Sprouted Bean Trio Salad with Grilled Zucchini and Leeks

Sprouted Bean Trio Salad

I made this salad for a neighborhood potluck dinner—using some more of the 3 pound bag of truRoots Sprouted Bean Trio that I bought months ago at Costco. It says on the bag to boil in water for 5 minutes. Don’t believe everything you read—it takes 15 minutes and then needs to stand, covered for another 10. After that you can drain the beans and finish this protein-rich salad.

1 cup sprouted beans

3 to 4 small zucchini

1 leek, white part only

1 carrot, grated

¼ cup chopped summer savory leaves

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

¼ teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon Real Salt

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Bring 3 cups water and the sprouted beans to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand, covered for 10 minutes. Drain and place in a bowl. Refrigerate.

While the sprouted beans are cooking and standing, heat up the grill and slice the zucchini. Toss the zucchini with some extra virgin olive oil, a sprinkling of red wine vinegar and salt and pepper. Cook on the grill until much of the zucchini has golden brown marks. Dump onto a cutting board and chop into 1-inch pieces. Add to the sprouted beans.

Cut the leek in half and spray the cut sides with cooking spray. Lay the leek halves face down on the grill and cook until a light char appears. Chop the charred leeks and sauté them in a bit of olive oil until soft. Add to the beans along with the grated carrot and the summer savory.

Make a dressing with the ¼ cup of olive oil,  red wine vinegar, cumin, salt and cayenne. Pour over the sprouted beans and vegetables and stir very well. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour or overnight.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

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Red Wine and Shallot Jam with Vanilla Bean

I checked a great cookbook out of the library a couple of weeks ago—The Flexitarian Table by Peter Berley.  Flexitarian unites the words flexible and vegetarian—and many of the recipes offer a choice—you could prepare the meat version or the vegetarian version. We don’t eat much meat in our house so I wasn’t looking for this option, but I had read a promising review of the book and I am always seeking new workable, creative and delicious recipes.

To accompany Schnitzel, made either with seitan or chicken livers, author Berley provides recipes for Bitter Greens and a Red Wine-Shallot Compote. We find bitter greens in our Ranui Garden’s CSA box at least every other week and this is the second week for shallots. In fact, I have been hoarding my shallots for just this recipe, so now I have extra for something else. I made this variation of the compote and we will enjoy it with sautéed kale, on toast or crackers with goat cheese, or maybe with some venison if our hunting friends are generous.

Red Wine and Shallot Jam with Vanilla Bean

1 pound shallots

1 1/2 cups red wine

1 cup water

¼ cup agave syrup

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

½ teaspoon Real Salt

1 vanilla bean

Freshly ground black pepper

Cut the shallots in half lengthwise. Tear the dry outside layers off and remove the tip and the tail. Slice thinly crosswise and put into a medium skillet. Add the red wine, water, agave syrup, both vinegars and the salt. Split the vanilla bean down the middle with a knife and scrape out the tiny seed pods. Add both the vanilla bean and the seeds to the skillet. Grind a generous amount of black pepper into the skillet, at least 20 turns of the grinder. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a low simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid is gone, about 1 ½ hours. Keep cooking and stirring well after you think the jam is finished; the shallots will become much softer and more jam-like if you just keep on cooking.

Serve warm, or spoon into jars and refrigerate or freeze until you are ready to serve. It will keep about 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups jam.

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How to sell beets to a beet hater

• Start with golden beets, they are sweeter and the earthy flavor inherent in beets is less than in the red ones.
• Roast the beets, in the oven or on the grill—the result is concentrated sweetness–much more yummy than if the beets were boiled.
• Catch the beet-hater off guard by tossing roasted golden beets into a grain salad with spicy vinaigrette.
• When you acquire beets topped with greens as gorgeous as the ones in today’s Ranui Gardens’ CSA box—wilt the greens and incorporate them into the salad.
• Add roasted chopped walnuts and a bit of feta cheese, for crunch and saltiness.
  

  Golden Beets and their Greens

Barley Salad with Golden Beets and their Greens

4 medium beets with their green tops

1 cup pearl barley, rinsed

½ teaspoon plus another ½ teaspoon Real Salt

1 tablespoon coconut oil

2 teaspoons yellow mustard seeds

2 teaspoons cumin seeds

1 cup chopped red onion

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons rice vinegar or freshly squeezed lemon juice

Up to 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 or 3 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

½ cup coarsely chopped walnuts, lightly toasted

Heat a grill or oven to medium-high or 350° F. Cut the tops off the beets and set them aside. Gently scrub any dirt from the beets and wrap them up in foil. Roast the beets on the grill until they are-fork-tender, 45 minutes to an hour. Let them cool until you can handle them and remove the peel with your fingers. Dice the beets into ½-inch cubes.

Meanwhile, in a saucepan bring 3 to 4 cups of water to a boil. Stir in the barley and ½ teaspoon of the salt and return to a simmer. Cook until the barley is tender to your tooth, about 30 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Wash the beet greens. Strip away and discard the stems.  Cut the greens into ribbons, about ¼-inch thick.

Heat the coconut oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the mustard and cumin seeds along with the onion and and cook until the onion turns translucent. the mustard seeds will pop. Add the beet greens and cook, stirring every so often, until the greens have wilted, about 5 minutes.

Mix the beets, barley and wilted greens in a bowl. In another bowl, whisk the olive oil with the vinegar, the remaining salt and the cayenne. (Use less cayenne if you want the salad less spicy.) Pour over the beets, barley and greens, and stir until everything is coated with the dressing. Refrigerate until the beets and barley are cold.

To serve, toss in the feta and walnuts. Taste and adjust the salt and cayenne if you determine the salad needs more seasoning.

Makes about 6 cups.

Golden Beet and Barley Salad

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Real Salt, Summer Savory and Garlic

Real Salt, Summer Savory and Garlic

Let’s talk about salt, the mineral that we eat, critical ingredient in cooking, enhancer/improver of food, sodium chloride, sprinkled throughout world history for many reasons more than culinary.

Is all salt the same NaCl, sodium chloride, be it table salt, kosher salt, flake salt, rock salt or sea salt?

Technically and chemically yes, salt is salt, but there is more to salt than sodium chloride, and I’d like to convince you to go think that way when it comes to buying, seasoning with, eating and enjoying salt.

I think I have known for a long time that salt is not all the same, that industrial refined sodium chloride is different (and less healthful) than salt that’s allowed to keep more of its natural qualities, be it mined salt or evaporated salt. A couple of years ago I attended a salt tasting workshop in Portland, Oregon. Our “selmelier” was Mark Bitterman, who showed us in a short two hours how geography and environment (terroir) and production methods can affect the crystallized shapes, flavor, color and mineral makeup of salt. We tasted more than 20 salts, including flaked salt from Japan, evaporated over fire, fine delicate grey salt skimmed from the sea and evaporated by the sun, and pink rock salt mined in Pakistan.

Then I read his book, Salted: A Manifesto on the World’s Most Essential Mineral, with Recipes. Bitterman teaches readers how and why and to appreciate salt’s diversity, especially when it comes to the kitchen. He talks about the craft and history of salt, with sidebars about our sense of taste, the science of salt and its relationship to our body, and the iodization of salt. Since reading his book, I have expanded my pantry to include some wonderful “finishing” salts. I love the sweet flavor of Murray River flake salt from Australia on fresh vegetables and the aromatic way black truffle salt dresses up potatoes and eggs.

For a good personal tasting illustration, try fleur de sel from France contrasted against Morton kosher salt, a tiny pinch of each salt baked as a finish on a buttery chocolate shortbread. See for yourself.

Why do I specify Real Salt in many if not most of my recipes? It’s a good cooking salt, for pasta water and baking, any time the salt will dissolve in the food. Real Salt is mined in Central Utah, near the town of Redmond. It comes to us unrefined, with more than 60 trace minerals intact. It is not processed by heat nor does it come from a huge industrial plant that makes sodium chloride mainly for fertilizer and deicing. (I am not paid by Redmond Trading Company to say this, nor do they give me free salt.)

I like the sweet (as opposed to bitter) taste of Real Salt and its slight pink color, and the calico flecks of brown and grey from the extra minerals. (But, give Real Salt the chocolate shortbread taste test above and you’ll hopefully see why there are better tasting salts for supplying the final “finish” sparkle to food.)

My friend Teri excitedly called me a couple of weeks ago about a salt recipe with fresh herbs and garlic. She listens to The Splendid Table on NPR religiously every weekend and had just heard Sally Schneider describe Tuscan Herb Salt. I missed the initial airing of Sally’s conversation with host Lynne Rosetto Kasper, but not to worry–The Splendid Table is easy to hear later as a podcast and the website has the recipe links and more. Teri knew Sally’s recipe would be fabulous with most garden-fresh herbs. Here is my version with this week’s Ranui Gardens CSA summer savory. Try it on fresh sliced tomatoes or lightly steamed green beans.

summer savory salt

Real Salt, Summer Savory and Garlic

1 clove garlic, peeled

2 teaspoons plus 4 teaspoons larger flake salt (like kosher)

½ cup fresh summer savory leaves

Drop the garlic and 2 teaspoons of the salt into the work bowl of a food processor while the food processor is running and process until the garlic is uniformly chopped. Add the summer savory leaves and pulse until the leaves are well chopped. Transfer to a baking sheet and mix in the remaining salt. Let the pan sit out for a few days until the herbs and garlic are obviously dry. Store in a jar.

Makes about 1/3 cup.

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Shaved Chioggia Beets, Arugula, Peaches and Sweet and Salty Pecans

I used to think that chioggia was Italian for candy-stripe; now I believe that is not true—although chioggia beets have candy-cane appearance when sliced. This salad, with the sweeter than regular beet chioggias, raw and very thinly sliced, shows off their red and white circles. You really do need a special tool, a culinary mandoline, to shave beets very thinly—unless you are very talented with a very sharp knife.

Shaved Chioggia Beets, Arugula, Peaches and Sweet and Salty Pecans

For each person at the table, prepare a decent handful of arugula, preferable with the stem removed, a half of a local peach, one or two small chioggia beets and about a tablespoon of the pecans.

Sweet and Salty Pecans

For the pecans: Pour about 2 tablespoons of maple syrup in a small skillet. Stir in 1 teaspoon of olive oil, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ cup of chopped pecans. Cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the pecans are toasted, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate and allow to cool.

For the beets: Using a culinary French or Japanese mandoline, shave the beets crosswise as thin as possible.

Cut the peaches into slices about 1/3-inch thick.

In bowl, whisk 2 teaspoons of red wine vinegar and 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil together. Add a pinch or two of salt.

Just before serving, gently toss the arugula with a small amount of the dressing. In a bowl, do the same with the beets and peach slices. Arrange the arugula on plates, followed by the beets and peaches. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper and garnish with the candied pecans.

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Basil and Arugula Pesto

Lush Basil

When life gives you basil, make pesto. Pesto stash in the freezer will brighten any winter day—and stirred into pasta, ooh-la-la. Make a point to use at least some of your fresh pesto immediately—it is the essence of summer. Lick it off a spoon if you must. Pack any remainder away in the freezer.

This is my basic pesto recipe. I use all basil if that is what I have, but it’s fun to add other greens too. And don’t be stuck on walnuts for the nuts. Feeling luxurious? Use pine nuts. Sometimes the only nuts I have in the pantry are sunflower seeds and I toast and grind them instead. Pesto is also wonderful with pecans or pumpkin seeds. Deer Valley chefs use sliced almonds.

Basil and Arugula Pesto

2 large garlic cloves

3 ounces Parmesan cheese, broken in pieces or already grated (don’t even think of using that sawdust in the green can)

1 cup tightly packed stemmed fresh basil

1 cup tightly packed arugula leaves

1/2 cup walnuts

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

With the motor of the food processor running, mince the garlic by dropping it through the feed tube. Process until it is very fine. Add the cheese, basil, walnuts and salt. Process for about 10 seconds, stopping to move things around if they get hung up. With the machine running, pour oil through the feed tube in a thin stream, processing until everything is well blended.

Makes about 1 cup.

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Eat your Ks and Qs

Happy Independence Day 2012. Enjoy our freedom and celebrate with this salad featuring two nutritional powerhouse ingredients, kale and quinoa, k and q.

Kale and Quinoa Salad

I took advantage of this week’s Ranui Gardens CSA assortment to incorporate as many veggies as possible—but know that this grain salad is very flexible. Just start with about 2 cups of any cooked grain, chop your own mixture of crunchy and leafy vegetables and allium (like scapes or scallions or shallots) and dress with acidic vinaigrette. For extra crunch and protein, toss in toasted affordable sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds, or splurge with pine nuts.

For today’s salad I steamed tri-color quinoa, but that is up to you. I also wilted the chopped kale, an idea from girlfriend Teri. We agree that it turns the kale more emerald in color and helps it absorb the dressing.

 Quinoa and Kale Salad

1 cup quinoa

1/2 teaspoon plus 1 teaspoon Real Salt

1 ½ cups water

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

1/3 cup rice vinegar, or freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 clove garlic, minced

Large pinch cayenne pepper

Garlic scapes, as desired

Green shallots, as desired

1 bunch curly kale, washed

1 cup chopped pea shoots

2 to 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro or flat-leaf parsley

Radishes, (or jicama or water chestnuts) cut in ½-inch dice

Rinse the quinoa well with hot water to remove the bitter saponin coating. Strain in a wire strainer.

In a saucepan, bring the water and ½ teaspoon of the salt to a boil. Add the quinoa, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the water is absorbed. (As for rice, do not stir, but check every so often by tilting the pan to the side to see if there is any water left to absorb.) When the quinoa is tender and the water is gone, let stand, covered, and allow to cool.

Make a dressing with the olive oil, rice vinegar, garlic, remaining salt and cayenne. Set aside.

Toss the garlic scapes with olive oil and salt and pepper. Cook them on a grill and chop them, or chop them and sauté in a pan until tender. Chop the green shallots and sauté with a bit of oil as well. Put these in a large bowl.

Strip and discard the stems from the kale—them chop into ¼-inch by 1-inch strips. If you wish, microwave for about 30 seconds. Add the kale to the bowl, along with the pea shoots, cilantro and radishes. If your refrigerator offers other interesting vegetables, add them as well.

Dump the cooled quinoa on top of the veggies and pour the vinaigrette on top. Toss everything well. Season to taste with more salt and cayenne. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes. If you are adding nuts or seeds, toss them into the salad just before sharing with your friends and family.

Makes 8 to 10 servings, of course depending on what you put in your salad.

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Grilled Portobello Mushrooms Stuffed with Spinach and Arugula

We just aren’t big grillers here at our house. Meat is pretty much never prepared and even though the weather has been divine, we have not been cooking outdoors. Two  years ago we didn’t have a grill at all, until I salvaged one at Recycle Utah and Robbie spent a day fixing and cleaning it. That grill continues to serve us well and last night was its inaugural firing for the season.

I confess we still had some of last week’s arugula and spinach left in the fridge, looking decent but begging to be used. (Last Tuesday they were washed, spun-dry, wrapped in a kitchen towel and plastic baggies.)

more time for thyme in a jar with water

The thyme continues to be healthy, standing in a jar of water, also waiting. When my friend Teri came from Costco and shared her tray of portobellos and a pack of (sliced!) fresh mozzarella, that completed my cooking inspiration—it was time to break out the grill.

I posted a recipe for Chard-stuffed portobellos once, in 2010. This one is similar, with an easy marinade, different filling and cheese. Use my ideas to create your own recipe. E.g. since we have garlic scapes in our Ranui Gardens CSA box this week, consider chopping a few to sauté with the onion.

portobellos, gills scraped and with gills

Portobellos are really just overgrown mushrooms that the mushroom farmers cultivate. Some people don’t tell you to scrape out the dark brown, almost black gills on the inside of the cap, but your mushrooms will be more appealing if you do–those gills color everything they touch.

weed vs (organic) arugula

And speaking of appealing, I also think it important to strip the leaves from arugula stems. Those stems never soften like the spicy leaves, and I find the texture unpleasant. Besides, when you strip the stems, you can inspect the bundle and sort out any weeds that snuck into the pick.

Grilled Portobello Mushrooms stuffed with Spinach and Arugula

4 large portobello mushrooms

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme

Real salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 cups arugula, packed

2 cups spinach leaves, packed

Extra virgin olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

Fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced and cut into pieces

Tomato sauce, optional

Using a spoon, scrape out and discard the dark gills from the portobellos. Cut off the stem so it is flush with the underside of the mushroom. In a shallow bowl whisk the vinegar, olive oil, thyme and plenty of salt and pepper to make a marinade. Add the mushrooms, turning them occasionally so all sides are flavored.

Pick through the arugula and spinach, striping away and discarding the tougher stems. Chop coarsely.

Heat a grill to medium high heat. Grill the marinated portobellos about 5 minutes on each side, until tender. Be sure to save the leftover marinade.

Meanwhile prepare the filling. Heat some oil in a large skillet on medium flame. Add the onion and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes, then add the garlic and cook another minute. Stir in the chopped greens and cook until they wilt. Add the leftover mushroom marinade and continue to cook and stir until the liquid evaporates. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Grilled Portobello Mushrooms Stuffed with Spinach and Arugula

When the portobellos are tender, transfer them to a plate, gill side up. Divide the spinach and arugula filling among the mushrooms. Arrange mozzarella on top, more or less, as you prefer. Return to the grill and cook about 10 minutes, until the cheese has melted and has a bit of color.

Serve with tomato sauce, if desired.

Makes 4 servings.

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Maple Pecan Vinaigrette

Tonight we had a salad of arugula with thin slices of the fresh-out-of-the-ground carrots and skinny French breakfast radishes, so I made this sweet dressing to complement arugula’s bitter bite.  It was perfect.

1 clove garlic, minced

½ teaspoon Real Salt

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon maple syrup

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons chopped pecans

1 tablespoon sugar

3 handfuls arugula leaves

2 or 3 French breakfast radishes

2 carrots

In a small bowl, whisk the garlic salt and vinegar until the salt mostly dissolves. Whisk in the maple syrup and the olive oil. Season to taste with freshly ground pepper.

Ina small skillet over medium high heat, stir the pecans and the sugar with a wooden spoon until the sugar melts. Remove from the heat and transfer to a bowl to cool.

Tear arugula leaves and slice breakfast radishes and carrots. Toss together. Sprinkle with the candied pecans and drizzle with the maple vinaigrette.

Makes enough dressing for 3 salads.

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Arugula Salad with Sherry Vinaigrette and Candied Pecans

Last night I had mizuna and roasted summer squash salad for $5–at local’s night at a local restaurant. Now we don’t have any squash in our Ranui Garden’s CSA box this week and it’s arugula instead of mizuna, but the concept is transferable; excellent fresh veggies with a light and slightly sweet dressing. Use the ratio you wish of the peppery arugula to salad greens.

½ cup pecan pieces

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons sherry wine vinegar

½ teaspoon Real Salt

¼ teaspoon white pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

2 teaspoons honey

6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 or 2 carrot, peeled into strips

Arugula leaves, stems removed

Ranui salad greens

In a heavy-bottomed skillet, over medium heat, stir the pecans and sugar until the nuts are toasted and the sugar melts into them. Set aside to cool. Break them apart into pieces.

Make a vinaigrette dressing by whisking the vinegar, salt, pepper, garlic and honey together,  then whisking the in the olive oil.

Toss the greens with the carrot strips, candied pecans and the dressing. Arrange on plates.

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