Kale Chips

Cut the center rib out of the kale and roughly cut up leaves. Toss leaves with olive oil and season with salt and place on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees until crispy, about 8 to 12 minutes. Adjust seasoning and serve. The only way to eat kale in my book.

Crazy Green Globe Squash Pasta

Tonight I cooked 2 slices of bacon, which I removed from the pan once crisp and then added the cubed green squash (some type of zucchini maybe?) and some marjoram (went out to get oregano but couldn't find it) from my little herb garden. Once the squash was tender I added back the bacon and 3 oz of cubed fresh mozzarella, tossed it with cooked pasta, and served it up in bowls.

Emeril's Braised Kohlrabi with Fennel and Leeks

*I didn't have leeks so I just used a yellow onion. I also don't buy alcohol so I used water instead of white wine.

2 T olive oil
1 T butter
3 large heads kohlrabi, cut into 1/2-inch-thick-wedges
1 yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 large bulb fennel, cored and thinly sliced
1/4 c water
3 c chicken stock
4 sprigs fresh thyme
3 sprigs fresh fennel fronds
1 t salt
1/2 t black pepper

Combine olive oil and butter in a large deep saute pan. Once butter has melted and foam has subsided add kohlrabi, onion and fennel and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, browning kohlrabi on each side (mine did not brown). Add water and cook until it has reduced by half. Add stock, thyme, and fennel fronds and season with salt and pepper. Cook partially covered for 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender crisp. Remove thyme sprigs and fennel fronds before serving.

I spooned the polenta into a bowl and then topped it with the braised veggies, including the braising liquid. Connor drank the liquid after eating his food. It was that good.

Emeril's Creamy Polenta

This is heaven on a spoon. You have been warned

4 c whole milk (I didn't have any milk so I just used evaporated milk which turned out to be quite lovely. I want to try making this with skim milk too.)
2 c chicken stock (I used 2 cups water and 2 teaspoons Better Than Bullion Chicken Stock which I buy on the baking aisle at Costco)
4 T butter
2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
1 3/4 c stone-ground polenta
1/4 c mascarpone cheese (his recipe calls for 1/2 cup but I used less)
Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (his recipe calls for 1 cup but I just grated some on top when it was served)

Combine milk, chicken stock, butter, salt and pepper in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring constantly. Whisk in polenta and stir until it begins to thicken, then reduce heat to medium low and cook, stirring frequently, until creamy and tender. *His recipe indicates this will take 30 minutes, mine was done in about 8 minutes. I used regular polenta, not instant, so I don't know why mine cooked so quickly.

Remove from heat and add mascarpone cheese and stir to blend. Serve immediately with Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese sprinkled on top.

Leftover polenta can be reheated just be sure to add a little water or milk to soften it.

Jamie Oliver's Perfect Pesto

small handful pinenuts (about 1/4 cup)
1/2 a clove of garlic, peeled and chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 good handfuls fresh basil leaves, picked and chopped
a good handful freshly grated Parmesan cheese
extra virgin olive oil

*The first step is to put your pinenuts on a baking sheet and pop them under the broiler for a minute to warm them, but I skipped this step. I also made this in a blender, but you can do it in a food processor or with a mortar and pestle. Here's my method:

Place pinenuts, garlic, basil and a tablespoon or two of olive oil in the blender and pulse. Add more olive oil until desired consistency is reached. Add Parmesan cheese and blend. Season to taste with salt and pepper. When you reach the consistency and taste you like it is done. I kept mine in the fridge for a week and a half in an airtight glass container.

Ellie Giobbi's Italian-Style Bread

I found this recipe in yet another DI cookbook that sat on my mom's shelf and then my shelf for some time. It is our new favorite bread. This recipe makes 8 loaves (20 inches long and 3 inches wide) and I wrap each loaf in foil and keep it in the freezer. Each day I just take it out and set it on the counter to defrost and then save the foil for my next batch. Or if you want it hot just heat your oven to 500 degrees and put the bread in, wrapped in the foil, for 15 minutes.

2 T active dry yeast
8 c warm water
about 16 c flour*
2 T kosher salt or 1 1/4 T table salt

*I used 2/3 whole wheat (which I ground myself, aren't I just so domestic) and 1/3 all purpose. I ended up adding a bit more than 16 cups, I think I used 18, but my dough was still sticky and wet and it worked perfectly. Don't add too much flour!

Mix the yeast and water together and let sit for 5 minutes.

Add most of the flour and salt to a large bowl and stir to combine. Add the yeast water gradually, stirring as you pour. Work dough into a manageable ball and turn it out on a lightly floured surface. Knead until elastic, adding more flour as necessary, for about 10 minutes.

Oil the bottom and sides of a clean bowl and turn dough to coat, cover with a towel, and place in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 2 hours.

Turn dough out and punch down. Divide into 8 pieces and form each piece into a long loaf - about 18 inches long and 2 inches wide. Place on an oiled baking sheet (I fit 4 per pan) and cover and let double in bulk, about 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place bread in oven on baking sheets and bake for 30 minutes, spritzing with water a few times during the first 15 minutes of baking to get a crisp crust. Remove bread from trays, turn them over, lower heat to 350 degrees, and bake 10 to 20 more minutes until done. Cool on racks.

I baked 2 pans at a time, and rotated them when I lowered the heat. They didn't need much more time to bake, about 6 to 10 minutes at 350 degrees. This bread has a great taste and a tender crumb and freezes well. Eight loaves may seem like a lot but they disappeared fast in our house.

CSA pick up.

This week I received:

2 heads kohlrabi (still had one left over from last week which made 3 in the fridge)
1 bunch beets
1 bunch carrots
1 yellow squash
1 crazy green globe squash (not sure what kind)
2 onions
1 bunch kale
1 bag red potatoes
1 bulb fennel

So far we've eaten:

Grilled veggie sandwiches: homemade baguette (recipe to come - it is pretty awesome), leftover pesto mixed with goat cheese, grilled yellow squash and grilled onion with some salt and pepper and Kale chips. Confession: I am not a huge fan of kale because it takes forever to cook to an edible state, but now I have discovered kale chips and they are simple to make and very tasty. Hooray. Bryant said this was the best meat free sandwich of his life. Ten points for me.

Braised kohlrabi, fennel, and onion with melt in your mouth deliciousness polenta. (Both recipes from Farm to Fork with a few adjustments)

Pasta with lovely cheese sauce and spinach. The spinach came from Costco.

Do you want the recipes? Let me know. Shopping list and amount spent to come.

Pizza on the grill.

We waited to purchase a grill until we could buy a Traeger because once I tasted the deliciousness made by its wood-pellet burning self I couldn't settle for anything less. Completely worth the wait. (Costco has a Traeger special twice a year by the way.)

A few weeks ago I taught 14 12 and 13 year olds how to make homemade pizza and sauce. I tried out some new recipes and combined a few to come up with what is now my favorite of favorites. Absolutely delicious. We just made them with mozzarella on top but you can do anything you want.

I didn't plan anything for dessert and we had some dough left over so we rolled it out, grilled it, and then topped it with melted butter, cinnamon, sugar, and sweetened whipped cream. It was also amazing.

When I grill pizza I first grill my crust lightly on both sides, then remove and add toppings and return to the grill until it is done. I grill them at 450 degrees. I roll my crust very thin and use semolina to dust my rolling surface. I know the pre-grilling is done when my dough starts to puff up. Here's the recipe:

Pizza Dough

Combine the following in a bowl and stir until dissolved;

¼ c chicken stock (this doesn't taste odd in the dessert version by the way)

¾ c warm water

1 pkg dry yeast

1 T honey

1 T olive oil

Add and mix with a wooden spoon;

1 c flour

Add 2 more cups of flour and stir for 2 to 3 minutes.

Turn dough out on a floured surface and knead for 6 to 8 minutes until dough is smooth and firm. Grease a bowl with 1 T olive oil and then place dough in bowl, turning to coat with oil, cover with a towel and let rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.

Pizza Sauce

28 oz can whole peeled tomatoes (drain but reserve ¼ c liquid)

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 T olive oil

¼ to ½ t salt

1/8 to ¼ t freshly ground black pepper

1 t brown sugar

3 T tomato paste

2 t dried oregano

1 t dried thyme (ground if you are bothered by texture)

¼ to ½ t fennel seed, ground

Heat olive oil in a NON REACTIVE pot just over medium heat. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant. Add all other dry ingredients and stir until fragrant. Add tomatoes and stir to coat with oil mixture and let cook for 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and ¼ c reserved tomato liquid. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, smashing tomatoes and stirring occasionally. This recipe is easily doubled and is even better the next day.

If you cannot grill your pizzas, try this trick;

Heat a griddle or skillet over medium high heat and precook your rolled out dough on each side until golden brown spots appear. Let cool and then top with sauce and toppings and bake in 500 degree oven until done.

For Lauren - Cookbooks

So here's the truth. I use my sweet cookbooks much much more than my savory cookbooks. Finding 5 to suggest for actual meals rather than meals composed of desserts was difficult. But here are four I use on a regular basis:

The Savory Way by Deborah Madison
My mom found this at DI years ago and it sat on her shelf. She gave it to me 2 years ago and it sat on my shelf. Now I use it all of the time.

Jamie's Italy by Jamie Oliver
I have 5 or so of his cookbooks but I use this one the most. His pesto recipe is perfect and we've eaten pesto pasta for 4 days in a row (because my CSA included a huge bouquet of basil last week) which is amazing considering Bryant has never liked pesto. But he loves this recipe.

Farm to Fork by Emeril Lagasse
I love his recipes. I love the ideas I get from seeing the different flavors he combines.

Sarabeth's Bakery by Sarabeth Levine
Yes, this is a dessert book. But is a recent discovery that I wish I had found years ago because she explains tricks and techniques so perfectly.

I use www.tastespotting.com the most for finding recipes. Especially now that I have a weekly CSA subscription. A few weeks ago I had 2 heads of napa cabbage that I didn't no what to do with so I just went to the website, typed napa cabbage into the search engine, and found a bunch of recipes to look through that I eventually narrowed down to two that we used later in the week.

When we lived in Nebraska and I had nothing to do and free cable I watched the Food Network a lot. And that was a great help because it exposed me to new food ideas and combinations and ingredients I hadn't heard of before. I am finally to the point where I am comfortable making up my own dishes, and I do a lot, but these are the resources I depend on.

I pick up my CSA on Wednesday and payday is Friday so the menu planning/budgeting post is to come. In the meantime here is the perfect pizza.