Confident Kitchen

(Via Simply Recipes.)  This dish really brings out the sweet flavor of the beets.  I will definitely keep this one the roster.

Skill:  Easy
Prep:  15 minutes
Total:  60-75 minutes

Ingredients:

•  2-3 golden beets (red beets will turn the rest of the ingredients bright red)
• 10 Brussels Sprouts
• 1 shallot, peeled and diced
• Olive Oil
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dry)
• 2 tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted
• Salt and pepper to taste

The beets take the longest to cook so start them first. Either boil them in water in a small saucepan for 45 minutes, or roast them in the oven at 350°F for an hour fifteen minutes. Roasting will give you better flavor, but takes longer and uses a lot more energy (unless you are already cooking something in the oven). When done, set aside to cool for 10 minutes, peel and chop into 1 x 1/2 inch chunks.

While beets are cooking you may want to toast your almond slivers if you are starting with raw almonds. Just heat a skillet to medium high heat and put in the almonds. Stir frequently with a spatula. When the almonds begin to brown, remove from pan into a small bowl. Let cool, set aside.

Remove any outer leaves that look a bit ragged from the brussels sprouts. Bring a small saucepan half filled with water to a boil and parboil the brussels sprouts for 2-3 minutes. They should be almost all the way cooked through. (Test by cutting one in half.) Set aside for 5 minutes to cool, cut off any protruding tough stem on each sprout and cut each sprout in half.

In a medium sized skillet heat 1 Tbsp olive oil on medium heat. Add the shallot slices and cook until translucent, a few minutes. Add another tablespoon of olive oil and raise the heat to medium high. Add the sprouts and beets to the pan, along with the thyme and mix well. Salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 1 minute more, stirring. Remove from heat and serve. Can serve warm or at room temperature.

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Simple meals continue…

Skill: Easy
Prep: 5 minutes
Total: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces of pasta, preferably fresh
• 16 kalamata olives, pitted
• 1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• Zest of 1 lemon, coarsely chopped
• 1 three-inch piece orange zest, coarsely chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes

Cook pasta according to directions. While pasta is cooking, combine the remaining ingredients in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pulse until a chunky purée forms. Transfer to a warm serving bowl large enough to accommodate cooked pasta. Add pasta and toss to combine, adding olive oil or pasta water to help coat the noodles.

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Via The New York Times

Skill: easy
Prep: 5 minutes
Total: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil, more for drizzling
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Pinch of ground chili powder or cayenne, more to taste
• 1 quart chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 cup red lentils
• 1 large carrot, peeled and diced
• Juice of 1/2 lemon, more to taste
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

In a large pot, heat 3 tablespoons oil over high heat until hot and shimmering. Add onion and garlic, and sauté until golden, about 4 minutes.  Stir in tomato paste, cumin, salt, black pepper and chili powder or cayenne, and sauté for 2 minutes longer.   Add broth, 2 cups water, lentils and carrot. Bring to a simmer, then partially cover pot and turn heat to medium-low. Simmer until lentils are soft, about 30 minutes. Taste and add salt if necessary.

Using an immersion or regular blender or a food processor, purée half the soup then add it back to pot. Soup should be somewhat chunky.  Reheat soup if necessary, then stir in lemon juice and cilantro.

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This is fantastic.  Enough said.

Skill:  Easy-Medium
Prep:  10 minutes
Total:  50 minutes (could be as little as 30 minutes)

Ingredients:

• 4 cups (2 cans) coconut milk
• 2 pounds chicken thighs (this will cook faster without bones, cut into bite-size pieces)
• 2 onions, cut into wedges
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 cup roasted peanuts
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 3 tablespoons Mussaman Curry Paste
  
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon tamarind water
• 1 tablespoon palm or brown sugar

Bring the coconut milk to a boil in a large saucepan.  Add the chicken, onion, red pepper, peanuts, and salt.  Simmer for 40 minutes (20 if the chicken is without bones and cut into bite-size pieces.  This is a good time to start the rice as well.) or until the chicken is tender.

Remove 1/2 cup of the coconut milk and bring it to a boil in a small saucepan.  Add the curry paste and cook for 1 minute.  Return the curry coconut milk to the pot with the chicken  Add the fish sauce, tamarind water, and sugar.  Simmer for another 5-10 minutes.  Serve over rice.

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Mussaman Curry is thought to come from the interaction of Indian traders in Thailand.  Mussaman may come from “Muslim Man”.  This curry takes some time, but makes enough to last for multiple dinners.  Raw, this curry can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 days, or 2-3 months in the freezer.  Cooked, it can be stored for 2 months in the fridge or indefinitely in the freezer.

Skill:  Medium
Prep:  20 minutes
Total:  30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 8 dried long red chilies (or 12 small Thai red chili peppers)
• 1/4 cup coriander seeds
• 2 tablespoons cumin seeds
• 4 star anise pods, crushed
• 12 cinnamon quills, broken
• 10 cloves
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 6 large cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
• 6 thin slices galangal, chopped (can substitute conventional ginger)
• 1 stalk lemongrass, white part only, peeled and chopped
• 1 teaspoon chopped kaffir lime zest (can substitute conventional lime zest)

Soak dried chilies in warm water for 10 minutes.  Drain and pat dry.  In a small frying pan over medium heat, separately toast each spice, stirring constantly, until fragrant.  Immediately remove from heat and pour spices into a large mortar or spice grinder (I use an old coffee grinder).  Add salt and grind to a fine powder.  Transfer to a small bowl.

Heat oil in a wok or heavy frying pan (cast iron works best) over high heat.  Add garlic, shallots, and drained chilies.  Fry until slightly golden, 1-2 minutes.  Remove with a slotted spoon, reserve solids and discard oil.  Add galangal, lemongrass, and kaffir lime zest to a large mortar and pound to a paste, 10-20 minutes.  **NOTE**  You can use your food processor for this step.  Turn the food processor on, then add galangal, lemongrass, and kaffir lime zest.  Add fried garlic, shallots, and chilies.  Add ground spices.  You can add 2-3 tablespoons of water during this process if dry.

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Chard is so good for us, but I haven’t been able to incorporate much into our daily diet. I finally decided to try this simple recipe and it will hopefully become a regular side dish.

Skill: Easy
Prep: 5 minutes
Total: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• Chard, tough stems removed
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 1 teaspoon red chili pepper flakes
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Lemon juice and butter, to taste

Heat olive oil. Add garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Add chili pepper flakes and stir for one minute. Add chard. Cover for 5 minutes, then toss chard in pan. Cover and let steam for an additional minute, adding a bit of water if the pan is dry. Serve with lemon juice and butter to taste.

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Sometimes you just get a craving…Continuing with the idea of simple, wholesome meals comes this fantastic winter dish.

Skill: easy
Prep: 10 minutes
Total: 30 minutes

I like this recipe because you can make it however you want it. For ingredients, I went a bit root crazy. Here’s the list:

• Carrots
• Red Yams
• Rutabagas
• Parsnips
• Turnips
• Red Potatoes
• Red Beets
• Celery Root
• Whole Crimini Mushrooms
• Yellow Onion

Peel and chop everything except the mushrooms into bite-size pieces. Toss with olive oil, salt, pepper, and thyme until just coated. Bake in a large baking dish at 350 for 20 minutes.

We paired this with pumpernickel bread, warmed in the oven with a smidge of butter.

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This is not your typical lasagna.  There are no tomatoes and no meat.  Very simplistic.  **Note:  you need fresh lasagna noodles for this recipe, either homemade or store bought.**

Skill:  Easy
Prep:  10 minutes
Total:  30 minutes

Ingredients:

•  fresh lasagna noodles
• 1 package feta cheese
• 1 small container fresh Mozzarella cheese
• olive oil
• 8 ounces crimini mushrooms, sliced
• 8 ounces fresh spinach, stems removed
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 1 small shallot, chopped

Saute shallot in 1 tablespoon olive oil for 3-4 minutes.  Add garlic, saute for 30 seconds.  Add mushrooms and saute for 5 minutes.  Turn off heat.

Boil lasagna for one minute.  Cut to length, brush with olive oil, and layer in baking dish.  Layer fresh spinach, mushrooms, and cheeses.  Add another layer of lasagna noodle (brushed with olive oil).  Layer fresh spinach, mushrooms, and cheeses.  Place one more layer of lasagna noodle (brushed with olive oil).  Bake in oven at 350 for 10 minutes.

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Skill: Easy
Prep: 5 minutes
Total: 50 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1/2 butternut squash
• 1 sweet potato, peeled
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cardamom (optional)
• 1/4 cup milk (optional)

Bake butternut squash and halved sweet potato at 425F for 40 minutes. Remove skin from butternut squash and puree in a blender (or using an immersion blender) with broth. Pour into a saucepan, add cinnamon, cardamom, pepper and cook on low for 5 minutes. Serve warm with a swirl of milk if desired.

**Notes** I forgot about the squash while I was cleaning up the apartment, so it caramelized a bit in the oven. Combined with the sweet potato, the soup was pretty sweet so we served it with pieces of artisan bread that had large salt crystals on top. That gave it a nice balance of sweet and salty. We also served this with a side salad of fresh spinach leaves, blue cheese, pecans, and pear.

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