Lots of fun things this week, and even a photo! But alas the photo is of a dish that includes Japanese turnips and their greens which it turned it weren’t quite ready for show time this week but they will be next so remember the pretty photo until then. Happy Cooking!
Turkish-Style Leeks with Carrot and Rice
Okonomiyaki (Japanese Cabbage Pancakes)
Cabbage and Potato Gratin
Roasted Red Pepper Salad
Peperonata
Cabbage Salad with Apples and Walnuts
Mixed Veggie Skillet
Turkish-Style Leeks with Carrot and Rice
–slightly adapted from Adam Ried from the Culinate.com collection
This is a lovely dish that feels perfect for this time of year as it actually is getting a bit cooler and we actually might be in for some rain in a few days.
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 large, diced
Salt
4 carrots, well scrubbed but no need to peel and cut on the bias into thin slices
4-5 medium leeks (about 2½ pounds), white and much of the green part (just cut off the greens where it seems they get tougher and more fibrous), halved lengthwise and cut into 1-inch pieces
¾ cup chicken or veggie stock or water
¼ cup long-grain white rice, rinsed
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons minced fresh dill or parsley
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Heat the oil in a straight-sided sauté pan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the onion and ½ teaspoon salt, adjust the heat to medium-low, and cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is very soft and fragrant, about 15 minutes. Add the carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the leeks and ½ teaspoon salt and cook, stirring frequently, until they soften, about 10 minutes. Add the broth and adjust the heat to medium-high, and bring to a strong simmer. Add the rice and ½ teaspoon salt, stir to incorporate, adjust the heat to very low, cover the pan, and simmer (without stirring or lifting the cover) for 25 minutes.
Remove the cover, stir the mixture once or twice, replace the cover, and set aside off the heat for 15 minutes. Add the lemon juice and dill or parsley and stir to mix. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt, if necessary, and pepper to taste, and serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.
Okonomiyaki (Japanese Cabbage Pancakes)
I included this recipe early in the season and can’t help but bring it back.
These traditionally include finely chopped shrimp so by all means add this if you’d like. I love them like this. They are great party food and just as good for a simple supper with a salad on the side. Makes about 12 pancakes.
Sauce:
Scant ½ cup mayonnaise
Scant 2 tbs soy sauce
1 tablespoon sriracha
Pancakes:
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 – 11/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/3 cup all purpose flour
3-4 cups cabbage, sliced as thinly as possible (you can also grate or chop it in a food processor—I prefer the texture of the hand cut and if you have a good, sharp chef’s knife it’s quick work)
1 bunch scallions (green onions), trimmed and chopped
Sunflower, coconut or peanut oil for frying
1-2 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
Whisk the first set of ingredients together for your sauce. Set aside while you make the pancakes.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk eggs with the soy sauce, sesame oil, and salt. Gradually add the flour and whisk until smooth. Fold in cabbage and scallions.
Warm a tablespoon or two of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat until glistening. Spoon the batter into the skillet as you would for regular pancakes. I usually make them about the size of saucer. Cook on each side for about 3 minutes or until golden brown. Keep pancakes covered in a warm oven as you make the rest. Scatter sesame seeds on top of pancakes and serve with dipping sauce.
Creamy Cabbage and Potato Gratin
This dish involves making a quick white sauce (or béchamel) and it’s worth the effort. This is CSA-centric comfort food. It’s even better the next day and it’s easy to make a lot so you’ll likely get 2+ meals out of it. You can use kale instead of cabbage, or a bit of both, in this dish as well. It’s more colorful and just as good.
For Bechamel:
Melt 4 Tbs of butter in a medium-sized saucepan over med/low heat. When melted, whisk in 4 Tbs of flour. Continue cooking the roux for 3-4 minutes, whisking frequently. Meanwhile heat a generous 2 ½ cups of milk, preferably whole but 2% will do if that’s what you have. Whisk hot milk into roux and add several pinches of salt, grind in some pepper, add a 1/8 – ¼ teaspoon of red pepper flakes (or omit if you’d like), add 2 teaspoons or so of Dijon mustard and a bay leaf and a grating or two of nutmeg (optional). Stir well and cook over med/low heat for about 10 – 15 minutes until thickened a bit. Add some grated cheese if you’d like at this point.
Note: this sauce can be used in dozens of dishes. You can adjust the seasoning as you like but the above combination of seasonings works for mac and cheese, pasta sauces (to which you could add lots of vegetables and herbs) as a base for a soufflé, for lasagna, etc.
For the Gratin:
Scrub 3-5 potatoes (depending on size) and cut into thumb-sized chunks and add to a large pot with lots of water that’s been well salted. Bring to a boil. Meanwhile remove the outer leaves of a medium green cabbage. Cut in half and then in quarters. Remove the heart. Slice the quarters into half-inch strips. If it’s a large cabbage you’ll only need half of the head.
After the potatoes have been cooking for about 8 minutes –test with a sharp knife –you want some resistance since you’re going to add the cabbage to the same pot and cook the cabbage and finish the potatoes at the same time. So, when the potatoes are close to tender add the cabbage to the pot. Cover and bring back to a boil over high heat and cook for another 3-4 minutes until both are tender. Drain well.
Spread the vegetables in a large baking dish. Pour the béchamel over the top and mix in a bit. Sprinkle with toasted breadcrumbs and grated cheese (if you’d like) and bake in at 375 until bubbly and crisp on top (I broil it at the end for a few minutes).
Note: You could add bacon to this dish at the end, as well as sausage or lots of fresh parsley or some thyme or different cheeses. Or you can make the same dish with cauliflower and potatoes or with broccoli and pasta. The variations are infinite. And the leftovers are better than the first time around.
Roasted Red Pepper Salad
This is the way sweet red peppers are prepared in many parts of Italy. It’s very simple and very good. This dish keeps well in the fridge for 4-5 days so make extra and enjoy it for a while. And use however much parsley and garlic you like. It’s really a matter of taste.
4-5 sweet peppers
10 sprigs of parsley, big stems discarded, chopped
1 medium clove garlic, minced
Good-tasting olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Set oven to broil.
Rinse peppers. Place them on a baking sheet and place about 4-6 inches under the broiler. Broil, turning as one side blisters and turns black. When they are blackened all around remove from oven, place in a bowl and cover with a dishtowel. Let steam and cool until you can handle them. Remove the stems and seeds. Chop into large-ish pieces (1 ½ – 2-inch square). Toss in a bowl with the remainder of the ingredients. Adjust seasoning. Let sit to let flavors marry for 15 minutes if you can. Serve with bread, cheese, grilled anything, salads, a frittata, etc. . . Great on sandwiches as well.
Peperonata
The classic Italian Peperonata is made with peppers, onions, and tomatoes. This version includes potatoes which makes it a more substantial dish and with a green salad and piece of bread, a perfect fall supper. I hope you might still have a couple of tomatoes sitting around for this last hurrah of summer!
¼ cup olive oil
2 medium or 1 ½ large onions, thinly sliced
1 ½ cups potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes
¼ – ½ teaspoon of hot chili flakes (to taste)
2-3 medium tomatoes, diced
3-4 large sweet peppers, washed, deseeded and cut into bite-sized pieces
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
½ teaspoon or more kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Heat the oil in a large, heavy saucepan, add the onions and several generous pinches of salt and sauté until they are translucent. Do not let them brown (though the dish will still be delicious, so don’t worry if you do). Add the potatoes and cook slowly, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes. Add the chili pepper and tomatoes and simmer uncovered, stirring frequently for about 10 minutes. Add the peppers, garlic, black pepper and another pinch or two of salt and cook for another 10-15 minutes until the peppers are tender. Serve hot or at room temperature. Drizzle with a little more olive oil at the table.
Mixed Veggie Skillet
Occasionally I toss whatever I have in the veggie bin in the cast iron pan, cut into fairly uniform pieces and slowly sauté these, sometime with a little bacon, sometimes not. I did this this evening with Japanese turnips (and their greens), carrots, the final yellow crookneck squash from my garden, some scallions on their last legs, an onion and a clove of garlic. It was very, very good and I’m committing to doing this more often.
It was particularly good because I did pay attention to when I added what vegetable. I have a very large cast iron skillet so things were no crowded and they browned and cooked nicely without steaming. And I did use a bit of diced bacon and I salted things well. If you’re not using bacon, you could add a pinch or two of pimento the smoked Spanish Paprika or just use salt. The vegetables are so good you don’t need much of anything else.
Olive oil
1 leek, cut in half lengthwise, washed well and cut into half rounds
1-2 slices bacon, diced (optional)
3 carrots, scrubbed but not peeled and cut into ¼-inch half rounds
2 potatoes, cut into small dice (optional)
1-2 sweet peppers, washed and deseeded and cut into small pieces or strips
4-5 turnips, scrubbed but not peeled and cut into small chunks
1 bunch turnip greens, well washed and cut into 1-inch ribbons, stems and all
1 clove garlic, minced and then mashed with the side of a knife with some salt until you get a paste (or use a press or just mince)
Salt
Heat 1-2 tablespoons olive oil (the larger amount if you’re not using the bacon) over high heat in the largest skillet you have. Add the leeks, bacon (if using) and carrots, peppers and potatoes (if using) and sauté, stirring occasionally for a few minutes. Add several generous pinches of salt. As things begin to brown turn the heat down to medium-high. You want some color but of course don’t want to burn the veggies.
After about 7-8 more minutes, stirring occasionally, add the turnips. Cook for about 5 more minutes until the turnips are tender. Then add the turnip greens and mashed garlic and stir well and cook for just 1-2 more minutes just to wilt the greens. Serve with a squeeze of lemon if you’d like and taste for salt.
Here it is, all steamy right off the stove. . ..
Cabbage Salad with Apples and Walnuts
–loosely adapted from Chez Panisse Fruit by Alice Waters
1 small green cabbage (or half a medium), outer leaves removed, quartered, heart removed and very thinly sliced
1/3 cup walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Salt and pepper
½ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons creme fraiche or heavy cream or sour cream or Greek yogurt
2 crisp apples
2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled
1 sweet pepper, cored and seeded and very thinly sliced
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Toast the walnuts in the oven for 8 minutes. While they are still warm, first rub them in a clean dishtowel to remove some of the skins, then chop or coarsely crumble them.
To prepare the dressing, mix the vinegar with the lemon juice, some salt, and a generous amount of pepper.
Whisk in the olive oil and then the creme fraiche or cream. Taste and adjust the acid and salt as desired.
Quarter, peel, and core the apples. Slice the quarters lengthwise fairly thin and cut these slices lengthwise into a julienne. Toss the cabbage, apples, and walnuts (and blue cheese, if you’re using it) with the dressing and an extra pinch of salt. Let the salad sit for 5 minutes, taste again, adjust the seasoning as needed, and serve.