Pan Seared Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Chestnuts

This is my adaptation of Gordon Ramsay's recipe.  I made these to accompany my Kabocha Risotto.  It is super quick and easy, but also is impressive enough to serve to company.  If you're not fond of brussels sprouts, this method of preparing them may just change your mind.

This recipe is delicious even without the chestnuts.  The sprouts will still want some kind of sweetness, so just add a bit of sugar as you're searing them.  You can also experiment with using an acid other than lemon juice at the end.  I'm fond of using apple cider vinegar if I don't have lemons on hand.

You can see Kabocha Risotto in the background.

Ingredients:

Brussels Sprouts

3 pieces of thick cut bacon cut into 1 cm wide strips.

at least 5 large peeled, chopped chestnuts

1 lemon

Butter

Salt

Pepper

Equipment:

Spatula

Iron Skillet

Knife

Cutting Board

1. To prepare the brussels sprouts, cut off the bottom of each sprout, peel away the outer leaves, then cut the larger ones in half.  If the sprouts are small enough, leave them whole.  You're trying to make everything roughly the same size, so it will all cook evenly.
2. Heat a pot of salted water until boiling, then blanch the prepared sprouts for 2 minutes.  
3. Simultaneously, heat your iron skillet, melt the butter, and fry the bacon until it is crispy.  Add a sprinkle of salt and pepper.
4. Add the sprouts directly to the skillet with a slotted spoon and sear them. 
5. Right before your brussels sprouts are ready to eat, add your chestnuts.  Next, add some lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice.  Give your dish a stir, then plate and enjoy.

Curried Cabbage with Raisins

I ignored a head of cabbage for three weeks before I finally decided what to do with it.  A few of the outer leaves had been used for coleslaw, but one can only eat so much slaw per month.  The recipe needed to be easy, quick, and warm, and I finally found something that fit the bill.  I like the sweetness of the raisins, but the recipe is fine without them since you'll get some sweetness from the shallots.  Serve this festive dish over rice with a few other brightly colored veggies.

The great thing about this method of cooking cabbage is that it will be fine with any number of substitutions.  If you don't have curry powder, use garam masala.  Also, if you don't have fresh turmeric, use powdered and reduce the amount to 1 tsp.  Finally, if you don't have mustard seeds, use about two tablespoons coarse mustard and reduce the vinegar a bit, since mustard has vinegar already.  If you do this substitution, don't use a type of mustard with horseradish, as it won't play nicely with the other flavors.

That yellowness is great for stimulating your immune system.  Turmeric for health! :)

Ingredients:

1 tbs cooking oil

1 c. shallots, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbs turmeric, minced

1/2 tbs. cumin

1 tbs mustard seeds

1 tbs curry powder

1 cabbage, sliced

1/4 c. rasins, soaked

1/2 c. chicken broth

1/4 c. apple cider vinegar

Salt and Pepper, to taste

Sliced tomatoes

1. Chop all the veggies.  
2. Heat oil in a large skillet (I use a wok), and heat the cumin and mustard seeds until they pop.   
3. Add the curry powder, tumeric, shallots, and garlic and saute until onions are translucent and the tumeric releases its color.
4. Add the chicken broth, and once it warms add the cabbage and raisins.  Cook until it is the texture you like, stirring to distribute the color.
5. Dress with the acv, and add salt and pepper to taste.
6. Serve over rice, topped with tomatoes.  Enjoy!

Tomato and Parsnip Soup

It has been colder than usual this week, so I've been craving soup.  This recipe is inspired by the one in The New England Soup Factory Cookbook, and if you like parsnips you'll most likely enjoy this soup.  I love parsnips, but K apparently does not.  Now I have something like four cups of it to myself as of day three.  This stuff is deceptively filling, so I should probably can some of it and expand my collection.  Yes--should.

Mellow, delicious, warm-you-up-fast goodness.

About Parsnips:

The best time to eat this carrot relative is during winter, as cold temperatures stimulate the plant to produce more sugars to ward off freezing.  This vegetable is very sweet and hardy, so it is one of my favorite winter vegetables.  Some people dislike the radishy/turnipy flavor.  To be honest, I wasn't a fan the first time I had them, but things have changed.

Most of the good stuff is either in or right below the peel, so to get the maximum nutrition from this veg don't peel it.  Speaking of peeling, parsnips brown when cut.  To prevent this, soak freshly cut pieces in cold water, as you would potatoes(this will prevent oxidation).

This recipe makes quite a bit of soup, so I recommend making half of it if you're not sure about parsnips.

 Ingredients:

2 tbs cooking oil

4 cloves garlic

1 large yellow onion, diced

2 ribs of celery, sliced

12 parsnips, sliced

6 cups peeled tomatoes (I used canned)

2 cups tomato or V8 juice

4 cups vegetable stock

1 cup cream

2 tbsp fresh dill, chopped

salt and pepper, to taste

Equipment:

blender

knife and cutting board

large, heavy-bottomed pot with lid

1. Chop the veggies into pieces--the smaller they are, the faster they'll cook.  This soup will be blended, so don't worry too much about the cutting.
2. Heat oil in the pot, then saute the fresh veggies for 10 minutes.
3. Add everything else except for the cream, dill, and s/p, then simmer, covered, for 35 minutes.
4. Puree the soup.  If you have one, use a hand blender.  If you don't, then work very carefully in steaming hot batches.
5. Stir in the cream, dill, and s/p.  I added a bit of 100,000 SHU cayenne (which, according to the scale, shouldn't exist), because hotter is better.
6. Garnish nicely.  I used fresh tomatoes and some cilantro, but would have used fresh dill if there'd been extra.