Fall Roasted Vegetable Medley

To take a break from my Portland re-caps (and there are more to come), I wanted to share a dish that I made on Monday night.  As I mentioned last week, the folks at Le Creuset very generously gifted me with my very first French oven.  I didn't get a chance to use it before I left for Portland so utilizing it was at the top of my priority list when I returned home.

On Monday morning, I took out two boneless chicken breasts out of the freezer and let it thaw in the fridge during the day.  I had a lot of great vegetables in the fridge, freezer and pantry that I wanted to utilize and decided to make a simple yet seasonal roasted vegetable medley to go along with my chicken.  After a long workout at the gym that evening, I was excited to get to my hands dirty in the kitchen.  Since Bret wouldn't be home until 8:30 PM, this would give me plenty of time to slowly prepare dinner and utilize my French oven.

First, I took out some Brussels sprouts out of the freezer.  I had purchased them last week at the farmers' market and put them in the freezer for future use.  I removed the outer leaves, gave the sprouts a quick rinse and let them thaw out while I prepared the rest of the ingredients.

I had the last of my sample dehydrated mushrooms (lobster and black trumpet mushrooms) in the pantry from Marx Foods and I decided to rehydrate them with a cup of hot chicken stock.  I put a dishtowel over the bowl and also set that aside.

I then halved and sliced one small zucchini that had been sitting in my fridge.

I also halved and sliced two medium white onions that I purchased from the farmers' market that day during lunch.  I had about six cloves of garlic left from a garlic bulb in the fridge and I also roughly chopped those up.

When I was done preparing my vegetables, I sprayed the French oven with cooking spray and also added a little olive oil to the bottom of the pot.  I warmed the pot up over the stove at medium heat while I got to work on my proteins.  I had four thick slices of smoked bacon in the fridge and I roughly chopped the bacon up.

I also trimmed and seasoned my now thawed chicken breasts with salt, pepper, herbs de Provence and cayenne.  

After all of this preparation, I was finally ready to get cooking!  I preheated the oven to 300 degrees while I dropped the chopped bacon in the pan and let the bacon slowly crisp up.

I kept an eye on the bacon and turned the pieces from time to time.  I wanted the bacon to start to crisp up but not cook all the way through.  When the bacon was ready, I removed it from the pan with a slotted spoon and set the bacon aside in a bowl.

Using the fat from the bacon along with the olive oil that I had previously added, I put my chicken breasts in the pan.  I didn't want to actually cook the chicken on the stove top but just give it a nice sear.  When the chicken was seared on one side, I turned it over and also added the chopped onions and garlic to the pan.  In addition to cooking the vegetables down a bit, I want to meld the onion and garlic flavor with the chicken breasts.  After the chicken breasts had been seared on all sides, I took them out of the pan and set it aside.

I returned my attention back to the onions and garlic in the French oven.  I seasoned the vegetables with salt, pepper, herbs de Provence and a healthy tablespoon of cayenne.  While I love roasted vegetables, I often find them to be bland so I like to add a little kick to it when I can.

I slowly added the zucchini, Brussels sprouts and back to the pan while repeatedly mixing the vegetables up.

I finally added the rehydrated mushrooms to the pan with the remaining chicken stock and gave everything a good stir.

I added the chicken breasts back into the pan and also added a small can of chopped tomatoes to add some color, sweetness and moisture to the dish.

I put the lid on the French oven and put it in the oven for thirty minutes.  After thirty minutes, I turned the chicken breasts over, covered it again and cooked it for another twenty minutes.  I checked the temperature of the chicken breasts and they were just a few degrees short of 170 degrees.  I turned the temperature of the oven up to 350 and put the pot back in the oven without the lid for another eight minutes.  I wasn't worried about overcooking the chicken, which would result in a very dry chicken, because there was a lot of moisture in my roasted vegetables.

Since the chicken breasts were thick, Bret and I decided to just split one.  We piled our plate full of the roasted vegetables, which turned into an almost ratatouille texture (in a really good way).  The chicken breast had a nice sear on the outside yet was still so moist.  But the vegetables, of course, stole the show!  The resulting sauce from the vegetables had such a sweet and smoky flavor yet had just a little bit of spice from the cayenne.  We couldn't help but feel really healthy while eating these hearty roasted vegetables.

Bret and I split the other chicken breast for lunch and of course took lots of vegetables too.  We ended up having a lot more sauce and vegetables leftover so we found a way to utilize them for dinner the next night by pouring it over spicy seasoned rice mixed with smoked turkey sausage.

My first attempt at cooking with my new Le Creuset French oven was definitely a success.  I'm thinking that my next attempt may be jambalaya...but I'd love to hear some of your recipes if you'd like to share!


Do you own a Dutch oven?  What do you like to cook with it?


If you have a chance, could you please vote for me as Boston's Best Local Blogger? I'm thrilled to be nominated and would appreciate your vote here!

Sherry's Radish Tops Pesto Recipe

"Can you guess what's in there?" Sherry asks me as I bite into the pesto crostini."
"Um. Sun dried tomatoes, almonds, garlic ... I don't know, but it's really good!" I replied between bites.
Each time I visit my friends Bob and Sherry in California it feels like opening up an unexpected gift as they graciously offer a lavish spread of appetizers accompanied by excellent wines from their extensive collection, and always with good company. This time, in addition to several small dishes, Sherry had whipped up a bowl of pesto composed of radish tops, a novel appetizer replete with exciting pesto flavors with a unique kick from the spicy radish tops.

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Gone Bananas With Fried Green Plantains & Garlicky Twist

I grew up eating plantains. Every week my mom would bring home bundles of these muscular green bananas, allow them to ripen under the kitchen counter until the skin was mottled with black streaks against a yellow canvas. She'd then pop one into the microwave for 4-5 minutes, carefully slit open the steamed black peel, which would reveal a concentrated, sweet and dense cooked banana. It was almost like a warm doughy banana pudding, very comforting.

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Rustic Slow Cooker Tomato Lentil and Chicken Sausage Soup

A few years ago, I took a cooking class with my friend A.  In fact, it was the first cooking class I ever experienced (if you don't count home economics back in middle school, which I don't).  The theme of the cooking class was easy stress-free weeknight cooking and we tried out a few different recipes.  One of the recipes was a chicken sausage lentil soup, which I instantly fell in love with because it is so easy and versatile.  Since that cooking class, I've made this recipe so many times that I don't even need to pull the actual recipe out and I've completely adapted it to my own taste.

Although the originally recipe was for the stovetop, I've recently been making it in the slow cooker.  I find that it is not only easier for me but it also allows the ingredients to really come together to layer the flavors.  I decided to make this soup in the slow cooker for Wednesday evening, which means that I would start the slow cooker in the morning before heading out to work.  To cut back on the prep time in the morning, I decided to prepare some of the raw ingredients on Tuesday night while B was rolling meatballs for our pasta dinner. 

I roughly chopped six cloves of garlic.

I also chopped a quarter of one huge onion that I found in the fridge.

I would have chopped up more of the onion for the soup until I discovered some leftover boiler onions in the fridge as well.  I peeled about six of the boiler onions and halved some of the large ones.

The next morning, I added these raw ingredients to the slow cooker pot.

I then moved onto my next ingredient - the roasted garlic chicken sausage with onions and herbs.  These chicken sausages are already fully cooked and make a really flavorful addition to this soup.

I sliced up all four links and added the chicken sausage to the slow cooker.

I then added about half a bag of frozen spinach.  The spinach was never part of the original recipe but I thought it would make a nice addition to this rustic soup.  I then added my liquid ingredients, including a cup of chicken broth, a large can of diced tomatoes, and a can of lentil soup.  I usually add black beans to the soup but I surprisingly didn't have any in my pantry so I added a can of drained garbanzo beans instead.

I also added a cup of the Kung Fu Girl reisling left over from the previous evening.  Wine was not an ingredient in the original recipe but I figured that it would add a nice liquid flavor to the soup.  I wasn't worried about the sweetness of the wine since it would all cook down during the day.

At this point, the slow cooker already looked colorful and smelled amazing. 

I of course had to season everything and added generous shakes of some of my favorite spices - herbs de Provence, fresh-cracked salt and peppercorn, along with crushed red pepper flakes.

I set the slow cooker on for eight hours on low and set off on my day.  When I got home from work last night, the soup made the whole kitchen smell so unbelievable. 

I wanted to make a side salad with the soup for dinner using leftover Olivia's Organics Spring Mix.  I added half a cucumber, a tomato and some Shy Brothers Hannahbell cheese.

The salad was light and refreshing, which was a perfect contrast to the thick and hearty soup. 

The soup had thickened while it simmered all day and it felt so warm on a cold day like yesterday.  If it were winter time, I totally would have dipped some crusty bread in this soup. but since it is spring, the soup was a perfect lighter choice.  The soup felt so filling with the spinach, tomatoes, garbanzo beans and chicken sausage yet still so healthy.  Here's a closer look:

Of course, we could only have a bowl each so B took some in today for lunch and we decided to freeze the rest.  I love having this soup in my freezer for one of those cold rainy weekends.  Who would have thought that one cooking class recipe would provide so much inspiration and deliciousness?

Easy and Healthy Spinach and Egg White Omelette

On Easter morning, I woke up and wanted to make myself a light and healthy breakfast to kick start what would be a long day with Easter and Opening Day activities.  I had just received a huge order of groceries from Peapod on Friday afternoon, so I had plenty of fresh and healthy ingredients to work with and decided to make an egg white omelette.

I heated up my large frying pan on the stove top with a small splash of olive oil over medium heat.  I started out by adding a half a small yellow onion that I had roughly chopped.

I then added the garlic along with a half a handful of frozen spinach.

When the spinach had started to cook and release some of the water, I added enough liquid egg whites to make a thin layer of egg whites for my omelette.  I let the egg whites sit for a bit in the pan to cook through before adding some crushed red pepper flakes, fresh cracked black pepper and a dash of salt.  When the eggs were starting to cook through, I lowered my heat a bit and added some sliced low fat mozzarella.

This where you need to be patient and just let the egg whites cook without disturbing them.  When the eggs looked to have a nice light yellow color and the cheese was melted, I folded the omelette and let it cook for a few more minutes.  Because I was using a non-stick pan, the omelette slid off very easily onto the plate.

This is an omelette that I've made many times although I vary on the vegetables with whatever is in my freezer or fridge.  I find that the onions and garlic add a lot of flavor so that you don't need to add any sauces or, dare I say, ketchup that I often add to eggs.  This was a generous-sized breakfast that really filled me up while remaining healthy - perfect for a weekend breakfast. 

CHUNKY GUACAMOLE RECIPE

Festive, satisfying, and at times fiery, guacamole is a simple crowd pleaser that incorporates several fresh, bold and exciting flavors onto a thin crispy chip. There are several different versions of guacamole, this one is a chunky-style dip that integrates several big flavors while allowing each ingredient to remain distinguishable.

This recipe is dedicated to my friend Gloria, who has a personality that is fun, festive and at times fiery, and moreover is someone that most everyone loves!

GUACAMOLE RECIPE

Ingredients

• 1/2 onion, finely diced
• 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2-3 avocados
• 1 lime
• 1 small tomato, seeded and diced
  
• sea salt
• black pepper, grounded
• 1 jalapeno, diced (optional)

 Method

1. Using a large cutting board, create a pile of the diced onion, cilantro, and minced garlic. Sprinkle the pile with roughly 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt and 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper. Incorporate these ingredients together by chopping the ingredients across the cutting board, taking care to fold the ingredients back into a neat pile along the way. This method imitates the traditional way of making guacamole, which is done by pounding the ingredients in a mortar pestle. Once the mixture reaches a consistency similar to the photo above, transfer it into a mixing bowl.
2. To dice the avocado, split the avocado in half, and remove the pit by stabbing the seed and twisting it out. Score the avocado fruit lengthwise in 1/2-inch slices, and again width-wise to produce cubes. Using a large spoon, scoop out the cubed avocados and place in the bowl with the onion mixture. Repeat until you have two avocados diced. Add the diced tomatoes, jalapenos (if using) and juice from a lime half. Fold the ingredients until it is evenly blended. Salt and pepper to taste.
3. Taste. If you feel the guacamole is strong, add another half avocado diced. If you feel it is too bland, add ground black pepper, lime or cilantro. You get the idea, if you feel there is something missing, use your judgment to balance out the flavors to your preference.

Try serving guacamole with chips, over savory carnitas, or freshly made corn tortillas.

Serves 8-10

GARLIC CLOVE

How do you add flavor with minimal effort and get the most bang for your buck?

Use fresh garlic. This aromatic and intense flavor binds the diversity of ethnic cuisine types and brings a warm familiarity that can best be described as comfort. In my kitchen, not only is fresh garlic comfortable but it is a staple.



How to pick: Choose large, firm bulbs. Avoid garlic that has any soft spot, which means that one or more of the garlic cloves have shriveled or potentially has mold.

How to store: Store in a cool dry place with light. I like to place several bulbs in its own bowl on the countertop or sometimes on the counter alone.

How to peel: Chop off both ends of the garlic and peel back the garlic skin. An alternative is to crush the garlic clove on the side of a chef's knife.

If you prefer to have peeled garlic on hand all the time, you may consider peeling a bulb at a time to store in the refrigerator. Simply soak the garlic bulb in cold water for half an hour, taking care to break apart the bulb along the way. The garlic skins will absorb the moisture like paper and peel off effortlessly.

Dry the peeled cloves, and store in a container that is lined with a fresh paper towel. Place in the refrigerator and replace the paper towel every week ... if you still have any around.

How to prepare: Crushed, minced or sliced, the smaller you cut it, the stronger the flavors.