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Who likes Brussels sprouts? These poor things have a bad wrap. The best way to rectify this is to put these little green globes on something that everyone loves. Pizza.

Ingredients

• Pizza dough (create your own, or buy it pre-made)
• 4 T olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced
• 8 oz fresh mozzarella, sliced
• 2 C Brussels sprouts, sliced

Directions

Saute Brussels sprouts in a T of olive oil over medium heat for approximately 10 minutes adding salt and pepper to taste. Note: if you use shredded moz instead of fresh, refrain from adding salt to the sprouts. In a separate pan, saute the garlic in the remaining olive oil over medium heat till the garlic starts to turn translucent.

Shape the pizza dough and spread the garlic olive oil on top. Use this instead of sauce. The sauted garlic provides a little sweetness to counteract any bitterness of the sprouts. Next cover the pizza dough with the cheese slices, covering the entire surface.

Then spread the sprouts over the surface of the pizza and pop into the oven for about 20 minutes or until the crust and cheese starts to brown. Pull out of the oven and let it sit for about 5 minutes before cutting, plating, and digging in.

I had chicory/escarole (I can’t tell the difference) twice so far in my farm share and neither time had I found a recipe that was anything above barely tolerable. Bitter greens are always easier to cook with if you blanch them first, but I always feel like I’m losing all the nutrients, and hence, the reason you’d eat greens in the first place. I was about to give up all hope and just turn to the Southern style of greens which consists of cooking with bacon, ham, or other pork parts. However, I was reading Wally Lamb’s I Know This Much is True and was inspired.  In it, a character talks about eating lentils and escarole as prepared back in the old country (Sicily). I thought, “I love Italian; I bet this will work.” Of course, there was no recipe in the book, so I had to make it up, to what I think is a pretty tasty concoction.

Ingredients

• 1/2 C French lentils
• 4 C Free range chicken stock
• 4 T olive oil
• 1/4 C chopped onions
• 1/2 C chopped carrots
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 2 C white wine
• 1 bunch chicory/escarole
• Salt and pepper
• 2 C cooked small pasta (I used orecchiette, but any small pasta would do)
• Grated Italian cheese for garnish (Parmesan, Asiago, etc.)

Directions

In a large frying pan over high heat, warm up some olive oil. Add the onions, celery, and half the carrots. Cook till the onions start to turn translucent. Add half the chicken broth, half the white wine, and all of the lentils. Stir and reduce the heat to medium. Add salt and pepper to taste. This will need to cook till the lentils are tender, which will take anywhere from 30-45 minutes depending on the bean. Let it simmer uncovered adding water if the liquid runs out.

Meanwhile, in another large pan over high heat, heat the rest of the olive oil. Saute the carrots for a few minutes. Then add the chicory and saute for another minute. Salt the greens with a few shakes of the salt shaker. Then add the rest of the chicken broth and white wine to the pan. Turn the heat down to medium-low and allow to simmer until the greens are wilted and tender. This takes about 20-30 minutes. At 20 minutes test the greens. If they still taste bitter, let them cook some more. Add more salt and pepper to taste.

When both the lentils and the greens are done, mix them together. In this way, you’re using the liquid that has many of the healthy nutrients from cooking down the greens. There should still be a little bit of liquid, but not a lot – it should be just a little bit saucy. Mix in the cooked pasta. Serve with a healthy helping of grated cheese.

I bought some grass-fed beef the other day and decided to make one of my favorite beef dishes with it – picadillo. I love the slightly sweet and tart taste of the tomatoes and raisins contrasted against the savoriness of the onion & garlic. This recipe is very easy and makes a huge amount. I froze half of it so I would have picadillo on hand. It is such a versatile dish: you can serve it over rice (with or without black beans) or use it as the filling for empanadas, tacos or burritos.

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 2 red or yellow bell peppers, finely diced
• 8 cloves garlic, minced
• 6 bay leaves
• 2 lb. ground beef
• 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
• 3/4 cup raisins
• 3/4 cup sliced green olives
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
• 4 teaspoons cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
• freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions

Heat olive oil over medium heat in a heavy skillet. Add onions, peppers, garlic & bay leaves and sauté until vegetables are tender, about 3-5 minutes. Add the ground beef and cook until mostly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes to let the flavors merge together.

This recipe comes from one of my favorite cookbooks, Going Solo in the Kitchen. The best thing about this cookbook is that it is designed for single cooks. So, most of the recipes only make one or two servings.

Ingredients

• olive oil
• 3/4 cup chopped onion
• 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh herbs – I used parsley
• 3/4 cup zucchini – grated & squeezed dry (about 1 small zucchini)
• 3/4 cup dry-curd cottage cheese or grated soft, white cheese
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 whole chicken breast, skin attached
• 1/2 lemon

Directions

Place zucchini, egg and cottage cheese in a small bowl.

Heat a small amount of olive oil over medium heat in a skillet. When the skillet is hot, add the onion. Sauté for about 3 minutes, until the onion is just tender. Add the parsley and sauté for another 30 seconds. Add to the bowl.

Place the chicken breast in a dish just about the size of the breast. Peel skin down from breast and squeeze the lemon over the skin. Spoon as much stuffing as will fit over breast and then replace skin. If you have extra stuffing you can place it under the chicken.

Drizzle a little olive oil over the skin and bake the chicken in a preheated 425 degree F oven for 25-30 minutes, or until cooked through and the skin is browned. Baste occasionally with the pan juices while the chicken is cooking. Let the chicken sit for at least 15 minutes before serving.

I haven’t been cooking from recipes much these days. Instead I’ve been focusing more on cooking my old favorites and learning new techniques. Recently, I’ve become fascinated by poaching. It isn’t a technique I regularly use, however, it is fast becoming one of my favorite cooking techniques. It is fast, easy, and not very messy! Great when you have a time crunch. Anyhow, I read about this technique of poaching fish in The Art of Simple Food (coincidentally a great book for learning new cooking techniques) and adapted it a little by adding peas. I added the peas when I began cooking the salmon which was a little to early so I’ve adjusted my recipe here. If you like your peas a little more well done throw them in when you begin cooking the salmon.

Ingredients

• 1 – 5 oz. piece of salmon
• 1/4 cup frozen peas
• 2 slices of lemon
• 1 teaspoon marjoram (thyme or oregano is good, too)
• 1 splash white wine
• 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• water, salt & pepper

Directions

Fill a small saucepan with 1-2 inches of water. Add lemon slices, herbs, and a large splash of wine. Bring the water to a simmer. In the meantime, salt and pepper both sides of the salmon. Once water is simmering, add salmon. Be careful not to let the mixture boil.. it should remain just simmering the entire cooking time. Cook salmon approximately 3 minutes per side (assuming a 1-2″ thick piece) adding peas halfway through cooking time. Remove salmon & peas from water then turn heat to high. Add mustard and butter and boil until sauce is reduced by two-thirds. Pour reduced sauce over salmon/peas and serve.