It’s perfect cooking weather–not too hot, not too cold and the best of late summer produce and the beginning of fall. Enjoy!

Kohlrabi, Potatoes, Butter and Herbs
Simple Italian-style Chicken with Sweet Peppers and Tomatoes
Pasta with Eggplant, Tomatoes and Parsley
Beets with a Little Vinegar
Punjabi Style Potatoes and Tomatoes
Scalloped Celery Root and Potatoes
Celery Root Remoulade

Kohlrabi, Potatoes, Butter and Herbs

This is simple and delicious and you can omit the potatoes and just use kohlrabi if you’d like. It’s good to make with kohlrabi that are a little more fibrous as they get meltingly tender with this preparation.

Serves 4

1 large kohlrabi, peeled, quartered and sliced about 1/4-inch thick
4 medium firm fleshed potatoes (Yukon gold, red etc.) scrubbed and cut into 1/4-inch rounds
2 tablespoons butter
Salt
Black pepper
2 small sprigs fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
2 tablespoons chopped chives or parsley

Bring about 2 inches of water to a boil in a large skillet. Add  1/2 teaspoon salt and add the sliced kohlrabi and potatoes. Cover and parboil for 4 minutes. Drain and set vegetables aside for a moment. Add a little butter to the dried and still hot pan and swirl it around. Then spread the kohlrabi slices evenly over the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle with a little salt and a grind or two of pepper. Dot with half the remaining butter and sprinkle over half the thyme leaves. Cover with potato slices and repeat with the remaining butter and thyme and a little more salt and pepper. Cover and return to the stove and cook gently, over low heat for 25 minutes until very tender and fragrant. You can turn the heat up at the end for a couple of minutes to brown the bottom layer if you’d like. Top with fresh chives or parsley and serve hot or warm.

Simple Italian-style Chicken with Sweet Peppers and Tomatoes

This is a straightforward preparation for a delicious late summer meal. Serve with a big green salad or some corn on the cob or just good, crusty bread and you’re set.

Serves 4

3-4 sweet peppers
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 chicken, cut into 10 pieces
¾ cup dry white wine
1- 1 ½ lbs tomatoes, diced
1/3 cup halved, pitted, cured black olives (optional)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Chopped fresh parsley

Preheat the broiler. Roast the peppers, turning until all sides are blackened and blistered. Remove from oven and put in a bowl, covered by a plate to steam. When cool enough to handle, peel and seed and cut into strips.

Heat the oil in large, deep skillet. Add the chicken pieces, working in batches if you need to, and cook, turning to brown all sides. Return all the chicken to the pan (if you had to work in batches) and season generously with salt and pepper, add the garlic and the wine and cook until most of the wine has evaporated. Stir in the tomatoes and peppers and simmer, loosely covered for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the olives, if using, and cook another 5 or so minutes until the chicken is tender and cooked through. If the sauce is too thin for your taste (as it sometimes is for mine) remove the chicken pieces and keep covered on a plate and reduce the sauce on high heat for a few minutes and then return the chicken to the pan. Serve with some chopped fresh parsley if you have some.

Pasta with Eggplant, Tomatoes and Parsley

This is a quick, hearty pasta dish. I seem to be incorrigibly drawn to Italian preparations in late summer. They’re so quick and easy and satisfying.

Serves 4

Olive oil
1 medium globe eggplant or several smaller ones, cut into ½ -inch dice (no need to peel, salt or soak)
2 -3 medium tomatoes, diced (depending on how saucy/tomato-y you want it)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 tablespoons capers, rinsed and roughly chopped (optional)
2-3 tablespoons chopped parsley (or basil or a combination)
½ cup grated Parmesan or other hard cheese
3/4 lb fusilli, penne or other stout pasta
1/4 cup pasta cooking water, reserved before draining

Sauté the eggplant in a heavy skillet with 2 tablespoons of olive oil over high, then medium-high heat stirring frequently. When the eggplant is soft, add the tomatoes, capers, if using, and the garlic and several generous pinches of salt. Cook on high heat until the tomatoes break down just a bit and some of their liquid evaporates so you have a nice thick, chunky sauce—about 10 minutes. Add the parsley and/or basil.

Meanwhile cook the pasta in plenty of salted, boiling water until al dente. Right before you drain the pasta scoop out about ½ cup of pasta cooking water. Drain the pasta, toss with the sauce, add the reserved cooking water to loosen it up a bit and serve immediately with the cheese.

Beets with a Little Vinegar

Earthy, sweet beets love acidity. There is practically no simpler preparation than this and if the beets are good, this will be delicious.

5 small-ish beets, trimmed and scrubbed
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cider vinegar or vinegar of your choice (more or less, to taste)
Salt
1 tablespoon good, mild olive oil

Put the beets in a saucepan and cover generously with water. Cover and bring to a boil. Turn down to a simmer and cook for 25-40 minutes (depending on size and variety) until completely tender when pierced with the tip of a knife. Drain and when cool enough to handle, slip of skins. Cut into thin wedges and toss with the vinegar and sprinkle with salt. Let sit for at least five minutes to absorb vinegar. Then toss with olive oil. Taste and adjust seasoning Serve warm or at room temperature.

Then toss with olive oil. Taste and adjust seasoning Serve warm or at room temperature.

Punjabi Style Potatoes and Tomatoes
–adapted from World Vegetarian by Madhur Jaffrey

Richly flavored, hearty yet relatively light, this a wonderful combination of flavors and beyond a bit of chopping a cinch to make. It’s mild to medium spicy and you can adjust the level with more or less cayenne and by using/omitting the seeds of the fresh pepper. You can adapt the ratio of potatoes to tomatoes to suit your needs just be sure to keep enough liquid in the pan to keep it a bit saucy.

3 tablespoon peanut or sunflower oil (olive oil will be fine too)
1 medium onion, finely diced
1 tablespoon grated ginger
3 cloves garlic, minced and mashed with the side of chef’s knife a bit (don’t sweat it if you don’t have time for this)
About 4 medium tomatoes, diced (use less if you don’t have that many–you’ll just add a bit more water later)
1 jalapeño or serrano, finely chopped (include seeds unless you are very sensitive to spice)
1/3 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/8 teaspoon cayenne (see headnote)
1 teaspoon sea salt (more to taste)
1 – 1 1/2 lbs firm fleshed potatoes, scrubbed (peeled if you like) and cut into 1-inch dice
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
Fresh chopped cilantro, for serving (optional)

Heat the oil in a large heavy skillet. Saute the onions for 7-10 minutes until beginning to brown. Add the ginger and garlic and cook for another minute. Add the tomatoes, green chile and spices, salt and cook for 2-3 minutes on high. Add the potatoes and 1/2 cup water (more if you’re using fewer tomatoes) and bring to a lively simmer. Cover and turn down to low and cook for 20 minutes. Uncover and cook for a bit longer to reduce the sauce a bit. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve hot or warm, topped with cilantro if you’d like.

Scalloped Celery Root and Potatoes

Celery root and potatoes combine for a delicious version of this classic, employing plenty of fresh parsley.

Serves 4-6

1 1/2 – 2 lbs Yukon gold potatoes, scrubbed and thinly sliced into rounds (blade on box grater works well)
1 lb celery root, trimmed and thinly sliced
1/2 onion, finely diced
1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar, emmental, gruyere, . . .
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons pimenton (smoked Spanish paprika–spicy or mild)
1/2 teaspoon chili flakes (optional)
2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup flour
About 3 1/2 cups liquid: all whole milk, part milk, part cream, part half  & half, part veg or chicken stock, but be sure it’s at least 1/2 milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Put the potatoes and celery root in a large bowl. In a small bowl mix the flour, spices together. Sprinkle this over the potatoes and toss well. Add the onions and almost all of the cheese (reserving some for the top) and mix again.

Spread mixture in a 9 x 13 baking dish, pat down a bit with a spatula. Pour milk (or liquid combo) over potato mixture. The liquid should come about half way up the potatoes. Sprinkle the top with the remaining cheese, cover pan with foil and bake until potatoes are tender and easily pierced with a fork about 45 70 minutes. Uncover after about 30 minutes and finish baking until tender and run under the broiler for a minute or two to brown the top if you’d like. Cooking time will depend on how thinly you sliced your potatoes.  Let sit for a few minutes before serving. Serve hot or warm.

And again, quantities are approximations so adjust depending on the number of people you’re feeding, etc.

Celery Root Remoulade

This is the classic French way to prepare celery root–and it is so very good. The celery root softens a bit but keeps that fresh, earthy flavor. A classic Celery Root Remoulade exclusively uses mayonnaise in the dressing, which is good but I suggest a combination of Greek yogurt and mayonnaise for a slightly tangier and fresher flavor here but by all means use just mayonnaise if that’s what you have.

Serves 6

Scant 2 lbs celery root, peeled
¼ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup whole milk regular or Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons whole grain mustard
2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
A little white wine or cider vinegar
Salt and freshly ground pepper

You can either grate the celeriac in a food processor or if you can, use a mandolin to cut it into matchsticks. Toss the grated or cut celeriac with 1 teaspoon sea salt and most of the lemon juice. Let rest for at least 15 minutes and up to 30.

Whisk the remaining ingredients in a small bowl and pour over the veggies. Mix well and adjust seasoning.

There are some soups and stews in the mix as the weather will cool a bit this week. The kohlrabi recipes have you cook this crunchy vegetable but by all means snack on it raw and add it to salads. You could make a nice chopped salad with Tropea onion, finely diced kohlrabi, corn and diced tomatoes. Add some hardboiled egg for a hearty, bright salad.

Tomato Paella
Roasted Onion, Corn and Tomato Salad
Weeknight Vegetable Curry with Coconut Milk
Kohlrabi Lattkes
Beef Stew with Kohlrabi and Carrots
Green Salad with Beets, Avocado and Tropea Onion

Tomato Paella
–Adapted from Mark Bittman

This is a delicious, quick, and inexpensive (and vegetarian) twist on a classic paella. It’s perfect this time of year with beautiful, juicy tomatoes. It’s very important to season the ingredients properly as you go. It’s really a shame to under salt this dish. Taste your stock or bouillon to make sure it’s well seasoned.

Serves 4-5

3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 1/2 pounds ripe, slicer/heirloom tomatoes, cored and cut into thick wedges (about 4 medium to large tomatoes)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, minced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Large pinch saffron threads
2 teaspoons Spanish pimentón (smoked paprika), or other paprika
2 cups Spanish or Arborio or other short-grain rice (I use Arborio)
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt (if the stock isn’t very salty or you’re using water)

Warm stock or water in a saucepan. If using water, add a teaspoon of salt to the water. Put tomatoes in a medium bowl, sprinkle with additional salt and pepper, and drizzle them with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Toss to coat. Put remaining oil in a 10- or 12-inch heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables soften, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in saffron if you are using it and pimentón and cook for a minute more. Add rice and cook, stirring occasionally, until it is shiny, another two to three minutes. Add hot stock or water and stir until just combined.

Put tomato wedges on top of rice and drizzle with juices that accumulated in bottom of bowl. Cook covered, over medium heat undisturbed, for 15 -20 minutes. Check to see if rice is dry and just tender. If not, keep cooking for another 5 minutes and remove lid if there is excess liquid.  If rice looks too dry but still is not quite done, add a small amount of stock or water (or wine). When rice is ready, turn off oven and let pan sit for 5 to 15 minutes. If you like, put pan over high heat for a few minutes to develop a bit of a bottom crust before serving. If you have time you should definitely do this last part. The crust is fabulous.

Roasted Onion, Corn and Tomato Salad

Combining roasted and fresh vegetables is fun. And if you don’t want to turn the oven on you can cook the vegetables on the stove top in a cast iron pan over fairly high heat and achieve similar results.

Serves 4

2 Torpedo or 1 regular red or yellow onion, cut into half-inch rings
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Salt
1 summer squash, cut into large dice (optional)
3 ears corn, blanched, kernels cut off cob
Another small piece of onion, diced or 2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 ½ cups diced tomatoes
Coarsely ground black pepper
2-3 teaspoons sherry vinegar
2-3 tablespoons basil leaves, chopped or torn

Set your oven to broil.

Toss the onions with 1 tablespoon or so of the olive oil, sprinkle generously with salt and spread on a sheet pan (or use cast iron pan on stove top–see headnote) and set about 6-8 inches below your broiler. After about 8 minutes minutes add the summer squash to the pan and stir well and continue broiling for about 10 more minutes or until the vegetables are browning and tender, stirring occasionally to ensure even browning. The time this takes will vary based on your broiler and watch it carefully so you don’t burn the vegetables. Let the vegetables cool just a bit and then roughly chop the onions. Set aside.

Put the corn and the raw onion and tomatoes in a salad bowl. Add the chopped roasted onions, squash, more olive oil, the vinegar and a few pinches of salt and pepper and the basil. Stir well and taste and adjust seasoning.

This salad keeps well so feel free to make more and enjoy the next day.

Kohlrabi Lattkes

Most root vegetables make good latke-like savory pancakes, and actually vegetables of all kinds make great savory pancakes. I’ve added a few potatoes for texture and flavor balance–you could certainly just use kohlrabi or add any other tuber or root and I’m sure they would be fine.

I happened to have fresh horseradish and grated a bit into some whole milk Greek yogurt and topped the latkes with this spicy cream but top it with spicy mayo, ketchup (my son does this) sour cream, etc.

Serves 4 (makes about 14-16 latkes)

2 small-medium potatoes, scrubbed (I never bother to peel), grated on large holes of a box grater or with the grating blade of a food processor
About 4-5 cups grated kohlrabi (on large holes of a box grater or the grating blade on a food processor)
1/2 small onion, minced
2 eggs
1 teaspoon salt (may need more)
1/3 cup flour
Oil for frying (olive, sunflower, canola, etc.)

Topping (optional):
1/3 cup Greek yogurt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated horseradish (or prepared)
A few pinches of salt

In a large bowl whisk the eggs with the salt and flour until smooth. Add the onion and grated vegetables and stir well to combine. You can let the mixture sit for up to two hours on the counter before frying (or refrigerate for longer).

Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons oil in a large heavy skillet over high heat. Add spoonfuls of the mixture to the hot pan and turn the heat down to medium-high. Fry until the edges are browning. Flip and brown the other side–a few minutes on each side. Keep a plate warm in a 250-degree oven and keep the fried ones in the oven until you’ve fried them all.

In a small bowl mix the yogurt with horseradish and salt, if using (see headnote).

Top latkes with cream and serve.

Weeknight Vegetable Curry with Coconut Milk

This is at the top of my list for fairly quick, delicious and satisfying meals that use up most any vegetable you have on hand. This recipe makes plenty so you can freeze half for dinner the following week or eat for lunches or just leftovers. Once you make it a few times you won’t need to look at a recipe and will have fun with whatever version you conjure.  If you’re using summer squash or other quick cooking vegetables add them to the curry a bit later since they will take less time to cook and you want them to keep their shape just a bit.  You can make it more or less soupy so adjust amount of broth according to your taste.

If you have time briefly toast whole coriander and cumin seeds in a dry skillet, let cool and grind in a mortar and pestle. It only takes a couple of minutes and the results are worth it.

Serves 4-5

Oil
1 onion, diced
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds (optional)
1 teaspoon ground cumin (or half a teaspoon whole seeds–see headnote)
1 teaspoon ground coriander (or half a teaspoon whole seeds–see headnote)
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes or 1 fresh Serrano pepper, minced (optional)
1/2 – 1 cup chopped tomatoes
3 carrots, chopped
4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped or sliced
4-5 cups cabbage, chopped
1 1/2 cups red lentils
6-7 cups water or vegetable broth
Salt, to taste
1 can full fat coconut milk
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped mint (optional)
Lime or lemon  juice (optional)
White or brown rice or naan for serving (optional)

In a large soup pot heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Add the mustard seeds and onions and cook for about 5 minutes, turning the heat down to medium if the onion begins to color. Add the cumin and coriander and hot pepper and cook for a few more minutes, stirring often and be careful not to burn. Add a few tablespoons of the thickest part of the coconut milk and stir in well. Simmer for another minute or two and then add the tomatoes and carrots and garlic. Cook for a 5 minutes.  Now add the lentils, broth, remainder of coconut milk and cabbage a teaspoon or so of salt, depending on how salty your broth is. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes.  Add the herbs and cook for another minute. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Serve hot over rice with a good squeeze of lime juice.

Beef Stew with Kohlrabi and Carrots

This is a hearty stew but it is supposed to cool off this week so maybe it will seem appropriate. And it’s even better the next day, as these kinds of dishes tend to be.

Serves 6 generously

3/4 cup all-purpose flour with several big pinches of salt and pepper
1 1/4 pound stew beef, cut into 1-inch chunks
About 1/4 cup olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cups thickly sliced carrots
2 kohlrabi, peeled and cut into ½ – ¾ -inch dice (about 3-4 cups worth)
4 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tablespoons tomato paste, thick tomato sauce or 4 roasted tomatoes
1/2 cup beer (medium to light style) (optional)
4-5 cups beef broth (more if you’d like it more soupy) or other broth or vegetable broth
1 bay leaf
3 thyme sprigs or 2 teaspoons dry thyme or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried, finely chopped rosemary
1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari
Salt and pepper to taste
Rice or couscous and lots of chopped parsley to serve

In a large brown paper bag, place flour, salt, and pepper.  Add diced beef.  Close the bag.  Hold it tight and shake.  Open bag and make sure that all of the beef is lightly coated in flour and seasoning.  Set aside.

In a large Dutch oven (or big soup pot), heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat.  Add as much beef as will fit along the bottom of the pan in a single layer.  Cook, browning on all sides. The beef doesn’t need to be cooked through, just browned.  Once all of the beef is cooked, remove from the pan and place on a plate.  Set aside.

In the same Dutch oven, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil.  Add onions and carrots and cook until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.  Add garlic and cook for another 3 minutes.  Add tomato paste and heat through.  Deglaze the pan with the beer, scraping the browned bits from the bottom of the pan as the beer steams.

Add bay leaf, thyme, and soy sauce.  Add beef and generously cover with broth or stock. Turn heat to low and let gently simmer for 35 minutes (or longer if your beef is from a tougher cut). Add the kohlrabi and cook for another 20 minutes or so until the vegetables are cooked through. Taste add salt, and pepper as necessary.

Serve over couscous or rice with a sprinkling of fresh parsley.

Green Salad with Beets, Avocado and Tropea Onion

If you have beets leftover from last week, use some in this salad.

I have a habit of toasting a slice of good, crusty bread and tearing it into bits and adding it warm to salads–often just for me, for lunch, but it’s such an easy trick to add a little heft to salads. It also changes the texture and temperature just enough to make it interesting.

4 beets, roasted and peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
1 avocado, diced
2 slices of good, crusty bread, toasted and cut or torn into bite-sized pieces (optional- but makes it nice hearty)
4 cups or more lettuce, washed, dried and torn
1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro, leaves and stems and finely minced roots, if they’re attached
2 tablespoons finely diced Tropea onion
2 ounces feta or fresh goat cheese
Juice of half a lemon or about 1 ½ tablespoons red wine or sherry vinegar or more to taste
3 tablespoons good olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Toss everything but the cheese and beets together. Taste and adjust seasoning. Gently add the cheese and beets and just barely mix so the beets don’t bleed onto everything.

Salads, salads and more salads!

Corn Chowder Salad
Lentil and Beet Salad with Toasted Hazelnuts
Broiled Fennel, Eggplant, Onion & Tomato with Herbs
Quinoa, Black Bean, Toasted Corn and Cumin Salad
Spicy Kale Slaw
Cook-With-What-You-Have Salad with Creamy Miso Dressing

Corn Chowder Salad

Use this week’s corn, potatoes, jalapenos and some onion. Skip the bacon, add a few diced tomatoes or any other variation–cilantro or basil instead of parsley . . .

Serves 4 as light main course

4-5 ears corn, kernels cut off the cob
3 slices bacon, fried, cooled and chopped (optional, see headnote)
5-6 small to medium potatoes, boiled, cooled and diced
3 tablespoons onion, thinly sliced or finely diced
1-2 jalapenos, minced (de-seeded if you’re worried about heat level) and taste them before you add as they vary widely in heat level
1/3 cup chopped, fresh parsley

Dressing:
1/3 cup buttermilk or plain yogurt
2 tablespoons cider vinegar, more to taste
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt

Cook the corn kernels in the pan in which you cooked the bacon, if you’re using bacon, for a few minutes until just heated through and tender. Or cook it in a teaspoon of butter and little splash of water.

Put all the salad ingredients in a serving bowl. Mix the dressing ingredients in a bowl or small jar. Dress, toss, taste and adjust for seasoning.

Lentil and Beet Salad with Toasted Hazelnuts

This is a lovely combination any time of year. You can substitute cooked barley or farro for the lentils. You can add lots of cilantro (or parsley) to the dressing. Adapt as you see fit as it’s a great base for many ingredients.  And this makes a lot of salad so feel free to half the recipe if you’d like.

Serves 6 – 8

4 beets, roasted cooled and diced (roast at 400 degrees tightly covered with a splash of water until tender)
2 cups French green lentils (or other small variety that holds its shape well)
2 cloves garlic
2 bay leaves
1 small cinnamon stick
2 quarts veggie bouillon broth, chicken stock or water
½ a small red (or yellow) onion or 1 shallot, very thinly sliced
½ cup toasted hazelnuts, almonds or walnuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley, arugula, sorrel (optional)

Vinaigrette
1/3 cup good olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar or balsamic vinegar
1 large clove garlic minced or mashed
1 teaspoon sea salt, more to taste
Freshly ground black pepper

Combine all dressing ingredients in a small jar with a lid and shake well.

Combine lentils, garlic, cinnamon stick, and stock or water and bring to a simmer and cook for 30- 40 minutes until tender but still holding their shape. Drain the lentils (reserving liquid for a soup if you want) and discard bay, cinnamon stick and garlic cloves. Put lentils in a bowl and cool to room temperature.

Toss lentils with the onion, herbs/greens and about two thirds of the dressing. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Add beets and nuts and toss again and add more dressing if needed.

Broiled Fennel, Eggplant, Onion & Tomato with Herbs

I roast vegetables (or broil them) occasionally but I particularly love this combination and this level of heat and all the herbs. Adjust quantities/ratio to what you have on hand/want to use.

1 eggplant, sliced into 1/3-inch thick slices
1 large fennel bulb, trimmed, halved lengthwise and sliced into 1/3-inch thick slices
1 onion, sweet, Torpedo, etc. halved and sliced
4 tomatoes, quartered
Sea salt
Olive oil
6-8 sprigs (total) oregano and thyme or just one or the other

Set your oven to broil.

Arrange the vegetables and herbs on a sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle generously with salt. Toss it all well with your hands and spread out evenly. Broil, checking regularly and turning the vegetables as they brown. I did this for 20 minutes, though I have a gas broiler that is not terribly strong. If your vegetables are browning/blackening too quickly, lower the rack a bit. You want the vegetables to be falling apart tender and browned, not crisp and browned.

Quinoa, Black Bean, (Kale), Toasted Corn and Cumin Salad

Originally this recipe did not include the kale but I think you could finely chop some, and put it on top of the quinoa to steam for the final 8 minutes or so of the quinoa cooking time, for a wonderful addition. Or you could just use kale and skip the corn. And if you like spice by all means add more jalapenos. Feel free to add lots of chopped cilantro and/or parsley.

Serves 4-6

1 1/2 cup quinoa
1 small bunch kale, finely chopped (optional-see headnote)
Kernels from 2 ears of corn
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 1/2 cup black beans, cooked
1 1/2 – 2 cups diced tomatoes, drained if very juicy
2 tablespoons minced onion or shallot
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1-2 jalapeno peppers, deseeded and minced (use more or less depending on your desired spice level)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons lime juice
Lots of chopped cilantro and/or parsley (optional)

Rinse the quinoa under cold water in a fine meshed sieve. Put in a pot with 1 1/2 cups water and a couple pinches of salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer, cover and cook for about 15 minutes until all the water is absorbed and the quinoa is. If using kale, add it to the quinoa, just resting it on top, after about 7 minutes. Cover and continue cooking for another 7-8 until the quinoa and kale are tender and the water is absorbed. Turn the quinoa, and kale, if using into a large salad bowl and let cool a bit.

While the quinoa cooks, heat a heavy skillet on high, without adding oil. When the pan is hot, toss in the corn, stirring occasionally, until the kernels are singed. It should take about five minutes. When they are almost done, add the cumin seeds to the skillet and toast briefly. Then add both to the salad bowl.

To the same bowl, add the tomatoes, the cooked beans, the feta, the onions, the jalapenos and the smoked paprika.

Toss the salad together with the herbs, if using, lime juice and olive oil and add salt to taste. Taste again.

Spicy Kale and Fennel Slaw

Serves 4-6

1 small to medium bunch kale, tough stems removed washed, dried and very thinly sliced
1 small head fennel, trimmed and sliced very thinly
4 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced or 1 small shallot or small piece of onion of any kind, thinly sliced
1 sweet pepper, washed and seeded and thinly sliced (optional)
1/2 cup cilantro, roughly chopped (parsley and/or mint would be good too)

Dressing:
1 large clove garlic, minced and then mashed with a bit of coarse salt on the cutting board with the side of a chef’s knife to create a coarse paste (skip this step if you’re in a hurry)
Juice of 1 lime or 1 1/2 tablespoons white, cider or red wine vinegar
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 jalapeño, minced (deseeded if you want less heat)
1/3 cup or more good olive oil
1/3 – 1/2 cup toasted sunflower seeds (about 10 minutes at 350 degrees)

Toss all the salad ingredients together in a large bowl. Mix the dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Toss dressing with salad and mix well to incorporate. Taste and adjust seasoning

This salad holds up well and you can dress it an hour or more before serving. I tend to add the toasted seeds right before serving to preserve their crunch but adding them earlier is fine too.

Cook-With-What-You-Have Salad with Creamy Miso Dressing

This dressing is good on a great variety of salads. I like it with simply with greens and toasted seeds or with a more robust version with cucumbers, fresh corn kernels, sweet peppers and even cooked potatoes. You really can use most anything!

Serves 4

6 cups lettuce, washed, dried and torn or chopped
1 medium tomato, diced
2 tablespoons thinly sliced or diced onion
½ cup thinly sliced celery (optional)
kernels from one ear of corn (raw or briefly cooked if you’d like) (optional)
½ cup roughly chopped fresh herbs such as parsley, basil, dill, mint or chives (in any combination)
1/3 cup toasted sunflower or pumpkin seeds

Dressing
1 tablespoon white or yellow miso
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon Mirin (rice cooking wine)
3 tablespoons Greek or regular, plain yogurt (full fat preferably)
2 tablespoons  olive oil
Plenty of freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
Sea Salt

Put all salad ingredients in a large salad bowl. Mix the dressing in a small bowl and pour about 2/3 of the dressing over the salad. Toss, taste and adjust seasoning or add more dressing. Serve immediately.

Cukes piling up in your crisper? This excerpt from a newsletter from local nutrition gurus Replenish PDX popped into my inbox last week, just in time to inform me of some of the benefits of receiving them every week. . . and of course they are delicious to boot.

The Health Benefits of Cucumbers:

• The watery flesh of the cucumber provides vitamin C, carotenoids and folic acid.
• By contrast, the fibrous skin contains silica, potassium and magnesium.
• The silica contained in the skin of the cuke makes it great for supporting our connective tissue (our muscles, tendons, bones and ligaments), and our skin.
• Used topically, the ascorbic acid and caffeic acid help to relieve water retention, which is why cucumbers are used for swelling under the eyes, burns and other skin irritations.
• Cucumbers also act as an alterative. This is the term for a cleansing and purifying food that helps to alter the blood and restore the function of the excretory organs.
• The cuke contains a digestive enzyme called erepsin. Erepsin helps to break down proteins and supports intestinal health.

Zucchini and Basil Soup
Broiled Eggplant with Tahini, Miso & Tamari Dressing and Herbs
Celery, Torpedo Onion and Carrot Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing (& Vegan Alternative)
Sauteed Celery with Tomato and Parsley
Faux Ratatouille
Tomato, Cucumber and Basil Salad
Cucumber Salad with Peanuts and Sesame

Zucchini and Basil Soup (Cold)
–adapted from Elizabeth Minchilli in Rome

Four ingredients is all you need. Simple, creamy (but with no cream) and satisfying. This soup is best, or definitely prettiest, made with green zucchini varieties. For the version above I used two green zucchini and one yellow patty pan squash.

Serves 4

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, diced
3 green zucchini (see headnote–you can use other summer squash varieties too but it might not be as pretty and green), sliced thinly
Salt
Water
1 1/2 -2 cups basil leaves, loosely packed
Juice of 1 lemon
Good olive oil, for serving

Heat the olive oil in pot or large saute pan and add the onion. Saute for 10 minutes over medium heat until soft and translucent. Add the zucchini and several generous pinches of salt and cook for 12-15 minutes until soft. Add water to about 3/4 inch above the zucchini. Bring to a simmer and cook for another 10 minutes.  Let the mixture cool to just above room temperature.

Puree the soup in a blender, food processor or immersion blender. Add the basil and puree again and stir in the lemon juice just before serving. The basil can turn the soup a bit bitter if it sits for too long. Taste and adjust with salt and/or lemon juice. Serve at room temperature or cold with a drizzle of good olive oil.

Broiled Eggplant with Tahini, Miso & Tamari Dressing and Herbs

This is a quick, savory side dish. I added a few onions to the roasting pan this time. You could add summer squash, peppers and even tomatoes if you’d like. The dressing is quite strong and you’ll likely not need all of it so use it on any grilled meat or tofu or on cold noodles.

Serves 4

3-4 Japanese eggplants or 2 small-medium globe eggplants, cut into large dice
1 medium onion, cut into large dice (optional–see headnote)
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons tahini
1 tablespoon white or 2 teaspoons red miso
2 tablespoons tamari or soy sauce
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
2 or more tablespoons water
2 tablespoons chopped basil
1 tablespoon chopped mint (optional)

Set your oven to broil. Spread the eggplant and onion, if using, on a rimmed baking sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and toss well. Broil, about 6-8 inches below the element, tossing every few minutes, until very well browned and softened. Remove from oven and transfer to a serving dish.

Mix the dressing, minus the fresh herbs, together in a small bowl, adding water until you have a just pourable consistency. Drizzle dressing over the eggplant, reserving some to pass at the table or save for other uses (see headnote). Garnish with herbs. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Celery, Torpedo Onion and Carrot Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing (& Vegan Alternative)

This is crunchy, fresh and delicious. The lime juice and zest are prominent and balance the richness of the cheese. You can certainly use shallots or regular onions, red or not for this but if you have Torpedo onions by all means use them.

Serves 4-6

1/2 head celery (about 6-7 stalks), peeled (if stringy) and thinly sliced, leaves picked and a handful of leaves reserved
2 medium carrots, scrubbed and very thinly sliced
½ – 1 torpedo onion, very thinly sliced (depending on how much onion you like)
1/2 cup parsley, chopped

For the dressing:
1/3 cup Gorgonzola Dolce or blue cheese or feta, crumbled
1/3 cup whole milk Greek yogurt or sour cream
Zest and juice from one lime
1 teaspoon sea salt
Plenty of freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon sugar

If you want to mellow the onions a bit, place them, thinly sliced, in a small bowl of ice water and let soak while you prepare the rest of the salad. Then drain well and pat dry.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the yogurt or sour cream, lime juice and zest, sugar, salt and pepper until well combined. Cover and chill until ready to serve. Just before serving in a large bowl toss all the vegetables, chopped parsley and celery leaves; add the sauce and mix well to combine and sprinkle with the cheese and toss again gently. Taste for seasonings and serve.

** Vegan alternative:

For a very different but very good variation on this make this dressing.

2 teaspoons orange zest
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 cup olive oil
1 jalapeño, seeds and membranes removed, minced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or any herb of your choice
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Whisk orange juice, lime juice, jalapeño, 2 tablespoons dill, and zest in a medium bowl. Gradually whisk in 1/2 cup oil; season the vinaigrette with salt and pepper to taste. Pour into a mason jar with a tight lid; keep in refrigerator and use as much as you need for the salad

Sauteed Celery with Tomatoes and Parsley
–adapted from Cooking From an Italian Garden by Paola Scaravelli & Jon Cohen

This is a fun side dish–the combination of the cooked celery, tomatoes, garlic and parsley is delicious. It’s good with a frittata or even over pasta or quinoa or some such.

Serves 4

1 small to medium bunch celery, trimmed and cut into 1-2-inch pieces (about 10 stalks)(reserve leaves for soups, salads, etc.)
1 tablespoon good olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups diced tomatoes
3 tablespoons parsley, chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Grated Parmesan, for serving (optional)

Steam celery for 5-7 minutes, until just tender when pierced with a knife. Remove from the heat and drain.

In a large, heavy skillet heat the oil over medium-high heat and add the garlic and cook, stirring often, until it’s  fragrant, about 30 seconds and then add the tomatoes, parsley, salt and pepper. Stir together, then stir in the celery. Cook, stirring often, until the tomatoes have cooked down and the mixture is reduced and thickened, about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Serve with grated Parmesan if you’d like.

Faux Ratatouille

I made this quicker and modified version this weekend and was reminded just how delicious any version of this summer vegetable saute/braise is. By all means add some/all of your eggplant this week for a more authentic version.

Serves 4

1 onion, cut into large dice
3 medium summer squash, sliced or diced
1 eggplant (see headnote), optional
Olive oil
Handful of torn basil leaves
2 cloves garlic, minced
Sea salt
Good olive oil for serving

Heat some olive oil in the largest skillet you have over high heat. Add the onions and squash, and eggplant, if using, sprinkle with a bit of salt. Cook on high heat for a few minutes, stirring frequently and then turn down to medium high and continue sautéing until softened and browning just a bit. Now add the tomatoes and bring to a lively simmer and cook for about 10 minutes to marry the flavors and soften the tomatoes. Add the garlic and basil and cook for 2 more minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve warm (but not hot) or at room temperature with a generous drizzle of good olive oil.

This is a quintessential summer salad that takes 5 minutes to put together. Add feta or fresh mozzarella if you’d like but the simplicity of this is just lovely.

Tomato, Cucumber and Basil Salad

No real need for a recipe here but just as a reminder. . . and feel free to add some crumbled feta and or olives for more heft.

Serves 4

3 cups tomatoes, diced (use any good-tasting slicer or cherry tomatoes and combine them at will)
1 small-medium cucumber, halved or quartered, if large, and thinly sliced (if the cucumber is quite seedy and watery in the center scoop out the seeds and discard and slice the remaining flesh
1/3 cup torpedo onion (or other onion), thinly sliced (or more if you like onion)
Handful of basil leaves, torn or chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
Sea salt

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and taste and adjust for seasoning.

Cucumber Salad with Peanuts and Sesame
–inspired by two different recipes from 101cookbooks.com

Serves 4

This slightly unusual combination of ingredients and flavors is crunchy, cool, sweet/tart and rather addictive.

2 medium cucumbers, halved, seeds removed and thinly sliced or diced
1 jalapeno, minced (remove the seeds for a milder salad)
1 large clove garlic, finely minced
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated or finely minced
1 lime, zest and juice
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons fish sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon honey
1-2 teaspoons toasted black sesame seeds (regular are just fine—the black ones look great but the flavor is very similar)
3 tablespoons salted and roasted peanuts, roughly chopped
1/3 cup roasted, flaked coconut (optional)
Fresh basil, mint, or cilantro or a combination of them, chopped

Place the cucumber slices or dice, and chile pepper in a large bowl, toss to mix. In a small bowl whisk together the garlic, ginger, lime zest and juice, rice vinegar, fish sauce, sesame oil, and honey. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the cucumbers and toss until thoroughly mixed. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to deepen. Before serving add the sesame seeds, toasted coconut (if using) peanuts, and herbs and toss again. Taste and adjust seasoning and serve.

Lots of fun recipes this week with creative ideas for cucumbers and zucchini.  However, no specific fennel recipe but you could add it to the Fajitas or Chickpea and Chard Stew or grill it in slabs, brushed with olive oil and sprinkled with salt.

Happy Cooking!

Charred Zucchini with Zhoug and Feta
Rigatoni with Pesto and Browned Zucchini
Pesto
Green Pepper, (Torpedo) Onion and Spicy Sausage “Fajitas”
Chard and Chickpea Stew with Tomatoes and Cumin
Sweet Sour Hot Eggplant
Baked, Spiced Tofu with Rice and Cucumber Salad
Schmorgurken

Charred Zucchini with Zhoug and Feta

This dish was inspired by one at Cafe Castagna in Portland. Zhoug is an herb and green chili sauce/paste from Yemen but popular in Israel as well and other parts of the Middle East.

Serves 4+

5-7 small to medium zucchini or other kind of summer squash, washed and trimmed
2/3 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
2-3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1-2 serrano chiles, minced (use the larger quantity if you like more heat), including seeds unless the peppers are very hot in which case you can remove the seeds
1 teaspoon coriander seeds or 1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds or 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/3 – 1/2 cup good olive oil
Salt
2 ounces feta, crumbled

Set your oven to broil.

Put the squash on a sheet pan and set about 4-6 inches below the broiler element. Broil, rotating the squash when they turn brown or lightly char. Keep rotating until they are more or less evenly browned and are tender when pierced with the tip of knife. Remove from oven and let cool a bit.

If using whole spices, toast the spices in a dry skillet over medium-low heat for 1-2 minutes until a shade darker and fragrant and toasty smelling. Remove from heat and put in a mortar and let cool.
Mix the herbs, hot peppers, garlic salt and olive oil in a bowl. Coarsely grind the spices with a pestle and add to the herb mixture. Stir well and adjust taste with salt.

Slice the roasted squash into 1-inch rounds and  put in a serving dish. Top generously with the zhoug and the feta. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Rigatoni with Pesto and Browned Zucchini

I like a high vegetable to pasta ratio so use about 3/4 lb of pasta here but by all means make the full pound and cook more squash or vary the ratio. You could also substitute rice or another grain or just toss the browned zucchini with the pesto for a rich side dish.

Serves 4-6

3/4 lb (or 1 lb) rigatoni or penne or fusilli pasta (see headnote)
4 medium zucchini or other summers squash, halved lengthwise and sliced into thin half moons
Olive oil
Sea salt
1/2 cup pesto
Grated Parmesan

Saute squash in some olive oil in a heavy skillet until browned and tender.

Cook pasta in salted boiling water until al dente. Reserve 1/3 cup or more hot cooking water right before you drain the pasta.

Put the pesto in a serving dish and thin with about 2-3 tablespoons pasta cooking water. Toss in the pasta and sautéed squash. Mix well, taste and adjust seasoning and serve with grated Parmesan.

Pesto

1 bunch basil, leaves picked (about 3-4 cups leaves, loosely packed)
2-3 smallish cloves of garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
Generous handful of almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts or pine nuts
About 2 ounces Parmesan or aged Asiago
1/2 cup of good-tasting extra virgin olive oil (or more)
Salt to taste

If you have a mortar and pestle, a strong arm and some time, by all means make the pesto by hand. I almost always now make it in a food processor and it’s very good that way too.

Put the nuts and cheese in the processor and pulse until finely ground. Add the basil, garlic and salt and process until well chopped. Then slowly add the oil. Don’t over process. Adjust for salt and oil. Then store in the fridge until ready to use.

Green Pepper, (Torpedo) Onion and Spicy Sausage “Fajitas”

I should make these more often, says my son. It really is a good template for CSA produce. These employ the classic green bell pepper and onions but strips of zucchini or carrot would be good as would corn, chard stems (why not?!) and even leafy greens in combination with plenty of onions.

Substitute whatever meat you have on hand or skip it altogether. Sausage is what I often have on hand and it works beautifully.

Serves 4

1 tablespoon oil
2 bell peppers, seeded and thinly sliced and slices cut in half crosswise
1 large onion or 2 torpedo onions, halved and thinly sliced
1 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes or 1 Serrano or Jalapeno chile minced (remove seeds if you want to reduce spice level)
Salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 4-ounce sausages, sliced or crumbled or meat of your choice (see headnote)
Chopped fresh cilantro
Grated cheese and/or sour cream (optional)
Hot sauce (optional)
Flour tortillas

Heat the olive oil over high heat in a large, heavy skillet. Add the peppers and onions and few pinches of salt, stir well and saute over  a couple of minutes, still on high heat to give the vegetables a little color and soften them a bit. Add the spices, garlic and sausage and stir well and cook for another couple of minutes on high, then turn down to medium-high and continue sauteeing until cooked to your desired tenderness. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Warm tortillas in a dry skillet and fill with vegetables and meat and top/garnish as desired.

Chard and Chickpea Stew with Tomatoes and Cumin

I think this was inspired by a photo in Yotam Ottolenghi’s book Plenty but it came about in a great hurry one night when I had cooked chickpeas on hand and a few other things in the crisper and dinner needed to happen soon. Also, my son loves pretty much any dhal or Indian-inspired dish so I added cumin and brown mustard seeds to this dish and sure enough, he loved it. If you have carrots on hand by all means use a couple here if you’d like.

Serves 4

Olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, scrubbed and cut into small dice (see headnote)  (optional)
1 bunch chard, well washed and chopped, stems washed and chopped fairly finely
1 teaspoon whole cumin seed (or 2 teaspoons ground)
1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes or 1 minced, seeded Serrano or jalapeño pepper
1 cup diced tomatoes (fresh or canned)
2-3 cups cooked chickpeas, drained (you can use some cooking liquid if you have home-cooked ones)
1 cup water or chickpea cooking liquid
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Greek yogurt for serving

In a large skillet, heat some olive oil. Add the onions, chard stems, and carrots, if using, and sauté for about 10 minutes until softening and browning. Add the cumin and mustard seeds and red pepper flakes or hot pepper and cook for another 2 minutes or so. Add the tomatoes, chickpeas and chard and water or cooking liquid, stirring well, and a few pinches of salt. Bring to a lively simmer, then turn down and cook gently for about 10 minutes so the chickpeas have a chance to absorb the flavors. Taste and adjust seasoning. You can add a squeeze of lemon juice at this point if you want. Serve with a dollop of Greek yogurt and enjoy.

Sweet Sour Hot Eggplant

My favorite way to serve this quick Chinese-inspired dish is over short grain brown rice but any rice is excellent. It’s a rich-tasting dish though actually fairly light in preparation.

Serves 4

2 tablespoons sunflower or olive oil
2 medium eggplant (or several smaller ones—any kind of eggplant will work in this dish—the long slender Japanese ones, more common Italian, globe ones, . . .), skin on, cubed
1 medium onion, diced
1 sweet red pepper, thinly sliced (optional but very good)
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or fresh, minced Serrano, jalapeno or other hot pepper
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoons salt (or to taste)
3-4 tablespoons Thai basil, basil, cilantro or parsley, roughly chopped

Stir together soy sauce, vinegar, sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl.

In a large skillet or wok heat the oil and sauté onions and pepper (if using) over medium-high heat for about 5-7 minutes until they soften. Add red pepper flakes (or minced hot pepper) and eggplant and cook until it softens and browns a bit, about 15 minutes, stirring frequently. A few minutes before the eggplant is done add the minced garlic and stir well. Then add the sauce and stir well to mix and coat veggies. Cook over medium heat for a few minutes until sauce thickens and veggies are tender. Stir in the herbs, saving out a few for garnish if you’d like. Serve hot over rice with herbs.

Baked, Spiced Tofu with Rice and Cucumber Salad

I like this Baked, Spiced Tofu recipe from one of my favorite food bloggers David Lebovitz.  I created this meal around his tofu recipe.

I doubled the marinade ingredients and set aside half of the marinade in a bowl, the other half you use per the Lebovitz’s recipe. To this I added another tablespoon each of sesame oil, tamari/soy sauce, rice wine and vinegar.

Marinate and then bake the tofu according the recipe.

Chop ½ cup cilantro.
Cook a pot of rice, any kind.
Chop 3 cucumbers and toss them with about 1/3 of the reserved marinade/dressing.
To serve, top the rice with the baked tofu, cucumber salad and drizzle the whole thing with some of the remaining dressing. Enjoy!

Schmorgurken

There are many variations of this dish in Germany and I grew up with this simple, sweet and sour vegetarian one. Often ground beef or small meat balls are added to the mix and sometimes also tomato. I don’t know of any cooked cucumber dishes in the States but having grown up with this one in Germany it doesn’t seem odd to me and is well worth a try. The quantities are squishy for this recipe, confirmed by my mother. Just scale up or down to taste and depending on what you have.

Serves 4

Olive oil
3 medium cucumbers, peeled and cut in half lengthwise and seeds removed with a teaspoon
½ cup sour cream
2 tablespoons white wine or cider vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
Salt and lots of freshly ground pepper
3 or more tablespoons chopped fresh dill
Cooked rice for serving

Put your rice on to cook—we grew up eating this over long grain white rice but you could by all means use brown as well.

Cut the halved cucumbers into ½-inch half-rounds. In a large, heavy skillet sauté the cucumber slices in a bit of olive oil over medium to medium-high heat, stirring frequently. They will release quite a bit of liquid, which is great. It will add to the sauce. When they are translucent and softening (about 10 minutes) add the sour cream, vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper. Simmer for about 5 minutes more until the cucumbers are completely tender and the sauce has thickened a little. Add the dill, taste and adjust for salt and pepper and serve hot over rice.

The final allotment of “summer” share vegetables arrives this week. What a delicious and beautiful season it’s been. Thank you for all your comments, edits and notes. It’s been a pleasure cooking and writing my way through the bounty and bounty it is this week! Plenty of variety for our holidays meals and plenty of things that will keep well in a cool basement or on your kitchen counter. The Onion Jam would make a nice crostini as an appetizer, the Radicchio Salad a bright complement to richer dishes and the Scalloped Potatoes, Winter Squash and Celery Root Gratin and Mashed Root Vegetables all would make tasty Thanksgiving sides and the Kale Bruschetta is a lovely, simple dish for the day after Thanksgiving maybe, when you’ve had enough rich food. Happy cooking and happy holidays!

Braised Parsnips with Onions, Sage and White Wine
Beet and Chickpea Fritters with Mint
Radicchio and Carrot Salad with Sage and Parmesan
Celery Root and Winter Squash Gratin
Kale Bruschetta
Onion Jam
Scalloped Potatoes
Mashed Root Vegetables
Winter Squash, Black Beans, Avocado and Cilantro Salad
Pumpkin Pie

Braised Parsnips with Onions, Sage and White Wine

Parsnips are sweet, quick cooking, starchy and comforting. They don’t need much more than a sauté in a cast-iron skillet until nicely browned. But if you want to fancy them up just a bit, this is quick and very good. Parsnips get sweeter after a couple of frosts. If your parsnips are note very a sweet add 2 teaspoons of honey at the end of the cooking time or 1 tablespoon apple cider syrup. 

Serves 4

Olive oil
4-5 cups sliced parsnips (scrub well first and then half or quarter the parsnips lengthwise and slice crosswise if large, if small just cut into ¼-inch rounds)
1 medium onion, cut in half and then sliced into thin half-rounds
3-4 teaspoons chopped fresh sage
¾ cup dry white wine or 2/3 cup water mixed with 1 tablespoon cider or red wine vinegar and 1 teaspoon honey
1 tablespoon apple cider syrup or 2 teaspoons honey (see headnote)
Salt
A bit more olive oil for serving

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in the largest skillet you have over high heat. Add the parsnips, onions, sage and several pinches of salt and cook on high to medium-high until things start to brown, stirring occasionally. Add the wine, it will spit and bubble, and stir well and cover the skillet and turn the heat down a bit. Cook for another 5 minutes or so until most of the wine has been absorbed. Remove lid and cook for a few more minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. If your parsnips are a bit bland add the honey or cider syrup.  Serve with a drizzle of good olive oil.

Beet and Chickpea Fritters with Mint

I like to make fritters of most anything and these pack a nice punch from the hot pepper and are earthy and filling. The garlicky, minty yogurt topping delivers a bright, fresh kick.

You can either briefly process the ingredients in a food processor or chop finely and mash by hand with a potato masher or back of a spoon. Both work just fine.

Serves 4 (about 16 4-inch fritters)

About 1 cup cooked beets, peeled and chopped (finely, if you’re mashing by hand–see headnote)
2 cups cooked chickpeas, drained
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon, minced onion or shallot
2 tablespoons chopped mint and/or parsley
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika (pimenton)
1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes or a bit of minced fresh Serrano or Jalapeno
1/2 teaspoon salt, more to taste
Oil for pan frying

Topping:
1/3 cup (or more) Greek yogurt of whole milk regular yogurt
1 clove garlic, minced
Salt
1 tablespoon chopped mint leaves

Put the fritter ingredients in a large bowl and mash with a potato masher until well mixed or process briefly in a food processor, keeping the mixture a bit chunky and irregular.

Heat a large, heavy skillet over medium high heat with 2 tablespoons oil. Use about 1/4 cup per fritter and fry on both sides until golden brown, about 3 minutes on each side.

Meanwhile mix the garlic, salt, yogurt and mint in a small bowl. Serve the fritters hot or warm with the yogurt topping.

This is a fresh, robust salad perfect for a weeknight supper or Thanksgiving. You can scale it up or down and change the ratio of vegetables any way you’d like.

Radicchio, Orange and Olive Salad

This is a gorgeous salad with robust flavors.

Serves 4

1 small to medium head radicchio, washed, dried and cut into bite-sized pieces (you want about 4 cups of radicchio)
1 orange
handful of cured black olives, pitted
2-3 tablespoons parsley leaves (optional)
1-2 tablespoons thinly sliced red onion or shallot
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 tablespoon vinegar of your choice
About 2 tablespoons good olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cut the top and bottom off the orange and set it on one end. With a sharp serrated knife cut away the peel and pith and then cut the sections way from the membrane. Reserve any juice to add to the salad.

Put the radicchio in a salad bowl and add the orange slices, halved, if large, and the remainder of the ingredients. Toss gently and taste and adjust seasoning.

Celery Root and Winter Squash Gratin

I suggest making a good amount of this since leftovers are wonderful. And if you don’t have thyme or sage you can use a little rosemary or dried oregano or even fresh parsley.

Serves 6

About 4-5 cups, peeled and sliced celery root
About  4-5 cups, peeled and sliced winter squash
1 – 1 1/2 cups liquid (any combination of milk or cream or half and half you want) or a bit more
2-3 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped
1/2 teaspoon thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon fresh or dried sage, finely chopped (optional–see above)
2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
Plenty of freshly ground black pepper
Sea salt
3/4 cup grated Parmesan or aged Asiago (Asiago Stella) or other good, aged grating cheese

Preheat oven to 400.

Heat the milk and/or cream in a small saucepan with the garlic, mustard, thyme and black pepper and a good amount of salt  (1/2 teaspoon at least) until hot. Be careful not to boil it over.

Put a layer of celery root in the bottom of a 9 x 13  or similarly-sized baking dish. Follow with a layer of squash, Pour half the hot milk mixture over the vegetables and sprinkle with half the cheese. Repeat with the rest of the vegetables and milk and top with cheese. If the liquid seems skimpy you can also add a bit of milk or even a little water. The vegetables will give off some liquid (depending on the type of squash mostly–Butternut squash will not give off much). Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for about 35 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 15 – 20 minutes or until tender. Run under the broiler to brown nicely.

Kale Bruschetta

Sauté chopped kale in olive oil with a clove or two of minced garlic and a pinch of salt. Add water to keep things moist. You want the kale silky but not watery. When tender, toast slices of crusty bread and rub each piece of toast with a whole clove of garlic.  Pile the kale on the garlicky toast and top with plenty of good olive oil and salt to taste.

Onion Jam

You can make this luscious condiment with sweet or regular yellow or red onions. This is delicious with roasted meets or with eggs, on pizza, thinned down as a pasta sauce with some red pepper flakes and a bit of parmesan, or added to a scramble with some sautéed kale or other greens.

This is the very plain version. You can add thyme and/or a bay leaf or some hot pepper flakes or minced, fresh hot pepper. I do include the optional coriander version below that I learned from the brilliant chef and cookbook author Andrea Reusing of the restaurant Lantern in Chapel Hill, NC and of one of my favorite cookbooks Cooking in the Moment: A Year of Seasonal Recipes.

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 medium-large onions, cut into 3/4-inch dice
2 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup dry red wine
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon toasted, ground coriander seeds (optional)
Salt

Melt the butter in a medium skillet. Add the onions and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until soft and just translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the sugar, wine and vinegar several pinches of salt. Cook over low heat, stirring, until the liquid thickens and coats the back of a spoon, about 35 minutes. Transfer the onion jam to a bowl and let cool.

The onion jam can be refrigerated for up to 5 days. Let return to room temperature before serving.

Mojadra

This is a wonderfully satisfying dish that uses the most basic staples to delicious effect. It’s a great way to use lots of onions and they are the stars of the show, nicely caramelized. It’s also a simple dish to create with little time. Cook the rice and lentils in the morning while your making breakfast and then quickly finish the meal in the evening with the onions and toppings from the pantry.

There are variations of this dish from Egypt to Lebanon and Israel with many different spellings and iterations.

3 tablespoons butter or olive oil, divided
1 cup small French green lentils (or brown lentils)
1 cup long-grain brown rice
1 bay leaf
4 cups water
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 medium-large onions, sliced thin (about 4 cups sliced)
1 1⁄2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 cup full-fat plain yogurt or Greek yogurt
Harissa or hot sauce of your choice

Heat 1 1⁄2 tablespoons butter, ghee or olive oil in a 4-quart pot. Add rice and lentils and mix well. Sauté for a minute or two. Add bay leaf, water, and 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 45 minutes or until both lentils and rice are very tender and all the water has been absorbed.

While the rice and lentils cooks heat the remaining oil or butter in a large skillet medium-high heat. Add onions and 1 teaspoon salt and sauté. When onions begin to soften, add garlic and spices. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until well browned and significantly reduced in volume, about 20 minutes. (Add a splash or two of water if necessary to prevent sticking or burning.) Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

Remove the bay leaf from the rice and beans and serve them topped with caramelized onions and a generous dollop of yogurt and Harissa. The Harissa (a North African hot chili sauce) is not a classic accompaniment but it’s really good but feel free to omit it and serve with your favorite hot sauce or none at all. Both Pastaworks and New Seasons carry, good jarred Harissa.

Scalloped Potatoes

Scalloped potatoes one of the first dishes I cooked for my family as a child. I learned from my mother to layer the thinly sliced potatoes, with herbs and spices, grated cheese, a thin dusting of flower and a few dots of butter. And I was extra generous with the black pepper–in each layer–in those days. These days I toss all the ingredients together in a bowl and then more or less level them out in the baking dish–same delicious result.

For a delicious variation substitute half of the potatoes with celery root.

Variations include lots of chopped herbs like parsley, marjoram, chives or oregano, diced bacon or slices of sausage, minced garlic, finely chopped greens or peppers, etc.

Serves 4-6

2 1/2 – 3 lbs  Yukon potatoes, scrubbed and thinly sliced into rounds (blade on box grater works well)
1/2 onion, finely diced
1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar, emmental, gruyere, . . .
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons pimenton (smoked Spanish paprika–spicy or mild)
1/2 teaspoon chili flakes (optional)
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup flour
About 3 1/2 cups liquid: all whole milk, part milk, part cream, part half  & half, part veg or chicken stock, but be sure it’s at least 1/2 milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Put the potatoes in a large bowl. In a small bowl mix the flour and spices together. Sprinkle this over the potatoes and toss well. Add the onions and almost all of the cheese (reserving some for the top) and mix again.

Spread mixture in a 9 x 13 baking dish, pat down a bit with a spatula. Pour milk (or liquid combo) over potato mixture. The liquid should come about half way up the potatoes. Sprinkle the top with the remaining cheese, cover pan with foil and bake until potatoes are tender and easily pierced with a fork about 45 minutes. Uncover and finish under the broiler for a minute or two to brown the top.

Mashed Root Vegetables

This is a simple technique that can be used with most any root vegetable or better yet, combination of roots. You can change the ratio of vegetables to suit your taste or to what you have on hand. You can add herbs and/or spices–swap the creme fraiche for whole milk or cream or broth or cooking water. . . .

Serves 4, generously

2 large carrots, scrubbed and trimmed and cut into chunks
2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
2 parsnips, scrubbed and trimmed and cut into chunks
Salt
1/3 -1/2 cup creme fraiche, cream, milk, plain yogurt (for more of a tangy flavor), broth or cooking water plus a little butter
Pepper
Freshly grated nutmeg (optional)
Salt to taste

Put all the vegetables in a pot and cover with water. Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil then turn down to a simmer and cook until nice and tender but not falling apart. Reserve 1/2 cup of cooking liquid in case you need to loosen up the mash or if you’re using it instead of cream, etc. and drain the vegetables.

Put the vegetables in a food processor* with all the remaining ingredients and pulse/process until well mixed and you have your desired consistency. Add cooking liquid if it’s too thick to process well (or more cream, etc. ) I like it to have some texture and just process briefly.

*If your mixture includes potatoes you don’t want to process the vegetables in a the food processor for very long as potatoes get gluey really quickly. In the mix above I processed everything together briefly and it was fine. If your potato ratio is higher I would just mash them by hand and puree the other vegetables, if you want a smoother texture.

Taste and adjust seasoning with salt, pepper, nutmeg, herbs, etc.

Winter Squash, Black Beans, Avocado and Cilantro Salad

This is really just a suggestion of ingredients to combine and a loose technique. You can add sweet peppers, hot peppers, spices, other herbs and/or add cheeses or toasted nuts.

Quantities are completely up to you as are the ratios. Just taste and adjust with citrus and other seasonings.

Serves 4

2 cups cooked (or canned), drained black beans
1 avocado, diced
1/2 – 3/4 cup cilantro, leaves and stems, well washed, dried and roughly chopped
2-3 cups winter squash, roasted and cut into bite-sized chunks
2 tablespoons red onion, green onion, shallot or other onion, thinly sliced
1/2 a garlic clove, minced (optional)
Juice of 1 lime, more to taste
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2-3 tablespoons olive oil

Toss everything together on a platter or in a large bowl. Taste, adjust seasoning and enjoy.

Pumpkin Pie

Making your own pumpkin puree is delicious. Pumpkin flesh can be a bit stringy so if you don’t have a food processor (in which to make the filling)  you might want to mash the cooked pumpkin through a sieve for a nice smooth texture.

This is fairly classic pumpkin pie recipe, with the exception of the sour cream and optional rum.

I swear by the Chez Pim pie crust technique and recipe (nothing but butter, flour and water). Give it a try if you’d like or use your favorite recipe/technique.

Unlike many others I do not blind bake my crust for pumpkin pie. Instead I bake it on a pizza stone in a very hot oven (for the first 15 minutes) and then reduce the temperature. This way my crust doesn’t burn and get brittle (which I find if I blind bake and then add the custard which needs a good 45 minutes to bake itself) and the bottom crust does just fine. You always get a little sogginess with a wet custard like this but I think it’s just perfect.

Serves 8

1 9-inch single crust Pie shell, chilled (not partially baked using ½ of above recipe or your favorite pie dough)
1 ¾ cups pumpkin puree (from 1 small-medium pumpkin)
2 large eggs, at room temperature
3/4 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1 cup whole milk or cream
1/3 cup sour cream
 or Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
Pinch of ground cloves
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 tablespoons dark rum (optional)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Lightly sweetened lightly whipped cream, for topping

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut the pumpkin in half and remove all seeds and strings. Keep seeds and clean and roast for a snack if you’d like. Put the pumpkin/squash cut side down on a baking sheet and bake until very tender when pierced with the tip of a knife. Remove from oven, let cool and scoop out the flesh and mash or push through a strainer if stringy and you don’t have a food processor (see headnote).

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 450°F. If you have a pizza stone, put it on the rack you’re going to use and then preheat. Setting the pie pan directly on the pizza stone helps the crust bake nicely and not get soggy, especially since we’re not pre-baking the crust.

Roll out your pie dough and place it in a pan, making sure to gently press the dough fully into the pan. Trim the overhanging dough with a sharp knife all around leaving at least a 1-inch overhang. Flour your fingers and crimp the dough by pushing your right pointer finger into a “v” shape created with the thumb and pointer of your left hand, holding the edge of dough. Repeat around the whole pie, re-flouring your fingers as needed, to make a pretty, crimped rim. Chill pie shell in the fridge while you make the filling.

Put all of the filling ingredients in a food processor and process for 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl once or twice and pour the filling into the chilled pie shell. Alternatively whisk all the ingredients well in a bowl.

Bake for 15 minutes at 450, then reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and continue to bake for 35 to 45 minutes longer or until a knife inserted close to the center comes out clean. (If you don’t want to create a slash in your masterpiece, tap the pan gently—if the custard just jiggles a little bit in the very center, it’s done.) Transfer the pie to a rack and cool to room temperature.

Serve the pie with lightly sweetened whipped cream

Roast your butternut squash cut side down in a 400-degree oven (after cutting in half and scraping out seeds) until tender but not mushy and then have it on hand to use in the dish with harissa and feta or add it to the sugarloaf salad, or serve it as a side with olive oil and salt or turn it into a simple soup with some coconut milk and ginger.

The gorgeous, big kohlrabi will make crunchy snacks, latkes and slaws (see below) or be good added to soups or stir-fries or simply roasted until nice and brown with olive oil and salt.

Oven Braised Cabbage with Apple Cider
Kohlrabi Latkes
Kohlrabi and Cabbage Slaw
Winter Squash Salad with Feta, Harissa and Toasted Nuts
Roast Chicken with Grilled Sugarloaf and Potatoes
Sugarloaf (and Radicchio?) Salad
Fancy Braised Greens

Oven Braised Cabbage with Apple Cider

This is a simple and delicious way to work your way through a lot of cabbage. I can eat a quarter of a good-sized cabbage in one sitting prepared this way but by all means scale this down to suit your appetites/needs.

Serves 4-6

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

1 small red cabbage 
Salt
Olive oil
1/3 cup dry white or red wine (I tend to use red wine with red cabbage and white with white but anything you have will be fine)
1/2 cup apple cider
1 tablespoon sherry or balsamic vinegar

Remove the outer most leaves of the cabbage if ratty. Cut the cabbage in quarters and remove most of the core, leaving enough so that when you now cut the cabbage into wedges about 2 inches wide, so the wedges stay together. Place the wedges snugly next to each other in an 8 x 13″ or comparable baking dish.

Generously sprinkle the cabbage wedges with sea salt and drizzle with olive oil. Pour in the wine and cider. Bake the cabbage for about 45 minutes until nicely browned and tender when pierced with a fork. Remove from the oven and drizzle with the sherry or balsamic vinegar. Return to the oven for 5 more minutes and then serve hot or warm.

Kohlrabi Latkes

If you happen to have fresh or bottled horseradish, finely grate a bit into some whole milk Greek yogurt and top the latkes with this spicy cream but to spicy Sriracha mayo, ketchup (my son does this) or sour cream are all good.

Serves 4 (makes about 14-16 latkes)

2 small-medium potatoes, scrubbed (I never bother to peel), grated on large holes of a box grater or with the grating blade of a food processor
About 4-5 cups grated kohlrabi (on large holes of a box grater or the grating blade on a food processor)
1/2 small onion, minced
2 eggs
1 teaspoon salt (may need more)
1/3 cup flour
Oil for frying (olive, sunflower, canola, etc.)

Topping (optional–see headnote):
1/3 cup Greek yogurt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated horseradish (or prepared)
A few pinches of salt

In a large bowl whisk the eggs with the salt and flour until smooth. Add the onion and grated vegetables and stir well to combine. You can let the mixture sit for up to two hours on the counter before frying (or refrigerate for longer).

Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons oil in a large heavy skillet over high heat. Add spoonfuls of the mixture to the hot pan and turn the heat down to medium-high. Fry until the edges are browning. Flip and brown the other side–a few minutes on each side. Keep a plate warm in a 250-degree oven and keep the fried ones in the oven until you’ve fried them all.

In a small bowl mix the yogurt with horseradish and salt, if using (see headnote).

Top latkes with cream and serve.

Kohlrabi and Cabbage Slaw

It will be beautiful to mix the red cabbage and kohlrabi in a simple slaw.

Grate as much kohlrabi as you want to use on the large holes of a box grater or cut into matchsticks. Thinly slice as much red cabbage as you want to use. Make a dressing of minced garlic, Greek yogurt, a splash of good olive oil, fresh lemon or lime juice or cider vinegar and plenty of chopped cilantro or parsley or mint and salt and pepper. It’s such a refreshing, quick slaw-like salad. This is excellent with fish tacos.

Winter Squash Salad with Feta, Harissa and Toasted Nuts

So good and so pretty.

Serves 4

4 cups roasted squash, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 ounces feta, crumbled
1-2 scallions, thinly sliced or 1 -2 tablespoons red onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons cilantro, parsley or mint
1/3 cup toasted hazelnuts, walnuts, almonds, chopped or toasted pumpkin seeds
2 -3 teaspoons harissa (here I used a fairly loose and not very spicy one. The store bought ones are usually much spicier so adjust to suite your taste)
1 tablespoon red wine or cider vinegar
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut your squash in half, scrape out the seeds and strings and put it cut side down on a baking sheet or in a roasting pan. Bake until the squash is tender but not mushy, when pierced with a knife. Baking time will vary widely based on the type/size of squash. Remove from oven, let cool and then peel and proceed with the recipe.

Spread nuts on a baking sheet and bake (at 350 degrees) for about 10 minutes until toasty smelling and a shade darker. If you’re using pumpkin seeds toast them in a dry skillet, stirring often, for 7-10 minutes until browned and puffed.

If you’re using store bought harissa it will likely be quite thick. Mix it in a small bowl with the vinegar and olive oil. (If you’re using homemade harissa and it’s saucier, you can drizzle it over the squash as in the above photo.)

Put the squash in a serving dish and toss with the harissa, vinegar, oil and salt. Gently stir in the feta, nuts, herbs and scallions. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Roast Chicken with Grilled Sugarloaf and Potatoes
–adapted from racheleats.com

The chicory sweetens and intensifies when grilled or broiled and is a delicious foil for the juices and tender meat of a roast chicken.

I’m sure those of you who eat chicken have a favorite, tried-and-true chicken roasting technique, however, if you don’t or just want a new, good, foolproof one, here you go. The butter and the 20-min “rest” in the oven with the door cracked are probably the two things that make this chicken memorable.

3/4 of a large Sugarloaf chicory (Pan di Zucchero) or Escarole, cut into thick wedges
3 – 4 lb chicken at room temperature
2 tablespoons butter at room temperature
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 large lemon
4 medium potatoes or 8 or so fingerling, well scrubbed and cut into chunks
1 large onion, cut into wedges (the size doesn’t much matter as they’ll fall a part in the roasting)

Set the oven to 350 F.

Wash the chicken both inside and out with cold water and pat the chicken absolutely dry. If you don’t get it really dry it will be very difficult to rub on the butter.

Put the chicken in a roasting pan that will accommodate it with room to spare for the potatoes and onions. Spread the butter with your hands all over the bird and then season it generously with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Wash, dry and then soften the lemon by rolling it back and forth across the kitchen counter while applying pressure with your palm. Prick the lemon a dozen or more times with a cocktail stick or trussing needle or some other sharp object.

Put the lemon in the chicken cavity and then close the opening with two cocktail sticks. Scatter the potatoes and onions around the chicken and salt them generously.

Turn the chicken breast side down in the roasting pan and place it in the upper third of the preheated oven. After 30 minutes turn the chicken breast side up. Do not baste.

Turn the oven up to 400 F and continue roasting the chicken for another 45 minutes. Turn the oven off, leaving the door ajar and let the chicken rest in the cooling oven for another 20 minutes.

While the chicken is resting grill or sear, in a heavy skillet, the Sugarloaf chicory or escarole in large wedges, brushed lightly with olive oil and sprinkled with salt, until browning around the edges and tender. This will just take a few minutes.

Roughly chop the chicory and serve with the chicken and vegetables and drizzle any pan juices over the greens. If there isn’t enough juice drizzle with good olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice and salt and pepper.

Sugarloaf (and Radicchio?) Salad

I made this salad with sugarloaf and radicchio from previous shares—both keep so well! Adapt as you see fit with different (or no) cheese, different seeds or nuts, herbs, etc. You could also add some roasted, diced butternut squash to this salad to make it even more robust.

Serves 4

7-8 cups sugarloaf (and radicchio if you have some left), chopped or sliced fairly small
2 tablespoons thinly sliced red onion 0r 2 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
1-2 ounces sharp cheddar, crumbled or cut into small dice (optional, see headnote)
½ teaspoons sage, fresh or dried, finely chopped or crumbled
¼ teaspoon thyme, fresh or dried, finely chopped or crumbled
1/3 cup toasted sunflower seeds (10-15 minutes in a 350-degree oven tossed with a little olive oil and salt)

Dressing:
2 teaspoons reduced apply cider syrup or honey
Juice of 1 lemon (or 1 ½ – 2 tablespoons red wine or cider vinegar)
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons minced shallot (optional)
1/3 cup good olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Put the chicory and onions, cheese, if using, and toasted seeds in a large bowl. Whisk the dressing ingredients together in a bowl or shake in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Dress greens with 2/3 of the dressing. Toss well and adjust with more, if needed.

Fancy Braised Greens

You can mix and match most any kind of leafy green including escarole–a great use for a some of your sugarloaf and your field greens. If you have any kind of wine open, use the suggested amount. If you don’t use broth or water mixed with 2 teaspoons of vinegar. This dish is even better the next day. You can also mix these greens with pasta or cook them down a bit more with borlotti or white beans.

Serves 4-6

3-4 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 medium onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb or more mixed field greens, washed and cut into 1-inch ribbons
2 teaspoons fresh or died thyme
3/4 cup dry wine (see headnote) or water or vegetable broth–if you don’t have wine add 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar to the broth/water
1/3 cup broth or water
1 tablespoon capers, rinsed and chopped up a bit, especially if they’re big
Salt and pepper

Heat about 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large heavy pot. Add the onions and thyme and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, over medium to medium-high heat until browned. Add the wine or broth/vinegar and stir well and scrape up any bits of caramelized onion. Simmer for a few minutes covered. Add the greens and the additional broth/water and cook covered for about 7 minutes. Add the capers and simmer another minute or two. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Finish with the remaining olive oil.

There are some very simple and delicious ideas for our beautiful radicchio this week. And lots of ways to use your celery root, as the center piece as in the remoulade or gratin or as a variation/addition as in the potato leek soup. And use the beautiful shallots anywhere you would onion or let them shine in a classic vinaigrette. Happy cooking!

Leek and Celery Root Gratin
Celery Root Remoulade
Lentil, Squash Salad
Radicchio and Bean Salad
Radicchio with Egg
Potato, Leek and Celery Root Soup
Kale, Carrot and Bean Soup

Leek and Celery Root Gratin

This is luxurious and simple and the scant ½ cup of cream is well worth it.

Serves 4

2 medium leeks, trimmed, carefully washed and cut in half lengthwise and then crosswise into 2-inch pieces
½ small—medium celery root, trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces, about 3 ½ cups
2 medium, firm fleshed potatoes (not russets), scrubbed and cut into bite-sized pieces (optional)
Scant 1/3 cup water
2 bay leaves
2 thyme sprigs or ½ teaspoon dried thyme
Scant ½ cup heavy cream or half and half
2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard (optional)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
1/3 cup grated sharp cheddar, Gruyere or Parmesan

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Put the leeks, celery root and potatoes, if using, in an 8 x 13 or similarly sized baking dish. Sprinkle with a little salt and tuck the bay leaves and thyme sprigs in between the vegetables and add the water. Cover with foil and bake for about 35 minutes or until the celery root is just tender. Remove the vegetables from the oven and remove the herbs.

Whisk the cream, mustard, about ½ teaspoon salt and plenty of black pepper together and pour over the vegetables. Sprinkle with cheese and then breadcrumbs and return to the oven, uncovered, for another 15-20 minutes until the vegetables are tender and the top is bubbling and browning. Serve hot.

Celery Root Remoulade

This is the classic French way to prepare celery root–and it is so very good. The celery root softens a bit but keeps that fresh, earthy flavor–such a treat of a dish! A classic Celery Root Remoulade exclusively uses mayonnaise in the dressing, which is good but I suggest a combination of Greek yogurt and mayonnaise for a slightly tangier and fresher flavor here but by all means use just mayonnaise if that’s what you have.

And again, quantities are approximations so adjust depending on the number of people you’re feeding, etc.

Serves 6

Scant 2 lbs celery root, peeled
¼ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup whole milk regular or Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons whole grain mustard
2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
A little white wine or cider vinegar
Salt and freshly ground pepper

You can either grate the celeriac in a food processor or if you can, use a mandolin to cut it into matchsticks. Toss the grated or cut celeriac with 1 teaspoon sea salt and most of the lemon juice. Let rest for at least 15 minutes and up to 30.

Whisk the remaining ingredients in a small bowl and pour over the veggies. Mix well and adjust seasoning.

Lentils with Roasted Squash, Parsley and Toasted Seeds

I intended this dish to be roasted, diced chunks of Acorn squash tossed with the tender but firm green lentils. Acorn squash quickly softens while roasting though, so I mashed it up with a little olive oil and salt and topped the well-dressed lentils with it for a lovely combination.

Serves 4

1 medium acorn squash, cut in half lengthwise, seeds and strings removed, seeds reserved
1 cup small green (French) lentils or small brown Pardina lentils or any lentil that keeps its shape when cooked
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon sherry or red wine vinegar, more to taste
3 tablespoons parsley, chopped (or cilantro)
Olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Put the squash cut side down on a baking sheet. Rinse the squash seeds and remove the strings and membrane. I do this in a strainer in the sink. Shake the seeds to remove as much water as possible. Spread the seeds out on the same baking sheet or another one and sprinkle with salt and drizzle with a little olive oil and put both squash and seeds in the oven. You’ll start hearing the seeds popping after 5-7 minutes or so. Stir them around a bit and toast for another 5 minutes or until they’re evenly browned and puffed up. Remove the seeds and return the squash to the oven. Bake the squash until it’s completely tender, about 20 more minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.

Meanwhile cook the lentils in a saucepan in plenty of water, 2 teaspoons salt and the bay leaf. Simmer gently, covered all but for a crack, for about 22 minutes—I find this is the perfect amount of time to get tender lentils that keep their shape. Drain the lentils and put in a serving dish. Dress with the vinegar, 1 tablespoon olive oil and more salt to taste and half the parsley.

When the squash is cool scoop out the flesh and put it in a bowl. Stir in the remainder of the parsley, a tablespoon or olive oil and salt to taste. Don’t be shy with the salt, or vinegar (for the lentils). The sweet, earthy squash and lentils need both to come together here. Top the lentils with the squash and the toasted seeds. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Radicchio and Bean Salad

Three ingredients, four if you count salt. The creamy, sweet beans balance the assertive radicchio. All you need is good olive oil, vinegar and salt.

In this version I used cassoulet (Tarbais) beans but you could use cannelini, navy or even corona beans or chickpeas for a slightly different but equally delicious result. And by all means add sage, rosemary or parsley or chopped salami or anything else you think would be complementary.

Serves 4

2 cups cooked white beans (or chickpeas)
3 cups radicchio, chopped
Sea salt
3-4 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Mix the cooled beans with the remaining ingredients. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve at room temperature.

Radicchio with Egg

The richness of the egg pairs nicely with the assertive radicchio. You could dress this up with toasted nuts and/or apples or pears but I do love the simplicity of this, especially if you’re serving other rich dishes.

Serves 4

4 cups radicchio (or a mix of radicchio and escarole), thinly sliced
2 *hard cooked eggs
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped (optional)
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1-2 teaspoons apple cider syrup or 1 teaspoon honey
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Cover the eggs with cold water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and immediately turn off the heat. Let the eggs sit, covered in the hot water for 8-9 minutes, depending on how big the eggs are. Run under cold water and peel and chop finely.

Put the radicchio and parsley, if using, in a serving dish. In a small bowl whisk together the vinegar, syrup or honey, 3/4 of the olive oil and salt and pepper. Toss the radicchio with the dressing. Taste and adjust seasoning. Top with the egg, drizzle with a little more olive oil and season with more salt and pepper. Serve at room temperature.

Potato Leek and Celery Root Soup
–adapted from Around my French Table by Dorie Greenspan

I use more of the leek’s green parts than most do, hence the color of the soup!

This is such a classic soup, and for good reason. It’s delicate yet complex and just lovely. Adding celery root lightens it up a bit and adds another dimension. I like the soup with croutons and drizzle of olive oil and a bit of chopped parsley or as pictured, with toasted bread and goat cheese.

Serves 4-6

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, split lengthwise, washed, and thinly sliced
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 cups diced celery root
6 thyme sprigs, leaves stripped
2 fresh sage leaves (optional), finely chopped
4 cups veggie bouillon broth, chicken stock, or water
3 cups whole milk

Optional Toppings

Minced fresh parsley, sage, tarragon or a combination
Chopped fresh chives
Grated Parmesan or Gruyere
Croutons

Melt the butter in a large pot over low to medium-low heat. Add the onion and garlic, salt and pepper, cover cook and cook for about 10 minutes, until the onion is soft but not colored. Add the remaining ingredients, along with a little more salt unless your broth or bouillon is very salty, increase the heat, and bring to a boil. As soon as the soup bubbles, turn the heat to low, mostly cover the pot, and simmer gently for 30-40 minutes, or until all the vegetables are mashably soft. Taste the soup and season generously with salt and pepper. You can serve the soup chunky or use an immersion blender to blend or transfer to a blender. The soup is good hot, at room temperature and cold. Garnish as desired.

Vinaigrette with Shallots

I keep my Dressing Jar in the fridge, ready for any lettuces, vegetables–raw or cooked–or grains or beans that might need enlivening. It literally is often the key to quickly turning something into a meal.

Shallots are a classic French Vinaigrette ingredient so make a big batch and use it on most anything. You can make this version or use a different vinegar, oil, herb(s), etc. I typically make a batch and then continue topping it off, as needed, for 2 weeks or so and then use it up, clean the jar and start over. Dressing ingredients (vinegars, oils) keep very well so you can do this less often too.

1/4 cup minced shallot
2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar (see above)
1/2 cup good olive oil (taste it–you don’t want to use a really strong, bitter-tasting one)
1 teaspoon salt (you may need more)
Freshly ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon fresh or dried thyme

Put all dressing ingredients in a pint jar with a tight-fitting lid. Shake well until emulsified. Taste and adjust with more vinegar and/or salt or whatever else you think it needs. It should be bright and strongly flavored.

Kale, Carrot and Bean Soup

This soup has somewhat of an unusual combination of flavors that work together nicely. And it’s a beautiful combination of colors. I usually make this soup with white beans but pintos beans or chickpeas would work too.

Serves 4

½ a medium onion, diced
1 tablespoon ginger, grated finely (microplane works well)
1-2 tablespoons olive oil or coconut oil
3 stalks celery, finely diced (optional)—use 1-2 cups diced celery root instead if you’d like
3 medium carrots, scrubbed and cut into ½-inch rounds
3 cups cooked pinto beans (or cannellini, navy or flageolet)
3 tablespoons mirin (Japanese Rice Wine—available at most grocery stores)
1 bunch kale, tough stems removed and sliced into ½-inch ribbons
Bean cooking liquid and/or veggie bouillon broth (or stock of your choosing)
Ground nutmeg
Croutons or toasted sunflower seeds for garnish (optional)

In a large soup pot heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and ginger and sauté for a few minutes until the onion softens. Add celery or celery root and cook for a few more minutes. Then add carrots, beans, mirin and stir well. Add the kale and enough bean-cooking liquid and broth to cover the veggies by about ½-inch. If your broth isn’t salty add 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cook for 20-25 minutes, covered until the carrots are tender. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve garnished with croutons, toasted sunflower seeds and a sprinkling of nutmeg.

Pie pumpkins are here! Some beautiful, fun and classic recipes below. I think the kohlrabi will be very tender this week and perfect for the salad featured here. And by all means use the greens; chop them up and saute them or add them to a soup, etc. The very  modest rice and lettuce soup is more than the sum of its parts as is the roasted cabbage dish–so very simple and so good. Happy cooking!

Roasted Cabbage Wedges
Quinoa with Beets and Cumin
Beet and Avocado Salad
Rice and Lettuce Soup
Kohlrabi Salad
Stuffed Roasted Pumpkin
Pumpkin Pie

Roasted Cabbage Wedges

This is so simple and so, so good. I’ve converted many a cabbage skeptic with this preparation. You can even skip the vinaigrette and/or Parmesan and just drizzle on a little more olive oil and salt.

If you have a large head of cabbage this will probably be more than you can eat in one sitting but the roasted cabbage is so good that I would suggest roasting the whole thing and using any leftover wedges in other ways later in the week–chopped up in soup or warmed up with fried potatoes or cooked down a little more and mixed with mashed potatoes. . .

Serves 6 +/-

1 medium head regular green or savoy cabbage
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt
For the vinaigrette (optional–see headnote):
5 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons sherry or red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard
1/2 teaspoon thyme, chopped (fresh or dried)
Sea salt and black pepper
Grated Parmesan for serving (optional–see headnote)

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Remove any damaged outer leaves from the head of cabbage. Using a large, sharp knife, quarter the cabbage and then cut each quarter into 2 to 3-inch wedges.  Leave the core intact as it will hold the wedges together while roasting.

Arrange the cabbage wedges on a baking sheet. Drizzle the cabbages with the olive oil, and then sprinkle liberally with salt.

Roast the cabbage for 30 minutes, flipping the wedges after about 15 minutes so they brown evenly. After 30 minutes the wedges may have some blackened, crispy outer leaves. If you don’t want this, feel free to take them out a few minutes early, but note that the inside of the cabbage may be less tender than if you were to leave it in longer.

While the cabbage is roasting, make your vinaigrette (if you want to use it–see  headnote) by whisking together olive oil, vinegar, thyme and mustard. Taste the vinaigrette and season with salt and pepper to taste.

When the cabbage is tender, serve the wedges, drizzled with vinaigrette, and a good grating of cheese over the top if you’d like. Preferably serve while the cabbage is still hot.

Quinoa with Beets and Cumin
–adapted from Ancient Grains for Modern Meals by Maria Speck

This quick, room temperature dish uses raw, grated beets. The original recipe also calls for sumac, the powder from a red berry found and used all over the Middle East. It has a tart flavor so I substitute a bit of lemon juice (which the author also suggests), which works well. The dish turns a beautiful pink if you’re using red beets.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
 (or 1 teaspoon ground if you don’t have whole)
1 cup quinoa, well rinsed and drained
1 1/2 cups water
¾ teaspoon salt
3/4 cup plain whole milk or Greek yogurt
1 garlic clove, minced
 and mashed (the finer it is the better it will flavor the yogurt)
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 cups shredded raw beets (about 2 small -medium-sized beets, rinsed and peeled)
1 to 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 Serrano or Jalapeño pepper, minced (including seeds if you want it spicier) or 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat and add the cumin seeds and cook them for just 30 seconds until fragrant and a shade darker.  If you don’t have whole cumin seeds you can add the ground cumin now, when you stir in the quinoa. Cook the quinoa dry, stirring, for about 1 minute to toast it a bit and absorb the cumin. Add the water, salt and bring to a boil. Lower the temperature to keep the liquid at a simmer, cover, and cook until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is tender, about 15 to 20 minutes.

While the quinoa is cooking mix the yogurt and the garlic in a small bowl until smooth and set aside.

When the quinoa is tender add the grated beets, 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice and the hot pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and/or lemon juice, and top with garlicky yogurt.

Beet and Avocado Salad

I have a habit of toasting a slice of good, crusty bread and tearing it into bits and adding it warm to salads–often just for me, for lunch, but it’s such an easy trick to add a little heft to salads. It also changes the texture and temperature just enough to make it interesting. Feel free to omit the bread though; it’s not essential.

3 medium beets, roasted and peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
1 avocado, diced
2 slices of good, crusty bread, toasted and cut or torn into bite-sized pieces (optional- see headnote)
4 cups or more lettuce, washed, dried and torn
1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro, leaves and stems and finely minced roots, if they’re attached
1 tablespoon finely diced onion
2 ounces feta or fresh goat cheese
Juice of half a lemon or about 1 ½ tablespoons red wine or sherry vinegar or more to taste
3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Toss everything but the cheese and beets together. Taste and adjust seasoning. Gently add the cheese and beets and just barely mix so the beets don’t bleed onto everything.

Rice and Lettuce Soup
–adapted slightly from an Everlasting Meal by Tamar Adler

It’s hard to take a good photograph of this. It is a simple and tasty dish though.

This recipe caught my attention when I first read this book, years ago. I come back to the book periodically for general inspiration. Tamar’s writing just pulls me in and makes me want to cook and feel so creative and frugal and fun.

And I think this soup could feed six people for about $5 or less . . . if frugality is on your mind. I was skeptical about the dish but came away satisfied. You can’t skip the butter though—it’s essential.

Serves 4, generously

1 ½ onions, diced
2 tablespoons butter (do not substitute olive oil or anything else)
½ cup Arborio (or other risotto rice like Carnaroli)
1/3 cup chopped parsley
8 cups chicken stock or vegetable broth or a combination of stock/broth and water (which is what I did)
1 head romaine or similar, slightly sturdier lettuce, well washed, trimmed and cut into thin ribbons (this is important too, that the lettuce is cut fairly small)
Salt and pepper and good olive oil for drizzling

Gently cook the onions in the butter in a large soup pot over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Add the parsley, rice and broth or stock or water and salt (amount will depend on how salty your stock/broth is, if using) and bring to a gentle boil. Simmer for about 35-40 minutes until the rice is very tender and as Tamar says, “jagged around the edges”. There’s no al dente going on here. Now, if you’re ready to eat, add the lettuce and stir it in well and take it off the heat. Taste and adjust for salt—you need salt here too. Serve in wide bowls and drizzle with olive oil and some freshly ground black pepper.

Kohlrabi Salad
–adapted from Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi

As every recipe of theirs is, this is fresh and inspired. I’ve simplified it a bit–as I usually do with their recipes–since the ingredient lists tend to be long.

Serves 4

2 medium kohlrabi, peeled and cut into 2/3-inch dice (about 4 cups diced)
1 tablespoon mint leaves, torn
½ cup of parsley or cilantro leaves

Dressing:
1/2 cup Greek yoghurt
3 tablespoons sour cream
1 small garlic clove, finely grated or mashed
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon good olive oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt (or more to taste)
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
¼ teaspoon sumac, for serving (optional)

Place the diced kohlrabi in a salad bowl.

In a small bowl whisk the dressing ingredients together well, except the herbs. Add the dressing to the kohlrabi and stir to combine well. Toss gently with herbs and sprinkle with sumac, if using, and serve.

Stuffed and Roasted Pumpkin
–adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Around my French Table

This is the most delicious, beautiful fall dish. It’s perfect for a regular old dinner (though it does take almost 2 hours to bake so maybe a weekend dinner) or a Thanksgiving treat. But it’s so easy and so adaptable that you should add it to your regular repertoire and leftovers are fantastic, sliced in wedges and panfried! It’s wonderful with cooked rice instead of bread, additions of cooked chard, cooked sausage . . .

Serves 6

1 pie pumpkin, about 4 lbs (just adjust the amount of filling if your pumpkin is smaller)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/3 lb (or slightly more) stale bread, sliced and cut into ½-inch chunks
1/3 lb cheese, such as sharp cheddar, Gruyère, Emmenthal or a combination, cut into ½ chunks or grated
2-4 garlic cloves (to taste), finely chopped
2-4 slices bacon, diced and cooked until just crisp
¼ cup chives or sliced scallions, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried
1-2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
½ cup of cream or half and  half
½ cup milk
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350F.

You can using a baking sheet, a pie pan (as seen above), or a dutch oven with a diameter that’s just a tiny bit larger than your pumpkin. If you bake the pumpkin in a casserole, it will keep its shape, but might stick to the casserole, so you’ll have to serve it from the pot which is fine too.

Using a sturdy knife, cut a cap out of the top of the pumpkin. Cut a big enough cap that it’s easy to hollow out the inside. Scrape out the seeds and strings from the cap and the inside of the pumpkin. Rub the inside of the pumpkin generously with salt and pepper and put it on the baking sheet, pie pan or in a pot.

In a large bowl toss the bread, cheese, garlic, bacon, and herbs together. Season with pepper and salt and pack the filling into the cavity. The pumpkin should be well filled—you might have a little too much filling, or you might  need to add to it. Stir the cream, milk and nutmeg with a bit of salt and pepper and pour it into the filled pumpkin. You want the liquid to come about half-way up the cavity. It’s hard to go wrong though. Better a little wetter than too dry.

Put the cap in place and bake the pumpkin for about 2 hours—check after 90 minutes—or until everything inside the pumpkin is bubbling and the flesh of the pumpkin is easily pierced with the tip of a knife. Remove the cap for the last 20  minutes or so of baking to brown the top and let any extra liquid evaporate. Transfer carefully to a serving platter if you baked it on a sheet. Serve, scooping out plenty of pumpkin with each serving or serve it in slices.

Pumpkin Pie

Making your own pumpkin puree is delicious. Pumpkin flesh can be a bit stringy so if you don’t have a food processor (in which to make the filling)  you might want to mash the cooked pumpkin through a sieve for a nice smooth texture.

This is fairly classic pumpkin pie recipe, with the exception of the sour cream and optional rum.

I swear by the Chez Pim pie crust technique and recipe (nothing but butter, flour and water). Give it a try if you’d like or use your favorite recipe/technique.

Unlike many others I do not blind bake my crust for pumpkin pie. Instead I bake it on a pizza stone in a very hot oven (for the first 15 minutes) and then reduce the temperature. This way my crust doesn’t burn and get brittle (which I find if I blind bake and then add the custard which needs a good 45 minutes to bake itself) and the bottom crust does just fine. You always get a little sogginess with a wet custard like this but I think it’s just perfect.

Serves 8

1 9-inch single crust Pie shell, chilled (not partially baked using ½ of above recipe or your favorite pie dough)
1 ¾ cups pumpkin puree (from 1 small-medium pumpkin)
2 large eggs, at room temperature
3/4 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1 cup whole milk or cream
1/3 cup sour cream
 or Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
Pinch of ground cloves
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 tablespoons dark rum (optional)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Lightly sweetened lightly whipped cream, for topping

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut the pumpkin in half and remove all seeds and strings. Keep seeds and clean and roast for a snack if you’d like. Put the pumpkin/squash cut side down on a baking sheet and bake until very tender when pierced with the tip of a knife. Remove from oven, let cool and scoop out the flesh and mash or push through a strainer if stringy and you don’t have a food processor (see headnote).

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 450°F. If you have a pizza stone, put it on the rack you’re going to use and then preheat. Setting the pie pan directly on the pizza stone helps the crust bake nicely and not get soggy, especially since we’re not pre-baking the crust.

Roll out your pie dough and place it in a pan, making sure to gently press the dough fully into the pan. Trim the overhanging dough with a sharp knife all around leaving at least a 1-inch overhang. Flour your fingers and crimp the dough by pushing your right pointer finger into a “v” shape created with the thumb and pointer of your left hand, holding the edge of dough. Repeat around the whole pie, re-flouring your fingers as needed, to make a pretty, crimped rim. Chill pie shell in the fridge while you make the filling.

Put all of the filling ingredients in a food processor and process for 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl once or twice and pour the filling into the chilled pie shell. Alternatively whisk all the ingredients well in a bowl.

Bake for 15 minutes at 450, then reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and continue to bake for 35 to 45 minutes longer or until a knife inserted close to the center comes out clean. (If you don’t want to create a slash in your masterpiece, tap the pan gently—if the custard just jiggles a little bit in the very center, it’s done.) Transfer the pie to a rack and cool to room temperature.

Serve the pie with lightly sweetened whipped cream

So many soups/stews this week. And if you haven’t made the veggie bouillon base I’ve written about here before this would be a good week to make a batch since you’re getting celery root, carrots, leeks and parsley–key components of this super useful, fresh vegetable stock alternative. It’s that time of year. Happy cooking!

Delicata Squash and Chickpea Curry
Celery Root and Leeks Vinaigrette with Parsley
Black Bean and Chorizo Soup with Carrot and Corn Relish
Celery Root Soup
Corn Chowder with Parsley Sauce
Kale, Winter Squash and Toasted Pumpkin Seed Salad
Mustard Roasted Carrots with Parsley

Delicata Squash and Chickpea Curry

This is similar to one of my favorite standby curries, one with red lentils and usually a butternut or sweat meat kind of squash. This one, with delicata, comes together quickly if you have already cooked (or canned) chickpeas. The lemongrass in the dish was inspired by the inimitable Nigel Slater. This makes a lot and keeps/reheats well. By all means halve the recipe if you’d like.

Serves 6+

2 tablespoons oil
1 large onion, diced
3 stalks lemongrass, trimmed and tough outer layers removed, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, chopped
2 fresh or dried hot chilies such as serrano (if using fresh), minced or ¾ teaspoon red pepper flakes or to taste
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
2 teaspoons brown mustard seeds
1 ½ teaspoons ground coriander (or toast 1 teaspoon whole seeds if you have them in a dry skillet for a couple of minutes and then coarsely smash in a mortar)
2 delicata squash, washed, halved lengthwise, seeds and strings removed, each half halved again lengthwise and sliced in ½-inch quarter slices/chunks
3 cups cooked chickpeas
11/2 cups chickpea cooking liquid or 11/2 cups vegetable or chicken stock or water if using canned chickpeas
1 can coconut milk (preferably full fat)
Salt to taste
Cilantro, for garnish
Cooked rice (white, brown, short, grain, long grain), for serving

Heat a large soup pot over medium heat with the oil. Add the onions and cook until softened, about 7 minutes. Meanwhile process the garlic, ginger, and lemongrass in a small food processor (or chop finely by hand) until well broken down—it will not be smooth. Add this mixture to the onions and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the spices and hot peppers and saute for another minute or two.

Add the squash, chickpeas, and cooking liquid, stock or water and bring to a simmer. Cook gently for about 20 minutes until the squash is tender. Stir in the coconut milk and return to a simmer for a 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. If you used water it will definitely need a bit of salt.

Serve hot with cilantro over rice, if you’d like.

Celery Root and Leeks Vinaigrette with Parsley

This is a twist on classic Leeks Vinaigrette with the addition of celery root and some aromatics. You can, however, skip the aromatics and just cook the celery root and leeks in lightly salted water and it will still be delicious. This dish keeps well so don’t worry about having too much for one sitting.

While I haven’t tried it I think some chopped toasted hazelnuts and/or some thinly sliced crunchy apple would make nice additions.

Serves 4-6

3 medium to large leeks, trimmed and washed
1 small celery root or ½ of a large one, trimmed and peeled
1 medium shallot 2 tablespoons onion minced
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 ½-3 cups water

Vinaigrette
1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard
1 1/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3-4 tablespoons good olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 hardboiled egg, finely chopped
2-3 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped

Bring a saute pan with 2 ½ – 3 cups water to a simmer. Add the bay leaf, coriander, sugar, salt and olive.

Cut the cleaned leeks in half crosswise so they’ll fit in your pan. Cut the celery root into bite-sized pieces. Add both to the simmering water. The water should just cover the vegetables. Add a bit more water if it doesn’t. Simmer gently, covered for about 10 minutes, uncover and cook for another 5-10 until both vegetables are tender but still keep their shape. Drain well and discard aromatics. Put the vegetables on a platter and when the leeks are cool enough to handle, cut them in 2-3-inch lengths.

Mix the shallot or onion and vinegar in a small bowl and let sit for a few minutes. Add the lemon juice, mustard, salt, pepper and oil and mix well. Drizzle the dressing over the leeks, covering them as best you can. Sprinkle with hardboiled egg and parsley. Serve at room temperature.

Celery Root Soup
–adapted from Davidlebovitz.com

David Lebovitz is one of my favorite bloggers/chefs. His writing is witty and transporting and I trust his recipes implicitly and only tinkered a bit with this one. This is delicious, elegant and easy to make. If your celery root is smaller or you want to make a smaller batch just adjust everything accordingly.

8-10 Servings

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, diced (or 2 leeks, cleaned and chopped)
Sea salt
2 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
One large celery root (about 3-pounds), peeled and cubed
3 cups chicken or veggie stock
 or veggie bouillon broth
3 cups water
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
, more to taste
Scant 1/8 teaspoon chile powder
Croutons and good olive oil for serving

In a large pot, melt the butter with the olive oil. Add the onion (or leeks) and cook for about five minutes, stirring frequently. Add the garlic cloves and season with salt, and continue to cook until the onions and garlic are soft and translucent.

Add the celery root and stock or broth. (Or use all water.) Bring to a boil, then reduce to a lively simmer. Cook, partially covered, until the celery root pieces are soft about 40 minutes–the time will depend on the size of your celery root chunks.

Add pepper and chile powder, then purée using an immersion blender or transfer to a blender or food processor and do in batches. Be really careful with the hot liquid if you’re using a blender or processor. Taste, and season with additional salt and pepper if needed. If the soup is too thick, it can be thinned with water or stock or even a little cream but I like the purity of the soup without.

I like the soup served with good, crusty croutons and a little good olive oil and more black pepper. You can vary the soup by adding some pieces of crisp bacon as a garnish or a dollop of sour cream. Chives or parsley would be a nice garnish.

Black Bean and Chorizo Soup with Carrot and Corn Relish
–adapted from Food Matters by Mark Bittman

This version doesn’t include the corn in the relish but either way it’s delicious.

Adding corn to the lightly pickled carrot garnish/relish adds more texture and flavor and you can really top the soup with a lot of it and have and have your “salad” and soup all in one.

Serves 4-6

2 tablespoons olive oil
4 ounces fresh or smoked chorizo, chopped
1 medium onion, diced
1 sweet pepper (optional), diced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup dried black beans (soaked for 6-8 hours) or 3 cups already cooked or canned black beans
3 carrots, grated
1-2 ears corn, kernels cut off the cob with a  sharp knife
Salt
1 Serrano or Jalapeno, minced (with seeds for flavor and spice)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Juice of 2 limes
½ cup long or short grain brown rice (or white if you’re in a hurry and have already cooked beans)
black pepper
Fresh cilantro, chopped (or parsley)

Put oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the chorizo, onion, pepper, if using, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally until the chorizo is browned and the vegetables begin to soften, 5-10 minutes.

If you’re using already cooked beans, add both the beans and the rice at this time along with 5 cups of liquid: water, bean cooking liquid, or veggie bouillon broth (or a combination). Cook for 30-40 minutes until the rice is tender, stirring occasionally.

If you’re using soaked, dried beans that aren’t yet cooked, add the beans and 7 cups of bouillon or water and simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes and then add the rice, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and cook for another 30-40, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, put the carrots in a colander. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and toss well and let sit for 20 minutes if you have the time. Shake out any liquid and then put the carrots in a bowl, add corn and toss with the lime juice, minced chilies and cumin.

When the rice and beans are tender, adjust seasoning, add freshly ground pepper, mix the chopped cilantro in with the carrots and corn and top each bowl with the relish.

Corn Chowder with Parsley Sauce

Last time for this kind of a chowder this year I would imagine. The parsley is a lovely compliment to the rich chowder.

Serves 4-6

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely diced or 1/2 and onion and 1 leek, cleaned, trimmed and thinly sliced
1-2 leeks, trimmed (though I use a fair amount of the green parts) washed well, halved lengthwise and cut into ½-inch half rounds (optional)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 slices bacon, diced (optional) or 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika (pimenton)
1 teaspoon fresh thyme or dried thyme (optional but very good)
1 – 2 sweet peppers (optional), seeds and membranes removed and diced
1 small jalapeño or serrano, minced
Kernels from 4 ears of corn (or more if you have it), sliced off the cob
2 cups (or more) potatoes, well scrubbed but not peeled and cut into 1/2 –inch dice
2 1/2 cups whole milk (or part milk, part cream)
3 cups homemade veggie bouillon broth or stock or broth of your choice
Salt and freshly ground pepper

½ cup parsley, finely chopped
Juice of half a lemon
1 small garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy pot over medium high heat. Add the onions and bacon (if using) and thyme (if using) and sauté for about 5 minutes. If you’re not using bacon and have smoked Spanish paprika (pimenton) add a teaspoon of it at this stage. Add the garlic and the peppers and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the potatoes and all the milk (or milk and cream) and stock or broth. Add salt if your stock is not very salty. Bring to a boil and let simmer briskly for about 8 minutes. Add the corn, and cook for another 10 – 15 minutes until everything is tender. The potatoes should be falling apart and will help thicken the chowder. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Mix the parsley, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil in a small bowl. Top the soup with a spoonful of the parsley sauce.

Kale, Winter Squash and Toasted Pumpkin Seed Salad

The sweet roasted squash, the sturdy kale, the avocado that turns the dressing creamy and the pop of the lime juice and pumpkin seeds is a lively combination this time of year. It also keeps well too.

And toss in some black or pinto beans for additional heft, if you’d like. This salad, like many, is begging for adaptations so be creative–use different seeds or nuts, add herbs, different roasted vegetables, etc.

Serves 4-6

1 small bunch kale, well washed and dried, stems removed if tough and very thinly sliced
1 small ripe avocado
2 cloves garlic, minced
Juice of 1 lime (start with a little less and then add to taste)
1 small/medium delicata squash, halved lengthwise, seeded and cut into ¼-inch half rounds or 3 cups worth of diced butternut or other kind of winter squash (see head note)
Olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
½ cup toasted pumpkin seeds (toast in a dry skillet over medium to med-high heat, stirring often, until popping and starting to brown—about 8 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Bake the squash slices or chunks in a single layer on a baking sheet with just a drizzle of oil and sprinkling of salt. Bake, turning once, for about 15 minutes or until tender and just starting to brown.

Put the kale in a large salad bowl. Add the diced avocado and squash (warm is fine).

Mince or press or mash the garlic until very fine and put in a small bowl. Stir in the lime juice, about 3-4 tablespoons of good olive oil and plenty of salt and pepper. Stir well and dress the salad and work it in well. Taste and adjust seasoning with more lime juice and/or salt and pepper. Stir in the pumpkin seeds.

Mustard Roasted Carrots with Parsley

This is a nice variation to plain roasted vegetables. One of my favorite things to do with these, once roasted and a bit cooled is to toss them with lots of parsley. Then add a bit more lemon juice and olive oil and make a big salad out of it. Quantities are approximations. Use however many vegetables you want in whatever ratio you want.

You could also serve these on top of a bed of sautéed kale.

Serves 4

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

1 medium onion, cut in half and sliced in ½-inch thick half-rounds
3-4 potatoes, scrubbed but not peeled and cut into wedges
4 cups carrots, scrubbed and cut into ¾-inch slices on the bias
2 tablespoons whole grain mustard
2 tablespoons olive oil
Zest of 1 lemon
1 garlic clove, minced
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
¾ cup parsley leaves

Put the vegetables in a big bowl. Mix the other ingredients, except the parsley, in a small bowl and then toss the mustard mixture with the vegetables mixing very well. I use my hands to get it thoroughly mixed—messy but effective.

Spread the vegetables on a baking sheet with sides—try not to crowd and use two sheets if you have too much for one. Roast for 20 minutes then stir and keep roasting until all vegetables are tender and beginning to brown around the edges.

When slightly cooled toss with parsley, adjust seasoning and serve warm or at room temperature.