Pan-fried cauliflower with spices, lime and pistachios
Beautifully browned and coated with flavorful spices, these florets can be turned into a vegetarian meal by serving them over a bed of cooked farro or pasta. America's Test Kitchen explains that cutting the cauliflower into top-to-bottom planks and then into flat-sided florets maximizes the surface area for plenty of flavorful browning. The cooking process starts in a covered, cold skillet with a little olive oil; over medium-high heat, the contents are allowed to steam in their own moisture for 5minutes before you remove the lid and start the browning.
Yield: 6 servings
INGREDIENTS
1 medium-large cauliflower, about 2 pounds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon coriander seeds 2tablespoons plus 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided use
Salt and pepper to taste
3/4 teaspoon ground paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon minced lime zest
3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
1/3 cup roasted and lightly salted shelled pistachios 1lime, cut into wedges
Optional on the side: Plain Greek yogurt
DIRECTIONS
1. Trim off outer leaves of cauliflower and cut bottom flush with the head. Place cut side down on cutting board. Cut into 3/4-inch wide slices, top to bottom. Cut around core and remove (save for stock or soup if you wish). Cut large florets into smaller, 1 1/2-inch pieces.
2. Heat cumin seeds and coriander seeds in a 12-inch dry, nonstick skillet over medium heat, shaking handle frequently, 2-3 minutes, until fragrant and lightly browned. Transfer to spice grinder or mortar and pestle and coarsely grind. I often grind the spices by placing them in a small zipper-style bag and pounding them with a rolling pin or the bottom of a saucepan. Your choice.
3. Wipe out the skillet. Combine 2tablespoons oil and cauliflower in skillet and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover skillet and cook on medium-high heat until florets start to brown and edges start to become translucent (do not lift lid), about 5 minutes. Remove lid and continue to cook until florets are golden brown in many spots, about 10-12 minutes.
4. Push cauliflower to the side of skillet. Add 2tablespoons oil, paprika, cayenne, cumin-coriander mixture and lime zest and cook, stirring with rubber spatula for about 30seconds. Toss together. Cook until the cauliflower is tender but still firm. Remove from heat and stir in mint and pistachios. Taste and adjust salt and/or pepper if needed. Serve with lime wedges (I like to squeeze one wedge on top of the mixture). If desired, add a dollop of Greek yogurt to each serving.
Salad of Bibb lettuce, radicchio, endive and pecorino with cheese toasts
I found this salad recipe from PBS television star Lidia Bastianich's newsletter. Bastianich, a restaurateur and cookbook author, pairs a salad of radicchio, endive, apple and pecorino cheese with skillet-toasted cheese toasts. I've modified her recipe to add Bibb lettuce to the mix and reduce the amount of radicchio and endive. Instead of Granny Smith apples, I use unpeeled Fuji apples. She uses walnuts in her salad. Me? Pistachios, of course. Often, I grate a little extra Fontina and add that to the salad. And a warning: The cheese toasts are so scrumptious, they are very hard to resist. And they pair deliciously with the salad. A must-have.
Yield: 4large servings
INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup finely grated Fontina cheese
1/4 cup finely grated pecorino cheese or pecorino Romano cheese
11/2 tablespoons finely chopped, roasted and salted pistachios
Extra-virgin olive oil for brushing skillet
4long slices country bread, such as La Brea Tuscan, about 4 by 6 inches
Freshly ground black pepper
Dressing: 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar, 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, salt and pepper to taste 1small head of Bibb lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces 1/2 medium head radicchio, torn or cut into bite-size pieces
2heads Belgian endive, sliced crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces
2Fuji apples, unpeeled, cored, cut into thick matchsticks, about 1/2-inch wide and 21/2 inches long 1/2 cup roasted and lightly salted shelled pistachios, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup grated pecorino cheese
1/4 cup coarsely chopped Italian parsley
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh chives
DIRECTIONS
1. Prepare cheese toast: Heat a large, nonstick skillet on medium-low heat. Place Fontina, pecorino and 1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped pistachios in small bowl; toss with your fingers. Brush preheated skillet lightly with olive oil. Add bread slices in single layer and let them sit until toasted and golden on the underside, 2-3 minutes. Flip and toast the other side, 2-3minutes. Season with pepper and sprinkle on cheese mixture. Let it melt for a minute; then gently flip. Press with a spatula to weigh bread down and compress it slightly. Cook until cheese is crisp and toasted and no longer sticks to the bottom of the pan, 1-2minutes. Set aside.
2. For the salad: Whisk the vinegar and oil in a large bowl. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add Bibb lettuce, radicchio, endive, apples and pistachios. Sprinkle with grated pecorino, parsley and chives; toss. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Serve with cheese toast.
Zucchini bread with pistachios and orange
I love this moist, sweet quick bread. I make short work of grating the zucchini by using the shredding disc on my food processor. Just to make sure the trimmed zukes pass through easily, cut them in half lengthwise before feeding them into the processor's feed tube. If you don't have a food processor, you can use the large holes on a box grater. To remove excess watery liquid, the grated zucchini is wrung out in a clean dish towel. The results are perfect. A loaf pan that measures 81/2 by 41/2 works best, but if you use a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan, start checking for doneness 5 minutes early.
Yield: 8 slices
INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 pounds zucchini, about 3 1/2 medium zucchini, trimmed, shredded
11/4 cups (83/4 ounces) packed light brown sugar 1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
11/2 cups (71/2 ounces) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (2 3/4 ounces) whole-wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt (reduce to 3/4 teaspoon if using lightly salted pistachios)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
3/4 cup roasted shelled pistachios, chopped 1tablespoon granulated sugar
DIRECTIONS
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Grease an 8 1/2-by-4 1/2-inch loaf pan.
2. Place grated zucchini in center of a clean dish towel. Gather ends together and twist tightly to drain as much liquid as possible, discarding liquid (you should have 1/2 to 2/3 cup). Whisk brown sugar, oil, eggs, vanilla and zest together in medium bowl. Fold in zucchini.
3. Whisk all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg and cardamom together in large bowl. Fold in zucchini mixture until just incorporated. Fold in pistachios. Pour batter into prepared pan and sprinkle with granulated sugar.
4. Bake until the top bounces back when gently pressed and toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 65-75minutes. Let bread cool in pan on wire rack for 30 minutes. Remove bread from pan and cool completely on wire rack.