Creamy Butternut Spaghetti

Vegans, I suspect, already know about the miraculous richness and versatility of the cashew. Non-vegans, I suspect, eschew the cashew (oh yes, I went there) because they assume that it's some sort of lackluster substitute for real cheese.

It is not. It is brilliant. In fact, in this dish, cheese would be a lackluster substitute for cashew.

Make it and see.

Ingredients

1 medium butternut squash, cut in half lengthwise, seeds removed, roasted, and diced

2/3 cups cashews
Kosher salt

Olive oil

1 strip applewood smoked bacon, diced (optional)
2 large shallots, diced
3-4 cloves garlic, pressed
2-3 pinches dried thyme
Freshly grated nutmeg
3-4 oz baby arugula
3-4 tbsp chopped parsley
4 servings whole grain spaghetti
Black pepper

In a small pot, bring about 2 inches of water to a boil. Add the cashews, simmer 2 minutes, then turn off the heat and let soak for 20 minutes more or until soft. Drain, then place in a food processor. Add 1 cup of the roasted squash, 1 tsp salt, and a glug of olive oil. Pulse to blend, adding up to 1/3 cup veggie broth or water to thin.

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil for the spaghetti. Cook until al dente, according to package directions (you might want to take it out 30 seconds early, since it will continue cooking a bit in the sauce). When the pasta is done, add a ladleful or two of the pasta water to the squash-cashew mixture and pulse briefly to combine (you want to end up with a deliciously creamy consistency, like alfredo sauce).

Meanwhile, in a large pan with high sides, heat a glug of olive oil over medium heat. Add the bacon if desired and cook until the edges turn golden. Add the shallot and sauté, stirring occasionally, for 2-3 minutes until it softens, then add the garlic and cook a minute more. Toss in 2-3 cups of diced squash, sprinkle it with thyme and a pinch of salt, and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring occasionally. Grate nutmeg lightly over the squash and continue cooking for a minute more. Add the arugula and toss to distribute evenly, turning off the heat after about a minute.

Add the spaghetti to the pan with the veggies, then add the squash-cashew mixture and toss to distribute evenly.

Serve hot, sprinkled with parsley and freshly ground black pepper.

Serves 4.

Steak Salad with Lime-Cilantro Vinaigrette

Quite possibly the best summertime salad of all. After all—mostly plants still leaves room for the occasional giant hunk of steak.

Ingredients

3 tbsp olive oil

1.5 tbsp lime juice (about half a lime, hand squeezed)

Kosher salt

2 tbsp chopped cilantro

4 oz mixed baby spinach and baby arugula

2 endives, julienned

1/2 pint fragrant cherry tomatoes, halved

1 avocado, diced

Leftover steak, sliced

Whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, and a couple pinches of salt in a large bowl. Add half the cilantro, then add the greens and endives and toss to coat evenly. 

Toss the tomatoes with the rest of the cilantro. Serve a bed of greens onto each plate. Sprinkle with tomatoes and avocado, and top with the sliced steak. 

Serves 2.

Farro with Meatballs

Here's a delectable twist on spaghetti and meatballs that's simple, hearty, and full of delicious. The perfect meal for a cozy winter evening.

Ingredients

Olive oil

1 shallot, diced

3-4 cloves garlic, smashed

1 1/2 cups semi-pearled or unpearled farro

3 cups chicken broth

Meatballs for 3 servings (about 1 lb)*

1 can Muir Glen fire roasted diced tomatoes

3-4 oz fresh basil, chiffonade

Big handful baby greens (e.g., arugula, spinach, red mustard frisée)

1-2 oz Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated

Slosh or three of the Zinfandel you're having for dinner

Kosher salt

Sauté the shallot and all but one of the garlic cloves in a glug of olive oil over medium-low heat for a couple minutes until they soften. Add the farro and stir to coat. Cook for a minute or two, stirring occasionally, then add the broth (check the package to see how long your farro takes to cook...semi-pearled usually takes 20 minutes; unpearled takes 30. If it's unpearled, you might want to add an extra cup of water at this point because it will absorb more liquid). Drain the can of tomatoes (the juice, without the tomatoes themselves) into the pot, then cover. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until farro is tender (20-30 minutes or according to package directions). Drain excess liquid and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat a wide sauté pan over medium heat. Drizzle with olive oil, then add the meatballs and cook, turning occasionally, until nicely browned on all sides. Add the remaining smashed garlic clove and press into the oil, then add the tomatoes and wine and stir well. Sprinkle with salt and let some of the wine evaporate for a minute, then cover and turn the heat down to low. Simmer until the meatballs are as cooked through as you want them to be (the time will depend on how big they are...mine were giant and they took about 15 minutes).

When the meatballs are done, add the farro to the pan and stir well. Add half the parmesan, most but not all of the basil, and the arugula. Toss together. Adjust salt to taste. Serve hot in soup plates or bowls: Farro mixture on the bottom, then sprinkle with parmesan, top with a meatball or three, sprinkle with basil chiffonade. Clink glasses. Consume merrily.

Serves 2-3.

*My co-op has house-made meatballs from pastured beef that they call Best House Made Meatballs. It's the sort of name that makes you suspicious. Best? Really? Best ever? You sure? But then you buy them, and cook them, and eat them, and murmur dreamily about how very best they are. Anyway, that's not the point (unless you live near the Sacramento Co-op, in which case, this information is very pertinent for what I assume is your life goal of achieving everlasting meatball happiness.). The point is, get some high quality ground beef and make some particularly delicious meatballs, or take advantage of your meat counter if they're good at providing them ready-made.

Lemon Ricotta Orzo with Crispy Prosciutto

Not yet ready for pumpkin everything? Wade into autumn with this perfect blend of zesty lemon ricotta (remember summer?) and toasted walnuts with crispy prosciutto (hello, fall). Surprisingly easy to make, especially if you toast your walnuts ahead of time, and a delightful balance between tasting decadent and feeling light.

Ingredients
For the pesto:
1 1/2 cups packed basil leaves
1 large or 2 small cloves garlic
1 handful baby arugula
1 tbsp pine nuts
1 giant spoonfuls ricotta
Zest of 1 lemon
Generous drizzle olive oil
Slosh white or rose wine

For the pasta:
1 rounded cup whole wheat orzo pasta
1/4 cup toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped
(toast for 7-9 minutes at 400° until fragrant and golden brown)
2 slices prosciutto, diced (optional)
1 handful baby arugula
1 giant spoonful ricotta
Salt

Combine the pesto ingredients in a blender and blend till smooth.

Heat 1 1/4 cups water in a small pot to bring to a boil. Add the orzo and a pinch or two of salt, cover, and reduce heat. Simmer 8 minutes, or 1 minute less than package directions suggest.

Meanwhile, heat a nonstick pan over medium heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil, then scatter the prosciutto in a single layer to fry. Fry about 2 minutes, stirring halfway through, until crispy. Drain and set aside in a small dish.

When the orzo is done, return the nonstick pan to the stove and set over medium-low heat. Drizzle with olive oil, then add the orzo and pesto and fold to combine. Let heat through for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally, then fold in your second heaping spoonful of ricotta. Add a handful of arugula, fold to combine, and turn off the heat.

Serve into soup plates, scatter liberally with prosciutto and walnuts, and serve hot.

Serves 2 with a side salad.

Curried Potato Salad with Cilantro and Ginger

A few weeks ago, while lunching outdoors in Berkeley on a shady patio, basking in the summery summertime, I was offered a bite of potato salad.

"Potato salad?" said the bite-offerer, descriptively.

"Um," I replied.

I paused. I'm not such a fan of potato salad, after all. I believe in the overcooking of all potatoes always forever, and potato salad potatoes are so frequently al dente. And then there's the mayonnaise thing. And the cold thing. And the lack of any hint of flavor drama.

And yet.

Maybe this was THE potato salad. Maybe this would be the moment at which the summertime picnics of my life would change course magically and irrevocably in a blissful epiphany of potato salad perfection. Maybe the secret ingredient was hidden inside this very forkful.

I forked.

I chewed.

I marveled at how very much this potato salad tasted exactly like every other potato salad I had ever tried in the history of summertime picnics.

Enough was enough. I was tired of being a passive potato salad bystander, sitting wistfully on the sidelines of summertime picnic history. It was time to act. It was time to make this.

It is in many ways, as you will see, the anti-potato salad potato salad. No mayonnaise. No white potatoes. Bursting with flavor. And best of all, delightfully overcooked.


Ingredients
1.25 lbs yellow or purple potatoes
Rounded 1/2 tsp black or yellow mustard seeds, lightly toasted in a pan until fragrant (about 30 seconds)
4 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
Scant 1 tsp good quality curry powder
1/4 tsp kosher salt
Handful cilantro, chopped (about 2 1/2 tbsp)
Small handful baby arugula, chopped
2-3 scallions, sliced

Bring a pot of water to boil for the potatoes, then boil 15-25 minutes until the skins split and the potatoes are very tender (i.e., delightfully overcooked). Drain, rinse with cold water or an ice bath to cool, and peel (the skins should pull off easily).

Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, curry powder, ginger, and salt. Put the peeled potatoes in a bowl and break apart into bite-sized pieces with a fork, then drizzle with the curry mixture and toss to coat evenly. Sprinkle in the mustard seeds, cilantro, arugula, and scallions, tossing gently to mix evenly. Adjust seasonings to taste (the spice of the curry, tang of the vinegar, and cilantro-y-ness of the cilantro should balance each other out -- if one seems to be missing from the flavor, add a bit more. If the flavor just seems muted overall and you want to make it louder, sprinkle in a bit more salt).

Cover the bowl and leave in the fridge to chill while the flavors blend until you're ready to eat.

Serves 3-4.

Foolproof Fusilli: All Roads Lead to Pesto

This, my friends, is a don’t worry dish. As in: Don’t worry. It will all turn out just fine.

Ingredients

3 cups corkscrew pasta (best: Eden Organic Kamut spirals*)

Olive oil

3-inch piece green garlic or 1 medium clove garlic

2 cups lightly packed fresh basil leaves**

¾ cups, rounded, coarsely grated Parmigiana Reggiano

A rounded ¼ cup lightly toasted pine nuts

1 medium leek, white and light green parts, halved lengthwise, rinsed well, and sliced into half rings

1 large zucchini, diced

1 can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

Slosh white wine

½ pint cherry tomatoes, halved and sprinkled lightly with salt to draw out the flavor***

2-3 handfuls baby arugula****

Kosher salt

 

Bring a pot of salted water to boil for the pasta and cook according to package directions (you might want to start it about midway through cooking the zucchini, below).

In a food processor,***** combine ¾ cups olive oil with the garlic, basil, parmesan, and pine nuts. Blend until smooth, try a bit, and adjust ingredients to taste if needed.

Saute the leek in olive oil till soft over medium low heat, about 8 minutes. Add zucchini, raise heat a bit, cook, stirring only occasionally, for 5-10 minutes (the time will depend on how big your dice is) until the zucchini is just tender. If it browns here and there, all the better.

When the zucchini is al dente, add the beans and a sprinkling of salt and stir to combine. Continue to cook, stirring, for another couple minutes, then add a splash of wine to keep it from drying out. Stir once or twice, fold in the tomatoes and about half of the pesto, and turn off the heat. Stir in the arugula.

After draining the pasta, toss with about two thirds of the remaining pesto (enough to lightly coat it). Serve into soup plates, top with the sauce, and serve immediately.******

Serves 2-3.

*Not available in your area? Don’t worry. Any other corkscrew pasta will work just fine.

**Unexpected run on basil in your local grocery store? Don’t worry. Half parsley and half arugula. Trust me.

***Not available yet at your farmer’s market? Don’t worry. Dice a regular tomato or two instead.

****Forgotten in the cart/in the fridge/on the counter? Don’t worry. Tastes just fine without it.

*****Mysteriously misplaced? Don’t worry. Pulse in the blender.

******Guests stuck in traffic? Don’t worry. Leave covered in the pan on the stove. Or nuke in the microwave. Magic.

                                

Toasted Prosciutto and Brie Sandwiches with Sauteed Pear and Thyme

In the mood for something decadent? Look no further. A perfect holiday sandwich. Or morning sandwich. Or evening sandwich. Anytime, really. Especially as an antidote to a gray wintry day.

For a variation on the theme, or if you can't get your hands on a pear that's even halfway ripe, sub sliced apple for the pear and add a pinch of lemon zest.

Ingredients (per person)
1/2 - 1 red or green d'Anjou pear, peeled, sliced, and cut lengthwise into 1/2" strips
1/2 tbsp butter (optional)
1/2 tsp honey
2-3 pinches minced fresh thyme
2 slices sourdough bread (like Village Bakery's walnut levain)
Several thin slices brie or triple-cream (like Cowgirl Creamery's blissfully decadent Mt. Tam)
2 slices prosciutto
1 small handful baby arugula
Olive oil

Heat a pan over medium-low heat. Add the butter (or sub olive oil, if you prefer), then add the pear and sauté, stirring, for 2-3 minutes. Add the honey and stir to coat, then sprinkle lightly with thyme. Continue cooking another minute or three until the pears are soft (they should bend easily). Remove from the heat and set aside.

Assemble your sandwich: Cover a slice of bread with slices of brie in a single layer, then the
prosciutto, your arugula, and finally the pear. Top with the second slice of bread.

Use a paper towel to wipe out your pan, then heat it over medium heat. Drizzle with olive oil, then set your sandwich in to toast. When the bottom is golden brown (1-2 minutes), flip carefully and toast the other side as well.

Remove from the pan, cut in half if desired, and serve hot.

Arugula Salad with Sardines and Preserved Lemon

You know the saying. When life—in, say, the form of two lovely dinnertime hosts who have just plied you with roasted pastured chicken and grilled eggplant and zucchini from their garden and just-plucked tomatoes and homemade pâté and a veritable panoply of stunning wines and a wide night sky pinned up with constellations, into which a shooting star slips, sudden and silent, as if from another world—when that life, goes the saying, hands you a jar of preserved lemons, you go home and you make lots of things that involve preserved lemon the next day.

 

Okay, maybe that's not the saying. It lacks a certain ring. But it's true. The corollary is, when life in any form does not hand you preserved lemons, you make your own. (Shortcut here). And then, in either case, you make lunch.

Lunch, since you asked, should be this.

Ingredients
4-5 oz baby arugula
Good quality olive oil
About 1 tbsp preserved lemon, chopped
Fleur de sel (or sub kosher salt)
1 medium carrot, coarsely grated
1/2 cup canned navy beans, rinsed and drained
Liberal scattering sprouted sunflower seeds*
2 tins sardines, drained**
Freshly ground black pepper

Drizzle arugula with olive oil, sprinkle with the preserved lemon, and toss well. (Use enough oil to lightly coat the leaves. I just do this directly on the plates, using my hands, or you could do it in a bowl and then arrange beds on the plates).

Sprinkle lightly with salt, then scatter liberally with carrot, navy beans, and sunflower seeds. Top with sardines and freshly ground black pepper.


Serves 2 for a light summertime meal, and pairs well with a cold glass of Torrontés.



*Available at Costco.

**Current favorites: Wild Planet Pacific sardines in extra virgin olive oil with lemon.

Mostly Plants in a Hurry: One-Pot Pasta with Arugula and Lemon

Lately, work has been similar in sensation to a whirpool caught inside a vortex trapped beneath a swamp. Cooking, let alone cleaning up afterward, starts to seem like an insurmountably effortful undertaking when viewed from the tail end of a 14-hour day.

Enter the one-pot, quick-and-easy dinner menu. It may not result the sort of a swooning state of culinary bliss or eye-catching aesthetic that you would seek when planning a dinner party. But it's tempting enough to remind you that you're hungry, envegetabled* enough to keep you healthy, and most importantly, barely more work than nuking a pre-made, over-processed microwave meal.

Here's one, for next time you're feeling underwater.

 

Ingredients
1 - 1 1/2 cups whole wheat corkscrew pasta
1/3 can chickpeas (optional, but a good way to sneak in a bit more protein)
2-3 handfuls baby arugula
Good quality olive oil
A little Stilton, crumbled (or sub your favorite blue cheese or grated Parmesan)
Meyer lemon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Boil the pasta in salted water per package directions, until al dente. If you have a smaller pot with a lid that drains, it will boil faster and make draining the pasta that much easier.

Add the chickpeas, then drain with the pasta. Return to pot. Drizzle with olive oil, toss with the arugula, and wait a minute for the arugula to wilt. Stir in the cheese (enough to impart a hint of flavor to each bite). Squeeze lemon liberally, and top with freshly ground black pepper.

Re-energizes 1.

*is too a word.

Smoked Salmon Benedictless

Few things make me happier than the blissful combination of smoked salmon and poached egg.

I feel obliged to note that these lack Hollandaise, because while I want to believe in principle that there is some context in which I would appreciate Hollaindaise sauce, I have not yet found it. Here, the molten egg yolk makes its own sauce, and blends perfectly and richly with the smoked salmon. Tomatoes can provide the slight tang that you'd usually get from lemon in the Hollaindaise, and the tastes end up balancing perfectly.

If you can't picture yourself poaching an egg without calamity striking, go here for a lovely and reassuring tutorial (I do mine slightly differently, but the basics are the same and she has great pictures).

Ingredients, per toast
1 pastured egg
1/2 english muffin or slice of good bread, lightly toasted
Olive oil
1-2 slices smoked salmon
A few leaves baby arugula or spinach (optional)
A few cherry tomatoes, halved (optional)
Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper

Heat 2-3 inches of water in a pan (a wide saute pan is best—it lets you lower the egg from just above the water). Meanwhile, break the first egg into a small dish.

As soon as little bubbles coat the inner surface of the pan (before the water starts to simmer—go here for a picture), make a gentle whirlpool in the water by stirring in a circle with a spoon or rubber spatula. Lower the egg dish above the water and slide the egg into the center of the whirlpool. Adjust the heat down a bit to maintain the water at just below a simmer, and let the egg cook for 3 to 3 1/2 minutes (you can very gently prod it away from the bottom of the pan with your spatula if it starts to stick after the first 30 seconds or so).

Remove the egg with a slotted spoon and let drain. Repeat with additional eggs as desired.

Meanwhile, toast the bread, then cut each slice into bite-sized squares while keeping the overall shape of the slice (this gives the lovely illusion of a bread slice without the annoyance of sawing your way through a piece of toast for every bite). Top with a layer of smoked salmon, a few greens and/or tomatoes if desired, and then the egg. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and serve hot.

Wilted Arugula Salad with Quinoa and Cherry Tomatoes

Here's an easy, delicious summertime salad that's perfect for a backyard picnic or summertime potluck.

Ingredients
1 cup quinoa, rinsed, soaked for 20 minutes, and drained
4 big handfuls baby arugula
Olive oil
6-8 tbsp balsamic vinegar, reduced
(simmer uncovered over low heat until volume reduces by half)
1/2 basket cherry tomatoes, halved
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
A little shaved Parmesan or a (mild, firm) goat's milk cheese* or a crumbly bleu cheese

Combine the quinoa and 1 1/4 cups water in a pot, cover, and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce the heat and let simmer 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed and the little quinoa spirals have uncurled. Remove from heat.

Toss the arugula in a bowl with a generous drizzle of olive oil (enough to lightly coat the leaves). Pour in the quinoa and let sit over the arugula for about a minute, so that the leaves wilt slightly around the edges. Toss gently to combine, then drizzle with the balsamic reduction and toss again. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper, then add the tomatoes. Toss once. Scatter with a little cheese before serving.

Serves 4-6.

*speaking of which, if you're in the Sacramento or Bay Area, Quatro Pepe is well worth seeking out.

Easy Quinoa Salad

An easy, healthy, and delicious springtime side dish that complements just about anything.

Ingredients
Olive oil
1 tbsp chopped red spring onion (or sub shallot)
1 tbsp chopped green garlic (or sub 1 clove garlic, pressed)
1/2 cup quinoa
3/4 cups chicken and/or veggie broth
4 oz baby arugula
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Rinse the quinoa well in a mesh strainer and let soak in cold water for 15-30 minutes, then rinse and drain well. (This removes the bitter saponins so the quinoa tastes sweeter. A lot of the quinoa sold in supermarkets is now prewashed so that you can skip this step, but some of the fair-trade quinoa still seems to taste better if you have time to soak it first. The liquid measurements here assume you've soaked the quinoa—if not, cook according to the package directions.)

Heat olive oil in a smallish pot over medium heat. Add the onion and green garlic and saute, stirring, until they soften (about 2-3 minutes). Add the quinoa, stir, and then add the broth. Cover, bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the quinoa has unspiraled and the liquid is absorbed. Uncover and remove from the heat.

Meanwhile, heat a small pot over medium-low heat. Add the balsamic vinegar and simmer very gently until the liquid is reduced by half (don't stand over the pot or you'll get a nose full of vinegar). Remove from the heat.

Toss the arugula with a spoonful of good-quality olive oil. Add the quinoa and toss together (the arugula will wilt a bit from the warmth of the quinoa). Drizzle with balsamic reduction, sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, toss once more, and serve.

Serves 2.

Cannellini Spread with Garlic and Cilantro

Quick, easy, delightful, and tastes like springtime on a plate.

Ingredients

Olive oil

1 shallot, sliced

3 cloves garlic, smashed

Salt

1 can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

Handful fresh cilantro

Dash or four of ground cumin

Dash or two of paprika

1/2 tsp Aleppo pepper (or sub 1 pinch cayenne pepper)

Crackers or toasts

Optional (but highly recommended):
2-3 handfuls baby arugula, very coarsely chopped

(or sub baby spinach, coarsely chopped)

Juice of 1/3 Meyer lemon

Heat 2-3 tbsp olive oil in a small pan over medium heat. Add the shallot, garlic, and a pinch of salt, and turn the heat down to medium low. Saute for about 3 minutes or until the garlic softens, then remove from the heat.

Combine the cannellini beans, shallot-garlic mixture (with the oil), and cilantro in a Cuisinart and blend until smooth. Add a dash or four of ground cumin, a touch of paprika, and the Aleppo pepper, and blend again. Taste and adjust salt, cumin, paprika, and cilantro as needed (you want the cilantro taste prominent but not overpowering, and the cumin and paprika as more of a background note. If you like the balance of flavors but want to bring them out more, add a little salt).

Toss the baby arugula with a light drizzle of olive oil and Meyer lemon juice, if desired, and arrange in a ring on a plate or soup bowl. Add the spread to the middle, and serve with stone ground whole wheat crackers.

Serves 2 for a light lunch or 4-6 for appetizers.

Wine pairing: Tapiz Torrontés

Smoked Bacon and Mushroom Risotto

When I was young, my mother informed me that bacon is a vegetable. (So is chocolate.) As a loving and obedient daughter (note that comments from relatives have apparently been disabled on this post; no idea how that happened), I accepted this information without question and defend it to this day. Vociferously. Violently, if necessary.

Seriously, don't test me...I have a fork.

Unlike tomatoes and avocados and other bewildering plant products that vacillate daily between fruit and vegetable allegiances, bacon has always stayed true to its original vegetable classification. Possibly this is because I plug my ears when people talk about it as a (LALALALAICAN'THEARYOUhey can you pass the bacon, please?)

The secret to this most heroic of vegetables is Niman Ranch. Niman Ranch bacon is kind of like other bacon, only approximately six times more bacony and amazing and smoky and delicious. Which means that instead of six strips of bacon in a risotto like this one, you only need two to produce a doubly wonderful, rich, applewood-infused, creamy risotto with deep bacon undertones and silky mushroom overtones and...well, you should really just go make it yourself, and then we can rave about it together.

Ingredients
2 strips Niman Ranch applewood smoked bacon, sliced crosswise
28 oz chicken and/or veggie broth
Olive oil
1 shallot, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 clove garlic, smashed
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 rounded cup Arborio rice
Few sloshes sherry
10 oz crimini mushrooms, sliced
5 oz shiitake mushrooms, sliced a bit thicker than the crimini
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup (1-2 oz) grated Parmesan cheese
3 oz baby arugula
1 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley

Heat a dutch oven over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook about five minutes, stirring occasionally, until it starts to turn golden brown in places. Remove with a slotted spatula onto a plate lined with a paper towel. Use another paper towel to soak up a bit of the extra bacon grease, so that there's about 1-2 tbsp left in the pot.

Add 1 tbsp olive oil and the shallot and saute for a minute, then stir in the garlic, about two-thirds of the thyme, and a pinch of salt and saute for a couple minutes more. Add the rice and stir to coat the grains. After another minute, add a slosh or two of sherry and cook, stirring, until the rice soaks it up.

Begin adding broth by the ladleful, stirring routinely until the excess liquid is gone before adding more and adjusting the heat down a little if necessary (you want a definite simmer when you stop stirring, with small bubbles here and there, rather than a full-on boil).

Meanwhile, heat a wide pan over medium heat. When hot, add a glug of olive oil, then the smashed clove of garlic. Let simmer in the oil for about a minute. Add the mushrooms (you can add half now and half in a minute if the pan's a little too small for all at once) and stir to coat. Saute, stirring occasionally, for a couple minutes until the mushrooms start to brown a little. Add a pinch of salt, the rest of the thyme, and some freshly ground black pepper, and a little more olive oil if the pan has gotten dry. Continue to saute until the mushrooms start to release their juices. Add a slosh of sherry, stir to coat, and turn off the heat.

When the broth is nearly gone and the risotto is al dente, add the Parmesan, arugula, bacon, and mushrooms to the risotto and stir to combine. Turn off the heat, add just a little more broth, and adjust salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot, sprinkled with parsley and garnished with a bit of baby arugula around the sides.

Serves 2-3.

Quinoa Salad with Roasted Tomatoes

English, I'm afraid, is not something that happens after you eat this salad.

Foodie coma of happiness, yes. Just not the writing thing. Please excuse. Make this. Tastebud zingy whatnot blissful mm. You'll see.

Ingredients

Olive oil

1 lb small globe or cherry tomatoes, cut in half crosswise

Kosher salt

1 cup red and/or white quinoa, soaked for 10-20 minutes in cold water and drained well

4 oz baby arugula 

Handful purslane (optional—a good use for it if you've planted some to have on hand)

4 tbsp balsamic vinegar, simmered until volume is reduced by half

Freshly ground black pepper

10-20 fresh basil leaves, chiffonade

 

For cherry tomatoes: Preheat oven to 300°. Toss tomatoes gently in a bowl with a little olive oil and a pinch or two of salt. Pour onto a nonstick baking sheet, spread into a single layer, and turn face up. Roast for 30-35 minutes.

For small globe tomatoes:  Preheat oven to 325°. Turn tomatoes face up on a nonstick baking sheet, and drizzle with a little olive oil. Roast for 30 minutes, then sprinkle with salt and turn the oven down to 300°. Cook for another 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine the quinoa with a little less than 1 1/4 cups of water in a pot. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to low and simmer for 15 minutes. If there is a little extra liquid at the bottom at the end, simply uncover the pan, turn the heat up to medium, and simmer for another minute or two until liquid evaporates. Turn off the heat and cover to keep warm.

Drizzle the greens lightly with olive oil, toss, and sprinkle with a pinch or two of salt. Add the quinoa and toss gently (the heat of the quinoa will wilt the greens very slightly). Serve onto plates. Top with roasted tomatoes (warm or room temperature), drizzle with balsamic reduction, and sprinkle with basil and black pepper.

 

Serves 2-4. Pair with a small plate of crackers and good cheese and a glass of your favorite wine for an absolutely mouthwatering picnic. And note that while the tomatoes take awhile to roast, this is a surprisingly easy meal to assemble.

Baby Arugula Salad with Grilled Peaches and Strawberries

If you're making this pizza, this salad almost makes itself. If you're not making a grilled peach pizza, you need to (a) think carefully and deeply about why you would deny yourself such indescribable happiness and (b) decide to make one after all. But let's say your flour has been abducted by muffin-obsessed aliens and it's a national holiday and your neighbors have locked their doors and shuttered their windows in a selfish strategy to hoard all their own flour for their own grilled pizzas and they've removed the ladder that used to go up to your Plan B secret entrance on their second floor so you really, really, really can't make any pizza. None at all.

In that case, you are allowed to make this salad without its grilled pizza accompaniment. Note that you can use just peaches or just strawberries or both, depending on what the aliens have left you. And sorry about the aliens. And the paranoid flour-hoarding neighbors. Especially if I'm one of them.

Ingredients
2-3 handfuls baby arugula
Olive oil
1 handful of strawberries, halved lengthwise and sliced
Half a peach, or two halves, grilled and sliced
A couple slices of prosciutto, torn or cut into pieces or strips (optional)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 pinches chopped fresh rosemary, or more to taste
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar, simmered until volume reduces by half

Toss the arugula in enough olive oil to coat very lightly, sprinkle in a pinch of rosemary, then arrange on salad plates. Top with the fruit and add prosciutto here and there if desired. Sprinkle with another pinch of rosemary, a pinch of salt, and some freshly ground pepper, and drizzle with balsamic reduction.

Serves 2.

Grilled Pizza with Peaches and Prosciutto

I am, at present, approximately 37 parts ecstatic to 2 parts distraught. C'est la vie, you will say, if you are prone to saying things in French while browsing online—it's happiness and sadness, the yin and the yang, the pot and the kettle—you can't have one without the other. But I maintain that, had someone informed me earlier that you can grill pizza, the two parts distraught could have been entirely avoided.

As it is, I am left to bask happily in the warm grilled glow of warm grilled pizza, smiling dazedly in delight, planning future multitudes of grilled pizza evenings...while heroically trying to overcome the terrible knowledge of the lost opportunities of ungrilled pizzas past.

If you'd care to join me, I'll be jubilantly drowning my sorrows in a slice of grilled pizza. Did I mention? It's possibly probably the most amazing thing on earth.

Bonus: For almost no additional work, you can throw together a mouthwatering side salad using some of the leftover pizza ingredients if you set aside a bit extra. (Just grill two peaches instead of one, set aside a couple extra handfuls of baby arugula and a little extra chopped rosemary, and reduce 4 tbsp of balsamic vinegar rather than 3—then follow the recipe here).

Ingredients
Crust:
1 tsp dry active yeast
1/2 cup warm water (about 110 degrees F)
1/4 tsp sugar
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp stone-ground whole wheat bread flour
3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp plus one pinch salt
3 pinches chopped fresh rosemary leaves (2-3 sprigs)
2 pinches lemon zest (grated on a microplane, else very finely minced)
Coarsely-ground cornmeal
Olive oil for brushing

Top:
1 small clove garlic, pressed
4 oz grated Monterey jack cheese
A little grated parmesan
2 oz prosciutto
1 peach, halved along the seam, cut side dipped lightly in granulated sugar, and grilled
2 handfuls baby arugula, divided
Pinch chopped rosemary
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Black pepper to top (optional)

Follow the instructions in this recipe to prepare the pizza dough (or use store-bought dough if you must, but making your own is easier than you think, way healthier, and deeply delectable).

After you grill the peaches, leave your grill set on high. Let the peach halves cool for a few minutes, then slice fairly thinly.

Meanwhile, heat 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar in a small pot over medium-low heat. Simmer until volume is reduced by half, then remove from the heat and set aside. Make sure the rest of the toppings are prepared and ready to go, so that you can top the pizza quickly (the cheese needs to melt from the heat of the grilled crust).

Sprinkle a wooden cutting board with cornmeal. Take the pizza dough out of the bowl and gently form a ball, then place on the cutting board and begin gently pressing and stretching it outward to form a flat pancake. You want to end up with a flat disc that's about 12" in diameter.

Lightly flour a rimless cookie sheet, pizza peel, or one of those flexible plastic cutting boards. Flip the disk of pizza dough onto it so the cornmeal side is facing up.

Ball up a paper towel tightly, dip it in olive oil, and use tongs to wipe it across the grill.* Slide the pizza (cornmeal side up) onto the oiled grill and close the lid. Grill for 2-3 minutes, until the crust bubbles on the top. When it starts to bubble, lift up one side of the crust to check underneath for grill marks; when the grill marks are dark brown or starting to blacken, slide back onto the cookie sheet or pizza peel or a wooden cutting board (don’t use the plastic one now that the pizza is hot).

Working quickly, flip the pizza cornmeal side down (so that the grilled side is face up). Brush lightly with olive oil and rub with the garlic. Sprinkle with cheese, then layer with prosciutto and peaches. Scatter a handful of arugula over the top, and sprinkle with a pinch of chopped rosemary.

Turn the heat down slightly and return the pizza to the grill for 3-4 minutes, covered, until the prosciutto just starts to curl and the bottom of the pizza looks toasty and brown (it will start to blacken in a few spots as well).

Remove with the pizza peel or cookie sheet, slide onto a wooden cutting board, slice with a pizza slicer, and drizzle with balsamic reduction. Scatter another handful of arugula over the top, sprinkle lightly with freshly ground black pepper, and serve hot.

Serves 2.

*This trick and most of the know-how for pizza grilling courtesy of the instructions here.

Purslane Salad with Tomatoes and Arugula

The sweetness of ripe tomatoes sets off the lemony taste of purslane in this summertime salad, while arugula and onion blossoms give it a little kick.

Ingredients

4 big handfuls purslane

2 handfuls baby arugula

1 cup ripe cherry tomatoes, halved crosswise and sprinkled with salt

1/2 onion blossom, pulled apart into strands (or sub 1-2 tbsp finely chopped spring onion or red onion)

Nasturtium flowers for garnish (optional)

 Vinaigrette

Good-quality extra virgin olive oil

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1 large spoonful sherry vinegar

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Pinch or cut the purslane into bite-sized pieces, discarding the bottom of the stems if they seem at all tough when you break them (if the sprigs are on the small/young side, this won't be a problem). Wash gently and dry thoroughly in a salad spinner.

Whisk about 1/4 cup olive oil or a little more together with the rest of the vinaigrette ingredients in a bowl (you want an olive oil to lemon-and-vinegar ratio of about 3:1) until they form an emulsion.

Toss the purslane and arugula with the vinaigrette in a salad bowl. Scatter the tomatoes over the top and drizzle lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle with the onion blossoms and a little extra black pepper, and garnish with nasturtium flowers.

Serves 3-4.

Spring Pea Risotto with Pancetta and Lemon

Next to fresh fava beans, peas are a cinch. Shell a few handfuls for this light and flavorful risotto that pairs them with pancetta and a hint of lemon for a perfect complement to a warm, summery evening.

Ingredients

26 oz chicken and/or veggie broth

Pinch or two saffron threads, crumbled

Olive oil

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic: 2 chopped, 1 lightly smashed

2-2.5 oz pancetta, sliced into short strips or cubes
(or sub good-quality, thick-cut bacon)

1 rounded cup Arborio rice

1 cup fresh shelled green peas

1/3 cup dry white wine

2 handfuls baby spinach or baby arugula, coarsely chopped

Zest of one Meyer lemon

3 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley, plus a little extra for garnish

1/2-2/3 cups grated Parmigiano Reggiano

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat broth and smashed garlic clove in a covered pot until it simmers. Add the saffron, stir once, cover, and turn off the heat.

Heat a large pot over medium heat. When hot, turn the heat down just a bit and add the pancetta. Cook, stirring occasionally, until some of the pieces begin to show a lightly golden sheen. Remove the pieces from the pan with a slotted spatula and place to the side on a plate lined with a paper towel. Remove some of the bacon grease from the pot, but leave about a tablespoon to cook with.

Add a glug of olive oil to the pot and let heat for a moment. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and saute, stirring, until translucent, then add the garlic and saute about 2 minutes more. Reduce the heat to halfway between medium and medium-low.

Stir in the rice and saute in the onion-garlic mixture for a minute or two longer, then add the white wine and continue to saute, stirring, until liquid is absorbed. Add half the pancetta back into the pot, and save the rest for later.

Begin adding broth by the ladleful, stirring the rice regularly until the liquid is absorbed and then adding more. Adjust the heat up or down as needed—you want the liquid to come to a gentle simmer when you stop stirring for a few seconds.

When there is about a cup of broth left, add the peas to the risotto and cook, stirring and adding broth when the rice dries out, as before. When there is one ladleful of broth left, add the chopped greens, 1/2 of the lemon zest, parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine, then add the last ladleful of broth and the cheese, and turn off the heat.

Let sit 3-5 minutes for flavors to blend, then adjust lemon zest, salt, and pepper to taste. Serve into preheated soup plates, and garnish with chopped parsley.

 Serves 2-3.