Brussels Sprouts and Radish Salad

Continuing my experiments in search of a luscious red and green veggie dish, I tried Brussels sprouts and radishes. This is a delicious, light salad.

• ½ cup yellow onion
• 2 cups shredded Brussels sprouts (measure after shredding)
• 1 cup thinly sliced and chopped radishes
• Lemon
• 3 TBSP Asiago Cheese
• 8 pecans, toasted and chopped

I chopped and mixes the onions, radish, and Brussels sprouts. I squeezed the juice of one fresh lemon, added some salt and pepper and tasted. It was a bit too tart, but I didn’t want to add oil, so I added some cheese which offset the lemon’s tart bite. I added some pecans for texture and a bit of umami.

This was delicious. It’s light and delicate, with just the tiniest bit of cheese to balance the lemon juice and lemons love Asiago cheese and pecans. They are a magical combination that makes any vegetable delicious.

This made four servings since I am experimenting for potluck fixings, not just myself.

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Sautéed Brussels Sprouts and Sun-dried Tomatoes

Brussels sprouts are one of my favorite winter vegetables and since they are in season, I thought it might be fun to come up with a red and green dish with them, experimenting in advance of Christmas. Sun-dried tomatoes are such a rich red, with the bright green of the Brussels sprouts, I decided I had to try it.

• 1 TBSP olive oil
• ½ tsp dried red pepper flakes
• ½ cup yellow onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 8 oz. Brussels Sprouts, cleaned, ends cut off, and quartered.
• 6 sun-dried tomatoes, sliced
• 1 lemon
• 2 TBSP Asiago cheese grated
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat oil with the dried pepper flakes, infusing its heat into the oil.
2. Add chopped onions and sauté until turning transparent.
3. Add garlic, stir quickly.
4. Add Brussels sprouts and sauté, stirring occasionally for 3 to 5 minutes. Add pepper but withhold the salt until after you add the sun-dried tomatoes. (They can get really salty depending on the brand and you will want to taste it with the tomatoes before you add any salt.)
5. Add juice of 1 lemon and sun-dried tomato strips. Cook until the liquid is absorbed.
6. Add grated cheese and stir quickly. It will melt right in.

This actually made two generous servings, so I have one to reheat. It’s very umami with the cheese giving it a bit of nutty creaminess. The sun-dried tomatoes add a bit of sweetness and tartness at the same time. It’s a very comforting side dish.

I can imagine it with a bit more of a Mediterranean vibe by adding some black olives. You could also use parmesan instead of Asiago, I just prefer Asiago myself. It’s just a bit nuttier. This is fast and simple, taking less than ten minutes from start to finish.

Sausage, Rocket & Tomato Pasta

I heated a cast iron pan on medium low (3 of 10) and on another burner put a pot of salted water on to boil.

In the cast iron pan, I tossed in a pinch of fennel seeds, about 1/4 tsp or so and let them heat while I removed the casings from 3 breakfast sausage links. I added the sausage and, using a fork, smashed it up to little bits of pork. There was not much fat, but it was enough to cook this without any additional oil. I added 2 TBSP of diced yellow onion. Then I diced a small Roma tomato and added it. I let them cook.

I added 3 handfuls or 3/4 cup of dried egg noodles. I ended up with about 1 cup of noodles when it was done cooking.

I added 1/4 cup of sour cream to the cast iron pan, strained the pasta and stirred it into the sauce and then added a big handful, a cup or more, of fresh rocket. I stirred and removed from the heat so it just warmed but did not cook the rocket.

Grate just a bit of asiago or parmesan cheese on top.

This made one serving. It has a peppery flavor from the rocket, a bit of heat from the sausage and this wonder deep flavor coming from the fennel. The sour cream gave it a nice creaminess and added some fat that it really needed to soften the acidity of the tomatoes and the peppery rocket.

 

Spinach Pear Salad with Hazelnuts

My best friend came over for dinner last night, so I whipped up a lovely salad. Those pears I got from the Food Bank last week are ripe and I need to be using them up quickly, so I decided on a salad with pears.

First I sliced 1/2 of a yellow onion on the mandolin so I could get super thin slices. Then I cut up 5 of those mini peppers. (A 4 pound package of mini peppers costs less than 3 regular red peppers.) into thin strips, removing the seeds. I also corned and sliced three Bosc Pears. I put all of this in a plastic container with a lid. I added 1/3 cup rice vinegar, salt, pepper and 1/2 tsp of dry mustard powder.I put the lid on and shook it all as much as I could to mix it together. Then I added about 6 cups of baby spinach. Put the lid back on, shook some more and put it in the fridge for about an hour.

I toasted some hazelnuts (about 1/4 cup) with tajín (a spice mix of lime and chilis) in a dry pan.

To serve, I put the salad mix on the plate, added some hazelnuts and slice some asiago cheese on top.

The flavor is a wonderful blend of sweet, sour and a bit of heat. The hazelnuts are a great crunch and it was one of the best salads I have come up with this year. Service two.

Zucchini Melt

A fast and easy lunch made with just a few ingredients.

In a sauté pan, I heated 1 TBSP of olive oil and added a pinch of anise seeds to it. When the aroma filled the air, I added 1/2 of a yellow onion, sliced thin along with 3 small peppers (the mini red peppers. I actually used a red, orange and yellow) or 1 large red pepper, cut into stripes. Add salt and pepper and let cook until tender.

I sliced two small zucchinis into little rounds and added them to on top of the onions and peppers. Then I cut about a 10 cherry tomatoes in half and tossed them on top with some salt and pepper. I let them cook for a while until tender.

Lastly I grated a bit of parmesan on top and let it melt. This made one large serving for a lovely, flavorful lunch. Anise is usually used in cookies and candies, but it is amazing with vegetables. It does not add a sweet flavor, it adds a subtle bite, sharper than you might imagine, but so delicious.

Fresh Asparagus Salad 2.0

I thought it might be interesting to remake my favorite salad with Tajín instead of salt and pepper. It was a brilliant move, making an old and frequentI w favorite new again.

I was set to make a fresh asparagus salad again when I recalled a friend’s recent Facebook post sharing 23 Things You’ll Definitely Find in Every Mexican Household.  I don’t have all that many of the items, but I do have Tajín, a delicious spice blend of dried limes, Mexican chiles and sea salt. It’s delicious on fresh jicama sticks, grapefruit and watermelon. I thought it might work on this and it did. Wonderfully.

How to make the salad.

• 6 stalks of asparagus
• 2 tbsp of chopped toasted almonds
• Asiago cheese
• 1/2 fresh lemon, squeezed
• Tan

I used 6 slender stalks of asparagus. Using a vegetable peeler, just peel and peel and peel of thin strips of the asparagus. This salad is actually easier with older, later in the season asparagus that is bigger around and less tender because it’s easier to peel. I go from the head to the root because that makes it a little easier.

While I was slicing up the asparagus, I toasted a small handful of almonds. When they were toasted, I set them aside to cool, finishing the asparagus. I chopped up the almonds. Using the same vegetable peeler, I sliced off some asiago cheese and tossed on top of the salad. I then squeezed the juice of 1/2 a lemon on the salad and sprinkled the top of it with Tajín. I did not add salt and pepper like I usually do.

The salad was fresh and light with a tangy, spicy heat. Delicious! I never would have made this if not for you, Gloria! Thanks.