Leek + Swiss Chard Tart

I made this last week on a whim, as a serendipitous way to use up a random assortment of veggies + leftovers in my fridge. This is adapted from our favorite Smitten Kitchen, whose recipe I found when I googled "leek chard quiche" - original here. I cheated and didn't make the pastry, instead using the remaining spelt pie crust in my freezer post-sweet potato party. You can get the spelt crust at Whole Foods, and I find it's a healthier, nuttier, much less buttery alternative. Plus, using lots of chard cuts the custard needed so one is green-loading instead. I decadently added bacon to this, which made it extra-delicious and more like a veggie-loaded quiche lorraine, but it's not necessary. It would also be an interesting experiment to go crust-less altogether for a frittata-esque variation. Any way you decide, this is a great, simple, and delicious weeknight meal!

I served this with a roasted beet + goat cheese salad, but a simple green salad would be great too.

Leek and Swiss Chart Tart
adapted from Bon Appetit, October 1999 / from Smitten Kitchen, November 2009

1 pie crust, thawed (I used frozen spelt pie crust, but any sort of pastry would work)
2 tablespoons butter
3 large leeks (white and pale green parts only), coarsely chopped
Handful of fresh thyme, or 1/4 t. dried
A bit shy of 1 bunch Swiss chard, ribs removed, leaves chopped (about 2 1/2 - 3 cups; eyeball it)
1 1/4 cups cream (I used a random combo of some remaining creme fraiche I had plus 2% milk, which I whisked and measured to equal 1 1/4 c. Soy would probably work too)
3 large eggs
1/2 c. grated gruyere, fontina, or white cheddar, divided
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Pinch of ground nutmeg
2 slices bacon, diced, cooked, and blotted (optional)

Melt butter in large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Add leeks and thyme. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover; cook until leeks are very tender but not brown, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Add chard; saute until wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat; cool. If using bacon, stir into green mixture at this time.

Position rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 425°F. Whisk cream and next 5 ingredients in large bowl; reserve some of the cheese. Spread leek/chard mixture across tart shell and pour filling over greens. Sprinkle remaining cheese over top.

Bake tart 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°F and bake until filling is puffed and just set in center, about 15 minutes longer (this took my oven about 10 minutes longer). Transfer to rack; cool 10 minutes.

Mega-fusion: Latin America meets Middle East...

I have always been a great fan of sweet and spicy combinations and the search for a new flavor inspired me to bring together dishes from distinctly different regions: rice with Coca-cola, popular in the equatorial part of Latin America (Colombia and Equador in particular), and the Moroccan-style roasted chicken breast with chickpeas and tomatoes. While the instinct might perceive this pairing as an utterly bizarre combo, my cravings have been fully satisfied. As a matter of fact, the resulting fusion of sweet raisins, cilantro, chicken and spicy garlic sauce brings to my mind exotic Persian recipes of my aunt that were my first ventures into "beyond meat and potatoes" kinds of menus.

RICE WITH COCA-COLA (serves 4)

• 2 T. olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 jalapeno, finely chopped,
• 1 white onion, diced,
• 1.5 c. white (or, unclassicaly - but I prefer this - brown) rice
• raisins - to personal taste
• pinch of salt
  
• 3 c. Coca-Cola

Sautee garlic, onion and jalapeno until soft. Stir in rice and a pinch (or two) of salt and cover with Coca-Cola. Bring to boil and simmer until rice is tender. You want to add the raisins shortly before the rice is fully cooked. Traditionally, this sweet-ish dish is served as a side to go together with meats. I think it is also delicious on its own.

ROASTED CHICKEN BREAST WITH CHICKPEAS AND TOMATOES

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 4 crushed garlic cloves
  
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
• couple pinches of cayenne
  
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt/Greek yogurt
• 4 chicken breast halves
  
• 1 15-ounce can chickpeas beans, drained
• 1 12-ounce container cherry tomatoes
• 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided

1. Preheat oven to 450F.
2. Stir together first 6 ingredients in a large bowl. Put aside 2 teaspoons into a smaller container and whisk in the yogurt - that's your yummy yogurt sauce.
3. Rub chicken breasts thoroughly with the oily spice mixture and place in an oven safe dish.
Add chickpeas, tomatoes and 1/2 c. of cilantro to the rest of the spice & oil mixture and toss to coat. Mound around chicken and sprinkle everything generously with salt and pepper.
4. Bake for approx. 25 minutes and serve with the yogurt sauce and the remaining fresh chopped cilantro.

I am not saying you have to serve this with rice with Coca-Cola, but I did enjoy the combination very much.
I will be curious to hear what you think.

Goat Cheese Shells with Arugula Pesto and Sweet 100's

This is a Spring/Summer recipe...But, today is so sunny and warm that it seemed apropos. This recipe emerged from my attempt to reverse engineer a particularly delicious meal at a now-defunct eatery in La Canada California...Not exactly a bastion of culinary innovation, but this place (name long forgotten) was really lovely. I like to make this dish for parties and serve it with simple veggie dishes like sauteed patty pan squash, fresh greens and wildflower salads, etc. It's so rich, that the recipe can easily feed a crowd when served in this way. It's been so long since I wrote this recipe out (and knew where the paper was that I wrote it on), that I am guesstimating a bit when it comes to the amount of cheese to use. I think this is also an issue of personal taste, so you should be sure to taste the spoon a lot when prepping this one.

I've made some nice variations on this over the years, adding cayenne and paprika and serving with spicy grilled shrimp and corn instead of the arugula; adding a ton of spring veggies and some dill into the mix, and on and on...But, this version is still my favorite. I might also mention that this pairs really nicely with a crisp Sauvignon Blanc or Gruner Veltliner...Sigh, summer.

Goat Cheese Shells with Arugula Pesto and Slow Roasted tomatoes

Arugula Pesto (Can be made 1-2 days ahead)
- Several large handfuls of fresh arugula. I like to mix the softer baby leaves with the larger and more peppery "mature" leaves.
- Good quality olive oil
- 2 cloves of garlic
- Salt and Pepper (gray sea salt is great in this)
- The juice of one lemon
- toasted almonds or pine nuts

In a food processor, blend the garlic, oil and nuts until smooth. Add the arugula a bit at a time, using the lemon juice to keep it moving. Once you have a thick green paste, add salt and pepper to taste and blend one last time to combine. If you're making ahead, pour into an airtight jar and cover the mixture with olive oil.

For the Shells & Cheese
- 1/2 pint fresh sweet 100 tomatoes halved
- 1/2 pint sweet 100 tomatoes halved and slow roasted (spread on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet, salted and peppered, and cooked until mostly dry in a 150- 200 degree oven...about 45m)
- 1/2-1 cup good quality french goat cheese
- 1-2 cups grated gruyere or similar cheese, sharp white cheddar can be nice, but sometimes makes the sauce grainy
- 1/4 cup grated pecorino romano
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 2-4 cups whole milk (Depends on how much cheese you plan on using)
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 clove of garlic, minced and sweated in butter
- Salt and pepper
- 1 large bag of large shells, cooked al dente


- In a heavy saucepan melt the butter over low heat, add the flour and make a roux (whisking briskly for about 2-3 minutes)

- Add the milk in a stream, whisking continuously and bring to a boil, still whisking and reduce heat to a low simmer.

- Add salt, pepper, and garlic.

- Whisk the sauce gently until thickened, and then remove from heat.

- Stir in the cheese until fully melted and incorporated (if you like, you can do this over very, very low heat or just keep the pan on the warm burner with the flame off).

- Taste the sauce and add salt and pepper to taste. Add cooked pasta, you can thin
the sauce with a bit of the warm pasta water if you need to. Stir in roasted tomatoes.

- Serve on a bed of the arugula pesto, garnished well with fresh, halved sweet 100's. If you want to go all out stir in a BIG handful of chopped flat leaf parsley and fresh basil with the roasted tomatoes and add a garnish of chopped kalamata olives in addition to the pesto and fresh tomatoes.

Peruvian Quinoa Soup with African Spices (name corrected by Julio)

This is the soup that I made for Kelly's sweet potato party. I get mixed reviews from people who haven't tried it when I tell them that there is peanut butter in it, but I've made it four times in the last month and it has always gotten rave reviews! It's also great the next day, though it thickens up a lot.


Peruvian Quinoa Soup with African Spices

2 T olive oil
1 large red onion, finely chopped
1 medium red bell pepper, diced (optional)
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 celery stalks, diced
handful of celery leaves, chopped (optional)
1 fresh jalapeno, seeded and minced
1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
5 cups of vegetable stock
2 medium-small zucchini, diced (keeping the skin on makes it look better)
1 t ground cumin
1 t dried organo
1 t grated fresh ginger
1/2 cup raw quinoa, rinsed (i use heirloom red quinoa)
1/2 smooth peanut butter
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
cayenne pepper or dried red pepper flakes, to taste

Heat oil in a soup pot. Saute the onion over medium heat until translucent, then add the garlic, bell pepper, and celery. Saute 10 to 15 minutes, or until veggies are golden and softened.

Add the remaining ingredients except the last three. Bring to a rapid simmer, then lower the heat. Cover and simmer gently until quinoa is cooked and veggies are tender, about 20 minutes.

Add the peanut butter, stirring well to blend in completely, then simmer over very low heat for another 10 minutes, or until the quinoa is puffy and the sweet potato is tender.

Season with salt, pepper, and cayenne, and serve.

For Ariel's Pumpkin Butter fix...

The Great Pumpkin
(in the spirit of hot toddies)

4 oz. hot water
2 oz. Flor de Caña rum
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin butter
1 cape gooseberry

Stir together hot water, rum, and pumpkin butter. Garnish with 1 cape gooseberry. Drink while hot!

Black beans, by request of D

Since leaving California, I continually crave Mexican food...While this recipe is far from traditional, and quite easily made vegan unlike most Mexican food, it is really delicious, easily modifiable, and very, very cheap eats. I usually have it with brown rice, and roasted squash and potatoes...In these combinations, it definitely satisfies my cravings. This is a fairly free form recipe, but those who've eaten it, frequently request it...So, here you go!

Ingredients

1-1.5 cups dried black beans (soaked for 8- 24 hours)
1/2- 1 red bell pepper diced
1/2- 1 sweet onion diced
2-3 carrots diced
1-2 anaheim or poblano chilies diced (optional. use serranos if you want these to be punchy and spicy)
2-4 cups of vegetable broth (I use Imagine Organics No-Chicken broth. You can use water to save $$, but the broth adds a lot of richness.)
1-2 teaspoons coriander
1-2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1-2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon paprika
1- 3 teaspoons aleppo pepper or crushed red pepper or cayenne or some mix of the three
1-3 tablespoons of butter
1-3 tablespoons of olive oil
1/2- 1 cup sweet corn kernels (optional)

Directions

- In a 3.5 quart sauce pan (with a tight fitting lid) melt equal parts butter and olive oil, about 4 tablespoons of fat. If you want to avoid butter, you can just use oil, but the little bit of butter adds a rich flavor that really makes these beans pop.

- Once the oil/butter is hot, reduce the heat to medium low and add the onion, bell pepper, diced chile, and carrots. You just want enough vegetables to add flavor. I usually use 1/2 an onion, 1/2 a bell pepper, 1 chile, and 2 small carrots, but sometimes I add more or less depending on what I have on hand and what I am in the mood for.

- As the vegetables soften, add the coriander, cumin, cinnamon, paprika, aleppo, and cayenne. I don't usually measure the spices, instead I go on smell. As a guideline, definitely use at least 1 tsp each of the coriander and cumin. You should have about 1 tablespoon of the "red" spices, in whatever combination and ratio seems right to you.

- As the spices become fragrant and the onions become clear and soft, add the rinsed and soaked beans. Stir over medium heat for 2-3 minutes.

- Add enough vegetable stock to just cover the beans. Cover the saucepan and reduce the heat to low. Let simmer for 1 hour.

- After one hour, adjust the lid so that the top of the pan is half open and add a bit more liquid, a good shake of the balsamic, and the brown sugar. Let simmer for 30 more minutes.

- Remove the lid. The beans should now be pretty soft, but maintaining their shape. If the beans are dry, add about 1 cup more broth. Let the beans simmer, uncovered on low until the liquid cooks out and the beans are very soft. You may have to add more liquid as the beans cook down to get them to cook to your preferred softness. Play it by eye and taste.

- Once the liquid is cooked out, add salt to taste. At this time, add about 1 cup of sweet corn kernels (frozen is easiest) if you wish and stir until they are warmed through.

- Serve with rice, roasted potatoes or as a side dish to enchiladas, a filling for veggie burritos, etc. These beans are great on their own, with an avocado or cilantro garnish, and with a little extra hot sauce.

Lovely Lavender, Apricot and Pomegranate Rice Pilaf with Fresh Herbs

Tonight, in true Sunday Supper fashion Danica, Peter and I whipped up an indulgent meal that, in sum, contained about one solid stick of butter... This rice was a SHOW STOPPER and now officially in my top-5 favorite recipes. I highly encourage you to try it out. The delicious halibut (courtesy of Peter) crusted in almonds and cashews with a hefty amount of lazy persons' beurre blanc was the perfect accompaniment.


Lovely Lavender, Apricot and Pomegranate Rice Pilaf with Fresh Herbs
Serves 4-6 as a side...But, is definitely worth making a meal out of. In which case, I'd say it would serve 3-4 with a nice salad to round out the meal.

Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 yellow onion, diced
- 4 celery ribs, diced
- 1 garlic clove, peeled & chopped
- 1 cup brown basmati rice
- 2 cups vegetable broth (I always use Imagine Organics No-Chicken broth)
- 2 tablespoons candied ginger diced
- 2 tablespoons dried lavender blossoms
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 big handfuls of fresh pomegranate seeds
- 1/2 cup chopped dried Turkish apricots
- the juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1/2 cup roasted almonds and cashews chopped
- 1/2 cup- 3/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1/2 cup- 3/4 cup chopped fresh spearmint

Directions
- Melt butter in a large saucepan, add celery and onions and cook until soft.
- Add garlic and rice; stir until thoroughly coated with butter.
- Add broth, ginger, lavender and salt.
- Bring to boil; reduce heat to low.
- Cover and cook without stirring until liquid is absorbed (about 40 minutes).
- When rice is cooked (but still has a tiny bit of liquid), stir in pomegranate seeds, apricots, and lemon juice. Stir on low for about one more minute to warm up the fruit.
- Add chopped nuts and herbs and enjoy a delicious, fragrant meal!

Adapted from here: http://www.recipezaar.com/Savory-Rice-Pilaf-With-Lavender-Apricots-66672

The original recipe called for currants instead of pomegranate, far less chopped herbs and chicken broth...I opted to make it vegetarian, and always think more green is better! While the currants were replaced due to my inability to find them anywhere, I think I liked the pomegranate better, it was less sweet, and added a bright, tart flavor that really rounded out the savory quality of the lavender.