.

3. Turn the pastry out into the pan. With your hands, pat it out to evenly cover the bottom. Nudge the edges to make a 1/2-inch rim around the sides of the pan. Don't worry if it doesn't look perfect.

4. Bake the crust in the center of the oven (I'd recommend putting the tart pan on a cookie sheet) for 13 to 16 minutes (I needed the full 16), or until edges are golden and the center is starting to color. The rim will sink down a little, which is fine.

5. Remove from the oven, and turn the heat up to 500. Carefully spread the jam (a pastry brush works well here) over the tart, and immediately return to the oven, even if it's not up to 500 yet. Bake for another 5 to 10 minutes, or until jam is bubbly.

6. Cool the tart on a rack, slice into wedges, and serve. Serve warm (but not hot).

Eat it and go ahead and try not to go for a second slice...I'm going to get mine now. And I'm one step closer to making real pastry crust...

Enjoy!

Tarragon Chicken with Buttery Leeks

Another recent acquisition of mine, of the cookbook variety, is The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper. (I've recently become addicted to The Splendid Table's radio podcasts - it's total food geek heaven). It's an utterly gorgeous book filled with so many recipes that I can't wait to try. This is the first. I'm pleased with how it came out, though it is a soft-spoken type of recipe. Elegant and understated. We're talking white wine, not red.

This dish is not something that will utterly wow you, but it does sneak up on you with its velvety smooth sauce. The leek is a creature I have only just begun to tackle, and I have to say, I think we'll be revisiting the leek often. It's a great alternative to scallions, with a much more gentle flavor that won't leave you with horrible breath all night.

I served it on a simple bed of cous cous, which was the perfect base as it soaked up the extra sauce and took on the flavor quite nicely. I was going to suggest other sides to try with it, but honestly I can't think of a better partner for this meal than cous cous. Let me know if you have another idea for this one.

Tarragon Chicken with Buttery Leeks
from The Splendid Table's "How to Eat Supper"
serves 2

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup thin-sliced leeks, white and light green parts only (1 small leek, cleaned)
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 3/4 pounds)
kosher salt and fresh-ground black pepper
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon coarse-chopped fresh tarragon leaves

DIRECTIONS:








There's that French oven again....


1. Place the leeks in a pan or large skillet with the chicken broth and 1 tablespoon of butter. Cook at a gentle boil over medium heat until the leeks are tender, and the broth has reduced so that the leeks are no longer completely submerged, about 8-10 minutes.

2. Season both sides of the chicken breasts with salt and pepper, and place on top of the simmering leeks. Spoon some of the leeks over the chicken, and cover the pan tightly. Reduce heat to low. After about 8 minutes, turn the chicken over and cover again. After a total of about 12 minutes, check the chicken for doneness. Do not overcook!

3. When chicken is cooked, transfer it to a warm plate. Increase the heat under the leeks to high, and stir in lemon juice, remaining tablespoon of butter, and the tarragon. Cook until butter melts, and season to taste.

4. Pour leek sauce over chicken and serve.

Enjoy!