Roasted Brussels Sprouts & Turnips with Creole Mustard Jus

Oh, sauce. Make a good one and you'll be licking the plate clean. You'll be hiding in the corner of your kitchen sipping on it as an apéritif. You'll be brainstorming for future applications. You'll whip it up again the next night.

Creole mustard jus came into my life during a Test Kitchen I did for Country Roads Magazine. The dish was Prosciutto-Wrapped Quail complete with Creole mustard jus and mustard greens gnocchi. Such a wonderful sauce that it simmered along on the stove while I maneuvered my way through the more complicated aspects of the recipe (up to the elbows in flour and gnocchi dough, but loving every minute).

And so it found its way into my dinner the next night. I had brussels sprouts and turnips from the Baton Rouge gourmet grocery delivery service Indie Plate, and I wanted to put them to good use in a warm, full-flavored dinner. Winter in Louisiana is a brutal time, taking no prisoners.

I browned the vegetables in pancetta fat, drizzled them with Creole mustard jus, and then finished the pan off in the oven. Crisp, tender, and just what I needed. Now where to use this sauce next...

Roasted Brussels Sprouts & Turnips with Creole Mustard Jus
Serves 3–4 as entrée; 4–6 as side

Ingredients:
4 oz. diced pancetta
1 lb. brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
3 medium turnips, peeled and cut into 1–1 1/2 inch pieces 
Creole Mustard Jus
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted.

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400 F. Render pancetta in a medium cast-iron skillet. Once pancetta has begun to crisp, remove from the skillet and set aside.
2. Add brussels sprouts and turnips. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes until vegetables have begun to brown.
3. Pour Creole mustard jus over the skillet, then place in oven to cook for 30 minutes.
4. Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with toasted pine nuts, and serve.

For Creole mustard jus:

Ingredients:
1/4 cup onion, chopped
1/4 cup carrot, chopped
1/4 cup celery, chopped
1/2 tsp. tomato paste
3 tbsp. white wine
1 + 1/2 cups low sodium or
no-salt chicken stock
3 thyme sprigs
1 tbsp. Creole mustard


Method:

1. In a saucepan, sweat the onion, carrot, and celery in olive oil. Stir in the tomato paste. Cook one minute then deglaze with white wine. Add the chicken stock and thyme sprigs. Reduce by half or until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Strain the sauce into a clean saucepan. Add the Creole mustard and stir to combine. Leave on low heat until ready to pour on vegetables.

Grilled Tuna Steaks with Lemon Caper Butter Sauce

A delicious, brightly tangy sauce will carry you far. "I could eat this for breakfast," said my fiancé. We mopped up every last dribble of this lemon caper topping last night. I'd be cruel not to pass the recipe along.

I just moved into a new house (read: new kitchen) this week, and I spent my first weekend morning arranging the spice cabinet, stacking my oh-so-useful kitchen cart, and reseasoning cast iron.

We ended the day with plump tuna steaks, rubbed with olive oil, sea salt, and freshly ground rainbow peppercorns, then grilled in my shiny, renewed cast iron grill pan. Asparagus, chopped and grilled with herbes de Provence.

And that lemon caper sauce. The capers were sautéed in a little butter and lemon juice until aromatic. Then as the tuna steaks came to bold-lined fruition, I added bits of cold, cold butter to the skillet until the capers were frothing and warm.

Spooned it over the tuna steaks and dinner was served. (We paired with a tall glass of Lucky Bastard ale.)

Now to envision dozens and dozens of future uses...

 

Grilled Tuna Steaks with Lemon Caper Butter Sauce
Yield: 2 servings

Ingredients:
2, 6-oz. tuna steaks (about 3/4-inch to 1-inch thick)
Olive oil
Sea salt
Cracked black pepper
For the sauce:1 oz. capers, drained and chopped
1 teaspoon butter for sautéeing, plus 2 tablespoons chilled and separated into small pieces
Freshly squeezed juice from one lemon
Salt and pepper (to taste)
For the asparagus:
1 bunch, chopped into 1-inch pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
Herbes de Provence

Method:

1. In a small pan, heat 1 teaspoon butter over medium heat until frothing. Add capers and sautée for 20 seconds, until aromatic. Add lemon juice, salt, and pepper and continue to cook—stirring frequently—until liquid has evaporated (about 2 minutes). Remove from heat and reserve.

2. Using a medium skillet or grill pan (I used the same pan for the asparagus and tuna to conserve—carried-over seasoning was a bonus), heat up one tablespoon olive oil or medium-high heat. Add asparagus and herbes de Provence. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 to 6 minutes, until asparagus is bright green. Reserve in a small, covered bowl to keep warm.
3. Rub tuna steaks with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Heat up lightly oiled grill pan to medium-high heat. Grill tuna steaks for 5 minutes on each side, until sides are white and opaque.
4. While tuna grills, return the capers to medium heat in pan. Add chilled butter, bit by bit, until melted, browned, and bubbling.
5. Spoon sauce over tuna steaks, surround with a ring of asparagus, and serve.

Roasted Tomato and Almond Pesto

The lentil soup recipe I was using Friday night did not necessarily need anything else. It comes from Diamond Jim Moran, friend of Huey P. Long's and the party deemed responsible for bringing slot machines to New Orleans. Supposedly when he passed, the boxer Rocky Marciano lamented both the loss of the man and the loss of his legendary lentil soup.

But I couldn't resist an addition to make it my own. Tomatoes quartered, drizzled in balsamic, and roasted. Toasted almonds. Fresh basil chiffonade. All processed together and then swirled among the noodles and legumes of Diamond Jim's soup. It certainly didn't hurt.

You can find the lentil soup recipe here. I must champion its assets as a cold-weather lunch. It will warm you to the core.

And now for its full-flavored companion:

Roasted Tomato and Almond Pesto (adapted from Eating Well)
Makes 1 1/2 cups

4 vine-ripe tomatoes, quartered
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil & 1/4 cup olive oil, separated
Salt
Pepper
1/4 cup almonds, toasted
1/2 cup basil leaves, cut chiffonade style
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400. Place tomatoes on a large, rimmed baking sheet. Toss in balsamic and two tablespoons olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for one hour, tossing halfway through.
2. In food processor, combine roasted tomatoes, almonds, basil, red wine vinegar, and cheese. Add remaining olive oil in a steady stream. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Zucchini "Pasta" with Slow-Roasted Tomatoes

So excited about this. My grandmother always serves zucchini with tomato sauce, and it's one of my favorite iterations. After selecting zucchini as this week's seasonal item, I wanted to keep those flavors in play while branching out on my own.

I saw online a suggestion to turn the zucchini into quasi-noodles, slicing them into wide, thin ribbons. Pasta without the carbs! So choice.

I just cooked it down a little in a large saucepan with some olive oil, seasoning it with citrus pepper.

Then I whipped up a fairly traditional pesto, and a creamy lemon sauce that was warped a little by my lack of cream, white wine, or broth, but finally brought into the realm of deliciousness. Especially after we pinata-ed open the can of smoked paprika and added it into the mix.

Mixed in both sauces with the "noodles," then topped with slow-roasted tomatoes and a sprig of parsley. Fun new way to serve zucchini!

Zucchini "Pasta" with Slow-Roasted Tomatoes
Serves 2-3.

2 zucchini, sliced into thin, wide ribbons (I used my mandoline!)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons citrus pepper seasoning

6 vine-ripe tomatoes, quartered
Salt
Pepper
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

2 oz. pine nuts
1/2 cup fresh basil
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt
Pepper
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 cup grated parmesan
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup diced yellow onion
Juice from one lemon
1/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon dry vermouth
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon butter

Parsley sprigs, for garnish

1. Preheat oven to 300. Spread quartered tomatoes over a rimmed baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper, then drizzle with balsamic vinaigrette. Roast for one hour, or until the skin is wrinkled.
2. In large saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat. Add zucchini spices and stir in citrus pepper. Cook until tender and starting to brown.
3. In food processor, combine pine nuts, basil, oil, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper, parmesan, and parsley. Process until fully combined. Add more olive oil if needed.
4. Now in a small saucepan, heat olive oil over medium-high. Add diced onion and cook until golden. Then add in lemon juice, milk, and vermouth. Bring to a boil, then reduce to medium. Stir in garlic powder and smoked paprika. Cook for five minutes. Then remove from heat and add butter, stirring until melted.
5. In a large bowl, mix zucchini, pesto, and lemon sauce. Top with roasted tomatoes and a sprig of parsley.
6. When eating, I recommend crushing up the tomatoes until the pasta. Enjoy!

Bears, Beets, Battlestar Galactica: An Eastern-European Supper

On the menu:
Charkhlis chogi (Roasted beets in a tart cherry sauce)
Katmis satsivi (Chicken in walnut sauce)
Pkhali (Spinach and walnut salad)

Here we have a hearty meal--one that took me almost three hours in the kitchen to turn out, but the time passed quickly, filled with glittering aromas of cinnamon, garlic, cherries, and my new spicy friend, fenugreek, among other things!

I'd never even heard of fenugreek before tackling Georgian cuisine (that is, Georgia the country, not the state. No peaches included.) But I was delighted to find that it smelled of roasted sugar, and balanced perfectly with the walnuts used in two of the above dishes.

My personal challenge this week was beets. My main association are the pickled sort from Thanksgiving. Not bad at all, but nothing I'd ever sought out beyond that holiday.

I wanted to do something a bit different, and when I found Saveur's menu for a "Georgian Supra," including Charkhlis chogi--or roasted beets topped with a tart cherry sauce--I rejoiced. Roasting tends to make any vegetable delicious, but I'd be able to put an exotic spin with flavors from an unexplored (culinarily speaking, but also in any other sense) country!

For the other dishes, I was pleased to find some shared ingredients, though the textures and resulting flavors were different enough to be complementary but not repetitive.

After I'd decided on the menu, the main issue was time management. I began with the beets, since their roasting would consume the most amount of time.

Pterodactyl!

About halfway through the beets roasting (at an hour and a half, the skin charred, but the flesh underneath was juicy and perfectly tender), I began cooking the chicken. I would recommend having the sauces for the Katmis satsivi and pkhali ready to go.

Walnut sauce for the chicken

Browning chicken

As the chicken simmered in the sauce, I moved onto the salad.

Then I removed the beets from the oven and let them cool for a few minutes in the freezer so I'd be able to peel and dice them.

After which I made the tart cherry sauce and finished off the walnut sauce by scooping out a ladle, beating it with an egg yolk, and then stirring the mixture back in.

Sprinkled with parsley and cilantro, and voila! Or whatever they say to show off in Georgia!

Lamazi--that means "beautiful."

Georgian Supra (adapted from Saveur)
Serves 3 - 4

Charkhlis Chogi (Roasted Beets in Tart Cherry Sauce)
3 medium beets, scrubbed
1/4 cup olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tbsp. unsalted butter2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 small yellow onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup dried tart cherries

1. Preheat oven to 400. Place beets in a small baking dish and drizzle with olive oil, then season with salt and pepper.
2. Cover dish with foil and roast in oven for 1 1/2 hours. Skin will be charred on outside. Place in freezer for five minutes until the beets are no longer too hot to handle.
3. Peel and dice into 1-inch pieces.
4. Prepare tart cherry sauce. Melt butter in medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and  cook until golden. Stir in cherries and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and let cook for 10 minutes.
5. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice. Pour over beets and let dish rest until room temperature 

Pkhali (Spinach and Walnut Salad)
1 lb. baby spinach
1/2 cup toasted walnuts
1/4 cup cilantro
1/4 cup parsley
1/2 teaspoon hot paprika
1/4 teaspoon fenugreek
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 small yellow onion, roughly chopped

1. Blanch spinach in large pot of boiling salted water for 1 - 2 minutes, until wilted. Using slotted spoon, add to bowl of ice water to stop cooking. Then drain, squeezing out as much water as possible. Puree in food processor, then set aside.
2. Puree with walnuts with cilantro, parsley, spices, oil, vinegar, garlic, and onion. Combine with pureed spinach.

Katmis Satsivi
1 1/2 cups toasted walnuts, plus 1/4 cup roughly chopped for garnish
2 1/2 cups chicken stock
3/4 cups roughly chopped cilantro
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
2 jalapeno slices, seeded and finely chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
3 tbsp. olive oil
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1 ½" pieces
1 1/2 tsp. sweet paprika
1/2 tsp. hot paprika
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. ground fenugreek
4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 egg yolk
1 tbsp. red wine vinegar

1. In food processor, combine walnuts and 1/4 cup stock in food processor and puree until smooth. Then add half of cilantro, garlic, and onion, plus jalapeno, salt and pepper and puree until smooth again.
2. Brown remaining garlic and onion in olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add chicken and brown, turning, for 7 - 8 minutes. Add in spices and cook until aromatic. Then add walnut sauce and stock and bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium and reduce for 35 minutes.
3. Scoop out one ladle of sauce and beat in a small bowl with an egg yolk. Return to sauce, stirring to combine, and cook for five more minutes. 
4. Garnish with walnuts and cilantro.

Spring Quinoa Salad

First I must give thanks to the weather.

The cold and rain of last week let up just in time for my visit home, where I had the privilege of enjoying a couple of boat rides, visiting with old friends, and cooking up delicious treats on my parents' patio.

Then when I got back to town, we visited the arboretum down the road--now I'm thinking of opening a facility called "Arboretum and Weep!" It will be a devastating, tree-studded area.

But after a weekend of heavy eating and late nights/early mornings, it felt fantastic to return to my seasonal endeavors and serve up a light, tasty dinner.

I chose radishes for this week. With turnips and cauliflower, I opted to roast in order to make them more palatable. Here though, I wanted to appreciate the taste of the radish raw.

I knew I wanted to pair them with the asparagus in my refrigerator. When I saw a few recipes online uniting the two with quinoa, I remembered one of my favorite dishes to prepare--Quinoa and Pistachio Salad with Moroccan Pesto. 

After a bit of reconfiguration, I put together a dish with similar flavors but a few new highlights.

The pistachio pesto had a robust but springy flavor, heightened by garlic and lemon zest.

I readied my fresh vegetables before preparing the quinoa.

Then once the quinoa was fully cooked, I stirred in the pesto, then the asparagus, chickpeas, and radishes.

The pesto provided a garlicky, nutty boost to the quinoa--which I always like to cook with a little grapefruit juice--and I found the radishes to be not just a crunchy garnish, but a terrific receptacle for flavor.

So lovely too!


Spring Quinoa Salad
Serves 4 (as side).

3 cups uncooked quinoa
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup veggie broth
3/4 cup grapefruit juice
Pistachio Pesto
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed
6 - 8 radishes, thinly sliced
1 cup chickpeas

Pistachio Pesto
1/2 cup cilantro
3/4 cup fresh basil
1/2 cup roasted pistachios, shelled
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1/4 cup grated parmesan
1/4 cup olive oil

1. Make pistachio pesto by combining all ingredients listed above in a food processor. Add more olive oil if needed. Reserve pesto in a bowl until quinoa is cooked.
2. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Add asparagus and cook for 5 - 6 minutes until bright green. Transfer to bowl of ice water to stop cooking.
3. In another medium pot, bring water, broth, and grapefruit juice to a boil. Add quinoa, cover, and reduce to a simmer. Cook for fifteen minutes, until all liquid is absorbed.
4. Meanwhile, remove asparagus from ice water. Pat dry and cut into 1-inch stalks.
5. When quinoa is finished cooking, transfer it into a large bowl. Stir in pistachio pesto. Then add asparagus, chickpeas, and radishes.
6. Serve!

Asparagus and Tomato Penne with Lemon Herb Sauce

'Tis the season!

I've been wanting to cook with fresher produce, both for health reasons and to have a new project that would motivate me to blog more.

I don't want to limit myself entirely to in-season produce, but I hope to center the weekly recipe around an item I can get fresh--surrounded by other quality items.

It's not quite spring here, but I thought I'd kick things off with a springy pasta highlighting asparagus, which I complemented with juicy tomatoes, yellow peppers, goat cheese, and a creamy lemon sauce.

I found a recipe for creamy lemon sauce from Martha Holmberg's Modern Sauces, but I diverted a bit, using milk, a bit of vinegar and sugar, and butter instead of cream, and lemon juice instead of white wine.

For the vegetables, I simply roasted them in a large skillet, starting off with the asparagus, then adding the tomatoes and peppers, and finally the dandelion greens [side salad: I've never used or eaten these before! I was a bit nervous. The girl at Whole Foods seemed bewildered too. We briefly, somewhat jokingly pondered if there had been a miscommunication between Floral and Produce. But it ended up more than okay!].

And finally it all came together!

Asparagus and Tomato Penne with Lemon Herb Sauce
Serves 4 - 6.

1 bunch asparagus (washed, ends trimmed, cut into 1.5-inch pieces)
8 oz. grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup diced yellow peppers
1 tablespoon olive oil
16 oz. whole-wheat penne, cooked al dente 
1 cup pasta water, reserved
2 cups dandelion greens, roughly chopped
Lemon Herb Sauce (ingredients and recipe below)
8 oz. goat cheese, crumbled


1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high. Add olive oil and wait till shimmering.
2. Add asparagus and saute for 2 - 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add tomatoes and peppers and cook, now stirring often, until the tomatoes and asparagus begin to brown.
4. Add chopped dandelion greens and cook until completely wilted.
5. Remove skillet from heat and combine with pasta in large bowl. Stir in lemon herb sauce.
6. Top each serving with goat cheese crumbles.

Lemon Herb Sauce (to be prepared in conjunction with pasta)
1 tsp butter and 1 tablespoon butter, divided
2 tablespoons finely diced shallots
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 1/2 cup chicken broth
2 fresh sprigs thyme, minced
3/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 pinch sugar
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tablespoon Parmigiano-Reggiano, freshly grated

1. Melt one teaspoon butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Add shallots and cook 1 minutes.
3. Add lemon juice and turn heat to high, bringing to a boil for 3 - 4 minutes.
4. Add broth and thyme, returning to a boil for 8 - 10 minutes.
5. Add milk, vinegar, and sugar and boil for another 7 - 8 minutes.
6. Stir in tablespoon of butter until melted.
7. Remove skillet from heat, stir in lemon zest, and grate in Parmigiano-Reggiano.